What makes a P a P?

[Wallygator]

Ok maybe a stupid question, but what makes a P bass a P bass? I know the difference between a fender p and a fender jazz, neck and body differences, pick ups etc.

Moving away from fender, is any bass with just a P style pickup condidered a p bass?

Beyond that what exactly are "soapbar" pickups and how do they relate?

 

[sammyp]

what makes a p is the pickup and where it is postitioned!

other than that it pretty much has a strat body where a jazz is a warped strat body ....the p neck if usually a bid wider and thicker than an jazz.

any bass with the p pup positioned similarly is gonna act like a P ....whether it is or not is.....everybody is different ..some are gonna say only a fender is a P.

 

[JimmyM]

It's got to look somewhat like a P and have a bolt on neck with 20 frets. Other than that, it's pretty much open to interpretation.

 

[darkstorm]

To me its about the pups. if the bass just uses P pups its a P bass to me. No matter who made it or what shape its got. Same for if it has J, soapbar, or humbucker pups.

Soapbar pups to me are the most like guitar humbuckers. They lack the note bloom of P pups but often can do a fair emulation of them otherwise. Or if not, the particuliar soapbar would do fair emulation of J pup but a bit fuller sounding.

Humbucker pups are more like soapbars but have extended treble and bass. Some also have higher output then most which also adds to the active pup like sound have to me. Many tend to be to treble oriented in their voice for me. But a few have nice warm voice char to them.

My fave P basses are of course the BC Rich ones with P neck and bridge set and active preamp onboard. Lol.

 

[JakeAndAirwaves]

What would you consider the Mark Hoppus Bass? Jazz body, P pup, and P neck. I have always referred to it as "a jazz bass with a precision pickup".

 

[walterw]

as the hoppus also has a fatter P neck, i'd say it's pretty much "a P-bass with a jazz body".

 

[walterw]

actually, the hoppus puts that P pickup well away from where it's "supposed" to go, setting it much closer to the neck.

to me, a "P-bass" means "that pickup, in that location, with no cheating via other additional pickups".

 

[GlennW]

The body.

If you put a Strat pickup in a P Bass you have a P Bass with a Strat pickup.

If you put a P Bass pickup in a Strat you have a Strat with a P Bass pickup.

 

[JakeAndAirwaves]

The body.

If you put a Strat pickup in a P Bass you have a P Bass with a Strat pickup.

If you put a P Bass pickup in a Strat you have a Strat with a P Bass pickup.

That's what I go by.

 

[Tupac]

Didn't we just have a thread EXACTLY like this?

 

[cjmodulus]

Didn't we just have a thread EXACTLY like this?

Dude, there's another P bass related thread every week. I've just gotten used to it. People here sure do love their Ps.

 

[nostatic]

urea is usually a good start

 

[GBassNorth]

Great question - unfortunately, no good answers.
Just looking at Fender (a lot of other builders make "P" basses as well) you'll find as many exceptions as there are rules.
Just for giggles, looking at Fender's current website:
- at least 7 different pickup configurations for a P bass
- one body style for a P bass (balanced vs offset like a Jazz) although there used to be a P bass Plus with a different body shape
- two different headstock shapes
- four and five string options
- at least 4 different pickguard shapes
- 20 frets, not sure if there have ever been more or less frets available on a fretted fender p bass in the past
- block and bound necks, dot necks, fretless necks
- tons of different control layouts
- 2, 4 and 5 saddle bridges
- standard and narrow or jazz neck widths
- they currently all have clover leaf tuning keys but in the late 1960's some had lollypop keys

So it seems the only thing that might be consistant among current P basses is 20 frets and clover leaf tuning keys but I don't think anyone would define a P bass using those terms.
This is what most people consider a P bass to look like and it does have a distinctive sound and feel vs Jazz basses or other non traditional P basses that might have humbuckers or other pickups or control layouts or neck sizes.

Invalid Link Removed

 

[grendle]

Originally when they were first designed it was the frets. It was the first bass to have frets so you could play with "precision", if I under stand the lore correctly. P basses are generally classified as having a single "P" split coil pickup as in The precision bass.

Other than that, who the hell knows lol.

 

[sigmafloyd]

Looking at the url from the Fender website hints at what they feel makes a P a P: the body shape:

Invalid Link RemovedbodyShape=Precision+Bass%C2%AE&section=basses

 

[Luke S Mouse]

What makes a Subaru a Subaru?

 

[lowphatbass]

There are two types of P-Basses; Split and Single Coil. Both have a bolt-on neck and the pickup located approximately half-way between the bridge saddles and the 20th fret.

 

[colcifer]

It's the lineage.

 

[johnk_10]

this is the only jazz bass that i've heard so far that sounds like a p bass, when the middle pickup is soloed...............

..............because the p bass pickup is in the same exact location as a p bass

 

[acebase62]

as the hoppus also has a fatter P neck, i'd say it's pretty much "a P-bass with a jazz body".

X2. IMO, the pickups define the bass more than the body shape. I consider the G&L JB-2 a Jazz bass, even though the body is more P shaped. J pickups and J neck...

Also, a PJ is a PJ regardless of body shape or neck width.