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The holy grail - P Bass


Musicman20
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I'm a long time Precision player who currently has GAS for a Classic Ray! I honestly believe you don't need a herd of Precisions, maybe one with flats and one with rounds. IMO the main choice to make is what nut width do you prefer. I find the latest US Precisions to be a bit narrow. I like a P bass to feel like BASS so vintage 1962 spec for me - wide and shallow. I've had so many Fender Precisions that my next one I'm assembling myself with my own parts and mods - JustaNut, P Retro preamp, original '62 pups, Babicz bridge and Brazilian Rosewood neck and 1 3/4" nut. I'm not going for authenticity here but hopefully a real good 'Precision'. If I could buy an aftermarket MM bridge with mutes that would probably go on instead as I love the warmth that mutes bring to the table.

I may then sell the rest of my collection which includes a minty black/maple 79 and a Pino CS. I think I could get down to one Precision.

Though I'm looking forward to fingerfunkin on a classic Ray right now for that Chic thing.

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[quote name='jonthebass' post='1251627' date='May 31 2011, 04:21 PM']There's that lovely Alleva at Bass Gear: [url="http://www.bassgear.co.uk/products-page/alleva-coppolo1/alleva-coppolo-kbp4-limited-supreme/"]CLick here[/url]

I've tried that and it's very nice...[/quote]
At £2.5k for an ex demo I should hope it would be very nice indeed. If I had that kind of cash for a Precision I would buy me 3 American Standards and use the change for the variety of strings. That way I would have 3 distinct Precision sounds, the nice US neck and as a bonus I wouldn't have to look at that hideous, clubby Alleva headstock :)

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[quote name='Grand Wazoo' post='1251402' date='May 31 2011, 01:07 PM']You know what Gareth, you're not wrong and I agree with you wholeheartedly ( however you spell that :) ) if you've found what's good for you in a Precision bass then there's no need to look for a better one, and the only other way is to make the one you have better by fitting a "boutique" pickup like a Fralin or Lollar, Wizard or anything that is better than stock, rather than to get a new bass, after all wood is wood and at the end of the day is the electronic that maketh the sound you get out of it, and a good amp of course.

[b]See that bass in my avatar, well that middle pickup on it's own nails the bl00dy P sound down to a tee[/b] another reason why I love that old bass, it just rawks![/quote]
Cool, is it a split coil?

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[quote name='Grand Wazoo' post='1251402' date='May 31 2011, 01:07 PM']and the only other way is to make the one you have better by fitting a "boutique" pickup like a Fralin or Lollar, Wizard or anything that is better than stock[/quote]


Thats what I find strange, we all, including myself, state we love Ps, but then consider changing Pups to make it sound more P, doesn't compute really when you think about it ?

Currently considering changing the ones in my 62 RI

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[quote name='lojo' post='1251827' date='May 31 2011, 06:00 PM']Thats what I find strange, we all, including myself, state we love Ps, but then consider changing Pups to make it sound more P, doesn't compute really when you think about it ?

Currently considering changing the ones in my 62 RI[/quote]

That is because the modern pickups are not the same quality as the old vintage ones used to be, and that is why there is a market for Seymour Duncan, Lollar etc building pickups based on the exact same specs as the very first ones hand wired, & wax potted by Leo & co.

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[quote name='henry norton' post='1251701' date='May 31 2011, 04:14 PM']At £2.5k for an ex demo I should hope it would be very nice indeed. If I had that kind of cash for a Precision I would buy me 3 American Standards and use the change for the variety of strings. That way I would have 3 distinct Precision sounds, the nice US neck and as a bonus I wouldn't have to look at that hideous, clubby Alleva headstock :)[/quote]

The only person who's really demo'd this for more than a few minutes is Chuck Rainey I think :)

It has a very expensive fingerboard upgrade, I think maybe $500 - $800+.

It was genuinely priced at £3,500 so the £2,500 is the discounted price for an ex demo. Lotta cash but Jimmy's basses are seriously nice. I've thought long & hard about about buying this very one a few times but I really prefer a narrower neck profile (the '72 I have coming is more like a J bass width).

Last time I was up at BG I tried this baby out [url="http://www.bassgear.co.uk/products-page/alleva-coppolo1/alleva-coppolo-kbp4-custom-black-cherry-metallic-burst/"]http://www.bassgear.co.uk/products-page/al...metallic-burst/[/url]

Just loved it - looks really cool in the flesh and has another great fingerboard :lol:

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I had bad Precision bass GAS from 2008 till April this year, after spending approx 22 years avoiding them. I managed to get a battered MIM / Japan Precision & I forgot how good it sounded. I would love to get an American Standard next,but until then my Heinz 57 will do me fine.

The body is from a Fender Japan PB-57, & the neck is a MIM 2008 the previous owner added the active basslines Jazz pickup. My mate is going to take it out and respray it for me,I prefer the classic Precision bass look

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[quote name='Jigster' post='1251857' date='May 31 2011, 06:32 PM']anyone mentioned Ibanez yet?

Get an early Blazer bass - very affecting P bass sounds.

Mine's 1981. Original case, imported from the US, would NEVER sell.[/quote]

My very first Bass was a Blazer, they had only just been released. I dont remember how it sounded but i do remember it looked really smart.

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[quote name='LukeFRC' post='1251841' date='May 31 2011, 06:19 PM']of....
Japanese top end reissue P basses ('57, '62 or '70s models available)

over a current us standard.[/quote]

Ive tried to MIJ/CIJ route, and they are great basses, I have no doubt. I really liked my MIJ 62 Reissue P, and it was worth every penny, but the current American Standards blow away every MIJ/CIJ P bass Ive played (and thats a fair few).

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[quote name='dave_bass5' post='1251383' date='May 31 2011, 12:55 PM']A Squier CV or Matt Freeman of course (at least, in all the important area's) :)[/quote]

I'll second the Squier Matt Freeman. Just bought one myself as it was much better than the 3 or 4 American fenders I tried out at the same time.

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[quote name='molan' post='1251863' date='May 31 2011, 07:39 PM']The only person who's really demo'd this for more than a few minutes is Chuck Rainey I think :)[/quote]
HaHa! Fair enough, I suppose that's some sort of value added.

Presumably at those kind of prices the basses are essentially boutique, so you could have any neck width and board wood you wanted.

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