Jazz Bass...... what's it for??

[BAG]

Hey folks,

I'm pretty new to bass after 30 years of guitar and really enjoy playing my Jag Short Scale but i'm now hankering for something else to play as well. I live in a small town nearly 250km from the nearest guitar shop and time to play other basses is very limited. Every time we go to the big-smoke we've got so much to do it's rare for me to get more than a couple of minutes to get anything more than necessities.

I've been pretty much avoiding Jazz Basses so far for a number of reasons. The main two are that I don't like the sound of the J bridge pickup on my Jag and, until I did the shielding of it, i hated the noisiness of it and so it never even gets turned up now. Is the neck pickup very different?

The other reason is that I don't like Jazz music. I can listen to most genre's but apart from a small number of songs that may be loosely classified as "jazz" i can't get into it. I particularly dislike most live jazz I've ever listened to and find it to be too much "musical masturbation" and not enough "entertainment". (I generally think the same about 10minute blues solos as well). Hence the "Jazz Bass" name alone puts me off. Ha ha ha. Yeah..... shallow, I know.

The only reason I can think of for me to even try a Jazz is that I prefer the narrow neck to a P-bass from the quick (unplugged) play I have had of a couple. I have yet to play any through an amp yet.

So is there any auditory reason at all I should try the Jazz bass or should I just save some time keep looking at other styles??

 

[Luckydog]

I guess that all depends on if a jazz bass would suit the style of music you play, and also if you like the sound of a jazz bass. Since you havent told us what styles you play, if you're with a group, what types of music most get your attention, etc, its hard to give you a reason to go for one or to avoid one. And in my opinion, whether or not a jazz bass suits any or all musical styles has little bearing on whether one should run out and get one. Plenty of basses suit lots of styles. What are your influences?

 

[nerkoids]

There are so many factors involved in how a bass sounds, not to mention all the options available... it's difficult to know where to start, really. You might find this ridiculous, but if you're not a fan of the single coil stuff, and you do like the p-bass pickup on your SS Jag. Maybe you should either get a p-bass, or get a long-scale Jaguar bass version.

Just a change of strings, or maybe if you want to get rid of that hum and noise from the bridge pickup, get yourself a stacked pickup from makers like Lindy Frailin, or if you want more inexpensive, try Calig pickups on e-bay. There are other makers out there too.

As for the Jazz Bass... you can use the thing for any genre of music. It's a bass. I get a nice rich, noise-free tone from my Jazz, and I don't play jazz or funk (although I wish I did)

 

[jd56hawk]

My Jazz bass doesn't sound like any other Jazz bass I've ever heard...you just might like the sound of the pickups I put in.

No noise at all, either pickup.
And the closest it's ever come to playing jazz is this.

 

[BAG]

I guess that all depends on if a jazz bass would suit the style of music you play, and also if you like the sound of a jazz bass. Since you havent told us what styles you play, if you're with a group, what types of music most get your attention, etc, What are your influences?

Yeah.... should have included this. I play mainly with acoustic guitarists doing acoustified covers of things ranging from Robert Johnson (Sweet Home Chicago), Steppenwolf, Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones to more modern stuff like Of Monsters and Men and Bruno Mars as well as some originals.

I probably should have asked people "What makes you prefer your Jazz over other basses?" That'd be more accurate than asking for reasons for me to buy or not.

 

[jaybones]

Well, I like my Jazz copy (GF body, MM neck, hardware sourced from eBay and Stew-Mac, eBay electronics, Fender WBW PG, Bartolini 18V preamp system). I also have a '67 Epiphone Rivoli but I wanted a solid body with some more punch. The Rivoli is more of a smooth tone and low end kinda sound (Allman Brothers and early 60's bands).

I shielded the body (all my electrics have shielding) before I installed the original eBay pickups, but they were from Hon Kong and surprisingly didn't sound great. Not bad, just not great. Hence the Bartolini 18V system. Now it has plenty of punch, growl and thump. I play mostly early 90's Seattle Sound (grunge bands- Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, Rage Against the Machine) and some new rock alternative (Billy Talent, Audioslave, Queens of the Stone Age, Fallout Boy). Also like classic rock (Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath) and traditional blues (Robert Johnson, B B King, John Lee Hooker), and never had any problem getting any of the sounds I wanted out of a jazz bass.

 

[BazzTard]

the Jazz Bass is not for playing Jazz music.

I have a Jazz and a P, and while I can use either for any song, some songs seem to like the Jazz more. Rush and Led Zep songs I'll use the Jazz for it's growliness. For funk or sixties and 70s classic rock I'll use the P. I used to think the Jazz neck was so much easier to play,but since I got the P,I can't honestly feel any difference in playability. Both necks are similarly slim,the jazz a bit skinnier.

 

[Mr. Sound]

My jazz bass (2011 American Standard) isn't noisy at all...and I love the narrow neck....(I DO prefer the look and simplicity of the P Bass..but my Jazz is pretty flash!)

 

[Mr. Sound]

Here's some Aussie jazz bass history!

 

[BAG]

That's got some great bass tone, and it's very prominant in the mix, particularly for a live gig in the early 80's.

some songs seem to like the Jazz more. Rush and Led Zep songs I'll use the Jazz for it's growliness.

Is that a part of it, Jazz for growl, P for thump?? Up till now i've felt (on my cheapo Jag at least) that the bridge J sounds very nasal. Is that the J pup itself or just the fact it's at the bridge? Or just cheap

 

[BazzTard]

most bridge pickups will sound thin and trebly, it's coz of where they are

 

[Rio Haride]

I play Jazz Bass for death metal or deathcore. 'Oops, but it says "Jazz Bass". Why you so brave man?'

J Bass (Fender, Sad, Lull, or whatever) cut through easily. That's the first thing people will answered.

Especially in 'metal situation', you want to have a big low mid (around 400 hz, less or more) that J Bass have to accommodate 'the wall sound' and chuggy metal guitar (palm mute ya know). I play guitar too.

Ya, J Bass will work in any situation.

In fact, any solid body bass will work in any situation. That's why there is a EQ knobs on your amp.

 

[Robus]

I probably should have asked people "What makes you prefer your Jazz over other basses?" That'd be more accurate than asking for reasons for me to buy or not.

Nice round bottom with a slightly scooped tone fills out the low end of a mix without getting in the way of other instruments. I play both a P and a J. If the guitars are playing mostly in the higher registers and there's air in the arrangement, the thick lower mid-range of a P helps beef up the sound. The denser the mix becomes and especially the more keyboards and guitars playing on the lower part of the neck, the more the Jazz seems to fit. At least that's what seems to be working for me ATM.

I often have acoustic guitars in my songs. I'm not an expert at mixing, but I find that a P bass tends to slay them in the mix. The Jazz bass lets them breath.

A Jazz bass is not for everyone. You should bite the bullet and make the drive to play one, then decide.

 

[Alba McBass]

A Jazz Bass didn't seem to hurt Noel Redding's time with Mr. Hendrix.

 

[bobcruz]

Just chiming in that I like my jazz bass for any style of music OTHER than jazz. I use a Peavey Cirrus (USA) with soapbar pickups and flatwound strings for smooth jazz. The Peavey is great for most other styles as well but my jazz bass sounds a little more snappy and aggressive and gets the call for rock and funk.

 

[Flaked Beans]

The Jazz Bass was invented by Leo Fender especially for the bassplayers that played in large and small jazz ensembles in 1960! Thats why it's so popular among the jazz musicians even these days (those ones without frets were more popular back in the '70s and usually used for 10+ min. jazz bass solos). On the other hand, back then many rock, disco, country and heavy metal stars were playing sunburst jazz basses with succsess but they have never reached a glory and fame just because of the jazz bass. Precision bassists took all the glory and got their stars on the hollywod walk of fame, indeed!
Soo you can get a Music Man Stingray bass, it has a very deep tone and is completely free of pup noise.
Here's mine:

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[Mr. Sound]

That's got some great bass tone, and it's very prominant in the mix, particularly for a live gig in the early 80's.



Is that a part of it, Jazz for growl, P for thump?? Up till now i've felt (on my cheapo Jag at least) that the bridge J sounds very nasal. Is that the J pup itself or just the fact it's at the bridge? Or just cheap

I admit, I predominantly use the neck pickup and for a brighter sound, the bridge on full and about two thirds on the neck. I am heavily influenced by the tone of my Pbass!

 

[DreadyDiggs]

Flabba Holt and his Jazz Bass. He's since gone to 5 String and I believe his current bass is custom. I'm at a stage where pickup configuration doesn't seem so important. I listen to see if I can get the sound I want. And I'm confident I can find it on most any bass that I choose to put my hands on. While each bass will put it's own twist on my sound, so far I haven't heard a twist I couldn't tolerate. Of course you'll like one more than the other, but you shouldn't think you should avoid one pickup configuration or another. As bass connoisseurs we should embrace variety haha.

 

[raventepes]

I'm another metal player who uses a Jazz, but it works well for just about everything.

To be honest, the Jazz bass is used more by people who DON'T play jazz, than who do.

I love the growl that only a Jazz bass and its copies can give. Mix that with a touch of dirt, and that's some killer tone. If I make some adjustments from my typical settings (amp included), I can get something that's very round and full and good for melodic solo stuff, or get a good tone for country. As with any bass, it's fun to experiment with.

To kind of bring this to a close, the Jazz is a versatile bass, and it's used in so many more applications than jazz itself. As far as 4-strings go, it's one of my go-to instruments. I actually have been eyeballing a 5-string Jazz. I'm not sure if I want to keep it all passive or go active though. I'm also not sure if I want to stick with Fender (I'd probably get a MIM), or go with another brand. The Warwick RockBass Fortress is very tempting.

 

[FretNoMore]

You can play anything and everything on a jazz bass ... throw in an active/passive preamp like a J-Retro and there are all kinds of sounds in there, from the classic jazz bridge pickup sound to all the fat bottom end you'd need. On top of that, different strings give you even more sound options, as does different playing techniques, playing with fingers or pick, and so on.

And you can probably say the same about other types of basses too, I think the clichés about how different the most traditional basses (P/J/MM types) sound are exaggerated; given how much you can affect the sound with your hands, onboard or outboard EQ and other effects, string choice, pickup choice etc, I think finding a bass that feels comfortable to play is more important than what kind of bass it is.