Reviewed: Fender Player Series Bass Guitar

Six strings or four, the above is true of all Player Series Bass Guitar instruments. I’ve written about the Strats and Teles in earlier editions of this here periodical and very much appreciate the careful tweaking Fender has done to the first few pages their catalogue. On the whole, they are closer to their more expensive American counterparts both tonally and in build quality, and it is a gracious act on Fender’s behalf to make every single guitar in said catalogue exactly what its prospective owner is looking for, no matter what budget.

Bass guitar

I’ll start with where it all began, the mighty Precision. There is a very good reason that designers and players alike always come back to this tried and true workhorse for a blueprint. The girth of the neck, the heft in the single rail of pickup, and the simplicity of the visage are the Rome that all roads lead back to. Sunburst finish with a maple fretboard is where it begins and ends for me with Ps; that smooth fret-hand feel and classic curvature is the natural choice every time.

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As with the guitars, Player Series basses come replete with a voicing that is considerably closer to American openness than their predecessor. Gone is the sock-over-the-mic dullness that some of the old Standards were shamefully guilty of, instead replaced by the clarity and punch you’ve been searching for. This is particularly prominent in the Precision thanks its barebones, no-nonsense circuit diagram.

Jazz bass

The Jazz Bass ticks just as many boxes. Often favoured for its vintage warmth and incredible versatility, the Jazz is less the Clydesdale that the P is and a little more the race day drawcard. As above, the pickups have more of what they promise with none of the fluff, and the extra fret means that you can wander all the way up high like Jaco did. The neck on this one is a little more player-friendly, too – true to the original, it’s narrower across the span of the 9.5” radius. I’ve played a few of these Jazzies now, but none that I enjoyed so much as the Sonic Red with Pau Ferro fretboard one that hangs where I work today. There’s something in the woodiness and noonday warmth that really lets the tonewood do a lot of the talking for you and allows to you languish in sound a little longer. It definitely clicked with me.

Finally, we come to the hipster bait. The flashy yet competitive younger sibling of the trio is, was and always will be the Jaguar. This simpler understudy of the Jazz bass is notoriously bratty, but just as keen to get to work. Only thing is, it doesn’t feel like work here. The one I played was Sonic Red again, but I feel like some of the cooler blues and greens would really pop on stage with the Jag in particular. Again, the voicing is lively and versatile; however, this variation on the offset theme is a little more fun and less studied than the other two, and that absolutely works in its favour.

I’m undeniably a massive fan of Fender’s Player Bass Guitar Series. True to the name, they are designed to turn more dreamers into players and do so simply by making it easier to get your hands on an instrument that you’ll adore for decades, further closing the gap between Mexican and American builds in one big leap. These instruments are packed with the absolute essentials that make Fender basses the benchmark of the industry, which makes the whole range ready for stage or studio right out of the box.

For local enquiries, visit Fender Music Australia.