the most traditional or vintage jazz bass tone? Sorry if this has been discussed before, but I couldn't figure out what topic to search for. Thanks, JD
When we were giving my EBS cab a test run, I loved Captain Scarlet's RB5, but then again I'm starting to fall in love with my Proto-J 5 (70s model) but then again thats not a Fender and its only got 4 strings right now (broke the B string by over tuning )
In general, if you want a good 5 string Fender, the Roscoe Beck is a very good way to go. It also defintley has that vintage Jazz bass tone IMO.
Although I don't play it that much anymore, my MIA Jazz V has the classic jazz tone IMHO. It also kills with the Sadowsky outboard preamp - becomes a Marcus Miller machine!
Here's another vote for the RB5. It has all the classic tones and more. It was and is still my No. 1.
Call me crazy but I can't understand how any bass can have "the most traditional or vintage jazz bass tone" more than the passive Standard Jazz V. I have a passive "Standard" Jazz V and it has a fantastic traditional vintage jazz sound. (and feel for that matter). But I don't have nearly as much experience with other basses as a lot ot other talkbassers. Perhaps Nino-Brown can comment, he recently got a passive Standard Jazz V very much like mine, and has lots more experience with a hundred other basses. Here's his thread.
Well, Roscoe Beck worked with lots of people at Fender to specifically design the RB5 to get the vintage tone of his 60s Jazz bass in a 5-string. If you look on his website he wrote long articles explaining how making a Fender 5 is not just a case of adding another string, as Leo's original bass was very much a happy accident that worked with 4 strings but doesn't if you add more. So Roscoe worked on different pickups with more, smaller magnets and on making the headstock lighter to counter neck dive, plus a host of other things - but he always kept his 60s Jazz bass with him as reference to make sure it got that vintage tone - so there's no surprise about this! BTW - they didn't have 5s with low B in the 60s!!
A Fender five string with classic passive J Bass tone? The RB5 is, head and shoulders, the best choice.
The Roscoe Beck 5 does indeed have great tone, but you better like a neck that feels like a skateboard with strings on it.
I loved the neck - but in any case it's narrower than say a Lakland 5 or a Yamaha TRB - not the widest by a long way!
Bruce Lindfield, thanks for the explanation. So I guess something like the standard Jazz V would have a more "modern 5 string" sound to it than the RB5.
Re: RB5 neck. Yes, it's an acquired taste but after about a week I loved the neck. Very wide but very thin and very playable.
Yep I'm sure you can get used to it. But the neck is the reason I wound up getting the Stingray5. Much much slimmer. But not exactly a j bass tone.
