LeftyJ

*cough* I'd say boutique guitars and basses are very much alive though. There are many great luthiers out there who are doing really well for themselves. I feel that especially high end Fender-derivatives are selling VERY well, but the exotic wood coffee table is still very much a thing too.

Good, because so far I think I've only bought g**t*r gear in 2025, and... *shudders* ...sold a bass! I can change, I swear! It was a fretless acoustic that I haven't used since 2015, so to be fair it was about time.

Seconded. I loved my Hohner B2A, it was a full longscale bass but supercompact and easy to carry around. The ergonomics of having the upper strap button behind the 21st fret were a bit weird, but that's easily resolved with a simple mod. Only sold it because I had too many 4-strings and could use the money towards a new car or I would still have it. The Spirit version should be available used within your budget.

A major difference between the 300 and 400 series was that the 400 had 24 frets, and a more compact bridge with the humbucker moved further back. The body was indeed more compact because of the deeper cutaways. Some later twin-pickup ATK's switched back to the old bridge, but it placed the pickups really close together because of that.

Yes, this is a Bullet. The model has been renamed the "Classic" a few years ago. The soapbar pickup would indeed give it the addition "Booster" (now renamed to Classic Booster). The Basic has a stubbier, shorter upper horn than the Bullet.

Came here to say this I've seen one of the two made in the flesh, at a Fender Custom Shop clinic in the Netherlands. Master builder John English was there to take the audience through their relicing process, which was really informative and interesting, and they had some cool Custom Shop instruments on display. One of those was the Tye Zamora bass.

Occupy Basschat!

That's pretty cool! However, the basses were never called RG but RD (Roadbass series). This one looks based on the RD727. I've seen guitar versions in this finish before (the RG760 Feline and the even more rare US Custom Shop Golden Feline) but never the bass! Pretty cool

True, they're "regular" Nordstrand Big Splits but with a wider spacing to match that of the EHB and to compensate for the fanning. They still use a standard soapbar casing for the sake of being able to change them out without having to do routing though. Swapping pickups is most definitely still a thing, although I haven't heard of many people who weren't happy with their Nordstrands

As much as these make sense aesthetically and ergonomically, that would make them just about impossible to replace with anything else when the tone doesn't suit the user. Using regular soapbar pickups makes much more sense because the pickups are easily interchangeable - since many soapbar sizes are standardised and used by several manufacturers. That said, there are some manufacturers who give their soapbars a little notch for your thumb (Yamaha did this on some RBX models, and Ibanez on the SRX series pickups, and Delano does it on those weird oval pickups of theirs) and then there's Dingwall who give the ends of their soapbars a curve so there's always a small area pointing "up". None of these use standard sizes.

I love it! Glad it turned out to be everything you hoped for, it looks fantastic.

I was today years old when I learned this site does in fact have signatures - and I have just switched the option on to make them visible.

Ha! Today I learned

Yes, I believe they did a series of these in the E-serial period (1984-1987). I've always wanted one. I once found one local to me. I made an offer and the seller accepted, but between all emails he got about the bass he lost mine and he sold it to someone else. I found out from their NBD thread on a Dutch forum Those 1980s MIJ Fenders and Squiers are fantastic. I have little experience with the basses, but a 1985 E-series Squier Strat has been my number one for many years. Best €175 I ever spent.

The Bunker tension-free neck comes to mind. Ibanez had them make the USRG and USATK series with this neck tech, and Bunker has been building guitars and basses with this neck since the 1970's. They use a construction method where a steel rod holds all the string tension, while a wooden "shell" around it makes for a traditional feeling and playing instrument:

I hear it's in dire need of a meme thread!

This thread should come with a NSFW warning, for that neck alone! Wow

I'm definitely holding on to both my S2 Classics. My 5-string headless has been my go-to for the last couple of years. Music Man prices are already going up. I remember all too well when you paid used Fender money for one but they've gone up ridiculously. I paid €900 for my 2003 Stingray 5 in 2009, and then traded it for my 5-string S2 Classic + 100 GBP in 2017. I got lucky with my Music Man Silhouette Special for €1300 in 2023, I'm seeing them for around €1800 now

It was a huge departure from the original Fender Dimension bass from the early 00s. I never understood why they kept that name around when it was originally on a bass as ugly as this:

It always seemed strange to me these were called the RGB, when in a way they were a reissue of the EXB series from the 90s.

This guy: LeftyBassist.com • View topic - Multiple basses for sale

Came here to say this. Rotary speaker indeed: It's the middle amp that gets my GAS going though Appears to be a Magnatone 260.

Following Quite curious about this myself, mostly for being unable to put it to the test as a lefty. When I walk into a store I should be happy if they even have a Squier I can play. It's been 15 years since I last played a Mexican Standard Jazz Bass and I've NEVER played a recent US-made Fender Bass in my life. I have owned several MIJ and CIJ Fenders and Squiers, but buying two very recent US-made Fender g**t*rs recently has changed my perception on the brand somewhat - I still think they're overpriced but they're really, really good. FSR can be anything with Fender, be it Mex, Jap or US. I recall a cool MIM Jazz Bass in natural ash which were well-received, and several US models in limited edition finishes (like Sea Foam Green). What do you have?