Is this the start to the electronic rabbit hole?

[micguy]

What I meant was "brighter than my other Jazz bass with new strings on it". I understand that new strings will be bright, even nickel-wound ones.
EDIT: I waited until I'd played it for a few weeks before deciding to change to the DR Sunbeams.

It's a teachable moment for others, then...

Your post said "when I first got my.....it was too bright".
I think a lot of young folks get dissatisfied with something out of the gate, not understanding that things will mellow out in a bit. From reading string reviews, it also seems a lot of folks miss what should be a well know phenomenon, but somehow they miss that.

As you're up to speed, I guess I was preaching to them. As you were....

 

[Mike Vee]

I would grab an Emerson prewired jazz pot kit, get the Fender Pure Vintage 64 pickups and get some Thomastik Jazz Flatwound strings on there. That will sound like a million bucks - you can't do much better than that all around package right there.

Emerson Custom Prewired Kit for Fender Jazz Bass

Fender Pure Vintage '74 Jazz Bass Pickup Set

https://www.amazon.com/Thomastik-Infeld-JF364-Bass-Guitar-Strings/dp/B00162ZSX0

I upgraded a Player Precision in this manner before and it was amazing.

 

[Mike Vee]

Jazzs can sound thin, fat, clear and thuddy. There is a world of tones in tweaking those 3 knobs. It has taken me 30 years to figure that out.

I’m a jazz bass guy knobs all the way up. Results are bright clarity that some might call thin.

Good luck!

I play my Jazz that way too (sometimes dim the tone) and with TIs into my UAD Apollo > B-15 or SVT emulation into 1176, the sound is rich and warm. Never, EVER thin. Ever. It sounds so good, so record ready, I can noodle for hours and hours.

 

[alex1fly]

Now that I have a few years with the Jazz bass I notice that it can sometimes sound very thin.

I have been told that it would often sound thin because the Electronics in Mexican Basses are not of a good quality.

Just replace the control panel and pick ups with American ones.

Noooooooooooo you're being given very bad advice there. You CAN replace pickups to get a fatter sound. BUT you need to replace with pickups that are voiced to give a fatter-than-stock sound. Just putting in American Fender pickups will not fix your problem, neither will replacing pots.

Here are your options.
1. Get fat-voiced pickups like quarter pounders
2. Get fatness from a pedal like a 10 band EQ or some kind of level/mid boost (mids are where the fatness lives)
3. Get fatness from a bass known for fatness, like a P Bass
4. Play around with neck on full volume, bridge at 75% or 50% volume. When you run them both at 100% volume you lose some mids and thus you lose some fatness

 

[juancaminos]

Start with an active drop in like the J Retro and you won't be sorry. Then go with some quality aftermarket pick ups. If you go with just active pick ups first you'll find yourself with the same weak controls.

I went with the John East set up with Dimarzio pick ups on three Jazz Basses.
I did try the EMG set up but the controls are not active and not as bright...to me.
I like the EMG set on my PJ and Aerodyne just not on my Jazzes.

 

[Malak the Mad]

I've fallen down that rabbit hole on more than one occasion. Sometimes, it feels like I'm still trying to tell the Red Queen to get stuffed and find my way home from Wonderland.

If it were my bass, the first steps I would take would be the least invasive.

1. Experiment with adjusting the pickup heights. Fender gives it's guidelines for their standard setup tolerances, but those are exactly that..."guidelines", not "absolutes".
2. Try a different set of strings. Depending on the brand/style, they can make all the difference in the world.

2a. In one instance, I put a set of .105-gauge D'Addario Chromes on an MIJ Jazz bass to see what people meant by the "Jazz with flats" sound. For whatever reason, it gave that Jazz a much fatter and louder sound, but without robbing it of it's essential Jazziness.

2b. Recently, I wanted to rein in my kicks-like-a-mule Fender Blacktop Jazz. That P/P configuration is a beast, but needed a touch of restraint, so I threw on a set of .100-gauge Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats. The results were magical! It still has it's characteristic "boom & crash", but with just enough of the bite eased up so as not to set my teeth on edge.

@CaribooBass Long story short...if your fretless Player Jazz feels good in your hands, you're at a great place to start. There are several ways to alter the sound of your bass. I suggest starting with the easiest methods first, then decide if you need to follow the White Rabbit down to Wonderland. Good luck, happy hunting and keep your head!

 

[dbsfgyd1]

I need to ask a few questions about my 2021 Players series fretless Jazz bass.
When I purchased her I had never played a Jazz bass before let alone a fretless.

I loved it and still do right from the start.
Now that I have a few years with the Jazz bass I notice that it can sometimes sound very thin.

I have been told that it would often sound thin because the Electronics in Mexican Basses are not of a good quality.

Just replace the control panel and pick ups with American ones.

Before I start chasing my tail on this; is this true ?
I have no experience in this area at all and my Dog has more experience with a soldering iron than I do.

Can I start with the same pickups and add a better quality control unit ?

Before operating on your bass, make sure you explore your EQ thoroughly. Now with truth in advertising, I had a MIM JB I bought for my son that I got back. I replaced the pickups for Fender 62s and it made a huge improvement. So huge, my son eventually bought a MIA Fender PBj and swapped me for the MIM JB.



Any info/ideas will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
c
Clayton

 

[SkylineFiver]

2nd request
What amp is being used and what are your settings or has it been eliminated as the source of thiness?

 

[CaribooBass]

I will do my best to answer the questions for me here and thanks people.

my home practise amp is a small ampeg about fourth watts and it is real nice to play through.

I really have no desire to buy a new bass that may be better for I like my Jazz bass I have now. Feels good in the hands and I have bonded with it.

Problem with sounding thin came from the last rehearsal. This rehearsal is with a different team and a better sound man.

I have a Warwick bass that is both rich and smooth and it is loved by all for the sound. I all ready have a bass that can cover the low grooves very nicely.

I purchased the Jazz Bass for it was at the time, the only fretless available in Canada in the middle of the weird season.
I liked the Jazz bass from a distance and came to enjoy it very much for it being so very different than the rest of my pack.

The strings on the bass now are the Fender flat wounds that came with the bass. It maybe time to change them shortly and that is the first thing I am going to change in this pre-rabbit hole period.

I have been told the best flats to get are either T.I or LaBellas. Not sure about the low tension or high tension part yet.

I will let you know what tomorrows rehearsal will reveal.

Thanks
Clayton

 

[Malak the Mad]

The strings on the bass now are the Fender flat wounds that came with the bass. It maybe time to change them shortly and that is the first thing I am going to change in this pre-rabbit hole period.

I have been told the best flats to get are either T.I or LaBellas. Not sure about the low tension or high tension part yet.

Follow-up question; How much brightness are you hoping to get out of your fretless? For example, here are a few of my experiences. Your kilometerage may vary, though...

• D'Addario Chromes and Ernie Ball flats start off with some brightness, but shouldn't lack in the "thump" department.
• DR Legends were all "thump-thump-thump" with little brightness.
• Ernie Ball Cobalt flats are weirdly bright and occupy a very thin neutral-zone between flats and rounds.

 

[monti2889]

Sometimes a thin percussive sound is what the music calls for. The jazz bass being able to fit that bill, I think is why it's such a popular choice. You can thicken the sound of any instrument without changing the pick-ups. it is a rabbit hole to chase tone by replacing components. When, at times, all that's needed is an adjustment of a knob or height of a pickup. I knew a guitar player once, that was chasing tone....put 3 different sets of pickups in his guitar...was still unhappy, until the sales guy brought over a 15000$ Gibson (it was vintage) and compared the two for him, there was minimal differences between the two.
Ive since just changed components for asthetic reasons.

 

[Guitalia]

If I was ever inclined to worry about the stock pickups in one of my basses, I was cured of the urge by reading all the Talkbass threads where no one can even agree which brand of bass was played by, e.g., Paul McCartney or Geddy Lee for a particular studio recording.

 

[swink]

Problem with sounding thin came from the last rehearsal. This rehearsal is with a different team and a better sound man.

I have a Warwick bass that is both rich and smooth and it is loved by all for the sound.

Did you use both basses during that rehearsal?
Is the Warwick Active? Hotter than your Jazz?
Both basses might require a different gain-level to dial in.... (which is normal.)
Before chasing rabbits, talk to the better sound man....
Sometimes it's not the bass, but the guy in charge of the knobs.

 

[CaribooBass]

I did not use the Warwick last rehearsal I used the Jazz bass. Thus the question here.
The thing being wondered is did the sound man in training use the Warwick presets?
That will be answered tonight.

 

[pepj]

Jazz basses can be notoriously thin but not in a bad way.
Its what gives it the range of sounds.
I sorted mine with my amp.
I dont think the inherrent sound of the bass is the point of issue although thats not to say those pickups are good enough.
What amp, and are the issues there with different amps?

FWIW, mids on amps are not all the same. ime.
Some are harsh, and unusable.

 

[CaribooBass]

More experienced sound man made all the difference in the world.
My Jazz bass was back to her regular self. The strings are three years old now and I might change those out soon.

I just have to get more understanding of what flat wound strings offer in each brand and take it from there and try them out.

Thanks for all the posts, your ideas and taking your time to do so.

Clayton.

 

[Lobster11]

More experienced sound man made all the difference in the world.
My Jazz bass was back to her regular self. The strings are three years old now and I might change those out soon.

I just have to get more understanding of what flat wound strings offer in each brand and take it from there and try them out.

Thanks for all the posts, your ideas and taking your time to do so.

Clayton.

Thanks for the update.

I wonder if the other sound guy was a little overenthusiastic with the HPF on your channel. That would certainly explain a "thin" sound.

 

[Laurent]

Changing the electronic will yield a marginal gain in tone, if any on a MIM bass. What they have on these basses is fine.

More tone will be gained by changing strings (or sometimes on old flatwounds, cleaning them with rubbing alcohol does the trick) or by upgrading pickups.

If you have several basses, you might want to learn how to solder. Basic equipment is inexpensive and it's really useful. Practice a lot first before you tackle pickup switches or electronic upgrades.

 

[Geri O]

Jazzs can sound thin, fat, clear and thuddy. There is a world of tones in tweaking those 3 knobs. It has taken me 30 years to figure that out.

I’m a jazz bass guy knobs all the way up. Results are bright clarity that some might call thin. I solved it with an onboard preamp and a wee bit of bass boost. If I had simply rolled off some of that tone knob I probably would have ended up in the same place.

Good luck!

This is how I approached most Jazz bass tones on passive Jazz basses. The active Jazz basses were set to pups 100% (or 50/50 with a blend pot) and treble set at flat, or the middle detent and bass the same, or slightly boosted. Slightly.

When I installed the John East J Retro Deluxe preamp in my Jazz-style Mike Lull, it sounds like that with all controls in their neutral position. That preamp is my go-to preamp for anything related to Jazz basses.

I hesitate to suggest it for a MIM Jazz bass because of its expense, but hey, it will not disappoint and it's dirt-easy to install. And it helps out any pickups a great deal. I'm using Lindy Fralin singles standard wind. However the tone can be described, scooped or whatever, I've found the tone I'm hearing in my addled old head....