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Old 07-25-2009, 11:21 AM
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Brass Bridges

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I have 2 very similar basses. One is a 70's Ibanez Challenger lawsuit P-bass, and I recently got an early 80's Ibanez Blazer, which is basically a post-lawsuit Son-of-Challenger. Besides the cosmetic differences, the biggest difference was the bridges. The Challenger's is Fender-like -- lightweight stamped steel. The Blazer's bridge was an enormous hunk of machined brass.

Sitting in my lap, they felt identical. But when played, the Blazer was much deader. So I swapped out the bridge for a Fender one, and voila! Cured!

I've never owned another bass with a big brass bridge, but you see them all the time, and the bridge is often a big selling point. But I wonder... do they help or hurt? In the case of Ibanez, all I can figure is that it was a misguided attempt at "value-added."

These two basses, by the way, while not especially slick players, are the most rock-solid, manly basses I've ever recorded with.

Last edited by Brent Hahn : 07-25-2009 at 01:46 PM.
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Old 07-25-2009, 03:16 PM
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Seems like I read something awhile ago about brass bridges emphasizing lows more while aluminum/steel bridges emphasize mids more.

I wouldn't say one is necessarily better than the other, just that they serve different purposes.
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