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Fender 60th Anniversary Precision Bass

#341
soxhats said:
Agreed. Fantastic, Bill... (To me, pick/flatwounds/P Bass is like the angels singing. I play with a pick only 10-15 percent of the time, but it's the right 10-15 percent, ha.)
Click to expand...

Thanks for chiming in on this, soxhats. I'm glad to hear you agree, especially given that the LaBellas were your suggestion!

I think what I'll do is put the flats back on my crappy MIM P, and use that for practicing pickstyle. Those strings are too dark sounding on that bass played fingerstyle, but they might be fine for picking. I'll try the TIs on the new bass and see if I can get the growl back, and go from there. My favorite bass tone these days is Julie Slick's, via her Lakland Bob Glaub. I don't have her other secret weapon -- a Keeley compressor -- but my VT Bass might get me close....
 
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#344
WillieB said:
I'll have to go listen to Julie Slick.
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Yes, yes you should! Here's a good place to start:

Adrian Belew Power Trio - Writing on the Wall - YouTube

I suggest this because it's professionally produced (for German TV) and the sound quality is good; you can get a pretty good sense of her tone from this (not to mention getting to hear it pickstyle, fingerstyle, and slapping all within a few minutes). The whole set is now available on DVD, BTW, and highly recommended.

There's a lengthy thread about Julie (to which, as you'll see, I am a regular contributor) in the TB "Bassists" section, which has lots of other info, links to vids, and so forth. She also drops in and contributes to the thread from time to time.
 
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#345
Hey guys, I need some advice. I'm headed out on a coast-to-coast trip next week and would like to bring my new bass with me. The hard case that it came in seems like it's built like a tank: much sturdier and stronger than most. I usually try to gate-check a bass when I travel, and am always extremely anxious if it has to be checked as regular luggage instead, but I'm wondering how much I ought to to worry about it with this butt-kicking case. Do you think I am delusional in thinking that this case seems virtually like a flight case, and I shouldn't worry, or do you think I'm an idiot for thinking about trusting my new baby to airline baggage handlers (seemingly butt-kicking case notwithstanding)?

In other news, I just swapped out the LaBella flats for a set of TI Powerbass strings. Will get to try them out tomorrow night at band practice, and will post a report....
 
#346
Lobster11 said:
Hey guys, I need some advice. I'm headed out on a coast-to-coast trip next week and would like to bring my new bass with me. The hard case that it came in seems like it's built like a tank: much sturdier and stronger than most. I usually try to gate-check a bass when I travel, and am always extremely anxious if it has to be checked as regular luggage instead, but I'm wondering how much I ought to to worry about it with this butt-kicking case. Do you think I am delusional in thinking that this case seems virtually like a flight case, and I shouldn't worry, or do you think I'm an idiot for thinking about trusting my new baby to airline baggage handlers (seemingly butt-kicking case notwithstanding)?
Click to expand...

The case that came with your bass is virtually indestructible. You have nothing to worry about.
 
#347
smcd said:
The case that came with your bass is virtually indestructible. You have nothing to worry about.
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Thanks -- that's certainly my impression too. The other issue, though, is whether the internal design of the case is sufficiently tight to keep the bass securely in position within the case, or whether I should pack it with an additional towel or something. I'm not really sure how to determine that -- any ideas?

In other news, I went ahead (as threatened previously) and swapped out the LaBella flats for the set of TI Powerbass rounds that I happened to have on hand, and took the bass to practice last night. These are some seriously cool strings: I love the feel of the heavy gauges (.047 to .107), and I now have so much snarly growl (growly snarl?) I don't know what to do with it -- especially with a VT Bass pedal going into a tube amp. You want to talk about "cutting through the mix"? -- wow. Don't get me wrong -- I thought the flats sounded great, with a beautiful big, round, full sound -- but it was a bit too polite. This snarly/growly thing is where it's at for me....
 
#348
388386_307390505967795_181670138539833_1008705_1674537015_n.jpg


Here's mine!

Not sure if I posted this photos here but...
1.jpg

5.jpg


Currently with LaBellas 760FL. Plays like butter!
 
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#350
Mine is very bright, but the tone knob is very responsive. With most P's, I usually dime the tone knob, then drop it back about 1/8th of a turn. But on the 60th, I usually drop it back at least half.

I had a '62 Reissue that was nowhere near as bright as the 60th. I briefly had a '57 Reissue that was much brighter than the '62, and probably similar to the 60th.
 
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#353
Hey, I've got a question for my fellow 60th-P owners. It just struck me at a random moment, for no particular reason, but now I'm curious....

Lots of folks have commented on (and I agree) that the tone control on this baby produces an unusually broad range of tones from dark to bright; in particular, the top end is a good bit brighter than most P's. My question is, why is this exactly? It's a passive circuit, so it isn't boosting anything. Is there something unique about the particular tone pot, or is it just that the combination of woods, etc. makes for a naturally brighter tone than other P's when the highs aren't cut?
 
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#354
well lobster .... it might be a combination.

My first observation was the pickups themselves did not match ( closely ) any other p bass I own ( about 8 ) its got its own flavor and a unique mid to top end sound.
I suppose it could be the pot and cap as well. then of course ... its a maple board and
most folks who have these still have brand new bright strings on 'em
 
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#355
Lobster11 said:
Hey, I've got a question for my fellow 60th-P owners. It just struck me at a random moment, for no particular reason, but now I'm curious....

Lots of folks have commented on (and I agree) that the tone control on this baby produces an unusually broad range of tones from dark to bright; in particular, the top end is a good bit brighter than most P's. My question is, why is this exactly? It's a passive circuit, so it isn't boosting anything. Is there something unique about the particular tone pot, or is it just that the combination of woods, etc. makes for a naturally brighter tone than other P's when the highs aren't cut?
Click to expand...

It's got to be a combination of the pickup windings and the tone cap (I believe it's a .1). The maple board doesn't really have anything to do with it (IMHO) as I have other basses with maple boards and I haven't found another P bass that sounds like one of these.
 
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#356
Thanks, guys. The pickup and tone cap probably make the most sense. What value cap is typical in a Fender P? It also hadn't occurred to me that the pup was so unique, but I'll take WillieB's word for it that it is (and thus could be an important part of the explanation).

String choice sure has a big effect too, of course, but even moreso than I'd expected. The stock roundwound strings were crazy bright; the couple of times I used them I found myself usually rolling the tone control way back. Then I switched them out for some just-broken-in LaBella flats, and found myself keeping the tone control wide open most of the time. I'm now using a set of TI Powerbass strings that I had lying around, and they seem to be just right, in that Goldilocks-and-porridge kind of way. Now I'm getting maximal use out of the tone control, adjusting it differently for different tunes to great effect. And oh, the growl....
 
#359
I can't use utube at work ... will check it out at home

I had mine at practice last night ..... oh its sweet the quarter rounds are a bit sticky

and I'll ask .... anyone else notice that lacquer finishes get nastier then poly ?
- sweat, dirt, etc ..... I'm going to clean mine after each use. I found the same thing with my 57 reissue
 

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