Comments. I've read the reviews, but how does this puppy stack up against a standard(not MIM, split-pickup) P-bass??? I'm P-bass hunting and I'm thinking about this one.
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51 P-bass reissue
- Thread starter Basso54
- Start date
Had one, didn't care for it. The sound just didn't do it for me. I changed the cap out, and that helped. Also, the where the neck and fingerboard met was flatter than what was comfortable to me. Great finish and construction though.
I think a '51 body with a split pup and better neck would be awesome. IMO of course.
I think a '51 body with a split pup and better neck would be awesome. IMO of course.
also remember, with the SCPB pup you are going to be getting substantial 60 cycle hum ... the body has also been uncomfortable for some, due to no body contours ... the sound is different the split P, but can be real punchy and full ... fit and finish is excellent (CIJ), but tuners are probably the worse I have seen on any Fender, so if this is going to be a main player, you may want to allow for an upgrade there .... then finally, unless you can find the 2T burst finish, you are going to have to be able to get past the school bus yellow ... also consider the Sting, as that does have the body contours ... and a beautiful 2T burst finish, same neck (with addition of Stinglay), but unfortunately same tuners ... everybody should at least try a SCPB, this is one that you really have to decide for yourself
"a better neck" is subjective and of course a matter of preference ... in fact I liked the Sting neck, and I prefer Jazz necks ... but in essence, with a 51 body, split P and 'different neck" you are describing the Dirnt ...
I have one(51r.i),and I like it better than a split pup version.the tone (to me)seems more balanced,does'nt have that low-mid bump. the tuners are fine on them,I never have problems or tuning issues(although,they are reversed and that can be slightly annoying when I turn in the wrong direction when tuning).I did replace the bridge because of intonation issues. the neck is a little thick but,comfortable.the build quality is real good,on par with any american fender..I also swapped out the white p\g for a black one..heres a crappy pic of it
i LOVE my paisley RI (it has contours so not exactly a 51) the neck is great, tuners for all they are backward work fine (no slips yet) and the tone well its just a very distinct P tone, single coil P sounds amazing.......hum aint to bad with my gear (the pod's transformer doesnt like single coils so i do get a bit of hum when i use that).
I'm kind of in the same boat. I've been thinking about getting a 51 p bass too. I really like the looks but I don't know if it would be right for me if I don't play with a pick or with my thumb cuz I like to rest my thumb on the pickup. I was thinking of maybe a regular standard precision in arctic white but I like the way the 51 looks. I guess what I'm saying is should I still get the 51 ri or should I get something else if I want to use the pickup for a thumb rest? I also like the Jaguar Jazz Bass but kind of want a P bass so I might get the Jaguar and maybe a regular standard precision bass later on.
moogboy
Inactive
it is great! i use mine going into my Pod with a Marshall amp model to get a Rickenbacker like tone. mine has kind of a dirty sound, meaning not overdriven, but just slightly dirty
I dont mind the neck on this bass at all. This bass has a nice feel and sound. I bought my 51 R.I. about 4 weeks ago and put on some flatwounds last week. The tuners are tricky at first, but after a few times tuning you will be set. As for the hum...I have no problems with it...yet.
Chad
Chad
i think all my problems electrically comes from my pod transformer as i have no hum unless i am sat like a foot in front of my amp facing it too, plus i LOVE the baseball bat neck nice and meaty
off topic but Trist6075 the jag is GREAT (it aint no jazz tho, it doesnt do the 'jazz' pickup blend thing.....but it does a whole lot more
) its a completely different animal to any other bass i have.
ooohhh all this P bass love is making me want to take my paisley to the jam tomorrow.......hehehe
off topic but Trist6075 the jag is GREAT (it aint no jazz tho, it doesnt do the 'jazz' pickup blend thing.....but it does a whole lot more
) its a completely different animal to any other bass i have.ooohhh all this P bass love is making me want to take my paisley to the jam tomorrow.......hehehe
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I was in the same boat... A few weeks ago, my very understanding wife let me get both! The Jag is a great player, but I find myself reaching for the '51 more often... My band did some recording a few weeks ago, and after dialing in levels using the P-Bass, there was no need to pull out any other bass... everything was just right there
Stacked up against my '96 MIA P, right now I am preferring the tone of the '51, (but I always seem to come 'back home' to my '96 eventually)... Deep and punchy! At rehearsals with the group, and subbing with a friend's band last week, the tone was killer. The proof will in gigging with my band and my rig.
It was fairly easy to intonate 'close-enough-for-rock-n-roll', like my Musicmaster... No issues with either the tuners or 60-cycle hum, even though our rehearsal room is hum-city. I mean, yeah, there's a low buzz, but not unreasonable. No prioblem at all when playing.
Both these basses are CIJ and are excellent in the 'fit-n-finish' department. The Jag had a serious hum issue that was corrected with 15 minutes of my time and a few inches of copper-tape. A ton of tones and a whole lotta tone-shaping possibilities... The '51 is more plug-n-play. For the music I am currently playing, it is a go-to axe...
-robert
I have had both a split-coil Squier II Precision and a 51 Fender RI for about a year now. I replaced both pickups with the respective Quarter Pound model. I also replaced the two-saddle bridge on the 51 with a four-saddle (Fender American Deluxe: drops right in, and has the holes for string-through).
Both have the slab body, which is not really a problem for me (but I've rather have the contours). The Squier, being plywood, is heavier than the ash 51. Necks were very similar, but I replaced the bowed Squier neck with a Warmoth that's a little narrower.
The split-coil is deep and round: very nice, "pretty" sound, but it doesn't have the punch and presence of the single-coil. The 51 is percussive; the split-coil has a little better articulation and note definition.
For a long time I had both strung with GHS Brite Flats, but this week I finally decided that the 51 needed a little more personality, so I put on a set of LaBella nylon tape wounds.
That put the 51 over the top, as far as I'm concerned. It sounds more like an upright [no, I didn't say "it sounds like an upright!"] with limited sustain and a deep voice. The difference between the two basses is really noticeable up the neck: a G played on the A string at the 10th fret sounds almost like a g**tar on the split-coil, but it's definitely a bass with the 51.
We are doing a series of gigs this month, and the 51 is the one that'll be on the stage with me.
What would I change? --other than what I've already changed, of course -- I'd like a contour body, and a color more like the original white blonde wash finish, and a flatter fingerboard radius would be nice.
But I can live without those, as long as it sounds the way it does.
Both have the slab body, which is not really a problem for me (but I've rather have the contours). The Squier, being plywood, is heavier than the ash 51. Necks were very similar, but I replaced the bowed Squier neck with a Warmoth that's a little narrower.
The split-coil is deep and round: very nice, "pretty" sound, but it doesn't have the punch and presence of the single-coil. The 51 is percussive; the split-coil has a little better articulation and note definition.
For a long time I had both strung with GHS Brite Flats, but this week I finally decided that the 51 needed a little more personality, so I put on a set of LaBella nylon tape wounds.
That put the 51 over the top, as far as I'm concerned. It sounds more like an upright [no, I didn't say "it sounds like an upright!"] with limited sustain and a deep voice. The difference between the two basses is really noticeable up the neck: a G played on the A string at the 10th fret sounds almost like a g**tar on the split-coil, but it's definitely a bass with the 51.
We are doing a series of gigs this month, and the 51 is the one that'll be on the stage with me.
What would I change? --other than what I've already changed, of course -- I'd like a contour body, and a color more like the original white blonde wash finish, and a flatter fingerboard radius would be nice.
But I can live without those, as long as it sounds the way it does.
That's the one thing that really bugs me about these. It's not so much butterscotch blonde as it is...really effing yellow, especially in person.
There's a few 51 style P's around here that are anything but a Dirnt. There's a few fives and I believe a 6'er or two as well. I think Chef has a 51 with an added J pup at the bridge. There is a lot more that can be done to a 51 than just the Dirnt.
Having owened both the original P and the split PUP later models, I'd vote for the later ones, mostly because of sound. I do like the reduced headstock on the '51.
my negative comments towards the tuners on these was not to the fact that they slipped, in fact they held quite well, but to the rigidity or the stiffness of turning them ... thanks to an arthritic left thumb that was broken twice, it was downright painful to turn a couple of the tuners ... I have heard the same comment from a few other of the geezer crowd that have had these ... Hipshot makes a direct reverse replacement for these that screws right in ... that would probably be the only change that I would make, should I get another... I was also pleasantly surprised by how close I could get the intonation with the 2 saddle bridge ... I expected to be needing to change it going in, but the E and A were right on, D and G I needed another 1/8" of seperation ...
I HATED the color when I first got it...but it looks great under stage lights. If it were possible, I'd want one in natural ash with no pickguard...but then it wouldn't be a 51 Reissue, would it?
I think it looks better in person than in photos because the grain shows through...but the Fender literature makes it look more attractive than it is.
I think it looks better in person than in photos because the grain shows through...but the Fender literature makes it look more attractive than it is.
