Baloney Balderdash

And what about people buying pickups to swap out stock ones, they only use those general terms too?

Does this look angry too, to you : And this post of yours, which it was a reply to, is not condescending and patronizing? : Or would that only be the case if it had looked like this? :

No I am not angry. Does large red fonts mean you are angry now? If you had known me from posting here I use large red fonds to underline the important part of my posts. The large red fonds was my point with that quote, but to get the full context and be able to see where it came from I included the entire reply. You really do have some strange very specific ideas. Yes, that is the general terms for those type of pickups, there are specific terms too for the specific models. One does not rule out the other, but depends on context. Just like a rodent can also be a mouse.

They might, though not the guitarists I know or read comments from if they are actually specific and not just referring to single coil pickups or humbuckers in general terms, which bass players will do sometimes as well, and in any case it wouldn't be the actual official names for those specific types/models of pickups. And again all this was really just to tell you:

Except Strat pickups are actually named Strat pickups, to differentiate them from other single coil guitar pickups, like for instance Tele pickups, which are also named Tele pickups, and not just single coil pickups. And those LP style guitar humbucker pickups are not just called humbuckers they are technically called PAF style humbucker pickups, again to differentiate them from other types of guitar humbucker pickups. Also in that vain for bass we have Soap Bar pickups.

Also P, J and Stingray pickups are not just called that, those are literally the official names of those respective pickup design/types. It's like refusing to call a butter knife a butter knife just because it also works for applying cream cheese and Nutella.

So one should refrain calling pickups what they are really called, so that a P pickup should not be called a P pickup and a J pickup should not be called a J pickup, and a Sting Ray pickup not a Sting Ray pickup? It's what the actual pickup type/model is actually called, named after what those was originally was used for. Also it's not just about how the pickups look they will sound it too, a specific pickup design lends it self to certain tones, and a bass with a P pickup will sound somewhat like a P Bass, and a bass with a Sting Ray pickup will sound somewhat like a Sting Ray Bass. That's why he called it a StingBird or ThunderRay, not simply because the pickup poles are exposed. With those pickups its tone will have some at that typical Sting Ray Bass character/quality. Design does influence greatly on tone, and that doesn't just go for pickups either.

Though with that approach the fretboard will be accordingly wider, unlike a real short scale bass. Also one should adjust their plucking technique to the lesser tension of the strings on the short scale, and not expect to be able to play exactly the same way as with a long scale bass, a different instrument after all. Also thicker gauge strings on short scale basses to compensate for the lower tension isn't really the answer, as they will end up really stiff because of the shorter vibrating length, especially as you go up the neck, which will affect tone and sustain negatively, instead, as said, one should adjust their plucking technique accordingly. I've found that thinner gauge strings on short scales, but adjusting your plucking technique, gives the best results.

Dude, those are literally Sting Ray pickups, not Thunderbird pickups with exposed poles.

Another vote on the Danelectro Longhorn Bass. Don't let the cheap building materials fool you (and the neck is still Hard Maple with a Rosewood (Pau Ferro on more recent ones) fretboard), this is a seriously great sounding bass that is extremely comfortable to play. And honestly personally I think it looks pretty amazing too.

Black, or if you are feeling more adventurous Mint, or even proper Green!

Yes, how about we just close Bass Chat and in its place just leaving an image saying "Use Google!".

I use my Zoom B1Xon, loaded with all reverb effects from that generation of Zoom digital effect models via a 3rd party firmware hack, for reverb effects, and a NUX Tape Core Deluxe (Roland RE-201 Space Echo tape delay emulation) for delays. And yes, I have a subtle always on reverb from that Zoom multi effect added to my basic "clean" signal, consisting of a very subtle plate reverb, with a 10ms pre-delay, stacked into a subtle spring reverb. Regarding whether Marcus Miller knowing what is best for everyone just because he is a master at playing bass, that is simply nonsense, first of all being great at playing bass doesn't automatically make you an expert in audio manipulation/using effects, secondly different applications, what kind of gear you otherwise use, and contexts, what kind of music you play, requires different approaches, plus there is such thing a personal preferences. Just because delay might work best for Marcus Miller doesn't mean it will be the best option for everyone in every possible application and context.

2 8 Ohm cabinets connected in parallel (which is usually how the speaker outputs on amps are connected) equals 4 Ohm, so you should be good. 2 8 Ohm cabinets in series though equals 16 Ohm, but it is with almost 100% certainty that the speaker outputs of your amp will be connected in parallel.

Fair enough, but I was referring to your notion that P Basses are one trick ponies, though it does seem, on a more thorough readthrough of your reply, as a contradiction to some of the other statements you make. I guess we can't all make equally as much sense all the time, I know I don't, just confused me. Please do carry on...

So you are saying Steve Harris, J.J Burnel and James Jamerson sounds the same to you?

Well, I use 2 tube preamps, one at the very beginning and one at the very end of the signal chain of my "amp-less" setup, that I drive the tubes in to just on the verge of breakup, so that is primarily where I get my basic "clean" mildly overdriven tone from. And I got my high gain overdrive, high gain distortion and fuzz tones covered too, which I am extremely satisfied with, and which neither really seems to be in the Vintage Microtubes's tonal territory, as you describe it. I trust you when you say that the Vintage Microtube is great and different from the typical Darkglass sound, but as said I got pretty much all my drive tones sorted, and even if that doesn't stop GAS for more drive pedals that I won't use honestly the Vintage Microtube is not going to be in the near proximity of my top priority GAS drives, which as far as goes drives that could get into the same kind of territory alone consists of, in no particular order: EHX Hot Wax, EHX Operation Overlord Nano, One Control Hooker's Green Bass Machine, Boss OD-1X and Source Audio After Shock (although the latter will do much more than just that), that all would have priority over the Vintage Microtube, before I would even start to maybe consider to acquire that, and that's not even concidering all the higher gain distortion and fuzz pedals that takes up my GAS drives list as well. I do appreciate your correction and suggestion though, and sure if I should get a chance to try one I will definitely, which then might very well be able to change my mind.

Not a big fan of the Darkglass drives, but the EMG Geezer Butler P pickup is indeed something very special, vintage voiced, but with a slightly higher output, a bit of an upper mids snap/bite, an open and very dynamic response, but while still having a really tight low end response, and with a rich high end, without that in any way making them sound thin, overall resulting in a very well balanced tone, with an extraordinary clarity and an outstanding definition and articulation, which makes them respond very well to effects and further tone shaping, while though sounding genuinely great all on their own as well. And then they are dead silent, even in basses that hasn't otherwise been shielded properly, because they are shielded internally, and all the solderless wiring it comes with, which by the way makes them super easy to install, has the ground running like a braided shield all along the insulated lead. In many ways a modern improved take of the ultimate vintage voiced pickup. And yeah, I know, this ended up sounding like some crazed hyperbole marketing mumbo jumbo, but truth is they really are that great!

This astonishing hauntingly beautiful track, "Kith" by Hilary Woods: Though this upload that doesn't allow embedding sounds better, not nearly as compressed, so do yourself a favor and click this link to hear it on YouTube, rather than playing the above over-compressed version: https://youtu.be/DlgbQ-0F2oo

Close Encounters of the Third Kind? To be honest I'd personally prefer an alien tone to a 70's tone. I guess though it depends of if we are talking E.T or Predator? Are Teletubbies aliens? Cause I am not sure if I'd like a bass with that kind of tone, possibly a bit too childish for my personal taste. But if I had to I would prefer Tinky-Winki over any of the others, or maybe Po. Definitely not Dipsy or Laa-Laa.

Well, I guess I just need to work on getting Yamaha to find me worthy for a signature bass... Seriously though, just at least one short scale offering ought to not be too much to ask, there has never been a better market for short scale basses than currently, and it seems like just about every other big brand offers at least one short scale model, most several. Sorry about hijacking the thread.

Congratulations. I wish Yamaha would make a short scale bass, at this point there is really no good excuse for not offering at least one model. Preferably a short scale version of their BB design, but with just a reverse P pickup, no bridge J pickup, like the signature Peter Hook one, but with pickguard and 24 fret neck. If they did that I would get one as soon as I had the money to spare to do so.

I suppose one not being fond of the fact that basswood is one of the softer hardwoods and the risk for screws stripping, dings e.t.c that comes with is a reasonable enough reason to not like it, though that wouldn't bother me personally. However whether or not the pickups was a great match for the resonance of the basswood though I am rather sceptic on how exactly you would be able to access that, way too many other determining variables to the tone of any given bass be to be able to credit any issues one might have with it to the body wood type vs pickup type/model of said bass with any kind of reasonable certainty.

What is that supposed to mean? Yes, it's a cheap wood, but several high end basses got a basswood body and several professional guitarists and bass players swear by it. Basswood is actually supposed to be a great tonewood (if one believes in that). And the actual price difference from a more expensive wood is a very little percentage of the actual production costs, and even less asking price. That a wood type is cheap has nothing to do with quality, it just means that it is readably available, which again means sustainable and good for the environment. "It sounded and played amazing, BUT the solid colored body was X wood and not Y wood", that just doesn't make any sense, unless you got X-ray vision and listen with your eyes and/or suffers from OCD.

That certainly depend a lot on the band and audience in question, which again to some degree is determined by the specific music played. Generic Top 40 cover band music though, sure, in that case you would probably be right in something like in the proximity of 99% of all cases, except maybe for when there is another bass player in the audience.