Why you need a short scale bass

[sunjamr]

Our member JoeD1 is thinking about getting an electric bass. And just now I ran across this nice explanation of the features of short scale basses. Now I wish I had a Hofner short scale.

Sunjamr Steve

[JoeD1]

I’ve read about jazz and p bass…what’s the difference?

Joe

The sight of a touch, or the scent of a sound,
Or the strength of an Oak with roots deep in the ground.
--Graeme Edge

[Mark H]

Quite a lot of differences between the Jazz and P-bass, this might help:

…and this:

Also, read the comments below the vids to get a feel for popular opinions and configurations. I think I need both, being a big fan of Jaco Pastorious’ virtuosity on the Jazz but also the sound of a Precision Bass live and on so many records.

[JoeD1]

I listened with my eyes closed and couldn’t hear any difference. If I had to explain the difference I would say the P had a little more dirt sound than the J.

It looks like the P has the 2 pickups mounted against each other in a staggered position. The J bass pickups were mounted like a bridge and middle position. I assume the Hofner is a P bass since its pickups appear mounted at the bridge and neck.

I assume as far as playability is concerned there is no difference?

I like the Hofner but only because I like Paul McCartney…and it looks like a violin!

Joe

The sight of a touch, or the scent of a sound,
Or the strength of an Oak with roots deep in the ground.
--Graeme Edge

[sunjamr]

Haha, I thought the same thing. I’ve listened to several YouTube videos comparing them, and my ears can barely tell any difference. I don’t wear a hearing aid or have hearing problems, but other people say they can hear things I don’t. For me, I hear zero difference between an MP3 file and a WAV file, but many people say they can. But the truth is, with the right effects, you can make any kind of bass or guitar sound pretty close to what you want to hear. And if I can’t tell much difference, how many non-musicians can? So for me, how a bass feels when I’m holding it and playing it is the most important thing.

Sunjamr Steve

[Mark H]

The names Jazz Bass and Precision Bass are Fender brand model names.

Jazz Bass excels at getting a more ‘granular’, edgy sound great for funk and slap grooves but can still be rolled back to a traditional bass tone. Precision Bass excels at smooth, coherent lows that can really anchor the low end in a mix, either live or studio.

Both are long scale, 34 inch. Neck width is narrower on the Jazz which may be a blessing or a curse depending on what your digits are telling you.

I’ve said elsewhere I need both a Jazz- and a Precision- for what I would like to do; but anyway guitar keeps me plenty occupied these days. If it were me I’d audition both. If I could live with the narrower neck on the J I’d take her home. The J’s *so* pretty, and I could pretend I’m Jaco.

Here’s some more dope on the two Fender basses: https://www.seymourduncan.com/blog/latest-updates/the-precision-bass-vs-the-jazz-bass-what-are-the-differences-and-which-is-right-for-you

[Mark H]

sunjamr wrote:

So for me, how a bass feels when I’m holding it and playing it is the most important thing.

Absolutely.

[JoeD1]

Great advice folks. I now feel semi-edjumacated enough to go to a guitar store and try a couple out. Thanks. I’ll let you know what I get when I decide to pull the trigger on the purchase.

Joe

The sight of a touch, or the scent of a sound,
Or the strength of an Oak with roots deep in the ground.
--Graeme Edge

[carmar]

Mark H wrote:

sunjamr wrote:

So for me, how a bass feels when I’m holding it and playing it is the most important thing.

Absolutely.

This is the reason I like long scale

[Mark H]

I prefer a long scale bass also. Tonewise, the purist in me that likes to play out votes “Precision”, the generalist in me that likes to jam at home and informally elsewhere votes “Jazz”. Hence I need both.

I think a compromise is the best for non-pros like us. Fender makes a Jazz Bass model with Precision-style pickups in the middle, Jazz-style pickups at the bridge and the appropriate switching. That could be the way to go.

I say “could be” because I’ve never tried one. It just seems like a great idea to me, and I’ve read some good reports. If it does work you’d have a very versatile instrument in your hands.

[JoeD1]

Mark, do you know which model? Is there a Squire? I’m not looking to spend a lot of money.

Joe

The sight of a touch, or the scent of a sound,
Or the strength of an Oak with roots deep in the ground.
--Graeme Edge

[Mark H]

I’ll research it further and report back. I’m also interested to see what’s out there currently. I have a few guitars I’d sell to buy a good all-rounder bass at this point.

[Mark H]

Also, you could get a Squier Jazz Bass for a pretty low cost and install a Precision Bass humbucker in the middle position. Any good guitar tech could do that for you I would think. No guarantees, you’d be surfing on the bleeding edge.

This could be a “false economy” though. From experience you need to match your pickups. Sticking an aftermarket pickup in one position doesn’t mean it will play nice with the other, OEM, pickup. In other words, a matched pair is what you want. So replace both pickups. Errr.. and probably the circuitry underneath.

At that point, you would likely have spent more dough getting it to where a Fender Jazz with a hybrid J+P configuration would have cost off the shelf. Just thinking out loud here.

[JoeD1]

Yeah, I don’t want to spend a lot of money. Plus I’m just going to be using it to record my own stuff at home. I still need to find time to stop at my local store and see what feels comfortable – long or short scale.

I’ve been looking on guitarfetish.com and they seem to have some decent, inexpensive basses. I’ve read reviews that they’re not too shabby.

Joe

The sight of a touch, or the scent of a sound,
Or the strength of an Oak with roots deep in the ground.
--Graeme Edge

[JoeD1]

I’m only interested in playing bass for my personal recording and I’ve never really got into bass players so I had to lookup Jaco Pastorious. What a great player he was.

Then I realized I wasn’t aware of any bass players! So I tried to think of a couple songs that bass was a dominant part and thought of My Generation by The Who (John Entwistle) and Yours is no Disgrace by Yes (Chris Squire).

Thanks for the journey Mark!

Joe

The sight of a touch, or the scent of a sound,
Or the strength of an Oak with roots deep in the ground.
--Graeme Edge

[JoeD1]

So I narrowed it down to 3 guitars based on the price…I wanted to stay under $200.

Mitchel MB100 short scale
Ibanez GSRM20 Micro short scale (28” I think)
Squire Sonic Bronco short scale

The Mitchel and Ibanez have a dual split coil at the neck and a single coil at the bridge. The Squire has only 1 single coil in the middle.

I’m sorta leaning toward the Mitchel but I’m not familiar with the brand like I am the Squier and Ibanez. Can I go wrong with any of these inexpensive beginner style guitars?

Joe

The sight of a touch, or the scent of a sound,
Or the strength of an Oak with roots deep in the ground.
--Graeme Edge

[JoeD1]

I went to the local Guitar Center and looked at the Mitchel, Ibanez and Squire. I have a few questions I’m hoping someone is still monitoring this thread and can help me please!

On all 3 guitars, the fretboard extended beyond the neck by about 10-15mm (where it joins the body)…is this normal?

All of the guitars had excessive fret buzz…is this normal in a bass guitar?

Each guitar had a quality problem like loose tuners, loose/wobbly knobs, missing strap buttons, etc. I know they’re only $200 guitars but it seemed strange that each had an issue…Normal?

Am I just too picky and would a thorough going over and setup be the answer?

Thanks!

Joe

The sight of a touch, or the scent of a sound,
Or the strength of an Oak with roots deep in the ground.
--Graeme Edge

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