Fender unveils Tim Shaw-designed P/J bass pickup set

Fender has launched a new Chrome Cobalt P&J pickup set, uniting the sonic identities of Precision and Jazz bass guitars .

The hybrid wax-potted set comprises a split-coil Precision Bass middle pickup and a Jazz Bass bridge, resulting in what Fender believes to be “one of the most versatile tone combinations available.”

Their tonal character has been sculpted by in-house pickup guru Tim Shaw, the man behind the recently released Jason Isbell signature Tele pickup set , “allowing players to unlock the full tonal potential” of their instrument.

The pickups use Fender’s proprietary blend of a FeCrCo magnet, in place to bring “added punch, hi-fi clarity, and dynamic range,” and a Formvar magnet wire to add “bright, glassy” characteristics to the pickups' tone.

The pickups also boast adjustable pole pieces, enabling a custom output balance.

Aside from adding a distinctive chic to basses, the chrome-ringed covers double-up as a shield to eliminate 60-cycle hum, meaning they remain “remarkably quiet” even when in split-coil mode.

Cobalt chrome was used here as it's a material that can be turned into a screw, which Shaw says creates an Alnico 5-like sound, with “an attack that we really need for a bass pickup.”

“Fender basses historically have a really solid attack and mid-range feel,” he continues, but adds that the cobalt chrome pickups will be better suited to modern music needs.

“A P/J combination doesn't exist in nature so to speak. It's a later adaptation for people that wanted the additional bite of a Jazz Bass pickup but still needed the fullness and solidity that a P has,” Shaw details.

“The challenge with it is to get a bridge pickup which has enough force to stand on its own to stand against the P, but also to play musically with it, and the whole thing is a balancing act I'm really proud of.”

He concludes that the set responds just as well to intricate finger playing as it does “crunchy rock” playing with a pick.

First introduced in 1951, the Precision bass has been a core part of Fender's low-end product range ever since, but few stand out as much as its 1958 model, deemed something of a “Holy Grail vintage guitar.”

That's due to its blond/ash body, maple neck, and gold anodized pickguard, with Leo Fender transitioning to the more familiar tortoiseshell [cellulose nitrate] ’guard and rosewood ’boards the following year.

While the guitar is a rarity today, they still struggled with 60-cycle hum issues, meaning this new pickup set would have been clamored over in the late '50s.

The Jazz Bass' introduction came nine years later, in 1960. It represented a more premium instrument and featured two narrow, eight-polepiece pickups instead of the one pickup found on the Precision.

The Fender Cobalt Chrome P/J Bass pickup set costs $349, and is available to order today.

Visit Fender to learn more.