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Fender basses you have never wanted to mod
- Thread starter matti777
- Start date
My 2018 JMJ even has the original strings on it. I'll probably never change them.
IMHO, there are two kinds of modifications: Reversible and Irreversible
I have long abided by a self imposed rule not to make Irreversible mods on any stock Fender instrument. My parts basses are a different story.
For example, every Fender 4 string I own has a HipShot Detuner on it. I gig them, and find the couple of lower notes the HipShot provides to be useful. I keep the original gear in the case; and it can be reversibly replaced at any time.
I also replace the pickups and preamps on the active Fenders. Again, I am careful with cutting wires, and store the original preamp in the case. A refit by someone down the road would have non-original solder joints. I don’t consider that a problem, though I suppose collectors might have a different view. For me, solder joints are a Collector problem. I’m a player.
My instruments all go out on gigs. Every one of them. I take care of them; they take care of me. Collectors can figure it out.
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My Fender American Professional II is perfect as is. So is my Fender Tony Franklin Fretless. Though I did take off the D-tuner and replace it with a regular tuner. Does that count as a mod, or an unmod?
My original interpretation of modding has always been negative. It's like when someone takes a good recipe and adds a bunch of crap and says its better. Sound and taste are subjective but ultimately they are to feed our desire to make something our own and perhaps give us the perception of completing this "almost perfect" design.
Anyway after being a "keep it stock" guy my whole life, I now own a 1975/77 frankenbass that obviously has mods... I think I understand why people mod. It's just a tool, and if it's your tool and you are using it daily/weekly, make it the best damn tool you can for your needs.
That said, any vintage p bass should never ever be modded IMO... Leo designed perfection, and then made a jazz bass for those that like the other type of perfection.
Anyway after being a "keep it stock" guy my whole life, I now own a 1975/77 frankenbass that obviously has mods... I think I understand why people mod. It's just a tool, and if it's your tool and you are using it daily/weekly, make it the best damn tool you can for your needs.
That said, any vintage p bass should never ever be modded IMO... Leo designed perfection, and then made a jazz bass for those that like the other type of perfection.
Back around 1985 my local music store got in a huge batch of the last Elite Precision II basses to roll out of the Fender factory, and blew them out at a stupid low price. I must've known at least half a dozen bassists who picked one up during that sale. And since I was working at said local music store, I got an even more stupidly low price, so of course I got one also, and it became my main instrument for the funk and techno-pop bands I was playing in at the time.
Every other bassist that I knew who'd picked up one of those Elite Precision II basses changed out the pickups within a few months; the common complaint I heard from them was "it's got no low-mids!" (Most of them replaced the pickups with Ken Smith's P pickup, fwiw.)
But to me, that was the charm of the Elite Precision II ...it was all sparkly tinkle/clank, with none of that pesky lower-midrange to muddy up the bottom. And you could easily add just enough deep low bass to make sure the instrument functioned like a bona fide Bass Guitar. I left mine 100% stock, never had the slightest desire to mod it for the entire ~15 years that I owned it.
Every other bassist that I knew who'd picked up one of those Elite Precision II basses changed out the pickups within a few months; the common complaint I heard from them was "it's got no low-mids!" (Most of them replaced the pickups with Ken Smith's P pickup, fwiw.)
But to me, that was the charm of the Elite Precision II ...it was all sparkly tinkle/clank, with none of that pesky lower-midrange to muddy up the bottom. And you could easily add just enough deep low bass to make sure the instrument functioned like a bona fide Bass Guitar. I left mine 100% stock, never had the slightest desire to mod it for the entire ~15 years that I owned it.
This is the left-handed 1980 Fender Jazz Bass I bought from a friend who inherited it from his late father who had bought it new in the early 1980s. I never met the first owner, but I was told he had been proud of having kept it unmodded through the decades.
And when making the deal I promised to keep the bass stock, an easy promise to keep as it really doesn't need any mods, it is a great bass. And as it has survived 44 years in 100% stock condition I certainly don't want to be the one to mess it up!
And when making the deal I promised to keep the bass stock, an easy promise to keep as it really doesn't need any mods, it is a great bass. And as it has survived 44 years in 100% stock condition I certainly don't want to be the one to mess it up!
Makes sense. J is a multi-tone bass, so invites a bit of custom sound building. And it's also been at the vanguard of changing music styles and tones: rounds, slap, scooped 80s etc. The P keeps doing what it does so well.
One could also argue that the younger sibling is always striving to define itself
My '05 Jazz 24 is stock and will stay that way. Some people complain about the preamp, but it sounds fine to me.
I have a Fender Ultra P bass. Some people don’t care for the preamp/pickups. I’ve always really liked them.
This one never been modded - a 1965 Jazz Bass I bought in 1977 for $350. Its had a few repairs to keep it going: rewound bridge pickup, all three pots replaced and a new nut, but everything else is original. I just sent to to Carter Vintage Guitars to be sold. Carter Vintage - Fender Jazz Bass 1965, Olympic White
Attachments
Thanks! This has a S8 serial number which would suggest 1978, but when I opened it up the pickup bottom stamps and pot codes were all from 1980, so a 1980 it is. Matching serial number sticker in the neck pocket.
Only a couple for me. I haven't had the issues with Fenders that others seem to gripe about. I did change out the PJ "noiseless" pickups and preamp on a MIM FSR for Bartolini stuff. Turned a meh sounding bass into a sweetie.
This FSR gem came to me already modded with DiMarzio dual coils, Gotoh Res-o-lites, and a Hipshot 'A' bridge. Not a fan of dual-coil jazz pups, replaced them with Fralin s/coils, a Fender threaded bridge, and a tort guard. I don't know what the orig pickups may have sounded like, but it's a killer now.
This FSR gem came to me already modded with DiMarzio dual coils, Gotoh Res-o-lites, and a Hipshot 'A' bridge. Not a fan of dual-coil jazz pups, replaced them with Fralin s/coils, a Fender threaded bridge, and a tort guard. I don't know what the orig pickups may have sounded like, but it's a killer now.
