You say you want a high end P bass but you don't mention why. As some here have already said, you can play 5 different P basses and they will all have things you like and things you would like to change. Just because an instrument is "high end" doesn't mean it will check all of your boxes. It has taken me a long time to discover what I really want in a P bass. I've found some that sounded really good in the store but didn't really cut it on a gig. I own several P basses but the only completely stock one that I own is a Nash and I may someday change out the pickup for one I think I might like better. Another aspect of this is that ultimately a bass is a tool. I probably wouldn't want to take a really expensive instrument into some of the places I play. Enjoy the search.
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High End P Bass
- Thread starter Rifflection
- Start date
I've played a few Lull Ps, and I owned a Fodera Monarch P, and I can tell you it really comes down to how the instrument feels and plays. Past a certain price point, they all sound really good and within 1% of each other in difference, honestly.
Of the different Ps I've played, the necks on Lull, Sadowsky, and Lakland were probably my favorite. If you can, you should really try them out to see what you like.
Of the different Ps I've played, the necks on Lull, Sadowsky, and Lakland were probably my favorite. If you can, you should really try them out to see what you like.
Since few folks are opining on Maruszczyk here, I’ll give my .2 worth.
I play a Frog 5, full disclosure. However, the quality is simply out of this world. The fret work is impeccable. The wiring is boutique-clean and efficiently laid out. The hardware is of the highest quality. The math that went into the design is high-level boutique to be sure. I know a couple of other cats that have played Fodera and they prefer my Maruszczyk. I have played Modulus and Tobias principally in the past, and the next bass I want is another Maruszczyk. It’s just an exceptional instrument, for which I receive tone compliments regularly (aside from the unique body-shape compliments).
Now, I know there are a great deal of top-end P basses out there, and I’m not here to insult any of them one single bit. Yet, if it were me, I would consider the point of diminishing returns on a type of bass that is generally based on a single, original, set of design parameters and electronics. I don’t see the point in buying a P bass built by an Alembic or a Fodera or a Michael Tobias, for example, at 3.5-5k $.
One of their original designs? You bet!
But not a P bass.
From that perspective, a Maruszczyk Jake used at 1,300 - 1,500 or so, or new around 1,700-2k is a lovely sweet spot in the field of Precisions.
Of course you CAN buy a tricked out Jake for 3,500+, and that’s groovy, but the purpose of a P is to do the work of a P.
So I argue that the Maru hits the boutique/high-end sweet spot without costing unnecessary money.
And, I’m wholesale biased in favor of Maruszczyk!!!! Unabashedly!!!
There are SO many great basses mentioned here, you just can’t hardly go wrong!!!
Cheers to excellent problems!!
I play a Frog 5, full disclosure. However, the quality is simply out of this world. The fret work is impeccable. The wiring is boutique-clean and efficiently laid out. The hardware is of the highest quality. The math that went into the design is high-level boutique to be sure. I know a couple of other cats that have played Fodera and they prefer my Maruszczyk. I have played Modulus and Tobias principally in the past, and the next bass I want is another Maruszczyk. It’s just an exceptional instrument, for which I receive tone compliments regularly (aside from the unique body-shape compliments).
Now, I know there are a great deal of top-end P basses out there, and I’m not here to insult any of them one single bit. Yet, if it were me, I would consider the point of diminishing returns on a type of bass that is generally based on a single, original, set of design parameters and electronics. I don’t see the point in buying a P bass built by an Alembic or a Fodera or a Michael Tobias, for example, at 3.5-5k $.
One of their original designs? You bet!
But not a P bass.
From that perspective, a Maruszczyk Jake used at 1,300 - 1,500 or so, or new around 1,700-2k is a lovely sweet spot in the field of Precisions.
Of course you CAN buy a tricked out Jake for 3,500+, and that’s groovy, but the purpose of a P is to do the work of a P.
So I argue that the Maru hits the boutique/high-end sweet spot without costing unnecessary money.
And, I’m wholesale biased in favor of Maruszczyk!!!! Unabashedly!!!
There are SO many great basses mentioned here, you just can’t hardly go wrong!!!
Cheers to excellent problems!!
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For the $ I would get a G+L Fullerton Deluxe LB100 or SB1.I had a Fender Deluxe Active Precision and had problems with it.Bad truss rod right from the factory.I got Sweetwater to take it back and stepped up to a G+L Fullerton Deluxe JB.What a difference in quality and the way the neck fit my hand,fit and finish etc.The G+L MFD pickups sound great and the bass comes with a 10 year warranty and most likely you will pay less than a comparable Fender.
Hard to beat a fender custom shop. I’ve a TON of high-end precisions and I always come back to custom shop stuff. Just feels and sounds right.
Elrick makes a beautiful looking bass. Looks pretty high end to me.
Why not grab an NOS (non-relic, much cheaper) Custom Shop? Why does it have to be the Pino?
Yea it can take me up to like 6 tries to get the strings right on any new bass. Never give up! One of my toughest basses to get right wound up being my BEST when I finally got it. All other strings were horrible before Chromes, then it was perfect, and I don't even love chromes. You just never know.
I appreciate the great advice on this thread!
I decided to go ahead and get a Fodera Monarch 4 Standard Special. Can't wait to share pictures when it gets here.
I decided to go ahead and get a Fodera Monarch 4 Standard Special. Can't wait to share pictures when it gets here.
A lot depends on how soon you need it. Not too long ago I checked delivery on a Fodera Monarch P and it was about 18 months.
There’s one listed at Guitar Center. Here’s the link.
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Unfortunately never played one of Cliff’s but I’ve dug every one I’ve seen & I’m normally a FSO traditionalist. Guilty.
Congrats, can’t wait to see it, and hear it if we’re lucky!
That one would would have been mine last week if I had the cash to spare. If I could have a Mike Lull made to my specs, that's exactly what it would be.I own a Lull Jazz and a Nash P, both are wonderful instruments, and I love everything about them. Here is a decently priced Lull PJ. Good luck on your search[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
I've gotten to play some various Mike Lull basses in the shop and they really are all that. A friend of mine has a couple Lulls (a V4 and P5), I haven't heard him play the P5 but the V4 is great.
What does "high end" mean to you? What is important to you in a bass? Are there reference points of instruments you really like? What exactly do you like about them and where and how would you like to improve?
You have a list of great instruments there, and there are more great instruments out there, so unless you get more specific, this is just name dropping of our favorite basses.
Which I will join in now. Go Maruszczyk!
For me, the quest is almost a contradictory one...the P-bass was/is a utilitarian instrument, where diminishing returns set in quickly. For me, the sweet spot between utility/quality is a CIC Squier CV '60s or a Matt Freeman. Or if it must be a Fender a MIM 50's/60's... YMMV.
The Lakland USA P bass is killer. You can also never go wrong with a Sadowsky NYC. I had the Fender Pino and ended up selling it. The Fender Custom Shop Postmodern P basses are nice. I sold that too but it has a jazz neck. I now have a true vintage '71 Fender P bass that weighs only 8.1lbs and is MINT. If you can find a vintage Fender P I'd definitely consider since you're already looking at expensive basses.
This four basses
- Fender Custom Shop Pino Palladino Precision Bass
- Mike Lull P4
- Maruszczyk Jake
- Fodera Monarch P
have very different nut width. It is very important that you know which nut width suits you.
- Fender Custom Shop Pino Palladino Precision Bass
- Mike Lull P4
- Maruszczyk Jake
- Fodera Monarch P
have very different nut width. It is very important that you know which nut width suits you.
I have no experience with such high end/priced instruments, but to me a P bass should not only sound, but also look like a P bass.
Maybe it's me, as I'm in love with the model and I do think it's the iconic bass guitar.
So exit the Fodera. And also the Maruszcyk. Although that one resembles the classic P bass shape, it just is not. Leaves you with the Fender and the Mike Lull...
There! I've made choosing easier for you!
Enjoy trying, choosing and above all, playing!
