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P or J - Have we all chosen correctly?

#41
I'll try to respond to the OP this time! ;) I think I've chosen wisely, because I have two of each: four and five string J's; a Fender Precision; and a G&L SB-2 which is different, but still in the P-bass family.

My first Fender was my four string Jazz, so the real question is whether I may have been better off starting with a Precision. I don't think so, because while I love P-basses, the Jazz has proven slightly more useful over time.

But before I bought my Jazz, I tried Precisions and thought I didn't like them. I thought they sounded ungainly, boring, and even slightly unpleasant played solo, while the Jazz impressed me immediately.

At that time, however, my ear for bass tone wasn't very developed, and I didn't appreciate the difference between tones that sound great solo, and those that work in a band mix. I therefore did not appreciate the Precision, and didn't realize how well it would have worked for me. When I finally got one, a 1994 MIJ Foto-Flame, I was blown away by how great it sounded with my band. I was all P-bass, all the time for awhile, but I've settled back into a very slight preference for the Jazz on the whole. (Of course this could swing back the other way -- another reason you need both at all times!)

I think many players go through something similar, and simply don't realize how great Precisions are because they don't like the tone played solo. I've heard some players with more modern, active basses in rock bands who would be much better off with Precisions.

In one case, I recorded a live show of a guitarist friend's hard rock power trio, and the bass just sounded awful. It was that "low boom, high click" nonsense from some active dual-soapbar bass, even though he had the mids cranked on his Hartke head. Neither he nor the bassist was happy. I normally don't meddle in such things, but I just said, flat out, that his bassist needed a Precision. Lo and behold, next time I saw them live, he had an American Series P, and they were thrilled with the tone.
 
#43
I have 2 MIA P's. One with flats and one with rounds. I like the Jazz as well but I always wind up dialing down the bridge p/u to make it more like a P. They are both great basses though. Do you like Tangerines or Oranges? Red Apples or Green Apples?
 
#45
I've always played J-basses. They have always seemed to fit my needs and particular sounds that I want, but I have a feeling a P is in my future. One can never have too many good friends or nice basses! Good thread, and good posts!!!
Rich L.
Mediocre Bassist Club (member #285)
 
#47
I have owned a few of each, currently own a MIM jazz and HW1 P. I use the jazz more often (I like the versatility). I've played in dinner music jazz bands, and roots/blues power trios. For me, I've found that the jazz supports the lower volume gigs a bit better for the nuance and the way the bass responds and sounds at lower volume levels, more ways to dial in a sound. The P is limited in its' tonal offerings and, again for me, tends to work better in a higher volume context. The tone of a P seems to establish itself with conviction in a louder band, especially a trio. There's no fiddlin' to dial somehthing in, it's already there in spades! Now, I have used the jazz (or a jazz style bass, JO5) with the blues band and it's fine. I like the thinner neck.

Each has it's use for me, and I'll continue to own at least one of each. Never tried a P fiver, but you never know...
 
#48
Nedmundo said:
I agree that J's actually have more low end. Mine has noiseless pickups, so I can roll off the bridge pickup a little without hum, and the low end just gets huge. Too huge sometimes, as I've found with some recent recording, on which I'll need to dial out some of the boom with EQ.

I also agree the J can't duplicate the tone of a Precision, and that some material is better suited to a P. But my J does the "P thing" much better than my P does the "J thing," so if I could have only one, I'd keep the J. In the rock I play, I can use them interchangeably, and I sometimes think the functional differences between the two are exaggerated. It's not exactly like the difference between a Strat and a Les Paul, for example.
Click to expand...

+1000 Excellent assessment.

I know it upsets tonal purists :eyebrow:, but this is one major reason I prefer Jazz basses.

I play and love both. My goals are better met by the Jazz.
 
#50
Simply amazing how much tone preference changes from one person to the next. I definitely prefer the low-mid slam that you get from a precision.

Played an open mic the other night. The house bass was a poorly setup fretless jazz with only the bridge pickup. I can't remember the last time I've played that badly.:confused:
 
#53
tnscot60 said:
This is NOT a discussion over which is better. That is COMPLETELY subjective, and no one is right or wrong. This is my theory, and request for your thoughts on the subject. With that said....

It seems to me that a P bass and a J bass were each designed to fill two different needs. The P bass is designed to carry a lot of low end, and the J bass was designed to cut throught the music.

It further seems to me that a lot of J bass players are on an eternal quest for the elusive sound, and are oftern complaining about effects, etc that cut out their low end.


My theory, which I would like to open up for discussion is this:
There are a lot of people who are using a J bass, who would be better served with a P bass.

With a compressor and EQ, it is much easier for me to dial in a good high end on my P Bass than it is to dial in and KEEP a boomy low end on a J bass. (This I can say with a small amount of J bass experience, but not a lot) I am actually toying with the idea of adding a J pup to my bass, for further control. But this thread is to address people who play one or the other exclusively.

It also seems to me that people who play J basses, but arent trying to make them big and boomy, are thrilled with the results they get, which furthers my theory.

Again, I'm not saying that a P bass is better. I am theorizing that if a boomy low end is very important to you, a J bass may not be the right choice.

Thoughts? Cmmments?

Please no flaming. I'm not insulting anyone in here, and if people cant restrain themselves, I'll just ignore the thread entirely, and they'll only be injuring the thread.
Click to expand...

The first bass I bought (as opposed to borrowing) was a '68 P, I was playing in what I'll call a rock a billy band back in '73 in Germany. Then around '79 I really started getting interested in "learning music, and learning equipment" In 80-81 I bought a 75 or 76 Jazz, because I had come to the conclusion that the P was a one trick pony. I also started buying every pedal known to man. Through the 80's and probably early 90's I experimented nonstop with different "sounds". Somewhere in the mid-late 90's I started paring down my live rig, ended up still palying the jazz, but was down to an over drive pedal that I didn't use much, and of all things a reverb which fnally left to be replaced with a delay. Still, my main ax was the Jazz, and just last Christmas I got my dream, a CS Jazz, love it, but lately I have been looking at P basses again, playing all I can get my hands on and will no doubt buy one soon. I'm starting to play more "retro" stuff again, so maybe subconcisiously I'm hearing the P, making things simpler. I'd like to think I have just matured, but thats not likely. I'll never put the Jazz down, same with the Hofner, but I no longer think of the P as a one trick pony.
 
#54
i completely agree with the statements that say that a jazz bass is hard to dial in as "boomy." that being said i prefer my jazz over my G&l Pbass because i feel it is more "even" throughout the fret board. i also feel i can dial in a better overall tone that cuts right through my band's mix and sit right in it at the same time. i also feel the jazz bass works better with effects and doesn't get lost in them as much as a pbass.

but i did plug my pbass in this morning and remembered why i loved it, a pbass just has that raw, powerful tone that sounds great and like nothing else out there.

it is true, you just have to have both to satisfy all of your needs, but if you had to choose only one, i think a PJ with the right pickups and electronics could do both styles fairly well.
 
#56
I come at this question from the slighty different (from most, at least) perspective because i'm a full-time pick player... my first bass ever was MIM Jazz, and I still own it. I also have a P bass copy which i've modded and upgraded quite a bit.... sounds pretty darn good with a nordy pup in there. I'll still reach for either bass now and again, but ultimately I was looking for something that seemed to fit my pickstyle playing a bit more, and I ultimately wound up getting a Rickenbacker. It's interesting, when I do play fingerstyle (which i'm not very good at), I find that I love the sound of the P bass. Played with a pick -- and i know this is blasphemy, as most people consider precisions THE pick bass -- it just sounds kinda clanky and trashy in a punk rock kinda way. Which is great when I'm playing a clash cover, but not necessarily what I want in my main band (which is more like classic rock influenced indie pop). I find with a P bass that I have a hard time finding a happy medium between the tone wide open (clanky and trashy) or the tone rolled down (dead, no attack). Ideally I like to hear the attack but with some musical treble. Also with a precision I often find myself wishing the tone was a little thinner, more nimble, something you can move around with a bit more without overwhelming the ear or the other instruments. With a jazz I have the opposite problem. There's a lot more control over the tone due to the dual pickups, but those times when I want the "beef" for lack of a better word, it's hard to get it. Though I will say the low end on a jazz seems much rounder and easier to control (or tame, if need be).

Ultimately, like everyone else has said, I think they're good for slightly different things. There's a lot of overlap between the two, but for myself I probably wouldn't be able to settle for just one unless I got a PJ. For now I'll take my Rickenbacker with my T-40's as backups.
 
#57
I have both, and can easily do an entire gig with one or the other. Either one serves my musical needs quite well. It's nice to have both options on hand however, as it's much like having a selection of premium ice cream in the freezer. I might be in a vanilla bean mood one day, or chocolate silk the next. Some days I may want a scoop of each.
 
#58
I am more of a Jazz bass sort of guy. I love their sound and how it cuts through in practice. I have 2 MIM jazzes (one 4 and one 5). They are modded. They are doing the job for now. I might want a P Bass some time in the future. My dad has an 82 p bass and I love the sound and neck of that thing.

Kyle :bassist:
 
#59
I have a PJ, but it was orginally a 1973 Precision that my dad bought me for Christmas that year - the reason it wasn't a Jazz Bass was that a Precision was £30 cheaper!! and I didn't think he'd go for it :-).

It was also Sunburst (5% xtra for custom colour) with a Rosewood Fingerboard (Maple was extra as well).

I went with the intention of getting a Hayman 4040 - but (very) luckily they'd sold out!!
 

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