Seriously, is there anything a Precision Bass Can't do?

[hernameisrio]

I personally find them to be a bit heavy. Which sucks because someday I'd like to get one. The P bass is to the bass world, as Warhol's soup cans are to pop art. Or something like that anyway. You might like it, you might not, but it's earned its place as an icon and a classic.

 

[ksandvik]

I dont thinks P basses slap well IMO

Works well, it's all in the technique.

 

[chadds]

While it's all about touch.....
No, they can't do everything.

Ken Smith said he designed his basses because Fenders never sounded live like they do in recordings.

To each his own but if this is a real question rather than a Fans of P-Bass club I have an answer.

My first P was a '57 purchased in 1969. I loved it and played it and played it.
Yet it was limited in it's width of eq. Do they sound great? Yes. But Leo went on to give us the Music Man. What was one of it's distinctions? Way wider frequency delivery. Then he developed G&L. Ever play one? Those Alnico pickups sound like huge active electronics while being passive.
You can dial up way more lows and mids and highs.

In some bands I'm the whole low end and a Fender just doesn't do it. I can't sit in the mix with just mids from a tone control that's a passive roll off. There's no Hammond B3 below me.

Again your mileage may vary. I own two and love them! Some of this is touch. Some is do you eq. your amp to compensate? Some is genre of music and where you sit in it.

 

[Modern Growl]

Wow - very late to the party, but yes, a precision cannot do the faster, tight "Jaco" stuff.

I tried to get into P-Basses but ultimately sold them and stuck with my Jazzes.

 

[Davo-London]

I was playing some Birdland pinched harmonics on my '64 Pbass last night - sounded good to me.

The Pbass is as simple as a bass can be. The fact that it can do pretty well everything shows that we spend a lot of money unnecessarily! If you get my drift.

Peace
Davo

 

[Toastfuzz]

Some is do you eq. your amp to compensate? Some is genre of music and where you sit in it.

I can't hate on the P either, I love the distinctive tone, but in my stock of basses the 2 far opposites are the passive '83 Ibanez P and the active '07 Ibanez SR with Barts. One has a vintage, grungy P tone... the other has a smooth, full range, hi-fi tone. 2 polar opposites, I use both for diff purposes, but generally the things I use the SR for, the P would not fit in the mix right.

 

[SteveHeissner]

Love this thread. I got a P-bass two years ago to compliment my collection of Jazz basses, T-birds, and other basses. The P-bass is simple, effective, all you really need.

Too bad Carvin doesn't make a P-bass clone.

 

[Tonegasm]

With a little EQ'ing it can do ANYTHING.

My main bass is a '71 P Bass. I recently bought a '78 Jazz Bass just because I felt like I needed it to round out the perfect duo, but I only really see myself using my P Bass.

 

[Liam Wald]

Can't make me happy.
Honestly, I have never liked them.
I have been playing bass for 47 years and believe me, I've tried.
The whole P-Bass thing just doesn't make-it-happen for me.
Sorry.

 

[fisticuffs]

It's the Telecaster of the bass world. GAS Addicts can't seem to get enough. I'm of the opinion that Leo got things right for the most part the first time around. I'm not selling my ASAT or anything but it's hard to turn down an attractive PBass.

 

[Liam Wald]

IMO I think that the ASAT is a better instrument than the p-bass.
I have a 1995 ASAT sunburst semi-hollow (one F-Hole at top) with maple binding and maple fingerboard.
Sweet machine it is!

 

[spade2you]

With a little EQ'ing it can do ANYTHING.

So, with EQ'ing, other basses can't do anything?

 

[fisticuffs]

IMO I think that the ASAT is a better instrument than the p-bass.
I have a 1995 ASAT sunburst semi-hollow (one F-Hole at top) with maple binding and maple fingerboard.

2009 hollowbody with white binding in Emerald Blue Metallic. I still like to switch it up though. If I told the wife the ASAT was all I need (which it is) I wouldn't get to buy more basses!

 

[Tonegasm]

So, with EQ'ing, other basses can't do anything?

Whatever works for you!

 

[spade2you]

Whatever works for you!

I am sorry my bass is inferior.

 

[Pilgrim]

The only one of the dozen basses I own that I couldn't get a "P-tone" out of is my '64 Gibson EB-0 with the mudbucker pickup. Nothing else sounds like one of those.

But the P is among the most versatile basses ever made, no question.

 

[peledog]

Yawn

 

[MtManiac]

So, with EQ'ing, other basses can't do anything?

I'm pretty sure that's not a logical conclusion. Just because Socrates is a man and Socrates is a philosopher doesn't mean all men are philosophers.

 

[spade2you]

I'm pretty sure that's not a logical conclusion. Just because Socrates is a man and Socrates is a philosopher doesn't mean all men are philosophers.

It's a fair observation and something that has been stated plain as day numerous occasions on TB.

Hell, half of us boutique players haven't even heard our own basses in a solo mix.

 

[deshi00]

Not knocking the P, they are a thing of wonder, but truth is, you can play pretty much any bass for anything. 99.9% of the world wouldn't know the difference.

All of the discussion of "this bass for that style," etc, is pretty much nonsense outside of Talkbass land. It still fun though!!

^This - Same goes for amp tone - Ive played the same bass through 2 different amps, Acoustic B600h and 410 and a mesa M6 though mesa cab... people couldnt tell a difference. Outside of talkbass bass is just a big guitar that makes deep nosies.....

That being said, I own 2 p-basses