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Squier CV or Vintage V4


thegummy

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I want to buy a second P Bass so I can have flats and rounds available without restringing and also so I have a cheaper P to take to band practice without having to take my main Fender.

It's between the new Squier CV (not the older one that is hyped, the new Indonesia version) and a Vintage V4.

Anyone able to offer any wisdom and/or advice to help with my decision?

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I’ve had a CV, good basses, got a V4 Tony Butler, great bass. If you like slimmer necks I’d go CV, if you like medium go regular V4, if you like a real chunker get the Tony Butler.

Additionally the Vintage V4 TB to me just feels more substantial, it just has a real reassuring feel to it. It’s the nearest bass I’ve found to my US Standards in feel, playability and sound.

And lastly there are a couple of V4s up for grabs on here at the moment at very good prices, serious amount of instrument for what they’re up for.

Edited by Lozz196
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1 hour ago, Lozz196 said:

I’ve had a CV, good basses, got a V4 Tony Butler, great bass. If you like slimmer necks I’d go CV, if you like medium go regular V4, if you like a real chunker get the Tony Butler.

Additionally the Vintage V4 TB to me just feels more substantial, it just has a real reassuring feel to it. It’s the nearest bass I’ve found to my US Standards in feel, playability and sound.

And lastly there are a couple of V4s up for grabs on here at the moment at very good prices, serious amount of instrument for what they’re up for.

Lozz196 knows what he's talking about.

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11 hours ago, hooky_lowdown said:

No, the V4 has a bigger range, from the ICON series which is vintage in feel and tone, to the STANDARD series which is more modern sounding.

Ah really?

I thought the icon just meant it was "reliced". So the V4s that don't have icon in the name have different pickups?

Hotter?

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2 hours ago, thegummy said:

Ah really?

I thought the icon just meant it was "reliced". So the V4s that don't have icon in the name have different pickups?

Hotter?

Yes, they have different spec. From things I've read the newer ones with the painted headstock have hotter pups than the others.

If you decide on the V4 than try a few out, this goes for any bass really. Some will feel and sound better to you than others, but the consistent is that you know all will be well made and spec'd.

All the CVs hardware is made in china, and most will agree while the Wilkinson hardware may also be made in china, it's of very decent quality.

If we knew what style or kinds of music you want the p bass for, we can help narrow down your search?

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1 hour ago, hooky_lowdown said:

Yes, they have different spec. From things I've read the newer ones with the painted headstock have hotter pups than the others.

If you decide on the V4 than try a few out, this goes for any bass really. Some will feel and sound better to you than others, but the consistent is that you know all will be well made and spec'd.

All the CVs hardware is made in china, and most will agree while the Wilkinson hardware may also be made in china, it's of very decent quality.

If we knew what style or kinds of music you want the p bass for, we can help narrow down your search?

Play different kinds of music but nothing metal or anything - classic rock and softer.

Not sure if any shops here stock the vintage v4 range so might just have to buy blindly online.

I wouldn't want hot pickups but defo wouldn't want the fake relic so the icon is out.

The vintage is significantly cheaper than the CV so am leaning towards that.

Is everything standard sized like the squier would be, e.g. Normal p pickups can be put in?

I had a look for the ones on here but the only one I could find was the miles away, always seems to be the case.

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1 hour ago, hooky_lowdown said:

 

All the CVs hardware is made in china

is it ?

the machine heads seem to be exactly the same as the MIM, so maybe Korean made - Fender won't ever say what is made where except for the parts available with part numbers in packets that they sell afaics but quite a lot of that is Korean

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1 hour ago, Aidan63 said:

is it ?

the machine heads seem to be exactly the same as the MIM, so maybe Korean made - Fender won't ever say what is made where except for the parts available with part numbers in packets that they sell afaics but quite a lot of that is Korean

Yes, the parts are Chinese and the CVs are made in china. Fender MIM hardware is also made in China and shipped to Mexico for assembly, explains why they seem the same to you! 

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1 hour ago, thegummy said:

Play different kinds of music but nothing metal or anything - classic rock and softer.

Not sure if any shops here stock the vintage v4 range so might just have to buy blindly online.

I wouldn't want hot pickups but defo wouldn't want the fake relic so the icon is out.

The vintage is significantly cheaper than the CV so am leaning towards that.

Is everything standard sized like the squier would be, e.g. Normal p pickups can be put in?

I had a look for the ones on here but the only one I could find was the miles away, always seems to be the case.

Sounds like a standard V4 would suit your needs, they come in a few colour schemes, I like the vintage White with maple FB.

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I have a vintage v4 in vintage white great bass, I have owned many precisions and the v4 is great for the money

mines got quite a chunky solid neck, really low action and just feels nice and solid no gaps in the neck pocket very well put together

frets are good and I really like the Wilkinson tuners.

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16 hours ago, hooky_lowdown said:

Yes, the parts are Chinese and the CVs are made in china. Fender MIM hardware is also made in China and shipped to Mexico for assembly, explains why they seem the same to you! 

some CVs are/were made by Cort in Indonesia same as VMs, this is from Fender's own website illustrating CV Jazz

 

 

cvhead.png

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Another thing to consider, the v4 icon has a smooth neck, and the v4 standard that I have is a varnished neck.

The pickups on the icon are really quite awesome.

The standard pickups are really good too.

Just remember that the 2 pots are not necessarily one for volume and one for tone. They definitely seem to have an impact on each other. You can whack the volume up, then add more by opening the tone up and it gets louder. Weird.

Love my v4s. Strung with rotosound flats it's great for little money.

Edited by la bam
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  • 1 month later...

I have a Reissued series V4 since february, vintage white with blackwood neck ("lignum rosa", literally 'rosewood' but in fact some kind of thermally treated pine, if I am correct). The neck is medium fat I guess, feels about the same as my HB PB-50. Gloss finish on the back. Pickups are Wilkinson WPB Alnico V. Not quite vintage sounding but somewhere in between vintage and crispy. With the tone rolled off half way vintage enough for me. I managed to set it up with a really low action, so the fretwork is superb. Up till now I only replaced the jack socket with a Switchcraft, just to be sure. Tuners are great, bridge is great, general feel is great. The sound I get out of this bass, with Dunlop 45-105s, is impressive. P-bass to the max. I am very happy with my V4. And saved some 100 euros by not buying a Squier. Got me a HB PB-50 with that 😁. Also killer.

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On 18/03/2019 at 08:41, Aidan63 said:

some CVs are/were made by Cort in Indonesia same as VMs, this is from Fender's own website illustrating CV Jazz

 

 

cvhead.png

The tuners on the new CV`s arent the same ones that are fitted to the MIM`s. I have a new Players Jazz in front of me and while they may be made in China, they look better quality than the CV`s. That was one of the reasons I bought the Player as I would have had to change the tuners. Can`t stand cheap tuners, just a personal thing.

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According to the extensive Talkbass thread, the new CVs aren't as good as the older Chinese ones. They are now built in the same factories as the VMs to a similar price point, just with different hardware and specs. If you look for a used one you could end up with a better bass for less dough.

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