Cheap bass, yet perfect? (includes bassline content)

[mcnach]

Hello, my name is Jose and I am a mod-oholic.

I rarely leave instruments alone. I must do something to them. Even if only changing the pickguard for another colour. I can't help it.

But... one bass in particular is resisting.

I bought this bass about 6 months ago. It's a Jazz bass copy by a brand called Westfield. EBay... £40 plus £10 delivery. Worth a shot. Do I like the colour? Not really. Ah, great.
But it plays and sounds great!
Supposed to have some cheap pickups on but... they're meaty, full, sound great. The bridge pickup growls like a beast.
I keep going to this bass, I think of what preamp might be nice... but after I play it for a little while I just know I have to leave it alone.
Maybe I'll strip the body one day and just give it an oil finish, I don't like that green... but I'm afraid I might destroy the "mojo"

The bass in question:




This is my cheapest bass, and the only one I don't feel like I need to change anything to it. Funny.

Ah, the bassline content...
I was just playing this bass... and this song came on... ABBA "One of us"... yeah, yeah, yeah, laugh all you want. But listen to the bassline. When it comes to the chorus... it's very simple, yet... it's got a certain "something". Me and my Westfield Jazz just had a lot of fun playing along to this a few times.
I feel my "coolness" rating falling rapidly, but I don't care

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FxUeEBU6zY"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FxUeEBU6zY[/url]

Edited November 14, 2010 by mcnach

[Ou7shined]

Cool story bro.

Here's your coat.

[Darkstrike]

Dayum, I really like that green!

[mcnach]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='938501' date='Aug 27 2010, 10:59 PM']Cool story bro.

Here's your coat.



[/quote]

I'd wear it!
(in Scotland, I could wear it in August too)

[gjones]

Hmmmmmm......I'm getting deja vu here. Didn't you post a thread about how great your cheapo OLP was recently? I wholeheartedly agree it's not the name on the headstock, how much it costs or whether it's made of plywood or platinum that matters. It's what a bass sounds like and feels like to play.

My cheapo 5th hand 2002 Squire sounds and plays better than all my other Jazzes. Like you say.....it's got the Mojo (whatever that mysterious thing is?).

[merello]

My school got some P-bass Westfields last year and it made me get my FEnder Jazz professionally set up they were so good in comparison.

[Cygnus x-1]

[quote name='Darkstrike' post='938506' date='Aug 27 2010, 11:04 PM']Dayum, I really like that green![/quote]

so do I.

[mcnach]

[quote name='gjones' post='938589' date='Aug 28 2010, 07:15 AM']Hmmmmmm......I'm getting deja vu here. Didn't you post a thread about how great your cheapo OLP was recently? I wholeheartedly agree it's not the name on the headstock, how much it costs or whether it's made of plywood or platinum that matters. It's what a bass sounds like and feels like to play.

My cheapo 5th hand 2002 Squire sounds and plays better than all my other Jazzes. Like you say.....it's got the Mojo (whatever that mysterious thing is?).[/quote]


Yep. The OLP is my favourite, played more than the Stingray or the Warwick or...

This is another example of a great one, and cheap.
I just don't write about the cheap crap ones... because they are there, oh yes.

[derrenleepoole]

[quote name='mcnach' post='938802' date='Aug 28 2010, 02:45 PM']Yep. The OLP is my favourite, played more than the Stingray or the Warwick or...

This is another example of a great one, and cheap.
I just don't write about the cheap crap ones... because they are there, oh yes. [/quote]

Just out of interest, where and when did you get your OLP and what condition was it in?

[mcnach]

[quote name='derrenleepoole' post='938828' date='Aug 28 2010, 03:14 PM']Just out of interest, where and when did you get your OLP and what condition was it in?[/quote]


I have owned 4 OLPs, and I own 3 now.

The first one was bought on eBay about 18months ago, maybe 2 years. Great condition. It's one of the late models, "squarer" edges, not as pretty, quilt-effect top. Then I had it set up, got the fingerboard edges rolled too, and it's been my main bass since, with SD pickup and preamp.

I bought a second one a few months afterwards as I liked that one so much. Ebay again. Pretty good condition. This one was an earlier model with the rounder edges and bigger bridge. The neck was a bit chunkier, the body was heavy, and it was very uninspiring. I didn't like it. I sold it on. Not good. Actually made a profit on that one.

One day last January I saw one on Gumtree, locally. A black one. It was an old model too, so I wasn't optimistic. It was a little dirty and the action was ultra high but it felt the truss rod was ok and the action was that high because of uneven frets and the owner not bothering to have it set up. Bought it. Had it set up. Lovely. Just lovely.

More recently I bought a third one, because I wanted a fretless of this style and I didn't want to do surgery on the black one. So I got an older metallic blue one on eBay for £120. Quite dirty, output jack needs attention, but rather lovely too. Frets have been levelled and dressed several times, this bass has seen some action. But plays lovely, and I'm removing the frets anyway...

I don't see these basses locally much, so eBay is a good option. I always factor doing a proper set up in any instrument I buy (if I am going to keep it), so as long as it's structurally sound, a bolt-on bass doesn't worry me if I buy it unseen.

[mcnach]

It had to happen...

I said I was a mod-oholic.

I loved the bass as it was... but I really like active options... so I just installed a John East J-retro preamp in it I bought from another basschatter.

It's... H U G E

My Stingray is safe but I just can't get over how great these preamps are. Granted, I spent nearly 3x on teh preamp as in the bass but at around £180 total is not a bad bass at all. I couldn't play it very loud tonight, but for what I could gather, it's a lot fatter, louder, clearer... and now I can really get a beautiful slap tone out of this bass, with powerful dead notes and muted hits and full bodied ringing notes...

This is ridiculous, I can't stop installing preamps on cheap basses

[Happy Jack]

I remember turning up at a jam session in West London a few years ago. The house band bassist was playing a P-bass which sounded really great.

When I asked to have a look, it turned out to be a cheap Westfield with an SD 1/4-lb pickup.

He was a good player, certainly better than me, but no prodigy. The bass was just sounding WAY better than plenty of much more expensive basses at the same jam.

[mcnach]

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='1023376' date='Nov 14 2010, 01:40 PM']I remember turning up at a jam session in West London a few years ago. The house band bassist was playing a P-bass which sounded really great.

When I asked to have a look, it turned out to be a cheap Westfield with an SD 1/4-lb pickup.

He was a good player, certainly better than me, but no prodigy. The bass was just sounding WAY better than plenty of much more expensive basses at the same jam.[/quote]


I still own another Westfield bass, it's beautiful, a nice chunk of ash for body, shaped very much like a Warwick Thumb, even teh headstock, just not curved as the Thumb. The pickups are unfortunately some horrible soapbar type and it sounds very blergh, but it feels fantastic (I bought it s/h after trying it unplugged). Pity there aren't many pickup options for that one... but one day I'll "rescue" it.
It seems that Westfield are a brand to take into acount when looking for cheapies.

I tried the Jazz last night at rehearsal finally, and if it was already good, now with the J-retro is terribly addictive. The slap tone is really amazing.
We're getting filmed tonight and I think I'm going to use the Westfield, just because I love a bit of reverse snobbery every now and then