No worries, I knew what you meant. I have that same line of thinking when it comes to guns… which might explain why I don’t have a lot of extra cash on hand for more bass guitars 
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Dan,
You can’t go wrong with either.
And a huge Thank you going out to Jazzbass 19 for correcting my faux pas. 
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Dan,
You and I speak the same language. Guitars and Guns. Sure beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.
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My first bass was a Squier P/J (P body with the bridge J pickup added). It served me very well and is a nice bass. One of these days I’m going to upgrade it with new pickups and hardware. I picked it primarily because I liked the look of the P much better than Js at the time. My second bass was a MIM Geddy Lee jazz bass. I just happened to play one at a Sam Ash and fell in love with the neck. This may have been said already, but Js typically have thinner necks than Ps do.
I believe there are some Squier J basses that in the $350-$400 range that are very well reviewed. The Classic Vibe series is what I think it’s called. My Squier is an Affinity series, which is not as well regarded, but which gave me no problems.
Skip over this if it’s already been said, but the P was the first electric bass that Leo made, and I’ve read that it’s still the most often used bass in recording. He came out with the Jazz bass several years later to give players more tonal control with the two humbuckers. I think they are the two most popular/widely used basses in music to this day. So the biggest differences are the two pickups versus one (and with a P/J you would add a second pickup), the neck (thinner on the J) and the body shape (the J is that offset style that I didn’t like at first but it grew on me). If you’re looking low cost, the Classic Vibe from Squier line is supposed to be very good, but I’ve never played one. Bumping up to the MIM Fender Player series, they also seem to get solid reviews. I don’t now how big a difference there is between those and the Squiers, though, beyond the name on the headstock.
And to echo what others have said, if this is your first bass, it most likely won’t be your last one. The GAS is real, my friend.
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Fender also makes the short scale Mustang and the Jaguar, which both have a P/J pickup configuration. They used to make the Dimension, which I think was their answer to the StingRay with the humbucker pickups. I played one at a shop one time and it was a nice instrument.
All my basses are based on Leo designs: the Squier P/J, the Geddy Lee Jazz, and my StingRay. Leo knew what he was doing.
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just to be that guy, i would like to point out that there are bass players that don’t really go for either P or J basses. there are a ton of quality basses out there and something else might appeal to you. if you are able to, get to a music store and try a bunch! see what gets your attention.
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@itsratso
I will end up going to a store to check them out, but I really like the advice that I’m getting here. I’m so new that without some feedback I would have no idea what to look for/ask when I go to a store and would pretty much have to take the word of the salesperson. Not saying they wouldn’t be honest, just that I like getting advice from people who aren’t making a commission from my decision.
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Absolutely true. Just for example, I’ve read good things about the SUB and Sterling series of Stingrays for excellent value basses. Ibanez seems to make a good amount of lower cost basses as well. And Yamaha too.
@Dan_Y - if you are able to make it to a Guitar Center or a Sam Ash, you’ll probably see examples of some or maybe even all of these. The GC near me used to have a few lower cost Yamaha basses too. And you could also get lucky and score something used for a good price. Your best bet is to take a bunch down and try them out for sound and feel. I never thought I’d want a J until I tried the Geddy at a music store and wound up buying one. Love that neck. Other people don’t like it at all and prefer a chunkier neck. There’s something for everyone.
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I usually just ask salespeople to grab things off the wall for me, and then say thanx, byyeee 
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The bass I just got is a PJ bass by Yamaha, so I guess I have the best of both worlds? LOL. I’m a total newbie too so I’m just going by what other bass players have told me.
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Yep, a PJ is a good choice for versatility.
Also note that technically, Jazz and Precision are body/neck styles, not pickup configurations. While it’s true that P-basses almost always have a single P pickup, and J basses almost always have two J pickups, there are also:
P/J P-basses and J-basses
Humbucker J-basses
Single-coil lipstick pickup P-basses
…and probably other configurations.
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Thank you all for your input. I ended up going to a couple guitar stores and purchased an Ibanez SR370E. It wasn’t what I originally had in mind when I started looking, but it was a good price (was on sale), I loved the look, and it just felt right.
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That story couldn’t go better! Congratulations on your find.
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Excellent choice! I love every SR I have tried. Great basses.
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So, I took the leap. I just purchased the Beginner to Badass course! I’m super excited to start the learning process in earnest. Wish me luck 
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Good luck! If you enjoy it half as much as I do, you’ll have a blast 
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Excellent choice, the course is great.
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One thing also to bear in mind…ah, I’m too late, you’ve already bought the ibanez
Anyway, what I was going to say is both p and j are great but it does also depend what music you want to play.
I.e. I love funky music so I have a jazz for that. But the band I’m in doesn’t really play funk, it’s more harder stuff. Almost like a heavier version of The Cure crossed with a bit of punk.
The problem I have with that kind of music is that when the guitarist is screaming away and the drums are in full flow, I just can’t keep up tone wise and the jazz bass gets drowned out. You can’t hear the punch. If I swap to my p bass, it’s much better.
But of course, none of all that matters anyway, because now you’ve bought one bass, you will inevitably buy another 
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Double humbucker with onboard EQ - he’ll have plenty of tone options
If anything it’s the most versatile.
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