MIM Deluxe V Jazz: need suggestions

[deste]

Hi everybody.
I found an ad (on the main italian site for new and used gear) for a MIM Deluxe J.
It's the bass I 'm looking for, it's quite near (used, in a shop), even the right color (White-tort), and most of all the price is very very low. Maybe too low: a new one should cost at 750-800 euros, this is at 350, and I'm a suspicious guy... Anyway, I'll go and check it.
The shop emailed me, saying that has five small tuners in line (too bad, I like the 4+1 big ones, but no problem at this price), and should be dated 1999-2000. By the pic (this is the link: http://www.mercatinomusicale.com/mm/...6258.html#foto), I can tell that the trussrod should be un the headstock, and the pups have single large polepieces like some old MIM had.

I ask the Fender specialists: besides the obvious things (neck straightness, dead spots, and so on...), is there something I should know about the things to search and inspect on this particular model?
Anyone owns one, or owned, and has some suggestion/opinion/idea about it?

Thanks in advance!

Massimo

[steve_rolfeca]

I don't like the preamp or pickups in those. Dull, lack punch, don't have the marvellous snap and growl of the latest Deluxes. I tried 18-volting a couple of them for people, didn't make a noticeable difference.

However, for that price, you've got a solid platform to build on. Check all the usual things (neck straight, truss rod isn't frozen, etc.), and you shroud be good to go.

[deste]

Thanks a lot! I'll be checkin'it on friday, your suggestions will be useful.

[Engine207]

I had one of thoses with an Audere, and it was very nice. I only parted with it because a MIA J V was esentially tossed in my lap. The MIM was a real nice bass, though.

[awilkie84]

Having owned one, go for it! It was a great bass (even stock). The tone was versatile, just a teeny bit too high in the mids (buy you can roll that off). Jump on it.

Great price, too.

[awilkie84]

Originally Posted by steve_rolfeca

I don't like the preamp or pickups in those. Dull, lack punch, don't have the marvellous snap and growl of the latest Deluxes. I tried 18-volting a couple of them for people, didn't make a noticeable difference.

However, for that price, you've got a solid platform to build on. Check all the usual things (neck straight, truss rod isn't frozen, etc.), and you shroud be good to go.

18V circuits on a passive pickup bass isn't going to do you much good. All you've done is increased the pre-amps headroom.

[bassbenj]

Originally Posted by steve_rolfeca

I don't like the preamp or pickups in those. Dull, lack punch, don't have the marvellous snap and growl of the latest Deluxes. I tried 18-volting a couple of them for people, didn't make a noticeable difference.

However, for that price, you've got a solid platform to build on. Check all the usual things (neck straight, truss rod isn't frozen, etc.), and you shroud be good to go.

Hey I've got one and it's my main Fender Jazz. Paid $300 used. Neck and finish killer. Inline tuners no problem. Plays like a dream in your hands.

Personally I don't mind the preamp that much but I have fooled with it quite a bit and one of these day an Audere or something will go in there.

But that isn't the problem. First thing to notice is what YEAR that bass is. Mine is a 2002. And anything before 2008 will in my opinion have rather lackluster tone and a barely passable B string. That has been fixed in later models.

So I fooled with mine for quite some time eventually adding SCN pickups (now discontinued and hard to find) a Graphtech nut and careful string choice and setup. Doing that my great PLAYING bass became a great SOUNDING bass!

As it is now it's hard to beat with any other Fender-style jazz bass. It wasn't a lot of trouble to tweak in, the problem was just finding out WHAT to tweak in! Now it's a tone monster that had a price so right (even with new pickups) that there's no complaining about it. A new high-end preamp would just be icing on the cake.

[Wallace320]

I know that bass in particular

I owned one and mine was a candy apple red, completely stock (it sported Ceramic Custom Noiseless pickups on it)

From 15 to 10 years ago Ceramic Custom Noiseless pickups were on American Deluxe Jazz basses, which also sported 5 inline machineheads yet of the "Wilkinson" kinda type (small
"elephant ear" ones) while MIJ and MIM 5ers sported Gotoh ones (you should succeed in checkin logo on machineheads there) but stock pickups weren't that good so that many opted to just swap 'em out

This exemplar in particular is cheap for it's at least at its third owner because it was initially modded in a small luthier atelier here in Milan where second buyer asked for the stock pickups to be replaced. Now I can't remember the exact name of the atelier (sorry it's been awhile I don't live there anymore) luthier was lookin' for some Delanos, when I eventually insisted I appreciated their proprietary "Hybrids" pickups on Clover Apeiròn I briefly owned right after Fender MIM active deluxe 5er. But you may know they can easily appear to be some MusicMan singles as well.

Anyway:
these basses are solid and tend to endlessly change owner with no particular issue if only a nut to lower, otherwise first three frets on every string are hard to touch.

Messori Music is usually a serious trade point.

Cheers,
Wallace

[AMJBASS]

I had one of these recently and put a Bartolini NTBT preamp in it. Turned it into a growl monster. Killer sounding Jazz. Check it out if you can. They are easy to mod, and can be terrific instruments.