Recent content by GeoffZ

At one point I was considering converting a 734 to fretless and I inquired after some luthiers about replacing the fretboard. Nobody wanted to do the job, and the prices they told me to expect from anybody who would take the job were heinous. I don't get it, but there you go. Even so, I'd be...

Fasten your seat belts for this one. I'm very particular. Unfortunately for me. I love the BB734A, I've got a black one. But I hate the dark chrome hardware, and the pickguard, and I also hate fretboard markers in general, on all instruments. I might have lived with the dark chrome...

How the heck do you join this club?

Thanks, that's a good thought to have a machine ship mill it, I hadn't considered that idea. They could also drill some countersunk string-through holes. Also a good tip to go with a higher quality aftermarket bridge.

Has anyone successfully installed either a MM mute kit or MM bridge with a mute on a Ray34? I thought I could maybe get a hold of the larger bridge used on the Dart/SUB models and add the MM Mute Kit to it, but that bridge doesn't have the little relief section for the mute plate to seat in...

Here's a handy guide to help answer the question, "Is it acceptable to wear shorts?," based on my observations and experiences living in Phoenix, the hottest place on earth, the first 40 years of my life. Yes, if... You're under the age of about 11. You're a woman. You're in your living room...

BB3000AF. Is it for sale? Maybe...

I've thought about this a bit over the years and it seems to me it is one of those things that they got right kind of out of the gate and were never really able to substantially improve on. There was a lot of experimenting in the 40s and into the 50s but by the late 50s/early 60s they seem to...

Nice, thank you! I guess their system makes a kind of sense, if you're not thinking about people trying to date these decades in the future. But that's this guy in the catalogue, for sure!

This is the one - factory active, factory fretless, neck-through, beauty color. I'm not even going to talk it up, this is literally the top-of-the-line from a top manufacturer. Serial OJ23009 from 1988 (big thanks to Murivan below for the help on dating it!). Includes a hard case and shipping...

I'm going to respond to this without using the measured, diplomatic tone I usually use on the internet. It will annoy some people. Bear in mind these are just opinions. The Jazz bass sucks. It sounds like crap. Anemic is its sonic claim to fame. Listen to Jaco. Forget the technical wizardry...

People like to wax poetic about tonewoods, but when it comes to electric instruments you can put a nice pickup in a piece of plastic and sound great. Literally (looking at you, Armstrong.) Or Masonite. Or whatever. Strings also make a big difference, obviously. My approach to instruments for...

I'll research more but so far this tells me nothing:

:D That was the site I was looking at! Good information, except it doesn't tell you what you want to know. Alright, time to get out the teeny-tiny screwdrivers...

I have a Made in Taiwan BB3000AF, Serial OJ23009. Is that '88 or '98? I'm thinking it must be '98 but it's not super clear to me. Thanks! Geoff