TheGhostofJaco

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.

You all are right. The reason is because pro soundguys on the rock circuit are all about getting the band sounding as loud as possible, and that typically means the bass pays the price since they boost the shit out of the kick subs and attack and let the guitars dominate the mids. It sucks. Had a soundguy for a long tour that I spent a lot of time with and talked to other FOH guys and that was what they were all about. Their fear is coming on after another band and not being as loud, which I understand since loud is better to the average listener. The best way to compete and try and get in there is to put more hair on your tone. Works really well with a J since it will cut at around 800hz. The P needs rounds. It also helps a lot to use a pick if at all possible.

I wouldn't change it. It looks great, IMO.

Tonewood actually is one contributor to a tone, its the sum of all parts in an instrument that make the sound. I could ask you to identify a model of pickup and its brand in a blind test and it would yield the same result. We see blind tests of pickups all the time and people are wrong all the time. That does not mean that pickups do not contribute to the sound, of course they do. I think we will all sleep soundly, its not a major issue, just a discussion where both parties can be correct about subjective things such as this. Like I said, the more people who don't care about tonewood, the better. Hopefully it will drive down the vintage and boutique instrument market, which has gotten absolutely insane.

it’s got that mojo!

You aren’t addressing it. You think you are but you actually are not. That was my point.

Blind tests prioritize immediate and isolated perception. Which is why they don’t really work as well to prove anything as some people think they do. if you are experienced and have done a lot of session work, then you know that your best worn in p or j bass is not always the best bass for the particular song. But if you go through a log of say, 50 sessions, then it’s probably going to be on the majority of them. Same with preamps and about every other piece of gear. It’s why I personally don’t judge someone else’s isolated recording as a benchmark of tonal superiority.

Kind of an old topic, but I find a lot of people do not set their J's up right. In other words, you don't want either volume knob on full unless you want a heavily scooped sound. The J takes more time and tweaking, in my experience. The P is it's own thing and many times works better, especially for rock music where you need to mainly punch. If it is a band where you need to cut through the upper mids, a J with some hair on it, can really do the job quite well. This is why both basses are a staple in every pro bassists collection. They suit different situations. That said, if I could only have 1 it's the J. It's more versatile and fits my playstyle better.

Same, I have owned way too many basses and spoken to so many engineers on this topic. Ken Smith, Sadowsky, Moollon..about every luthiers build foundation is based on wood selection. That said, for the people who think it is BS, that is fine. Though instead of telling everyone it is in a condescending manner, they should simply just buy all the poplar basses out there instead of the boutiques and vintage options, so the market can drop a little and they can save thousands of dollars as well. It's a win/win, but yet it doesn't seem to happen.

Sounds like the BBp34 may be a good option for that Maron P tone. Not sure if the newer pickups sound much different, or how it pairs with flats, but I cant imagine it’s bad. Hunting down a fender P that feels right in the hand and has mojo has gotten a bit tiring. Especially when the BB does a similar thing but arguably better if one wants a little more bite and clarity in a p. Everyone I hear someone play one of these Yamahas it sounds unreal.

I get confused with all the models but I love Jon Maron and his tone so much. Pretty sure he plays a 3000 that may be passive. Also know those are hard to find now so I was curious what other models I should look at for that thick pj bb tone?

Wow good find on that one. The tone is great! Definitely looks like a Sadowsky headstock. My Sadowsky 5 has 21 frets as well,