So I tried Fender Elite jazz basses today...

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

Just one consideration maybe worth only 0.01 ...
I woud like to acquire an Elite jazz bass.. I already own a natural ash Elite P bass and I like it a lot, so I don't need to try the bass in a shop (I hope to find a good one) ... however, one can now find a lot of good offers of mint, used American Professional jazz basses (which are more recent than the Elites) but the few Elites on sale seem to retain their price much more than the Am. Pro. ....
This maybe means that they are so good that people who bought them want to keep them?
I hope this is the case since I'm going to buy one sooner or later ... this, however, means that I'll need to carry out careful market investigations ...

 

[ajkula66]

I hope this is the case since I'm going to buy one sooner or later ... this, however, means that I'll need to carry out careful market investigations ...

IDK...if you're buying the Elite Jazz - or any other instrument for that fact - the only consideration that matters is whether it sounds/plays right for *you*, no "market investigation" required IMO. Even if one ends up paying a bit over the "ideal" market place - which is a highly debatable category to begin with - it seizes to matter if they keep the instrument in question for years and enjoy playing it.

All of the above presumes - of course - that they can afford it in the first place. There are a couple of basses out there that I wouldn't mind owning in the least, but I simply can't justify such an expense at this moment in my life.

My $0.02 only...

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

IDK...if you're buying the Elite Jazz - or any other instrument for that fact - the only consideration that matters is whether it sounds/plays right for *you*, no "market investigation" required IMO. Even if one ends up paying a bit over the "ideal" market place - which is a highly debatable category to begin with - it seizes to matter if they keep the instrument in question for years and enjoy playing it.

All of the above presumes - of course - that they can afford it in the first place. There are a couple of basses out there that I wouldn't mind owning in the least, but I simply can't justify such an expense at this moment in my life.

My $0.02 only...

Same for me ... I mean can’t justify the cash for a new one now ... I don’t know how it will sound in real but the quality of its P brother left me very satisfied, whereas the tonal palette of a jazz bass per se is sufficiently wide that I should almost certainly be able to reach a satisfactory sound transaction

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

The elite in price is to close to the basic models made by sadowsky. That might be a better deal. But I don't know if it is better than the Fender Pro. I have the P version of the pro's and it is light and sounds really nice... To me anyway. But yet I heard some great things from people who own a elite. I tried one and I myself didn't get what I wanted out of it. So it goes to show everyone has their own voice when it comes to basses.

Well I own both versions of the P bass you mentioned ... in terms of pure P bass sound I prefer the Pro but the Elite is a better quality instrument built with more attention, being also more versatile owing to its PJ configuration and to (to me) very good preamp ...

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

Well I own both versions of the P bass you mentioned ... in terms of pure P bass sound I prefer the Pro but the Elite is a better quality instrument built with more attention, being also more versatile owing to its PJ configuration and to (to me) very good preamp ...

I own a Deluxe P and a Elite J. Both awesome. I do like the fact that the J will run in passive mode where the P won't. This said, the Deluxe P preamp is suberb.

 

[Spectre Gunner]

I own a Jazz Elite and a Jazz Pro. I like them both and they are two different animals, the Pro seems to be well made and the neck shape and finish works well for me. The Elite's neck is slightly more refined and has a different and unique contour with feels fine in my hand. Of course there a many more features on the Elite than the Pro but it's taken me a long time to get used to four knobs. Since two of the four knobs are dual control you have a total of six controls to keep track of but the payoff is a very wide range of sounds.

I consider the Elite to be the "Cadillac" of Fender Jazz basses since it has so many upgrades and features. The Pro is solidly built and I consider it to be the modern version of the classic Fender Jazz bass. There is something to be said about it's simplicity as compared to the Elite. I use rounds on the Pro and the Elite wears a newly broken in set of TI J344 Jazz Flats. The Elite got a professional setup this past year and the Pro will be getting one very soon along with a new set of rounds.

I'm happy with the Pro and Elite and have no intention of parting with either one anytime soon. My next bass will likely be a Pro Precision of maybe even the Elite P. They are both fine basses within the current Fender lineup and it just comes down to a matter of preference. I don't think you can go wrong with either model.

 

[mgauge]

Went into the 'ol Guitar Center to try two Fender Elite Jazz basses: a 4-string and a 5-string.

Bottom line: holy cow, I was NOT impressed at all. The playability, the feel, the sound, the craftsmanship... nothing about them struck me as meriting the retail price tag.

This is not meant to be a bash on Fender! But....

Is there something wrong with me, or have any of you had the same feelings?

I just got an Elite in Ocean Blue and I love it!!! I got it for $1800.. I also have a Musicman Sterling HS that I love. Im not a Fender 'groupie' but I love this bass and Im happy with the purchase

 

[mgauge]

Exactly.. I have one and I haven't any of these so called quality issues and tonal shortcomings whatsoever.

I have no issues with my new fender elite 4 string. So Im happy

 

[micguy]

I used to think that spending that kind of money on a bass was silly. Then I started building (and playing) basses with high quality parts (including the wood). Now, the only ones that I like in stores are...that kind of money. Or more. If you don't understand why some basses cost that much, I'd strongly advise against living with one for a while, unless you can afford to buy several.

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

Love mine!!!

 

[Bassist30]

I own a Jazz Elite and a Jazz Pro. I like them both and they are two different animals, the Pro seems to be well made and the neck shape and finish works well for me. The Elite's neck is slightly more refined and has a different and unique contour with feels fine in my hand. Of course there a many more features on the Elite than the Pro but it's taken me a long time to get used to four knobs. Since two of the four knobs are dual control you have a total of six controls to keep track of but the payoff is a very wide range of sounds.

I consider the Elite to be the "Cadillac" of Fender Jazz basses since it has so many upgrades and features. The Pro is solidly built and I consider it to be the modern version of the classic Fender Jazz bass. There is something to be said about it's simplicity as compared to the Elite. I use rounds on the Pro and the Elite wears a newly broken in set of TI J344 Jazz Flats. The Elite got a professional setup this past year and the Pro will be getting one very soon along with a new set of rounds.

I'm happy with the Pro and Elite and have no intention of parting with either one anytime soon. My next bass will likely be a Pro Precision of maybe even the Elite P. They are both fine basses within the current Fender lineup and it just comes down to a matter of preference. I don't think you can go wrong with either model.

Have you tried the Sadowsky Pre pedal. Sometimes simplicity works too. Tried it on my Pro's and it works great. Not that its used a lot cause I love passive also. . My Alleva always went passive... Not that I am against active, but certain basses just sound better passive. My Sadowsky 5 is always active

 

[Spectre Gunner]

Have you tried the Sadowsky Pre pedal. Sometimes simplicity works too. Tried it on my Pro's and it works great. Not that its used a lot cause I love passive also. . My Alleva always went passive... Not that I am against active, but certain basses just sound better passive. My Sadowsky 5 is always active

The Sadowsky Preamp looks intriguing and should be a reasonable alternative to converting a passive bass to an active without having to touch the electronics inside the bass.

The Replay Guitar store in Tampa just got in the new GK Plex Preamp. I've been eyeing one that after checking it out. The case is well built and the controls are thoughtfully laid out. In addition to the preamp and typical DI functions it also includes EQ, Overdrive, Compression and a Chromatic Tuner. It retails for about $330 and it has the potential to replace a couple of pedals on my board. I haven't tried it yet but it was demo'd for me. I like the tones from both the Elite and Pro Jazzes and probably don't need additional EQ but I like the combination of features in the GK Pre/DI pedal.

 

[Emcinkc]

I've played quite a few bases, and my american elite is hands down the smoothest playing bass I've laid my hands on. I'd say that the problem you're running in to is most music stores do not spend the time setting up new basses properly. Temperature, humidity, string gauge, many other factors dictate how you set up a bass for action & intonation. I got mine set up within an hour of getting it home, and was thoroughly impressed. I played for about a week, and re-adjusted for the main environment it'll be living in, and haven't had to mess with it since. I've had it for about 6 months, and still get giddy opening the case.

 

[Bassndrums73]

I own an Elite Precision 4 string and an Elite Jazz V. I love them both. The sound and the feel are great in my opinion. My Alembic 4 and 5 strings have a bit better feel and sound different but I wouldn’t say they sound better, just a different sound which is why I have different bases. I enjoy them all for what they do. I personally like my Fenders better than the Stingray I have but it’s also different. It’s all in what you like and if it does what you want it to and gets the sound you’re after regardless of brand or price point.

 

[JOME77]

When it comes to overall quality, playability and sound I'm extremely hard to please. I just purchased a new Fender Elite Precision and I'm totally impressed with the instrument. I honestly can't think of one thing to complain about. It ranks up there (in overall quality, playability and sound) with any high end custom bass that I've owned (and I've owned a lot of them).

Did I mention that it looks awesome too?

 

[WayneDupuis]

I bought a 97 Suhr built Jazz Deluxe new and still own it. The case is beat to hell from bouncing gig to gig. It's still incredible today.
Just bought an Elite Jazz. Worth every cent for the neck alone; which contributes to playability and tone/feel. The sound through my YBA300/Ampeg Classic is tight and controlled. It's a workhorse I'll still own years from now.

 

[LadyLoveStingRay5]

I owned a Fender Elite Jazz V for about a month this summer. Great bass. Neck is the best 5 sting neck Fender has ever put out . I had every intention of keeping it but I fooled around and encountered the new Stingray5 Special and it was a perfect fit for me.
Nothing wrong with the Elites. Very nice basses.

 

[LBS-bass]

I agree with the poster above on setups. My Jazz Elite is one of the best instruments I've played, but it didn't come to me that way. I bought it second-hand online and the action was so low that the strings were basically just laying on the neck. Took it to two techs because it was not comfortable to play. I thought I needed to replace the neck entirely but tech #2 figured out that the truss rod was not seated properly which was affecting the playing angle and everything else. Once he got that realigned and got the bass set up, it turned into an absolute gem.

The guy I bought it from says it was well setup when he shipped it so I can only assume it was dropped in transit somewhere along the way and that caused the neck to shift. No visible damage, but if that can happen to my bass it can happen to any bass, and even if the truss rod is perfectly seated you still need someone to pay attention to setups if you're going to really evaluate the playability of an instrument in the store. Too many stores don't care, which is sad but true.

 

[project_c]

I don’t get all the negativity Fender gets in this thread. I have 4 US Fenders and an MIJ, never had a single problem with any of them and love playing them all. I own a ‘11 Dlx J, solid as a rock, perfect setup, N3 pickups are great in passive / active, I actually sold my Sadowsky because the Dlx J sounded so much better.

Different things for different people, but my experience with Fender has been great, I don’t have any other basses any more, I sold everything else.

 

[Rib 13]

Hello Zombie Thread

I own a Deluxe which is the Elite's predecessor.....my wife bought it for me as a birthday gift so i will never part with it......Is it a nice bass? Yes....Its 'good', but not 'great'......