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What P? (decided on MJT!)

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stickyfiddlestickyfiddle Frets: 26753
edited March 2020 in Bass
I’ve had a cheapie J for years now (originally built in the £100 challenge in days past). It’s nice enough for 100 quid but hardly inspiring. 

In my ever approaching middle age I’m really fancying a proper P bass and happy to spend a bit to get something decent. I’m not looking to emulate Billy Sheehan - more Motown, classic rock, alt/indie type of thing. 

I’m a big fan of nitro finishes and rosewood fretboards but otherwise not super bothered on other specs mainly because I don’t know what I want other than single pickup passive and ideally not super-vintage frets.  The Nate Mendel sig appeals but I’m not a massive fan of the colour. 

I’m potentially up for anything sub-custom shop level, but wondering if better to grab a Squier CV to get used to the “P thing” then upgrade in a year or so. And then there’s the other bit of me that thinks “fuck it, buy a Rick”...

Suggestions please! 
The Assumptions - UAE party band for all your rock & soul desires
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Comments

  • prowlaprowla Frets: 4896
    I've go a Squier Affinity P and it is surprisingly good; I've (I think) agreed to sell it for £60.

    I bought a Fender MIM P last weekend for £100.
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  • fretmeisterfretmeister Frets: 23963
    Fender American Special Precision.

    Cheaper than a full blown American Standard, with a much less clubby neck and tend to be lighter in weight too. Mine was 8lb dead, and I swapped the tuners for Hipshot Ultralights and now it is just under 7 3/4 lb. And as the weight reduction is all at the headstock the balance is much nicer. Precisions can be a bit neck heavy.

    Only slight downside is the "Greasebucket" tone control which is shit. But 30 mins with a soldering iron and a new capacitor and you get a proper tone control again.

    There is a run of them every few years. I've had 2. A sunburst (sold) and a white (still here) with rosewood boards.

    Pickup is very good and with some flats it does the Motown / Blues Brothers / Soul thing etc perfectly.

    Tend to be in the region of £600 but if you are patient you might get it cheaper. 
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  • prowla said:

    I bought a Fender MIM P last weekend for £100.
    Damn.
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    If you are used to a Jazz, then trying out a Squier CV may be the way to go - the P neck is substantially bigger than the J; you may decide you want a P bass body with a Jazz style neck. 
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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    edited February 2020
    prowla said:
    I bought a Fender MIM P last weekend for £100.
    Nice find.
    Be seeing you.
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  • fretmeisterfretmeister Frets: 23963
    Sandberg California VS2 Passive.

    The neck is much closer to a J, it's light weight and brilliantly built. 
    I'm a huge fan of Sandbergs. I've had several and only moved them on when I had medical issues meaning I needed to go super light weight.

    Now got my 'berg Superlight TT4 as my main bass, but I'm saving for the 5 string version.
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  • The G&L LB-100 might be worth a look. The Tribute if you're just wanting to dip your toe in the P-Bass water, or a US model if you're feeling more spendy.

    Both are excellent VFM, especially if you can find on 2nd hand. I believe the US ones have multiple different neck options, so might be able to find one with a width closer to a Jazzer? 
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  • prowlaprowla Frets: 4896
    prowla said:
    I bought a Fender MIM P last weekend for £100.
    Nice find.

    It is a bit beat up, but plays OK.
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71960
    stickyfiddle said:

    And then there’s the other bit of me that thinks “fuck it, buy a Rick”...
    This is the correct answer :).

    If you really want a P, then the plain Mexican Fender Standard one my friend has is the best modern P I've played. I have no idea why, it just resonates really well and sounds superb.

    Here's the rub... the one he briefly had before it, and luckily was able to return - same model, even the same colour - was one of the worst.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • Cheers all. The neck is my main question mark on a P. To be honest I play the J about twice a year, so while I’m acclimated to it in as much as I don’t have anything else, it’s not like a muscle memory thing where I have a decade of playing 8 hours a week that I’ll need to unlearn. I also figure that your “average” P neck isn’t any bigger than 50’s style Telecaster, so it shouldn’t be an issue in the long run. 

    But it’s also why I’m wondering about something cheap for a little bit so I can see what I do or don’t like about that so I can make a more informed choice on something more expensive a bit later. 

    This is where being in Abu Dhabi makes things a bit tricky. We’re shit for guitar shops and even worse for basses, so I don’t have a chance to try anything at all beyond *possibly* a Squier in the local Virgin Megastore (they didn’t go bust here!)
    The Assumptions - UAE party band for all your rock & soul desires
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71960
    stickyfiddle said:

    I also figure that your “average” P neck isn’t any bigger than 50’s style Telecaster, so it shouldn’t be an issue in the long run.
    They can be huge - at least the proper vintage-spec ones that @Bridgehouse and others swear by... they just make me swear :). I can't play them at all.

    Modern ones are smaller, somewhere between that and a Jazz.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • ICBM said:
    stickyfiddle said:

    I also figure that your “average” P neck isn’t any bigger than 50’s style Telecaster, so it shouldn’t be an issue in the long run.
    They can be huge - at least the proper vintage-spec ones that @Bridgehouse and others swear by... they just make me swear :). I can't play them at all.

    Modern ones are smaller, somewhere between that and a Jazz.

    Are we taking inch-thick 52 Nocaster reissue, or even bigger? I can cope with anything smaller than that on guitar, particularly if the edges are heavily rolled. 

    I’m interested in classic “sensible” sorts of parts, rather than your (dare I say tasteless?) Fleas and Sheehans and Pastoriouses (sic) so I’m not worried about speed, just hand cramps!
    The Assumptions - UAE party band for all your rock & soul desires
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71960
    stickyfiddle said:

    Are we taking inch-thick 52 Nocaster reissue, or even bigger? I can cope with anything smaller than that on guitar, particularly if the edges are heavily rolled.
    It's width as well as depth - 1-3/4" on the 50s vintage reissues... daft for anything with only four strings.

    I can only get on with 1-3/4" for 12-string guitars, and even then it's pushing it - I prefer 1-5/8" really, for both guitar and bass - but I wouldn't play a 12 for a whole set anyway.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24579
    edited February 2020
    Well now, the traditional P neck and its dimensions.

    Personally, I love the early 60's wide neck. Others (like @ICBM) don't. 

    My 64 Precision has the super wide nut width - 45mm, but the depth on the neck is actually quite shallow. It's wide, but not chunky or thick. In fact, the early 60's P traditionally isn't thick - it's not "clubby" at all - and it's a very different experience to the Nocaster style of "thick".

    What I've found is it makes you play a little differently. Most bass connoisseurs would argue that to play bass properly you need thumb behind the neck and plenty of reach with the fingers - the trad P bass neck encourages this a lot.

    The other factor is string spacing. The spacing on my P is wide. Very wide. And it's good for some styles and not for others. At the bridge end the spacing is huge - it's fabulous for finger style but if you prefer a pick it might cause issues. 

    Horses for courses. You'll either love or hate the P style wide flat neck from the early 60's. When I first played one it made total sense to me and suited my style. Others will hate it. 

    I guess it explains why the neck on my Shuker fretless suits me so much. It's wide (43mm) but really thin front to back...
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  • Cheers all, that’s very clear. I reckon I’m fine with 1 3/4 on guitar, though admittedly that depends on general profile fatness as well. But I’ve never played a P bass in earnest so hard to know how that translates without playing some.

    I do know I generally don’t like extremes of fat or thin or narrow or wide on guitars (or thick/thin drumsticks for that matter) so assume I’ll be the same on bass. 

    I’m in the UK next week so I’ll try and get to a guitar shop even briefly to see if there’s anything I particularly do or don’t like.


    The Assumptions - UAE party band for all your rock & soul desires
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  • crunchmancrunchman Frets: 11414

    My first bass was a Japanese Fender reissue of an early 60's P of some type (maybe a 62?).  I didn't know any better, but the nut width on that was too much for me - as I have very short fingers.  I think it was about 43mm.  I sold that and bought a Jazz bass with a 38mm nut, which was a lot better, but the Jazz doesn't have the P sound.

    I've now got a mid eighties Japanese Squier P bass with a 32" scale.  The shorter scale helps a lot.  I'm not sure of the width.  It might be a bit wider than the Jazz, but with the shorter scale, it's a lot easier to play.

    The purists will frown on a 32" scale, but it still seems to have a lot of the punch that a short scale (30") bass like a Mustang doesn't seem to have, while still being a lot easier to play.  They are hard to find though.

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  • I've a a Vintage V4 reissue and a MIA Fender P, very little difference sound wise, finish is better on the MIA Fender
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  • jpfampsjpfamps Frets: 2723
    Well now, the traditional P neck and its dimensions.

    Personally, I love the early 60's wide neck. Others (like @ICBM) don't. 

    My 64 Precision has the super wide nut width - 45mm, but the depth on the neck is actually quite shallow. It's wide, but not chunky or thick. In fact, the early 60's P traditionally isn't thick - it's not "clubby" at all - and it's a very different experience to the Nocaster style of "thick".

    What I've found is it makes you play a little differently. Most bass connoisseurs would argue that to play bass properly you need thumb behind the neck and plenty of reach with the fingers - the trad P bass neck encourages this a lot.

    The other factor is string spacing. The spacing on my P is wide. Very wide. And it's good for some styles and not for others. At the bridge end the spacing is huge - it's fabulous for finger style but if you prefer a pick it might cause issues. 

    Horses for courses. You'll either love or hate the P style wide flat neck from the early 60's. When I first played one it made total sense to me and suited my style. Others will hate it. 

    I guess it explains why the neck on my Shuker fretless suits me so much. It's wide (43mm) but really thin front to back...

    This may be an heretical view, but I really like the early 70's P-bass neck profiles over the wide 60's necks (and I have quite large hands). I find the early 60's profiles too wide and shallow for me.

    The mid 50s P-bass are nice too.

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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24579
    jpfamps said:
    Well now, the traditional P neck and its dimensions.

    Personally, I love the early 60's wide neck. Others (like @ICBM) don't. 

    My 64 Precision has the super wide nut width - 45mm, but the depth on the neck is actually quite shallow. It's wide, but not chunky or thick. In fact, the early 60's P traditionally isn't thick - it's not "clubby" at all - and it's a very different experience to the Nocaster style of "thick".

    What I've found is it makes you play a little differently. Most bass connoisseurs would argue that to play bass properly you need thumb behind the neck and plenty of reach with the fingers - the trad P bass neck encourages this a lot.

    The other factor is string spacing. The spacing on my P is wide. Very wide. And it's good for some styles and not for others. At the bridge end the spacing is huge - it's fabulous for finger style but if you prefer a pick it might cause issues. 

    Horses for courses. You'll either love or hate the P style wide flat neck from the early 60's. When I first played one it made total sense to me and suited my style. Others will hate it. 

    I guess it explains why the neck on my Shuker fretless suits me so much. It's wide (43mm) but really thin front to back...

    This may be an heretical view, but I really like the early 70's P-bass neck profiles over the wide 60's necks (and I have quite large hands). I find the early 60's profiles too wide and shallow for me.

    The mid 50s P-bass are nice too.

    I've mellowed over the years tbh.. I quite like the 70's P profile and I don't mind a wider jazz profile these days either.

    Can't stand lacquered boards tho :)
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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    edited February 2020
    Redacted.
    Be seeing you.
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