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Telecaster vs. Precision Bass
- Thread starter cnltb
- Start date
1951 to 1956 is the original Precision single coil, slab.
1957 saw the split P with contoured body introduced.
1968 the original single coil slab was reissued as the Telecaster.
1972 the pickup changed to the big humbucker at the neck.
I have a 51 reissue, a57 reissue, and a 72 Tele with a DarkStar replacing the humbucker.
They're all fairly different from each other, and all quite nice.
Oh man, that 51 re-ish...soooo flipping beautiful ! Interesting, the ceiling reflection in the chrome control plate almost makes it look like chrome hammertone.
Sure, finding someone to do it is no problem whatsoever.
..and for good measure-Bassculrure , and Haeussel wold probably do it too if asked.
Do you or anyone here know of a specific instrument that employs such a pickup on an otherwise '51P bass and possibly even one that has an alder body and rosewood board whilst keeping the body shape etc like it is found on a '51?
That's what I'd really like to see/hear.
This one doesn't have the slab body, but I played one recently and it was awesome!
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and kinda OT, I always wanted to hear one of these..
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Chef
In Memoriam
Lull does a great bass;
though I'd have opted for a bridge choice that would allow the bridge cover.
The RA is neat....
though I'd have opted for a bridge choice that would allow the bridge cover.
The RA is neat....
The SCPB has always had its fans and always will.
The market has said the split-coil is a more popular PUP, how you get to 'better' from that fact is an absolute is a mystery to me and I disagree with the leap. For some the SCPB is better, and you can't argue with them or their choice.
For many years P basses were more popular than Js, now Js are everywhere. Doesn't make either one better, just more popular at the moment for a variety of reasons.
Agreed on the mid-attack thing, really works well in a mix, especially with multiple guitars. My CS '55 has become my favorite 4 string, but the CIJ '51 is also a great sounding bass:
This one doesn't have the slab body, but I played one recently and it was awesome!
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and kinda OT, I always wanted to hear one of these..
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I never played one of Mike's basses but I'd like to try one of his 54's I bet they're really nice.
Chef
In Memoriam
When a person makes a choice between 2 items that are the same price, that person chooses what they feel is the better of the two. Now, if the ratio was 1:1 or even 4:1, you could argue that it's personal preference, blah blah. But when it's 5,000:1, it pretty much becomes a fact.
If you perfer the single coil P, that's nice. But trying to claim that the single coil P p/u in on par with the split coil P p/u is like claiming that you prefer muskrat to beef, and that both are just as good.
Chef
In Memoriam
Not better but different. Depends on the band, the mix, lots of factors. I use bot single and split coil P-basses all the time (Jazz and Rics too) but my 55 consistently seems to sound the best, and that's whether I use my SVT, Genz Benz or Walkabout amps--it's just a great bass.
I don't believe that popularity is the yardstick I would use to assess the quality of anything. By that logic, the Eagles are the best band ever and only Michael Jackson even comes close.
... and please pass the muskrat.
The single-coil P had issues that concerned Leo and his crew. The Telecaster-based pickup design had relatively even frequency response, with a sharp attack and little sustain, and it blew out the speakers in the early Fender bass amps, causing warranty repair costs. Hum was also a problem.
When the P was redesigned into the split-coil, several factors made it different from the original. First, the Strat had been introduced with its body contours and more modern looking headstock. Second, Fender had begun finishing basses in sunburst, and the alder provided a better wood for that. Third, Leo decided to get rid of the pickup problems by splitting the coils to make them humbucking, and by putting two poles pieces below each string to smooth out the attack (and, of course, it helped sustain as well).
As it happened, the split-coil gave it that distinctive P sound we all know (and most of us love), different from the single-coil and much preferred by record producers.
I've had a '51 RI for almost six years now, and it's the Thump King. When I play material that needs that kind of sound, it's my first choice. I modified it with a four-saddle bridge, an Electrosocket output jack, and a Seymour Duncan QP with TI Jazz Flats, and I'm a happy guy. I'm a little limited at the moment, having had major surgery in December, which means (among other things) that I have to sit while I play and be able to reach the amp, which leads to more hum problems than I like. But that bass ain't going nowhere. Once I'm bipedal again, it'll go with me and my AV '57.
When the P was redesigned into the split-coil, several factors made it different from the original. First, the Strat had been introduced with its body contours and more modern looking headstock. Second, Fender had begun finishing basses in sunburst, and the alder provided a better wood for that. Third, Leo decided to get rid of the pickup problems by splitting the coils to make them humbucking, and by putting two poles pieces below each string to smooth out the attack (and, of course, it helped sustain as well).
As it happened, the split-coil gave it that distinctive P sound we all know (and most of us love), different from the single-coil and much preferred by record producers.
I've had a '51 RI for almost six years now, and it's the Thump King. When I play material that needs that kind of sound, it's my first choice. I modified it with a four-saddle bridge, an Electrosocket output jack, and a Seymour Duncan QP with TI Jazz Flats, and I'm a happy guy. I'm a little limited at the moment, having had major surgery in December, which means (among other things) that I have to sit while I play and be able to reach the amp, which leads to more hum problems than I like. But that bass ain't going nowhere. Once I'm bipedal again, it'll go with me and my AV '57.
I don't believe that popularity is the yardstick I would use to assess the quality of anything. By that logic, the Eagles are the best band ever and only Michael Jackson even comes close.
... and please pass the muskrat.
In the case of a piece of basic electronic hardware, it pretty much does. It's not just weekend warriors or slobs like me making the choice. It's pretty much the entirety of the highest echelon of bass players in history that have chimed in on the side of the split coil P pickup. When the Tele bass came out, it could have been a huge sales hit. It wasn't. Not only that, but they actually changed the pickup to a humbucker after a short run of 2 years. And that humbucker was in the Fender line 4 times longer than the the single coil pickup. And not only that, but no one made a single coil P-bass for 25 years, and when they did, it was a novelty reissue. The market has spoken.
...and please book me into the Hotel California.
What you're assuming is that "market preference" equates to "better product" in some objective way. But that conclusion doesn't follow. It's like saying chocolate ice cream is better than vanilla because it sells better.
Curtis Novak is in the process of adding one of those to his inventory....
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That's not what I'm assuming. I'm not making any assumptions at all. I'm stating facts that lead to an undeniable conclusion.
Since the introduction of the split coil pickup, there has been no measurable demand for a single coil precision bass.
Presented with the option of purchasing a single coil Pbass in the late 60's, virtually no one bought them. Following the discontinuing of single coil pickup production, players continued to ignore them.
Only a tiny tiny fraction of noteworthy players over the last 50 years chose single coil Pbasses over the split coil model.
The only market for single coil Pbasses today is the retro novelty market.
Based on this, the market has resoundingly rejected the single coil P-bass. Why? It's not cost, it's not looks. What else is there? Simple - the split coil is a better sounding pickup.
