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Bass with just a jazz bridge p/up - does it exist?


electric nate
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Being the no-frills extreme metal kinda guy that I am, I only ever use the bridge pickup on all my basses.

I've seen plenty of manufacturers that make stripped-down [i]guitars[/i] with just a bridge pickup and a volume knob, but nobody really makes a bass in quite the same vein.

I have a real love of minimal design and for what I do, nothing else is really necessary. I don't need a neck pickup, or a tone control or an onboard preamp or finger ramp or a humbucker the size of a brick or any fancy active stuff - I like things simple and straight to the point and it annoys me that all my basses have a bunch of extra bits going unused, taking up space, being in the signal chain unnecessarily. I would just remove them, but then there would be all the unnecessary holes where they used to be!

Does anyone know of a single instrument currently in production that is routed for a just single jazz bridge pickup, a volume knob and nothing else?

There must be something somewhere surely? I don't want to waste a custom shop luthier's time with such a rudimentary build, and really I'd rather buy something cheap, slap a nice pickup in it and then rag the crap out of it as a rehearsal/touring instrument.

The closest i've found so far is the Ibanez GRS100EX ([url="http://www.musiciansfriend.com/bass/ibanez-gsr100ex-soundgear-bass-guitar"]http://www.musicians...ear-bass-guitar[/url]) although even that has 4-too-many pole pieces and an extra knob I'll never use AND it's basically non-existent in the UK. Am I asking for too much? (or perhaps that should be too little?)

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Buy a Jazz and get the appropriate routs filled. You don't even need a control cavity - you don't even need a volume control really.
Straight from the pickup to the amp! Might be an idea to make the pup a twin coil effort though, or it will be very noisy.

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I've thought about going that direction, but don't like the idea of filling in pickup cavities, it involves a lot of glue/filler and if the woods don't expand/contract at the same rate then the fill could become unstable and visible through the finish - which would have to be completely redone. It seems really against the flow of my ethos of simplicity to do extra work to a bass in order to remove something. Perhaps i'm just crazy.

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If you have a standard Jazz, how about a custom scratch plate with no middle pick up cut-out, maybe a 1 piece incorporating the control plate with just the one hole for volume & one for Jack socket?

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[quote name='KiOgon' timestamp='1405376011' post='2501479']
If you have a standard Jazz, how about a custom scratch plate with no middle pick up cut-out, maybe a 1 piece incorporating the control plate with just the one hole for volume & one for Jack socket?
[/quote]

Beat me to it :)

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A scratchplate is arguably the most unnecessary thing you could have on a bass besides a pair of fluffy dice hanging off the headstock! With respect and gratitude for your efforts guys; I'm not looking for bodges or clutter. I was hoping someone might know of an obscure minimal bass that I don't know about. It's sort of frustrating that something so simple seems not to exist. My googling shall continue but it's looking more and more like i'm going to have to spend a wedge getting something built for me

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A scratchplate is the most necessary thing for hiding cavities and superfluous controls on a bass that has to be customised, due to it being commercially unviable to mass-produce.
Is this more an issue of aesthetics, rather than functionality? Otherwise you could just tape-up the pots to their required settings (bridge pup only, tone wide open), and tuck them under the scratchplate.

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Obscure and minimal..? Yes, but are they any good..? Something like...

[attachment=166784:Mini_Bass_1.jpg]

... is not guaranteed to cut the mustard, and is already over-spec'ed for you. This one ...

[attachment=166785:Mini_Bass_2.jpg]

... is derived from a Squier, but still over-equipped.

It would surely be an option to acquire a bass body blank, shaped but not routed for p/up nor controls, and have a builder route it from behind and add the neck..? Shouldn't cost a kidney or two, I'd have thought..? Perhaps if you asked [i]that [/i]question in the 'Build' section here, someone could at least give you a ball-park figure..? At least that way you'd get your unique specifications, exactly how you want 'em..?
Just my tuppence-worth; hope this helps.

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[quote name='electric nate' timestamp='1405379585' post='2501515']
It's sort of frustrating that something so simple seems not to exist. My googling shall continue but it's looking more and more like i'm going to have to spend a wedge getting something built for me
[/quote]

I like simple too and I did own a hand built bass with a single humbucker wired directly to jack with no knobs at all.

I can however see why such basses don't exist as mass produced items - we are very much in the minority!

You sometimes get signature basses like the Nikki Six Thunderbird with just volume but even that has two humbuckers

And when you do find a bass with a single pickup it is very unlikley to be a single jazz pickup by the bridge as that is too much one trick pony for most people (especially without a tone knob to get some variety)

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Guest Jecklin

Do you play 5 stringers NAte?

Sorry if I missed it.

How about an Ibanez GWB35? get it fretted and you're away. If there was a 4 string version I'd have done the same thing as I too am a massive fan of ultra simple, rear position single PU basses.

I really wanted an Ibanez GSR 100EX in mahogony (they do black as well), but they never released them here and importing from the US for a budget bass just isn't worth it. You may like these too.

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By the sound of things, to get what you want you are either going to have to get it made for you or build it yourself.

Limelight basses are pretty popular on here at the moment, and they are mostly made up to the buyer's specs from bought-in parts (from what I have read). Good prices too...

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[quote name='Cosmo Valdemar' timestamp='1405381244' post='2501520']
Schecter Blasko sig? Not a J pickup but a single EMG right down by the bridge. Long discontinued but very no-frills. And very metal.
[/quote]

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/57517-fs-schecter-blasko-signature-bass/"]http://basschat.co.uk/topic/57517-fs-schecter-blasko-signature-bass/[/url]

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Scratchplates were invented to cover messy routs!

They only still put them on newer, nicer routed instruments because people expect one.

Definitely put some kind of double coil on though if you go for it or it will be like a swarm of angry bees.

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Actually if you can live with a plate it would not be that hard to simply mod a Fender Jazz.

Take the neck pup out and get a new plate made with no neck pup hole and only one control hole.

There would be holes etc but all hidden by the plate.

Or get one of these -

[url="http://www.fender.com/basses/precision-bass/deluxe-active-p-bass-special-rosewood-fingerboard-black-1-ply-beveled-gold-vinyl-pickguard/"]http://www.fender.co...inyl-pickguard/[/url]

Remove all the crap you don't need. Get a new plate made up.

End up with this -

[url="http://s30.photobucket.com/user/throwoff/media/Jonly_zpsd90367eb.jpg.html"][/url]

Hell there is even the possibility of having just 4 screws holding that down to remove more crap.

Edited by throwoff
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[quote name='electric nate' timestamp='1405437007' post='2501894']


AHA! I've found one! Sadly it's not really my style aesthetically, but i've found one bass that's only routed for a j bridge p/up
[/quote]
I bet it's got a P-pup route under the pick-guard :)

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