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

[Spectrum]

Here's a great example of Jazz bass tone yumminess.

 

[Hopkins]

A jazz bass was made to be the bass counterpart of the Jazz master, it was never meant to be strictly a Jazz instrument. It will work for any and every genre of music and is one of the most versatile basses on the market.

 

[David Jayne]

Here's a great example of Jazz bass tone yumminess.

Great band, great track. It's worth mentioning though that a HUGE part of that sound is his old school rig. Your're not gonna plug a Jazz into an MB500 and a 410 cab and get that sound.

 

[SirMjac28]

I only use my Jazz for Jazz music so I vote no you should look for something else.

 

[adivin]

A Jazz bass is only for jazz. A P Bass is for phunk. Just ask Mr. Porter.

 

[Pilgrim]

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

It's for about $300 used in the MIM version!

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[static0verdrive]

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.

Same kinda stuff I play, and with acoustics. Love my jazz bass tone! You just cut through thanks to the bridge pickup, the body shape balances well, and the thin neck is awesome.

 

[okcrum]

Two or more pickups give me a tone palette to work with. One pickup gives me a tone.

That's the basic difference, active or passive.

 

[Luckydog]

There is just so much internet mythology in this thread about the origin of jazz basses

 

[Kmonk]

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??

just because its a Jazz Bass doesn't mean you have to play jazz. There are many rock, blues, country and metal bassists who use a Jazz.

 

[Pyrat]

LOTS of people like Chevys...a select few can drive a HEMI. The title of your post speaks volumes all by itself. The mighty P is ALL you need.

 

[joel406]

 

[hintz]

. Had these models come out a few years later, they might have been called the Rock Bass, the British Blues Special, or something like that.

Of course, you can play jazz on these instruments, but they're far from one trick ponies.

This is such a good point, imagine if the jazz bass release got delayed a few years, by the time the British invasion hit, jazz was much more progressive(like bill Evans) by the end of the decade it moved to a funky direction(Miles Davis "bitches brew")which led to fusion, jazz evolved very quick from early 60's post bop/cool jazz to fusion(which IMO also led to smooth jazz).....

The "Jazz" title was simply a marketing thing, it is way beyond a one trick pony.... For playing traditional jazz standards/big band I much prefer the standup anyways, but I do love the sound of the J bass

 

[the harp unstrung]

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".

...and as I sit here pondering (briefly) how to respond to the OP... (I've always found that the Jazz Bass neck gets really, really crowded down below the 3rd fret)...I'm enjoying the musical wo#king off of Dexter Gordon, Duke Ellington, Lionel Hampton, and a young Danish bassist named Niels Henning Orsted Pederson. Pretty good band!

 

[hintz]

As far as a music style, jazz isn't for everyone, but i really dont think showing off is the point of the solo's, to me they are songs within the song......it took me hearing the energy of bebop sounds from Parker , Dizzy to get into older styles and eventually some later sounds, I didn't get it for a longtime even though we had to learn it in college...it was over the last 5 years having to actually play it that got my true appreciation, some beautiful chord progressions like miles davis "four" or "autumn leaves"(check out bill evan version with scott lafaro)......not for everyone though

 

[Mugre]

In regards to the Jag short scale. Those pickups are pretty meh. Especially the bridge. I have a friend who switched from guitar to bass in his covers band. He put some Duncan Quarter Pounders in the Jag SS and the difference is night and day. Of course it doubles the price of the bass but at $300 it's still a good instrument.

On my stock Jag SS, I agree with the poster above. I use the bridge as a tone control. It adds some "clank" and the interaction scoops the mids. Tone pot stays all the way up (usually). My sweet spot usually winds up around 70% the p p.u. and 30 % the j.

 

[Session1969]

Don't let the name fool you because it's the swiss army knife of bass tones, imo. I don't play jazz either but I really like them. I never play a jazz with the bridge pup soloed , just my preference.

 

[okcrum]

The Jazz/Stratocaster were the next new line leading on from the Precision/Telecaster. No one says you can't play on TV without a Telecaster.

 

[pablop]

Jazz basses are for playing Jazz, they will self destroy if you play anything else on them,...;-)
Now seriously;
It is a versatile instrument, it's more about the player than the bass in most cases.

 

[DavC]

sound like your current bass has a P/J setup .. ?? a P-bass split coil type pup at the neck and a single coil J type pup near the bridge ... if both volumes are ' all the way up ' you won't get the noise/hum ...

I have a Fender Hot Rod Precision MIA 2000 ... which had the same noisey thin pup at the bridge ... which is quite typical ... but I do like to use my bridge pup for a more focused sound .. so I replaced it with a Split Coil type J pup ( Fender Super 55 Split Coil ) ... now things are nice and quiet ... and I'm working on adjusting the pickup height of each pup to get a slightly more balanced sound ...

the placement and type of pickup seems to give the P-bass it's sound ... on a Jazz bass the neck pup is a bit closer to the neck and the bridge pup is usually in the 60's or 70's ( closer ) position ... pickup placement does make a big difference in tone .. ! I think Jazz basses give you a wider variety of tones , ... but they will never get the exact P-bass tone .. !!