Suggestions for a Jazz

I think the Player, and my MIM P, were the things that got me thinking of cheaper options. Do you have a Player Jazz, and if so what do you think about it; playability and sound compared to an MiA Jazz?

The Geddy Lee is a great instrument, as the quality is exceptional.

The MIM stuff is really, really good these days, too. You might consider the Vintera series for an upgrade from your Standard, and you have a lot of choices there.

You can't go wrong with a Jazz bass, but if I were looking to buy something new, I'd give a serious look at the Fender Deluxe PJ Bass. It has a 70's Jazz bass neck and a Jazz bass bridge pickup in addition to the usual P Bass appointments. I like that one in Olympic White!

If you want the Vintera, I would do the '60s Jazz Bass. Not having a maple fingerboard option on the '70s does not endear that model to me.

I have a Fender American Pro Jazz bass. I pulled it down off the wall hanger (where it had sat the last 3 or 4 months while I took care of other needs) and it was still almost dead on in tuning as shown on my Peterson VS-1 strobe tuner). The neck feels really good on it as it has a narrower depth front to back than many other Jazz basses plus rolled edges on the neck. While I haven't played a Player Series Jazz I do own a Player series P bass that I like just as much as the neck on it also has a narrower depth/flatter back that makes it a joy to play. While it does not have the carbon rods an American Pro series has I have not had any issues with dead spots on the neck which is a maple neck. If the Player series Jazz is as good as their P Bass I highly suggest getting one.

Update: I pulled my Player P bass down from the wall, plugged it in, turned the Peterson VS-1 Strobe on in anticipation of having to tune it as it has not been played in 3 or more weeks and was pleasantly surprised all but the "A" string were still dead on and even the "A" string was just barely off (a typical tuner would not see this) so I was really happy. BTW: it is a maple neck, maple fretboard. I am a happy camper!

I have a 2013 Fender American Standard Jazz Bass and last year I bought a Sire V7 Version 2, 4 string that plays and sounds as good as the Fender for half the money. I play both of them regularly and the Sire has the bonus of the active circuitry if I want to use it.

I like that one in Olympic White!

[/quote]Good suggestion on the Vintera, I need to try one. And while I wouldn't mind a PJ, I'm not really interested in active.[/quote]




I tried many actives. I do not like Fender’s active circuit. Does not enhance the sound but to me detracts from good passives in the Jazz and Precision Bass tones.

I do have one Active , an ESP LTD- 5 but it has all new hand picked electronics and pickups and I cannot see me ever selling it for two reasons:
A. It is exactly how I like it
B. Because of the trial AND error components I would lose a bundle as NO-ONE would pay anything near what it has cost me over the years. Lace asked me to write a review of their Aluminatone pickups and how I incorporated switches to switch each pickup between “single coil” and. “Dual coil” and an extra pot with a switch ( pushon/pushoff) to go between Active and Passive modes with master volume that works in either modes. At same Time I made an external box that sts on my amp to supply 18vdc and pass signal using a Mogami Stereo cable with stereo plugs to connect the box and bass together passing signal on to the amp. It has protection to keep a standard guitar cable that protects the guitar cable that will short out the DC voltage from ring to sleeve from hurting it. It lights a bright red LED when a short occurs so you can turn a power switch off to run standard bass.
The reason I went to all this trouble is the battery compartment only holds one 9 volt battery and I wanted to run on 18 vdc for more clean headroom . After sending the review they apparently decided to post it on TalkBass. That was several years ago but I noticed ESP has incorporated some of the features on their LTD bass.

Okey Dokey now laugh and call me stupid. I care not lol 😉

So what is the difference between my 2017 American Pro Jazz and a Performer Jazz?

I used to own an MIJ Geddy Lee (98). The neck profile is unlike any other bass by Fender. I would definitely recommend playing one before you buy.

Thank you! I do not know how I missed this. It is appreciated. I can tell you my wife thinks I am insane

I had a 2011 Fender American Special Jazz Bass Olympic White that I liked a lot (well for the most part). What I did not like was the thin bridge plate and tuners (same as Hwy one) . I put a BabicZ Bridge and HB-7 Hipshot tuners on it along with a red tort pickguard. What I loved about it was the neck with the rolled edges (even more pronounced than my 2017 Fender American Pro Jazz). I had to sell it during hard times to make ends meet and always regretted it. I finally gave in and bought the American Pro which I have changed little on it (I did add an S-1 switch as I do all my Jazz Basses). The Player once I replaced the bridge and tuners is a great bass and I enjoy playing it as much as the Pro.