One way to avoid single-coil noise between songs is to turn up your other pick-up knob as each song ends and then turn it back down just before you start playing again. Thanks for posting this vid, its useful. I own two basses and they are both Squier Jazz. I love them.
@@kingdeedee Yeah, so they can buy one, and then they always have access to it. Source Audio Ultrawave is not only the best compressor available in pedal form, but it also has an excellent noise gate and lets you filter out problematic frequencies. It also does so many other things. Absolute Swiss Army knife of a pedal!
When I was young, I didn't like the Fender look; I wanted something badass. But I bought a second-hand Japan Jazz Bass last year and I immediately fell in love: it's a really easy to play instrument, the neck is extremely comfortable and the three control knobs allow for a variety of sounds. It's the instrument I would recommend to any beginner.
True. My stand has a rubber band that goes over the neck below the headstock to hold the bass in place. The only downside to the Jazz is when using only one of the pickups there is a tendency to hum.
@@brettsamuels3669 yeah but when you play at festivals etc you have to use what they put at your disposal. Anyway I have never bothered, was just mentioning one downside 😊
I have a '68 Jazz and absolutely love it. I bought it as a 21st birthday present for myself a long time ago. Over the years I've had a couple of repairs done and speaking to bass techs I'm often told that the quality, sound and playability of these 'vintage' Fenders can be very variable. Considering the ridiculous prices of vintage guitars and basses I'd definitely play before buying to avoid disappointment.
I bought a new fender jazz bass (left handed) back in 1972 and it still sounds great today as it did back then. 50 years, I’ve had to replace the pick ups with noiseless pick ups. I have other basses , but my fender jazz is still my go to bass. the pros definitely outweigh the cons.
For me, the biggest con is how aggressive they are particularly in the mids and highs. They always sound good but you really never get the most out of them without really fine-tuning your right hand technique and learning the preamp
Yeah, it has a really aggressive sound that doesn't fit any type of music. I personally like the "raw" Stingray tone. For me, the main con is the body size and weight - at least of the ones I had the opportunity to play.
@@mfC0RD The newer stingray specials are definitely lighter and more ergonomic. They weigh about 8 or so pounds nowadays which is insane seeing as my Stingray 5 weighs like 12ish lbs lol
Yes, this would be a great vid, there sound is definitely a love it or leave it. I have a 96 and a newer special. The specials imo address what many don’t like about Stingray’s, namely the aggressive twang.
At 66 years old I never thought I would own a Fender Jazz Bass.Neck looked way too thin." However " I saw a Squire Jazz Bass on Reverb one very early morning two months ago.Something about it got me.The wood grain was fantastic.I have a Conklin 7 string fretless I love.Why would I even consider buying this ? Bam nailed the buy now and man it was love at first play !!!!! I lay back in my recliner and jam out to Dr SaxLove every day.This thing sounds fantastic with Dimarzio pick ups through my 1969 SVT and 8x10 .Squire is not in my book a lousy cheap product ! It is freak'in great ! So much so I now own three of them one fretless and the neck arrives in a few days from Warmouth.Bottom line They are outstanding for the money.
I think the Fender Jazz is a great bass. Of course I've been playing one since 1966. I bought a 1965 Jazz in 1966, played it in high school and college bands and toured using it for 3-years in the early 70's. After touring I used it for weekend gigs until it was stolen in 1976. Just couldn't find another Jazz with the same neck shape after that. They were all the same at the nut but were all too thick and I'd been spoiled by my '65. Then in 1985 while working PT at a music store I picked up a 1982 Jazz (we thought it was an '84), played a few things on it, and it felt like home. So I bought it. That's the Jazz in my avatar that I'm still playing today. It has what I believe is called a "60's Slim C-shape neck with a 7.25" radius". Just love that neck. Unlike my '65 Jazz, my '82 Jazz has a white-bound maple neck and the 70's era pickup spacing of 4" center to center. Normal spacing, both in the 60's and now, is 3.6" center to center. That wider pickup spacing pushes the bridge pickup just under 1/2" closer to the bridge. The result is a slightly brighter sound than my '65. If I need to make it growl, I just dig into the strings over the pick up and she'll growl all day long. My '82 also has much better sustain than my '65 did, and I like that a lot too. I didn't find out until I started touring in 1971 that my '65 had foam mutes glued onto the underside of the ashtray cover, which is why it didn't have much sustain. I pulled those off, scraped it clean, and then I had some sustain. Still, my '82 has far more sustain than '65 did. One more PRO thing about the Jazz that the Precision just can't do is change the sound of the bass as you are playing it without touching the control knobs of your bass or changing the EQ of your amp. You can change the sound you are producing on the Jazz just by changing where you are plucking the strings. I run my Jazz with both volumes and the tone knob turned all the way up. Then if I need a mellower sound, I'll move my plucking position closer to or over the heel of the neck. If I want much brighter sound, I'll move my plucking position back to the bridge pickup. And there are huge different blends of tones everywhere between those two extremes. I'll often change my plucking hand from in front of the neck pickup to behind it for a little brighter sound if needed for the song. And of course I'll go right over the bridge pickup and dig into the strings for that growl when I want it. So, in my opinion, the ability to change the timbre and tone of your sound just by moving you plucking hand is a real big plus for the Jazz.
I bought (and still own) my Fender Jazz bass in August of 1972. Celebrating that its 50 years old now, and still plays as good as new. I guess I chose wisely.
I bought a J Bass after reading and listening to both and decided on this one and now I think it's the best decision I made (aside from leaving the guitar for the bass). The most difficult thing was finding the J I wanted given the diversity of models and I played it safe, a relic. There was another one very similar with some differences but I didn't want to risk it since I had heard the relic. It fits into any type of music. I couldn't be happier. By the way, your bass is absolutely beautiful, I've never seen it for sale.
Hi Mark, very informative video, I couldn't go for the American Jazz because of cost so bought a Mexican, I absolutely love it, I also got a Fender Rumble 100 Bass amp, the combination of the two suits me to what I'm doing, I'm 78 and playing in a Church Band, not quite what I was doing in the 60s-70s :) Love all your videos, and you have certainly helped me in my love for playing Bass
Mexi Jazzes have this character to them. I've often seen them placed between Squier and American Fender in the hierarchy, but I feel like they stand alone.
When I started playing in the early ‘70s there were only 4 real basses to choose from. P bass, J bass 4001 and Gibson. Gibson basses even then we’re crap. Fender basses were huge on a 150 lb, frizzy-haired, pimply-faced kid so the Rickenbacker won. Plus being a lefty they were easy to get compared to Fender. Still have it and going strong but my MIM J bass is a close second (after replacing all electronics and tuners). Good video!
My favorite Fender bass configuration is the P/J with a Jazz bass width neck. For my style of playing, it's the works the best. I also prefer either flatwound or tapewound strings.
Love the neck and sound of the Jazz, I've had several but never quite got on with them playing seated. I ended up realising that the offset body messes with my playing...everything moves left! Don't have that problem with my G&L, Warwick and Ibanez basses, but also can't nail the tone!
I’ve played various basses and always come back to the Jazz. Last year(before the price jump), I purchased the Made in Mexico Signature Geddy Lee Jazz and haven’t looked back. Not only that, it stays in tune.🎧
The only negative I have with that bass is the truss rod is annoying to adjust so you should stick with the same strings as much as possible and change them every few months when they start getting too stretched. But yeah, it's a great bass.
Great video. One of my bases is a Fender Squire P-Bass (Chinese) I found in poor condition in a thrift shop for 20.00 (even came with a hard case). I tore it apart, repainted the body, and replaced most of the hardware and electronics. Its a decent practice bass, and I never thought about replacing the neck with a Jazz neck. That will be my next modification, just to see how it performs. If you ever have the chance to pick up a bass that needs TLC for a dirt cheap price, do it! You will learn a lot while bringing it back to life, and unless you're attempting some serious modifications, there is little you can do to screw it up.
True, I used to have a fender modern player, completely toneless and had hum buckers for some reason, but at the time, I did put seymour duncans in the bridge, should have done the neck really. These days I use an 83 westone concorde 1 (matsumoku made), its bashed up and needs some adjustment, but its definably worth getting work done on instruments, especially because you can get them sounding close to as good as the more expensive versions with a little investment.
@@captainsergeant At the end of the day, you pay for the name on the headstock, for example, my brother bought a second westone concord guitar. He already has a single coil one (which sounds better than an 70s/80s strat) so he put di marios in it. This thing sounds incredible now, id put it up in the mid to high guitar category in terms of sound quality. An electric guitar/bass is a wooden body with some tuners and pickups. If you get it set up right, get some good tuners, a decent set of pickups and some good strings. You can make almost anything good. Last weekend my brother improved my mates encore strat with wilkinson pickups, new strings and a set up. People waste a lot of money on big names.
For a lot of years i dreamed about being able to afford a Fender Jazz bass. I just loved the looks of it when i saw famous bass players play them. A few years ago i finally got to buy my own Fender Jazz bass. I bought the Fender Jazz bass Deluxe and i just love it. It is just such a fine instrument. Boring looks? Not at all! It's beautiful!
My favorite bass has always been the P-bass, but i also love the Jazz Bass with Round Wounds for that Chris Squire, Geddy Lee almost Rickenbacker sound. But the P-Bass i always go back to.
Back in the day I had a Hofner which I traded for a Ric and didn't like the feel and the limited playing both basses so I traded the Ric for a Jazz and never looked back!! One Bass Player by the name of Salvador Cuevas who played bass on Billy Idol's hit "Eyes Without a Face" from the 1983 album Rebel Yell and other artist including R&B styles introduced the Jazz into Salsa music via Fania all stars and was the very first to add funk style to the music! Long Live The Fender Jazz Bass!!
Hi, back in the early 70's I got a '72 Jazz bass and loved it. Made some modifications to it though about 3 yrs. later. I switched the pickups for DiMarzio and gave it a better sound (I thought). I was having problems with the bridge, the screws would loosen and lower, as I played really hard with my fingers, so I bought a Badass Bridge but that wouldn't let the strings lower enough to the neck, so I had to rout the body to recess it a lower (worked fine and looked professional as I'm a cabinet maker). Was using roto sound round wound strings and they tore the heck out of my frets and rosewood neck, so I bought a maple neck and switched to D'Addario half wound, the sound was amazing. Unfortunately I had to sell it years later to a guitar store in South Carolina because of medical bills from spinal surgery and they sold it to someone in Manhattan (Getty Lee would have loved it). If anyone is familiar with this bass please reply (it has a natural ash body, pretty heavy). Thanks.
You have nailed everything in a succinct manner. Dimarzio model J has done me proud since 1982. Noiseless and adjustable pole pieces. Not scooped, no hype, punch hard, musical. I have them on a PJ bass and a jazz bass. Great vid. Thank you. 😊😊
The Japanese basses are great. Fender Japan is like...Mexican Fender prices, American Fender quality. And they do a lot more colors and designs and features over there than are readily available in the Mexican and American lines.
In the studio, Joe Osborn at times would use a two foot wire with alligator clips on both ends to combat hum. Clip one end to The bridge and one end to the metal folding chair he was invariably in.
I'm a left-handed guitarist and ended up with a Fender Jazz when I wanted to get into playing bass. The Jazz was the only model available in the store in a left-handed version and, while mine is made in Mexico, I like the tone, the playability and the versatility.
The Jazz Bass is my personal favourite of all basses. You can get an awesome slap tone when maxing both pickups, a pretty solid and well known bridge pickup sound ("Jaco" sound if you will) and a P Bass-ish sound with the neck pickup. Very versatile and great sounding.
I was 17 the first time I picked up a bass and it was a Jazz bass. Loved the neck and found the bass could do C&W. I was in the south and that is what I played. Ten years later I am in L.A. and the different choices I had made me start playing other basses but I was sold on that Jazz style neck. Short story, went into G.C. today looking around and walked out with a new Jazz bass. 44 years since I started playing bass I still love the neck and sound. The reason for the new Jazz, I liked the color. Did I need it? No but it looked great and it sounds good. You see one of those cons, that they have so many models, is a huge plus, they have so many sounds. This one has a great mid-range punch.
One thing that should be noted about the Jazz is the different pickup spacing during the 70's. It really does change the character quite a bit. A lot of the most iconic jazz bass tones were created using the less common 70's spacing. It's a much more aggressive, in your face sound than the rounder sounding 60's spacing.
I was so confused when I started playing in the 90’s and I could not decide which one to buy …so then I learned about the existence of PJ and I fell in love with the versatility…a little bit of both worlds ✌🏼
I am digging this series Mark. I was a P bass player for years! Loved the simplicity and most of my fave players played one. Got a Jazz and found myself gravitating towards it more and more. For me, the pros of the slim neck just win. However, the big con was the single coil hum. Ugh, it just bothers me! I replaced my pickups with humcancelling Nordstrand J's and now all is quiet. If you never had tried a Jazz, pick one up and play it. You may be surprised.
I had a virtually toneless modern player one (they sold them as a made in china version) surprisingly it had humbucker pickups. But aside from learning the classic lesson, you get what you pay for, it was pretty solid. The neck, weight and overall playability of the bass was perfect. I was a beginner then and whilst I don't play fenders now, my later bass being a 90s epiphone ripper and latest being an 83 westone concorde 1 (which id recommend, its one of the infamous high quality matsumoku made instruments), I would like another fender if I ever got serious about gigging again, something around the £600 mark. Great instruments, kind of wish id kept my modern player and upgraded the neck pick up as well to be honest, it was in hindsight a bass worth upgrading fully.
@photag216 Hi, not sure if this was directed at me or @jh565bb For me, no, I don't slap. Just straight ahead rock bass on the P. And for that it's great. Between the Jazz and P bass, it's really just a comfort thing. If you can, go to a music store and try them side by side. As I said, the slimmer neck of the Jazz won out for me. Plus a little more versatility in tone with the two pickups. But you can't beat a P bass.
My entire bass playing time I wanted a musicman sterling or an ibanez sr with all the modern things like 3 band eq...etc. when i finally had the money for my dream bass i ended up getting a usa fender and couldnt be happier.
IMO they need a large amp with plenty of speaker surface-area to really sound good, otherwise the single coils tend to sound a little on the 'thin' side. I played one for years and this was always a shortcoming. Great recording bass. Great sound with a pick.
I always wanted a P Bass and i had no intention on owning a jazz bass at all. When i went to buy my first "descent bass", i ended up with a 2002 Warwick Corvette Rockbass. And despite the 2 single coils, i love it! I do still long for the P Bass sound though.
Jazzes 'honk' is a really great description. They lack the meat of the humbucker in a P, but a series switch can fix that and help when it's a noisy stage
I've always had this strange experience with Jazz basses, where some of them sounded thin and unusable, but some sounded huge and defined. Could those have been wired in series?
@@ileutur6863 well I did hear the story that leo fender went a little bit deaf and fenders get brighter and brighter through the 70s! But seriously you would know if a jazz was series wired because only one of the volume pots would be working. A bright jazz may also only have a 0.022 uF tone cap (70s spec). Tone cap makes a difference even when full up. A 0.1uf tone cap will make any jazz darker. Some copies will have 500k pots which will be brighter too. You could put humbuckers in your jazz, but then you move away from the classic open sound
@@PorchBass I played a Sandberg jazz last week that sounded better than any jazz bass I've ever tried. It was wired passive and both controls worked. Thanks for the info
I owned and played a 68 J-bass, just like that one in the 70's and 80's but eventually sold it when the truss started popping up beneath the first fret marker, another con. ... These days I have a 72 and a 74 J-basses and they're great. ... I've been playing 50-years and still play Fender P-and J-basses.
As a recording guitarist, I long ago realized the importance of learning to play bass. Why look for a bass player or wait on one to shop up when I could play the instrument myself? Ha! Well that was 30 years ago and I have owned quite a few different basses, from a Yamaha beginner model to a Sterling/Music Man Stingray. I don’t usually hang onto them more than a couple of years at the most. I’ll find something better and sell/trade up to that model. About 5 months ago I bought a used Squire Vintage Jazz bass, made in Korea and this is THE one. Yes, it needed to be upgraded and tweaked to really shine. I had to shim the neck and I replaced the stock pickups with SD Quarter Pound ones. Tuners and bridge are stock. It stays in tune great and will intonate no problem. It sounds amazing since I replaced the pups. What a great bass and it cost me $500 with upgraded parts. A workhorse.
i owned a jazz bass in early 71 from late 60s it was pink or faded red it was wonderful but sadly i sold it to tske my future wife out i still miss it and have never seen another over the last thirty years i look still ..... jazz bass a amazing sounding piece of kit
In April 2022. I bought from Sweatwater a New Fender American Jazz Performer Bass. WhenI got it I set the string Hight and Intonation. Played with the tone knob and volume. But no matter what I did the pick ups sounded terribly noisy and generally NOT good. So I went on the internet for what other Fender Jazz people did to remedy this. I found a guy who changed the Noisy fender stock pick ups with New EMGX pick ups. And many others have done the same. So in 2 days Im having my Luthier change the pick ups to EMGX I bought for around $200. Plus Im changing the fender cheap bridge to a Babicz Bridge. And leveling the frets and new DR strings and intonation. And according to my luthier it will be a beast. Cant Wait!!!
I own a 2020 Fender Squire Jazz 70's style, and it is a beautiful instrument. I own a couple of other basses, a Yamaha TRBX 504 & an Ibanez SRF 705 Fretless, but I can not deny the superior sound of the Jazz. I practice a majority of my technique-building exercises unplugged, and the Fender Jazz is clearer and louder than the others. One con I would add is the sheer weight of it. The Ibanez and Yamaha sit around 7 and 8 lbs, respectively, and the Jazz comes in about 11 lbs. That weight becomes a pretty big factor when wearing for an extended period of time.
Yeah, many versions of the jazz bass, i have a Mexican jazz I pick up and I got a Jaco jazz that someone put a Moses graphite neck on it and, they both play very well. Jazz basses have been my got to axes for a long time and they never failed me
I love my American Jazz that I picked up in a pawn shop for $200.00 , it needed a little TLC and now it's pristine and nothing plays or sounds like it. I have 12 basses of all sorts and it's my #1. There's a handful of certain models that just ooze character, and the American and Japanese Fender jazz models always seem to do that for me ( Aerodynes included!)
I started on a j bass a few years ago. Just recently picked up my first p bass. Gotta say as much as I love my precision.. I miss that mid high sheen.. it's like butter. Think I'm gonna try to keep one of each moving forward.
I think your assessment is on point. I have a 1998 American Standard. It’s my go to bass-it does it all. When in was searching for a new bass back in 98, I tried many more expensive basses but kept going back to the jazz for its feel, sound, versatility and value. They were only $750-$800 back then. The neck and sound limitations of the P bass made the jazz the easy choice and of course, Geddy plays a Jazz. However, My first bass was a squire jazz bass from 1990-not a good bass and after that I bought a used early 90’s American Fender 5 string which was mediocre. From my experience fenders jazz basses in late 80’s to early 90’s we’re not great.
Thanks for this video. I own an American Fender Jazz, and I missed some words/demo on how to set the tone knob. Would be nice to have your advise on that.
First rule of any relationship: be ready to make compromises. It is always something for something. It is a tool, a workhorse and of course, has some limitations. Overall a great summary of this instrument under 10 minutes.
As a touring bass player in the 70s I used both precision and jazz basses. In the studio in those days, the producers preferred the precision over the jazz. I fell in love with the versatility of the jazz bass and, on the road, ended up leaving the precision at home in favor of the 1972 jazz bass I had. I play one to this day.
if the producer doesnt know how to make the jazz bass sit well in the mix that says more about his skill (or lack there of) than the bass itself. its not the instruments job (within reason) to make the producers job easier. its the other way around!
I have a three colour sunburst American Jazz Deluxe, just a beautiful instrument. Easy to play, sounds great, looks great. That one remains standard. I have a black Mexican Jazz that has had a heap of mods. A beast but I prefer the untouched one.
I have an American Custom Deluxe 5-string J-bass (4 up/1 down), orange with a tortoise pickguard. It was my workhorse, and I still love it. I actually swapped my American Custom Deluxe 5-string P-bass for it (from a friend who preferred the P sound). I preferred the J-bass sound and smaller neck that still felt like a P-bass 4-string neck even though it was a 5-string.
My very first bass was a 1979 Kimbara jazz copy. The original pickups were crap but a few years back I had Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound pickups fitted and it's a whole new bass with a warm tone to contrast with the punchiness of my very 80s sounding Aria. I like both pickups up but I roll back the neck pickup a tad and depending on the song I sometimes roll back the tone control.
i love the jazz its part of music history fender has been used by so many of the greats its partly the vibe iconic it has a look i never get tried of , lord knows how many copies there are which cost more than the original that says a lot righ there
@Talking Bass - Online Bass Lessons, I just got a Fender Jazz last year and it’s literally on every song that I’ve done since because it just sounds so amazing.
I have found there can be a big difference in the way the different “Fenders” feel. For me, unfortunately, the MIA Ultra feels WAY BETER than the others. I don’t need/ want the active electronics, but it just feels wonderful. The closest feel to the Ultra is a Marcus Miller v7.
Using mainly Jazzbasses. (owning also a P-Bass and a Stingray. Lovem both aswell). Plaing in Two Bands. My main Band is a HipHop Band in Which I play a 2011 Fender American Deluxe Five String in Natural Color. and in My Metal Band I play my white Fender Marcus Miller JazzBass. What I love about the last one is, that it looks somewhat traditional, but with a twist. Many non MM fans are coming to me aft the shows asking what Bass that is, or if its stock.
I fitted my ULTRA JAZZ with AGUILAR AG 5J , they are AMAZING! Night and day difference. From Funk to Rock to Praise and any style, much better sounding than DiMarzzio
I have a MIM RW Flea Jazz. It’s as close to a vintage stack knob as I’ll ever get. Yea, the RW look is t everyone’s favorite and this one is a bit manufactured looking. But I got one with a stable neck and great pickups …… Love it .
The only Fender bass I've really loved is the Geddy Lee signature Jazz MIJ...so I bought one. The neck is really slim and comfortable and it's brilliant to play One other con, I find the weight of the Jazz (like the Precision) to be too heavy for long gigs. So my goto gigging bass is my mid 90s Musician Sterling which is so versatile, and unlike the Fenders (or the MM Stingray) quite light.
Another great video. There is a Chinese made Fender JB, Modern player series, mk1 and 2, with two humbucking pups, probably made in the same factory where Squier CV60`s mk1 were made before transferring production to Indonesia. I have both, the resemblance in finish, lacquer. tuners, electronics is apparent.
I have a Fender Highway One MIA Jazz and a MIM Jazz. I like them both but prefer the MIM. Also have a MIA Precision but overall I like the Jazz. At one time I had the Geddy Lee Jazz. Cool looking but the neck seemed to be thinner than a Standard. Good video.
Got my hands on a Fender Aerodyne JB export model (p/j config) in 2020 and it's absolutely brilliant in every way. Extremely versatile & comfortable with massive versatility and traffic stopping looks. Unfortunately, they no longer make them in p/j configuration & the black with cream binding is gone too.
Always amazingly good! Loved the accurate points, I honestly thought it was just me that heard all the loud electronic chatter, but still getting all the high trebs for the sound of My Generation were always easy with a jazz bass. But I still love the warwick buzzard for the sound too. But I still love, but could really never play Entwistle. Always a really interesting and informative video! Thanks, Richard
This is a very thorough contrast of the pros and cons of the Jazz bass. Very helpful since I plan on adding a Fender jazz to the bass arsenal in the near future. ( There are a lot of choices with Fender which is why I'm leaning toward mod shop to get what I want.) Thanks for the post. P.S. That hum really is noisy. Years ago I had a Fender bass that I actually took back to the store 24 hours later; I just could not get past that noise. I was young and didn't know about adding shielding.
you missed that another cons is that it doesn't cut the mix...but the J sound is a J sound! I would like to watch a video called "pro and cons of Music Man Stingray" :-)
Another con is that the single coil pickups are often quieter than split coil pickups which means that if you are switching back and forth from a P-Bass to a Jazz bass you will most likely have to mess with your volume a lot.
I keep eyeing the Dark Night Jazz bass at the local shop and I want it but I already have a Precision with a J pickup too so I keep stopping myself from buying it cause it might be too similar to how how that one sounds.
Might be worth it to not just look at it but give it a try. See how it feels and play with the knobs to get different sounds and base your decision on to get it or not on what you hear rather than on what you think about it.
I have an on and off again relationship with the Jazz Bass. I have two really nice specimens, but find they work better in some situations vs others. If I’m accompanying an acoustic, or in a trio a jazz works really well. However add a guitar or two and/or keys and a P or Stingray work better for me.
Just bought a Mexican jazz bass yesterday and absolutely love it. Every bass comes out of the factory different so do a thorough inspection. My Mexican jazz felt better than the American I looked at. There were no imperfections.
Thank you very much for this explanation. I have a Jazz bass and when it gets close to my laptop or wall fan, it makes a horrible noise 😅. It is not a Fender bass, but it still has the single coil pickups which come with that problem. I will have to swap them out for the Noiseless pickups from Fender, Aguilar or the Seymur Duncans.
I've owned many basses over the years yet I still go back to my first bass, the Fender Squire Jazz. It just does all the stuff I want the bass to do. It offers zero impediments to my playing unlike other more expensive basses which have weird necks (Jackson), unjustifiably expensive (Warwick, Fodera), too much upkeep/bad electronics (Schecter), too heavy (most boutique basses). It just works and so I always go back to it.
Try a 1990's Conklin SideWinder some time.Stays in tune for months regardless of weather changes.All 7 strings too.A wonderful piece of art that plays like a dream and sounds wonderful.
I’ve played jazzes with years and years. Just find precision basses more comfortable to play and the sound I get usually suits any type of music I play.
This was a very helpful video, I’ve been eyeing the Fenders for some time and few others as well. I guess the only way to whether your going to like the bass or not is pick one up and try it out. I’ll be heading to Guitar Center this weekend for a try out session. 🎸🤘🔥
Thank you! I own a Std P Bass and a Nate Mendel P bass. I am getting the [newly out] 60's American Original p bass. I am considering a Jazz Bass. I would REALLY like to hear you play the P bass and Jazz bass side by side though...sometime for comparison.
I would very much appreciate if you did a Fender Precision V Music Man Stingray. This may be an overly saturated subject, but the in-depth critique you provide will definitely help me. I have been arguing with myself as to which to invest in. Thanks for your content- it’s stellar
It would be great to watch Alnico/ceramic pick up comparison. I've got an EMG PJ set, that are both ceramic and they are far not as cool sounding as Music Man's humbacker, which is also ceramic. Thinking of replacing them.
Did a "blind taste test" on JBs in the best local music store. I was handed various JBs and I didn't look at anything except the knobs, to put them all full up, and trying to "anonymize" so I wouldn't be able to identify them. Best tone and feel was the American Standard.
One way to avoid single-coil noise between songs is to turn up your other pick-up knob as each song ends and then turn it back down just before you start playing again. Thanks for posting this vid, its useful. I own two basses and they are both Squier Jazz. I love them.
Or just use a noise gate
@@SirSelby I mean a lot of players don’t always have access to a good noise gate, but yeah it’s usually the best option
@@kingdeedee on Amazon there are some noise gate at a very low price, but I am not sure how well they would do.
@@kingdeedee Yeah, so they can buy one, and then they always have access to it.
Source Audio Ultrawave is not only the best compressor available in pedal form, but it also has an excellent noise gate and lets you filter out problematic frequencies. It also does so many other things. Absolute Swiss Army knife of a pedal!
@@SirSelby I’ve heard good things about that one. I might give it a shot myself, thanks for the recommendation
When I was young, I didn't like the Fender look; I wanted something badass. But I bought a second-hand Japan Jazz Bass last year and I immediately fell in love: it's a really easy to play instrument, the neck is extremely comfortable and the three control knobs allow for a variety of sounds. It's the instrument I would recommend to any beginner.
I absolutely love the Jazz, to me it’s “the bass”, only con which pops to my mind is that it never stays firmly on a stand due to the offset waist 😂
Hercules Stand overcomes this : it holds via headstock. Problem solved .
True. My stand has a rubber band that goes over the neck below the headstock to hold the bass in place. The only downside to the Jazz is when using only one of the pickups there is a tendency to hum.
@@brettsamuels3669 yeah but when you play at festivals etc you have to use what they put at your disposal. Anyway I have never bothered, was just mentioning one downside 😊
I completely agree with this. It just feels like the ONE.
are you weight shaming the fender jazz bass? come on man, i thought we moved past that as a society...
I have a '68 Jazz and absolutely love it. I bought it as a 21st birthday present for myself a long time ago. Over the years I've had a couple of repairs done and speaking to bass techs I'm often told that the quality, sound and playability of these 'vintage' Fenders can be very variable. Considering the ridiculous prices of vintage guitars and basses I'd definitely play before buying to avoid disappointment.
I bought a new fender jazz bass (left handed) back in 1972 and it still sounds great today as it did back then. 50 years, I’ve had to replace the pick ups with noiseless pick ups. I have other basses , but my fender jazz is still my go to bass. the pros definitely outweigh the cons.
I bought the Mexican jazz 2 years ago, for price with preformence I'd give 10/10
Will we get a pros and cons of the MusicMan Stingray? I love their sound!
I hope Mark does that too.
For me, the biggest con is how aggressive they are particularly in the mids and highs. They always sound good but you really never get the most out of them without really fine-tuning your right hand technique and learning the preamp
Yeah, it has a really aggressive sound that doesn't fit any type of music. I personally like the "raw" Stingray tone. For me, the main con is the body size and weight - at least of the ones I had the opportunity to play.
@@mfC0RD The newer stingray specials are definitely lighter and more ergonomic. They weigh about 8 or so pounds nowadays which is insane seeing as my Stingray 5 weighs like 12ish lbs lol
Yes, this would be a great vid, there sound is definitely a love it or leave it. I have a 96 and a newer special. The specials imo address what many don’t like about Stingray’s, namely the aggressive twang.
I love when the cons are nothing that I’m worried about 😊
At 66 years old I never thought I would own a Fender Jazz Bass.Neck looked way too thin." However " I saw a Squire Jazz Bass on Reverb one very early morning two months ago.Something about it got me.The wood grain was fantastic.I have a Conklin 7 string fretless I love.Why would I even consider buying this ? Bam nailed the buy now and man it was love at first play !!!!! I lay back in my recliner and jam out to Dr SaxLove every day.This thing sounds fantastic with Dimarzio pick ups through my 1969 SVT and 8x10 .Squire is not in my book a lousy cheap product ! It is freak'in great ! So much so I now own three of them one fretless and the neck arrives in a few days from Warmouth.Bottom line They are outstanding for the money.
Bought Squier classic vibe clear finish jazz bass blew me away stock pickups were big suprise kix axx
I think the Fender Jazz is a great bass. Of course I've been playing one since 1966. I bought a 1965 Jazz in 1966, played it in high school and college bands and toured using it for 3-years in the early 70's. After touring I used it for weekend gigs until it was stolen in 1976. Just couldn't find another Jazz with the same neck shape after that. They were all the same at the nut but were all too thick and I'd been spoiled by my '65.
Then in 1985 while working PT at a music store I picked up a 1982 Jazz (we thought it was an '84), played a few things on it, and it felt like home. So I bought it. That's the Jazz in my avatar that I'm still playing today. It has what I believe is called a "60's Slim C-shape neck with a 7.25" radius". Just love that neck. Unlike my '65 Jazz, my '82 Jazz has a white-bound maple neck and the 70's era pickup spacing of 4" center to center. Normal spacing, both in the 60's and now, is 3.6" center to center.
That wider pickup spacing pushes the bridge pickup just under 1/2" closer to the bridge. The result is a slightly brighter sound than my '65. If I need to make it growl, I just dig into the strings over the pick up and she'll growl all day long. My '82 also has much better sustain than my '65 did, and I like that a lot too.
I didn't find out until I started touring in 1971 that my '65 had foam mutes glued onto the underside of the ashtray cover, which is why it didn't have much sustain. I pulled those off, scraped it clean, and then I had some sustain. Still, my '82 has far more sustain than '65 did.
One more PRO thing about the Jazz that the Precision just can't do is change the sound of the bass as you are playing it without touching the control knobs of your bass or changing the EQ of your amp. You can change the sound you are producing on the Jazz just by changing where you are plucking the strings. I run my Jazz with both volumes and the tone knob turned all the way up. Then if I need a mellower sound, I'll move my plucking position closer to or over the heel of the neck. If I want much brighter sound, I'll move my plucking position back to the bridge pickup. And there are huge different blends of tones everywhere between those two extremes.
I'll often change my plucking hand from in front of the neck pickup to behind it for a little brighter sound if needed for the song. And of course I'll go right over the bridge pickup and dig into the strings for that growl when I want it. So, in my opinion, the ability to change the timbre and tone of your sound just by moving you plucking hand is a real big plus for the Jazz.
Great read, thank you
I bought (and still own) my Fender Jazz bass in August of 1972. Celebrating that its 50 years old now, and still plays as good as new. I guess I chose wisely.
I bought a J Bass after reading and listening to both and decided on this one and now I think it's the best decision I made (aside from leaving the guitar for the bass). The most difficult thing was finding the J I wanted given the diversity of models and I played it safe, a relic. There was another one very similar with some differences but I didn't want to risk it since I had heard the relic. It fits into any type of music. I couldn't be happier. By the way, your bass is absolutely beautiful, I've never seen it for sale.
Hi Mark, very informative video, I couldn't go for the American Jazz because of cost so bought a Mexican, I absolutely love it, I also got a Fender Rumble 100 Bass amp, the combination of the two suits me to what I'm doing, I'm 78 and playing in a Church Band, not quite what I was doing in the 60s-70s :) Love all your videos, and you have certainly helped me in my love for playing Bass
Mexi Jazzes have this character to them. I've often seen them placed between Squier and American Fender in the hierarchy, but I feel like they stand alone.
Make a Joyful sound unto The LORD !!!! Yah I played for several years in a Church band too.
When I started playing in the early ‘70s there were only 4 real basses to choose from. P bass, J bass 4001 and Gibson. Gibson basses even then we’re crap. Fender basses were huge on a 150 lb, frizzy-haired, pimply-faced kid so the Rickenbacker won. Plus being a lefty they were easy to get compared to Fender. Still have it and going strong but my MIM J bass is a close second (after replacing all electronics and tuners).
Good video!
My favorite Fender bass configuration is the P/J with a Jazz bass width neck. For my style of playing, it's the works the best. I also prefer either flatwound or tapewound strings.
I love both the J and P basses. I own a american Jazz and waiting for my american P. Can’t wait to play them both.
Love the neck and sound of the Jazz, I've had several but never quite got on with them playing seated. I ended up realising that the offset body messes with my playing...everything moves left! Don't have that problem with my G&L, Warwick and Ibanez basses, but also can't nail the tone!
I’ve played various basses and always come back to the Jazz. Last year(before the price jump), I purchased the Made in Mexico Signature Geddy Lee Jazz and haven’t looked back. Not only that, it stays in tune.🎧
The only negative I have with that bass is the truss rod is annoying to adjust so you should stick with the same strings as much as possible and change them every few months when they start getting too stretched. But yeah, it's a great bass.
Great video. One of my bases is a Fender Squire P-Bass (Chinese) I found in poor condition in a thrift shop for 20.00 (even came with a hard case). I tore it apart, repainted the body, and replaced most of the hardware and electronics. Its a decent practice bass, and I never thought about replacing the neck with a Jazz neck. That will be my next modification, just to see how it performs. If you ever have the chance to pick up a bass that needs TLC for a dirt cheap price, do it! You will learn a lot while bringing it back to life, and unless you're attempting some serious modifications, there is little you can do to screw it up.
True, I used to have a fender modern player, completely toneless and had hum buckers for some reason, but at the time, I did put seymour duncans in the bridge, should have done the neck really. These days I use an 83 westone concorde 1 (matsumoku made), its bashed up and needs some adjustment, but its definably worth getting work done on instruments, especially because you can get them sounding close to as good as the more expensive versions with a little investment.
@@jh565bb You're right about that. With a good setup my 2004 Chinese P Bass sounds almost as good as my Player Series Bass, at a fraction of the cost!
@@captainsergeant At the end of the day, you pay for the name on the headstock, for example, my brother bought a second westone concord guitar. He already has a single coil one (which sounds better than an 70s/80s strat) so he put di marios in it. This thing sounds incredible now, id put it up in the mid to high guitar category in terms of sound quality. An electric guitar/bass is a wooden body with some tuners and pickups.
If you get it set up right, get some good tuners, a decent set of pickups and some good strings. You can make almost anything good. Last weekend my brother improved my mates encore strat with wilkinson pickups, new strings and a set up. People waste a lot of money on big names.
@@captainsergeant What you did to yours sounds cool btw. I love the idea of finding new use discarded instruments, its something mor people should do.
@@jh565bb I painted the body a metallic copper. It has a 70's vibe that I haven't found elsewhere!
For a lot of years i dreamed about being able to afford a Fender Jazz bass. I just loved the looks of it when i saw famous bass players play them. A few years ago i finally got to buy my own Fender Jazz bass. I bought the Fender Jazz bass Deluxe and i just love it. It is just such a fine instrument. Boring looks? Not at all! It's beautiful!
My favorite bass has always been the P-bass, but i also love the Jazz Bass with Round Wounds for that Chris Squire, Geddy Lee
almost Rickenbacker sound. But the P-Bass i always go back to.
I’ve owned both and to this day both are with out a doubt the best of ALL instruments.
Back in the day I had a Hofner which I traded for a Ric and didn't like the feel and the limited playing both basses so I traded the Ric for a Jazz and never looked back!! One Bass Player by the name of Salvador Cuevas who played bass on Billy Idol's hit "Eyes Without a Face" from the 1983 album Rebel Yell and other artist including R&B styles introduced the Jazz into Salsa music via Fania all stars and was the very first to add funk style to the music! Long Live The Fender Jazz Bass!!
Hi, back in the early 70's I got a '72 Jazz bass and loved it. Made some modifications to it though about 3 yrs. later. I switched the pickups for DiMarzio and gave it a better sound (I thought). I was having problems with the bridge, the screws would loosen and lower, as I played really hard with my fingers, so I bought a Badass Bridge but that wouldn't let the strings lower enough to the neck, so I had to rout the body to recess it a lower (worked fine and looked professional as I'm a cabinet maker). Was using roto sound round wound strings and they tore the heck out of my frets and rosewood neck, so I bought a maple neck and switched to D'Addario half wound, the sound was amazing. Unfortunately I had to sell it years later to a guitar store in South Carolina because of medical bills from spinal surgery and they sold it to someone in Manhattan (Getty Lee would have loved it). If anyone is familiar with this bass please reply (it has a natural ash body, pretty heavy). Thanks.
You have nailed everything in a succinct manner. Dimarzio model J has done me proud since 1982. Noiseless and adjustable pole pieces. Not scooped, no hype, punch hard, musical. I have them on a PJ bass and a jazz bass. Great vid. Thank you. 😊😊
The Japanese basses are great. Fender Japan is like...Mexican Fender prices, American Fender quality. And they do a lot more colors and designs and features over there than are readily available in the Mexican and American lines.
In the studio, Joe Osborn at times would use a two foot wire with alligator clips on both ends to combat hum.
Clip one end to The bridge and one end to the metal folding chair he was invariably in.
I'm a left-handed guitarist and ended up with a Fender Jazz when I wanted to get into playing bass. The Jazz was the only model available in the store in a left-handed version and, while mine is made in Mexico, I like the tone, the playability and the versatility.
Same here. We're stuck with what's available.
Jazz bass are the best especially with there block inlays which just makes them look beautiful 😍
The Jazz Bass is my personal favourite of all basses. You can get an awesome slap tone when maxing both pickups, a pretty solid and well known bridge pickup sound ("Jaco" sound if you will) and a P Bass-ish sound with the neck pickup. Very versatile and great sounding.
Also with 20$ mod you can add a push/pull pot and get in series humbucker sound.
@@kost.9423 Yup. The best of all worlds😂
IMHO - that's absolutely the best bass ever made. Just love this cutting through tone..
I was 17 the first time I picked up a bass and it was a Jazz bass. Loved the neck and found the bass could do C&W. I was in the south and that is what I played. Ten years later I am in L.A. and the different choices I had made me start playing other basses but I was sold on that Jazz style neck. Short story, went into G.C. today looking around and walked out with a new Jazz bass. 44 years since I started playing bass I still love the neck and sound. The reason for the new Jazz, I liked the color. Did I need it? No but it looked great and it sounds good. You see one of those cons, that they have so many models, is a huge plus, they have so many sounds. This one has a great mid-range punch.
I have a made in Mexico (which is part of America!) Jazz bass and I love it!
One thing that should be noted about the Jazz is the different pickup spacing during the 70's. It really does change the character quite a bit. A lot of the most iconic jazz bass tones were created using the less common 70's spacing. It's a much more aggressive, in your face sound than the rounder sounding 60's spacing.
I was so confused when I started playing in the 90’s and I could not decide which one to buy …so then I learned about the existence of PJ and I fell in love with the versatility…a little bit of both worlds ✌🏼
I love my Fender Jazz. If I had to pick 1 bass, this would be the one.
I am digging this series Mark. I was a P bass player for years! Loved the simplicity and most of my fave players played one. Got a Jazz and found myself gravitating towards it more and more. For me, the pros of the slim neck just win. However, the big con was the single coil hum. Ugh, it just bothers me! I replaced my pickups with humcancelling Nordstrand J's and now all is quiet. If you never had tried a Jazz, pick one up and play it. You may be surprised.
I had a virtually toneless modern player one (they sold them as a made in china version) surprisingly it had humbucker pickups. But aside from learning the classic lesson, you get what you pay for, it was pretty solid. The neck, weight and overall playability of the bass was perfect. I was a beginner then and whilst I don't play fenders now, my later bass being a 90s epiphone ripper and latest being an 83 westone concorde 1 (which id recommend, its one of the infamous high quality matsumoku made instruments), I would like another fender if I ever got serious about gigging again, something around the £600 mark. Great instruments, kind of wish id kept my modern player and upgraded the neck pick up as well to be honest, it was in hindsight a bass worth upgrading fully.
@photag216 Hi, not sure if this was directed at me or @jh565bb For me, no, I don't slap. Just straight ahead rock bass on the P. And for that it's great. Between the Jazz and P bass, it's really just a comfort thing. If you can, go to a music store and try them side by side. As I said, the slimmer neck of the Jazz won out for me. Plus a little more versatility in tone with the two pickups. But you can't beat a P bass.
My entire bass playing time I wanted a musicman sterling or an ibanez sr with all the modern things like 3 band eq...etc. when i finally had the money for my dream bass i ended up getting a usa fender and couldnt be happier.
IMO they need a large amp with plenty of speaker surface-area to really sound good, otherwise the single coils tend to sound a little on the 'thin' side. I played one for years and this was always a shortcoming. Great recording bass. Great sound with a pick.
I always wanted a P Bass and i had no intention on owning a jazz bass at all. When i went to buy my first "descent bass", i ended up with a 2002 Warwick Corvette Rockbass. And despite the 2 single coils, i love it! I do still long for the P Bass sound though.
Appreciate the consistent uploads, Mark! Keep em' coming!
Jazzes 'honk' is a really great description. They lack the meat of the humbucker in a P, but a series switch can fix that and help when it's a noisy stage
I've always had this strange experience with Jazz basses, where some of them sounded thin and unusable, but some sounded huge and defined. Could those have been wired in series?
@@ileutur6863 well I did hear the story that leo fender went a little bit deaf and fenders get brighter and brighter through the 70s!
But seriously you would know if a jazz was series wired because only one of the volume pots would be working.
A bright jazz may also only have a 0.022 uF tone cap (70s spec). Tone cap makes a difference even when full up. A 0.1uf tone cap will make any jazz darker.
Some copies will have 500k pots which will be brighter too.
You could put humbuckers in your jazz, but then you move away from the classic open sound
@@PorchBass I played a Sandberg jazz last week that sounded better than any jazz bass I've ever tried. It was wired passive and both controls worked. Thanks for the info
Awesome series. Would be cool to see all the classic basses covered like this, stingrays, t-birds and Rickenbackers
I owned and played a 68 J-bass, just like that one in the 70's and 80's but eventually sold it when the truss started popping up beneath the first fret marker, another con. ... These days I have a 72 and a 74 J-basses and they're great. ... I've been playing 50-years and still play Fender P-and J-basses.
Love the Fender Jazz Bass.
I own 3 Road Worns and a ‘75 Reissue made in Japan.
Leo got this right.
haven't even started the video but I'm here to say
there are no cons to perfection.
and the jazz bass is perfection.
As a recording guitarist, I long ago realized the importance of learning to play bass. Why look for a bass player or wait on one to shop up when I could play the instrument myself? Ha! Well that was 30 years ago and I have owned quite a few different basses, from a Yamaha beginner model to a Sterling/Music Man Stingray. I don’t usually hang onto them more than a couple of years at the most. I’ll find something better and sell/trade up to that model.
About 5 months ago I bought a used Squire Vintage Jazz bass, made in Korea and this is THE one. Yes, it needed to be upgraded and tweaked to really shine. I had to shim the neck and I replaced the stock pickups with SD Quarter Pound ones. Tuners and bridge are stock. It stays in tune great and will intonate no problem. It sounds amazing since I replaced the pups. What a great bass and it cost me $500 with upgraded parts.
A workhorse.
i owned a jazz bass in early 71 from late 60s it was pink or faded red it was wonderful but sadly i sold it to tske my future wife out i still miss it and have never seen another over the last thirty years i look still ..... jazz bass a amazing sounding piece of kit
In April 2022. I bought from Sweatwater a New Fender American Jazz Performer Bass.
WhenI got it I set the string Hight and Intonation. Played with the tone knob and volume.
But no matter what I did the pick ups sounded terribly noisy and generally NOT good.
So I went on the internet for what other Fender Jazz people did to remedy this.
I found a guy who changed the Noisy fender stock pick ups with New EMGX pick ups. And many others have done the same.
So in 2 days Im having my Luthier change the pick ups to EMGX I bought for around $200.
Plus Im changing the fender cheap bridge to a Babicz Bridge. And leveling the frets and new DR strings and intonation.
And according to my luthier it will be a beast. Cant Wait!!!
I love the Jazz bass! It's my first bass. I have a Fender American Elite Jazz and a Fender American Professional II Precision bass.
I own a 2020 Fender Squire Jazz 70's style, and it is a beautiful instrument. I own a couple of other basses, a Yamaha TRBX 504 & an Ibanez SRF 705 Fretless, but I can not deny the superior sound of the Jazz. I practice a majority of my technique-building exercises unplugged, and the Fender Jazz is clearer and louder than the others. One con I would add is the sheer weight of it. The Ibanez and Yamaha sit around 7 and 8 lbs, respectively, and the Jazz comes in about 11 lbs. That weight becomes a pretty big factor when wearing for an extended period of time.
Yeah, many versions of the jazz bass, i have a Mexican jazz I pick up and I got a Jaco jazz that someone put a Moses graphite neck on it and, they both play very well. Jazz basses have been my got to axes for a long time and they never failed me
I love my American Jazz that I picked up in a pawn shop for $200.00 , it needed a little TLC and now it's pristine and nothing plays or sounds like it. I have 12 basses of all sorts and it's my #1. There's a handful of certain models that just ooze character, and the American and Japanese Fender jazz models always seem to do that for me ( Aerodynes included!)
I started on a j bass a few years ago. Just recently picked up my first p bass. Gotta say as much as I love my precision.. I miss that mid high sheen.. it's like butter. Think I'm gonna try to keep one of each moving forward.
I think your assessment is on point. I have a 1998 American Standard. It’s my go to bass-it does it all. When in was searching for a new bass back in 98, I tried many more expensive basses but kept going back to the jazz for its feel, sound, versatility and value. They were only $750-$800 back then. The neck and sound limitations of the P bass made the jazz the easy choice and of course, Geddy plays a Jazz. However, My first bass was a squire jazz bass from 1990-not a good bass and after that I bought a used early 90’s American Fender 5 string which was mediocre. From my experience fenders jazz basses in late 80’s to early 90’s we’re not great.
Thanks for this video. I own an American Fender Jazz, and I missed some words/demo on how to set the tone knob. Would be nice to have your advise on that.
First rule of any relationship: be ready to make compromises. It is always something for something. It is a tool, a workhorse and of course, has some limitations.
Overall a great summary of this instrument under 10 minutes.
I hope you have a good tutorial on J/P, P/J hybrid basses. And also double P pickup ones.
Just bought a 2010 American Standard JB. Tons of reading and opinions on it. Looking forward to the experience and many years of ownership.
As a touring bass player in the 70s I used both precision and jazz basses. In the studio in those days, the producers preferred the precision over the jazz. I fell in love with the versatility of the jazz bass and, on the road, ended up leaving the precision at home in favor of the 1972 jazz bass I had. I play one to this day.
if the producer doesnt know how to make the jazz bass sit well in the mix that says more about his skill (or lack there of) than the bass itself. its not the instruments job (within reason) to make the producers job easier. its the other way around!
Plus you can easily dial a precision bass tone if you want to by soloing the neck and by rolling off the tone a little. It's just THE bass.
I have a three colour sunburst American Jazz Deluxe, just a beautiful instrument. Easy to play, sounds great, looks great. That one remains standard. I have a black Mexican Jazz that has had a heap of mods. A beast but I prefer the untouched one.
I have an American Custom Deluxe 5-string J-bass (4 up/1 down), orange with a tortoise pickguard. It was my workhorse, and I still love it. I actually swapped my American Custom Deluxe 5-string P-bass for it (from a friend who preferred the P sound). I preferred the J-bass sound and smaller neck that still felt like a P-bass 4-string neck even though it was a 5-string.
My very first bass was a 1979 Kimbara jazz copy. The original pickups were crap but a few years back I had Seymour Duncan Quarter Pound pickups fitted and it's a whole new bass with a warm tone to contrast with the punchiness of my very 80s sounding Aria.
I like both pickups up but I roll back the neck pickup a tad and depending on the song I sometimes roll back the tone control.
i love the jazz its part of music history fender has been used by so many of the greats its partly the vibe iconic it has a look i never get tried of , lord knows how many copies there are which cost more than the original that says a lot righ there
@Talking Bass - Online Bass Lessons, I just got a Fender Jazz last year and it’s literally on every song that I’ve done since because it just sounds so amazing.
I have found there can be a big difference in the way the different “Fenders” feel. For me, unfortunately, the MIA Ultra feels WAY BETER than the others. I don’t need/ want the active electronics, but it just feels wonderful. The closest feel to the Ultra is a Marcus Miller v7.
I think that's the intended distinction for the ultras from the pros, players and performers.
Using mainly Jazzbasses. (owning also a P-Bass and a Stingray. Lovem both aswell). Plaing in Two Bands. My main Band is a HipHop Band in Which I play a 2011 Fender American Deluxe Five String in Natural Color. and in My Metal Band I play my white Fender Marcus Miller JazzBass. What I love about the last one is, that it looks somewhat traditional, but with a twist. Many non MM fans are coming to me aft the shows asking what Bass that is, or if its stock.
I fitted my ULTRA JAZZ with AGUILAR AG 5J , they are AMAZING! Night and day difference. From Funk to Rock to Praise and any style, much better sounding than DiMarzzio
I have a MIM RW Flea Jazz. It’s as close to a vintage stack knob as I’ll ever get. Yea, the RW look is t everyone’s favorite and this one is a bit manufactured looking. But I got one with a stable neck and great pickups …… Love it .
Fantastic video, you break it down simply, and effectively. Great work
The only Fender bass I've really loved is the Geddy Lee signature Jazz MIJ...so I bought one. The neck is really slim and comfortable and it's brilliant to play
One other con, I find the weight of the Jazz (like the Precision) to be too heavy for long gigs. So my goto gigging bass is my mid 90s Musician Sterling which is so versatile, and unlike the Fenders (or the MM Stingray) quite light.
Finally! I was wondering where the heck that hum was coming from! Excellent breakdown. Love it!
Thank you so much for this! I could never effectively use the knobs on my Jazz bass before this
Great info . I have a J bass, P bass , PJ bass and a fretless P bass. So I've got things pretty much covered.
Another great video. There is a Chinese made Fender JB, Modern player series, mk1 and 2, with two humbucking pups, probably made in the same factory where Squier CV60`s mk1 were made before transferring production to Indonesia. I have both, the resemblance in finish, lacquer. tuners, electronics is apparent.
I have a Fender Highway One MIA Jazz and a MIM Jazz. I like them both but prefer the MIM. Also have a MIA Precision but overall I like the Jazz. At one time I had the Geddy Lee Jazz. Cool looking but the neck seemed to be thinner than a Standard. Good video.
Got my hands on a Fender Aerodyne JB export model (p/j config) in 2020 and it's absolutely brilliant in every way.
Extremely versatile & comfortable with massive versatility and traffic stopping looks.
Unfortunately, they no longer make them in p/j configuration & the black with cream binding is gone too.
I've always preferred the jazz. Mostly because of the neck but do appreciate the versatility.
Always amazingly good! Loved the accurate points, I honestly thought it was just me that heard all the loud electronic chatter, but still getting all the high trebs for the sound of My Generation were always easy with a jazz bass. But I still love the warwick buzzard for the sound too. But I still love, but could really never play Entwistle.
Always a really interesting and informative video!
Thanks,
Richard
This is a very thorough contrast of the pros and cons of the Jazz bass. Very helpful since I plan on adding a Fender jazz to the bass arsenal in the near future. ( There are a lot of choices with Fender which is why I'm leaning toward mod shop to get what I want.) Thanks for the post.
P.S. That hum really is noisy. Years ago I had a Fender bass that I actually took back to the store 24 hours later; I just could not get past that noise. I was young and didn't know about adding shielding.
This series of pros and cons of classic basses is great. Will you do one for the Music Man Stingray next?
you missed that another cons is that it doesn't cut the mix...but the J sound is a J sound!
I would like to watch a video called "pro and cons of Music Man Stingray" :-)
Another con is that the single coil pickups are often quieter than split coil pickups which means that if you are switching back and forth from a P-Bass to a Jazz bass you will most likely have to mess with your volume a lot.
I keep eyeing the Dark Night Jazz bass at the local shop and I want it but I already have a Precision with a J pickup too so I keep stopping myself from buying it cause it might be too similar to how how that one sounds.
Might be worth it to not just look at it but give it a try. See how it feels and play with the knobs to get different sounds and base your decision on to get it or not on what you hear rather than on what you think about it.
Asking for David Brouwers:
Have you played it yet?
I have an on and off again relationship with the Jazz Bass. I have two really nice specimens, but find they work better in some situations vs others. If I’m accompanying an acoustic, or in a trio a jazz works really well. However add a guitar or two and/or keys and a P or Stingray work better for me.
Just bought a Mexican jazz bass yesterday and absolutely love it. Every bass comes out of the factory different so do a thorough inspection. My Mexican jazz felt better than the American I looked at. There were no imperfections.
Thank you very much for this explanation. I have a Jazz bass and when it gets close to my laptop or wall fan, it makes a horrible noise 😅. It is not a Fender bass, but it still has the single coil pickups which come with that problem. I will have to swap them out for the Noiseless pickups from Fender, Aguilar or the Seymur Duncans.
I've owned many basses over the years yet I still go back to my first bass, the Fender Squire Jazz. It just does all the stuff I want the bass to do. It offers zero impediments to my playing unlike other more expensive basses which have weird necks (Jackson), unjustifiably expensive (Warwick, Fodera), too much upkeep/bad electronics (Schecter), too heavy (most boutique basses). It just works and so I always go back to it.
Try a 1990's Conklin SideWinder some time.Stays in tune for months regardless of weather changes.All 7 strings too.A wonderful piece of art that plays like a dream and sounds wonderful.
I’ve played jazzes with years and years. Just find precision basses more comfortable to play and the sound I get usually suits any type of music I play.
Love my Geddy Lee MiA signature JB. I have that and a JetGlo Rik 4003. Get many compliments on tone and looks every time I play somewhere…
This was a very helpful video, I’ve been eyeing the Fenders for some time and few others as well. I guess the only way to whether your going to like the bass or not is pick one up and try it out. I’ll be heading to Guitar Center this weekend for a try out session. 🎸🤘🔥
You can see the evolution in Leo's work, ending with the L2000 I guess. Great content Mark
The Jazz bass also provides exceptional balance and comfort to the player owing to the favorable distribution of mass and generous body contours.
I love my Jazz bass. It looks great and plays great and sounds great.
Thank you! I own a Std P Bass and a Nate Mendel P bass. I am getting the [newly out] 60's American Original p bass. I am considering a Jazz Bass. I would REALLY like to hear you play the P bass and Jazz bass side by side though...sometime for comparison.
Best Bass channel by far.
I would very much appreciate if you did a Fender Precision V Music Man Stingray. This may be an overly saturated subject, but the in-depth critique you provide will definitely help me. I have been arguing with myself as to which to invest in. Thanks for your content- it’s stellar
It would be great to watch Alnico/ceramic pick up comparison. I've got an EMG PJ set, that are both ceramic and they are far not as cool sounding as Music Man's humbacker, which is also ceramic. Thinking of replacing them.
Did a "blind taste test" on JBs in the best local music store. I was handed various JBs and I didn't look at anything except the knobs, to put them all full up, and trying to "anonymize" so I wouldn't be able to identify them. Best tone and feel was the American Standard.
Yes sir no doubt about it 🎵🔥🎵 The versatile Jazz Bass
I HAVE THE 2014 MIM FENDER JAZZ AND A FENDER RUMBLE 40 AMP IT WORKS GREAT FOR ME