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My Jazz Bass has no balls. Help!

#122
Both my jazz Basses one MIM FSR (C-Standard) and USA Performer (E-Standard) are Growling Beast of low end death! Both have stock pickups. I’m about to change the USA to Nordstrand J-Blades which kill All! The Mexican is magical and will stay stock. It’s pickups have raised A/D poles which I love for bringing the mids up to slice through my mad guitarist like they aren’t even there.
 
#123
Hardbassjunkie said:
They aren't new but they aren't old either. The bass is 2 years old. It should still be good in the hands of a hobby musician after two years no?
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If your strings are older than a few months, try either cleaning them or replacing them. My jazz bass is very sensitive to having old strings and goes from a powerful great sound to a dull thump when they "die". Also it's been mentioned before but check your pickup height. Should be about 1/8" from the string to the pickup on the treble side and a bit more on the bass side. You can use an allen wrench to check this if you have a 1/8" allen key lying around.
 
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#125
M.R. Ogle said:
Listen to the people who are suggesting the Series wiring mod. It's the quickest, least expensive way to get more whomp out of any Jazz pickup configuration bass. Heck, even if you DO change to different pickups, the series wiring will STILL make it beefier.

No lose, easily reversable, inexpensive....
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Yeah, every Jazz I own has a series/parallel switch.. Even though I don't use it a majority of the time, I wouldn't own one without it...
 
#129
I'd go new quality Pickups, (Lollar, Aguilar, etc) with, quality 250k pots and new wiring is the way to go. ... If you look around it might cost $400 installed. ... Less if you know how to do it. ... TB classifieds are full of quality parts. ... But, spend the time to research the sound you're after or you'll be doing it again next year.
 
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#130
BassmanM said:
DiMarzio Model J™ | DiMarzio

Get a set of these pickups. Problem solved. :thumbsup::cool:
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I recently installed Model Js in my CIJ Geddy Lee Jazz bass and it made a huge difference - in good way - over the stock pickups. Also, if anyone cares, I also put a set of DiMarzio Ultra Jazz pickups in as a comparison - the Ultra Jazzes were very good, a bit more "modern" sounding than the MJs. The MJs had the ballsy sound I was looking for. The main advantage is that I don't have to change my amp settings, or engage a separate boost, when I swap from my P bass to my J. With the Model Js installed, my jazz is now *nearly* as loud as my P basses.
 
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#131
I have a mij pb62 and felt the same way. did sone research and learned The pickups are garbage on a lot of those mij imports. The build quality is excellent though. but Also try changing your strings. I've found that every bass I own sings with the right set on it. Just had some very good luck with rotosound 55s on a j style bass. Very meaty indeed.
 
#132
Hardbassjunkie said:
View attachment 3587701

I think they are the appropriate height. Are jazz basses supposed to be more mellow? I like the extra mid range it gives but I just want it to be angrier haha. Like when girlfriend nags me to wash the dishes I can play her a note to scare her away.
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Think? Get a "D'Addario String Action Gauge" or something similar. It's well worth the $8.00 price.
 
#134
Hardbassjunkie said:
I have a made in japan Fender Jazz bass 62 reissue. It is a thing of beauty and has a great neck but I don't know why but it just feels like it doesnt have any balls. It's hard to describe what I mean but basically my precision feels like Harley davidson and the jazz feels like a Yamaha bike. I hope that makes sense haha. So my question is I was offered a Fender Aerodyne to trade for this bass which would give me the balls I need BUT is there a way to get my Jazz to sound more inspiring? A set of pickups maybe?
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Are you using the same amp EQ for both basses? If so, spend some time playing around with it before spending big bucks.
 
#136
mstraus said:
I have a mij pb62 and felt the same way. did sone research and learned The pickups are garbage on a lot of those mij imports. The build quality is excellent though. but Also try changing your strings. I've found that every bass I own sings with the right set on it. Just had some very good luck with rotosound 55s on a j style bass. Very meaty indeed.
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You are like the fifth person to tell me that. I'm tempted to put in my classic series 60s mim jazz pick ups. Plus new roto strings. Won't cost me anything. Worth a try I think.
 
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#138
What you are missing is a low mid boost at about 130-to 150hz. Hard to do with just a bass, mid, and treble controls. Try this. Start with all three set to flat, roll back the treble a tad, boost the bass a tad. It will sound better with the rest of the band playing than by itself.
 
#140
packhowitzer said:
I recently installed Model Js in my CIJ Geddy Lee Jazz bass and it made a huge difference - in good way - over the stock pickups. Also, if anyone cares, I also put a set of DiMarzio Ultra Jazz pickups in as a comparison - the Ultra Jazzes were very good, a bit more "modern" sounding than the MJs. The MJs had the ballsy sound I was looking for. The main advantage is that I don't have to change my amp settings, or engage a separate boost, when I swap from my P bass to my J. With the Model Js installed, my jazz is now *nearly* as loud as my P basses.
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Do you have flats or roundwounds on the J?
 

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