Jazz or Precision!? - Advice Required

[bassatnight]

People,

I am really in two minds between purchasing a Precision or a Jazz or possibly the P Hybrid (P special).
I own an old Aria SB1000 which is a thing of beauty but I feel its sound is close to that of a Jazz so what I would really like is an instrument with a much fatter sound so the P would seem to be the answer. Ideally I would like both but following a recent redundacy buying the two might be pushing it with 'her in doors' mind you with three years salary perhaps a Wal or similar ;-)

So what instrument would be best - the P or the J??

Anyone out there an expert in both that could give me a brief run down of the sound difference? I have a budget of £500 to play with.

[rjb]

[quote name='bassatnight' post='356725' date='Dec 17 2008, 10:34 AM']So what instrument would be best - the P or the J??[/quote]

Best just to try them out at a local Fender dealer.

Lakland also do versions of both that are well worth a try, you could perhaps get them for about £500 secondhand. Here's a Lakky that went for £575: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=33216&hl=lakland"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...&hl=lakland[/url]

Another off-the-top-of-the-head (and perhaps too pricey) option could be to build a Jazz using Warmoth parts and perhaps drop in some Dark Star pickups to get a huge sound. Like this: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=30338"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=30338[/url]

Cheers-

Edited December 17, 2008 by rjb

[Ray]

I'm no expert but I reckon you may be able to pick up a second hand S1 Jazz for about £500. The S1 switch wires the pickups in series to give a much fatter sound similar to a P. Best of both worlds in one instrument.

Alternatively, adding a series switch to a standard J is cheap and pretty simple to do (so I've heard).

[rjb]

[quote]I'm no expert but I reckon you may be able to pick up a second hand S1 Jazz for about £500. The S1 switch wires the pickups in series to give a much fatter sound similar to a P. Best of both worlds in one instrument.[/quote]

Aha! +1 to this, then. They have these in their American and American Deluxe series, apparently.

Edited December 17, 2008 by rjb

[Mikey R]

A PJ setup gives you good P tones and quite good J (ish) tones.

[artisan]

i had a jazz with s1 switching & it did beef up the sound but it didn't sound much like a precision to me
you need to play them both back to back & decide what you like best.
i used to have both jazz & p basses but when gigged back to back i found the jazz sounds very thin compared to a precision & my band agree.mind we only have 1 guitar drummer & me so i need to fill out the sound & a nice thumping precision does just that.
but as pointed out above a good precision with the added jazz bridge pick is the best of both worlds.

Edited December 17, 2008 by artisan

[Paul S]

I wouldn't discount a Jaguar either. Well, I didn't because I bought one.

[neepheid]

Don't forget differences in neck width, with the (traditional) P neck being wider at the nut than the (traditional) J. Of course with bolt on necks you can replace one with your preferred neck shape/size quite easily.

[bassmansky]

i have a jazz with s-1 switching and when used with just the neck pup it does beef the sound a bit but nothing like a precision would,so if you are really after the precision sound imo you will have to buy one.

[OutToPlayJazz]

Three years' salary? World's your oyster, mate! World's your oyster!

[EssentialTension]

Or if you can run to it a Fender American Deluxe Precision has P pickup in the sweet spot and a double J at the bridge.

Expensive new but s/h can be got for £600 or so.

I love mine.

[artisan]

[quote name='EssentialTension' post='357220' date='Dec 17 2008, 07:22 PM']Or if you can run to it a Fender American Deluxe Precision has P pickup in the sweet spot and a double J at the bridge.

Expensive new but s/h can be got for £600 or so.

I love mine.[/quote]

well said
i love mine too,the best bass i ever played period.

if you can get one of these at a good price do it--you'll never regret it.

[~tl]

I'm a fan of the P-J set up personally. It's nice to have the thump of the P pickup and to also be able to blend in a little of the highs from the J in the bridge.

[deaver]

Add another £100 to your budget and buy a 2nd hand Jap one of each. Not sure how you'd get it past the missus though.

Edited December 17, 2008 by deaver

[steve]

stingray


<runs>

[thepurpleblob]

There's no useful answer. They're so different. I quite like Ps and I hate the neck on a J and even more the utter stupidity of 2 volume controls. Having said that, what do I know, everybody seems to play a J Playing a Precision, in particular, says something about you - punk/rock.

[Mickeyboro]

Funny though isn't it - JPJ used a Jazz, Noel Redding too!

My three-piece preferred the sound of a Jazz as 'more defined' but I always revert to my Pre.

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='thepurpleblob' post='357401' date='Dec 17 2008, 10:47 PM']There's no useful answer. They're so different. I quite like Ps and I hate the neck on a J and even more the utter stupidity of 2 volume controls. Having said that, what do I know, everybody seems to play a J [b]Playing a Precision, in particular, says something about you - punk/rock.[/b][/quote]

I have different preconceptions - Precision says to me Motown/Stax.

[thepurpleblob]

[quote name='EssentialTension' post='357411' date='Dec 17 2008, 11:03 PM']I have different preconceptions - Precision says to me Motown/Stax. [/quote]

On reflection I guess so.... Duck Dunn et al

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='thepurpleblob' post='357413' date='Dec 17 2008, 11:05 PM']On reflection I guess so.... Duck Dunn et al[/quote]

I guess the Precision, like the Jazz, is found in most genres of popular music.

And I still sound like me whichever I play.

[Brother Jones]

I playd Jazz (or Jazz-like) basses for 20 years. I owned one or two Precisions in my late teens and twenties and always thought they sounded a bit 'clanky' compared to the greater smoothness, more immediate response and better versatility of a Jazz. Then I bought a Jap 62 P-bass reissue about six months ago and have hardly picked up a Jazz since.

At least in my case, it's taken more feel, subtlety and experience to make a Precision sound good. In a band, you have to time things slightly differently and push the beat more with a Precision, as it's fundamental comes in slightly later than a Jazz. You also need to bear in mind that harmonics are going to be trickier.

My problem with P-Js is that they're neither one thing nor the other. You just can't get them to sound like a Jazz with both pups going because of the wiring, which also means you don't get quite the same Precision honk. If I was just beginning I'd go for a Jazz tbh.

[Bassmurf]

Always loved the sound of a Precision so went and bought an American Deluxe P and just couldn't get on with it so I've ended up with my Geddy Lee jazz now and am very happy with it!

Dan

[Kiwi]

I'd be looking for a 5 string P/J myself. Have a chat to Mr Shuker if you're not in a hurry and are looking for a relatively standard model. Wiring can be tweaked to give different results with different pickup settings.

[johnnylager]

Spector.

[Lfalex v1.1]

Just to second Artisan and Essential Tension, I loved the Precision Deluxe I tried, but I didn't want one at the time...
Twin Jazz pick-ups at the bridge sound wicked- ask all the Dolphin/Infinity/Vampyre owners out there.