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Should i buy a PBass for 350?

brenner182

brenner182

Apr 24, 2010
1,036
31
37
Maryland
www.facebook.com
#1
Every freaking time i go into guitar center, there is this black on black MIM Fender P bass with what appears to be a quater pounder basslines pup.

Like i see it there staring at me. Yet i pick up the transparent green ibanez btb570fm next to it every time.

I always watch these videos on youtube and hear people playing these pbasses and im just like.....sjhfdashdfklhd i need that sound!

But i feel like buying a pbass is like setteling. To me, it's a old man bass. But they always sound good, Untill i play one. I keep eyeballing a American Special Fender. The black on red with a maple fretboard. Looks amazing. Sounds horrible. Maybe it's me just not knowing how to eq a pbass right.

My rig is a fender tbp-1 into a crown xls1500. no pedals. and my cabs very between a 2 earcandy bassbomb 2x12, a fender bassman 410 and matching 115 (the series before the newest ones out,) or the older fender bassman 2x15 (or Sunn 2x15 with fender badges)

Help!!!
 
#3
Nice rig! As far as Fenders go, they are not all created equal by a long shot. I'd say be patient, eventually the right P bass will find you, then it won't be any question about whether or not to buy it.

Of course I buy basses only on how they sound and play, appearance is so entirely tertiary for me, I am not sure that is the case for you, given how you describe the basses. Still, one with the right mix of style, tone, and feel will eventually find you. Save up your $$$ so you can buy it, no matter what particular model it is or era it comes from.
 
#7
I hated pbasses until I stopped trying to make it sound like my Jazz...
Still don't own one but now that I realize that for my own taste I have to adjust the attack/style/technique/EQ to a Pbass and not to a modified jazz or modulus I've started to always like playing them in store.
Sometimes I feel like an old man when I use a one pickup bass or go at 2 pu basses without messing with them or when I opt for my 3 band amp.........
but then I realize I acheive all the flexibility just through my playing

then I feel like a boss
 
#8
brenner182 said:
Every freaking time i go into guitar center, there is this black on black MIM Fender P bass with what appears to be a quater pounder basslines pup.

Like i see it there staring at me. Yet i pick up the transparent green ibanez btb570fm next to it every time.

I always watch these videos on youtube and hear people playing these pbasses and im just like.....sjhfdashdfklhd i need that sound!

But i feel like buying a pbass is like setteling. To me, it's a old man bass. But they always sound good, Untill i play one. I keep eyeballing a American Special Fender. The black on red with a maple fretboard. Looks amazing. Sounds horrible. Maybe it's me just not knowing how to eq a pbass right.

My rig is a fender tbp-1 into a crown xls1500. no pedals. and my cabs very between a 2 earcandy bassbomb 2x12, a fender bassman 410 and matching 115 (the series before the newest ones out,) or the older fender bassman 2x15 (or Sunn 2x15 with fender badges)

Help!!!
Click to expand...

Do it. Then post pics.
It's not settling; it's concurring.
 
#10
DON"T DO IT !

I managed to maintain my deep seated hate for Fenders for over twenty years.

One day I let my guard down and just innocently noodled on one. It was almost........pleasant. Hmmm. I wasn't struck by lightning. All my bass player friends still spoke with me.

Then I bought one. Just one. And the thing sat in the mix really well without turning a bazzilion knobs all night.

It was still the ignored bass in the house. Then I started looking for a band and doing auditions. Without warning, I noticed that every time I went to an audition, I took the P. Not intentionally. It just seemed to comfort me as it took speculation out of the mix and was one less thing to worry about.

Now the danged things are spreading like roaches in my stable. I sell one and two more show up.

I'm telling you, it's just not worth it ! :help:

My definition of true old school, peel the paint, thunder? Tubes, a P Bass, 215, and start turning up knobs until your pants flap. If you can't get a tone that makes you smile out of that stuff, sell everything and take up basket weaving.

Love them or hate them, they get the job done.

One of the roaches......

IMG_2054.jpg
 
#11
Darned if I don't feel the same... I wanted to hate fender, bought all my basses of the rounded, soapbar variety... And now I regret it heartily. Turns out i'm a Fender guy, and now i'm trying to sell some of my rounded basses to pick up a P/J fender. Don't buy it, for the sake of all things round and soapy! :D

Zoomie said:
DON"T DO IT !

I managed to maintain my deep seated hate for Fenders for over twenty years.

One day I let my guard down and just innocently noodled on one. It was almost........pleasant. Hmmm. I wasn't struck by lightning. All my bass player friends still spoke with me.

Then I bought one. Just one. And the thing sat in the mix really well without turning a bazzilion knobs all night.

It was still the ignored bass in the house. Then I started looking for a band and doing auditions. Without warning, I noticed that every time I went to an audition, I took the P. Not intentionally. It just seemed to comfort me as it took speculation out of the mix and was one less thing to worry about.

Now the danged things are spreading like roaches in my stable. I sell one and two more show up.

I'm telling you, it's just not worth it ! :help:
Click to expand...
 
#13
Precision basses are for me one of the basses that appeal to me visually quite a bit, sort of like vintage Strats all just seem to look good. I like the tone one can get, but I like more tones I can get from my new bass, so as a one-bass guy the Precisions will have to wait.
 
#14
Part of the problem is that many people don't "Test" a P-Bass where the really shine. This is in the Band setting. They sit so nice in the mix. The also play so effortlessly you still fresh at the end of a long gig. For a mere $350 the MIM is close enough to the US models to get a decent idea of how great they are. Get it an jam with the band and you'll be glad you did IMO.
 
#15
“Old man bass” Ha! Ha! I hear you. It does seem that once you hit 40 you are required to own a P-bass, an overly busy Hawaiian print shirt, and join a “classic rock/blues band” that sounds like every other bar band on the planet. I guess the next step is when I hit 60 I’m supposed to move to Florida too.

Being that my first bass hero was Steve Harris of Iron Maiden, I do have soft spot for a Fender P, but for me my favorite Fender build is a P-bass special, i.e. P-body with a Jazz neck and bridge pickup. That just works for me, and yes I even put flats on mine. Unlike a lot of the more “classic” or “vintage” minded crowd I also love my 6 string active basses, as they are far more useful for what I like to play.

Do you HAVE to have a P-bass? Absolutely not. Is it a good idea for a bass player to have one in his/her arsenal? Yeah sure, but it depends on what you’re doing in terms of your bass career. If you’re shooting to be a studio or go to guy (for subs) then you might want to consider it. The reason I say that is because there are a lot of bands, engineers, and producers that “hear” with their eyes and expect to see a P-bass in your hand as “it’s the only way to sound good”. Plenty of companies offer P-bass clones that are just as good or even better that at least look like a P.

The bottom line is to only buy what works for YOU. If you don’t like them don’t buy one. If you don’t care one way or the other, flip a coin, however if every time you walk into GC and that bass keeps staring back at you, then maybe you should consider getting it.

Also a trans green Ibanez BTB would be killer. Just sayin'
 
#16
NYCbassist said:
Part of the problem is that many people don't "Test" a P-Bass where the really shine. This is in the Band setting. They sit so nice in the mix. The also play so effortlessly you still fresh at the end of a long gig. For a mere $350 the MIM is close enough to the US models to get a decent idea of how great they are. Get it an jam with the band and you'll be glad you did IMO.
Click to expand...

Boring in the headphones while woodshedding. Demands to be heard in the mix........as long as you don't ride the tone knob like a cheap tricycle.

Well said !
 
#17
brenner182 said:
But i feel like buying a pbass is like setteling. To me, it's a old man bass. But they always sound good, Untill i play one. I keep eyeballing a American Special Fender. The black on red with a maple fretboard. Looks amazing. Sounds horrible. Maybe it's me just not knowing how to eq a pbass right.
Click to expand...

That doesn't mean much. First of all some AmStd have pickups that just stink IMHO. Second, AmStd isn't all that great either, the vintage reissues are better (any country).

The MIM standard has issues of it's own and there are very serious concerns about body finish and body woods. And the QP is hard what you hear on those records.

Might be better to get a MIM 50s with a Seymour Duncan SPB-1 (cheap on Ebay).
 
#18
I like almost every MIM Fender I've ever played. Of course i usually upgrade the electronics and the tuners, and maybe the bridge. But the body and neck of them is usually pretty good, especially for the money. I suppose you could nitpick all day long, like some do, but for practicality, considering price, and easy to get ahold of, i like the MIM Fender P's. You can even get them for around 300$ or so with a hard case on Craigslist often. Only trouble is, most of them are that hideous "Wine" color, haha

I think alot of the price difference in the USA made ones and the Mexican made ones is labor cost. Ones made in California, by Mexican people. Ones made in Mexico, by Mexican people. Both need to be played before you purchase them.
 

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