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Fender - Classic Player Rascal Bass

#101
dvlmusic said:
Excellent! You've got to give us some sound samples when you can. I'm GASing for this hard but I want to hear it first.
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I'll do what I can but keep in mind that my sound samples will be subjective to my rig, technique and how I record. Will try and do it as objectively and flat as possible. Maybe try and compare it to some more familiar tones like a J and a Pmplayed through the same rig for reference.
 
#103
I too am more interested in the closed distance on short-scales more than the overall strap button to headstock tip length. It certainly raises an interesting discussion. For most, it won't matter but there will be some who especially love it and others who it will be a dealbreaker for. The mustang is just about the only short-scale that feels borderline too short for me. My 31"ish Starfire feels a good 1.5" longer than the scale suggests.
 
#104
While I dove in to the total length debate - I too actually prefer short scales to be moved back a bit - I'm an average/tall guy and am used to playing long scale Fenders so I'm used to having the low e "out there", but I can see that if you are one of those people who really NEED a short scale, this can be an issue.
I too find the Mustang too short - I want to love it when I play them they feel far too "toy-ish" I think it would (me at least) if the neck was a little more substantial, but again that would defeat the purpose for those who need a bass that short (they are almost certain to have small hands to go with their small bodies).
 
#105
The offset dot markers are a departure for Fender. I've seen and kind of liked this on more modern looking basses (Yamaha Attitude, for example), but mixed about whether it's the right thing for this particular "throwback looking" bass.

What are people's thoughts on the offset dots in general, yay or nay?
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#107
So, it arrived on Thursday and so far I am happy with it. Fit and finish are excellent. Neck pocket is tight. Bridge sports massive 1/2 inch diameter saddles. Feels very solid and sounds great in all pickup positions through my practice amp. Have a forty five minute gig tomorrow so will let you know how it does in the mix at stage volume after.

Does not feel like a shorty. Bass vi body is pretty large and it sits in such a position to make it feel more like a long scale. I also think the wider P profile neck and added string length behind the saddles add to a more full scale feel. String tension good given it comes with a pretty light gauge (40-100 I think) stock. Not sure of the weight but it is hefty for a shorty.

Factory setup was typical. Mile high action so as not to have any buzz. I prefer mine much lower with very little neck bow so I get a little fret buzz, zing and pop with each note. Not sure why it was set this way but each pickup from the bridge to neck was set progressively lower with the bridge pickup just about right and the neck pickup nearly flush with the pickguard. Thought it might be to balance volume but plugging it in quickly showed that was not the case. No problem though as they was easily adjustable. Problem solved. The truss rod however proved otherwise.

It seems to me that if you are designing a bass that is not a period correct, recreation of a vintage model but rather a mutt made from the best parts of several different designs over the years, there is no reason to stick with the historically impossible to adjust without removing the neck vintage fender neck heal truss rod. Why not go ahead and stick it on the headstock side or an adjustable wheel (ala ernie ball)? Heck, even just a notch in the pickguard and body with and Allen head adjuster would be fine. Had to remove the neck twice to get it where I like it. Hoping it's still there in the morning or off comes the neck again.

Sorry no pics tonight as I didn't see any need. It looks just like the ones in all the stock pics on the fender site. Will post some side by sides with my other shorties (gibson eb0, eb2, SG bass, squier jag ss) and my full scale jazz bass so you can get a better idea of overall size and where the sting length is compared to overall length of the bass. Will also have an update on how it does with the band at stage volume tomorrow. Stay tuned.
 
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#108
Also, please feel free to ask any questions you want and will do my best to answer. Any measument you want me to take anything you want a picture of. Haven't taken the pickguard off yet to see what the electronics are all about. Figure I will do that after the gig tomorrow so I can get the plastic peeled off the pickguard cleanly and not leave any bits sticking out from under the screws, switches or control mounting nuts like I usually do. Will snap some pics then.

Gonna take my time and get to know this one. It's gonna take some getting used to but as I've said before that's what I like. I want to mold myself to the instrument and learn how it wants to be played. I don't want every neck and every body to feel the same or be easy to play. I don't care about weight. An instrument that doesn't play like any of my others forces me to evolve and learn something new. I like that.
 
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#110
Simon Langley said:
Also, please feel free to ask any questions you want and will do my best to answer. Any measument you want me to take anything you want a picture of. Haven't taken the pickguard off yet to see what the electronics are all about. Figure I will do that after the gig tomorrow so I can get the plastic peeled off the pickguard cleanly and not leave any bits sticking out from under the screws, switches or control mounting nuts like I usually do. Will snap some pics then.
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What is the balance like? I assume it balances fairly decent like other fender basses.

-Ron
 
#111
Simon Langley said:
Does not feel like a shorty. Bass vi body is pretty large and it sits in such a position to make it feel more like a long scale. I also think the wider P profile neck and added string length behind the saddles add to a more full scale feel. String tension good given it comes with a pretty light gauge (40-100 I think) stock. Not sure of the weight but it is hefty for a shorty...
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Thanks for the review, Simon! Really looking forward to the pics, and I'm glad you seem to like it so much. Your observations have just made it clearer to me that this is a bass that I have to try out before purchasing, because the paragraph above showcases some qualities that I might find issue with.
 
#116
So here is a mixed response that is sure to create some confusion. To be honest this isn't a very comfortable bass to play. Mostly due to the body design as my bass vi creates the same issues. Neck dives, no place to use as a thumb rest, big body for a shorty. Noticed today when loading the bass in the gig bag I use for gigs that it is as long overall as my full scale basses. Takes up as much room as my J bass in that case.

So am I complaining? Heck no. Bass did great on the gig today. Set up is perfect now. Plays ultra fast and neck feels real comfortable in the hand. Don't know if it was the bass or if I was really on my game today but definitely not as many "clams" as I usually hit on am given gig. Sounds great through the big rig and so many tone options. Big full range big booty sound with no shortage of low end thump or high end sizzle. With all three pickups on though it does create a strage out of phase kind of tone similar to the Peavey T-40 I used to have. Now there was a truly uncomfortable and heavy bass.

Still working on finding time to get some pics with other basses for size reference and some sound samples. Hopefully soon. Short version of today's impressions are sounds great, plays smooth and fast, a little unbalanced and body feels big. None of the issues listed are deal breakers for me. Works perfectly for me for this gig but your mileage may vary.
 
#118
Neck dive isn't a huge deal breaker for me. The neck adjustment at the heel is a bit of a downer, but definitely not a deal breaker.

A few elements of this bass definitely could have been thought out better, but I still really like the design. It'll be interesting to actually try one and see what I think. I love shorties for the distance between frets. I'm not really phased by the larger body because I have a larger body than average myself :p . I mostly want the comfort that I get with a shortscale, and the obvious versatility of this bass.

-Ron
 
#120
RedHotFuzz said:
But are you getting that with this bass? This really seems more like a long scale that happens to play short scale strings. As another commenter mentioned, possibly the worst of all worlds for those of us who look to shorter scales from a ergonomics perspective.
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No matter what way you look at this, it's a 30" scale and the distance between frets will be the same as other similar shortscales. I don't mind an instrument that is larger (I'm 6'3" and 250lbs) but I love shortscales for their necks, and I also enjoy the feel of shortscale strings. In my books, this still seems like an ideal instrument for me.

-Ron
 

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