Anyway a P-Bass is probably what I'm looking for... But I'm kinda stubborn...
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Punch from a Jazz Bass
- Thread starter Count Bassie
- Start date
This might be a solution:
I built this and have been really happy with it.
American Standard Precision Body
American Performer(?) Jazz neck
GZR Precision Pickups
Babicz Bridge
Has similar output and “punch” to my Lollar equipped Thunderbird.
I built this and have been really happy with it.
American Standard Precision Body
American Performer(?) Jazz neck
GZR Precision Pickups
Babicz Bridge
Has similar output and “punch” to my Lollar equipped Thunderbird.
I own three J's. The one that wears the Fender 9050L is the punchiest.
I think J-basses can have plenty of punch, and they have something split-coil P-basses do not: the growl and instantaneous "bark" of pure single coils. With the right blend of pickups, amp, and EQ, J-basses can be even more aggressive than P-basses IMO. Even some noiseless pickups capture some of this, like Lindy Fralin's Split-Jazz. Roll of the bridge pickup slightly to fill in the low mids, and there's plenty of punch with some J-bass growl.
Some J-bass pickups bring the phatness too, like overwound single coils and the Lace Man O' War pickups I have in a G&L JB. They sound very aggressive at gig volume, and with fatter low mids than traditional J-bass pickups, they fill the mix more like a P-bass IME.
But if you really want maximum punch, you want a G&L with MFD pickups. They've just released a JB with MFD J pickups, and I very much want a five-string version.
Some J-bass pickups bring the phatness too, like overwound single coils and the Lace Man O' War pickups I have in a G&L JB. They sound very aggressive at gig volume, and with fatter low mids than traditional J-bass pickups, they fill the mix more like a P-bass IME.
But if you really want maximum punch, you want a G&L with MFD pickups. They've just released a JB with MFD J pickups, and I very much want a five-string version.
But which is your go-to?Not a bad place to be.
I own all three!….
Oh look….I made a haiku….
Choice of strings and set-up is going to have almost as much impact as your choice of bass here. I get more "punch" out of my Sire P5 (p-bass) strung through body with LaBella low tension flats than I do out of my Fender Jazz Plus, which has a Kubicki pre-amp, with GHS pressure wounds. The range of tones possible out of the J-bass, however, far exceeds what the P-bass is capable of. If I could only have one, it would be the Jazz. Why limit yourself to just one? Life is short.
The selling point, at this juncture, for the Jazz Bass is the variety of applications and sounds I can recall it being used in. You've got John Paul Jones, Jaco, Geddy Lee, Bobby Vega, pictured above, Larry Graham... Each of these players has contributed a unique signature sound by means of the Fender Jazz Bass, and they are all memorable, distinct parts of a sonic voice that was an iconic ensemble.
Pretty good sell.
Pretty good sell.
The new one will be in the company of a couple other distinctive voices I've got in the shed:
Epi Thunderbird w/ TB+ p'ups...
Modded Hamer w/ Ric 4003 p'ups/ harness...
Fretless Westone Spectra w/DiMarzio Model One p'up.
I like the idea of the Stingray, and the P-Bass is a "can't go wrong" bass. But I'm thinking the Jazz represents the broadest palette, and that seems like a good idea for someone like me, who's not going to be buying a lot of instruments. I'm really looking to get engaged with what works for me and to stop thinking about this.
That's how I was in my early years, and I miss it.
As others have hinted, a jazz bass with a very simple series/parallel switch added is a glorious thing. I don't understand why Fender killed the S1 switching they used to feature in the early 2000s (at least in regard to jazz bass). Both settings are super useful, but the mid boost of series punches extra hard.
Here's a quick demo I did of my Squier "Precision" 5 with series/parallel switching. Granted the Tobias pickups in it aren't super traditional jazz pickups, but the contrast between settings gives a good idea of where series takes things.
Here's a quick demo I did of my Squier "Precision" 5 with series/parallel switching. Granted the Tobias pickups in it aren't super traditional jazz pickups, but the contrast between settings gives a good idea of where series takes things.
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Oh, easy!
My Jazz-style Mike Lull M5V.
Both pups 100%, tone controls on the preamp at center or flat. 100% of the time.
Punch, authoritative, whatever it's called, it always comes though, there's no mistaking that it's me and what I'm playing.
Having said all of this, I have a really hard time deciding which bass I want to play. I love, love, love, my Stingray and my Fender P5.
Tough, because there can be a lot of variation between jazzes. Some are naturally thin sounding while others are what I would consider very punchy. My active Lull J's are punchy - even with both pickups on full (which is where I pretty much always have them set). But the shape of the note is going to be different with a P or MM. Just depends on what you're looking for. But yeah, Js can be plenty punchy.
A lot of the punch is in the hands haha....
The stingray pickup position is pretty punchy in my experience. Jazz basses always felt more bloomy unless the bridge pickup was louder. Having played precisions for a long time, I find that the single stingray pickup position is a nice blend of the attack and bloom of a precision. To me it seems like the precision pickup was put where it was with some though to placement, but as amps changed the stingray is an evolution of that position as the sonic space of the bass live changed.
The stingray pickup position is pretty punchy in my experience. Jazz basses always felt more bloomy unless the bridge pickup was louder. Having played precisions for a long time, I find that the single stingray pickup position is a nice blend of the attack and bloom of a precision. To me it seems like the precision pickup was put where it was with some though to placement, but as amps changed the stingray is an evolution of that position as the sonic space of the bass live changed.
The Jazz I'm looking at is the newer "Player" series, a '22 Mexi. Alnico p'ups.
- Aug 21, 2003
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Hi Roger,
I do feel Stingray type basses are easier to get to punch. There is less of a scoopy vibe going on and usually more mids.
However, with that being said my Jazzes are set up punchy. Compression as mentioned above is a helpful component and I do feel an active pickup can contributed to a more of “quicker response”.
I have EMG jazz and it’s super versatile.
I do feel Stingray type basses are easier to get to punch. There is less of a scoopy vibe going on and usually more mids.
However, with that being said my Jazzes are set up punchy. Compression as mentioned above is a helpful component and I do feel an active pickup can contributed to a more of “quicker response”.
I have EMG jazz and it’s super versatile.
I just ordered one of those specifically because of the punch the in-store models had, every single one. The one I ordered is the sparkle three tone sunburst. CORRECTION: it’s a Player II
Otherwise, I play almost exclusively MIA P basses, bought used. This is the first bass I’ve bought new in many years.
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