Fender Marcus Miller Jazz Bass

The specs are best viewed on Fender.com. For all it's goodness, one feature I'd like to have on this bass is tone control in passive mode. But don't let that be a deal spoiler, the bass is still the most versitle I've owned.

The pre-amp can be a little noisy, as are single coils in general, but that's just the nature of a Jazz bass.

Ten. Period. This is a harmony-central review, but the act/fit/finish is perfect.

Yea, it is very solid. One advantage that the MM has over other active basses is the active/passive switch, so if the battery died in a gig situation, you could just flip over to passive mode and limp through the rest of the night that way.

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The first thing that caught my eye about this base was the look. I?m not a Marcus Miller fan, had never heard of him before seeing his sig base on Fender.com.

I?ve been swinging between Ps and Js for ten years now, with the grass always seeming greener on the other side. My hope with the MM was that, with the bass and treb boost, I?d be able to better hit some of those reggae and dub sounds that so require a P-bass. After playing one at a music store, I was convinced that I could pull it off. The pre-amp with an on/off switch was a big selling point. The active bass boost gets me close to P-bass heaven, but I find myself playing in passive mode most of the time. In passive mode, it?s all good 70s Jazz. It?s surprising, but I don?t really miss the tone knobs. I just make the adjustments on my 15? combo amp.

I bought mine used for $600 shipped with a hard case. It came in nearly perfect condition, set up to my liking, with no issue. Action, fit, and finish is typically Japanese, which is very good. I would rate the quality as similar to that of my former USA ?62 Reissue Jazz.

Is there a downside? The thing is a boat anchor at about 11 lbs. I like to play standing up, but I?m not a gigging pro, so the weight is really an issue with me. When my back starts to hurt, I just go grab a beer and a snack, after which I?m usually ready to go back at it.

I?ve owned my MM for about a month now. Usually when I buy new gear, I go through an early honeymoon phase where all seems perfect, before finally discovering its many flaws which previously went unnoticed, then I think how I?m going to get rid of it. (Yea, I?m still talking about guitars.) But the MM just keeps growing on me. I used to hear a bass in a song and think ?I need that sound?. Now I think about how the MM would sound in its place.

Hello, I'm Tommy. I was one of the first reviewers(03/28/2000) to submit a review of the Fender Marcus Miller(MM) Signature Jazz Bass. I hope the insight I have gain since that time will continue to guide future players about the MM jazz bass. If you like basses( particulary the Fender Marcus Miller Signature Jazz Bass), then please read the info that follows:

"How To Optimize your Fender Marcus Miller Jazz Bass"


DISCLAIMER: I have ONLY heard Marcus' 1977 Fender jazz bass on albums, and in concert. I have NEVER touched or heard Marcus' 1977 Fender jazz bass through a normal bass amp. Therefore, this info is provided to optimize the "STOCK - Fender Marcus Miller Signature Jazz Bass."

I have examined all of the electronics on the "STOCK" Fender MM jazz bass. The electronics of the MM jazz bass are: 1) Pickups, 2) Pots, and 3) Preamp - active/passive switch, battery connection, and output jack.


1. Pickups - stock Fender jazz pickups are FINE. In my humble opinion, NEW pickups are not necessary, just OPTIONAL(personal preference).

COMMENT: DON't BUY new pickups. Wait(at least 6 to 12 months) to see how your MM bass sounds, supports the band, or records, then decide if you want to invest your money in new pickups.

2. Pots - volume pots(250 kohms-ideally)and control pots(500 kohms-ideally).

Volume pots - are ideally 250 kohms(rare case), please measure. There are 3 modes for the volume pots - A) INDIVIDUAL MODE - MOST IMPORTANT, B) full-up, and C) OFF.

A) The individual mode.
The INDIVIDUAL MODE is the MOST IMPORTANT mode for a jazz style bass(bass with 2 pickups). In my case, my bridge pickup over powered my neck pickup. It was not because the brige pickup was MORE Powerful, but because the Bridge pot(275 kohms) was much greater than the Neck pot(206 kohms).

CORRECTION: Swapped the pots. Neck Pot(275 kohms) and Bridge Pot(206 kohms). The neck pickup provides support, and the bridge pickup provides flavor. :-)

B) Full-UP
The Fender jazz bass is wired in a quasi- parallel mode. To me, this is not true parallel. The output of the two(2) pickups is more of a compromised sound. In real parallel wiring, it truly "does not" make a difference about the resistance of the pots. In a Fender jazz bass, the ARRANGEMENT of the POTS make a BIG DIFFERENCE.

C) OFF
The values of the pots DO NOT matter(logical).

CONTROL POTS(500 kohms)
Treble and bass pots(values specified by manufacturer).

3. PREAMP - active/passive switch, battery connection, and the output jack

A). Active/passive switch - stock configuration is FINE. However, I prefer true-bypass. True-bypass means passive(no EQ), and active(with EQ).

B). Battery connection
1) solid bare lead(HOT) from preamp(FMEQ) should be covered (insulated by tape, or heat shrink tubing).
2) battery ground(black wire) should be connected to the STEREO output jack. If the battery ground is connected to the common ground, the preamp is in a 24/7 "on - mode." Therefore, the battery is engaged all the time.

C) Output Jack - STEREO output jack(3 pronges)
Should be a STEREO output jack. Three(3) connections are: battery ground, common ground(center), and HOT wire.

That's it :-)

I performed these changes on my 1998 Fender Marcus Miller Signature Jazz Bass. At first, my battery only lasted about two(2) months, now they last 3-4 years because of the frequency I play. All of the electronics on my MM#1 are stock, and the bass sounds great. :-)

Thanks,

Tommy

I'm Tommy. I have two(2) Fender Marcus Miller Signature Jazz Basses (MM#1 & MM#2). I bought MM#1 brand new, and MM#2 in mint condition. After a month or two I realized that both of these basses had problems. MM#1 battery died within 2 months, and MM#2 had no shielding. Like I said before, PROBLEMS. Also, neither one of these basses had the real Marcus Miller Sound.

Hence, this is where my journey began. I must say that I finally fixed all of my problems and my MM#1 & MM#2 sound great. After all the work I performed on my MM basses I believe the info that follows is very important:

1. The battery: PROBLEM - dies in a very short period of time( 2 or 3 months). (A) The battery wire is/was connected to the common ground on a pot in the circuit and made the battery think that it was on 24/7. (B) The bare wire(hot wire) on the FMEQ preamp - Must be covered to prevent 24/7 "on Mode." If it touches the shielding paint in the control cavity it will turn the battery all 24/7. SOLUTION - the output jack(STEREO JACK) should have 3 connection points( battery ground(black wire), common ground(black wire), and hot).

2. The volume pots: PROBLEM - if you use your neck or bridge pickups in an individual mode, then you will notice a big difference. SOLUTION - draw a diagram of the volume pot connections and wiring, then disconnect the wires going to them. MEASURE the RESISTANCE of the neck and bridge volume pots. Put the higher resistance on the neck pot, and the lesser resistance on the bridge pot. Neck pot > Higher resistance, and Bridge pot > lesser resistance.

If the volume pots are in the correct order(neck pot = higher resistance, bridge pot = lesser resistance) this is VERY IMPORTANT. The battery connected the correct way should fix everything. My battery lasts about two(2) or three(3) years, given the amount of time I play.

MM#1 - has been modified. MM#2 - STOCK, and sounds very good. MM#2 has a more usable sound and supports the band better.

Bought new in December '04, so I've been owning it for almost a year.
Two single jazz picks, Badass II bridge... you can check all the specs in Fender web-page or in other issues. I think the "real" features are the Badass and the in-board pre-amp.
I know nothing at all about wood...

Looks very well, natural, I love it. Vintage.

I really love the sound of this bass, even if I don't like Marcus Miller and I don't play slap! I like classic rock, blues and jazz, and it suits really well for playing this stuff. I mean for playing it on a certain way, active mode with a little bass-boost and a little drive (Ashdown ABM EVO-500 with the drive pot at 12) and you can feel like Berry Oakley at Fillmore East! With the neck-pickup full-open and the bridge one near full open you can get that ass-kicking Mel Schacher sound (Grand Funk!).
Really groovin', amazing for soloing, and you can always play with pickups and pre-amp volumes to get a wide sound-palette, fingerstyle, with pick...
And I believe it would sound even better with some Lindy Fralin or Fender Noiseless!

Maybe most users of this bass are slappers, but I can say that this bass also ROCKS!!!

Uhhhhhhhh...

Factory setup was a real CRAP! I had to increase the height of the strings and the pickups, adjust the neck... With factory strings and setting it sounded dead, after some changes it started to sound better and now I'm really happy with it, but I think it's not the way a 1000 ? bass should come from factory! Fender!!

I think the pickups are a little too "cheap", seem very fragile. Have to check some noiseless or Lindy Fralin, I think this will make this bass a really big gun. The rest of the bass is solid-built and could stand live playing and whatever.

I love this bass, but with a proper set-up (this is not a problem now, but it was in the beggining!) and with some top-division pickups (these japanese pickups do not seem compltetely well...) I think it could easilly reach the 10 in this section. I'll tell if finally change the pickups!

75 Fender Jazz w/ Marcus's mods, you know the rest.

Sold my all original '75 Jazz to get this bass - the MM thing beat the tar out of my old one - I could give a hoot about whether it's vintage or not, I just wanted a smokin bass. This has the old school passive sound ... kick in the active and you've got plenty of whatever you need. I rarely use either knob turned past 3 ... you could level the building (or ruin speakers)with the bass knob on 10.

I will eventually have the tone controls wired for passive mode, but nothing urgent about that really.

Great bass all around - I do my own setups so I tweaked it to my needs, but everything seems solid, and well built. I like it better than the new American built Fenders. I love the neck and the Badass II bridge or something comparable should be standard on all Fenders - I hate those crappy plates and flimsy saddles they use ... c'mon, its 2005 fer chrissake!

It's my touring bass and has held up fine to luggage handlers, roadies, and TSA inspectors. The tuners aren't that smooth, I'll throw some hipshot's in there and probably some high end pots, but only because I'm a snob about that stuff - it all functons fine, and wouldn't bother me if I never got around to the mods.

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I bought this bass as an 'expendable' bass for touring, meaning if it got stolen, or destroyed it wouldn't be the end of the world. It turns out I play this bass more than any of my others at home and for studio work and would be devastated should it be taken from me. However they are still made, and every one I've ever played in a store (even crappy ass Guitar Center) has been one I would buy .. they all seem very consistent. I highly recomend this bass

Japanese made, ash body, 20 frets, maple fingerboard with white pearl block inlays. It has a (removeable) 70's style pickup cover on the neck pickup. 2 J-bass pickups... same kind as on the standard US models, i think. Active preamp with bass and treble boost. Active/passive switch. It has no tone control in passive mode.

I've removed the pickup cover, since it got in the way of my playing style. it was comfy for slapping though, but i like to work with lots of different hand positions for different tones, and some of the best tones for fingerstyle playing are right there over the neck pickup. Too bad, 'cause it looked really nice.

The feel of the neck is one of the best things about this bass. The finish has a great, smooth feel, the fretwork is excellent and the bindings and block inlays makes it look and feel great. I compared this bass to a lot of other basses in the same price range (US fenders, warwicks, low end MTDs etc.) and this was by FAR the best built instrument. Especially the US made fenders made me disappointed... i couldn't believe how sloppily built they were - fretwork, fingerboards, neck finish etc. (for the price range, that is, of course.. they were decent instrument, but i wouldn't pay half of what i paid for the Marcus bass for a US j-bass. At least not the ones i've tried.)

I play mostly jazz and slap style funk on this bass. It's got a wide range of sound possibilities, the passive mode is a good vintage fender type of sound, with lots of "fartiness" and mids. the highs are really nice and shiny, it sings and to me this bass really has a great voice for leads. With a little boost on the active preamps bass knob you can get a really big fat boomy bass sound, a lot more than you'll probably ever use. (even if you're some sort of "vacuum cleaner-bass"-reggae/dub pervert... ;) Slap sounds are great, they're really what the preamp was built for, just turn up the active knobs a bit and roll back the bridge pickup a little and you'll get a great slap sound (as long as your strings are fresh, of course.) Watch out for going over the top with the eq though... the highs can really hurt your ears if you're poppin' through an amp with a tweeter.

I would have liked a tone control for the passive mode, even though i'd usually play most any passive bass with the tone control wide open. This one has a lot of brightness and high end though, so i'd like to be able to roll of the top when comping in passive mode. i'll probably have a passive tone control installed some day.

I have some minor noise problems with the bass... the kind of hissing that comes when you take your hands off of the instrument. (that's some sort of earth problem i suppose, and it's probably easy to fix. even though i bought this new and at the price i paid this should have been fixed at the factory.) I'll get this fixed as soon as i get around to it...

I love the tone of this bass... the only thing that i would object to is that it doesn't seem to respond too well to over- aggressive pick style playing. If i want a rockish sound thoungh i pick it a little more gently, an crank the amp.. that gets a fatter tone anyway.. but i dont think this would be a good axe for punk type of sounds.. but then why would you buy a bass like this for that?

It was set up alright, i had to tweak it a little, as always, after changing strings. One thing that's not exactly a flaw, but kind of annoying, is that the tuning pegs are made to tighten the strings when turning them in the opposite direction from what's standard. This always confuses me, since i also play a fretless j-bass, and it's tuning pegs turn the other way.. and btw this has nothing to do with how i have stringed the bass... the strings only go one way around the pegs.

Finish seems great, it doesn't scratch easily. I haven't had any problems so far. I've used it for five months now.

i'm a music student, and have been playing bass for about 5 years. I also play a mexican Fender fretless j-bass and a DeArmond Ashbory bass.

I love the feel of this bass, both sound-wise and physically. it seems to sing when i play it in a special way that not many basses do. I love it, but it was real expensive imho. I'm lucky i was able to afford getting it though, it was worth it to me.

This is Bobbo77", the proud owner of a 2004 brand new in the store Marcus Funk Machine! Been wanted to get one of these for the longest, and found this one at one of my favorite pro shops here in the Northwood's area. It's a Maple/Ash beauty, classic funk recipe, and yes, it live's up to the billing! Of course it's heavy, but it's Ash! Neck is nice and slim, 70's specs I beleive.Won't bore you with the rest of the specs, check them out on the Fender.com site.

Well, the tone is all good, but I'd advise IF you decide to keep the stock Pre amp, check out Tommy Thompson's quick fixes for the battery pre amp on/off, passive/active to be able to use the tone control's when in TRUE passive mode, and the checking of the resistance of the pot's too pick ups. I don't know why Fender never addressed these simple but important factors on this bass.
This Bass won't Make you instant Marcus, but the bass will get you kinda close, with very solid and Groovy tones at your disposal! The treble is kinda bright, but you can tame it down, and it has the 60 cycle buzz (It's a Jazz!) but I use a noise gate. I tried it today with my Eden Metro and 2-10 Avatar cab, and it very impressive! It has that cool "Throaty" Jazz bass sound Fingerstyle and Thumb style! Could'nt put it down, just wanted to see what this thang could do. With passive mode of course theres no tone controls, but I set up the solid state side of my Metro, and it sounds like a very good passive Jazz. But kick in the Pre and look out! Yes, a Bartolini, Sadowsky, J-Retro pre probably would get you closer to THAT tone, but the Fender Pre is all good! I'm happy with it.

Set up at the shop, it was very confortable, but I like my action a little lower, which I can do myself, Again, the neck is very cool, with a Poly(I beleive) finish, as well as the rest of the body. I was worried about the neck pocket, since I've read was not tight, but my Marcus is very tight with no gap's! Fret's are nice and manicured,no sharp ends. Pick ups adjusted great.

Hardware, finish and top notch. I put strap locks on it also. I'd depend on it on a gig, but I alway's bring my trusty #1, 77" Music Man Stingray.

Haven't used it, but I think Fender is hit or miss.

I've been playing for over 27 years, and have had many basses along the way, My main bass has been my 77' Stingray I've had 22 yrs., but my first Real bass was a 77" Jazz bass, Ash/Maple, so this is like playing and old friend. If it were stolen, I'd get another. Again, wish Fender could of addressed the Passive/active switch for a TRUE passive setting, and at least included a gig bag! But all in all a great bass!!!

Mine is a natural finish with a black pickguard. I never really bothered to check & see of the MM basses have it though, but my used one came with an adjustable shim installed in the neck. It makes a world of difference!

I love the sound! You can get good round sounds out of the neck pickup soloed, or a good nasal tone out of the soloed bridge p/u. It's good for most kinds of music, and if you're slapper, you won't be able to put this thing down. Especially once you've made Tommy Thompson's modifications!

When I bought it used, it was setup perfectly. I adjust it from time to time to make sure the neck doesn't move around too much. It's pretty stable.

This thing is a tank.

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I've been playing for about 13 years. I also own an Alembic Orion 4 string bass which I also love to use as my more "modern" sounding bass. I've played a lot of Fender jazz basses, and this one (with Tommy Thompsons' modifications) is my favorite and IMHO sounds the best.

All I can say is if you're reading these reviews, and are thinking about buying an MM bass... get one. You won't regret it. If you want to save a couple hundred bucks, pick up one used.

And those of you who already have one, follow Tommy's instructins regarding the placement of the neck/bridge pots. It makes an absolute world of difference.

You can read the features on the Fender website, so I won't bore you with the obvious. Highlights are the active/passive electronics which sound great, a BadAss II bridge, Ash body, bone nut and a unique pickguard.

This bass screams "Slap me!" It starts with great lowend and then when you kick in the preamp, you have more booty than _______ (fill in the blank with your favorite). Passive mode isn't just a backup in case the battery dies in the preamp, it sounds great - just wish there was a passive tone control. I've been playing a lot of basses over the past few weeks looking for a 4 string. This bass sounded the best including $2k+ basses. You can get some hiss with the treble cranked or pickups soloed, but its the price you pay for the great single coil sound.

Needs a little neck tweaking, but not bad off the rack. Everything is solid. I think the bass is superior to the US made Fenders. Certainly blows away the new breed with the S-1 switch. I'll give it a 9 because I wish the neck has a satin finish.

No opinion - I'm a new owner.

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I love this bass. I've seen a lot of its a great bass "for the money". I'll just say that this is a great bass. Period. I own several custom built basses (Matt Pulcinella) that I love very much, but with the maple neck and Marcus influence, this is probably the perfect slap bass. It doesn't have the organic feel of a hand-made bass. I was considering a Sadowsky Metro, but at $1800, I could almost buy 3 of these basses. Unfortunately, I haven't had a chance to try a Metro, but I'm very satisfied with the MarcusMiller. I no longer feel the need to find a Metro to try. In the similar price range, I tried the Ken Smith Design Proto-J. Junk compared to the Marcus.

An oustanding bass at an affordable price. Not a one off, so you're not afraid to take it to a seedy bar. If it was stolen, I'd be sad, but I'd head down to GC or go online and purchase another. This is a keeper.

98 Marcus Miller Signature Jazz Bass. This baby was made in Japan. I have no issues with Japanese basses. Some of my alltime favorites (Yamaha BB1200, 2000, 3000, 5000, BC Rich RICOs and NJs neck thrus, Early -mid 80s Fenders, Old Tokai, Fernandes, etc.....) are made in Japan.

I bought this to keep the miles down on my 79 Jazz Bass. It has the trans red finish that was put on so shitily that it either falls off or turns disgusting pinkish-white. Mine held up for many years but has begun to fall off. I go through many phases but this always ends up my number one.
Through the years I have owned many types of basses. Alembic, Aria, Barrington,BC Rich, Brubaker, Carvin, Citron, Dean, Dolan, ESP,Fbass, Fender, Fernandes, Fodera, Gibson, Guild, Ibanez, Kramer, Mouradian, Peavey, Rickenbacker, Sadowsky, Schecter, Smith,Spector,Surine, Steinberger,Tobias,Tune, Univox, Vigier, Warwick,Yamaha, Zeta ETC........Hundreds.......
With my love of an ash bodied, maple necked late 70's Fender (call me weird but I love it better than exotic woods)this Marcus Miller totally fits the bill.
When I first got it I needed to set it up. It was buzzy and the strings sucked. I changed out the strings and made the adjustments and was totally amazed at what it became. The ash body has a nice grain. The one piece maple neck is well done. The mop block inlays are cool. The inclusion of a bone nut is almost unheard of in a sub $1000 guitar (street $) but definitly very cool!!!!
I A B'd it to my 79 and found the body was not as well carved. The 79 has more of a flowing curve to it. The Marcus Miller is a bit blocky. Another area that pissed me off was the neck pocket. People say that the late 70's early 80's Fender suck but I must have an exception. The neck pocket on my 79 is super tight, You can't put a business card in it but the M Miller has a HUGE gap. Fortunatly this does not translate to the basses sound but I am a bit concerned with it's integrity.
The Marcus Miller has a great tone. It's very well made! The US Vintage J pickups do and excellent job ( These are the same as what is on the US 62 and 75 Vintage series and Geddy Lee Jazzes). It has 2 volumes 1 for each pickup and then you have the Marcus Miller stuff. There is an active/passive switch and active bass and treble. I find the bass is very useful and the treble is too much. Obviously finding a happy medium you can get some super active sounds from the bass and then switch back to a classic Fender sound. NICE!
Suppossedly Roger Sadowsky modified Marcus's 77 Jazz bass back in the early 80's with it's active/passive electronics. I just saw the DVD for Live Aid (Christmas Gift) and saw Marcus playing with some lame British artist but the bass he was playing looked exactly like mine!
The Marcus Miller comes with the afformentioned pickups and electronics, ash body, 3 bolt maple neck etc.... in natural (mine) 3 color sunburst and white. No case comes with it but I feel that the inclusion of a case is still cheaper than a US standard Jazz and you have a MUCH cooler bass! Great deal for the money!

This bass sounds great!!!!!!!! I bought it to replace my 79 Jazz and it definitly fits the bill. I play it through various amps depending on the gig and my mood.
Ampeg SVT II Through an Ampeg 8x10, Trace Elliott AH350 through a Trace large 1X15 cab and Peavey 4x10 TX, Gallien Krueger 1001 through an oldschool Hartke 4x10 and a SWR Super Redhead alone or plus an Eden 2X10XLT.
I used various effects again depending on the gig and my mood. Typically I have Boss CE-2 Chorus, BF-2 Flanger, CS-1 or CS-2 Compressor, SYB-3 Bass Synth, Akai Uni-Bass and a Snarling Dogs Bass Wah.
This bas can growl like a 60's Jazz or it can sound like a modern day hot rod. Very versitile for many types of music!

The only thing that concerns me is the gap in the neck pocket. I feel I must baby this bass to prevent any structural mishaps. Otherwise this is a very well made bass. I would feel confident using only this bass on a gig.

Haven't had any contact with them yet. Supprising since I have owned probably 40 Fenders.

For the money $800 ish this is a super value. A US Standard Jazz costs over $1000 and doesn't have as cool a vibe. Mexican Jazzes are $400 ish and are kinda crappy.

Great bass for the money!!!!!!