Schaller Bridge + 08 Jazz = setup bliss

[Boof]

It's always interesting to see how varied people's preferences are when it comes to setup. I bumped into a Schaller roller bridge about 15 years ago while putting together a Warmoth bass - model #463, maybe?. Loved it, left it on there forever. In '08 I bought a Fender Am Std. Jazz (have had many basses in the interim). The only thing I didn't like about it was the "high-mass" bridge. Stringing with it was clumsy, IMHO, and the string spacing possibilities range from moderately inaccurate to ridiculous. If I want anything close to even spacing, at least one of the strings will travel from the entrance hole in the back of the bridge to the saddle at a goofy angle. I don't use the string-through option, btw.

So, I installed the Schaller. Not only did it sound better (fuller, deeper, but still plenty of brightness and definition), but I could dial in exactly the spacing I wanted. And the height is easy to adjust. The complaint I read sometimes about these bridges is that the rollers will move when you re-string. That's easy; once I'm sure I like the spacing, I put a small drop of LockTite (the blue... the red is overkill, I think) on the end of a toothpick, touch it to the inside of the roller, and it's good to go. You can move it if you ever want to, but it'll stay put through dozens of re-strings.

Now & then I get to futzing around & thinking too much about setup (who doesn't?), and for some reason a couple days ago I thought maybe I should put on the stock bridge. Wrong. Just switched back... happy camper.

I know there are a lot of good bridges on the market compared to what was available back when I got this one. But if you're looking for something to smooth out the feel & sound of your stock Fender, I highly recommend this bridge. For me, it makes an already very good bass a really great bass.

Just thought I'd put that thought out there.