Thinking of making a Fender Jazz 5 string from parts, advice please!

[Zak Tozer]

Well, I've wanted an American Deluxe for a while but as we all know they come at quite a price, and being a student with barely enough money to afford travel I know I am going to be waiting a while longer before I can afford one and although I love my current bass I just feel as if I want a change, something more satisfying with a [u]wider range of tones.[/u]


So today I started thinking about maybe making my own high quality one out of parts, which I like the idea of as I can customise it myself from scratch without having to buy the already very expensive american deluxe and deciding that I want to change things afterward, and in the meantime I can continue playing my current bass until it is finished/playable.
But as I am not very experienced at this kind of stuff I thought it was best to ask my questions on here where there are allot of pros that might be able to share some knowledge.

So what I have got in mind so far:

[b]Fender Squier Deluxe Active V 5 string [/b][u]body[/u] but swap out the electrics with an[b]Aguilar[/b] [u]preamp/pickups/circuitboard[/u] doo da (when I have the money to buy it). Knobs being for Master volume, Pickup blend, 3 band EQ and then swapping the switch from a slap switch to a [u]Passive/Active switch[/u]. Unless is it possible to keep the slap switch and have a push/pull active/passive switch on the volume knob or something..? (enlighten me, I don't know much about the on-board preamp/circuitboard systems just know that I really dig the tone of the Aguilar ones). Ideally I want Active circuitry, I'd just really like to have the option of passive when I want it too.
Does anyone have any experience with the Squier Deluxe V body's? Are they heavy, or a comfortable weight?

[u]I'm not sure whatneck yet[/u] but I had something like the [b]American Deluxe[/b] one or [b]Marcus Miller[/b] one in mind. What are peoples opinions/favourite 5 string Fender necks? Will any one fit on the squier body or not?

[u]I'm not sure what tuners and bridge yet[/u], any suggestions?


If you know what you're talking about on this stuff or have any comments about any of the things I have mentioned, I would really appreciate any feedback whether it's positive or negative so please write back!

Thank you for taking the time

[Owen]

Most stuff comes up on here if you wait long enough. I did the same and picked all of it apart from the woodwork up on here. It is just a waiting game. I have Fralin J5 pickups I picked up (just in case I did not like the Nord pickups I also picked up ) up for sale now. It will all slowly add up, but it is a lot of fun

[6v6]

I guess you may be set on a project, but if cost is the main motivation, have you considered just getting a new or used Squier complete, then getting a good setup and modding it over time when funds allow?

Or getting jazz-ish something which is good but unpopular used (e.g something like an Ibanez SR)?

FWIW I've done the parts-build thing, and unless you're very lucky and/or patient you're unlikely to beat the price of even a new Squier let alone a used one.

[3below]

Be aware of the narrow string spacing that will result. My 5 string Warwick Rockbass is up for sale locally for the simple reason I could not manage the narrow string spacing. As mentioned above the cost of parts can easily exceed buying a bass.

[SubsonicSimpleton]

Four strings are good for bitsa builds, 5 strings not so much (less choice of parts, and what is available is much more expensive). If something like a Squier VM 5 isn't good enough for you, just save the cash and buy a Fender deluxe 5 secondhand, you won't save any money attempting to build a 5 from bits.

[Mr Anthony]

I did a 4 string bitsa Precision that came in around £330ish. Could have saved more if I didn't buy some of that parts new. Like people have said, it's a waiting game. The right parts will come up eventually, and being a student myself I know what you mean with the money. And a parts build is appealing.

Personally, I wish I had bought a Squier and modded it over time, but building was fun and I got a good result.

Sup to you though. It all depends what you want to get out of it I guess. Modding will be fun, as will building. But price is always a deciding factor.

[Zak Tozer]

Thanks for the responses guys, I'm starting to sway towards buying a Squier Deluxe new or second hand and modding it over time.

What are peoples opinions on the Squier Deluxe's? Do they offer good tonal variety? Are they heavy? Do they play nicely and what is the string spacing like? Has anyone else modified one? I would love to hear from you if you have any experience with them

[6v6]

Not quite the same as the Squier, but I've played the Modern Player Jazz (not the 5er though), and it was good, although fairly heavy. If you want tonal variety that one has it (more so than a typical jazz) due to the humbuckers and switchable coil tap.

[Huge Hands]

I have 2x Squier P5's which are basically jazz pups in a precision body. I bought both second hand for £100 each and modded both - one just new pickups, the other with a re-routed body and added a P set of EMGs, new pickguard etc. Little did I know that if I'd waited 7 years, Squier would produce a 5 string P with split coils!

It depends on whether you want something good for cheap, in which case follow the advice above, or if you want to have a go at modding and not be too upset if it goes really wrong. My advice would be to do this when you have a gigging bass to fall back on if it does go wrong.

My last comment would be that pickup casings can be different sizes, so make sure you measure in all directions (including the screw holes) when working out if a replacement pickups will fit. This is especially the case with 5 strings, when they use everything from 4 string to 6 string pickups in some basses!

Edited September 29, 2014 by Huge Hands

[Rumple]

[quote name='Huge Hands' timestamp='1411980264' post='2564432']

My last comment would be that pickup casings can be different sizes, so make sure you measure in all directions (including the screw holes) when working out if a replacement pickups will fit. This is especially the case with 5 strings, when they use everything from 4 string to 6 string pickups in some basses!
[/quote]

I'd add to that by saying not all Fender/Squier neck pockets are the same size either.

I had a Squier WMJ 5 that was very good and only about £150 second hand.

[41.2Hz]

Just saw this in the Basses for Sale forum

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/244644-fs-squier-jazz-deluxe-5-string-active-mint/"]http://basschat.co.uk/topic/244644-fs-squier-jazz-deluxe-5-string-active-mint/[/url]

[Zak Tozer]

[quote name='41.2Hz' timestamp='1412066370' post='2565225']
Just saw this in the Basses for Sale forum

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/244644-fs-squier-jazz-deluxe-5-string-active-mint/"]http://basschat.co.u...ng-active-mint/[/url]
[/quote]

Thanks Mike!