Fender American Ultra Jazz Bass V - Arctic Pearl with Maple Fingerboard Reviews

I switched from guitar to bass about 12 years agon, and since then I've had a few Ibanez 'affordable models', and a Schecter $ 5 string bass (which has been my main bass for the last 10 years.) This Jazz Ultra is just incredible. The neck feels a little thicker than my Schecter SLS Elite 5 string, but plays just as fast. The maple neck feels superb. My other basses weren't very adept to slap style, but this one feels right at home. There's plenty of room for the right hand if you want to use dynamic picking styles (play by the bridge for a tight tone, play by the neck for superb warmth.) It's not a light bass, mine is 10lb flat however it doesn't seem any heavier than my Schecter (which is a little smaller overall.)

The electronics in this bass are simply amazing. No 'pop' when plugging the cord in. The dynamic range of the 18v active electronics is so versatile. The pots move smoothly, silently, while the tone and feel of the sound being output changes from jazz to funk, RnB, you name it. One thing that struck me instantly was how clear each note sounds. Zero muddiness on the B, clear and precise all the way through the strings and up the neck. What even is fret buzz, I can't find any at all.

I didn't pay for the customized setup, fret leveling or anything extra. Out of the box, once warmed to room temperature, the action is just a tad high for me (everyone's tastes are different, I expect.) That's an easy fix with a truss rod adjustment, and I'll have my luthier in town dial that in after I've played it for a few weeks. (This costs around $ where I live.) I know that Sweetwater has a great guitar shop, and would have done the setup, but I've used my guy for decades. I could find zero flaws with this bass. I'm going to send my Schecter in to Sweetwater for a pickup and some upgrades in fact.

The case is extremely lightweight, the clasps are smooth, and the lock doesn't stick at all. Included in the case's storage compartment I found a signed quality control inspection statement, list of the 55 point inspection items checked, tools, picks, leather-like fender paperwork sack, and warranty brochure.

In summary, I had always avoided Fender because of a cheap Squire I bought in the 80's as a first guitar. I took a chance on getting this Jazz (with much guidance from my sales engineer,) as opposed to a $ Sadowsky and I have no regrets at all. The quality for price seems to me that this was an incredible deal. I love my Schecter, and based on looks alone that bass will always be my favorite. But as far as playability, sound, versatility, this Jazz has it all.

Thanks to Ben Toenges who helped me with all of my questions, and helped me hand pick one of the lightest weight models they had in stock. Planning on ordering a bass? Give your designated sales engineer a call instead of just doing it online, it was a huge help.

I run this through an dark glass Alpha Omega Proton pedal. and this a solid bass for modern sound. I love the thinner neck, The passive setting sounds real rich, while 18v active is selected there is so much head room. really could not be happier.

After a slight adjustment to the string height I could not be more satisfied with this bass. It is everything fender say it is. After years of adjusting amps to get the tone I want I have a guitar that has 5 adjustments and pickups that kick butt. If I got a job at a music store selling basses this is the one I'd sell exclusively.

I hate to admit it but I started playing bass in the mid 60s. I have played every bass fender makes. When this new ax became available I figured I'd buy one more bass guitar. I didn't expect any great difference or much of any improvements. I was wrong everything about this guitar is right. It is comfortable to hold and play seated or standing. The neck is Truly the most comfortable I've ever wrapped my fingers around. The additional volume when played in active mode was impressive and the tone controls are superb.
The finish with the light sparkle is beautiful.My first guitar was a white with a marble pick guard fender mustang so this guitar was a must buy for me. The payments I was given by Sweetwater make this purchase extremely comfortable.
My suggestion if you've read this far Buy this bass. There is nothing not to like.

Great bass fender, keep on doing your thang to get the bass community back home!

It's pretty much everything that I need in pop music production. Tight low end response, the very recognisable mid and high tones typical of a jazz bass. The 18V preamps and noiseless pickups allow for so much flexibility. However I must admit I almost always use both pickups (blend 50%) not biasing towards neck or bridge. Passive does drop in volume quite a bit but I'd never use the bass in passive mode anyway unless battery runs out and I'm desperate. Perfect weight, perfect neck feel, overall excellent bass. Thanks to Aaron at Sweetwater for making this a seamless order process :)

This bass is by far my favorite! I have several other basses and this is my first American series 5 string. The fender tone and clarity is unmatched. The noiseless pickups are a huge plus! Everything is great about this bass, however, anyone who plays a fender knows that they are not light weights. Other than that, the feel,the look, the sound....omg, this is the bass to own

I was nervous about ordering a guitar of this caliber online. But I was really pleased with the packaging, the bass was in tune & Setup just how I like it & it plays really nice! Sweet water is top notch! Thx

Fender really did a great job making this bass, but it doesn't come without it's flaws which I will describe below. The sound of this bass is inspiring and says Fender all day! This bass is worth its dime. A few things to consider. After some time of playing, I've noticed that the best sound is with both pickups on full and not favoring either the neck or bridge. There are no issues getting a Jaco sound or a P-Bass reminiscent tone. When going active this bass opens up BIG TIME. So much so that I wouldn't go from passive to active in a live setting. It's either you start out in the active mode and can switch to passive, but if you forget to put the bass into active there's probably a 10db difference to consider (about 1/4 to 1/2 turn on the volume knob to adjust. The pickups are not entirely noiseless. In passive mode you in a studio setting you can hear the 60 cycle hum when above 75% volume and the same in active mode, not a deal-breaker for me as it can be easily gated out or lower the volume as there's plenty of headroom. Shielding doesn't remove it completely. In craftsmanship and quality, I'd give it an 8/10. The fretboard had two things I didn't like. First was the stain/lacquer finish was on the frets making them look goldish in color and second was one of the block inlays lacked glue in production and is lifted a hair. I noticed the latter when changing strings. Overall it's a fantastic instrument and wouldn't trade it for anything. It has the iconic Fender sound (and more), it's relatively lightweight (10 lbs 3.6oz), and the finish is amazing. The Artic Pearl finish can really only be appreciated in person as cameras will not capture the full essence of the look. I named mine Goldilocks as the finish looks like gold dust was sprayed on the finish. There also hints of blue and purple surrounding (it truly is amazing). At afar, it looks white and is still a head-turner. Images are attached to show what I am describing. In all, it's truly a beautifully made and playing instrument that will last a lifetime.

Love everything about this bass except for the silly decision to have the batteries active when the bass is in passive mode and the cable is plugged in. Understand it prevents power up issues while plugged in and switching to active, but the constant drain during sets and sessions unless you unplug is a right pain in the arse. Almost can guarantee you will have a low or dead battery at some point during ownership.

As the title says there is no cavity shielding. For a bass this costly I expected Fender to have either copper paint or copper tape acting as a faraday cage for the electronics to cut down on outside interference. It took about 1.5hrs for me to add the necessary copper tape shielding and reassemble the bass. The bass is now completely quiet! Even though the bass has noiseless pickups this was still an issue. The pickups are basically humbuckers but the two coils are stacked on top of each other rather than on the side. They are not potted and don't have any internal shielding like say an EMG pickup would. Please check out my before and after videos for the results. I was very disappointed I had to do this at all. For a professional instrument it should be turnkey with no need to upgrade or mod the bass. Because of this issue I am knocking off one star.

On to the good stuff!

- action and intonation is spot on! Action and neck relief was a bit high for my taste, needed a 1/4 turn adjustment on saddles/truss rod and it was perfect for me. I like my strings behind my frets! No fret buzz!

-the compound radius neck is VERY comfortable for a 5 string. If you have long fingers like me this will feel right at home for you!

- an unbelievable clear sounding Low B string! Even for a 34" scale.

- electronics despite the shielding issue are extremely versatile. I find that I like the passive mode more so than the active mode for the jam band classic rock music I play. The active mode makes the output very hot so be aware of clipping your amps input. For more aggressive styles of playing the active preamp shines.

- tone is typical midrange fender jazz tone. I've played with clone jazz basses for years and they all just don't quite get that authentic fender tone. This really hits the mark on that point, and the added flexibility with the 18v active mode is sweet!


I looked at the Players Plus series and the Ultra. In retrospect that lineup has far more value than the Ultra if you are looking for the true Fender tone. However if money is not a concern and you really want the specific features this bass has that a gearhead like me looks for in an instrument, than this is it. Some may be hard pressed to justify the cost, but it really comes down to personal preferences. I find that musician's who are buying a new instrument focus on "feel" of the instrument first before they settle on tone, because tone can always be set to taste with amps and outboard gear. It's for this reason why I wanted the Ultra.

Thank you to Brandon Buckley for working with me to get this bass! Very knowledgeable and just an overall great guy!

Thank you for reading!

The good; Fit and finish is nice and the hardware is good. Pickups are OK but the poles aren't grounded so buzzes when touched. Preamp is decent.

The bad; Sub-standard fret work. Uneven, not levelled properly, A and E tension pins in silly placements, floppy B string, E buzzes in nut because the pin is in the wrong place.

The ugly; Waaay over priced. Working on one for a customer and it is just shocking the lack of care in properly finishing the fretwork.
For this kind of money there are many many better options out there. It also seems to be pretty unstable, the neck moves around a fair bit here in Japan and needs adjustments often.

Come on Fender, you can do better than this. Even my funky-junk franken-bass 5 string that I made from junk parts for about $, plays better than this.