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What precisely is good about Precisions?
- Thread starter kbr
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- fender precision bass
Sounds like you got a crappy bass. Don't like the neck, etc. sell it and find one you like. There are very few basses on this great earth is buy sight unseen
Honestly, I kinda do too. I just threw that in cause I knew some P bass fan would throw that at me.
I like all basses! In my experience the p bass is a plug and play bass, no frills, with an even meaty tone that sounds awesome with an ensemble, but not necessarily by itself. The jazz bass has a less aggressive tone and it sits perfectly with an ensemble. There is no one size fits all. Good ears, good hands, doing the homework, and a decent bass are a recipe for success. I am trying to eliminate GAS and just focus on music itself.
Jazzes make better 5 string basses than Precisions, IMHO. In addition, the 3 + 2 sets of pole pieces on the pickup split undermines the ability to individually adjust the pickup height (on _all_ of the strings - including the A string) to match to the curvature of the fingerboard in order to achieve perfect string to string balance which is part of the genius of Leo's original split pickup design. Whereas I do dig P-Basses immensely, I recognize that the sound & feel of them isn't for everybody. However, I think that you do have to give the P-Bass its due and recognize the immense success of the design. There aren't very many products out there that were conceived of in the 50's that still hold up today.
In my experience, your technique has to be spot on when playing a P.
If you're doing it right, it should sound like this:
or this:
or this (start at 00:52):
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
It's a very raw, intimate sounding instrument and you really have to get to know it and learn to play with it.
A lot of younger guys with a P tend to be playing in bands with loud guitars that cover up the nuances, but you usually see older cats that are a little more seasoned and comfortable with their technique playing P basses in funk, blues, and even jazz settings.
If you're doing it right, it should sound like this:
or this:
or this (start at 00:52):
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
It's a very raw, intimate sounding instrument and you really have to get to know it and learn to play with it.
A lot of younger guys with a P tend to be playing in bands with loud guitars that cover up the nuances, but you usually see older cats that are a little more seasoned and comfortable with their technique playing P basses in funk, blues, and even jazz settings.
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It does what it says on the tin, basically.
You pull it out of the case, plug in, check the tuning, and play.
You know what to expect from it, the audience hears what they are expecting to hear, the engineer knows exactly what's coming at him/her, and you aren't tweaking the sound constantly to avoid the odd frequencies coming from other band members.
No fuss.
That said, I love my Jazz p'up basses, and my Am. Jaguar PJ, but a P just plays nice in the sandbox.
Rounds or flats, either way is a cool tone.
You pull it out of the case, plug in, check the tuning, and play.
You know what to expect from it, the audience hears what they are expecting to hear, the engineer knows exactly what's coming at him/her, and you aren't tweaking the sound constantly to avoid the odd frequencies coming from other band members.
No fuss.
That said, I love my Jazz p'up basses, and my Am. Jaguar PJ, but a P just plays nice in the sandbox.
Rounds or flats, either way is a cool tone.
What precisely is good about precisions?
Hmmmm, that's an easy one. Depending upon which TB bash thread your reading, the best thing about precision basses is they aren't made by Gibson or Rickenbacker or whatever other non Fender brand is being trashed in the thread.
I personally like all my precision basses and all the basses I own with precision pickups at or near the traditional split p sweet spot. It offers a nice deep dark tone without losing high end definition and with the right string and rig combo delivers a real gut punch.
Oh, and BTW - while I like all my precision basses I love my Gibsons and some day I'll get a Ric (even if I have to sell a P bass to get it).
Hmmmm, that's an easy one. Depending upon which TB bash thread your reading, the best thing about precision basses is they aren't made by Gibson or Rickenbacker or whatever other non Fender brand is being trashed in the thread.
I personally like all my precision basses and all the basses I own with precision pickups at or near the traditional split p sweet spot. It offers a nice deep dark tone without losing high end definition and with the right string and rig combo delivers a real gut punch.
Oh, and BTW - while I like all my precision basses I love my Gibsons and some day I'll get a Ric (even if I have to sell a P bass to get it).
Let's change it to: the bass that's been used to record far too many songs to count and still rules in the kingdom of pure tone heaven.
I hate Mercedes Benz. I wouldn't take one for free if I had to keep it and drive it. I've never spent a second wondering why everyone else likes them. I don't get why people think they are missing something if they don't like what is popular. Think for yourself.
I have an '83 Peavey Fury with a super ferrite pickup and a thin neck that can go head to head with an american p-bass and is more versatile for 1/3 the price
I've never liked that "classic" P Bass sound. I've been spending the last 35 years or so trying to find "my sound", which seems to involve two single coil J-Bass style pickups with active electronics.
It is hard to argue with the aggressive, meaty tone of these things:
I'm surprised that more big artists aren't playing these.
They just work, and a lot of players find the simplicity liberating. I almost always run the volume and tone wide open and get any variance in tone mostly from right hand position and attack. Also like the Telecaster it's an iconic sound that is time proven in every genre imaginable. Do you have to have one? Of course not. FWIW I've been a P guy for almost my entire playing "career" of 23+ years except a misguided period of about 4 years where I tried to force myself to be a Jazz Bass guy.
The neck dive alone makes them unworkable for me. However, a good friend of mine has an old 66 and damn if he can't make that thing rock your socks off, and apparently spending the evening holding the neck up (we've discussed this a lot) is not an issue for him.
The pickup sounds great and is in the right spot. For me it's simply an ergonomics issue. What I want is a Jazz with a P pickup in it, and not that stupid Mark Hoppus model either.
The pickup sounds great and is in the right spot. For me it's simply an ergonomics issue. What I want is a Jazz with a P pickup in it, and not that stupid Mark Hoppus model either.
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