basshead56

I've had two of these (at different periods) in my time.

Bought relatively cheap and sold relatively cheap.

Both were oly white and both were incredibly nice instruments.

Only sold the last one when I got a a 78 Precision in the same colour scheme, which weighs the same as a small dwelling.

Probably should have kept it anyways.

Don't think you will be disappointed if you end up pulling the trigger on it

Here's a pic with one from back in the day.

Note the presence of hair and the absence of a second chin...

The Jule Simone 500w amp might be a worthwhile contender

I have a 97 American Deluxe P and I adore it!!!!

I also have a US Stingray, A US SUB and a US Darkray and I can categorically say that the humbucker in the bridge position on the Am. Deluxre P sounds NOTHING like a Musicman.

In theory there is some similarity between the two, but in terms of sound, they are very very different. The P doesn't have that Ray 'Zing' (I call it the gurgle, lol).

It is definitely a humbucker and has a wonderful tone all of it's own, just not as hot or throaty as the Ray sound, even with everything boosted. I watched a review of a Meteora recently and it sort of reminded me of the P's bridge pickup -perhaps they are similar units/preamps...? Now that I think of it, I saw the The Breeders play in Christchurch in January and Josephine Wiggs had a Meteora on stage for most of the set (Kim Deal used it on Gigantic to close the set) and it definitely sounded quite similar, not sure if one of the pickups was solo'd or not.

It does also sound stunning when blended in with the P pickup to give it a real 'P-on-Steroids' feel, but yeah, totally different vibes.

I mainly use passive Fender basses with one band I play in, mostly P's and when I record, I often use the Deluxe (though I may start favoring my newly-acquired 2004 QMT AM DLX Jazz for this soon - we'll see - horses for courses, as they say) to give me a bit more oomph/clarity. 

I use Rays and my Aria live with a heavier band I play in and find they sit perfectly in the mix for what I need them to do - mostly cranked and clanking through my Darkglass/dUg rig.

I've only played Bongos a couple of times and both were 5-strings - not my forte sadly, so can't comment too much on them based on that, other than to say I would happily own a 4 string. The shape is a little 'kooky' for my tastes typically, but there is just something so unique about the look of them. And I am given to understand they are excellent all-rounders, given their controls and tonal versatility etc.

I guess it all comes down to use - is the Bongo going to fit the bill better than the Precision Deluxe? Is one going to be a better all-rounder than the other? Is there a particular tone you want to have? etc. etc.

My 40th birthday prezzy to myself a 60th Anniversary Road Worn Jazz in Firemist Silver

Visiting family in Ireland and happened upon this on a site.

Just back from a 4hr round trip to pick it up and all I can say is... wow.

What a beautiful instrument.

23 minutes ago, BassmanPaul said:

You'd definitely need an underwire Bra to hold that rack safely! 😊

 

I actually have a smaller rack that has lots of lovely padding...

Sadly, neither my rack (i believe she uses a lovely EBS set up) 😋, nor my skill- set are anywhere near as impressive as Tal's.🤣🤣

11 hours ago, BassmanPaul said:

You'll get tired of toting that rack pretty quick! LOL

 

It's pretty light. And the intention is to leave it at the rehearsal space.

I finally managed to complete my doom rack!

Found a bloke in the USA that makes rack mounts for Darkglass 900 series amps.

Took a couple of weeks to get it (thanks NZ post) but damn this guy does good work.

Well built and a full set of installation hardware and comprehensive installation instructions.

Absolutely delighted with this.

Just need a better footswitch for the amp - either the Super Intelligent or the new Midi (if they ever arrive)

21 hours ago, binky_bass said:

Welcome to the club mate.

The VBA is an absolute MONSTER!!!

I'm lucky enough to have two matching VBC412s. On the subject of gigging it:

I remember not long after I took a 4hr road trip with my best mate/our band's sound engineer to buy the rig (it was all in flight cases too, which i still have), we got offered a chance to play in a circus big top for a festival slot. My mate turned to me and said "I flat out refuse to do sound foryou guys unless you bring the whole VBA rig!"

Cut to a couple of quite cross roadies wheeling the heavy b'strd in and me looking a bit sheepish... But an hour later on stage, I was grinning like a Cheshire cat as my trouser legs were flapping gloriously.

 

21 hours ago, binky_bass said:

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah, I doubt I'll ever gig the Marshall, I might once just for the sake of it, but the Epifini UL901 and Bergantino 410 cab are probably going to be the 'gig rig'. Easy enough to move about. 

 

The Marshall is an amp I've always wanted, so when it came up (with the cabs) for a pretty irresistible price, and at a location on the way home from a business trip, I wasn't strong enough to resist!

Can't say I found the fan to be particularly noisy.

I was aware it was on but certainly not excessive.

And not aware of any DI issues. I only used the DI on the amp a couple of times as i usually preferred to take a line out of whatever pre I was using

Definitely consider the Micro VR head to go with the two 210 cabs.

I had this exact rig for a few years and it was genuinely epic! it could handle jusr about any situation and certainly never felt as small as it was/underpowered.

I would happily have another one if I could somehow justify it, but seeing as how my pF800 rig barely even gets switched on at the moment, kinda hard to...

Come to think of it, the only reason i moved mine on was i wasn't gigging enough and i was playing more upright at the time.

If you're committed to going the Ampeg route, consider a PF series head (500 or 800) and a matching cab.

Or even the rocket 500 combo - great tone, feature set and portability.

No, I'm pretty sure they were Fender-specific - the 50th anniversary of the founding of Fender (1946)

Come to think of it, I have a 97 American Deluxe Precision with the same sticker on the back of the tip of the headstock (build date was Jan 97).

I also have a 2006 American Standard Precision with the Diamond 60th sticker on the back.

They are all Fender anniversaries as opposed to anything else and any guitars within the Squier or wider Fender realm would/should have the same.

The 40th Anniversary Squier models relate specifically to Squier being re-launched as a brand/line of instruments in late 83/84, essentially marking the birth of the Squier we know and love today.

My little brother had a Squier Affinity Rock Pack (strat and front man 15g amp) and the guitar had the Fender 50th anniversary sticker on the back of the headstock. That would have been around 96 or 97.

My first bass was a Yamaha RBX 174

My mum bought it for me when I was in high school.

It was a lovely gloss black with PJ pickups and a rosewood neck. The action was horrendous, you could park a bus between the strings and fretboard and the G tuning machine head was loose from day one and rattled/buzzed.

But it was good enough to learn on. I covered it in stickers that seemed cool at the time.

When I passed my exams and got into uni, mum bought me my first Fender. It was an Olympic White standard series Jazz with a rosewood board. I can still remember going to get it from the shop she bought it from (was a two hour bus trip on a cold Saturday morning).

Both of those basses were what got me started. I've had dozens come and go over the years but could never let them go.

I had all of my gear shipped out from Ireland when I moved to New Zealand permanently. However, I decided to keep both of those basses at home, in my old room. Kinda like a safety net lol.

Sadly we lost mum suddenly in 2021 and I couldn't get home cause of the NZ borders being shut and all this covid nonsense... which was incredibly difficult.

But since then I've been incredibly lucky to have my son arrive. And at 18 months old,  he's already obsessed with guitars 🤣

My wife, son and I are heading back to Ireland later this month. my first trip home in 5 years. I'm very excited for my son to meet his grandfather, uncle, aunt and cousins etc.

But a little part of me (probably my inner greasy teenager) is also keen to run up the stairs to my old room, pull out those musty old cases from undernearh my bed and play those gorgeous old basses once again and remember the good old days. ❤️

There will no doubt be some pics at some stage

Now that I've got a decent pair again, decided to get em out...

2011 American Standard Jazz and my newly-acquired 2004 American Deluxe QMT Jazz

Both remind me that no matter how much I am mostly a P or Ray guy these days, I do love a good Jazz.

Still on the hunt for a nice passive model with a rosewood board. Maybe like an American Vintage or something...

I really need help!

An opportunity to get my greasy mits on something I've wanted for 20+ yrs came up and I couldn't say no.

Especially considering there aren't many of them around these days and certainly not in New Zealand.

It cost me my beloved first run CIJ Jaguar and a bit of cash but once I saw that beautiful quilted amber maple top, honestly, it was worth it!!!

It is an absolute SUPER Jazz, in every sense.

it is pretty tidy all over, save for a couple of tiny nicks and the tones are simply astounding. It can pretty much do it all, with ease.

Only issue is the pickup pan knob is a little scratchy so will give it all a once over later.

But yeah, pretty darn happy!!!

2024 ain't bad so far

ok I'll take a punt and say teal counts as green. So that makes my green bass count 3.

An EBMM SUB in Teal

A Jackson Minion in Neon (just sold it)

And my new Squier Rascal in Sherwood

5 or more Strings. Bass VI doesn't count

Weird shaped, high end custom jobs with ugly curves and horrible wood finishes. 

Most Ibanez basses

Headless basses that aren't Steinberger or Kubicki.

Maple boards on Jazz basses (I do own one though 🤣🤣🤣)

Chinese knock-offs. Stop bringing them in and letting dodgy people try and pass them off as real when on-selling and conning folk. (hasn't happened to me or anyone I know but you do read about it more these days)

I think the Meteora looks hideous.

Ok I feel lighter now. This is a great form of therapy 🤣🤣🤣

I picked up an Aria CB1000 about 18 months ago and it's been my go-to since then. Absolutely adore it. Sounds massive!!!!! Feels like a much, much more expensive instrument. Easily one of the nicest basses ive ever owned. Im on the lookout for a second one now as a backup.

And a red Pro Ii CSB is still on the must-have  list.

Been playing mine quite a bit for the last couple of weeks. So far i think it sounds best with my SVT-CL and VBA400 rigs. The extra headroom and heft from the tubes really make those pickups sing.

Takes a bit to dial in some different tones but it absolutely nails the Thunderbird sound. I've ab'd with my Tbird Studio IV and can get it pretty much identical to that.

Pretty darn happy with it so far. Sits really well on a strap too.

Will take it round to the rehearsal room this week and try it out with the DG AO900 and 8x10 cab there and see how it handles OD/Fuzz.

Still haven't sussed a case yet though. It's a massive body and wont fit anything bar one of my older G&G Fender cases.

11 minutes ago, Lozz196 said:

Hubba hubba, Marshall making Ampeg look positively tiny there. Am very envious, having heard a couple of bands use the full VBA stacks they are immense, VBC412 my fave ever cab.

It is an absolute monster.

And that is reflected in the weight! Weapons-grade touring rig but definitely need roadies to move the thing! I have got flight cases for the whole rig aswell and it takes up half the garage! haha.

But it is an Ampeg-killer too. Seriously grunty and ridiculous headroom.

I adore the 4x12s too

Who doesn't love a tidy threesome...

I've still got my ebony Thunderbird Studio IV. Had a matching Studio V too at one point but not a 5 string player so .

It definitely keeps the Tbird GAS at bay. Though I do find myself lusting after an Epi Vintage Pro in white.

Fortunately, my new new Squier Rascal is the best Tbird ever!

This is the most recent group pic of all my P Basses.

Though it's a few years old.

From top:

77 in Lake Placid Blue sparkle

79 in Sunburst (just sold it last month)

78 in Siennaburst

78 in Olympic White

73 in Black

97 American Deluxe in trans crimson red

04 OBP51 refin in Trans Ash Blonde (just sold this a couple of weeks ago)

03 Mark Hoppus sig in Shell Pink

06 American Standard S1 in Sunburst

sorry about the Jazzes photo bombing 

This is Heidi, my 77 Precision.

I bought her sight-unseen online from the other side of the planet before I moved to NZ for what was then going to be a one year working holiday. She was waiting for me when I got off the plane.

13 years later, she is still my absolute favourite.

Professionally refinished by the original owner some time in the early 90's in Sparkling Lake Placid Blue (maybe a shade lighter than LPB) and the pickup was also swapped out for a SD SPB3.

I'm told this had nothing to do with Mr 'arris...

She is quite heavy but definitely not the heaviest 70's P I've ever owned or played.