sorry this is the only one i have at the moment, pj zone on the left, with the whole family. sorry i cant take the best pics
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Interested in a PJ Bass Sparked
- Thread starter SplinteredSkull
- Start date
sorry this is the only one i have at the moment, pj zone on the left, with the whole family. sorry i cant take the best pics
Havnt played may active basses. But for me the P/J is a very versatile set up. Most of the time I never even use the J. I only dial in a little J if I'm having trouble hearing myself, for a little extra top on the sound.
So Yamaha and ESP are some other brands to definitely check out then, and also some other Fenders. Everyone's input has been very useful thus far. And I think I may do a comparison between a P/J and P bass next time I'm trying things out now.
I have an ESP LTD B-50 which is a passive P/J that feels great to me. You would have to judge tone for yourself. But it's very inexpensive and very comfortable to play - not only for me, but others have tried it and agreed. The newer ones may be active, I'm not sure.
This part of this discussion should be in another forum topic but since it has been raised here, and repeatedly, I think it deserves and answer here. I honestly did not know if a VVT circuit working with dissimilar pickups could produce "weird nulls and peaks" because of electrical component incompatibilities. Given the circuit configuration one certainly could produce cancellations and reinforcements at various frequencies by design. But it is not obvious that a random assemblage of common bass guitar pickups would produce that. In fact it seemed unlikely. Being an electrical engineer I know how to find the answer even if I don't know the answer. So here is a typical P/J bass guitar circuit:
The pickup models are located on the left half of the diagram. The models come from a University of Illinois physics lab that evidently is run by a professor with an interest in music. The J bass pickup model is straightforward. The P bass model is ambiguous because they do not say if the model they give is for both halves in series or just one. I have run it both ways with broadly similar results. The diagram above shows the model replicated under the assumption that the model given is for just half the pickup. The resistors and capacitors on the right side of the diagram are the two volume controls, the tone control, and the amplifier input resistance.
The circuit was simulated with LTspice IV which is a free download from Linear Technology corporation for anyone who is interested. If you can decipher "spice speak" you will see that I ran about 400 runs with the two volume controls advanced about 5% for each run and all possible combinations of those volume control settings. The output plot for all that is below:
That is a fine mess, isn't it? It is pretty much impossible to read any single run with any accuracy from that overloaded plot but it is clear nonetheless that the curves are all smooth. There are no volume dips in any of them that would result from two out of phase signals from the two pickup paths combining destructively. You'd easily see them if they were there and I have checked plots of fewer runs at a time to be sure of that. My conclusion is that the VVT configuration is fine from an electronics point of view. I've also checked the results with just half of the P pickup model shown above and with two J pickups and while there are differences in detail, of course, nothing weird is going on. If you happen to think that VVT works just fine with a P/J or a normal Jazz it is not your imagination.
The only thing that could produce cancellations at specific frequencies in the output is a phase difference between the two voltage sources. That will occur due to the fact that the pickups are located at different places along the length of the string. Each picks up the various harmonics at different phases and amplitudes. That is an unavoidable feature of a two pickup bass and the sound it produces is the two pickup sound that many, but not all apparently, of us like.
The pickup models are located on the left half of the diagram. The models come from a University of Illinois physics lab that evidently is run by a professor with an interest in music. The J bass pickup model is straightforward. The P bass model is ambiguous because they do not say if the model they give is for both halves in series or just one. I have run it both ways with broadly similar results. The diagram above shows the model replicated under the assumption that the model given is for just half the pickup. The resistors and capacitors on the right side of the diagram are the two volume controls, the tone control, and the amplifier input resistance.
The circuit was simulated with LTspice IV which is a free download from Linear Technology corporation for anyone who is interested. If you can decipher "spice speak" you will see that I ran about 400 runs with the two volume controls advanced about 5% for each run and all possible combinations of those volume control settings. The output plot for all that is below:
That is a fine mess, isn't it? It is pretty much impossible to read any single run with any accuracy from that overloaded plot but it is clear nonetheless that the curves are all smooth. There are no volume dips in any of them that would result from two out of phase signals from the two pickup paths combining destructively. You'd easily see them if they were there and I have checked plots of fewer runs at a time to be sure of that. My conclusion is that the VVT configuration is fine from an electronics point of view. I've also checked the results with just half of the P pickup model shown above and with two J pickups and while there are differences in detail, of course, nothing weird is going on. If you happen to think that VVT works just fine with a P/J or a normal Jazz it is not your imagination.
The only thing that could produce cancellations at specific frequencies in the output is a phase difference between the two voltage sources. That will occur due to the fact that the pickups are located at different places along the length of the string. Each picks up the various harmonics at different phases and amplitudes. That is an unavoidable feature of a two pickup bass and the sound it produces is the two pickup sound that many, but not all apparently, of us like.
I'm with Bongo on this one - I've probably owned atleast half a dozen passive P/J basses, and won't be getting another - although active P/Js can be very effective...
- georgestrings
- georgestrings
^This. P/J's do P pretty well, and do J alright. I have a Squier P bass special and really love it. I'd say get a decent cheap P/J bass, it doesn't matter too much what it is, P/J replacement pups are a dime a dozen and you can swap them out and try different ones and even different wiring styles to find what you like. Should be able to find an older 90's Ibanez SR400 for like $150. then buy a couple different pickups to try. I personally love the DiMarzio DP126.
Alright so here's a reverse take. Jazz bass with P bass pickups. Anyone ever played with one of these? Thoughts?
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/JBassBTRBK
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/JBassBTRBK
I own one and I effin' love it! it's one of the snarliest, ballsiest, most aggressive basses I've ever played!!
I just posted a little rant about it about fifteen hours ago. One of the things I really dig about it is it's versatility. To be specific, if I roll the bridge pickup down to "0", I get a decent, if not exact, P-bass sound with all the warmth and "thumpiness" you'd expect. But when you start adding in the bridge, things start getting interesting. Once you've brought it up to "8" or higher, it's already taken on a mean, cannon-like roar. I'm quite pleased to have made it my first brand-new bass purchase. If you can find one, try it out and see what you think.
I own one and I effin' love it! it's one of the snarliest, ballsiest, most aggressive basses I've ever played!!
I just posted a little rant about it about fifteen hours ago. One of the things I really dig about it is it's versatility. To be specific, if I roll the bridge pickup down to "0", I get a decent, if not exact, P-bass sound with all the warmth and "thumpiness" you'd expect. But when you start adding in the bridge, things start getting interesting. Once you've brought it up to "8" or higher, it's already taken on a mean, cannon-like roar. I'm quite pleased to have made it my first brand-new bass purchase. If you can find one, try it out and see what you think.
Hmm; I saw on the Fender site that both the guy from Ghost and Jeff Matz use this bass so I'll take your words it's aggressive haha. Definitely something to try out in person; might eventually want one: pretty cool
. However, I don't know if I'd get it as my next PJ / JP bass. Smooth and warm is more of what I'm going for
Has anyone done a sound comparison between a Fender PJ and a Squier PJ with upgraded pickups? (Both passive)
Yeah, the switch setup makes more sense to me if you want to maintain the "pure" pbass sound. That's how I wired my PJ, and it works for me.
On the other hand, VVT gets pretty close. And given how many other variables are involved in a musical performance, it probably gets close enough for most people. A P-bass with Rotos sounds like a P-bass, as does a P-Bass with Chromes. A P-bass sounds like a P-bass when it's played through an Ampeg, and it sounds like a P-Bass when it's played through a GK. All those variables are going to color the sound way more than VVT wiring, IMHO.
I got my VVT dead on without a switch. The key was changing the volume pots from 250K to 500k. The deal being that normal P-bass has a 250k pot loading the p pickup. When you go P/J with VVT now the two volume are in parallel which gives only 125K even if the J pickup is turned completely down. So I changed the volume pots to 500K which gives 250K in parallel even with J turned off. So that with a real P-ass pickups and 250k loading with J off, the P really sounds like a P because it IS the same circuit and no switch was needed.
I actually DO have a push-pull switch on one volume to change the P pickup wiring from series to parallel. I almost never use the parallel setting though. It does balance the J pickup much better than series, but the P-tone to me is rather thin sounding so the whole idea was sort of a fail.
So it usually stays in series even though the P and J don't balance quite as well.
