The Last Bass Outpost
Gear Discussion Forums => Fender Basses => Topic started by: godofthunder on January 27, 2008, 08:21:23 AM
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My band Johnny Smoke ( scroll down to the right for classic rock clips http://johnnysmoke.homestead.com/calendar.html )does a ton of Zepplin in our cover set and we do it very well. The guitarist even brings out his Gibson 6/12 double neck for the shows. We are in the process of reorganizing the live show and putting more emphisis on the Zep. I'm thinking of getting a Jazz like JPJ. Fender makes the classic MIM 60's J and for the $ they are very nice, I like 'em alot. Next up is the '62 USA`RI close to JPJ but it has concentric knobs I can get one of these for like $1300. Last is the '64 RI NOS these are pricey, I'm looking at $2,135. Also the New American Standard J comes in a sunburst /tort /rosewood combination that has a nice vintage vibe. Around $950. Thoughts on which bass to buy ?
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I used a MIM P neck on my Fbird - the neck is vey nice - Fender just doesn't spend a lot of time on detailed setup.
A good friend of mine picked up a 57 P MIM reissure last year and the bass just kills!
Personally, I would would go the MIM route, I see them on Ebay all of the time, and change out the pickups for Fralins or Duncan Antiquites and change out the pots and the cap. Clean up the frets a bit and you have geat bass for about $600 that's bar/club safe.
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For true JPJ vibe - in the pre-Presence era - you have really 3 choices: A 60s MIM Jazz, the pricey 64 Ri, or a Bass V. He really did not use a stack knob, but you could in theory buy a 62 ri and swap the control plate for the later version. At any rate, the MIM is a great bass, but does need a competent set up job. All the mim come with bad action and sometimes bad intonation and fret finish. Not so big a deal really considering the savings. The 64 RI is steep for essentially a 62ri with the later plate and a bit more attention. He did use the Bass V regularly in the early 70s monster touring phase. For completists only. I don't recall him using a P except for odd photos - not part of the early vibe.
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WARNING: Gibson Content!
In the latest Bass Player they interview JPJ and he states that he used an EB1 for the early recordings :)
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WARNING: Gibson Content!
In the latest Bass Player they interview JPJ and he states that he used an EB1 for the early recordings :)
You mean early Zep, or for his earlier studio work?
I never understood how a J could have produced the tones on Led Zeppelin.
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He has always owned up to the EB1 which is on the LZIII wheelie thing - and he has stated in interviews that he did use it, and loved its old school tone. He recorded with it on tracks on the first 3 or 4 lps for certain. That being said, the majority of the early tracks were the Jazz with flats and often played with a pick (Herco - for completists).
He adopted Alembics around Presence, to the detriment of the band's sound in my humble opinion.
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Scott, I'd just look for whatever Jazz feels and sounds best in your hands. Almost nobody (and that includes a lot of other bassists) would ever detect a difference between any of the basses you mentioned. I, being completely anal about such things, would notice the truss rod nut being on the wrong end of a MIM, but even that wouldn't stop me if the MIM was the one that sounded best to my ears. If it were me, I'd look for a used American made, which are almost always a great deal. Of course I say that, but my only Jazz at the moment is an '84 Squier that flat out rocks. ;D
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I ended up buying a brand new American standard Jazz for $890.00. Nice sunburst finish, tort guard, rosewood board, vintage tint neck, and the three black controls. It has a nice vintage vibe and has all the visual stuff I wanted. It's a nice solid axe and I'm happy with the price. :)
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I haven't seen the new American Standards, but if you're happy with the tone and playability, you can't go wrong with a new US J at that price.
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Duuuuuude! JPJ's Jazz didn't have strings going through the body!
I saw the new ones this past weekend - they got the P and J in at the local GC. The tort guards really do give them a classic look. They seem to have a noticeably flatter radius on the board compared to a RI. I hope to mess around with one of them in the near future. But they do capture the vintage vibe nicely. I didn't bother to check the price but that seems like a pretty good deal.
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But duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuude you can run the strings through the bridge or through the back of the body, I of course upon getting the bass strung it with Roto Sound RS66LDs the though the bridge. ;D (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/godofthunder59/006.jpg) (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/godofthunder59/004.jpg)
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That looks like a more vintage-style burst than the 2000-2007 American Series had. I've never been a big sunburst fan, but that's a nice improvement.
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Nice looking bass, Scott! I'm sure it will fit the bill nicely.
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At the risk of repeating myself I am keeping this bass for now, see here http://bassoutpost.com/index.php?topic=119.0 I am thinking of replacing bridge and tuners with vintage parts. The bridge is a easy find any ideas where to get vintage RI reverse tuners ? I know it sounds like I am swinging blindly........................ I am I have said it before Fenders are still a mystery to me.
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Has the bridge changed from the earlier (1995-2007) American Standard & American Series? If it's the same one, there is no "vintage" drop-in bridge replacement, it's a four screwhole design because of the string-thru-body option, as opposed to the vintage Fender 5-hole design. The pre-1957 2-saddle design would fit, but that was never on a J. Of course you could always drill new holes but that'snot advisable on a new bass you might want to resell if it doesn't work out.
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Thanks Dave, the bridge is a total redesign for '08, the new High Mass Bridge. Three screw holes I think. Your right I think I'll just leave well enough alone for now. Besides the band is so hell bent on this Zep thing I think they might spring for the '62 RI if I keep dragging this bass out.