LeftyJ

The string spacing on these bridges is adjustable, the saddles are part threaded so you can just lay the string in another groove. So the spacing is no issue

I thought the body looked a lot like the soft maple ones on the Squier VM 70s Jazz.

That is a whole lot sexier, with the contoured body rather than slab! Lovely.

What about this gem?

I thought this model was called PB57-95. I've never seen these referred to as PB557 before, but I do know of ST557 and ST562 models (Strats). They were solely intended for the Japanese domestic market. I have no clue what the extra 5 designates.

I like that they're making crossovers from various classic Fender models, but I wish they'd do it with a little more... taste? For example, I really dig the stuff RS Guitarworks is doing with some of the classic designs, like a Jazz Bass in '50s P-bass style. Just awesome! https://rs-guitarworks.myshopify.com/collections/basses/products/contour-bass-54

I'm really liking the new Hipshot monorail bridges on those NG3's and the production D-bird. I'm looking forward to the lefty NG-2 and Combustion they'll (finally!) be releasing later this year. Can't wait to get my hands on one. I will reluctantly have to sell some stuff to be able to afford one, but I've been wanting one for years and now they'll finally be here!

Now that's something I'd like to give a try! I love the VT Bass pedal and DI.

Apparently not, or you'd have one on order by now

I'm with dannybuoy on this. Go out there and try out as many basses within your budget as you can (and maybe upward too) to get a good feel of what else is out there and what suits you best.

I use the Line6 XD-V35 for bass, and so far I'm very happy with it. It's very similar to the G30, but designed for use with a microphone (mine is the model with the same beltback as the G30, but with a clip-on mic supplied). The receiver is almost identical, with the addition of an XLR out (that I never use, though). I found it cheap, otherwise I would have gone for a G30 too. Works equally well.

Good call, especially on the lefties! They did a limited run of lefty Jazz and Precision Basses in Mystic Red and Mystic Blue a few years back, but otherwise it's always been little more than black (with white guard) and sunburst (with tort guard). And still no maple fingerboards on US-made lefty basses, even now with CITES

I've never had to deal with their customer support, but they have a great webshop where nearly every part you could imagine can be ordered. Unless it's stuff that should be replaced under warranty, I think that's absolutely great and many companies could take it as an example IMHO. (although it's usually cheaper to get the same stuff through Thomann...)

Me too, nice to see a compact, low power 1x10 combo with a tweeter for a change! But I don't really see the purpose of an external speaker out on such a small, low-power amp. I would have preferred the full 60 watts to the internal speaker rather than 45. Also interesting to see a regular 3-band EQ and no VPF / VLE. The larger combo's and all heads have a "Millerizer" EQ filter section though?

Basses: a Warwick Streamer LX5 or Ellio Martina Forza 5. Stopped bringing my Stingray 5 to gigs a few years ago. Traded it for a Status S2 Classic 5-string on this site last summer, but haven't had the pleasure of gigging with it yet as my band is lacking two important members atm. I've got several other basses, but the ones mentioned here are the ones I take to rehearsals and hopefully gigs again at some point. FX: none. I have several pedals, especially overdrives and distortions (including the mighty B7K) but live I've always favoured plug & play. Drive comes from my preamp. Amps: depending on the gig, but for the last couple of gigs with my band I brought a 4HE case with my wireless (Line6), my in-ear monitoring set (Sennheiser EW300 IEM G3), two Ampeg tube preamps (SVP-CL and SVP-PRO) and a rack tuner (Korg DTR1000), with the SVP-PRO being used and the CL as back-up. I go straight into the front desk, with an additional mono out to an EBS NeoDrome 12 serving as a floor monitor just for my bass.

Beer is tricky stuff

Yes, the same happened to the Terry Corso signature Schecter 006. The band is still going though, without Tye Zamora but instead with Tim Peugh on bass. The guy has an artist page on the Schecter website: http://www.schecterguitars.com/artists/4167-tim-peugh-alien-ant-farm

Makes me think of Jerzy Drozd too. I saw one of those "Fenders" in the flesh once at a clinic of Fender Custom Shop master builder John English years ago. It's even more hideous in person

Fender MIJ JB75 reissue with actual 70s pickup spacing - unusual! Mine has regular spacing. Great basses, I love mine. In Belgium, not sure about shipping. https://www.2dehands.be/muziek/muziekinstrumenten/basgitaar/lefty-fender-jazz-bass-1975-396191807.html

Carvin Timothy B. Schmitt (The Eagles) signature in France that has been dropping in price gradually but still remained unsold for at least a year now. Passive, with just a volume control (not even pickup pan): https://www.zikinf.com/annonces/dispannonce.php?annonce=1516669 Hideous but affordable Maruszczyk Hellwood 5, in France too: https://www.zikinf.com/annonces/dispannonce.php?annonce=1490717

It even has a Moon decal on the headstock, but something is definitely off. The angled neck pickup is very Moon, but the bridge pickup is too far from the bridge, and overall it just doesn't look "right".

Wow, that fingerboard sure is dirty. Tricky to clean too, being oiled instead of lacquered. Prabably requires sanding down a fair bit and re-oiling. Or, if you don't mind the dirt, just oil.

Being a lefty, my answers may not be particularly helpful, being a minority and all, but here goes. 1. Do you prefer buying from a music shop or online shop? I shop online for all my small accessories and tools and stuff like that. Nearly all my instruments were bought used, because music stores rarely stock anything of my interest (the odd black left handed Ibanez GSR or Squier), with a few exceptions. As much as I like to support local entrepeneurs, I'm not really attracted to any store where I'm done looking in 3 minutes because there's nothing I can play. One thing I do ocassionally buy new are amps and pedals, preferably at a store so I can test and compare. 2. Do you prefer to try before you buy? Absolutely! 3. In your experience what is missing from most music stores you have visited? Lefties , proper testing facilities (a test cabin to try instruments and amps out without being bothered or bothering someone else), and variety of brands. In my area it's nearly all Fender and Ibanez and little else. And many stores in my area aren't exactly quick to respond to trends. When Sire was up and coming, for example, it appeared as if they were for sale exclusively at big mail order stores who could stock big. And I still haven't seen any in the wild in stores in my area. People were dying to try them out, but they had to be ordered from Thomann or Bax-Shop with the risk of having to return them. 4. How far would you travel to go to music shop I am willing to travel for up to two hours if a store has something I REALLY REALLY want. I've traveled for hours by train and by car to pick up special lefty basses I wanted. But that may have had something to do with rarity, being a lefty. 5. What would attract you to a music shop ie range, price etc Atmosphere, specialty, expertise, range, certain brands.

Me playing at the Wantijpop festival in Dordrecht, the Netherlands in 2013. The buttons on my shirt are struggling a slight bit more nowadays... But I'm working on that

Ah, a reissue of the old slab-handled single-coin Precision teaspoon.