I have been on the hunt for "the right Fender" for a long time and I found it ... but it's a Squier! 
eek I cannot begin to describe how impressed I am by this bass!
The knock I have had on Squiers and cheap basses generally is that they "feel cheap" ... that hard-to-describe feeling that says, "Meh -- it's aiight."
This is not that bass.
As someone said in another thread, this bass has a "Quality" feel to it. The neck is straight, the ebonol fretboard feels great, and the fretwork is excellent -- no rough edges whatsoever! The weight is 9.75 lbs. and it balances very well.
The neck profile is decidedly non-Fender. (I don't like Fender 5-string necks -- they are too fat for me.) This one is noticeably flatter -- dare I say, "Lakland-ish?" The only caveat for some might be the nut width -- it's wide at 2.008 inches but I like it -- it feels great to my (large) hands.
Tone-wise, this thing is good to go. The pickups do have some minor hum when soloed but nowhere NEAR as bad as I have heard on some basses. Overall the electronics are quiet and noise/crackle-free.
The preamp doesn't have as much flexibility as I might like with respect to a wide range of LOTSA LOWS ---> LOTSA HIGHS, but even still, what's here is very useable. (I will probably replace the pre with an Aggie 3-band.) Having said that, I believe you could take this bass out to a gig today and rock it quite nicely with no worries.
By the way, as you can see from the photos below, this bass is a real looker! It's got that whole Pensa-Suhr vibe going and, oh by the way, I will NOT be removing the Squier logo from the headstock. Even that is rendered quite tastefully on this bass.
If you are looking for a "middle of the road" Fiver and don't mind the wide string spacing, this bass will work quite nicely. If you're willing to drop about $150 on a new preamp, you'll have a monster!
Believe that!
eek I cannot begin to describe how impressed I am by this bass!The knock I have had on Squiers and cheap basses generally is that they "feel cheap" ... that hard-to-describe feeling that says, "Meh -- it's aiight."
This is not that bass.
As someone said in another thread, this bass has a "Quality" feel to it. The neck is straight, the ebonol fretboard feels great, and the fretwork is excellent -- no rough edges whatsoever! The weight is 9.75 lbs. and it balances very well.
The neck profile is decidedly non-Fender. (I don't like Fender 5-string necks -- they are too fat for me.) This one is noticeably flatter -- dare I say, "Lakland-ish?" The only caveat for some might be the nut width -- it's wide at 2.008 inches but I like it -- it feels great to my (large) hands.
Tone-wise, this thing is good to go. The pickups do have some minor hum when soloed but nowhere NEAR as bad as I have heard on some basses. Overall the electronics are quiet and noise/crackle-free.
The preamp doesn't have as much flexibility as I might like with respect to a wide range of LOTSA LOWS ---> LOTSA HIGHS, but even still, what's here is very useable. (I will probably replace the pre with an Aggie 3-band.) Having said that, I believe you could take this bass out to a gig today and rock it quite nicely with no worries.
By the way, as you can see from the photos below, this bass is a real looker! It's got that whole Pensa-Suhr vibe going and, oh by the way, I will NOT be removing the Squier logo from the headstock. Even that is rendered quite tastefully on this bass.
If you are looking for a "middle of the road" Fiver and don't mind the wide string spacing, this bass will work quite nicely. If you're willing to drop about $150 on a new preamp, you'll have a monster!
Believe that!
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What, do you pour your Pabst into Heineken bottles? Gimme a break.
