How to get more low end without loosing that jazz bass tone

[RED J]

I see all of you use more the neck pickup. I use it when i want a more precision kind of sound, yeah, i know is not the same but i guess is nearer than the bridge pickup. My usual choice is the opposite, bridge pickup full. The thing is, i sometimes feel that adding some neck pickup volume gets the tone more low end, but sometimes i think its just my imagination, does anybody can tell if i am REALLY getting more low end with that setting?

Each bass will have its own quirks, but that was a big light bulb moment for me when I discovered that adding neck to a full on bridge pickup can does just what you describe. Its counter intuitive, but really works on some basses very well. If it sounds good and gets you the result you want, that's the deal.

I usually favor neck, but what you describe can do the job just fine, in a more fat with less boom kinda way, especially for someone who uses bridge as their foundation sound.

 

[The Chuck]

P-up height also plays a roll in this. A BIG roll.

 

[39-Bassist]

I changed my Pickups out and put in a set of STK-J2's Duncan and changed my cap. and that really gave me the punch and clarity in my Jazz....Adjusting the PU hight is 1st thing I would do and then cap change if you want to keep cost low to start, but it comes down to what works with your band. It will be your taste of course.
Good Luck

 

[radioface]

I used to run both pickups full on but now favor the neck pickup with the bridge pickup backed off just enough so that the neck pickup dominates. There has been much great advice on this thread so, one can't go wrong reading and learning here.

 

[Callused Finger]

Sometimes a less than noticeable amount of chorus can do amazing things to your tone.

 

[RED J]

one can't go wrong reading and learning here.

So true. I have had a love/hate affair with Jazz basses over the years, and a lot of it is my own fault. My'65 was the best sounding bass I ever owned, and I always ran both pickups wide open. I have spent years chasing the sound of that long gone bass, but have slowly discovered that getting the best sound of of a given instrument isn't necessarily having both pickups dimed, quite the contrary actually.

Some basses are just "the one", like Geddy Lee says about his, totally unique in the herd. Jazz basses are notoriously finicky, pickups, heights, blends, tone etc. you just have to work with it until you hit the eureka moment.

 

[lamarjones]

The lows you can feel are in your neck pickup, so yeah soloing or favoring your bridge pickup will kill the low feel that it sounds like you are talking about.

I use a j-retro, super deep coloring that is very aggressive. But that is just me, if it's passive and I need to feel, that neck pickup has to be represented.

 

[NKBassman]

Both pickups all the way up is the Jazz bass tone. Embrace the scoop.

 

[MoeTown1986]

I have a volume/blend stack on my jazz and I tend to keep the blend about 40/60% favoring the bridge pickup. I feel I get plenty of bark and bite from the bridge while keeping the thunder from the neck in doing so. I also have an Audere pre in mine, so I bump the hi mids a bit to add in some snarl. It's a mean sounding jazz.

 

[The Regulator]

What works for me :

Neck: 100%
Bridge: 50%

 

[Rib 13]

Hi, most of you jazz bass player will notice this: when you run the two pickups on full you get that scooped sound

This is due to both pickups sharing an equal amount of the same load. To me, this is what gives a Jazz one of its signature sounds.

I usually run my Jazz bass with the bridge pickup soloed.

The other signature Jazz bass sound: basically, the Jaco....with Tone rolled back, its the "faux fretless" sound while playing with fretless technique on a fretted bass. Doesnt sound fretless on its own but with a lil slap back delay (and sometimes chorus) it can trick a lot of folks within the context of a band. I use this on "New York Minute", "Smooth Operator", "Everytime You Go Away", and a few others

The thing is, i really love this sound but playing on a power trio live sometimes i feel the band needs more low end, and my ultramidrange setting lacks a little bit of it. BEFORE SPEAKING EQ'S and AMPS settings, i would like to center the topic on the jazz bass setting.

What youre describing sounds like you want a Tony Franklin-ish tonal characteristic in your trio setting. Is this correct?

Sometimes i feel i gain more low end by using the brdige pickup on full and giving it a little bit of the neck pickup, sometimes almost up to 90% (never 100% because that scooped sound appears). I don't have any frequency analizer, but what you say? does this setting gives a little bit of more low end or i am imaging it?

First thing I would try is to set the bass how you want it (which you said is bridge PU soloed - the "Jaco") and experiment by turning up your amp volume while simultaneously flattening your EQ curve on it...bottom should start appearing via Munson Curve/volume/amp power.....from here, you can start fine tailoring it with your amp EQ

I really want to chat Parametric EQs at this point, because its really hard to get around this conversation without bringing it up, because thats really what I think you need...but, as per your request, Im trying to keep this simple

 

[wmhill]

BBE sonic maximizer......

 

[M.R. Ogle]

I DID read what you stated, but.... the answer is "with the EQ on your amp."

Sorry, but once you get a "tone" out of the basss that you really like, then you tweak it with the amplifier (or other outboard EQ devices).
Without the amp in play, you AIN'T gettin' any low end at all.

 

[Icemanaroonie]

You could mess around with pickup height as well. On my JB-2 I tweaked the height a bit to get the low end with definition that I wanted.

 

[Marc valero]

There was poll on this a while back. Most put the neck at 100 percent and bridge around 75 or 80 percent. That gives you the lows with some highs but not too much scooped from the mids. I use an MXR M-80 direct box and the bass tone control is great for fattening up the lows.

 

[ThePresident777]

Define low end? I have a suspicion that what's wanted is louder low notes. How do you like the sound of the Low E on the bridge pickup? If you like the sound, which is louder the low E or the high G?

The problem here might be inline design of the pickups and the solution might be one pickup per strings so you can place each pickup for each string in the location that gives you the tone and raise it for the right volume.

I saw something close to this for strat pickups, called zexcoil. It's 6 little coils, one per string, in a strat pickup housing. But, the individual coils are not adjustable. The purpose is just hum canceling, not balancing or tone shaping.

I p bass pickup has two coils you can independently height and placement adjust. But, p bass pickups have a different coil shape which affects the sound. Wide coils are bassier. Narrow coils are "brighter". J bass pickups are narrow. But, mustang pickups are dual coil and narrow. Maybe a hot wound mustang pickup would do the trick. Not sure anyone makes one of those.

 

[Chef]

Hi, most of you jazz bass player will notice this: when you run the two pickups on full you get that scooped sound, but once you start lowering the volume of one of the two, the one thats on full starts to shine more. I usually run my Jazz bass with the bridge pickup soloed. The thing is, i really love this sound but playing on a power trio live sometimes i feel the band needs more low end, and my ultramidrange setting lacks a little bit of it. BEFORE SPEAKING EQ'S and AMPS settings, i would like to center the topic on the jazz bass setting.

Sometimes i feel i gain more low end by using the brdige pickup on full and giving it a little bit of the neck pickup, sometimes almost up to 90% (never 100% because that scooped sound appears). I don't have any frequency analizer, but what you say? does this setting gives a little bit of more low end or i am imaging it?

So you want the bridge pickup bite, with a little more fat?
Set your neck pickup at about 75% on, and shift your right hand more towards the neck.

 

[ThePresident777]

Or, Enfield Pickups, should check them out on youtube.

 

[Bass4LifeRS]

Both on 80%, full deep with little scoop.

 

[pbass2]

Yeah, man, in a power trio is where I love a Jazz, more than a P actually--in that setting it's everything dimed for me. I can't imagine using the bridge pickup solo'd sound for that. I want to create that big expansive sound to support/fill out the sound of the band, and the slight scoop is just enough to create a pocket for the guitar. I will say though, that since I put DiMarzio Model J's in my Jazz it's made a big difference. It's a "fatter" sound, but still retains the characteristics of a Jazz. Even the solo'd bridge pu is fatter--more low mids.