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When did you become a Jazz Bass guy (gal)?

#201
20 years ago shortly after deciding to make the full time switch to bass playing. My first bass I had for about 4 years at the time, a squier II slab body/no pickguard p bass, had no frets (I ripped em out early on), and I was listening to a lot of rush so I really wanted something with frets again, and 2 pickups. I briefly had an ibanez TR 80 p/j, which I took a huge loss on to buy a new MIM Jazz in lake placid blue. Then I found a good deal on a white one, so that was my gigging pair for a short while until I sold them, with regrets now, but back then I had a good reason. In 98 I bought my american standard jazz which is still my #1. It totally blew the MIMs out of the water and I was going for more "pro level" stuff so i let thenlm go. I got a geddy lee a year or 2 later. Those are the only 2 jazz basses I own, and I am never selling them.
 
#203
Gradually and slowly over time without even knowing I was becoming a Jazz bass guy.

As a young, self-taught player, my primary bass for years was a P-bass clone. I wanted something different and managed to find a decent 5-string fretless Jazz bass clone.

That become my primary for most gigging. While it was strange and frustrating at the time, I stuck with it out of frustration.

My primary instrument now is a fretless 4-string MIM Fender Jazz Bass. Nothing fancy. But with it I feel like I have been unlocked and have found my voice.
 
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#204
My first good bass was an ibanez sr305. I realized pretty quick I didn't dig the tight spacing so much, and I also didn't like the 5th string. I much prefer a tuned down 4 string. Still, 'twas a good bass but I sold it.
My second good bass was a fender mexi Jazz. It's a great bass that as most of you guys know just works. Whether it's recording or live, no matter the genre, the tone fits in. I usually have the pickups and tone knob on full blast, but I do love the different sounds you can get by favoring one pup over the other. Whether you want aggressive clank or smooth bassy dub, it does it all.
A few years later I picked up a musicman bongo. That was a great active bass, it actually had the best active preamp I've come across. But as time went on I found myself always fiddling with the knobs and the setup. It also didn't sit quite as nicely in the mix. I began bringing the Jazz bass to rehearsals, gigs, and sessions and realized I actually favored it.
Currently I'm using the mexi Jazz exclusively. I swapped out the stock pups for some cheap deep vintage bartolini's that still have plenty enough highs. I also had a great tech (Bill baker of daves sound) cut me a nut and touch up the frets. The neck is damn sturdy and I never have to fiddle with it, unlike the bongo I have recently sold. Honestly, I feel like a passive Jazz with a darkglass b7k is the perfect setup for me, and I truly don't desire anything else. If you're a metal guy like me, passive basses are where it's at for distortion, actives just don't sound as good with it. I love the simplicity of the passive Jazz and the musical nature of the on board controls. I love the way that it always sits perfectly in the mix. Can't go wrong with the tried and true.
 
#206
When I played bass for about a year on a brandless starter someone let me try his p-bass and I hated everything about it, so I was sure I would never play a Fender.
Then when it was time to shop for a real bass the only bass I had avoided to try in the shop was a used 77-Jazz.
But in the end, just to be sure, I did try, and it is still the only bass I use.
 
#207
Late 2013. Talked myself into buying a LPB Jazz bass (MIM Standard). Ended up modifying it for a Precision pickup in the neck. Decided that only my left hand is a 'Jazz bass guy', whereas my ears and right hand are 'Precision bass guys'.
 
#208
My first bass was a P. Followed by a P/J, and another P, then my first J. It was great! Then back to only having a P. Now I have a J-style and a passive humbucker-equipped bass with single coil option, which I use most frequently.

Both wear La Bella tapewounds and I'm a happy man. I love a good P tone, but for me, I'm all about that J.
 
#215
consectaneus said:
I was just remembering how in the '80s you could walk into a music store and there would be the three bolt neck, blocked and bound '70s Jazz basses that were so cheap because of the CBS era stigma that was strong among used buyers in the know. Boat anchors with shoddy QC--etc.
Click to expand...

Same thing goes for the 70's Precision basses. Now they are my 2 favorite Era basses. A 70's Precision and a 70's bound and blocked Jazz = The Dynamic Duo as far as I am concerned.
 
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#216
TMARK said:
1989. Scored a 76 Jazz at a pawnshop for $200.
Click to expand...

'89 for me too, except it was a '71 Jazz for $300. Natural ash and maple, white pearl blocks/white binding.

Then I bought a '78 in sunburst in '93, and later traded it for a '69 stained in walnut. By '98, I had went to a Precision, then Tobias, and played a StingRay from 2000 until '11.

Bought a new Am Std P in 2011, but sold it after buying my new sunburst 2013 Am Dlx Jazz V.

So therefore, I have been a born again Jazz Bass guy since 2013, and have never met a Fender since '89 that I liked better than my current AM DLX.
 
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#217
meatwad said:
'89 for me too, except it was a '71 Jazz for $300. Natural ash and maple, white pearl blocks/white binding.

Then I bought a '78 in sunburst in '93, and later traded it for a '69 stained in walnut. By '98, I had went to a Precision, then Tobias, and played a StingRay from 2000 until '11.

Bought a new Am Dlx P in 2011, but sold it after buying my new sunburst 2013 Am Dlx Jazz V.

So therefore, I have been a born again Jazz Bass guy since 2013, and have never met a Fender since '89 that I liked better than my current AM DLX.
Click to expand...
I dig the Deluxe. And the Elite.
 
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#220
I am a sound engineer and I was frustrated with so many recordings where you can't hear the notes the bass player it hitting. So many low rumble sounds from the Stones to Nathan East on many Fourplay records. Then you hear Geddy Lee, John Paul Jones, Will Lee, Tal Wilkenfeld, and many others who play with a jazz bass and you can hear every note. I Sold my heavy G&L 2500 and now have a Fender MIA 5 string jazz. Plays better and I love the low mids that punch through in a mix. No rumble unless you over EQ the low end. Neck is so much easier to play and the low B is just as solid as the G&L
 
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