Fender American Professional II Precision Bass Review

Fender American Professional Precision Bass II

It is hard to believe, or maybe not, that over half a century later that the Fender P bass still rules. After trying different brands and styles of bass guitars I keep coming back to the P. The American pro series has the fit and finish of the finest instruments. The neck is big and wide with string spacing to match. This is what feels best to me. But of course all that means nothing… read more if the tone is inadequate. The P bass is perhaps a one trick pony but it is the bass that many studios and studio musicians use. There is a very good reason for that. It sits well in the mix and does so perhaps better than any other bass. The P Bass is my number one choice for playing any style of music so do yourself a favor by trying one out soon. All the Best, Greg

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Absolutely Awesome

I'm a long time guitar player, but this is my first "real bass" and it was worth every penny. The quality, sound, and playability are on a completely different level. I've got quite a few MIM Fenders that I love, but this is something special. The satin neck with the rounded fretboard makes playing so easy and comfortable. Even though it's brand new, it has a broken in feel that… read more just makes you want to play. The sound quality is top notch and all the electronics are dead silent with no interference or hum. It also came in perfect condition and set up perfectly. The color is incredibly difficult to photograph and probably has a more teal-tone in person, but it's spectacular. The pick guard is also slightly aged/off white (it's tough to tell in photos, but it really does look great). All in all this bass has rekindled an excitement for music in me that I haven't felt in a long time.

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P-erfect

This bass is an absolute joy to play; a night and day difference from Fender's made-in-Mexico models. Very comfortable, perfect tone, and the mystic surf green finish is unbelievably beautiful. The free next-day shipping from Sweetwater was pretty swell too.

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This color is impossible to photograph!

Pictures don't do the Miami Blue justice. It's just beautiful, with of hint of green/teal. Impossible to photograph, try as you might. Get Sweetwater to set it up for you. I got them to install Elixirs and it's low and fast, strung through the body. What a beast! Growling low end and articulate highs. The combination of features in this line up are the new standard.

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IT'S LEGIT

My daughter is a budding bassist and she has been looking for her "Forever Bass". While she has had a lot of success with her little Squier Bronco Bass, it was time to move up to another level. She has already enjoyed this bass immensely and it has fueled her love for playing. The bass is well-balanced, extremely comfortable and sits well in a variety of mixes in a variety of situations.… read more The only reason for taking away a 1/2 star is that the tone knob doesn't have the traditional "mid-point" that you can feel click into place when it is turned to half-way. On the fly, it makes it a little more difficult to quickly have a frame of reference for tone. Ultimately, she is able to use her ear to dial in what she wants, but having the midpoint that you can actually feel with your hand, would make it a 5-Star bass. I am sure she will love this one forever! Bottom line: if you want a simple yet fantastic bass, this is the one to get. The reverse fade for the Dark Night is amazing as well.

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What a great bass

This is a great bass. I have an older Fender Jazz bass and 2021 Squier CV 60s Precision. On this one I put Labella 760fl strings. Wow, what a motown killer. You can play just about anything with this bass and those strings and make it work. I don't know why I waited do long. The improved neck is a real joy to play. If you can play one, you should.

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Fender American Professional II Precision Bass

Waited 59 years for this bass. FYI: It had nothing to do with shipping delays. Although Santa does have a lot of ground to cover. My favorite bass in my favorite finish (sunburst). Waiting the recommended 24 hours for the bass to get acclimated felt almost as long as those 59 years. It plays great and through body stringing for a bass was new to me. Shipped with Fender Super… read more Bass .45-.105 round wound strings although I'll probably switch to flat wounds when I restring it. I thought about a Squier Classic Vibe '60s P Bass in sunburst as well since I've been playing a '76 Jazz Bass for 45 years. But I made the right choice. It's a phenomenal bass and I highly recommend it. Maybe one of these days I might actually take the plastic protective film off of the pick guard. Leaving it on gives new meaning to the term "Completely Original".

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Very impressed!

Great bass guitar! Right out of the box, was setup very well. (I'm not actually a bass player, this is my first bass guitar, but I needed a good bass for recording). It was still in tune when first pulled it out of the case! I love the tone and sustain that this thing has, and the finish on it is excellent. The closest thing I have that I can compare it to is my american professional… read more Strat from 2017. These American Professional II guitars are a noticeable step up from that. In my opinion, although they are getting to be very expensive, they are still a great buy. Totally recommended.

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It's the bass

What can I say about this legend that isn't already known? I've wanted to add a P-Bass to my arsenal for a long time for writing and studio work, and I recently joined a dad/jam cover band on bass on the side and decided it was time to pull the trigger. It's everything I expected it to be. I really like some of the (smaller) upgrades with the American Professional II line in general,… read more but this P-Bass is really impressive. I've gotten more compliments on the sound and the finish than most of my other high end axes. It's honestly just a sweet bass, especially in the Olympic White and tortoise shell. I was able to grab one that had some good weight to it for tone but not a backbreaker. The hardshell case has a slightly funny, chemically smell, but is high quality and exactly what is needed for this beast. Very, very happy with this purchase.

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Fantastic Bass

I am so glad I found a bass that weighs, plays and feels right in my hands. The tone and playability is perfect right out of the awesome case it comes in. Very well packaged for shipping. Thank You Sweetwater!

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Did I mention that this thing is drop-dead gorgeous?

I am blown away by this guitar! First, some context: This comes from an intermediate player living at a very high and very dry Colorado altitude who has been making do with a beginner's bass for years too long and is a self-confessed P-Bass fanboy (full disclosure). Features of this particular bass which appeal to me include the impeccable component and build quality, the carbon… read more fiber neck reinforcement (it definitely helps keep the neck stable at my high/dry altitudes), the high quality hard shell case (besides being the best way to transport the bass it is a necessity for me to keep the guitar hydrated when not in use), the chunky '63 C-neck (which may not suit everyone but fits my big paws so much better than the skinny neck on the rig I was using) and the tone! Oh, the tone! Based on the way this thing plays I understand why Fender used the word 'Professional' in the model name. I literally have become a better player just by picking up this bass. Big thanks to Sweetwater Sales Engineer Jeff Jent for his knowledge and guidance during my long list of questions when comparing this bass with the Fender American Performer model. Shout out also to the Guitar Workshop guys who did an excellent neck/action setup on my bass. This thing is rock solid! This is my first Sweetwater guitar purchase and I couldn't be more satisfied! From their vast, quality product selection, their knowledgable and helpful sales staff to the technical guys turning wrenches. Sweetwater is the real deal!

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Heaven

The best modern p-bass in a long time. Great feel and balance. The tone is outstanding. The case is just right for a gigging musician. I don't want to put it down.

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Fender

Beautiful bass

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Fender American Professional II

The look, feel, and sound! Physically well balanced, sonically perfect! This is a superb instrument. You get what you pay for when you buy a guitar. Straight out of the box. Another purchase that I would ONLY trust to Sweetwater. If you buy it elsewhere you "take your chances"!

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Enjoying every groove-igniting moment with this Precision Bass

Purchased a Fender American Professional II Precision Bass, in the amazing Mystic Surf Green w/ Rosewood. Descriptive phrases aren't enough to explain how much I enjoy this machine. But, here are a few thoughts: groove-ingniting, focused-sound, and smooth-movement. When I play, the groove takes over and I move, jump, and really get into the sound - it's just that cool. The single… read more pick-up is brilliant - too many tonal options can distract from focusing on the importance that your own hands and timing can bring to the notes. It's not a limited machine, it's freeing. And the neck, frets - everything, it's a smooth experience that does not punish your hands, neck or back. Thank you Brenton Evans for your patience as I took my time! (Currently pairing with a Rumble 40 for practice at home.)

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The sweet, sweet P-Bass. With a little extra love.

What can I say, you know what it is, and it's amazing.. If there's any doubt, just get it. Sweetwater never disappoints, either. No regrets.

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Fender American Professional ll precision bass

As always Fender come through with this beautiful bass, quality control is over the top! Sweetwater was and is top notch, my sales manager James Masterson ext.1641 who will expertly assist you with any musical interests,

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Wow!!!

This bass is everything I hoped it would be and then some. Maple neck plays smooth and fast. Love the growl I get through my Ampeg stack!!!

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An awesome experience

I was able to go to Sweetwater and was given a private studio to try many different basses with no pressure. I chose the Fender Precision Bass and couldn't be happier. It plays and sounds amazing. Thanks to Sweetwater for a great experience.

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Sweet P-Bass sound

Just got mine a little over a week ago. Exquisite instrument. Feels good to play. Love the sound. Had sweetwater do the setup. Arrived ready to play and in perfect condition. I have been a Sweetwater customer for about 6 years or so. Best customer service, great financing options, and on the rare occasion there is an issue, they take care of it promptly. Thats why I feel comfortable… read more buying from them.

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My 1st REAL PBass

I've always wanted a Precision. But back in the day when I was looking, it had the "PBass Neck" that I couldn't stand. Too wide across the fretboard and too thin thickness wise. So I was browsing around the Sweetwater site, and saw this Mercury American ProII Precision. I went to the local music store just to look and feel. I called Craig and he made me a deal and I couldn't… read more resist. I have a Fender Jazz and a MIM Precision PJ (I love that bass), but the new Precision is by far the best sounding and it is a dream to play. No REGERTS here! LOL Great bass and a great play to work with.

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The perfect bass?

I've gravitated towards the P over the years, but in the pandemic splurged on a boutique bass. I saw these from Fender and just decided to try it out. The neck is beautiful, the action is so light and precise, and these feel lighter than my old '79 P. And what is better than sunburst with a maple neck?

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Nothing better than a P-Bass

Absolutely worth the wait. The tone and sustain that you get with the maple neck paired with the new V-Mod II Precision Bass split-coil pickup is unmatched. Buy American!

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Bass perfection

Been a bassist all my life. With few exceptions I've been a p guy. Currently own 4. Wanted the newest version for 5 bolt neck. Everything about this bass is top shelf. Put TI flats on it for tone out the ***!! I do session work and jams and couldn't be happier. Highly recommend this bass and Sweetwater.

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Wow!

I wish I could give this bass more stars! This is the best playing instrument I've ever played and my biggest surprise is how light weight it is. It plays like a dream and sounds awesome! I was having a hard time deciding on getting the Dark Night color or Mercury and had my decision made for me when they sold out of the Dark Night. But I love the Mercury color, it looks even better… read more in person than it does in the picture. I am so glad I bought this bass.

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Great bass gtr

Glad I bought this bass. Has what I need for the great basic tones, quality and dependability, that Fender P bass is known for. Between this new Fender P bass and my old Fender Jazz bass, nothing else is needed.

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New P Bass

It's my first Fender P Bass and plays great just as I would expect, a very solid built bass that has wonderful tone. A bass to keep forever.

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Fender APII Precision Bass

If you want the bass that can do it all and is always in style, look no further.

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Just a Great Bass

Looks, feels, plays and sounds great. The set-up out of the box was perfect and surprisingly in tune. The 1963-C profile neck is not too chunky and the finish is fast. This is a solidly built bass and the high quality can be felt just by picking it up. Band mates have already noticed how well the tone sits in the mix, and that is exactly what a P-bass is known for.

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My new bass rocks!

It is tight, strong, and accurate!

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FENDER AMERICAN PRO 2 P BASS

THE BEST FENDER P BASS I HAVE EVER OWNED! HATS OFF TO MY SWEETWATER SALES REP. GAGE MASSEY! THANK YOU GAGE, SWEETWATER AND FENDER! STEVE ZARANTONELLO, NEW YORK STATE U.S.A. COULD NOT BE HAPPIER!

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A Lovely Low-End

The Fender American Professional II Precision Bass is an elegant epitome of a proper low-end laying machine. Truth be told, I come from the land of the Jazz Bass. With the Precision Bass, the simplicity of the single split-coil pickup and dual knob design exemplifies an instance of less being more. The no-frills approach to implementation brought forth an instrument that makes… read more me play better, not just sound better. Without the bells-and-whistle of two pickups and accompanying volume and tone controls of a Jazz Bass, I am left to concentrate on what I am playing – the bass line. I find that the Precision Bass is suited to sitting in the pocket nicely and holding down the low-end whilst its' Jazz Bass brethren can pull double-duty and serve as a lead instrument due to its' tonal variety and skinnier neck profile. Speaking of necks, the Fender American Professional II series guitars and basses have hand-rolled fingerboard edges that serve to make fretting more comfortable – and the result is immaculate. Silky slides, buttery bends, vigorous vibratos and comfortable chords all drip from my fingers, effortlessly, thanks to the innovations used on the necks in this Fender series. The V-Mod II pick-up is just that – a vintage-modified design that brings the best of yester-year into today's focus. The V-Mod II is amazingly accurate and articulate in its' reproduction of notes played. Crisp upper-registers and tight low-end are easily found when getting down with this bass. I am not a J-to-P Bass convert, but I can genuinely appreciate the qualities and capabilities my new Precision Bass brings to my repertoire.

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FENDER PRO 2 P BASS

THIS BASS IS AWESOME, THE BEST FENDER BASS I EVER OWNED! WORTH EVERY SINGLE PENNY!GET IT FROM SWEET WATER NOW! BETWEEN SWEET WATER AND THE FENDER LINE THIS IS A WIN WIN, DEAL! STEVE Z.

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But for a loose tone pot, this would be a 5-star bass

After decades of playing a wide variety of basses (Fender Jazz, Lakland, Music Man, Gibson, others), this is my first P-bass. The tone and playability of this bass are excellent. The neck is very nice. Smooth, fast texture on the back of the neck. After I performed a setup to get the intonation right, I found the bass as good or better than any bass I have ever played. Not… read more quite as fast as a Jazz. But the Professional II pickup provides perfect tone for a surprisingly broad spectrum of music. It is not just for Motown! It's my new favorite bass. So, why not five stars? The bass arrived from Sweetwater with the tone pot slightly loose. When I turn the knob to full tone, at the stop, the control keeps moving a fraction of an inch, then springs back -- as if the wiring is pulling it back into place. The control works fine, but I guess I will have to remove the pickguard and try to tighten it up. I would not hesitate to recommend this bass for a wide variety of musical genres.

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Why did I wait so long to get a P ? It is (P)erfection!

This is the 4th American Fender bass I've bought from Sweetwater, the Universal Epicenter of terrific customer service. It is however, my first P since switching to bass as my primary in 2012 - finding at the suggestion of a jam session curator that while I was a good guitarist "you might enjoy bass and get to play more." Was he ever right! I also found out in the process it pays… read more to have good curators and teachers steer you towards an instrument that fits your musical skill set better - I love playing guitar but always tended towards, um loving jazz improvisation but favoring a rock oriented approach... and I found that bass feels much more natural to me to play. Anyway, during this journey to bassist, all I've played and owned were various flavors of Fender Js - starting with a Squier Jaco copy, a Squier Vintage 70s 5, and an American Special J. I don't have those 3 anymore as I sold them as I decided to upgrade the quiver to include Fender American Js. For a while, I've been a J snob, and I've spent a lot of time playing various other kinds of basses to find a sound and a comfort level that I would like better than a J, thinking I'd like something other than a Fender in the arsenal. I keep playing with Ps, but thinking "hmmm. Limited. One pickup, blah blah blah, its a blues and country bass." The band I'm in is recording our next CD, and as the newest member I've learned a lot about recording the past year as we've grappled with practicing around the pandemic safely as well as recording in our home DAWs. It became more and more apparent that my Js just weren't cutting it in terms of the sound I was looking for. I'm not a slapper or a prog rock guy on bass, and the J always seems harsh and clanky and not punching through the band mix like what I hearing in my head. I'd played various humbucking basses - mostly G&Ls - off the rack as I was going through the process, but I just didn't like the way they felt in my hands, and the sound just wasn't... Fender enough. I toyed seriously with picking up a L-1000 as I have zero interest in an active bass, but I kept thinking about how I just don't feel like I'd ever bond with a G&L which did not nearly as comfortable as a MIM P in my hands. The L-2000 was also an option, but again - active - and just far too many controls for what I can see myself realistically using a bass for. So I'd been stalking the SW site several weeks waiting for P stock to become available, and jumped on this Pro II P in burst and rosewood about 12 hours it came on line. I was so anxious to get the fantastic plastic processed when two of these showed up in February online that I couldn't wait for my usual sales engineer Sam, who is Mr. Super De Dooper awesome, but got through and got 1 of the 2 at 11:00 AM PST after both had been onsite less than a day. I'm glad I did, because when I refreshed the listing at 11:30 both basses were gone! Right now, it has been extremely hard to get stock with demand at all time highs and the instrument makers a bit challenged with work force and supply issues. And I got a great call back from Sam about my purchase shortly after shipping. He's a stand-up dude! Other than.a day's delay because of the uber cold temps during that week in February, it arrived here somewhere in California's Central Valley just awesome out of the box and ready to rock after I waited the 24 hours to let the box warm up inside. This thing is a BEAST. The guys in our band love it, it fills up the sonic part of the band - with far less amp volume out of a Genz Benz Streamliner 600 head with two Focus 112T cabs. We'd already recorded our tracks for the first 6 of our 12; I'm going to do the 2nd half with the P - if the guys like the results, I'll go back and redo my parts on the first six which were recorded on the red J. There's nothing wrong with any of my Js, but I think I'd probably have bought a P much earlier and my quiver would likely be down a fretless J if I'd not been a J snob and plucked a P earlier. It plays differently than a J, of course, with the thicker neck, but I do find the P body and balance more to my liking than a J. They're just different instruments. It came set up fine; I've tweaked it a little bit by swapping out the stock Fender 7250Ms for the lighter and smoother D'Addario rounds I like - the regular light gauge, and I dropped the saddles. I'm getting my first covid shot this week, so the set-up will be fine until I feel comfortable taking it into the local set-up wizard for a super pro job where he adjusts and I provide feedback until it is perfect. Right now, I run it with all the knobs on the GB head (or my BA 210) basically at 12, with the tone rolled off. It sounds so thumpy, articulate, warm without being muddy like a J can get. The first name the bass gave for itself out of the box - which when I unboxed it and opened the case, my GF, who while not a musician has the most extensive music collection I've seen of any human being, and has a wry sense of humor, said "is that its coffin?" - was Big Boy (remember the Big Boy restaurant statue? Yes, I'm old)... but after I took it to rehearsal for the first time last week, it just sat in the band mix so absolutely perfectly that its moniker is now "The Zone". Because I felt totally in The Zone playing this instrument. I should've known I'd bond with a P... my first electric guitar was a Strat, but I never bonded with it - or the 335 - or a succession of Ibanez solid and one semi-hollow before I picked up a Tele in 2010 and screamed "This is *it*!" I'm so a Tele guy on guitars... it seems appropriate that Leo's first bass has bonded with me so hard. I'm smitten. I love the simplicity, I love humbucking without batteries or freaky coil taps or so many knobs my instrument is basically a new math problem. Volume, tone, your hands and your creativity without major brain drain. I love this P. You gotta get one! :)

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Impressive Service and Responsive Delivery

The professionals at Sweetwater have some of the best customer service I've experienced. Personalized experience and responsive in communicating your order. Guitar came packed in well with no damage. I'm very happy with the guitar; sounds great. I would recommend Sweetwater to anyone looking for a new guitar.

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