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Punk rock/Ska suggestions?

S

Scioto

Dec 9, 2013
10
2
#1
Heya. I'm looking for a bass that can do Punk Rock and Ska. I'm about 99% convinced I should look for a P/J setup as that's what most players I see in those genres play "plus it has been recommended to me previously." I'd prefer a four string bass, as well as it being passive as well. I've been looking at the Fender Blacktop P bass "I know it's not a P/J style but oh well" and I really like it, but I don't know enough about it to make a confident claim that it would perform well in a Punk Rock/ Ska band. I don't see why it wouldn't, but I've been surprised before.
Any suggestions are appreciated. I'm also not looking to spend TOO much more than $600... like $650 is as high as I really want to go.
 
#2
Buy what you like. I always played punk rock and stuff, and ever since i started playing metal I realized how OUT there the bass is in punk, not to mention ska. I would go with a Stingray just to be sure though.
 
#7
I just saw Sublime live. Eric Wilson plays a P.

600.jpg
 
#9
Scioto said:
Heya. I'm looking for a bass that can do Punk Rock and Ska. I'm about 99% convinced I should look for a P/J setup as that's what most players I see in those genres play "plus it has been recommended to me previously." I'd prefer a four string bass, as well as it being passive as well. I've been looking at the Fender Blacktop P bass "I know it's not a P/J style but oh well" and I really like it, but I don't know enough about it to make a confident claim that it would perform well in a Punk Rock/ Ska band. I don't see why it wouldn't, but I've been surprised before.
Any suggestions are appreciated. I'm also not looking to spend TOO much more than $600... like $650 is as high as I really want to go.
Click to expand...

Just a suggestion, you might want to look at a Blacktop Jazz bass (dual P-pickups), if you can find one to try out. It's an incredibly ballsy and aggressive bass. There's a lot of info and first-hand accounts about them here.
 
#10
Thankyou all for the suggestions.
However, I live relatively far away for me to try out any instruments. The nearest Guitar Center to me is over 100 miles away and I have a small Mom n' Pop music shop that carries expensive American made stuff that I could never afford.
I did look into the Blacktop Jazz bass when I was looking into the Blacktop P bass and I was admittedly curious. I like having humbuckers because when I'm not practicing with people I like to play through a pedal or two and humbuckers really help keep the unnecessary feedback to a minimum. Are splitcoils humbucking too? Honestly if they are "or someone can vouch that the Blacktop J bass handles distortion relatively well" I'm pretty much sold on it.
 
#11
Split coil P pickups are noise cancelling. Really the only thing that will give you noise is a passive single coil. Though with good shielding even a single coil can be silent. I have a single coil P Bass that has almost no hum at all because I shielded it well.

Personally I really like the sound a of a Stingray in punk and ska. the current bassist in Streetlight Manifesto uses an SR5 to great effect.

The single coil P is also another great and less common option. It has a great aggressive sound with a little more treble than a split. Great for punk with rounds, and also great for blues with flats.
 
#12
Alrighty, folks. I've decided on the Blacktop Jazz bass after reading a mountain of first hand accounts and watching a multitude of videos online. I've compared the Blacktop P to the Blacktop Jazz bass and found that the Jazz bass is definitely more suited to my needs. Thankyou all for your assistance.
 

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