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The Nicest Jazz Bass?


fleamail
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What is the nicest jazz bass you've ever played? And why?

I am asking because I really love the jazz bass sound but I can't find the right instrument for me! There's always something missing. Since now I've owned one Mexican, one 65' Japanese Reissue, one 62' Japanese Reissue and one custom made from various parts(US body, status graphite neck and antiquity pickups).

Share your experiences, please!

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[quote name='fleamail' post='199918' date='May 15 2008, 08:56 PM']What is the nicest jazz bass you've ever played? And why?

I am asking because I really love the jazz bass sound but I can't find the right instrument for me! There's always something missing. Since now I've owned one Mexican, one 65' Japanese Reissue, one 62' Japanese Reissue and one custom made from various parts(US body, status graphite neck and antiquity pickups).

Share your experiences, please![/quote]

The Sadowsky Metro and Celinder are very nice but expensive. The Geddy Lee (Japanese) sounds great, and has a Badass to boot (about £600-650). For a purely passive bass the US 1975 reissue has loads of poke (but is around £1200). Fender Marcus Miller Signature is quite nice too.
Have you tried one with a maple fingerboard? They tend to have a little more zing...

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Totally biased but my new Squier VM 70s style maple necked Jazz is the best I've played and should be even better when it has its Bad Ass 2 fitted at the weekend. It's already got Wizard 64s on and sounds amazing.

Other than the looks of the maple body and maple neck with black block markers I followed the a example of a lot of Basschatters and got a decent, modestly priced Jazz as a start and then fitting the electronics and hardware you really want.

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[quote name='fleamail' post='199918' date='May 15 2008, 08:56 PM']What is the nicest jazz bass you've ever played? And why?

I am asking because I really love the jazz bass sound but I can't find the right instrument for me! There's always something missing. Since now I've owned one Mexican, one 65' Japanese Reissue, one 62' Japanese Reissue and one custom made from various parts(US body, status graphite neck and antiquity pickups).

Share your experiences, please![/quote]

I have two USA J's and one 62 Jap reissue J, for me it's the USA,.... love to play the 62 Reissue but it's the USA's I prefer to use for live, practice and recording....The other Jazz I really enjoyed was the Geddy, I loved the sound of it too, nice and snarly but the ultra slim profile started to give me stick so I went back to the standard profile.

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Marcus Miller Jazz for me, played about 4 and always been amazed.

My Jazz is a pretty bog-standard one, does that it says on the tin but won't blow you away. It'll do for now until I can upgrade to something else..

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[quote name='jake_tenfloors' post='199923' date='May 15 2008, 09:06 PM']I love the sound of Jazz basses but have never found one that i comfortably play on. Evry shop i go in, i must have tried every Jazz bass there, but there just not comfortable :)

I guess if i ever want one it'll have to be a custom!

-Jake[/quote]

Really?
I find the "J" shape body one of the most comfortable around, irrespective of who made it and how much it costs!
Allied to the fast, slim necks, they're almost like wearing no bass at all.
The only niggle is that the lower cut-away is a little tight for my fretting hand when really chasing the high notes.

I have 2; a 2004 MIA s1 in trans sunset over an Ash body
a Squire VMJ with a BadAss, Black (Schaller) control knobs

I might be tempted to pursue another if it were active/graphite necked/super low actioned...
But for now, the other two'll do just fine!

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[quote]Really?
I find the "J" shape body one of the most comfortable around, irrespective of who made it and how much it costs!
Allied to the fast, slim necks, they're almost like wearing no bass at all.
The only niggle is that the lower cut-away is a little tight for my fretting hand when really chasing the high notes.

I have 2; a 2004 MIA s1 in trans sunset over an Ash body
a Squire VMJ with a BadAss, Black (Schaller) control knobs

I might be tempted to pursue another if it were active/graphite necked/super low actioned...
But for now, the other two'll do just fine![/quote]

Ye, i really don't know whay, i just can't get use to them! Absolutely love the tone, love the looks, the feels almost there. But there just not comftable to me :)

My warwicks on the other hand, they just play themselves :huh:

Jake

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I've liked every (well maybe 3!) Sadowsky I've touched, but I'd prefer a passive one, with the external footpedal preamp. The best I've owned is my current Bravewood, made out of other people's leftovers...but feels and sounds just like an old jassss should.

BB

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I'm hardly a jazz afficianado but the nicest jazzes I've played have been (in order)

1) Birdy's sweet '65 preCBS : in the Bass Gallery. Warm (unlike many vintage jazz basses I've played) and sweet. Authorative without being aggressive.
2) Celinder Larry Graham : at the LGS a few years ago. Same as the preCBS jazz but without the mojo
3) My Celinder Update J : Completely different sound to the two above but it does that Marcus thing very well

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[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='200171' date='May 16 2008, 09:32 AM']I'm hardly a jazz afficianado but the nicest jazzes I've played have been (in order)

1) Birdy's sweet '65 preCBS : in the Bass Gallery. Warm (unlike many vintage jazz basses I've played) and sweet. Authorative without being aggressive.
2) Celinder Larry Graham : at the LGS a few years ago. Same as the preCBS jazz but without the mojo
3) My Celinder Update J : Completely different sound to the two above but it does that Marcus thing very well[/quote]

I cant comment on number 2) but I agree with you completely on 1) and 3).

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Mine is my old Bacchus 36" bass, just had that weight behind the sound, really clear and sweet. It had balls.



Other than that, Kiwi's Celinder was just superb.. first played it when it belonged to Flanker through Bassjamm's Dr. Bass rig and it sang...

I must admit I don't find Jazz basses especially comfy, the bodies seem unnecessarily big and bulbous to me now!

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I've had several Squier standards as backups in the past, a Squier VMJ maple, an MIM 5-string, a Japanese Geddy Lee signature & a 2007 MIA S1 model. The MIA was surely the best playing & fullest sounding of the lot, but none of the Jazzes I've played have the punch I look for.

I've never had a Precision, so I'm going to try one of the new American Standards this year.

Try something new today :)

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Thank you people! You all got me into serious thinking! I'll be in England during June so I will try to find and test most of your proposals! I am very curious about Laklands, Miller and Geddy Lee because I always keep hearing good words about them! If you know any stores in London that have any in stock let me know!

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