Lw.

Just FYI - Wunjo Bass have got a '74 jazz bass in the window at the moment, with plenty of wear on it. I've had to restrain myself several times from going in for a noodle on my lunch break so can't comment on if it's any good but it certainly looks decent. On Fender Custom Shops; a few years ago I decided I HAD to have a P bass (having hated them for the whole earlier part of my life), I had two months where I knew I had a decent chunk of cash coming my way and that it was going to be spent on the nicest P I could find. Whilst the budget wasn't unlimited, it was sizable enough for a bass search that I justified myself trying most P's available in London at the time; I tried every model of Squire, all the mex & US Fenders plus every used/vintage P basses in the shops (I didn't go for to see private sales as I didn't want to waste people's time while I was still trying everything). The vintage ones were nice but all the available ones at the time had issues & were really a step out of my budget range. The nicest one was a mid-60's P for an eye watering sum (probably the third nicest bass I tried). The best to play was a CS P in trans white at Guitar Guitar, I had to go away & think about it as it was top of my budget. I had a wobble & thought maybe spending 4k on a bass is a bit silly so consigned myself to going to look at a mexican roadworn thinking maybe they were close enough. To be fair it wasn't bad but then out of the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of a challenger - a used CS with a maple neck (which wasn't my preference) and a Sherwood green metallic paint job (not something I was looking for), but damn it played nice! Not quite as good as the new white one but incredible nonetheless! I bought it, couldn't say no with it in my hands! Fender's factory are always going to have good & bad days, but so long as you play the basses before you buy - you can certainly get some brilliant workhorse basses out of them! Sandberg make some decent basses, no question about that, but they're different to FCS - probably higher build standards but don't feel as special in your hands in my opinion. On gear snobbery; amps I've seen snobbery at loads of gigs but basses I think hardly ever? Realistically 90% of people don't care, we spend all the cash for ourselves not other people. I've played the above CS at gigs with @NancyJohnson & you probably didn't even notice it, just another P bass in the sea of gigging P basses! Good luck with the viewing!

Fender Custom Shop do some incredibly nice relics - I've played 5 or 6 of their Precisions (admittedly most of them only for a few minutes) and every one of them has been great (vastly better than the actual vintage basses I've played). The new price is pretty brutal but the used prices are actually not too far away from new Roadworn's or Limelight's so could bring them into contention. Not played an Olinto but I've been snared by the hype - my next bass will probably be an Olinto relic.

Congratulations on the new bass! I did a similar thing a few years ago trying everything that was out there - you're right in that it's so hit & miss, the vintage stuff is even more random too! I ended up with one of those CS '57 P's with the chunky necks - you're right on the size, they really make you work for it! I have been eying up these Squiers as 2nd P to have rounds on, so good to hear they're nice things to play.

P-basses are obviously the best but you're not going to get a lot out of having two virtually the same - you could go one with flats & one with rounds? Or go for an early 50s Tele style P?

That's a shame, will have to see what the travel situation is like later in there year then! Out of curiousity - have you owned many other high end retro type basses? I've got a fender custom shop P that I love, so would want the quality at a similar level. The SBL discount on Olinto's makes them quite attractive so curious about comparison's with basses I know.

Nice - looks good, the more olinto's I see the more I like them! Need to find somewhere that stocks them to get a true feel for them though!

Some comments on the vintera Mustang; it's got the 7.5" radius fretboard - I can hardly notice it, all my other basses have been standard ⁹" or whatever it is. If I didn't know the vintera was different I don't think I would have flagged it. Vinteras and JMJ's have the same neck profiles and I find them to be tiny compared to a proper chunky 50s neck. I suppose it depends on what your hands are used to. The small size does really help with the weight though; it's insanely light considering it's still real alder!

What do you already have & what music do you like playing?

@bassist_lewis inspired by your Mustang fettling I've had a go at darkening the fretboard on mine - quite pleased with the results; kept the grain of Pau Ferro (which I like) but darkened up it's grey-brown colouring. Couple of before & after's below, now what else can I mess around with...

I'm sure he was impressed with his cheque.

Wow - that's surprisingly neat routing for fender, I assumed they would cut straight though from pickup to control cavity! These vinteras do seem like pretty decent instruments for the price!

I don't think it has a negative result on bass, just different tonal option. Depending on how hard you play, turning the bass volume down but the amp up (to get the same volume) will often remove some of the clankiness. Also when in a band setting, starting the gig with the volume on your bass a bit lower gives you some leeway for subtly turning up later without being seen going to your amp in the volume wars!

I have the ampeg - very happy with the sounds from it. Not used it for recording but I feel it would probably be good for it given the out out options. The down side would be it's not particularly versatile, you'll get the ampeg sound and not a lot else. But then I play a P with flats through it so I'm hardly breaking the mould! Ashdown; I've never played the model you're thinking about so that may be different but I've played countless of their other ABM type amps and have never got a sound out of them I liked. Reliability wise; I've blown two ashdowns in rehearsals, but the only two bass amps I've seen to up in smoke at gigs have been SVTs so probably about even?

I like those knobs! Has it got built in FX?

@bassist_lewis I'd best give it another splash later then! It's getting there at the lower frets, but the dusty end is dry AF. Maybe eating a packet of crisps then doing some solo noodling is the way to go!

Looking good! How much lemon oil did you use? I've oiled my Mustang twice now & while it looks similar to yours when wet, it dries back to grey-brown - it's the only thing that's annoying me about the bass!

Oldest discussion on the internet, bit harsh to compare premium gear from the 80s to modern budget gear though. As ever, it's marginal gains. At the lower end maybe a £600 bass is twice as good as a £300 bass, maybe. But is a £1200 bass twice as good as a £600 bass? Maybe but probably not. Ive just bought a Mexican fender, it's nowhere near as nice (using any measurement) as my custom shop fender, but then you wouldn't expect it to be. You buy the nicest playing bass you can afford then don't worry about the rest, 1-to-1 improvement by the pound just doesn't happen in any industry.

Scott (of bass lessons fame) has been talking these up recently - I think they look pretty decent. Clearly aimed at the Moolon/Fender Custom Shop crowd, I'd certainly like to try one!

@scrumpymike - yes, decent little amps! It was my back-up amp tucked in my bag at gigs but it probably deserved a better shot at things, they do have a great tone - I don't do anything with the EQ! If I'm being picky, I'd prefer it if the fan wasn't always on but that's the case for many amps! The cab is TKS - probably similar ethos as the BF; lightweight with vintage tone. Has a real bark when cranked though!

Here's a little & large shot of my new acquisition. I'm getting used to the much smaller neck, if not the polish - I think that's going to have to go! Plays nice after a good setup though!

Thanks! I've just taken delivery of a vintera Mustang & it feels so tiny! It's ~20.2mm front to back & 41mm nut. I think I've ruined myself with a super chunky '57P re-issue! Going to have to see if I can get used to the smaller size! Happy NBD!

@Aidan63 nice! Do you have a ruler handy? If so, could you measure front to back of the neck at 1st fret please?

Interesting thanks, I'd forgotten about the vintera range actually - bit out of the loop with fenders current naming convention! There's so much mixed information around on th specs of each one! Annoying the shops aren't open for trials too - might have to start with the cheapest then return and try the next level up until I find one I like!

I think I'm falling down the SS-bass rabbit hole - convinced myself I need a smaller bass at the side of my home-working desk, for cheeky daytime noodling. On the Mustangs; I quite fancy the squier VM but am seeing specs saying it's a 38mm nut. Is it just the fender JMJ that has the 42mm but? My main bass is is 44.5mm "soft-v" neck so quite chunky and I'd rather not drop down to a teeny-tiny neck...

I'd just get a P-bass, if you don't you'll end up with a nagging feeling at the back of your head telling you you made th wrong decision, then you'll have to buy one later down the line anyway. Lots of brands and price points available. There's a reason everyone plays P's - took me 15 years to work that one out!