TheGhostofJaco

Agree that you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a good one. Years ago I was certain that I wanted to add a 5 string Fender P, went and played it and was let down. The B string was not great. Fender 5 ztrings in general have not done it for me, but in the case of the Pbass, it's difficult to make that barky pickup sound right on a low B. That said, the Moollon 5 string P classic is apparently incredible. I have never played one, but I find it interesting that a builder who strives to make the most authentic old school P's and J's out there, went in a different direction with the pickup for this model. I did own his J Classic 5, and thats an amazing 5 string bass if you want the feel and vibe of a mid 60's fender with a low B. So I have to imagine his 5 string P may be worth looking into, if you can track one down.

Any of you all still playing these? I bought my first one years ago from YJ and customs was not a problem. Something about these basses just stuck with me over the years and now I have 3 and have sold about everything else. They really scratch that vintage bass itch, my jazz sounds and looks exactly like a 65 I played many times in the past. The difference is the neck is better. Vintage necks can be quite hit or miss. Some people call that character, but I don’t want to pay a ton of money for that. And that’s where the moollons really deliver. I know olinto is making some good stuff, but at double the pricing. At that point I’d probably just go vintage. they really hit on something special with these basses, I am curious who is on the same level besides olinto. I have heard sus bass is up and coming. Also have a Nash that I think is better than most fenders, but it’s not on the level of Moollon -imo.

Thats interesting and I totally forgot to mention the pickups. The hum canceling ones have benefits but definitely impact the sound as well. It’s kind of a pick your poison thing. Will Lee basically wanted a more fenderish bass than the regular sadowsky J is.

It is more work for sure. But once you figure it out it is quite rewarding. It goes in places the p can not, and vice versa. Always great to have both options as the foundation of a bass arsenal. Will Lee came up earlier. He specifically asked Roger for more mid control because he wanted to cut more in the low mids and as result has a signature bass made for him with added on mid controls. So he is playing a different bass than the jazz with the standard sadowsky 2 band preamp.

And I just hung with a guy who plays on a ton of big country records who switched off of Sadowskys years ago because they disappeared for him as well. I don't play on country records, but the point is that it is contextual based on the musical material. Also huge difference between live and on a record. I'm speaking of in the studio. Live, I love the light weight of the sadowsky, it is a joy to play, and a go to for me. A Passive fender jazz with both pickups on full is great if slapped or overdriven and played with a pick. That is personally the only time I would have both volume puts fully open on a jazz bass though. It is trickier to mix a jazz bass - active, passive - whatever brand. But the secret many times is in the low mids, which is where I prefer the old passive Fenders.

this brings up a good point. I agree and use a preamp as well. And it’s a different sound than with the active bass. One big reason is the buffer from the preamp. Another one is the tone knob on the passive bass is rolled off before you eq. So it’s quite a nice sound with a little boost. Sounds like we have the same experience with the mids. Also the traditional fender volume knobs let me roll them both off a bit which takes the scoop out of both pickups being on. On a sadowsky that is not an option. So they really are different beasts. Both great at what they do, but they do it in a different manner. There is no doubt about that.

nah. It’s a different sound. I’ve been playing on records for years so I know what sound I need for certain tracks. And there is a difference in mid presence there. We sat and A/Bd it. Will Lee plays very different music as well. it’s not user error in this case. It’s just a case of being lucky enough to have both basses and picking which one works best for which tracks.

I personally think a fender gets through the mix better for me. The sadowsky has amazing tone but it disappears a bit in the mix, when the fender just sits in a beautiful space. I should say that my fender is actually a Moollon and it has a very warm and rich tone to it. I just played on a dance track with both and the Moollon won. Sat on top of the kick as was super clear to hear in the mix. Active basses sometimes have that compressed sound that can be amazing for slapping but can work against when playing finger style. Sadowsky moreso because the mids are more scooped. Not that they won’t work or anything, but it matter what you are looking for.

Yep that’s the issue with an amp di. Of course you can feed the pedals into the fx loop but having a di on the floor is so much easier. Plus you can fly anywhere and have your sound. it’s tough to beat the versatility of the capo.

The capo is so good I don’t know if I’d gig it. Just use in studio. Debating just using an amp di for anything live, or getting the bass rig pedal.

You got me thinking about the Gnome. Seems to have a lot of juice, and to me the sound is quite similar to the ELF. What do you all think about a Gnome plus a TC Electronics 2x8 mini setup for the studio and rehearsals? I could add another 8ohm 1x10 down the road for more lows.

Not sure if I have. How is the tension on them?

I have one Pbass currently with rounds, and it's great but sometimes I think about having a P with rounds and one with flats. May be overkill. I think I will just throw flats on and see how I like them again. I used them for so long and they recorded so well for Neo soul tunes, but sometimes would sound too thick and thuddy for other genres like french house style bass, or funk/disco..etc. I think it's because modern kicks from drum machines are so huge that they can carry the sub lows, and a good bass tone needs to sit on top of it. The flats can just get dull and sit in a weird space in the mix that works incredibly well with live instruments and open mixes, but not as much with electronic drums. May just be my preference though.

What other head did you get? I am looking at a small light setup for the studio and then something I can easily carry to a rehearsal. I play more funk/jazz/drum and bass so nothing super loud. Was thinking maybe the TE 2x8 paired with an Elf, and then later on I believe I could add the 1x10 to the mix, which would drop it to 4 ohms. May be wrong about that. Are there any other small setups like this that I should check out?

I have a Nash P showing up in a few days and I'm going to go rounds on it. I have found myself coming back to rounds on my basses. Ideally I'd have flats on a J and P and rounds on 2 others, but for now I just swap strings and that works just fine. Been loving that old funk/disco tone with rounds on a P and the tone rolled back a bit.