P or PJ?

[darwin-bass]

i’ve been playing active basses predominately for 40 years (RD Artist to Peavey TL-5 to Alembic Rogue), but I have an urge for a passive bass. Leaning toward a P bass, but wondering about the benefit a PJ would offer (and I don’t really want to buy and return). Just playing in church now, can’t find the time or energy for playing like I used to. What say you, Talkbass? Is and added J worth my $200?

Seems pretty simple to me. If you play a PJ with the P pickup soloed you get a P sound (body & neck shape don't matter). If you play with the J soloed you get a bridge J sound which may include single coil hum. If you blend them you get pretty much the sound of a J with both pickups on.

Sound wise, the benefit of the passive PJ over your active instruments is simplicity and safety. Safety in that the player can't mess up the sound with wild EQ changes. Also, there is no POP when you plug / unplug the bass, and no battery to wear down.

In church, things can vary greatly. Our small/med church runs the PA more-or-less flat. Subwoofer supports but does not dominte the mix. The bass can be heard and solid mids & upper mids are beneficial. A J with both pickups on full gets buried, a J with soloed neck or P cuts through better, a Stingray is best. We were at a larger church a week ago for a worship conference. Sub was huge in the mix. Many of the instruments, including bass, could not be heard. Player was playing a P but, again, you could not really hear it. He may have had more luck running a PJ with just the J to bring some mids to the table. In his case a PJ would have been better than the P but only if the player knew enough to compensate for the less-than-ideal mix.

 

[jamersonburton]

You wire the tone all the way up?

I guess so. The tone pot is completely removed.

 

[davegt666]

I like having two pickups for live work, whether a jazz bass configuration or a PJ.

In the studio or just practicing I can make either work.

 

[MG Wolf]

P/J, Specifically G&L SB-2T.

 

[bass71]

I always find PJ's with both PU's together tend to scoop the mids a bit...I put a three way switch in and no blend.. I now get a pure P tone or a pure J bridge tone...works fine.

 

[Josh Kneisel]

I have a 2012 MIA P Deluxe (P+J and active/passive switch) which I really dig

 

[singlemalt]

Best to cover your bases.

There’s more choices with the PJ. If you like that sort of thing. I’m leaning more towards keeping it simple.

 

[JGrooveguy]

I get the simplicity of just a P for sure, but I most dig a PJ with a series/parallel push-pull pot.
Both pickups on full in parallel is my least used combo... I feel like some frequencies (mostly mids) cancel out somewhat in parallel, but add together in series. I play mine on series mode 3/4 of the time as I love the extra punch.

 

[wideload]

Thanks for all your responses! Was looking at the Fender Deluxe Active P Special, as it would bridge the gap from passive to what I’m most used to, active. Or a Fender Mexi P. I doubt I will forsake my Alembic. I think I just want to try something different, and I think I’d be less likely to suffer buyer’s remorse with that. I’m looking at the “lesser” Fender offerings, because I really don’t need another bass. But I’ve never owned a Fender, so there’s that.
For those who said I need to play each to decide, you miss the point. If I don’t like it, I can blame TalkBass! So, I’ll probably buy a Rickenbacker...

 

[bassbenj]

Thanks for all your responses! Was looking at the Fender Deluxe Active P Special, as it would bridge the gap from passive to what I’m most used to, active. Or a Fender Mexi P. I doubt I will forsake my Alembic. I think I just want to try something different, and I think I’d be less likely to suffer buyer’s remorse with that. I’m looking at the “lesser” Fender offerings, because I really don’t need another bass. But I’ve never owned a Fender, so there’s that.
For those who said I need to play each to decide, you miss the point. If I don’t like it, I can blame TalkBass! So, I’ll probably buy a Rickenbacker...

Hey Wait a minute! Fender or Ric is some OTHER TB thread!

 

[dbsfgyd1]

i’ve been playing active basses predominately for 40 years (RD Artist to Peavey TL-5 to Alembic Rogue), but I have an urge for a passive bass. Leaning toward a P bass, but wondering about the benefit a PJ would offer (and I don’t really want to buy and return). Just playing in church now, can’t find the time or energy for playing like I used to. What say you, Talkbass? Is and added J worth my $200?

I have a PJ and have used it at church for 13 years. I also have spent plenty of time playing and recording a PB. I will say the P portion of a PJ is not the same as a PB. It’s close, but no cigar. Frankly, I don’t use just one pickup with it. Most of the time the pickups are up full and the tone up all the way. If you have a front of house, or IEMs, your sound guys are going to love it.

 

[Dan Knowlton]

I have a Lakland 55-64 PJ and I really like using the J pickup on it. So, I'd vote for a PJ.

Dan

 

[victorlion]

PJ of course
P is like a man with one arm

 

[dmt]

A Precision is like a spoon, basic and useful.

A Jazz is like a fork, a bit more complex and modern (though still classic), and it gets to the point.

A PJ is, well, a spork


(I kid, I kid!)

 

[fermata]

My issue with the PJ configuration is that the E-A side of the P is at a different distance from the J than the D-G side, which, to my ear, highlights the tonal inconsistency across the strings that's already inherent to the split P pickup. Add to that the fact that the typical J pickup is weaker than the typical P pickup (and possible hum), and I don't Ps and Js make a ton of sense together. (I wonder why the double P setup isn't more common?) Granted, the practical experience of thousands of PJ players contradicts all that, but that's my take.

 

[Standalone]

It’s not just that the J adds growl. There is an interesting interaction with two pickup basses as they are blended or Vol/vol’d in different proportions, due to phase interactions. Like a strat in settings 2 and 4 on the 5 way. Only subtler.

I find this interaction strongest in HH basses, but it’s there in PJ and JJ basses too.

This subtlety is one reason I prefer passive basses over active.

 

[JGrooveguy]

The output imbalance isn't a big deal for those using it as a P with option to blend in the J.

But, if you want to use the Jazz bridge on its own, you may want to get an overwound one like the SD Hot Jazz (combined with a lower-output P pickup).

Not that the lower output of a normal Jazz pickup is a "problem", but more of a psychological thing, as it will feel weak if you were just playing on the P-pickup on 100%, and you may not want to change amp settings each time to compensate.


Other option is a balanced PJ set, like the Lace Man 'O War (which I am currently using). Bonus with Lace is you can raise the bridge p/u higher than the P without getting magnetic pull on the strings.

 

[wideload]

A Precision is like a spoon, basic and useful.

A Jazz is like a fork, a bit more complex and modern (though still classic), and it gets to the point.

A PJ is, well, a spork


(I kid, I kid!)

Man, that’s harsh!

 

[clickclack]

My issue with the PJ configuration is that the E-A side of the P is at a different distance from the J than the D-G side, which, to my ear, highlights the tonal inconsistency across the strings that's already inherent to the split P pickup.

Yes. That's why reverse P makes more sense to me and sounds more balanced. In my avatar image, D-G part is on the correct position(almost, about 2mm closer to bridge). The other approach would be placing the E-A to the classic position but I wanted to fit it in between the Js.
Works well with thick flats but probably would sound thin with lighter roundwounds.

So, what do I do with this PJJ? %95 of the time I use the P alone. The %5 of J-time is to re-realize and remind me how unsatisfying they sound. I'll probably remove the Js to move the king of pickups toward the neck a bit. Also I don't like how narrow-band the Js are. I use an always on multi-pedal and can get the same effect with the P but not the other way around.

 

[wraub]

Thanks for all your responses! Was looking at the Fender Deluxe Active P Special, as it would bridge the gap from passive to what I’m most used to, active. Or a Fender Mexi P. I doubt I will forsake my Alembic. I think I just want to try something different, and I think I’d be less likely to suffer buyer’s remorse with that. I’m looking at the “lesser” Fender offerings, because I really don’t need another bass. But I’ve never owned a Fender, so there’s that.
For those who said I need to play each to decide, you miss the point. If I don’t like it, I can blame TalkBass! So, I’ll probably buy a Rickenbacker...

For "lesser Fender offerings", let me add a suggestion for the Squier Affinity PJ.
Silly inexpensive, lots of tonal flavors, alder body, good neck, and fun, too.
I just lucked into one (my first PJ) and I am very impressed with it.
Definitely a change from an Alembic but a surprisingly solid instrument.