Sharing Fender Japan basses?
2007 CIJ Aerodyne, non-export. Gunmetal Blue.
Those are hot! I've wanted one forever! I don't wanna be rude but how much did it cost you to export it from japan? Thx
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Fender japan! Share the basses!!!!!
- Thread starter Tommygunn
- Start date
Those are hot! I've wanted one forever! I don't wanna be rude but how much did it cost you to export it from japan? Thx
Didn't cost me anything for export; I got it on eBay. I think the prior owner was an American GI who came home with it.
Good selection... bad prices! They has a 80's jbs for $800
Those go for $300 here on ebay
It doesn't really make sense to look for MIA Fenders in Japan and expect a bargain. On the other hand, few Fender Japan basses that show up on eBay aren't in Japan.
I think my blog is better and much easier to read
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Agreed! One of the most G.A.S. inducing blogs ever!
Hello all - I finally bought two of my dream basses. Two Lefty Fender "Made In Japan" jazz basses with matching headstock, candy apple red and ocean turqoiuse metallic . I have a couple other Japan basses and the say "Crafted" on the back of the neck but these say "Made". Who knows why and no biggie.
Now I don't need to spend thousands for the Fender Custom shop to make my dream bass. I do have two Fender Custom shop basses and the workmanship on these Japan basses are just as good and sound as good in my oppinion. Bought them off of Ebay from Jo' Music. Shipped from Japan last Thursday and were delivered to work yesterday. Cheers all!
Here are the specs:
Body: Alder
Neck: Maple, Oval Shape, 432mm Scale (the length from nut to number 12 fret)
Fretboard: Rosewood, 184R (IVORY BINDING)
Frets: 20, Vintage Style
Nut Width: 38mm
Pickups: J-Bass Vintage (U.S.A.) x 2
Controls & Switch: 2-Vol, 1-Tone
Bridge: Vintage Left
Machineheads: Regular Type
Hardware: Chrome
Now I don't need to spend thousands for the Fender Custom shop to make my dream bass. I do have two Fender Custom shop basses and the workmanship on these Japan basses are just as good and sound as good in my oppinion. Bought them off of Ebay from Jo' Music. Shipped from Japan last Thursday and were delivered to work yesterday. Cheers all!
Here are the specs:
Body: Alder
Neck: Maple, Oval Shape, 432mm Scale (the length from nut to number 12 fret)
Fretboard: Rosewood, 184R (IVORY BINDING)
Frets: 20, Vintage Style
Nut Width: 38mm
Pickups: J-Bass Vintage (U.S.A.) x 2
Controls & Switch: 2-Vol, 1-Tone
Bridge: Vintage Left
Machineheads: Regular Type
Hardware: Chrome
See, this is what I don't get. Why the hell doesn't Fender have every bass available everywhere in the world? There should not be such a limited palette of colors, pickguards and necks here and a palette as big as the sky in Japan.
What gives? I am waiting for a credible explanation from Fender and not some BS double speak!
Fender! Wake up and smell the cash! As long as you restrict the options anywhere, you will lose sales to other companies! Period! And especially your most consistent line in terms of quality.
The two basses posted above are perfect examples of what I say!
What gives? I am waiting for a credible explanation from Fender and not some BS double speak!
Fender! Wake up and smell the cash! As long as you restrict the options anywhere, you will lose sales to other companies! Period! And especially your most consistent line in terms of quality.
The two basses posted above are perfect examples of what I say!
The J in my Avatar is a '93 MIJ. I've played dozens of them though. ALL of them fit together nicely and played like butter. It's a shame we can't put out the same quality on a regular basis here. Before you jump on me, I used to work at a Fender dealer. I've played hundreds of Fenders from all the factories. Mexi and USA are all over the place. Pretty much ALL of the MIJ stuff fits together well and plays like a dream. Some of the electronics are OK at best, but the craftsmanship is always the same........really nice.
I think my blog is better and much easier to read
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I stopped after 2 pages, my heart can't take it!
I don't get the 'made in' as opposed to 'crafted in' thing either.
Perhaps 'made' insinuates that completed bodies and necks come in from elsewhere and are assembled in japan, and the 'crafted' basses have all the shaping, routing, etc done in Japan...?
In any case, here's my made in Japan bass (pic taken from the ebay auction where I got it)
Perhaps 'made' insinuates that completed bodies and necks come in from elsewhere and are assembled in japan, and the 'crafted' basses have all the shaping, routing, etc done in Japan...?
In any case, here's my made in Japan bass (pic taken from the ebay auction where I got it)
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Bought in Japan in 2003
It's a JB 75 model with U.S. pickups. I added a BadAss bridge after this picture was taken. (earlier this year)
I've been thinking of upgrading the pickups for quite a while. I want more of a Geddy Lee - midrange growl. Thinking about Fralins. Any suggestions?
It's a JB 75 model with U.S. pickups. I added a BadAss bridge after this picture was taken. (earlier this year)
I've been thinking of upgrading the pickups for quite a while. I want more of a Geddy Lee - midrange growl. Thinking about Fralins. Any suggestions?
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This bass claims US pups but what US pups are they? This years/ last years? First of all you will not get the Geddy sound out of that bass for a few reasons: That bass has 60's pups spacing eliminating the mid-range growl known to come from 70's spacing. The Geddy bass has original vintage pups in it along with an alder body so between those three things you will not achieve that sound! You may get a bass to sound like you like you may not, that's the nature of the beast with the MIJ/CIJ 75RI bass.
I own a MIA ash bodied maple neck jazz that I put Fralins in and here's my take: The Fralins "cleaned up" the basses sound across the board! They made the treble cleaner and more articulate as well as making the low end smoother. The bass really stands out when I gig with it and I always get compliments on the way it sounds! Don't get me wrong, the stock pups were fine but being I had so many jazz basses at the time I decided to mod this particular bass. Again this bass has the 60's pup spacing but is the same combo of ash and maple like your bass. Now owning a Geddy jazz I can tell you that Fralin pups in you bass will most likely not get you where you want to go as the Fralin pup (at least the ones I have) kill the vintage tone! I don't think of the Geddy bass as having a "vintage" tone but more of a mid-rangy bass that lends itself nicely to lots of styles!. The good thing with Fralin pups are if you don't like the way they sound you can send them back to him and he will rewind them how YOU want them to sound! You just contact him first telling him what you want! How cool is that!!!
Thanks for the replies to my question about pickups. I always thought that it was strange that a bass that's supposed to be kind of a 70's reissue has 60's pickup spacing! I think Fender Japan were more interested in the looks, not actual specs. When I first spotted it in Ishibashi, it had tags all over it boasting that it had U.S. pickups. Like pyrohr asked, which U.S. pickups? They always sounded dull and wishy-washy and it's hard to get that classic J bass sound. That's why I want to replace them but after reading so many threads here on talkbass, (including the mega thread sticky about J bass pickups in the pickups section)I'm just confused! I mentioned Geddy's sound just as a ballpark sound idea. I always thought Fralins might be the way to go since he can under or over wind them as you wish but maybe other brands would be a better choice? So confused.....
One more thing about the Fender Japan basses only available in Japan is that although the build quality rivals (some people believe exceeds) even the MIA Fenders, as two fingers pointed out, the hardware and electronics are usually not as good as the MIA models. I had to replace the input jack almost immediately after getting this bass and the tuners are a bit rough. I have no idea about the wiring or if it's shielded or not, etc but I guess I'll investigate that someday.
To the OP: sorry if this is hijacking your thread! Since the thread is about Japanese Fenders, I thought this would be on topic.
One more thing about the Fender Japan basses only available in Japan is that although the build quality rivals (some people believe exceeds) even the MIA Fenders, as two fingers pointed out, the hardware and electronics are usually not as good as the MIA models. I had to replace the input jack almost immediately after getting this bass and the tuners are a bit rough. I have no idea about the wiring or if it's shielded or not, etc but I guess I'll investigate that someday.
To the OP: sorry if this is hijacking your thread! Since the thread is about Japanese Fenders, I thought this would be on topic.
The hardware issue is an easy one to overcome though. I'd rather be able to get one that looks like I want then make a few minor tweaks along the way.
And FWIW, a lot of folks have the Japanese Fenders and have never had to or wanted to change anything. And for my money the hardware cannot possibly be any worse than the CV or VM Squier or the MIM Fender.
And pickup swaps are cheap and quick. A set of good stock Fenders or better is about 100 bucks and 20 minutes of work. Not a lot to add to the cost of a sweet looking, well assembled bass.
And FWIW, a lot of folks have the Japanese Fenders and have never had to or wanted to change anything. And for my money the hardware cannot possibly be any worse than the CV or VM Squier or the MIM Fender.
And pickup swaps are cheap and quick. A set of good stock Fenders or better is about 100 bucks and 20 minutes of work. Not a lot to add to the cost of a sweet looking, well assembled bass.
