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Musicman or Fender?

ZenG

ZenG

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Dec 13, 2013
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#1
I guess this has probably been covered before...

Just curious.....

Which has the better solid low end sound?

By 'solid low end" I mean that low end with substance and content.....not just " fluffy" low end.....

Don't mean twangy trebles or boxy hollow annoying high-mids..

I mean....solid 100% made-of-steel stomach-tingling low....

Comes down to what pickups are used in both maybe?
 
#2
ZenG said:
I guess this has probably been covered before...

Just curious.....

Which has the better solid low end sound?

By 'solid low end" I mean that low end with substance and content.....not just " fluffy" low end.....

Don't mean twangy trebles or boxy hollow annoying high-mids..

I mean....solid 100% made-of-steel stomach-tingling low....

Comes down to what pickups are used in both maybe?
Click to expand...
These should answer your question.
-Best MM tone iMo Bernard Edward's Bass solo at 3:09
- Best Jazz tone iMo (anyone who could tell me which bassline he played at 2:27 would be great)
- Best Precision tone iMo
These should give you an idea of how great of a tone each of them can achieve.
 
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#3
I'd say a jazz favoring the neck pickup has the best true lows. The P-bass is super thick in the low mids and fills out a mix just right. To me, the lows out of a Musicman are "fake"...the pickup is too close to the bridge and the only way to fatten it is with EQ and the lows aren't truly there...they sound "hyped" or "hollow" to me.
 
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#4
I love my fenders and love the music man sound, and have plans to own a classic sabre if I can. IMO and IME the stingrays, sterlings, reflexes, and big als that have a front pickup are beefier and have that nice natural low end. The neck humbucker they put on those things kick ass and with coil taps can give a lot of versatility.
My fenders are just as versatile (MIJ Jag and Deluxe active jazz V) and the single coil sound also gives a lot of smooth bottom with plenty of clarity.
Most of your big beefy lows are gonna come out through your amp and cab choices. YMMV
 
#7
Having owned a couple of Fender and 2 EBMM single H (Cant speak about HH or HS or...) i will say everything OP describes leans towards Fender rather than MM. The MM will go Lower, Fatter, Ballsier (per saying) with bass EQ boosted BUT what Extreme states somehow is truth. The ballsier it gets the sound starts to get "muffled" and not organic. Thats my 2 cent.
 
#8
I have a MusicMan SR5, a single-coil P and a split-coil P. To my ear, the best low-frequency note definition and articulation is the single-coil P, and it's what I'm playing these days. I'm plugging into a Mesa/Boogie Walkabout.
 
#15
That Fender Dimension 5 sounds like it's got some serious chest hair................very nice....maybe just a tad thin in the higher notes....

But I have to say I'm really liking any of the videos that have an MM in then too......

The thread title was meant to imply:- take any production Fender you can ever think of and take any production MM you can ever think.....as well as anything currently being made for either.
 
#17
Jazz, best of both worlds. Not a P or a stingray but does a little of both. Only problem, not one of them can "totally" cop the other. I know the last part was not what the OP was asking ;) happy hunting!
 
#18
Venomouscontrol said:
These should answer your question.
-Best MM tone iMo Bernard Edward's Bass solo at 3:09
- Best Jazz tone iMo (anyone who could tell me which bassline he played at 2:27 would be great)
- Best Precision tone iMo
These should give you an idea of how great of a tone each of them can achieve.
Click to expand...

That 64' relic sound just like my 08' MIA, it gets all those harmonics just like mine (all up and down the neck and all strings).
 

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