Help!!! Fender Precision Special

[Ammar666]

Hello, I ve just bought a Fender Precision Special 1982 and it has an awesome tone, but on the D string 7 fret its "buzz" ing no matter how I raised down on the bridge, so please help. Sorry for my bad english I m from Bosnia..

[jwj1701]

Sounds like you may need a neck adjustment. If your not sure or comfortable doing it yourself you should take it to your local luthier or someone who know how to check such things.

[Wallace320]

Originally Posted by Ammar666

Hello, I ve just bought a Fender Precision Special 1982 and it has an awesome tone, but on the D string 7 fret its "buzz" ing no matter how I raised down on the bridge, so please help. Sorry for my bad english I m from Bosnia..

Definitely something your trussrod should get corrected

But I bet you have that early '80s odd flat saddle himass bridge, don't you?!

Cheers,
Wallace

[Ammar666]

Originally Posted by Wallace320

Definitely something your trussrod should get corrected

But I bet you have that early '80s odd flat saddle himass bridge, don't you?!

Cheers,
Wallace

This is the bridge

http://www.guitarcheology.com/images/pbassSpec2.jpg

, but when I ask all of my bass friends they say "thats nothing"

I dont know what to do...

[Figjam]

Neat bridge.

It may be a high fret?

[ScottTunes]

... Could also mean you need a new nut.

If you've already tried adjusting the neck "relief," and string height via bridge adjustments, and checked for fret level (assuming frets are fine), you may need a nut.

I can't tell you how frustrating that lesson was for me to learn!! Of course I may be the only idiot on TB. But I thought I'd learned everything possible about set-ups, including new guitars (at Washburn actually!)... Well, the nut can wear down over time with frequent RW string changes. Or, as in the Washburn situation, it may be the nut slots were cut too deeply (string too low at nut) to begin with...

Just a thought to cover all basses...

[Wallace320]

Originally Posted by Ammar666

This is the bridge

http://www.guitarcheology.com/images/pbassSpec2.jpg

, but when I ask all of my bass friends they say "thats nothing"

I dont know what to do...

Go on with the guys advices:
Trussrod to check exact neck relief, then nut: it can really be too low in your case

Cheers,
Wallace

[2meterbassman]

Originally Posted by Ammar666

Hello, I ve just bought a Fender Precision Special 1982 and it has an awesome tone, but on the D string 7 fret its "buzz" ing no matter how I raised down on the bridge, so please help. Sorry for my bad english I m from Bosnia..

Hi there,

I had the same bass, I was the first owner.
It was this one (sold some years ago to a guitar shop in germany):


I remember, when I bought it brandnew, there was some buzzing, too.
And it was the neck adjusting rod, it was loose. Fixed it, no buzz anymore.

Those are awesome basses, the first Fender basses with pre-amp, very versatile and good looking.
I loooove matching headstocks on Fenders!
Unfortenately they are very heavy.

I only sold it, because my playing style is more funky now, it's not the perfect bass for it (to me).

Keep it, have fun with it, it's already a collectors item.
How much did you pay for it?

Greetings from Germany to Bosnia!

[Ammar666]

Originally Posted by 2meterbassman

Hi there,

I had the same bass, I was the first owner.
It was this one (sold some years ago to a guitar shop in germany):


I remember, when I bought it brandnew, there was some buzzing, too.
And it was the neck adjusting rod, it was loose. Fixed it, no buzz anymore.

Those are awesome basses, the first Fender basses with pre-amp, very versatile and good looking.
I loooove matching headstocks on Fenders!
Unfortenately they are very heavy.

I only sold it, because my playing style is more funky now, it's not the perfect bass for it (to me).

Keep it, have fun with it, it's already a collectors item.
How much did you pay for it?

Greetings from Germany to Bosnia!

Well Hello, and greetings from Bosnia to Germany.
As you said it, the guitar is totally flat you can hook in every pedal and its gonna sound awesome, unfortunately its very heavy around 7 kilograms and more... I'll go to a reliable service for guitars to check up the neck. I have paid it 1025eur.
Here is a photo of it

[2meterbassman]

Hi,

which colour is it?
Is it a white, becoming yellowish - or is ist gold?
Or tried someone a bad paintjob?

If the neck is ok, the price is ok - especially for the higher prices in Bosnia.

In 1981, when I bought mine brandnew, I had to pay 1.500 Deutschmarks - and when I sold it, i got the same sum in Euros...;-
Count the inflation in, there was no loss.

The regular colours were lake placid blue and candy apple red - and also a kind of metallic white. The white ones are the rarest.

Have fun!

Greetz

[GreaserMatt]

Both of those basses are very cool!!!

[Wallace320]

Originally Posted by 2meterbassman

Hi,

which colour is it?
Is it a white, becoming yellowish - or is ist gold?
Or tried someone a bad paintjob?

If the neck is ok, the price is ok - especially for the higher prices in Bosnia.

In 1981, when I bought mine brandnew, I had to pay 1.500 Deutschmarks - and when I sold it, i got the same sum in Euros...;-
Count the inflation in, there was no loss.

The regular colours were lake placid blue and candy apple red - and also a kind of metallic white. The white ones are the rarest.

Have fun!

Greetz

First of all, I really think havin' seen your bass on some deutsch site
Secondly, correct price, and Ammar is havin' it at fair price as well...
Here in Italy I came across two (one once white then yellowin another something nearly anodized) repainted black exemplars both sellin' for around €. 1.200,00

Cheers,
Wallace

[Ammar666]

Originally Posted by 2meterbassman

Hi,

which colour is it?
Is it a white, becoming yellowish - or is ist gold?
Or tried someone a bad paintjob?

If the neck is ok, the price is ok - especially for the higher prices in Bosnia.

In 1981, when I bought mine brandnew, I had to pay 1.500 Deutschmarks - and when I sold it, i got the same sum in Euros...;-
Count the inflation in, there was no loss.

The regular colours were lake placid blue and candy apple red - and also a kind of metallic white. The white ones are the rarest.

Have fun!

Greetz

No, I think this is the real colour, traces of use as a result of sweating while the first owner was playing. Here in Bosnia are very difficult times, so that the price of instruments are very small, for example the most expencive bass on the most famous used gear internet site is 1500euro, Fender Precision 1978 with orginal case and papers and here is it :

I have had the money but I did not liked the tone, its more for funky, I play a totally different kind of music so I did not bougt it...

[deeptubes]

I had an '81. Great bass! Still kicking myself for letting that one go, 20 years ago. I do have the offspring, an '84 P Elite II.

[2meterbassman]

Originally Posted by Wallace320

First of all, I really think havin' seen your bass on some deutsch site
Secondly, correct price, and Ammar is havin' it at fair price as well...
Here in Italy I came across two (one once white then yellowin another something nearly anodized) repainted black exemplars both sellin' for around €. 1.200,00

Cheers,
Wallace

Hi Wallace,

you're right, the picture I used was on the website of the guitar shop that bought my bass.
I have old paper pics of my bass in the original tweed case, but I am too lazy to scan it...;-)

Greetz

[2meterbassman]

Originally Posted by Ammar666

No, I think this is the real colour, traces of use as a result of sweating while the first owner was playing. Here in Bosnia are very difficult times, so that the price of instruments are very small, for example the most expencive bass on the most famous used gear internet site is 1500euro, Fender Precision 1978 with orginal case and papers and here is it :

I have had the money but I did not liked the tone, its more for funky, I play a totally different kind of music so I did not bougt it...

Well - to my opinion 1.500 Euros for a 1978 P-bass is way too much.
The late Fenders are the worst basses they ever built.

I looked for the colour charts of the P-bass specials, and this is what I found:
- candy apple red
- lake placid blue
- metallic white
- and a special version, natural, but also the neck made of walnut.

The first 3 came with optional maple neck or maple/rosewood neck.
The walnut neck version is the rarest (to my mind, the ugly one).
The white is the rarest colour of the pretty ones...;-)

Because the metallic effect is made by a layer of gold or silver sparkle under the white coat, it becomes visible if the outer coat is "washed" away by sweat or worn by playing.

Greetz

[Ammar666]

Originally Posted by 2meterbassman

Well - to my opinion 1.500 Euros for a 1978 P-bass is way too much.
The late Fenders are the worst basses they ever built.

I looked for the colour charts of the P-bass specials, and this is what I found:
- candy apple red
- lake placid blue
- metallic white
- and a special version, natural, but also the neck made of walnut.

The first 3 came with optional maple neck or maple/rosewood neck.
The walnut neck version is the rarest (to my mind, the ugly one).
The white is the rarest colour of the pretty ones...;-)

Because the metallic effect is made by a layer of gold or silver sparkle under the white coat, it becomes visible if the outer coat is "washed" away by sweat or worn by playing.

Greetz

I like the tone, in 2033 it will reach huge price, if you are maybe interesed in the tone here is a link of the first owner playing in a Bosnian band called Divanhana, in every song is Fender Precision Special recorded...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltEnFaSENrM

[Ammar666]

Originally Posted by deeptubes

I had an '81. Great bass! Still kicking myself for letting that one go, 20 years ago. I do have the offspring, an '84 P Elite II.

Man you are soo lucky, I was trying for 2 years to find Precision Elite, its a incredible bass. And in future if I have the chance to buy a Elite, I will buy it..

[Ammar666]

here is my Precision Special in action
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltEnFaSENrM

[smcd]

Originally Posted by Ammar666

unfortunately its very heavy around 7 kilograms and more...

Very nice bass. I've always liked those early 80's Precision Specials. But there is no way on earth that thing weighs 7kg. or more. Not even close. It may *feel* as if it weighs that much, but the actual weight is probably closer to 5.5kg, or less.