Vintera II 70s Telecaster Bass review

godofthunder · September 20, 2023, 04:29:07 PM

One of the hazards of working at the House of Guitars is seeing stuff before anyone else. Total impulse buy and I'm glad I did. I've been sitting on this for several weeks waiting for the official release.

morrow · September 20, 2023, 05:32:05 PM

Nice!

I remember looking at a 51 Pbass , said to be one of the really early ones , and a previous owner had removed the single coil and dropped in a Lover Humbucker right by the end of the fingerboard.

BTL · September 20, 2023, 06:40:34 PM

Very nice, well done!

Dave W · September 20, 2023, 11:34:34 PM

Nice review, Scott, probably better workmanship and better weight than the originals.

Not for me, though. My '76 did have more mids and highs than a Gibson, but not enough real fundamental. And I didn't like the 7.25 inch radius, which Fender has unfortunately brought back on the Vintera series.

Alanko · September 23, 2023, 07:01:45 AM

Interesting round, vowel-y tone. I'm sure it would record well!

Alanko · December 15, 2023, 10:36:06 AM

I keep coming back to this video... I might try and 'score' one of these in January to keep the January Blues away.

It looks like the nut width on these is conventional P Bass 41 mm rather than a goliath 43 - 44 mm monstrosity like that of a '50s P Bass?

Beyond that, are these heavy or otherwise uncomfortable basses? I've can drawn to the original '70s basses for a long time, but they became pretty expensive and are cursed with '70s Fender build quality (heavy weight, approximate measurements and tolerances).

In my head, this bridges the gap between my Rivoli and my Fender-like basses.

godofthunder · December 15, 2023, 06:03:32 PM

The body is alder, weight on these run 8-9.5 pounds or so. Build quality is far better than the originals. I wouldn't recommend this bass as your main player but it a great compliment to a Precision or Jazz. It's a very Gibson sounding Fender so your Epi Rivoli comparison isn't unwarranted. Fender knocked it out of the park with these, if you want a Telecaster Bass this is the one to buy.

Alanko · April 09, 2024, 02:12:06 AM

I finally caved and bought one of these beasts. I spotted one in cream and had to try it.

I sold my Rivoli and 4003 last month, but regretted selling the Rivoli almost instantly. I bought the Rivoli as a conciliatory prize of sorts after a personal setback, but over time began to begrudge it slightly as it wasn't letting me move on mentally.. Psychobabble aside, the pickup mounting situation (teetering on the outer limits of repurposed neck bolts) always annoyed me as well. The Rivoli also had a nasty fall. I was able to cosmetically repair it, but it almost seemed like a sign: sell this bass!

The Tele bass sounds good. Almost too good for the premise of it. Burying a hot pickup at the end of the neck tends to limit tonal options. The Fender scale length and maple neck seem to provide some sort of sonic guardrails from it being too much of a hot, foggy-sounding bass. There is an inherent freight train grind to it and the tone control perfectly pivots the tone from freight train to subsonic rumble. I've got back what I lost with the Rivoli, but with a more confident fundamental note below the 5th fret of the E string. Yes, it weighs a bit and has no contours, but I can get passed that! I will finish off the fretwork that Fender started and call it a day. Good bass, and arguably better than the originals? If you study photos of mid-'70s Tele basses you see that the neck pockets could be a bit approximately routed, for example.

Interesting that Fender made a more Gibson-style bass at the same time that Gibson started experimenting with longer scale lengths, maple necks and moving pickups away from the extremes. A bit of cross-pollination.

Alanko · April 12, 2024, 04:39:06 PM

Day five of ownership, straight in with the mods...

Subtle, but I've replaced the two-saddle beastie with a proper bridge. I think it's a Hipshot model B. No modifications required, just drop it in.

morrow · April 12, 2024, 07:16:09 PM

If you care to figure out the balancing act the two way bridges work just fine.

Dave W · April 12, 2024, 08:44:25 PM

When I had my '76, the two-saddle bridge never gave me a problem. Still, the Hipshot is a nice solution.

Alanko · April 13, 2024, 07:01:08 AM

Quote from: morrow on April 12, 2024, 07:16:09 PM
If you care to figure out the balancing act the two way bridges work just fine.

The two saddle job looks too small to my judgemental eyes! Huge pickup, gulf of nothing, tiny ridge.

Rob · April 13, 2024, 08:22:10 AM

Quote from: Alanko on April 13, 2024, 07:01:08 AM

The two saddle job looks too small to my judgemental eyes! Huge pickup, gulf of nothing, tiny ridge.

Agree! Maybe if it had an ashtray it would be okay but it needs the visual balance.
Really nice!

morrow · April 13, 2024, 12:29:11 PM

I have a MIJ 51 reissue , the school bus yellow version. I've kept the two way bridge but put on the classic rocket shaped covers. Out of sight , out of mind.

Alanko · April 13, 2024, 04:06:51 PM

I wish they had drilled the body for the bridge cover. I've done it myself on a few basses, but trying to get the geometries accurate from the bridge itself is a challenge!

I've seen vintage basses with subtly offset bridge cover mounting screws, but I would hate to drill them squint myself. Fender poly finishes aren't always the most friendly when it comes to drilling new holes as well, as I've had a few splinter and flake around new screw holes.

I've been doing some home recording with this bass and it lays down a nice thick fundamental that sits nicely in a mix. I just run it directly into an MXR studio compressor pedal and it needs minimal tweaking in the final mix.