Jean-Luc Pickguard Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 (edited) I ordered this the other day to take advantage of the Fender cashback offer. It was delivered an hour or so ago, so I've not got used to it yet. It seems a lot of bass for £165. Its a beautiful candy apple red short scale squier jaguar. It feels remarkably similar to my CIJ Fender mustang, but with a satin, almost unfinished neck rather than the mustang's glossy finish. It is so light that I was initially a little worried I'd just signed for an empty box when I took it in. It seems to be lighter than my Danelectro longhorn, but when I play it unplugged I can feel the note, so its nice & resonant. I also got some GHS short scale flatwounds to go on it, but they're still in the packet (which says 'long scale plus' , but despite that they seem to be the right length). The bridge pickup is generally reckoned to be not up to much on these, but I've just tried it through an amp and although the Precision neck pickup seems fine - the volume and tone controls work fine on that one, the jazz bass bridge pickup is totally dead - nothing . I've not opened it up, so I don't know whether its the pickup, pot or wiring yet. QC everywhere else seems to be second to none - no sharp edges on the frets no buzzes or rattles , everything fits tightly. Before it came I was thinking about doing the a CTS pots / switchcraft jack upgrade and chucking in a better jazz pickup anyway at some point, but not necessarily immediately and I like single pickup basses such as precisions & mustangs. Accordingly I'm not sure whether I should send it back & risk getting it replaced with one with a perfect pickup but heavier with not so good fretwork or sort out the issue myself? Edited January 18, 2012 by Jean-Luc Pickguard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalJock Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 It seems to me that if the P pickup's working and you don't mind just using that for a while, and if you're happy doing the work on the J pick up yourself, that risking getting a poorly finished replacement would be silly, especially when it might only be a really minor problem with wiring to begin with. Also that is one hell of a nice looking instrument! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franzbassist Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 If you think it's worth keeping and a prime candidate for a wiring upgrade anyway, I'd just pop it open and diagnose the issue with the J pickup: if it's the pickup itself send it back, but if it's the wiring, keep and upgrade! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musicman20 Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Cool bass! How about asking for a replacement pup.....or asking for further discount? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Rich Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 If the rest of the bass feels good I'd be tempted to fix the problem myself, even if it needs a new pickup there are some good ones available for about £30 to £40 that'll probably allow you to customise the sound. It might work out easier than sending it back and risk getting a bass with a worse problem! No harm in asking for a discount though, although if you bought it online it might be difficult to prove to the retailer it doesn't work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean-Luc Pickguard Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 (edited) Cheers chaps. I'll probably be happy to fix it myself if its just a simple soldering job - I really don't want to risk sending it back & getting someone else's repaired one back. I've just tried it with the LMII/1212L - With the jazz pickup solo, there is actually a very tiny, almost inaudible signal through the amp and the pickup makes a deep 'thump' through the amp when it is tapped by the fingertip. Anyone seen/heard something similar happen before? Any ideas? dodgy wiring or dodgy pickup perhaps? Edited January 18, 2012 by Jean-Luc Pickguard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charic Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Could you enquire about just sending the pickup back? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkstrike Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 (edited) Probably just a bad solder joint. When I got my Fender, I freaked out because the bridge pickup wasn't working. When I opened the pickguard a little, it seemed there was a wire pinched between guard and body, I slid that back into the cavity, rescrewed the pickguard down, and it worked perfectly. Never had a moments issue since, even now, years later. Might be worth popping the control plate open and having a look, at least. Edited January 18, 2012 by Darkstrike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean-Luc Pickguard Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 bumholes! it has to go back. I'm gutted - I just found this split in the wood by where the neck is joined the body probably caused by cackhanded screwing. I hope the replacement is as light as this one. Oh well. Another week or so to wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apa Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Your going to risk getting a replacement where 1. one pup doesnt work ie no one bothered to plug it in once it was built to even see if it works or not and 2. It was built by some one who doesnt know how to use a screwdriver. Your a braver man than I * A *How long have those other 2 pages of emoticons been there?? A Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean-Luc Pickguard Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 Apart from these problems the bass is lovely, but the split is the deal-breaker. I'll just ask Thomann to check over the replacement to ensure its perfect. To let one issue past QC is unfortunate, but two is careless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Oh that sucks about the neck because I reckon angling for a new p/up or discount would've been worth it. I feel bad for you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellyfish Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Just thought i'd chip in, even though you've 'resolved' the problem. My previous bass, Ibanez BTB 475 had a similar problem. The neck pickup was fine but the bridge one, while sounding normal, had a buzzing sound when touching anything metal on the bass. So basically, if I had the bridge pickup set to full, touching the strings caused a buzz. I sent mine off for repair 3 times (and wasn't fixed on all 3 occasions). Needless to say, they have a '3 strikes and you're out' policy and i'm currently waiting for a replacement one to arrive in my hands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkstrike Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Dangm shame about the crack, hopefully the next ones a goodun' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charic Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 [quote name='ChristopherGilbert' timestamp='1326897918' post='1503377'] Just thought i'd chip in, even though you've 'resolved' the problem. My previous bass, Ibanez BTB 475 had a similar problem. The neck pickup was fine but the bridge one, while sounding normal, had a buzzing sound when touching anything metal on the bass. So basically, if I had the bridge pickup set to full, touching the strings caused a buzz. I sent mine off for repair 3 times (and wasn't fixed on all 3 occasions). Needless to say, they have a '3 strikes and you're out' policy and i'm currently waiting for a replacement one to arrive in my hands. [/quote] That sounds like it should just be the earthing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellyfish Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 (edited) [quote name='charic' timestamp='1326899613' post='1503423'] That sounds like it should just be the earthing [/quote] Well, when he explained that there was a thump from tapping it, I had a similar problem when tapping the screws on the pickup. Whether it was earthing or not, the problem persisted with mine. By the way, wonderful looking bass for that kind of money. Edited January 18, 2012 by ChristopherGilbert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 If it just been the pickup, I would have kept it...as all the others thing were so right for you, but yes, the screw bodge is the deal-breaker..shame..!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean-Luc Pickguard Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 Otis will be upset if it doesn't get replaced quickly when I send it back - its the first time he's showed an interest in any of my basses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Immo Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 [quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' timestamp='1326897292' post='1503359'] To let one issue past QC is unfortunate, but two is careless.[/quote] Damn right. I guess if everyone who gets his gear slightly faulty from the store would decide to send it back, the QC would have got more tight in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redstriper Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I'm sure there was a thread on here about someone with exactly the same pick up problem on the same model bass. Either that or I'm more psychic than I thought - which is possible considering I guessed right about your new bass in a previous post. Have you thought about swapping it for a VM mustang which only has one pick up anyway? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean-Luc Pickguard Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 [quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1326913210' post='1503729'] I'm sure there was a thread on here about someone with exactly the same pick up problem on the same model bass. [/quote] It kind of rings a bell, now you mention it or did I just succumb to the power of suggestion? [quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1326913210' post='1503729'] Have you thought about swapping it for a VM mustang which only has one pick up anyway? [/quote] My mustang requirements are met with my CIJ (until I find a 1966 daphne blue one in mint condition at a time when I have the equivalent amount going spare) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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