Is my precision bass a fake?

[meatwad]

Funny thing is, the '57 AVRIs from 1982 are now older than the actual '57s were when those RIs were being made!

Example -

1957-1982 = 25 years

1982-2012 = 30 years

[George Mann]

My question is, does this "reissue" actually sound like the original?

[AMJBASS]

A deeper question would be does the AV '57 reissue sound the same as an original '57 when it was new.

IMO these basses are as good as anything out there. I've had numerous vintage P-Basses pass through my hands and the Fender American Vintage holds its own. The only minor minor gripe I have is the tint of the neck(looks too sythetic rather than being aged), but that is really a non issue.

[AndreBas]

Originally Posted by danipus

It sounds amazing, so I would be really disappointed if it was a fake

I don't get it. If a bass sounds amazing, why would anyone be disappointed? Or is it not about music and only fashion and showing off certain brands or expensive models?

First thing I check on a bass, if it feels comfortable in my hands before plugging in. Second, how it sounds plugged in. Third, if I'm willing to pay what's being asked. (I don't care about looks.)

If it's "fake", made in Mexico or made on the moon, doesn't matter to me at all.

[Roadkill]

Originally Posted by AndreBas

I don't get it. If a bass sounds amazing, why would anyone be disappointed? Or is it not about music and only fashion and showing off certain brands or expensive models?

You're not supposed to actually play one - they are for wall hanging and bragging rights. How can you have any pride in a fake relic unless it's a Fender certified fake?

[JTE]

I don't think the AV series are "fake" at all. "Fake" to me in this context means it's not what it's purported to be. They never said they were going to be dead-on accurate exact reproductions of specific instruments. They said they'd be built much like the originals with most of the specs. The whole point of the VS was because Bill Schultz, when CBS hired him to turn Fender around (about five years before he headed up the consortium that bought the company from CBS) told CBS that the reason Fender wasn't making money was because the product sucked.

The vintage market was growing, the new Fender product so often seemed to be following rather than leading (no fretless Jazz, no PJ, no locking Trems, no "Super Strat"- the active P was a direct attempt to cop the StingRay and didn't do a very good job of it), and the regular products were generally medicore at best. The most common customer request was "make 'em like you used to". The best way to show people that they could make them like they used to would be to literally make them that way.

The VS was the saving grace for Fender- it got them new respect among dealers and retail customers. Steve Cropper was quoted in an article in Musician magazine as saying that they finally felt like proper, reliable instruments again.

So, the VS isn't a fake '57. A fake would be taking a MIM Classic and telling someone it's a genuine early '60s Strat, or even worse, the horrible short-lived "Reissue" series Fender had- A regular Japanese Standard Strat of the time (poly finish, blade pickups, mini-pots and crappy switches, etc.) with cosmetic change to make it look like an older guitar (yellowed poly on the maple, vintage style 'burst, cheaper tuning machines and hardware)- and selling for a higher price!

John

[lpdeluxe]

I have a more recent sunburst AV '57, with TI Jazz Flats on it. I've been playing it regularly. I love the vintage frets -- so much that all three of my Ps have them ('51 RI and Classic '50s RI in addition to the AV). I can do cool slides up and down the neck almost as easily as my fretless.

I admire Fender for putting them out there. I was too young the first time around, and I wouldn't want to have to invest $$$ to get one now.

[thebrain]

Originally Posted by AndreBas

I don't get it. If a bass sounds amazing, why would anyone be disappointed? Or is it not about music and only fashion and showing off certain brands or expensive models?

First thing I check on a bass, if it feels comfortable in my hands before plugging in. Second, how it sounds plugged in. Third, if I'm willing to pay what's being asked. (I don't care about looks.)

If it's "fake", made in Mexico or made on the moon, doesn't matter to me at all.

I get what you are saying about looks and how a lot of people are more concerned with that than how it actually sounds and plays, but i don't think that really pertains to the OP or this thread. I'm sure the OP just wanted to make sure he didn't get taken advantage of and that his bass has the resale value like it should.

[bassgod0dmw]

Originally Posted by AndreBas

I don't get it. If a bass sounds amazing, why would anyone be disappointed?

Not that this is the case here, but...

If you paid $1500 for a $300 bass, would you be disappointed?

[wfmandmusic]

Originally Posted by lpdeluxe

I have a more recent sunburst AV '57, with TI Jazz Flats on it. I've been playing it regularly. I love the vintage frets -- so much that all three of my Ps have them ('51 RI and Classic '50s RI in addition to the AV). I can do cool slides up and down the neck almost as easily as my fretless.

I admire Fender for putting them out there. I was too young the first time around, and I wouldn't want to have to invest $$$ to get one now.

+1 they don't feel like speed bumps! I love them.

[AndreBas]

Originally Posted by Roadkill

You're not supposed to actually play one - they are for wall hanging and bragging rights.

Okay then, explain me why the thread opener wrote about sound?

Originally Posted by bassgod0dmw

If you paid $1500 for a $300 bass, would you be disappointed?

I'll pay $1500 anytime for a bass that sounds like $1500 and is comfortable for me to play.

If someone pays $1500 for a bass that sounds like $300 just because they think the color, brand, model, or whatever is "hip", it's their problem, but the musicians I work with care about music, not fashion.

[thebrain]

The OP just wanted to make sure the bass wasn't a cheap Chinese knock-off. I'm sure he's relieved to know he got what he paid for. I don't think fashion has anything to do with it. If I bought a Snap-On tool set and found out it's fake and made in Indonesia or something, it doesn't mean the tools won't still work for what I need them for. It just means I could have bought those tools for a fraction of what I paid and that would piss anyone off.

[Immigrant]

Originally Posted by AndreBas

I'll pay $1500 anytime for a bass that sounds like $1500 and is comfortable for me to play.

If someone pays $1500 for a bass that sounds like $300 just because they think the color, brand, model, or whatever is "hip", it's their problem, but the musicians I work with care about music, not fashion.

And the musicians you work with should give you an earful if you arrive with a bass valued around $100 that you paid $1500 for, regardless of how good it sounds. I have an Epiphone P copy I just pulled out of storage that I paid $85 for. If I drop some Nordstrands in it, will you give me $1500 for it? I would hope not.

If the OP bought the bass assuming it was an actual '57, not a reissue, and paid 4 grand for it, he should be pissed. He didn't, so he shouldn't. Hopefully.

[netmics]

Probably the prevoius owner had problems with the original neck and changed that. Maybe if you ask your luthier to look at the neck joint he will determine if is the original neck or is a replacement.

Anyway, if it sounds cool then that is what matters