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1983 Precision Elite I w/ gold plated hardware.

#41
Kmrumedy said:
Wow. What a difference a few decades can make. I was an active player when these first came out. Man.....you couldn't give these things away if you bought one and tried to sell it. Very few players liked them back then due to the premium price and the view that the sound didn't warrant the additional costs.

Now they are vintage, valuable, and sound amazing? Cool.
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They're "vintage" due to age. Everything becomes "vintage" after a period of time. They always sounded good. Fender's customer base rejected them because they were different. Just like they do today.
"Valuable"... not so much. A standard '83 Precision will sell for more than a Precision Elite of the same year. These basses can still be had for reasonable money. They're one of the hidden values in the vintage market.
 
#43
Caca de Kick said:
Well, a pickguard change to black would be a harmless swap. Just be sure to screw the old white one to a wood plank so it doesnt curl and warp.
The pickguard problem with the Elite I is the knobs are spaced further apart than a standard P, and also the pickup shapes. So you'll probably have to get a custom cut guard made from Pickguardian.
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The output jack is also located on the edge of the body, as opposed to through the pickguard, so one less hole as well.

I have two Elite I's and an Elite II and sort of like the simplicity of the Elite I a little more. One of the Elite I's is a transparent green (ash) gold version. Between the weight of the body and the weight of the flight case, the thing is tough to lug around!!
 
#46
Haha... fiar enough! It is a good thing you asked... I forgot the cherryburst one was the gold version! The green has chrome, although the gold would look awesome on it. I store the green one in the big brown case because I use it less, and that case is a tank. I will have to snap pics of the green one tonight, but here are my other two. The II had a defret/epoxy job long ago and has bubinga fret lines. I debate putting the rosewood board neck from the green one on there... I really only use that one as a backup.

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#50
Great Deal!!!!! You have one of THE collector's basses.....You will NOT regret that bass (but if you do I'll take it :) )
You may need to tweak your amps settings, but the tones will be worth it!
I'm Jealous!
 
#51
Fresh Eddie said:
Haha... fiar enough! It is a good thing you asked... I forgot the cherryburst one was the gold version! The green has chrome, although the gold would look awesome on it. I store the green one in the big brown case because I use it less, and that case is a tank. I will have to snap pics of the green one tonight, but here are my other two. The II had a defret/epoxy job long ago and has bubinga fret lines. I debate putting the rosewood board neck from the green one on there... I really only use that one as a backup.

downsized_1219081033.jpg


downsized_1219081032a.jpg
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That's strange. Not to derail the thread, but mine has a stacked tone knob.
 
#52
You can go to any music store and buy a Geddy Lee Jazz you got a good deal. I used to have an Elite bass it was a pretty good bass kind of bummed I sold it but not the end of the world. You can do whatever you want with that bass but I suggest you keep the bridge it's pretty solid.
 
#53
cfsporn said:
That's strange. Not to derail the thread, but mine has a stacked tone knob.
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Is yours a II? I have owned two of them and the setup was the same on both... from front to back, neck pickup volume, pickup selector switch, bridge pickup volume, tone assign switch, tone. Both switches are three way.

A stacked tone knob might not be original, but probably works a lot better.
 
#57
MaddAnthony_59 said:
Another line to look at are the Boner Basses from the early 90's. The Jazz / Precision Plus & Deluxe Plus. Fancy hardware, Kubuki Preamps, and Lace Sensor pickups. They're going up in value, but deals are still out there.
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+1. I have an '89 P-Bass Plus in Lipstick Red and love it. Picked it up used for $800 four years ago. With the fine tuners all in place, fortunately. Amazing bass, very versatile.
 
#58
62Jazzbass said:
Here is a great resource:
http://www.riverband.demon.nl/elite.html

The first picture is exactly what my EII was, but mine had gold hardware.
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Thanks for making a reference to my website. As you can see I have a couple of Elite's.

For the looks I like the stratoburst bronze with the gold hardware the most, although the pewter one is also great.

The "sienna burst" I use regularly, it sounds good and is light weight.

The best sounding one is the black with rosewood fretboard but that one weighs a ton.

Congratulations with you're trade (Elite for a GL).

If you need more information about the elites, let me known.
 
#60
deeptubes said:
I've had an '84 Elite II for about 14 years now. Awesome bass! Mine's probably worth double what I paid for it. The Lace Sensor pickups are passive. If you want, you could probably bypass the pre, but you'd lose a ton of oomph and beefiness. Knowing the full force of the capabilities of this bass, I wouldn't change a thing. I thought you could get a new pickguard at Pickguard Heaven, but they only have the Elite II on their site. Looks like you'd have to do a trace.

Congrats on the score!
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The pickups on Elites are not Lace Sensors - they are standard passive P pickups that have been covered.

Pickguard Heaven has the Elite II template because that's where I sent mine when I wanted different materials. I can assure you it would be an exact fit if you have a II and are considering it.
 

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