What makes a Precision Bass, a Precision Bass?

[Downunderwonder]

4 minutes ago, zbd1960 said:

Didn't the 'precision' bit arise from the fact that it was fretted, unlike a double bass, notwithstanding other design elements? 

Correct.

[Newfoundfreedom]

Overwhelming blandness.

[lucky]

When someone says pbass I think of the shape and the pickup (with an optional J in the bridge). But when I think about playing one I always think that playing a pbass pup with the screws on the side gives my thumb a nice perch so I play it a little differently to a mustang style split pickup, therefore it sounds and feels more like a pbass but that is likely just in my head 😗

 

And "Precision" has to be a Fender/Squier for me otherwise every boxy estate car would be a Volvo

[LukeFRC]

14 minutes ago, lucky said:

And "Precision" has to be a Fender/Squier for me otherwise every boxy estate car would be a Volvo

unless it becomes so ubiquitous it just gets used as a name for the style of item... like a Biro or Hoover. 

Body shape, split pickup in correct position or single coil in 50's position, stratchplate to match pickup,  nut over 40mm, neck (ideally maple) with 4 a side tuners. 
 

[fretmeister]

1 hour ago, LukeFRC said:

unless it becomes so ubiquitous it just gets used as a name for the style of item... like a Biro or Hoover. 

Body shape, split pickup in correct position or single coil in 50's position, stratchplate to match pickup,  nut over 40mm, neck (ideally maple) with 4 a side tuners. 
 

I’d like an 8 string too.

[Nail Soup]

1 hour ago, lucky said:

And "Precision" has to be a Fender/Squier for me otherwise every boxy estate car would be a Volvo

In a way the non Fender/Squier P's bring into even sharper focus what makes a P: What features would a Precision-a-like bass need to have?

Edited April 17, 2022 by Nail Soup

[ezbass]

5 minutes ago, Nail Soup said:

In a way the non Fender/Squier P's bring into even sharper focus what makes a P: What features would a Precision-a-like bass need to have?

Sharp corners to the pick guard for me. I had a Maruszczyk Jake and the rounded part of the PG by the jack socket just grated.

[lucky]

3 hours ago, LukeFRC said:

unless it becomes so ubiquitous it just gets used as a name for the style of item... like a Biro or Hoover. 

 

Fair point. Do we think that hitting that spot where something is so universal is a win or does it annoy Mr Hoover when I'm Hoovering with a Dyson?

[nikon F]

21 hours ago, Velarian said:

Dare I say frets?

not sure why 3 laughing smilies. maybe im missing something . but yes frets originally

[nikon F]

21 hours ago, Velarian said:

Dare I say frets?

not sure why 3 laughing smilies. maybe im missing something . but yes frets originally

[Delberthot]

If we're talking looks then for me it's the body shape regardless of what pickup(s) it has but if we're talking sound then it's the original single coil or the split pickup. If we're being pedantic then technically it's anything made by Fender or Squier that has the name "precision" on the headstock irrespective of what shape, pickups etc it has.

[LeftyJ]

21 hours ago, Velarian said:

Dare I say frets?

Then what would you call a fretless Precision Bass? An Approximation Bass? 

[Velarian]

5 minutes ago, LeftyJ said:

Then what would you call a fretless Precision Bass?

A contradiction in terms. 

Edited April 17, 2022 by Velarian

[Velarian]

6 minutes ago, nikon F said:

not sure why 3 laughing smilies. maybe im missing something . but yes frets originally

Probably because I was being deliberately obtuse in answering the question literally rather than in the spirit it was intended. It was supposed to be tongue in cheek. 😉

[Misdee]

 A bass has a split P pickup in the P position isn't necessarily a Precision Bass, but chances are it will sound fairly Precision-like.

 

The peculiar thing about P Basses is that nowadays there are all kinds of exotic custom-made versions modelled after the original Fender designs to a greater or lesser degree. But, paradoxically, the fashionably retro sounds a lot of players are trying to emulate are probably better served by more lo-fi examples.

 

 You can buy a P Bass from Argos or from Fodera. I would venture that if I was playing a session for someone who wants a typical traditional Precision Bass tone  then the cheap bass would probably sound more authentic. It's the inconsistencies and shortcomings that give P Basses their undeniable charm.

[warwickhunt]

If anyone of us were asked to draw a P bass on a blank bit of paper (I deliberately didn't state Fender or Precision), we would draw...

 

Insert PICTURE

 

What we wouldn't draw is anything that didn't have the aesthetically correct body shape, with 4 on the side tuners which has a single pup (be it split or otherwise).

 

 

[FinnDave]

27 minutes ago, LeftyJ said:

Then what would you call a fretless Precision Bass? An Approximation Bass? 

A Fender Imprecision Bass

[chris_b]

5 hours ago, Newfoundfreedom said:

Overwhelming blandness.

 

That doesn't describe anything played by JJ Burnell, James Jamerson, Paul Jackson, Wilton Felder or Duck Dunn.

[ordep]

Even Fender is not sure. 😁

[LeftyJ]

14 minutes ago, ordep said:

Even Fender is not sure. 😁

Don't forget this one 😉

 

[Newfoundfreedom]

48 minutes ago, chris_b said:

 

That doesn't describe anything played by JJ Burnell, James Jamerson, Paul Jackson, Wilton Felder or Duck Dunn.

I wasn't describing anything played by anyone. The bass has very little to do with how any talented musician plays. Give any of those people a cheap Harley Benton and they'll still sound amazing. Only my opinion of the way P basses look 

[Doctor J]

1 hour ago, Delberthot said:

If we're being pedantic then technically it's anything made by Fender or Squier that has the name "precision" on the headstock irrespective of what shape, pickups etc it has.

"Made by Fender" is a bit of a grey area, no? Something made by Cortek in Korea or Indonesia, alongside other brands, which just has a Fender logo applied at the end, isn't really made by Fender. Being really pedantic You could argue anything made since they shut down the Fullerton factory isn't really a Fender at all, just a legalised copy made by whichever corporate entity owned the brand name at the time, with the crowd pleasing logo stuck to it 

[Doctor J]

8 minutes ago, LeftyJ said:

Don't forget this one 😉

 

And don't forget the Telecasters which came in the late 60's which are the same as the Precisions which came in the early 50's 🙂

[LukeFRC]

3 minutes ago, Doctor J said:

"Made by Fender" is a bit of a grey area, no? Something made by Cortek in Korea or Indonesia, alongside other brands, which just has a Fender logo applied at the end, isn't really made by Fender. Being really pedantic You could argue anything made since they shut down the Fullerton factory isn't really a Fender at all, just a legalised copy made by whichever corporate entity owned the brand name at the time, with the crowd pleasing logo stuck to it 

Did they shut it down? I think G&L are still building P bass shaped objects there…

[Doctor J]

G&L are in Fullerton, California, but not in the old Fender building, as far as I'm aware. They started building in 79 and Fender were still in the old place until 83, or so, before they moved to Corona.

Edited April 17, 2022 by Doctor J