Wylie Posted October 14, 2010 Share Posted October 14, 2010 I went from a 55-style CIJ P-bass to a Squier 77 jazz (the new black one) and I find the neck almost too narrow at the nut. But I would disagree with the claim that you get a P-bass-like sound using only the neck pickup. It is mellow, but fairly weak, and needs the bridge pickup rolled on 3/4 of the way to give the sound a little kick--and it does kick. But the 'Duncan Designed' pickups are quite limited in what they can put out, and I am about to put a pair of Duncan Basslines Hot Jazz pickups in. No other complaints on the bass, though, and I've never played the Classic Vibe jazz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_bass5 Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 [quote name='warwickhunt' post='987313' date='Oct 13 2010, 07:28 PM']If there is 4mm difference in neck width then I certainly didn't notice it; having had both the Jazz and the Precision I'd have sworn that the neck profiles inc' width were exactly the same![/quote] My CV P just arrived and the nut is definitely 4mm wider but i had to measure it at least twice as it does indeed feel the same as the CV Jazz. Very strange and i too would never had thought it was different. In a way this si good as im already at home on it, bu ti was hoping for a challenge so i could conquer my issues with wider P necks. First impressions were yuck, what a horrible colour. This was the one thing thats put me off getting one for ages. But as soon as i plugged it in to my Korg Pandora (in the toilet at work no less) a big smile spread across my face. Its sounds fantastic. Im sure its just the P tone as ive been playing Jazz basses this year but its the tone ive been missing. set up seems really good, although i will change the strings tonight so might have to do another set up on it. Fit is good, there is a tiny bit of paint flaking off the body under the heal, right on the edge, but im not going to worry about that (road worn already, bonus). The pup is leaning forward. Im not sure if thats a problem or not but as it sounds great, and string to string volume seems good, ill leave it for now. So again, a Squier out of the box seems better made than the MIA's i had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 [quote name='dave_bass5' post='995015' date='Oct 20 2010, 04:22 PM']First impressions were yuck, what a horrible colour.[/quote] Which one did you get blue or red? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_bass5 Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 [quote name='ezbass' post='995025' date='Oct 20 2010, 04:31 PM']Which one did you get blue or red?[/quote] Well, it says Red on the box but its a bit washed out. I went for this because i like the HM bridge but it seems the Blue one also has this now. I guess its not really that bad, and a PG change will improve it, although for the life of me i cant imagine what colour i would get that goes with fiesta Red. Ill boot up Photoshop at some point and get some ideas but its probably going to be black. Im sur ei have my old 80's mirror PG at home still, maybe ill try that on it :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 I much, much prefer the red one to the blue, plus the red one (I know what you mean about the washed out look) comes with a tort p/g, instant Pino on a budget. I was very impressed with the playability of a blue one I tried a good while back, drop a quality p/up in it and you're good to go I reckon, not that the p/up it comes with is bad, but it's no Lindy Fralin (or your preference of upgrade P p/up). Now all we need Squier to do is bring out a 5 string version! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raslee Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 +1 for the CV's, I owned a VM jazz and it looked nice, but in my opinion it didn't play aswell as the CV jazz's do. Have you tried a CV 51p (The blue one) - i've got one of these and it is amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_bass5 Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 (edited) If i could afford a Fralin i would definitely put that in but i really cant afford a pup that costs half of what the bass costs. I sold one on here earlier this year that i got for my Duck Dunn and i really regret it now. Im probably going to go for either a Fender 62RI, a vintage (as used in their MIAs') or a Wizard Thumper. Ill get a few gigs under my belt with it first. It sounds pretty deep already. I do like the red better than the blue, but White or Black would be so much better. I would have said it was more Salmon red than Fiesta but i dont really know what Fiesta is supposed to look like unless the CV P is spot on. What a year its been. Started off with a DJ5 but sold it pretty quickly, then went back to my HW-1 Jazz, then traded that for a Sub and at the same time got a Duck Dunn. Then sold the Sub and got a Ray34. Sold the DD and used the Ray34 for a few months. Sold that and got a CV Jazz. Tried to get a MIA and ended up with another HW-one Jazz, and now ive gone back to a plain old cheap P. And at the same time ive had the same two bass rigs for 4-5 years. It never ends. Edited October 20, 2010 by dave_bass5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_bass5 Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 (edited) [quote name='Rasta' post='995088' date='Oct 20 2010, 05:01 PM']+1 for the CV's, I owned a VM jazz and it looked nice, but in my opinion it didn't play aswell as the CV jazz's do. Have you tried a CV 51p (The blue one) - i've got one of these and it is amazing.[/quote] i must admit that although i really loved my CV Jazz when i first got it, it doesn't give me the Jazz tone i wanted. My HW-one has much more growl and punch to it. Thats not to say the CV J isnt a good bass, its just not the tone i wanted/expected. Ive not tried the CV 50P. I just wanted a standard P tone for now. I will try one one day though but im not sure how different the tone is to a Jazz with just the neck pup on. Its some thing ill look in to when the time comes. Edited October 20, 2010 by dave_bass5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_bass5 Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Oh, and for the record, it weighs exactly 8.5lbs so its pretty light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warwickhunt Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 [quote name='dave_bass5' post='995110' date='Oct 20 2010, 05:19 PM']Oh, and for the record, it weighs exactly 8.5lbs so its pretty light.[/quote] is that 8 point 5lb (ie 8lb 8oz) or 8lb 5oz? How come whenever I ask about the weight of these people all seem to say less than 8 1/2lb yet everyone that I've weighed has been between 9-10lb... and yes I've had my scales checked! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_bass5 Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 (edited) [quote name='warwickhunt' post='995147' date='Oct 20 2010, 05:55 PM']is that 8 point 5lb (ie 8lb 8oz) or 8lb 5oz? How come whenever I ask about the weight of these people all seem to say less than 8 1/2lb yet everyone that I've weighed has been between 9-10lb... and yes I've had my scales checked! [/quote] Yes. 8 1/2 lbs (8lb 8 oz). It feels like a toy lol. I did this on our post scales at work so its pretty accurate. My CV Jazz is 9.1lbs but this was on our bathroom scales at home, ill re check it tonight. After some more playing, and going back to my CV Jazz i can now definitely feel a difference. Not a big deal and one i hoped for as this will help me get to grip with P necks again. Edited October 20, 2010 by dave_bass5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webby Posted October 27, 2010 Author Share Posted October 27, 2010 Had 20 mins in a shop today where I tried out a VM Jaguar, a VM Jazz, and a VM Precision. They all felt nice, and easy to play, although I thought the Jag had a bit of neck dive, but I didn't try it with a strap, or stood up. The jag had a problem with the controls actually. The concentric stacked VOL/TONE controls were sticking, so when I changed the tone, the vol changed. I was careful not to touch the vol control. The guy in the shop reckoned that the vol is disengaged when you turn the tone pot but I proved to him that wasn't the case. I think I read somewhere on here about this being an issue, but it being easy to fix. I can't find the post in question now. Other than that, I didn't really have much time to judge the sound of the basses. I was just getting a feel for them really. Before I left though, the guy suggested I try a Bass Collection Jazz Bass. It was what he uses and he claimed that he was very happy with it and in particular, felt the pups were really good. I don't know anything about the Bass Collection brand, so any more info would be great. Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Circle_of_Fifths Posted October 27, 2010 Share Posted October 27, 2010 [quote name='webby' post='1003076' date='Oct 27 2010, 02:04 PM']Had 20 mins in a shop today where I tried out a VM Jaguar, a VM Jazz, and a VM Precision. They all felt nice, and easy to play, although I thought the Jag had a bit of neck dive, but I didn't try it with a strap, or stood up. The jag had a problem with the controls actually. The concentric stacked VOL/TONE controls were sticking, so when I changed the tone, the vol changed. I was careful not to touch the vol control. The guy in the shop reckoned that the vol is disengaged when you turn the tone pot but I proved to him that wasn't the case. I think I read somewhere on here about this being an issue, but it being easy to fix. I can't find the post in question now. Other than that, I didn't really have much time to judge the sound of the basses. I was just getting a feel for them really. Before I left though, the guy suggested I try a Bass Collection Jazz Bass. It was what he uses and he claimed that he was very happy with it and in particular, felt the pups were really good. I don't know anything about the Bass Collection brand, so any more info would be great. Cheers.[/quote] When I got my VM-Jaguar, it was still in the box and I opened it and the first thing I got from my buddy who works at the store was a blank stare. The I told him to plug it in and he was floored at the growl and sheer power of the p'ups on it when he played it. I also have a VM-Jazz and a Fender Deluxe Jazz which is, of course, active for p'up comparison. The P I've done some 'work' on isn't fair competition though so I usually leave it out of any p'up-v-p'up contests. [b]Pound for pound[/b] - the p'ups on the VM-Jag sound like an active system as they are so powerful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webby Posted October 28, 2010 Author Share Posted October 28, 2010 I think the guy turned the amp up a bit when he plugged in the Bass Collection bass. Can you give me some info about the vol/tone control issue? Is it easy to fix? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webby Posted October 28, 2010 Author Share Posted October 28, 2010 I also realise now that the Bass Collection bass must've been a Bass Collection Jive bass but with the bridge guard taken off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Circle_of_Fifths Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 [quote name='webby' post='1003308' date='Oct 28 2010, 12:16 AM']Can you give me some info about the vol/tone control issue? Is it easy to fix?[/quote] If this is to me and about the Jag knobs - you can re-adjust the height of the lower knob by resetting it in a slightly lower position on the shaft. You need to compress the flat spring under the Tone knob a little to get the detents to work correctly and to stop dragging around the Volume knob. The knobs should not touch each other. The knob is held onto the shaft with a tiny setscrew and it is really simple to fix. It seems that 1) the factory misses the correct position a few times out of a dozen or so, or 2) the set screw isn't snug enough to hold and the knob slips upward toward the Volume knob on the same concentric shaft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
webby Posted October 28, 2010 Author Share Posted October 28, 2010 Nice one Joe. I'll remember that and tell the shop too. I assume yours has been trouble free since you sorted it? Hasn't slipped back up at all? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.