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PJ's do not bring a jazz bass tone. get over it
- Thread starter jellymax
- Start date
yea, exactly, last 2 posts above this one.
Burpy? that is the tone of mid forward, at least that's how my burps sound.
So maybe we should use terms that aren't dependent upon the tone of one's own unique burps ??
J bass, both pickups on full - mid scooped...
J bass, bridge pickup on full only, very upper mid forward.... very present.... what some folks call burpy.
J bass, neck pickup on full only, more like a cruddy copy of a fender precision bass.
PJ bass - bridge pickup, same as bridge pickup only above.
PJ bass - neck pickup on full, basically a mid forward fender precision tone, quite hifi but more lower mids present - so useful, so classic.
PJ bass - both pickups on full (assuming it's well setup for pickup choice and heights... lots of crappy examples out there that aren't): like a fender precision but with sort of a sharp mid scoop between normal precision and jazz-bridge-only frequencies, plus the extra output and attack and "burp" of a jazz bridge pickup.
To me - the MOST burpy tone you can get, is a PJ with both pickups on full, or possibly the pickup volumes slightly uneven.
But again it depends very much on the particular PJ bass.
I've heard so many PJ basses that sound so all over the map for tone - but a well made one does have a distinctive tone that is unique and awesome.
Burpy? that is the tone of mid forward, at least that's how my burps sound.
So maybe we should use terms that aren't dependent upon the tone of one's own unique burps ??
J bass, both pickups on full - mid scooped...
J bass, bridge pickup on full only, very upper mid forward.... very present.... what some folks call burpy.
J bass, neck pickup on full only, more like a cruddy copy of a fender precision bass.
PJ bass - bridge pickup, same as bridge pickup only above.
PJ bass - neck pickup on full, basically a mid forward fender precision tone, quite hifi but more lower mids present - so useful, so classic.
PJ bass - both pickups on full (assuming it's well setup for pickup choice and heights... lots of crappy examples out there that aren't): like a fender precision but with sort of a sharp mid scoop between normal precision and jazz-bridge-only frequencies, plus the extra output and attack and "burp" of a jazz bridge pickup.
To me - the MOST burpy tone you can get, is a PJ with both pickups on full, or possibly the pickup volumes slightly uneven.
But again it depends very much on the particular PJ bass.
I've heard so many PJ basses that sound so all over the map for tone - but a well made one does have a distinctive tone that is unique and awesome.
I just looked I wasn't positive of the number, but I have 4 of my 18 basses that have PJ pickup combs who knew 
I just bought a Fender Aerodyne last month.... mine is 2019. See if you can try one somewhere, I think is very close.
It may not get that Jazz sound but, I love my Ibanez Talman PJ bass and it sounds great with the balance set dead center between the two! I really don’t need a balance knob at all!!
Not necessarily a definitive argument as I have a sneaking suspicion that this guy Doug would sound really good playing just about anything.
I have 2 PJ basses, and 2 P basses and 2 Jazz basses.
They all sound a bit different, but I'd agree that the PJ basses don't cop the Jazz bass sound that well.
The P bass pickup alone is pretty convincingly P bass, but the bridge Jazz pickup soloed isn't as growly as the ones on my Jazz basses.
The pickups are different though. My Jazz basses have Japanese vintage pickups in the 75 RI, and the parts Jazz has Orig 62s.
Both PJ basses have SD QP pickups. The tones are definitely different. Even the P bass tones are different from the P basses I own - one is a 50s Classic MIM that I think has MIA pickups, and the other is a 1995 MIM P bass. I like them all, but they all sound a little different.
I don't know if it's the woods, or the pickups, or what, but the PJ basses definitely sound different than the Jazz basses when the bridge pickups are soloed. The P bass pickups are closer, but there is still a difference in the mids and the growl.
SD QP pickups seem to have a built is scoop to their tone, at least to my ear. That reduces the growl that makes the Fender basses so pleasing to the ear IMHO.
They all sound a bit different, but I'd agree that the PJ basses don't cop the Jazz bass sound that well.
The P bass pickup alone is pretty convincingly P bass, but the bridge Jazz pickup soloed isn't as growly as the ones on my Jazz basses.
The pickups are different though. My Jazz basses have Japanese vintage pickups in the 75 RI, and the parts Jazz has Orig 62s.
Both PJ basses have SD QP pickups. The tones are definitely different. Even the P bass tones are different from the P basses I own - one is a 50s Classic MIM that I think has MIA pickups, and the other is a 1995 MIM P bass. I like them all, but they all sound a little different.
I don't know if it's the woods, or the pickups, or what, but the PJ basses definitely sound different than the Jazz basses when the bridge pickups are soloed. The P bass pickups are closer, but there is still a difference in the mids and the growl.
SD QP pickups seem to have a built is scoop to their tone, at least to my ear. That reduces the growl that makes the Fender basses so pleasing to the ear IMHO.
Troll.
For the record I have a Fralin PJ set with the J having an 8% overwind. J burp for days, my friend.
I really couldn't say, since I don't have either a Jazz Bass, or a PJ. However... I have this, instead;
an old Kramer "The Duke" Special. With a mare's nest of wiring and a 3 way switch connected to the Dimarzio "Twin J" pickup, it can do tricks. One of them is to turn the pickup into a P-Bass split-coil; another one is to cut the top half out, and leave (in effect) a Jazz Bass bridge pickup. And, it does sound very much like either of those basses. Including - IMO - a pretty credible Jazz Bass "burp"....
an old Kramer "The Duke" Special. With a mare's nest of wiring and a 3 way switch connected to the Dimarzio "Twin J" pickup, it can do tricks. One of them is to turn the pickup into a P-Bass split-coil; another one is to cut the top half out, and leave (in effect) a Jazz Bass bridge pickup. And, it does sound very much like either of those basses. Including - IMO - a pretty credible Jazz Bass "burp"....
PJ with reversed split pickups like old Yamaha BB2000 or Sandberg VM5 can get closer to Jazz Bass territory.
Not necessarily a definitive argument as I have a sneaking suspicion that this guy Doug would sound really good playing just about anything.
Wow, I had no intention of arguing anything.... I'm just illuminating <c: … and you're welcome.
