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Dead spot on Fender MIA.

Both my Fenders have dead spots in the usual place 5th - 6th spot on the G string.

Have any of you guys with P-basses noticed problems on the E when you move up to the middle of the neck (6th-10th frets), the notes loose some bottom end or volume/overtones?

Wow, you just read my mind, I just clicked on this thread to report the same problem with my jazz, the e string on the 6 - 10 frets sounds muffled and slightly less loud than other notes, I did think it might be the pups but now I'm not so sure. On all my other basses this area would be very loud and punchy.
 
Well I would hope that anything above $2k would not have deadspots.
I bought an Epi Les Paul II bass and no dead spots I believe.

Thanks for the feedback.

Unfortunately, that's not how it works. An $8K bass is just as susceptible to the dead spot phenomenon as is a $1K bass. No wooden neck/fingerboard is perfectly even in terms of resonance. What might strike one person as a dead spot might not bother another. If you want to avoid dead spots, you have to listen very carefully when trying out basses. I've owned two MIA Fenders and both had dead spots. Dead spots are pretty much just a fact of life when it comes to basses, and if your bass doesn't have any then consider yourself blessed!
 
Wow, you just read my mind, I just clicked on this thread to report the same problem with my jazz, the e string on the 6 - 10 frets sounds muffled and slightly less loud than other notes, I did think it might be the pups but now I'm not so sure. On all my other basses this area would be very loud and punchy.

wow, I'm glad I'm not the only one that notices this. I was thinking about changing out the pickups but it doesn't make sense that the low and really high notes on that same string are fine and the middle ones sound weak. Plus, my J-bass doesn't have this problem. hmmm.. i'm stumped :(
 
The dead spots on the G string are the main reason I got into compressors. Just seemed like a fact of life, so I tried evening everything out through electronics.

Then I got really lucky with my current bass (Peavey Zodiac DE), the thing sings for days in that area. Probably has dead spots elsewhere, but not nearly as noticeable as the standard ones.
 
Either everyone in this thread is really lucky or some people are in denial. ;)

Personally, my main player (a 4 string bolt-on) has the usual one at D on the G string. I love this bass and I'll keep it forever, but that one note at that one position has me thinking about graphite necks. I know some have said notes can be played at different positions, but that D played on the D string doesn't sound anything like D on the G string. Sometimes I just NEED that note, in that place. It breaks my heart when I lead up to that high D with fat, sustaining tone only to resolve to what sounds like a ghosted note. :(

P.S. If you can't tell if you have dead spots and you already own the bass, don't check! You can't un-hear what you've already heard! ;)