Only a P-bass?

[GregC]

Sure, good tone comes from a P, but only ONE good tone, really. This is one reason the Jazz bass is, by far, a more popular instrument. Sorry to rain on your parade.

Which tone is that? The Jamerson tone, the Steve Harris tone, the Entwistle tone, the Bruce Thomas tone, the--well, you get the picture. I try to stay out of these P vs J arguments, because I have and enjoy both. But the "one-trick pony" claim about P basses is just hooey, IMO.

 

[Jared Lash]

I was killing time at GC today, playing a really nice MIA P-bass that was only $1,199. The fact all items in store are 15% off for the rest of the month got the wheels spinning in my mind. It would be cool to simplify and just play a P-bass for a while (although a P5 would be even better!)

I think so.

My Valenti P5 (passive with Chromes) gets a lot of playing time:

Would I choose it to be my ONLY bass? Probably not, but I absolutely love having it as an option.

 

[Rocksolid]

Cheese - I know you love the Reggie's. Why don't you get one and be done with it? Authentic P bass tone, Jaco tone without the hum, and I know some will disagree but a Jazz tone is there it just has a little more girth to it! Also has full Passive if you don't want the powerfull eq.

I agree also however that the SR5 is a great bass to have if you can only have one..

 

[roadkill2309]

I think so.

My Valenti P5 (passive with Chromes) gets a lot of playing time:

Your Valenti is also pretty as hell. I've heard only good things about Nino's work, as well.

 

[David Jayne]

Tell that to a record producer. Go try being a session player with nothing but a Pbass and see what happens. Try to land a gig touring with an urban gospel band playing your P bass and see how it goes. I played a smooth jazz festival a couple months ago with a couple dozen big names in the genre. Didn't see a single P bass all weekend.

Betcha Freddie Washington could land those gigs with his P, no problem:

 

[A-Step-Towards]

Cheese - I know you love the Reggie's. Why don't you get one and be done with it? Authentic P bass tone, Jaco tone without the hum, and I know some will disagree but a Jazz tone is there it just has a little more girth to it! Also has full Passive if you don't want the powerfull eq.

I agree also however that the SR5 is a great bass to have if you can only have one..

sigh , i want a custom shop reggie in 4 string

 

[Craig_S]

Which tone is that? The Jamerson tone, the Steve Harris tone, the Entwistle tone, the Bruce Thomas tone, the--well, you get the picture.

No, I don't get the picture . Those "tones" you speak of are product of the studio or the gear they are sent through, not only the bass (get the picture). See the P in my avatar? It's not the first one I've owned. (again) P Basses are limited.

 

[donut]

Nobody is saying the Pbass isn't great. It's just not always the best choice. The same is true of any bass. Sometimes as a player you have to look beyond what your personal favorite instrument is and play what the music requires. That's all I'm saying.

I agree with you on that. I don't think anyone is saying a P is the best bass for any type of music, simply that in the vast majority of cases a P will work very well, sound good within the mix and provide what is expected of the bass in that particular genre.

And yes, you could say that about a couple of basses.

 

[ugufru]

Never had and never wanted a P until I joined a punk band. Now I can't do without it. Being a Jazz bass player, I had to find a Precision Special neck for my Highway One P but after a few years of playing it totally rocks out and fits the bill. I'll admit my Jazz basses are a lot more versatile, but they don't sound anything like the P.

 

[RobEmpire]

ive been leaning towards my Pbass lately....just a great feel and can never go wrong.

 

[Ian Perge]

I'm truly not not a P-bass guy - it very well might be that my first bass back when the idea of a "cheap bass being good" would only make you laugh was a P-bass copy. Among my basses which are the most played are my Mike Lull 4 & 5-string Jazzes and 4 Spector ReBop DLXs (that have bolt-on neck joints and custom Nordstrand Big Singles single-coil pups - my "SpectorJazzes" as I like to refer to them as) the closest I'd say I have to a P-Bass would be my Music Man SUB Sterling. However, like more than a few others in this thread I have been desiring one of the older discontinued American Deluxe Precision V 5-strings - the typical Precision tone but with just enough "growl" from the Dual Coil bridge humbucker (far more/better tone than the typical P/J setup) enough that one day I plan on having a custom builder make me that pickup arrangement w/ Nordys in a Jazz Bass body - I simply find the ergonomics of your average downsized "Modern Jazz" to suit me far better then a Precision body & neck.

Until then I plan on picking up an EMG 40P5 (5-string P in their "40"-sized 5-string Soapbar housing to go with a 40DC (Dual Coil) for my "spare" Spector and see how a "PrecisionSpector" sounds: for only the $105 investment in the 40P5 pickup it sounds like a good tone to have available to me.

 

[twaine]

I have a MIJ 80s Fender P and just about to pickup a new MIA Standard P. Great big basses that sit well in the mix. Have tried Jazzes but the one pickup on a P gives me huge depth and warmth. Adding a back pickup does give more clarity but at the expense of the depth. Does anyone else find this? You lose bottom end when you have a J back pickup? One pickup is a great sound

 

[Eublet]

But the "one-trick pony" claim about P basses is just hooey, IMO.

I agree with this also. It's not a one-trick pony at all. Very versatile instrument that takes EQ'ing very well. What a lot of people don't realize is that since the Pbass is so mid-heavy by default that it can really take a scooped EQ and still sound great unlike a lot of dual pickup instruments.

I don't like getting into the P vs. J arguments necessarily, except to contradict the non-stop march of many who constantly want to say that a Pbass is all any bassist ever needs. I would never make that claim about a Jazz bass, although I do say that if a person had to have only one bass, a jazz would probably give them greater flexibility. If I've worded it differently in any of my other posts, it was probably poor word selection on my part as this really is my feeling on the issue. Load a dual gig bag with a P and J, and the sky is pretty much the limit.

 

[Eublet]

Betcha Freddie Washington could land those gigs with his P, no problem:

I love that sound. I really do. However, the fact that it sounds great in that song doesn't mean that it is what a band leader/organizer will want in another setting.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

I love that sound. I really do. However, the fact that it sounds great in that song doesn't mean that it is what a band leader/organizer will want in another setting.

To further that point, Freddie Washington probably uses a Ken Smith most of the time today.

 

[Chasarms]

. . . Load a dual gig bag with a P and J, and the sky is pretty much the limit.

I would agree. Although, my experience is that a P-J bass, like my ADPV or the many other similar Sadowsky, Nordy, Valenti, etc., is versatile enough for most anything.

You can solo the P and get the P tone, and you have the added benefit of the bridge pickup. I can't get every variant out of that bass that you can get out of a true singlecoil jazz, but it is still pretty flexible. If you could only split that rear pickup, like you can on the Roscoe Beck, you'd REALLY have something.

 

[Nedmundo]

Which tone is that? The Jamerson tone, the Steve Harris tone, the Entwistle tone, the Bruce Thomas tone, the--well, you get the picture. I try to stay out of these P vs J arguments, because I have and enjoy both. But the "one-trick pony" claim about P basses is just hooey, IMO.

I agree. When you consider technique, strings, pick/fingers, plucking placement, etc., a huge range of tones is available from a P-bass. (This is true of all good basses, really.) It might be more limited than other basses, but it isn't a "one trick pony" by any means.

And its range has been expanded with pickup alternatives, like the Quarter Pounder, G&L MFD (in the SB-1 and SB-2), DiMarzio Model P and Split P, etc. These produce a more powerful, full-range split-coil tone, which opens up sonic options you won't get with a more traditionally voiced P-bass. I'd never want a Fender '62 RI as my only bass, but could get by with my G&L SB-2 or an SB-1.

 

[HMZ]

Just ordered a new mia Fender P bass from MF. They're running a 15% off sale ($799 or more) Got the oly white with rosewood and tort pickguard. I have had a Highway 1 P bass and a mia 3 tone maple fretboard in the past. Really loving the P bass sound. GC is also running the same sale.

 

[julieslick]

I play a p now because it cuts through! Haven't picked up the j in months!

 

[GregC]

No, I don't get the picture . Those "tones" you speak of are product of the studio or the gear they are sent through, not only the bass (get the picture). See the P in my avatar? It's not the first one I've owned. (again) P Basses are limited.

Those factors are in play (as they are with any range of J bass tones you'd care to name), but so are string choice and technique--to a larger degree, I'd argue, since they all were recreated live and none of these players, to my knowledge, make/made much use (if any) of effects. Since all these tones are achievable on the bass, there's no need for quote marks, IMO. And yes, I noticed your AV the first time. Nevertheless, your view of P basses appears to more limited than the instrument.

I agree with this also. It's not a one-trick pony at all. Very versatile instrument that takes EQ'ing very well. What a lot of people don't realize is that since the Pbass is so mid-heavy by default that it can really take a scooped EQ and still sound great unlike a lot of dual pickup instruments.

I don't like getting into the P vs. J arguments necessarily, except to contradict the non-stop march of many who constantly want to say that a Pbass is all any bassist ever needs. I would never make that claim about a Jazz bass, although I do say that if a person had to have only one bass, a jazz would probably give them greater flexibility. If I've worded it differently in any of my other posts, it was probably poor word selection on my part as this really is my feeling on the issue. Load a dual gig bag with a P and J, and the sky is pretty much the limit.

It's cool, Jason. There are a lot of folks who say that about Ps, it's true. Similarly, though, there are many who say all you need is a good J bass to cover everything. I don't believe in such broad generalizations myself. Besides, they get in the way of my GAS.

I agree. When you consider technique, strings, pick/fingers, plucking placement, etc., a huge range of tones is available from a P-bass. (This is true of all good basses, really.) It might be more limited than other basses, but it isn't a "one trick pony" by any means.

And its range has been expanded with pickup alternatives, like the Quarter Pounder, G&L MFD (in the SB-1 and SB-2), DiMarzio Model P and Split P, etc. These produce a more powerful, full-range split-coil tone, which opens up sonic options you won't get with a more traditionally voiced P-bass. I'd never want a Fender '62 RI as my only bass, but could get by with my G&L SB-2 or an SB-1.

You said it a lot better than me. BTW, I'd love to try an MFD-equipped G&L one day.