\
  The most prestigious law school admissions discussion board in the world.
BackRefresh Options Favorite

Has the fender jazz bass gone out of style?

...
Mint adventurous address
  10/28/25
I think so. It doesn't sound very good and most actual jazz ...
charcoal university
  10/28/25
I have to say I did not love my J bass and havent missed it ...
Mint adventurous address
  10/28/25
In a word, yes.
charcoal university
  10/28/25
...
Mint adventurous address
  10/29/25
It took me two weeks but I finally finished setting up my p ...
charcoal university
  10/29/25
nice! have you done guitar tech maintenance stuff before? ...
Mint adventurous address
  10/29/25
Yeah I got really into it back in the day. I am not fast lik...
charcoal university
  10/29/25
Who gives a fuck about style with this shit. Nobody who was ...
thriller federal pit
  10/29/25
It doesn’t seem like the young crop of famous bassists...
Mint adventurous address
  10/29/25
Aside from Flea Jaco and Tim Commerford and John Paul Jones ...
charcoal university
  10/29/25
Geddy Lee Marcus Miller Larry Graham That's like saying...
Mint adventurous address
  10/29/25
There's 10x more who played a P
charcoal university
  10/29/25
This is a good topic. Let's get a list of the most famous p-...
Mint adventurous address
  10/29/25
Steve Harris is the GOAT P Bass player IMO
well-lubricated goal in life
  10/29/25
https://vocaroo.com/1jOOubcrtEog
Mint adventurous address
  10/29/25
not bad man!! I can't play that on bass can play the main...
well-lubricated goal in life
  10/29/25
Maybe we should collaborate
Mint adventurous address
  10/29/25
Doodikoff will NEVER poast a recording of himself sucking wi...
charcoal university
  10/29/25
It was all Lemmy cared about. He used Rickenbackers because ...
gold volcanic crater
  10/30/25
...
Mint adventurous address
  10/30/25
expansive mid-range and greater note separation distinguish ...
Razzmatazz idiotic stead
  10/30/25
But if you really want mid and upper range articulation, you...
Mint adventurous address
  10/30/25
Jaco Pastorius, Marcus Miller, Chris Chaney
Razzmatazz idiotic stead
  10/30/25
By contemporary i meant modern or current. Jaco has been dea...
Mint adventurous address
  10/30/25
u sound like an idiot---those players are more contemporary ...
Razzmatazz idiotic stead
  10/30/25
I'm saying of that generation, really all my fav virtuoso ba...
Mint adventurous address
  10/30/25
the op query is answered: no, the J bass never goes out of s...
Razzmatazz idiotic stead
  10/30/25
...
Mint adventurous address
  10/30/25
peace out, keep the beat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=...
Razzmatazz idiotic stead
  10/30/25
love you dog. trying to wrap up learning Sir Duke tonight.
Mint adventurous address
  10/30/25
no
insane sable police squad range
  10/30/25


Poast new message in this thread



Reply Favorite

Date: October 28th, 2025 10:41 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49383725)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 28th, 2025 10:48 PM
Author: charcoal university

I think so. It doesn't sound very good and most actual jazz bassists play basses with active pickups. The J bass hasn't had a moment in a long time. Tame Impala uses one but syke their most famous bass riff was played on guitar and transposed an octave down. He also uses a short scale bass so unclear what impact the J bass has.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49383740)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 28th, 2025 10:59 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

I have to say I did not love my J bass and havent missed it for a minute since i sold it. I think the “versatility” is exaggerated or maybe just surpassed with active basses with multi band EQs. Also used to be the benefit was the thin, fast neck. But basically every bass has a thin neck now.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49383762)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 28th, 2025 11:05 PM
Author: charcoal university

In a word, yes.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49383772)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 11:08 AM
Author: Mint adventurous address



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49384526)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 11:13 AM
Author: charcoal university

It took me two weeks but I finally finished setting up my p bass soup to nuts. It plays like a dream now. There was so much wrong with it from the Ensenada factory. They did a real rush job. I had to do everything. File the nut, truss rod adjustment, intonation, saddles. Even the pickups I had to cut some of the foam from the bottom because they were jacked up way too high. I did everything myself and now the action is super low and butter smooth with no buzzing. Have to play with an ultra light touch no digging into the strings. Honestly plays like butter now. I was skeptical of the SD quarter pound pickups but they sound pretty good. I had em before on a different bass and thought they sounded horrible but these sound fine.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49384551)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 12:27 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

nice! have you done guitar tech maintenance stuff before?

I'm looking to swap out the pickups from my recently acquired 1989 peavey dynabass unity series. Maybe the preamp too. Going back and forth between the SD quarter pounds and EMG GZRs. There are some youtube videos but it's always hard to tell if the differences in sound are attributable to the pickups or other factors.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49384815)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 12:33 PM
Author: charcoal university

Yeah I got really into it back in the day. I am not fast like a professional luthier. I take a long time. But I know how to do it. I've done probably 10-15 guitars in my life soup to nuts. I've built several partscasters. I actually funny enough I built a Tele out of parts and I listed it on Reverb and someone offered $800 for it. The total cost of the parts was around $400. I was kinda shocked but I ended up not selling it. I was just surprised someone wanted that piece of junk. But to be fair it's one of my best studio guitars it's sort of unimpeachable.

Yeah you can never tell how pickups sound until you install them. It's just an expensive crapshoot. The installation is pretty easy though. You can probably pay Guitar Center 50 bucks to do it if you can't figure it out. I've always been good with a soldering iron. I built a pedal from a kit once though that was a bitch. And not one of these fake ones like the Notaklön this one was a real fuckin soldering job lol. I decided thereafter not to go into pedal building as a career. It was not for me.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49384832)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 12:40 PM
Author: thriller federal pit

Who gives a fuck about style with this shit. Nobody who was ever great gave a fuck about it.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49384858)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 2:44 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

It doesn’t seem like the young crop of famous bassists gravitate toward the jazz bass and there’s been a resurgence of appreciation for the P bass.

More popular now is the pj configuration which seems like a best of both worlds or dual humbler with active electronics.

Has the jazz bass fallen off as the weapon of choice for virtuoso bassists?

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385167)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 2:53 PM
Author: charcoal university

Aside from Flea Jaco and Tim Commerford and John Paul Jones who has really even ever rocked the J?

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385199)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 2:56 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

Geddy Lee

Marcus Miller

Larry Graham

That's like saying "aside from 70% of the most famous bass players of all time, who played a jazz bass?"



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385208)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 3:00 PM
Author: charcoal university

There's 10x more who played a P

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385213)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 3:05 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

This is a good topic. Let's get a list of the most famous p-bass players:

James Jamerson

Carol Kaye

Steve Harris

Roger Waters

Michael League

Geezer Butler

Pino Palladino



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385226)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 3:07 PM
Author: well-lubricated goal in life

Steve Harris is the GOAT P Bass player IMO

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385235)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 3:17 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

https://vocaroo.com/1jOOubcrtEog

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385281)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 3:24 PM
Author: well-lubricated goal in life

not bad man!! I can't play that on bass

can play the main riff on guitar

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385314)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 3:30 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

Maybe we should collaborate

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385350)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 29th, 2025 3:40 PM
Author: charcoal university

Doodikoff will NEVER poast a recording of himself sucking wind on guitar lmao

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49385386)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 8:12 PM
Author: gold volcanic crater

It was all Lemmy cared about. He used Rickenbackers because he liked the way they looked. You can say he was a shitty bass player, but he was a roadie for Jimi Hendrix and a major geek who knew how tear apart and re-assemble guitars.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389153)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 7:08 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389003)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 8:00 PM
Author: Razzmatazz idiotic stead

expansive mid-range and greater note separation distinguish the J bass over the P bass, hth. if u want virtuosity at the trebles over thundering bass-- J bass has it all

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389136)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 8:53 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

But if you really want mid and upper range articulation, you’d be better off with dual humbuckers and an active EQ. Hard to replicate the warmth of a classic p bass with rounds.

Which contemporary virtuosos are playing a J?



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389228)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 9:11 PM
Author: Razzmatazz idiotic stead

Jaco Pastorius, Marcus Miller, Chris Chaney

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389260)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 9:19 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

By contemporary i meant modern or current. Jaco has been dead for like 40 years and Marcus Miller (who is my fav bassist of all time) is 100 years old. Chris Chaney isn't strictly a j guy.



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389273)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 9:20 PM
Author: Razzmatazz idiotic stead

u sound like an idiot---those players are more contemporary today to musicians than anybody living or dead-- and the J bass is their signature voicing

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389278)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 9:26 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

I'm saying of that generation, really all my fav virtuoso bassists played a J: jaco, marcus, geddy, larry graham.

The younger generation of bassists largely do not play fender jazz basses with notable exceptions like Tal Wilkenfeld and Esperanza Spalding. Some examples Victor Wooten (albeit its a fodera with active j style pickups), Richard Bona, Michael Pipoquinha, Mohini Dey, Michael League, Mike Gordon.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389288)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 9:28 PM
Author: Razzmatazz idiotic stead

the op query is answered: no, the J bass never goes out of style

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389289)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 9:33 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389295)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 9:34 PM
Author: Razzmatazz idiotic stead

peace out, keep the beat

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTIdPyQigF8&list=RDhTIdPyQigF8&start_radio=1

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389296)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 10:03 PM
Author: Mint adventurous address

love you dog. trying to wrap up learning Sir Duke tonight.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389334)



Reply Favorite

Date: October 30th, 2025 8:03 PM
Author: insane sable police squad range

no

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5791082&forum_id=2],#49389144)