• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

J Bass in rock?

#86
I play 2 J-basses. Squier VMJ '70's version (the maple one) and the '60's fretless (the Jaco one). They sound just great with both pickups full on, but they sound even better if you dial back the bridge pup a notch or two. Not very much at all.

Dialing back the bridge pup, you will lose the built-in humbucking feature, but if you are playing rock music who gives a **** anyway? Once the band starts up any minor hum will get drowned out, and I use a noise gate to cut down on the buzzing between songs.

My perception is that the bottom end comes up quite a bit if you just back off that bridge pup . . . it's not just that it removes some highs from the mix. It makes the lows fatter.

Another reason I love the J-bass is that it works pretty much everywhere I use it. It is just super-easy to dial in a good tone with almost no effort. I have to work harder to EQ my Rickenbacker or Spector into a live mix. The J-bass I can plug in and go, and all I need to do if I can't hear it is turn it up louder. It's extremely versatile. Go for it.
 
#89
askrere said:
Me thinks you're a troll, or very oddly informed? You know Leo Fenders early bass history, have been on this forum a year, and can't figure out J bass use or what a dirt pedal is or notice the tidal wave of sarcasm?

If you have to ask, you haven't played it, if you haven't played it, just go and play it, you'll get the only right answer that way.
Click to expand...

You know, his screen name mentions flea, who's known for playing jazz basses in a funk rock band...
 
#91
It all depends on how you want to sound, I use the Jazz bass because i love how it picks up the lows, and it sounds great with my southern rock/hardcore band. The percision bass sounds good as well, but the jazz just has a deepness the P-bass doesnt have. Its all on how you want to sound
 
#94
Sometimes the bass that is seemingly unsuited for the genre can be a roaring success in the mix. Take for instance David J Haskins of Bauhaus, they were pioneers of the goth rock genre and David J played a fretless P bass, strung with flats, and played with a pick. Any bass will work for any genre, literally....especially the Fender Jazz and Precision basses. The vast majority of the basses on the market are based on the jazz pickup placing and configuration (Single + Single p-up's), so the original will do the job just fine for whatever you throw at it.

A good place to start is a Classic Vibe Squier jazz or the Vintage Modified Squier 70's jazz. There are soooo many options out there to try, I would poke around on higher grade stuff to see if you can get the jazz bass feel with a tone you like best. Ibanez SR series basses (SR500 and up) are beastly and the new Warwick Rockbass basses are pretty beefy as well. If you have a decent guitar store or a Guitar Center by you, go play some and see what you think.
 
#99
2me651ujpg.gif
 
#100
Why not? I've used a JBass for Rock, Blues, R&B, Soul, Country Rock, Unplugged Acoustic, Pop Standards, Jazz, and just about any kind of ethnic music you could think of from Polka's to Salsa and Ranchera's.

I can't think of a style of bass that's anymore adaptable to all kinds of music than a Jazz Bass. With the right set of strings and a good amp it speaks in all kinds of musical languages.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back