Belka

20 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

Try this 

https://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/1967-fender-precision-bass/1497408033??utm_source=mail&utm_campaign=socialbuttons&utm_content=app_ios&utm_medium=Social

 It actually all looks ok, apart from the fact it's not a 1967. 1967 would have had the smaller transition logo and either lollipops or the older reverse gear tuners. Most likely 1968 at the earliest.

9 hours ago, ossyrocks said:

Richard Henry has posted what appears to be a very nice clean looking '72 Precision tonight.

 

I've known Richard for more than 30 years, and in my opinion, he is one of the good guys.

 

I'm going to let one of you guys enquire on the price....

 

https://www.instagram.com/richardhenryguitars?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=NDd5bHgxbnZ3MzJu

 

It all looks right but I'm not 100% sure on the bridge - Wouldn't 1972 still have the longer G string saddle? The holes for the grub screws look a little small too - like they might have an allen key rather than screwdriver adjustment. Could well be a replacement bridge.

On 29/05/2025 at 17:39, Musicman20 said:

Just checking in on this - I am also interested in a ahem...RIC....Andy gave me some info but says he isn't an official dealer. Which has confused me....any info?

I dealt with Andy recently - sold two basses through him and bought one. I have no complaints - communication was good, payment was prompt with no chasing required (he actually had to chase me for my bank details) and his place really is a treasure trove of great basses.

He does have some expensive items - people say if you're going there to be prepared to spend a lot of money , but that is down to a lot of his stock being very rare/valuable. His prices, in my opinion, are fair for a vintage dealer and more or less comparable with Bass Bros and Bass Direct - it's the Gallery, ATB and Vintage Bass Room who tend to price their items a tad more unrealistically.  

5 minutes ago, fretmeister said:

The modern approach of having the kick drums amazingly loud is so annoying. It just kills everything else in the same freq range.

Seems to be infecting more and more genres too. It used to just be modern metal, but now it's everywhere.

I saw Rod Stewart at Ashton Gate in Bristol a couple of years ago. The bassist was using a vintage sunburst P bass. You couldn't hear it at all. I saw Donny Benet this Saturday. Again, P bass. the mix was better but his bass was noticeably less audible than when I saw him previously using a PJ F Bass. The snare and Bass drum were incredibly loud - judging by how softly the drummer was playing he seemed to be aware of it too.

The best sounding gig I've seen recently was Mike Stern with Hadrien Feraud on bass and Dennis Chambers on drums. Hadrien and Mike just went through their amps with no IEMS - great sound - everything was crystal clear. Of course I'm aware how such a set-up wouldn't work on a bigger stage.

This might be a bit tangential but I have noticed from attending gigs over the last few years that P basses really tend to disappear in modern mixes (I'm talking decent sized gigs with a professional PA/soundman, not how bad your own P bass sounds down the Dog and Duck before anyone takes offence).

I don't think this is a fault of the P bass but of the way everything is mixed these days (all subs/bass drum, very little midrange). The whole reason the P sits in a recorded mix so well is due to its low midrange presence, and when these frequencies are not given enough prominence the sound turns to mud. Of course, while we should aim our ire at the soundmen or spectators who actually think that kind of mix sounds good, an easier solution would be to use a bass with a bridge pickup. Even with a rubbish mix you're more likely to hear some of the bass come through.

The next thing to think about it colours. The white scratchplate was used in the early '80s on the International colours series. Below are the options I'm considering all with white pickguard and maple neck:

Monaco yellow, Capri orange, Sahara taupe, Cherry burst.

The others don't appeal so much - Cathay ebony and arctic white look too much like regular basses, albeit with white pickguards instead of black. Morocco red is nice but a bit too close to Dakota red to stand out. Maui blue is great but I have another Jazz in that colour, and Sienna burst just doesn't look as good as cherry burst.

Next step was obviously a body and neck. I decided to go '70s for a couple of reasons - I always liked the late '70s 'S' series basses, which most other people seem to think are the very worst in terms of Fender QC, but I really like the aggressive tone. Hence, I decided to go ash and maple.

This is very much a tribute to the era rather than something 100% accurate - so although I managed to get a northern ash body (from Guitar Build), it's a '60s version without the channel cut between the pickup cavity and the control cavity. It'll all be under the pickguard anyway so no problem there.

I went with one piece maple for the neck. I pushed the boat out a bit and ordered from Musikraft in the US. Allparts and Warmoth don't do the correct 7.25 radius on their repro necks. It's currently in production, not sure when it will arrive.

An era correct decal has also arrived.

So, I've always wanted to do a P bass made to my own specifications, and recently after selling my Nate Mendel Precision, I found myself in possession of parts I'd modded it with (I brought it back to its original state before selling it).

Basically, the bits below: Duncan Antiquity 2, Kluson bridge, pickup covers and white pickguard.

2 hours ago, mikebass456 said:

Took me a little while to realise what this was about (it's early! 😆).

Been and had a look at mine just now - looks like mine are all nibbled....

Those look like re-issues to me - the '50s'60s ones had a much shorter/wider thread pattern on the barrels - yours have the longer thinner thread typical of re-issues. 

On 06/05/2025 at 17:17, Terry M. said:

Turns up often in Christian Contemporary Music. I mainly play in church.

Do you mean heavy metal style? That would be minor/diminished tonality with the prominent flat 2 and raised 4/flat 5, not major . The only way I can imagine it used in major tonality is when playing over a first inversion of the V chord, for example B/G if playing in C. Even then emphasising the Flat II/V degrees of the mode wouldn't really be necessary as they wouldn't work as chord tones (technically the flat V would be a chord tone if it's a dominant 7, but again, Dom 7 chords are rarer these days in most popular music), just scale passing tones.

To be honest I know very little about contemporary Christian music so I may be missing something here.

1 hour ago, Terry M. said:

It wouldn't hurt to learn the Greek names of the modes and shapes at some point. If you're playing for example in C Major but the bandleader wants you to play the intro as two bars of F Lydian and then two more in D Dorian before vamping on B Locrian and shouts that out to you,your fingers will automatically know where to go and what notes are available within those modes. 

I think that the above scenario is extremely unlikely, unless your band leader is a mode obsessed lead guitarist.

IME the real value of modes is not applying them as degrees of a major scale, but knowing how to apply them over certain chords. Lydian for example, can be used over maj7 chords functioning as the I chord, not just the IV. You also shouldn't worry about using all the notes in the mode, but know where to apply the key degrees, in this case the raised 4th, to provide the colour.

Locrian would hardly ever be found in modern music in a major key - it's far more likely to be used as the II chord in a minor(major) key in Jazz, where it would be thought of as min7b5 rather than Locrian anyway.

What I'm trying to say is that until you have an understanding of the function of a chord (I, IImin, V, etc,), what its chord tones are and how it can be extended, 'knowing' the modes won't really give much benefit to your playing

25 minutes ago, briansbrew said:

Here you go

I think whoever did that has moved beyond the realm of supplying a semi-vintage bass at a more affordable price into out and out fakery, no matter what they say. Luckily they don't really know what they're doing - I may be wrong but I don't think any '60s necks had employee name stamps on them - that was a '70s thing.

1 hour ago, ossyrocks said:

 

I have two '73 Jazzes here and neither of them have a board like that. Mine are clearly thick veneers and follow the radius of the board which results in a slight curve in the rosewood at the headstock end.

 

I'd like to know when Fender started putting slab boards on Jazz basses in the 70's......

38 minutes ago, bakerster135 said:

It's a good spot, I really don't think they did? Also bear in mind the bullet truss rod came in later 74 and stayed until the start of the 80s, so it rules that period out. Definitely casts further doubt on the authenticity...

They didn't - as I think I mentioned, slab boards were phased out in '61/62, and didn't show up again until 1984. That neck is in no way authentic. I'd guess Warmoth/Allparts with Fender Pure Vintage tuners.

Actually, thinking about it,  one of my statements is inaccurate- slab boards would have featured on the original Fullerton reissues, so 1982 was when they came back, not 1984. 

The neck in question is not in any way a Fullerton reissue however.

22 minutes ago, bakerster135 said:

How can you tell that's a slab fingerboard, it's got binding around it? 🤔 

When he shows the headstock. Clearly a slab.

It's not an original neck in any way. That's a slab fingerboard, not a veneer, which it should be on any Fender from 1962-1983. Those tuners are the Fender branded Schallers that came out in 1976 and are still used in Fender's '70s reissue basses today. The guard is a clear repro. 

The body, electronics and bridge could be real, you'd need to a closer look inside to verify. 

Fender Precision Bass comparison USA vs MIM vs JAPANhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgzD3vcrExE

Check out the '77 in this video - by far the most aggressive sound.

15 minutes ago, HeadlessBassist said:

 

Well said   I've always liked the sound of those late seventies Precisions. Have a listen to Bill Stevenson's Precision on "Sugarfoot".

 

 

Great sound, although the white pickguard would probably date that precision as an early '70s model - could well have been changed of course.

Personally I wouldn't change a thing on it unless it was necessary. Unless you fork out the money for a Spitfire or something the tort pickguard won't look right. Those S series sunburst finishes were quite bright, something like the target burst you used to see earlier,  and along with that S series logo a tort guard would just seem out of place - they just look better/more authentic with the black guard. As for changing the pickups, I suppose it depends what you want. If you want something like an EMG or Bartolini because you like their particular sound, then go for, as long as you keep the original. Personally though, I think the late '70s S series basses are some of the best sounding P basses - they have a lot more treble/upper-mid than '60s or early '70s basses.

Honestly, if you want a more vintage P, hold out for an early '70s one and sell this one on. You can find refinished ones for not much more than an original late '70s one (Andy Baxter sold a refinised 1970 with original tort guard for less than £2,300 recently). 

3 hours ago, BigRedX said:

 

Fair enough. I don't really get on with the J-Bass shape, whilst it's not as clunky as the P it still feels too big.

 

And I've never worked out what was so special about the Sadowsky pre-amp. I once spent a very pleasant morning at the Sadowsky workshop/showroom when they were still in Brooklyn playing all their 5-string demo models, and IMO every single one sounded better to me with the pre-amp turned off. Also none of the 5-string models played as well as the basses I was using at the the time - Overwater Original and Gus G3.

I think a lot of Sadowsky's success is down to the time and place they were in. New York is full of session/theatre musicians who were mostly using Fenders. No doubt a lot of them had reliability issues, or became too valuable to play out, or didn't have a low B. Sadowsky was able to solve all these issues locally while still giving them an FSO that was familiar/comfortable to them and their employers, so it's no wonder they became successful. That said, there's nothing inherently pioneering/groundbreaking about them - B strings and active electronics had been around for a while when Sadowsky started making his own basses - he just put them into a package that appealed to a lot of people, and which also happened to be a high quality product.

I'd guess that a lot of the hype about the Sadowsky preamp is less due to the fact that it is unique and special in some way, and more due to the fact that it was the first active preamp available on a traditional looking/sounding bass.

Wasn't this event being organised by the same guy/team behind Bass Review magazine? The one that has taken people's money for 16 issues and delivered 12 (there's a separate thread on it on this very forum)? 

I hope that both Bass Day and the magazine were started with the best of intentions, but it looks to me like we're moving into Letts Bass/Darrin Huff/SGD/Dr Bass territory here. 

Maybe I'm just being cynical, but I have to wonder if the cash he raised from Bass Day went towards keeping the magazine afloat. Robbing Peter to pay Paul perhaps. 

Good luck to all those who are owed money back.

It's far more likely to be a pickguard swap - the ad states there are two sets of holes drilled for two different pickguards - the original probably went bad and it's been replaced with another that didn't quite fit - hence the extra holes and gap at the neck. I may be wrong, but by 1969 Fender's tort was a bit darker - this one is very vibrant/red, it could be from an earlier instrument.

19 hours ago, Pow_22 said:

I know a lot of people look for authentic looking vintage fender pickguards but usually they look for the yellowy red almost lava type tort but would anyone know where i may find something like this? I believe its a 66 P bass but very much a dark red with little yellow or even depth really?

Unfortunately, outside of Spitfire, Avant Guard, Lava Guard, Reptile Guard, you're not going to find anything like that. There is nothing mass produced that looks like that. 

If you want something off the shelf rather than spending a lot on those aforementioned companies, I honestly think you'd be better off going for red pearl material rather than tort. It won't look right close up but from a distance it'll look good. Something like this attached pictures:

On 13/03/2025 at 17:55, Fil1ip said:

Query: I've subscribed since magazine one and the last one that arrived was issue 11, have anymore been delivered since? 

Also I had a look at PayPal and I've paid 14 times for 11 Magazines.

Originally it stated once a month but I don't know if this is happening? 

 

 

Same here. On their website issue 11 is the last one I can see. I used PayPal rather than bank transfer too. Might be time to start trying to claw the £21 back through PayPal.

That bass has definitely been stripped. You did see natural finish Fenders around 1972 but as far as I'm aware they all had ash bodies (this one is clearly alder) and white pickguards. 

If an advertisement begins with 'If you know, you know..' or some such variant thereof, it's a clear signal that the price of said item has been vastly elevated beyond its real worth.

I would agree with the Spitfire suggestion. Either that or one of the alternatives like Lava Pickguards or Reptile guards. The modern stuff just doesn't look right.

Alternatively, as the bass is a '74 you can always save some pennies and just put a black pickguard on it. 1974 was the very last year of Fender using tort and most '74 basses do in fact have a black guard rather than tort, so it would be historically accurate if you went that way.