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Dean Club!!!

#821
Here is my review of Dean Edge 1. PJ Mahogany. I was looking for an inexpensive mahogany PJ bass. I was given a gift of a Dimarzio P/J pickups and had no bass to put them into, so I decided to buy a mahogany bodied bass and put them in there. Thus I bought Dean Edge 1 PJ mahogany. Serial number WSM171201.0292
Made in China (that should have been first alarm)

1, Body. Made out of 5 pieces. In fact you can see the seems at a certain light angle. Body is very thin and "modern style".It ain't contoured (which is what I like, heavier the body, more wood - deeper tone) A very thin for my liking. 40mm. Just to compare my Yamaha RBX270 (now equipped with Seymour Duncan Basslines) is 43mm thick. My Washburn XB200 is 45mm thick. I did NOT like the fact that you could see the seams.

2. Electronics. The DMT pickups are surprisingly good and give a nice warmish mellow tone. With sufficient sustain and depth. Surprising for a bass that hs such a thin body. The Two volumes and two tones give a very wide range of sound. However on of the tone controls (for J pickups) is ALWAYS crackling. Cleaning it did not help.

3. Neck. VERY VERY COMFORTABLE. Easily as good as Ibanez SR500. Amazing comfort. However, it had SEVERE buzz. The causes were: partially risen 21st fret. Partially risen 14th fret. Both in E string. The frets can be depressed back in with a finger. Which means that they were never glued in during assembly. BAD. The biggest problem is that the neck had two slight dips and two slide hills, like gentle wave. Also on the bass side, while treble side was straight as an arrow. Giving a bit of a relief remedied that. Lowering the bridge saddles return the action back to fender factory specs, without buzz returning. However, the neck came warped.

It is utterly reprehensible that Dean sends basses with faulty tone controls and warped neck to the paying customers. The bass is going back to Dean. This was my first Dean product. This is my last Dean product.
 
#823
B-Mac said:
Bummer that you had a bad experience. It does happen as I’ve read elsewhere. I own eleven Dean basses and luckily have not experienced such issues, with the exception of a few sharp fret ends on my ABG Exotica Quilt Ash Aphex which was easily remedied.
Click to expand...
Sharp fret edges are not an issue for me. A little file and we are good. However, I will no longer buy any Dean product. and I advice against it. Now check this out. In this little Pawn Shop I find Lyon LB40. For 40 bucks. Straight neck, even frets. Yes, LYON, from like 1995. This is my 7th bass by Washburn. That's why I will ALWAYS buy Washburn products. Each and every time I touched a Washburn it was A+.
 
#824
Tigerclaw_x said:
Sharp fret edges are not an issue for me. A little file and we are good. However, I will no longer buy any Dean product. and I advice against it. Now check this out. In this little Pawn Shop I find Lyon LB40. For 40 bucks. Straight neck, even frets. Yes, LYON, from like 1995. This is my 7th bass by Washburn. That's why I will ALWAYS buy Washburn products. Each and every time I touched a Washburn it was A+.
Click to expand...
Yes, I noticed from your profile that you like Washburn Basses
 
#825
Tigerclaw_x said:
Here is my review of Dean Edge 1. PJ Mahogany. I was looking for an inexpensive mahogany PJ bass. I was given a gift of a Dimarzio P/J pickups and had no bass to put them into, so I decided to buy a mahogany bodied bass and put them in there. Thus I bought Dean Edge 1 PJ mahogany. Serial number WSM171201.0292
Made in China (that should have been first alarm)

1, Body. Made out of 5 pieces. In fact you can see the seems at a certain light angle. Body is very thin and "modern style".It ain't contoured (which is what I like, heavier the body, more wood - deeper tone) A very thin for my liking. 40mm. Just to compare my Yamaha RBX270 (now equipped with Seymour Duncan Basslines) is 43mm thick. My Washburn XB200 is 45mm thick. I did NOT like the fact that you could see the seams.

2. Electronics. The DMT pickups are surprisingly good and give a nice warmish mellow tone. With sufficient sustain and depth. Surprising for a bass that hs such a thin body. The Two volumes and two tones give a very wide range of sound. However on of the tone controls (for J pickups) is ALWAYS crackling. Cleaning it did not help.

3. Neck. VERY VERY COMFORTABLE. Easily as good as Ibanez SR500. Amazing comfort. However, it had SEVERE buzz. The causes were: partially risen 21st fret. Partially risen 14th fret. Both in E string. The frets can be depressed back in with a finger. Which means that they were never glued in during assembly. BAD. The biggest problem is that the neck had two slight dips and two slide hills, like gentle wave. Also on the bass side, while treble side was straight as an arrow. Giving a bit of a relief remedied that. Lowering the bridge saddles return the action back to fender factory specs, without buzz returning. However, the neck came warped.

It is utterly reprehensible that Dean sends basses with faulty tone controls and warped neck to the paying customers. The bass is going back to Dean. This was my first Dean product. This is my last Dean product.
Click to expand...
What did your band mates have to say about your bad Dean experience?
 
#827
Tigerclaw_x said:
I just started playing bass year and a half ago. Don't have a band. But I talked to the guys who use dean Guitars and are happy with them. They said that probably QC at dean missed it.
Click to expand...
My bad...I misread your message about the bands 'Wrath' and 'Conniption'. A year and a half ago, wow, you're very knowledgeable on bass guitar construction and different brands of basses and overall lutherie. Do you work at a music store like GC?
 
#828
Today, I found, or it found me, a Taxi!! I am Psycho enough on my own, but now it is official. I get to pick it up on Friday. So, cases? I have several of a similar shape for Gretsch, Ibanez, and Epiphone. Does anyone have any knowledge if this will fit? Or, do I need to find the right one for it.
 
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#829
BassJuju said:
Today, I found, or it found me, a Taxi!! I am Psycho enough on my own, but now it is official. I get to pick it up on Friday. So, cases? I have several of a similar shape for Gretsch, Ibanez, and Epiphone. Does anyone have any knowledge if this will fit? Or, do I need to find the right one for it.
Click to expand...

Nice! You Psycho you! :smug:

Well, I have the non cabbie-stylist and remember it is a 32 inch scale. I have a bunch of HB & SHB basses in cases so I'll do some switching around and get back here with results.
 
#830
B-Mac said:
Nice! You Psycho you! :smug:

Well, I have the non cabbie-stylist and remember it is a 32 inch scale. I have a bunch of HB & SHB basses in cases so I'll do some switching around and get back here with results.
Click to expand...

Thanks!! The tag listed it as a “Psycho Taxi” I guess because it reminded them of the Dreamcast game and that was what was stuck in my head. I have now seen and recalled from my previous cravings that Dean called it a Cabbie. That’s going to be my name going forward... seems much more appropriate.

I should add I have the cases for the Gretsch G5440LS, Epiphone JackBass, and Ibanez AGBV205. Not sure if that helps. I also have a gig blade, which may be the portation device for the trip home.
 
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#831
BassJuju said:
Thanks!! The tag listed it as a “Psycho Taxi” I guess because it reminded them of the Dreamcast game and that was what was stuck in my head. I have now seen and recalled from my previous cravings that Dean called it a Cabbie. That’s going to be my name going forward... seems much more appropriate.

I should add I have the cases for the Gretsch G5440LS, Epiphone JackBass, and Ibanez AGBV205. Not sure if that helps. I also have a gig blade, which may be the portation device for the trip home.
Click to expand...
BassJuju, the following members, including me, own Cabbie and non-cabbie Stylist basses. I'm sure they can also help you out with any questions you might have once your bass arrives.
@RobinG
@mojomike001
@Avezzano
@Pilgrim
@2saddleslab
 
#833
Okay, there is one thing about the Dean Stylist Bass that you don't really realize until you actually start taking basses out of their cases and trying to put the Dean into the case you just took a different bass out of....the Dean Stylist Bass is bigger than you think, especially the width of it. If someone told me it was this big I'd have told them they were full of crap. Really. I would. But after doing this, man am I ever surprised. I would guess that this bass is as wide as the Washburn AB90. The Dean Stylist did not fit into the following bass cases:
Ibanez Case for AFB200
Ibenez Case for AGB140
Gretsch Case for 5123
Gretsch Case for 6073
Jack Cassidy no name case from Long-McQuade (I use for my Dillion)
Gibson Case for Les Paul Standard
Eastwood Case for Classic 5

In every case it is the width that causes the issue.
You might want to find out what specific Road Runner case @Pilgrim is using that works for his Dean Stylist as my Dean will not fit in the Gretsch case made specifically for the Gretsch 5123.
However, it does fit into a Dean Exotica Quilted Ash ABG bass case.
It also fits into my TKL case for my Takamine ABG GB72CE Jumbo.
It fits great width wise, but depth wise it moves around and length wise it moves around.
I'm really sorry about this as I really did think one of these would work.
Maybe someone else here can suggest something?
 
#834
B-Mac said:
Okay, there is one thing about the Dean Stylist Bass that you don't really realize until you actually start taking basses out of their cases and trying to put the Dean into the case you just took a different bass out of....the Dean Stylist Bass is bigger than you think, especially the width of it. If someone told me it was this big I'd have told them they were full of crap. Really. I would. But after doing this, man am I ever surprised. I would guess that this bass is as wide as the Washburn AB90. The Dean Stylist did not fit into the following bass cases:
Ibanez Case for AFB200
Ibenez Case for AGB140
Gretsch Case for 5123
Gretsch Case for 6073
Jack Cassidy no name case from Long-McQuade (I use for my Dillion)
Gibson Case for Les Paul Standard
Eastwood Case for Classic 5

In every case it is the width that causes the issue.
You might want to find out what specific Road Runner case @Pilgrim is using that works for his Dean Stylist as my Dean will not fit in the Gretsch case made specifically for the Gretsch 5123.
However, it does fit into a Dean Exotica Quilted Ash ABG bass case.
It also fits into my TKL case for my Takamine ABG GB72CE Jumbo.
It fits great width wise, but depth wise it moves around and length wise it moves around.
I'm really sorry about this as I really did think one of these would work.
Maybe someone else here can suggest something?
Click to expand...

Thanks all of that as it would appear to be a lot of work.

The only one I’ve found is this...
https://www.guitarcenter.com/Road-Runner/RRMBA17-ABS-Molded-Acoustic-Bass-Case.gc
@Pilgrim is that the one?
 
#836
#837
OK, case info.

I revisited the original thread about the Gretsch 5123 when it came out a few years ago:

New Gretsch Electromatic Hollowbody bass?

See my post 64 on page 4 of the thread for this info and pictures....memory tells me this is the case that also fits the Dean. I'll set a reminder in my calendar to check it at home tonight. I posted this info in that thread:

TKL makes a standard hard case that retails at $149. It does fit but the interior cavity is about 2" deeper than the bass, so if you go this route you'll need to fold a blanket or add foam in the case to fill out the extra space. I believe the model is a TKL Premier 17. This is a fairly heavy case, and its balance is such that it carries tilted neck-upward.

Second, and a better fit, Road Runner makes a molded hard case that sells for $109 and is a better fit. The strap button on the top bout hits the interior foam, but it won't take much massaging to compress the foam at that spot so there's no interference. I found this case at Guitar Center. It's lighter than the TKL and balances better.

I can't find the Road Runner case anywhere on the GC website, but the data on the tag says:

Roadrunner RRMBA 17 ABS Molded Acous Bass GTR case

UPC code on the tag is: 6 56238 01 527 1.
 
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#838
Pilgrim said:
OK, case info.

I revisited the original thread about the Gretsch 5123 when it came out a few years ago:

New Gretsch Electromatic Hollowbody bass?

See my post 64 on page 4 of the thread for this info and pictures....memory tells me this is the case that also fits the Dean. I'll set a reminder in my calendar to check it at home tonight.

TKL makes a standard hard case that retails at $149. It does fit but the interior cavity is about 2" deeper than the bass, so if you go this route you'll need to fold a blanket or add foam in the case to fill out the extra space. I believe the model is a TKL Premier 17. This is a fairly heavy case, and its balance is such that it carries tilted neck-upward.

Second, and a better fit, Road Runner makes a molded hard case that sells for $109 and is a better fit. The strap button on the top bout hits the interior foam, but it won't take much massaging to compress the foam at that spot so there's no interference. I found this case at Guitar Center. It's lighter than the TKL and balances better.

I can't find the Road Runner case anywhere on the GC website, but the data on the tag says:

Roadrunner RRMBA 17 ABS Molded Acous Bass GTR case

UPC code on the tag is: 6 56238 01 527 1.
Click to expand...
Gotta be the one:

https://www.guitarcenter.com/Road-Runner/RRMBA17-ABS-Molded-Acoustic-Bass-Case.gc
 
#839
Pilgrim said:
OK, case info.

I revisited the original thread about the Gretsch 5123 when it came out a few years ago:

New Gretsch Electromatic Hollowbody bass?

See my post 64 on page 4 of the thread for this info and pictures....memory tells me this is the case that also fits the Dean. I'll set a reminder in my calendar to check it at home tonight.
Click to expand...
I tried this last night and the Dean is much wider than the 5123, which really surprised me as both are 32" scale.
I am sure the Dean will fit in the Road Runner case, which I also have, but didn't try it out last night.
 

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