Review – Fender Deluxe Active Precision Bass

Leo Fender started mass-producing the Fender Precision bass, also known as the “P bass” in 1951, and it’s still one of the most copied basses to this day.

The new Fender Deluxe Active Precision Bass features a PJ pickup configuration, making it an exceptionally versatile instrument. While many bassists tend to prefer older-style P basses, the combination of vintage-meets-modern vibe that Fender has achieved with this bass is remarkable. You can get that sweet, classic tone with the active/passive electronics, without the hum. I found it to be very comfortable to perform with, and it records very well.

This cool active P bass features a double-cutaway alder body and a one-piece maple “C”-shaped neck, topped with a 20-fret rosewood fingerboard with medium-jumbo frets. One-piece necks always seem to need less adjustment than multi-piece necks. The Deluxe Active P bass neck has a satin polyurethane finish and the nut material is synthetic bone. The active/passive electronics are made up of a vintage split single-coil Precision Bass pickup for the neck and a dual-coil ceramic noiseless Jazz Bass pickup for the bridge. While only the bridge pickup is Noiseless™, I didn’t notice any hum from the neck pickup. The controls for the active/passive electronics are volume, balance, three-band EQ (treble, bass and mid boost/cut), plus a toggle switch to choose active or passive EQ. The treble and bass controls are stacked; in passive mode, only the treble control functions for tone.

The hardware is all chrome, including a Fender HiMass bridge, a set of open gear tuners and knurled knobs. Strings are Fender® USA NPS .045-.105. Available in three finish combinations including surf pearl and white with rosewood fingerboard or 3-color sunburst with a maple fingerboard.

Check out the Fender Deluxe Active Precision Bass 4-string at a Fender music retailer near you!

Visit online at fender.com