Mustang basses... any fans?

[Chris P.]

There are different companies offering 4-pole Musicmaster pickups nowadays. I have the 4-pole in my Squier replaces by an original 6-pole (bought it that way0 and my black '78 Fender has a SD Lipstick. Sounds great. Less woody, more P-ish.

[Droombolus]

I have the 4-pole in my Squier replaces by an original 6-pole

A Squier Vista Musicmaster ? The 4 pole worked like a charm for my needs. I actually tried out the Vista in same time period as a MIJ Mustang. I found the Mustang a rather faceless instrument and sold it off fairly quickly.

[Dave W]

There are different companies offering 4-pole Musicmaster pickups nowadays. I have the 4-pole in my Squier replaces by an original 6-pole (bought it that way0 and my black '78 Fender has a SD Lipstick. Sounds great. Less woody, more P-ish.

I can't see the logic in changing a bass with its own sound to be more like another bass. If you want a P-ish sound, why not just buy a P? Or at least a short scale version of a P. 

A Squier Vista Musicmaster ? The 4 pole worked like a charm for my needs. I actually tried out the Vista in same time period as a MIJ Mustang. I found the Mustang a rather faceless instrument and sold it off fairly quickly.

I played one of those Vistas in a store back in the mid-late 90s. Sounded pretty good. I'd still rather have an original Musicmaster, multiple piece body and all.

[Alanko]

I don't see any reason a Strat pickup wouldn't sense a strong fundamental? Is there anything in a passive guitar/bass circuit that acts as a high-pass filter?

[Chris P.]

i bought the Squier Vista (powder blue with matching headstock) with a '70s Musicmaster pickup in it and I never chaned it. It sounds great and fat.

When I bought the '78 Musicmaster I thought it was too black. Can something be to black? Spinal Tap... Well, I changed the Jazz controls to witch hats and I installed a lipstick for the looks. At the moment I had a Fender Rascal at home and its middle pickup has the same position as the MM pickup. The Rascal sounded a bit brighter and so does the MM with lipstick. I don't have a P, but now I do have a warm and a bright MM.

Strange: A while ago my black MM turned blue. And now it's black again. Will post the story and some pics soon.

[dadagoboi]

My Stratobaster works just fine for me.  32" scale, stock Squier Strat pups with .010 inch aluminum toppers to add pizzaz. Weight 7 lbs.

None of its five pup combos really make me think that something else is badly needed in the tone department.



If I did it again I'd go with a 'threaded saddle' bridge.

[hieronymous]

I had an MIJ - white with tortoise pickguard - bought it in Japan while I was living there, around 2004 or so. Only recorded one thing that I can remember - found it to be punchy and rather P-ish:



Here is the entire piece, most recorded with a Tune 8-string - the Mustang only appears in the middle section referenced above:

https://soundcloud.com/hieronymous-seven/next-to-last

Sold it when I moved back to the States, kind of regret it - I really liked it! Would love to have a vintage one but would settle for another MIJ, but not high on my list - in fact, there isn't a list right now!

[Pilgrim]

I can't see the logic in changing a bass with its own sound to be more like another bass. If you want a P-ish sound, why not just buy a P? Or at least a short scale version of a P. 

I played one of those Vistas in a store back in the mid-late 90s. Sounded pretty good. I'd still rather have an original Musicmaster, multiple piece body and all.

I feel the same way.  With only one or two exceptions, I have kept each bass the way it was built. I'd rather keep a bass for the sound it has, rather than trying to make it sound like some other bass.  There's more fun in that for me.  I can appreciate an old Kay KB-2 for what it is, just as I can appreciate a Casady.

The Bronco I mentioned earlier was a purposeful exception; I bought it as a test bed to experiment with pickups, and tried three or four before I installed the Gretsch 2202 pickup.  However, does that mean I've merely re-invented the 2202, because the pickup placement and scales are essentially the same?  Quite possibly.

2202 body:



Modified Bronco body:

[Dave W]

I don't see any reason a Strat pickup wouldn't sense a strong fundamental? Is there anything in a passive guitar/bass circuit that acts as a high-pass filter?

No reason at all. A guitar pickup circuit works the same way as a bass pickup circuit. Because of its size it won't have the output of most bass pickups, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

[Alanko]

It guess it must match fairly closely to a '51 P pickup, but it terms of overall tone and output?

I tend to agree with the sentiment 'I can't see the logic in changing a bass with its own sound to be more like another bass'. Where I think the Mustang differs is that it is basically configured as a smaller P bass, albeit with slightly different pickups and body shape. A splitcoil pickup in the mid position is always going to deliver a P-type tone. I'm after a Mustang partly because it sounds like a P but is smaller, lighter and a bit easier on the hands. As I said before, I'm just shy of 6 foot, and I still wonder at times why basses have to be so big!

[Droombolus]

and I still wonder at times why basses have to be so big!

Because you don't want to feel like your playing a g**t*r with four strings. All my bass guitars are shorties but the Musicmaster is too small, it just didn't feel right to me !

Anyway, if you're looking for the 51-P sound in a shortie, the Bach Tele sounds more like my beloved ( ex ) CS 51-P than the Squier Vista Musicmaster.

[Dave W]

Half the fun of playing bass is taming a big one! Not that I have anything against small bodied basses.

[Pilgrim]

It guess it must match fairly closely to a '51 P pickup, but it terms of overall tone and output?

I tend to agree with the sentiment 'I can't see the logic in changing a bass with its own sound to be more like another bass'. Where I think the Mustang differs is that it is basically configured as a smaller P bass, albeit with slightly different pickups and body shape. A splitcoil pickup in the mid position is always going to deliver a P-type tone. I'm after a Mustang partly because it sounds like a P but is smaller, lighter and a bit easier on the hands. As I said before, I'm just shy of 6 foot, and I still wonder at times why basses have to be so big!

This makes perfect sense to me. Moving to a bass that "...sounds like a P but is smaller, lighter and a bit easier on the hands" is a logical and attractive idea.  I went down that road a while back.

[Alanko]

I once owned a Yamaha 'BB' bass. After it arrived I read that 'BB' stood for 'Big Body'. 

[doombass]

Almost correct. Actually BB stands for Broad Bass.