Bass mods, when does it cross the line?

[AltGrendel]

While I feel that "it's yours and you can do what you want with it", I don't know how many times I've seen someone buy a boutique bass and then do stupid mods to it simply because they couldn't afford the proper changes for a high end bass.

I.E. Don't buy an Alembic (or similar) if you aren't sure if you can afford to have it properly fixed/updated.

Insert relevant Lamborghini car repair analogy here.

 

[Calaverasgrande]

I agree an instrument is a tool used to create music..

I put alot of thought into the hammer that I buy to build a house because i want it to be comfortable and serve its purpose. And at the end of the day if I scratch my hammer or other tools as i am working with them, they are doing their job.

The problem with that analogy is that there isn't a limited supply of certain vintage hammers. Or to run with that analogy, woulnd't it tick you off if there was an ideal ball peen hammer out there, but every one you could find had been modified to have a flat face instead.
That is kind of how I feel about someof the mods I see.
It's as if folks buy a $1500 instrument and are dissapointed in how it sounds. So instead of trying other basses, they try to turn it into something it isn't. I stil don't understand why anyone would put a Gibson mudbucker on a Ric or a Precision. Those pickups dont sound that great on the basses they came with, and certainly don't sound better than the stock pickups.

It's funny, if I was going to mod anything about a Ric it woudlnt be the bridge or pickups, that is a lot of the sound of those beasties. Instead I would probably do the worst possible mod and have a wrist contour carved into the bout. The right angle on the body by my wrist wreaks havoc with my technique and stamina. Probably why I am still not a owner, only a borrower.

 

[DWBass]

I say do what you want. Some basses look beautiful but sound like crap! I say mod away. I put all Bartolini electronics (pups/pre) in my US Fender Jazz. Huge difference in sound. Got a P-Bass that the only thing left original is the neck and body. Everything else has been upgraded. Killer bass now and I'm not even done!

 

[bombjack]

"Rickenbacker...Wrist contour carved in the bout"

Amen to that. My first real bass is a 4001 that I still own but never play because of the sharp angles of the binding. Can't bring myself to sell it but can't play any length of time on it.

 

[subtlestew]

Hey there, folks. Figure I'll join the fray here, because I'm contemplating a project that is sure to get me flamed on the Pedulla thread, assuming I ever find the courage to join it.

A while back I bought Jaymi's beat-up Pedulla:

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f126/ft-pedulla-mvp-855608/

I've built a Warmoth Gecko in the past, and I've got some other woodworking experience. I've got plans to spend my summer developing my refinishing skills on a couple of beater basses. If they turn out well, I'm going to take the Pedulla, strip it (though I'm nervous about the nearly-perfect neck) and refinish it. Take note - the bass already has a well-beaten finish, and the marks are not always in the best relic-look locations. Worse, a previous owner slapped some black paint (almost certainly not paint of the guitar-finish variety) over his massive buckle-rash damage, which took of nearly half the finish off the back of the bass. A refinish, if done well, can only be an improvement, in my mind.

Some Pedulla lovers will hate on me for ruining the history of this '86 bass, and I could pay a few hundred to have Michael Pedulla refinish it himself. Maybe I will. This certainly would increase its value. But if I do it, and it turns out well, I think I'll be more proud of it, more attached to it, and more likely to play it, rather than feel like I have to baby it, which is what I do now with my '88 Steinberger, recently refurbished by Jeff Babicz.

One more thing - the preamp was making wacky noises on this thing when I got it, so I replaced the harness with a Bartolini NTMB-918F 3-band Preamp. The bass sounds ten times better now. So, there is already one mod going on here, which has improved the bass considerably...I did have to take a router to the back of the wooden control cavity cover to make the stacked active/passive switch fit - the horror!

Flame away! Or, offer kind encouragement Maybe my Pedulla will look like this when I'm done:

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f8/lean-green-pedulla-machine-758089/

 

[Phalex]

Most useful mod ever!!

 

[pbasswil]

I think you'll answer your own question if you first ask yourself:

Is this bass an investment that I plan on cashing in?
Or is it a tool of my trade -- which needs to conform to my playing idiosyncracies and tone tastes?

 

[PBnJBassist]

I see it like this: Musical instruments are just that- instruments. Tools. And we are the technicians responsible for keeping the finely tuned machine of music operating. In order to do so at an optimum level, you need the tools to perform in a manner in which you can properly carry out the job, so you tailor your tools to work the way you need them to in order to get the desired result. I feel like musical instruments should be played more than admired. Not that I'm against owning expensive instruments- if I had the means to own a $20,000 '60s Fender Jazz Bass I'd own one and love it, though it would probably never leave the house!- I just feel like the instrument you play should do what you want it to do whether it was made to do it or not, so you should be able to make the necessary mods to it. If you have an instrument that you love but are more worried about its resale value than you are about how it plays, sounds, or looks, that's fine too, but in my opinion you're viewing that instrument as something that should be seen and not heard.

I'm with this. I used to keep everything stock and worshiped my basses to the point it would effect my playing and practicing because I was so worried about causing dings and dents. I also cared too much for it's cost value. Now, I mod if I want, and I play and pray I never drop it or smash it into a running wood chipper. Paint cracks, buckle rash, drilled holes, and non-original parts be damned - I love them all!

 

[Mtnman]

I'm a chronic modder/tinkerer with all of my lower/mid level basses. I'm never really satisfied until I've taken everything apart and rebuilt to suit my individual taste. I take a certain amount of pride in knowing I've taken a bass I've bought for around $300 and turned it into something that looks, feels and sounds much more expensive. Also, nobody has the basses I have. They are uniquely mine. Also, from an investment standpoint, they've all paid for themselves. After I grow tired of a particular piece and its time to sell, I always recoup my investment in both bass and parts (and usually make a small profit).

That said, I've never had the balls to mod one of my higher end basses except one... I have a EBMM with the single humbucker. It developed a problem where it had a terrible hiss that wouldn't go away until I rolled off the treble all the way. I went through the usual troubleshooting: check grounds, solder joints, shielding, etc... I went so far as to bypass the electronics and wire the pickup directly to the jack. The hiss continued... Obviously the stock p'up was the issue.

As a repair, I decided to replace the stock p'up with a Bartolini. Turns out the Bart is physically much thicker than the stocker so I had to route out the p'up cavity so it would fit.

I doubt I'll ever sell this bass, but I'll probably take a loss if I do because there's no way to return it to bone stock. In the meantime, I'm the only bassist I know with a MM with a Bart.

 

[FenderBassist]

Most useful mod ever!!

Win.

 

[FenderBassist]

Early Ric mod, at 1:02

 

[ubermiguel]

Mod any bass except...a rare or vintage piece.

Could everyone agree no mods are allowed to Jaco's Bass of Doom (for example)?

Interesting article about it here:
Invalid Link Removed

Or Leo's prototype for the P-Bass...hands off!

Or a mint stock 1951 P-Bass. Go buy a new one if you want to mod something.

 

[Orangeclawhammr]

If a chainsaw is involved, it is probably a bad idea. That's my rule.

Do you mean to say you found a way to change strings without a chainsaw?

Seriously, I voted "do what you want." Then again, I play a Squire short scale Jag. The biggest risk in modding it, if one can call it a risk, is spending more for the mods than the bass costs. I've read the Squire Bronco threads where i-m sure this has happened and the modders have been thrilled with the results.

 

[mikecd1]

Always great to do mods that can be set back to stock if necessary although I just finished my third or fourth mod on my favorite project bass - Cort GB75. Changed out all electronics, pickups and had fret levelling done and I like the sound now better than the my Skyline or Metro I had in the past. Now looking to fit a pickguard on it. With something like that, I have no problem doing anything to it as my original cost was so low, but I liked the bones on the bass so I moved forward. Although I lean towards certain basses shouldn't be modded I guess if its yours you should do what you want. Hard to understand some of the choices folks make when these are re-sold though and Rickenbacker 4001V63 would be a case in point. Seen some sad mods done to a few of these. Like waking up next to a woman and asking "what was I thinking last night???" LOL Seemed like a good idea at the time for sure!

 

[deshi00]

Went with some basses shouldnt be modded, just because it is the closest to my answer...

If you ever plan on selling the bass, I would not do anything that cannot be reversed. I bought a used Fender MIA P. If I do nothing to it, I should be able to sell it for the the same price i got it for. But I never plan on selling it so I put on bridge and pup covers, which require new holes in the wood. If I ever run into a circumstance where I absolutly have to sell, it probably will ultimatly cost me a few bucks having done that.

 

[phillybass101]

I believe if it's yours you can do what you want with it. However another bass player pointed something out to me because he had been down that road. Lets say you have a decent SX Jazz and you want to upgrade it with Nordstrand Big Singles and a Bass Mods preamp. Assume that's $300-$350. Then assume you cann't do the routing and installation yourself, let's tack on another $180 or so for labor. $350 plus $180 is $530. Assume you got a nice one and it cost $159.00 That's a toal of $680. For that amount of money you could have bought a very nice used Geddy Lee Jazz. Which is by all means a better bass all the way around. Instead you are stuck with a $680 SX Jazz Bass instead of a real Fender Geddy Lee Jazz Bass. This is the problem with mods. I have 4 low end basses and I love them all. I was going to upgrade them all at a cost of roughly $1200 or so. There my friends is the money towards the purchase of a brand new Lakland Skyline DJ5. This one bass is worth more than 4 upgraded cheap basses. If you begin to think like this you'll end up with a very nice and respected across the board bass collection. And in times of need can sell to get you out of trouble. How many of you out there want to a buy a $680 SX?????

 

[PBnJBassist]

Could everyone agree no mods are allowed to Jaco's Bass of Doom (for example)?

Interesting article about it here:
Invalid Link Removed

Or Leo's prototype for the P-Bass...hands off!

Or a mint stock 1951 P-Bass. Go buy a new one if you want to mod something.

I don't think EVERYONE could agree to modding those originals. I'm sure there is at least one person out there that's ready to slap a BAII bridge on any of those basses... Nothing against BAII bridges btw

 

[Rutherford_Fan]

It crosses the line when the person who did the modification actually thinks they are entitled to get what the instrument would be worth un-modified when they sell it. The one bass I constantly modify, I made a serious pact to myself that I would not sell it because it would be worthless to anyone BUT myself.

 

[Darnell Jones]

Could everyone agree no mods are allowed to Jaco's Bass of Doom (for example)?

What would be a suitable punishment for what Jaco did to the bass?

And if it was OK for Jaco what if an even bigger celebrity/deity wanted to modify it would that be OK?

 

[bassbenj]

I believe if it's yours you can do what you want with it. However another bass player pointed something out to me because he had been down that road. Lets say you have a decent SX Jazz and you want to upgrade it with Nordstrand Big Singles and a Bass Mods preamp. Assume that's $300-$350. Then assume you cann't do the routing and installation yourself, let's tack on another $180 or so for labor. $350 plus $180 is $530. Assume you got a nice one and it cost $159.00 That's a toal of $680. For that amount of money you could have bought a very nice used Geddy Lee Jazz. Which is by all means a better bass all the way around. Instead you are stuck with a $680 SX Jazz Bass instead of a real Fender Geddy Lee Jazz Bass. This is the problem with mods. I have 4 low end basses and I love them all. I was going to upgrade them all at a cost of roughly $1200 or so. There my friends is the money towards the purchase of a brand new Lakland Skyline DJ5. This one bass is worth more than 4 upgraded cheap basses. If you begin to think like this you'll end up with a very nice and respected across the board bass collection. And in times of need can sell to get you out of trouble. How many of you out there want to a buy a $680 SX?????

Are mods are worth it on a cheap bass is a real and true question. I hear people talking about getting new pickups for their SX bass even before they have received them! I don't get that. I've got a bunch of SX basses. And I mod them like mad. But I sure don't make them cost $680 each! They are BAR BASSES! The whole idea is if they get smashed or stolen or otherwise ruined, I just get on line to Rondo and buy another one for less than $200.

But since they are all players too, I DO want them to PLAY. So things like shielding, new pickguards, a bit of filing on the frets etc. are all fair game. But a Plek job or a bunch of expensive hardware seems like a pretty bad idea unless I feel I got REALLY lucky with the wood the bass is made from. And even then, you'd never be able to convince anyone the bass was as great as it actually was if you tried to sell it. They'd just see "SX" and stop looking.

On the other hand I did mod the wiring in my Modulus. No new holes or routing, mind you. I COULD be put back the way it was if I needed to sell (and I certainly don't plan to). But for now the switches do what I want them to and I love it. I do feel that it's your bass so do what you want, but when it comes to losing a bunch of cash, that isn't my idea of fun so I get reluctant to get the drill out when the bass passes a certain value. And by the same token I don't want to pour money into a cheap bass where I've got a Squier or SX that ended up costing me a grand, no matter how great it sounds.