Turning My P Into a P/J - Pickup Questions

[bassjamm]

Oi oi people,

I'm thinking about getting my Highway One Precision made into a P/J. It's something I've been throwing around in my head for years.

This isn't something i'm 100% sure about doing yet. I simply love my P bass just the way it is. But I've hankered after some Jazz honk for yonks. So, in an effort to appease that, I finally bought a Jazz bass last week (which is a beauty).

However...one week on, and oodles of bass lines later...I still find myself smiling more when I'm playing my P bass. Don't get me wrong, the Jazz is AWESOME - it does things the P never could - but, it seems I'm a P bass fanboy at heart.

...cutting a long-winded story a little bit short...

I'm thinking about biting the bullet and having the Precision P/J'd.

Couple of questions/concerns...[list=1]
[*]Will I lose any of my basses current tone if I simply add J pup at the bridge? I'm guessing not, because I could always dial roll the Jazz pickup off and go with the P pup solo'd, right?
[*]What pickup would be a good pair with the Kent Armstrong Hot Vintage P pup? Or, would I be best off installing a pair of new pickups that are more suited together, rather than trying to marry something to the Kent Armstrong pup?
[/list]
On the "which pickup" front...I'm definitely after traditional tones. And I'm not sure why, but I'm quite taken with the thought of Aguilar or Nordstrand pickups. In fact, I see both do P/J sets ready made.

Anyway, I guess I'm kind of just looking for some input from you kind folks. And I thank you in advance for any thoughts you might have.

Thanks for reading, and have a good one.

J

[BassBunny]

You certainly won't lose what you have got as you point out, the J pickup can be dialed out.
If it were me I'd ask Aaron Armstrong, ( of Kent Armstrong fame), to make a J pickup to your requirements.
He will obviously know all about the Hot Vintage and can suggest a suitable partner or you tell him what you want and he'll make it.

[bassjamm]

That sounds like a cracking idea. Hadn't thought of doing that.

Thanks pal!

[chris_b]

It's cheaper and easier to do this in steps.

I'd find the best P bass pickup (I chose Bartolini) and put that in, maybe also change the pots and the cap. Play the bass like that for a few months to see what you think.

I changed the P pickup on my bass and loved it. I then put the J in and got about 10% improvement. Not what I was expecting and certainly not worth the money.

My experience was I got 90% of the improvement with about 30% of the cost. IME in terms of the tone the other 70% was wasted money.

For me the bottom line is, if you want a Jazz bass sound I'd recommend getting a Jazz bass.

Edited July 30, 2016 by chris_b

[bassjamm]

I see where you're coming from there chris_b.

As I said in my original post, I've bought a jazz, but I keep coming back to my P bass. And I love my P bass as it is. I'd just like the option to have some of that Jazz bass honk I suppose.

That's what's got me thinking about the pickup addition. Adding the extra pickup must give me that honk. Surely.

[Geek99]

I agree with Chris ; it just didn't work for me, it sounded a bit weedy
I'm selling a p plate with an extra hole if you do try it?

Edited July 31, 2016 by Geek99

[ikay]

..."[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Will I lose any of my basses current tone if I simply add J pup at the bridge?"[/font][/color]

[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Adding a vol pot and J pickup to the circuit will change the impedance/loading on the P pickup and the soloed P will sound slightly different. Quite subtle but it won;t be exactly the same.[/font][/color]

[Andyjr1515]

[quote name='ikay' timestamp='1469953256' post='3102179']
..."[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Will I lose any of my basses current tone if I simply add J pup at the bridge?"[/font][/color]

[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Adding a vol pot and J pickup to the circuit will change the impedance/loading on the P pickup and the soloed P will sound slightly different. Quite subtle but it won;t be exactly the same.[/font][/color]
[/quote]
Clearly this is the case with a blend pot. Any idea if the same applies with a three-way switch? I've never been quite sure...

[Schnozzalee]

I think the problem with a P/J Bass is the same as a HSS Stratocaster - The pickups don't balance.

[ikay]

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1469953652' post='3102184']
Clearly this is the case with a blend pot. Any idea if the same applies with a three-way switch? I've never been quite sure...
[/quote]
Adding a 3-way DPDT switch to select P - PJ - J before the existing vol/tone controls would work. In the P position the J would be entirely out of circuit and there'd be no additional pot to affect the pickup loading. Yamaha do this with a lot of their P/Js (BB series etc). With a well matched set of pickups this can work really well.

[chris_b]

[quote name='bassjamm' timestamp='1469923658' post='3102092']
As I said in my original post, I've bought a jazz, but I keep coming back to my P bass. And I love my P bass as it is. I'd just like the option to have some of that Jazz bass honk I suppose.

That's what's got me thinking about the pickup addition. Adding the extra pickup must give me that honk. Surely.
[/quote]

Sorry. . . reread your post.

My only suggestion is that the sound of a Jazz bass is the sum of both pickups and a PJ will sound like a P with a little extra, rather than sounding anything like J.

[JTUK]

I'd take both basses out.... If you feel you want both basses covered.
I don't hear I want anything the jazz doesn't give me and I do have a nice thump from it, but if I didn't have that on the bass and wanted it in a track... I'd have a p configuration.
It is always a question of pot luck with these things so maybe you just have to go for it.
But you should chat with arron Armstrong about pickup options.

[Grangur]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1469963623' post='3102285']
Sorry. . . reread your post.

My only suggestion is that the sound of a Jazz bass is the sum of both pickups and a PJ will sound like a P with a little extra, rather than sounding anything like J.
[/quote]
Have to agree here.

I've got a P, a PJ and jazz. They're all different.
The PJ is nearer to a P than a jazz.

With a PJ the bridge jazz pup seems feeble compared to the P pup and the sound has a distinct P-bass thump. The addition of the bridge pup could very easily be a disappointment. I've found this on Warwick and G&L basses, so it's not only a cheap thrown-together bass either.

The Jazz tone is a more relaxed, more laid-back tone.

[Lozz196]

I used to have a Fender Aerodyne Jazz bass - P/J config. The J pickup was a tad weak so I swapped it out for a Seymour Duncan Hot Stack, same as Duf McKagan uses. Instant change, much better depth of sound, plus hum-cancelling too. I think this is the way forward, have a more powerful J pickup.

[zero9]

Buy a PJ. It'll be cheaper in the long run and doesn't devalue your current P. If then you think the PJ sound is a bit meh for you, you can alway move it on.

[gjones]

Make sure you have a blend control.

[nash]

I'll be aquiring a Mexican Pbass this week and I'll be Pjing it. My personal view is the the P pickup if for the main body of the tone and the J sits there slightly in the background picking up what the P misses and gives a rounder more solid sound. It's only for live. On record it's a straight P bass every time.

Pickups wise I'm thinking Aguilar with a 60's P and a 70's J. Reason behind it is that I think it'll sound more accurate to what the 60's P's sounded like when they were modded In the 70's.

[nash]

Also the controls will be Volume and pickup blend. No need for side jack drilling. Just the J routing.

[discreet]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1469920838' post='3102078']
...if you want a Jazz bass sound I'd recommend getting a Jazz bass.
[/quote]

[ebenezer]

I have heard the dimarzio dp 123 is a good full sounding pickup in the bridge position and
also humcancelling.