hey all - I've modded my P-bass quite a bit to make it "mine." Have you modded your fender? And is it true that Fenders are more "moddable?"
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I put a Gotoh bridge on my '89 jazz, since the bridges that came with them were weirdly too wide and made the strings fall off the sides when playing. Aside from that I don't usually mod them too much. I like that original mojo unless something really needs to be changed.
You have to, because their "shielding" doesn't cut the mustard.
It really depends on the bass. Of the 3 I have, only one has any kind of mod, I replaced the QP pickup in my Nate Mendel P for a Geezer pickup. I did have a 2000 MIM Jazz that was modded so much that the only original piece was the body.
USA Fenders: No. Partially because they didn't need any mods, and partially because I didn't want to mess with their potential resale value.
MIM Fenders: Heck yeah. Mostly cosmetic stuff.
I would posit that Fenders are among the most "moddable" instruments. To use an automotive analogy, I can pretty much go to any local NAPA store here in the States and get OEM and aftermarket parts for my Ford Mustang. However, tracking down parts for my Citroën ain't so easy.
MIM Fenders: Heck yeah. Mostly cosmetic stuff.
I would posit that Fenders are among the most "moddable" instruments. To use an automotive analogy, I can pretty much go to any local NAPA store here in the States and get OEM and aftermarket parts for my Ford Mustang. However, tracking down parts for my Citroën ain't so easy.
Wow, "you have to?" Guess I never got the memo. I'm sure the 25 or 30 Fenders I have owned over the last 38 years feel deprived that I never gave them the mods that they "have to" have.
Only absolutes in life:
1. Death
2. Taxes
3. If Fender is mentioned on TB, someone will bash them for little or no reason...
It's a shame that Fender didn't supply their Marcus Miller signature basses with a decent preamp... especially on a model that was based on a bass with such a well-known aftermarket preamp and such a familiar sound in the industry.
That's like someone making an Eddie Van Halen model guitar and not putting a Floyd Rose on it. Yes, so much of the tone comes from the player's fingers... but the preamp in Marcus' bass is so crucial to his tone.
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Custom made tort pickguard for my Classic Series MiM P Bass...
Playing with fingers on a gold anodised pickguard is not very fun. Think nails on a blackboard...
Playing with fingers on a gold anodised pickguard is not very fun. Think nails on a blackboard...
I modified my custom Shop Jazz (got it used for a good price). I don't like how sterile "noiseless" pickups sound and I like to be able to run both active and passive. I put in my fav pickups and pre combination. Aero Type 1 single coil pickups and a Nordstrand 3b- 4a preamp.
I have a '95 American Standard Jazz that I bought new. Since I've had it I replaced the bridge with a HMV because I wanted to string through the top, replaced the pickups with Aguilar 70's, swapped the white pickguard for a white pearl one, and very recently replaced the neck with a 2014 Fender neck because the I had reached the end of the adjustment on the original one. I just replaced the pickup in my brand new American Pro Precision V because I didn't care for the new V-Mod pickup. I also have a 2014 American Standard Precision that is completely stock because I love it the way it is.
I modify them with new strings and setups.
Yep.
2008 American Standard P.
Olympic white, tort pickguard and LaBella Gold White Nylon strings.
Mainly cosmetic, replacing hardware with gold - tuners, thumb-rest, strap buttons, knobs.
Also a brass nut.
Oh, and I threw in a custom-shop '62 pickup.
2008 American Standard P.
Olympic white, tort pickguard and LaBella Gold White Nylon strings.
Mainly cosmetic, replacing hardware with gold - tuners, thumb-rest, strap buttons, knobs.
Also a brass nut.
Oh, and I threw in a custom-shop '62 pickup.
I put a Hipshot B bridge on my '96 Jazz so I could play LaBella flats without having to string through the body. Also I have Nordstrand NJ4SV pickups and a pearloid pickguard -looks better than white on sonic blue.
This is pretty much me as well. Can't remember modding any of my USA Fenders other than the occasional pickguard
But I have two MIJ Fenders (an '84-'87 E-Series Precision and a '94 Fretless Jazz). The P now wears a Duncan SPB-1 while the Jazz now has Nordstrand NJ-4's.
Switched to Hipshot tuning machines on two MIM's, and I'm getting ready to try a set of Aguilar P/J pickups in one. Other than that, I'm not a big modder.
