Highway 1 or Geddy Lee Jazz?

[John Wentzien]

You can hear some rough mixes of this bass on myspace link below. It was recorded from the direct-out of an Ampeg B2R , pre EQ completely flat with no compession or EQ or efffects....
All knobs on full 100%

 

[4Mal]

a new H1 has the graphite stabilizers in the neck I believe. GL's have been notorius for neck issues over the years. No contest - plus - I don't like black ...

 

[jumbosilverette]

Another vote for Hiway 1. Love the finish and feel. The Geddy seems too fussy to me.

 

[dave_bass5]

And another vote for the HW. Im sure you guys realsie that the HW1 is the older version and the HW-one is the new, upgraded ones. They come (came) in different colours and also the one's have the BAII bridge and reinforced neck.
I have a HW-1 Jazz (i put a BAII on it) and love it. It was the best Jazz in the shop at the time and there were loads. Im not really a Jazz person, dont like the sound as much as a P so i have just got a HW-one P in black and i must say how nice the finish looks in black. Cant wait to get a black pick guard on it.
I found with my HW1 the finish started to fall off quite quickly, little bits of it. Plus where my right forearm rubs on the body it has indeed rubbed the paint away. I now have a large patch of shiny natural looking wood there. Yes it looks vintage now but i feel this will affect resale value. Im not sure how better the new finish on the HW-one's are, only time will tell i guess.

mello, that jazz looks great. same colour as my P.

rummy. what is that bass you posted? Is it a HW1? looks glossy and i didnt think they came in that colour although i have heard rumours about a limited edition white finish but never seen one before.

 

[ko stradivarius]

I tried both and for me it was mainly the neck and pickup placement of the H1. The clincher was that I got it with a hard case for $650. I went in expecting to buy a Geddy.
I've since installed Nordstrand pups and an HAS harness.
I don't regret it at all and Ive been playing it more than my Curbow Petite 5 recently.

 

[mello_bedwetter]

And another vote for the HW. Im sure you guys realsie that the HW1 is the older version and the HW-one is the new, upgraded ones. They come (came) in different colours and also the one's have the BAII bridge and reinforced neck.
I have a HW-1 Jazz (i put a BAII on it) and love it. It was the best Jazz in the shop at the time and there were loads. Im not really a Jazz person, dont like the sound as much as a P so i have just got a HW-one P in black and i must say how nice the finish looks in black. Cant wait to get a black pick guard on it.
I found with my HW1 the finish started to fall off quite quickly, little bits of it. Plus where my right forearm rubs on the body it has indeed rubbed the paint away. I now have a large patch of shiny natural looking wood there. Yes it looks vintage now but i feel this will affect resale value. Im not sure how better the new finish on the HW-one's are, only time will tell i guess.

mello, that jazz looks great. same colour as my P.

rummy. what is that bass you posted? Is it a HW1? looks glossy and i didnt think they came in that colour although i have heard rumours about a limited edition white finish but never seen one before.

The bass I'm interested in is the Highway-One, not the Highway 1. So the "One" is the newer model of the "1"?

 

[SuperSnake2012]

I love the Geddy... I much prefer the '70s J sound than the '60s J sound. I find the bridge pickup gives the bass more personality when it's closer to the bridge. The Geddy plays very nicely and the tone is amazing. I really like the neck too.

 

[DavC]

Had a Gaddy for a little while ... thought the thin neck , BadAss bridge, vintage pups, was the ticket .... but it didn't last long ... even with the addition of a Audere pre .... ( was either that or NoiseLess pups )

neck was too small .... though i played thin necked basses the first 15 years, i've played 5 strings the last 15 ..!!
i think that is why neck neck felt overly small to me ...

hardware was fine, sounded fine ..... but i built a couple Fenders that seem to play and sound better ... a 74 body w/MightyMite fretless neck ( frets ground down , then glossed over), DiMarzio model J pups, 62 style concentric vol/tone knobs, BadAss w/slotted saddles , GHS PressureWounds ...
and i just put together a 78 MOP blocked/bound neck , 78 tuners , Vintage jazz pups ( like the Geddy ) ,Chrome Flats ( for a different sound ) and the remaining Fender take-offs from the other bass ... i put those together for about $800-900 each .... if you're into that kind of project ... it's been fun , but not something i'd like to do ... often ..!! things don't always fit as you think they should , even being made to fit Fender parts ..!!!

both of those necks feel very good ... and they both sound great ... the model j pups work well on fretless ..!!

so i'd say , get which ever ones feels better .... you can change a few parts to 'tune in' on the tone you want ...!!
that's much easier than altering the neck , one way or another ... and if you find something really cheap that feels great .. it's fairly easy to fix it up a bit with slightly used parts you can find here or on the Bay ...

later;
happy hunting;
DC

 

[dave_bass5]

The bass I'm interested in is the Highway-One, not the Highway 1. So the "One" is the newer model of the "1"?

Thats right. I was just making sure. most of the replies mention the HW1 but as thats the older type they are quite had to find now.

 

[Turock]

When I first played my HW1 Jazz, my first thought was that it really nailed that JPJ sound of the early Zep recordings. I had to have it. I was so impressed with the HW1 Jazz that I ordered the HW1 Precision also.

 

[Quadzilla]

I'm going to go against the majority here and vote for the Geddy. I dig the fact that it comes with US Vintage pickups (which sound great) and a BA-II bridge (well both models do). The main thing for me is that I've seen more consistant build quality lately on the CIJ instruments ve the MIA ones. Hate to say it, but it's true. I've seen several MIA's with poorly cut neck pockets (gaps), frets that are sharp and extend past the fretboard (ouch) and that come poorly setup. For the most part, the CIJ's I've picked up don't have these issues. I jus think the Japanese are better at quality control than us in general (think Toyota vs GM) and it also shows on current basses.

It's not to say that you can't find some U.S. gems and are are good, but just not as consistant as the CIJ stuff. Just my opinion. Take it or leave it...

 

[mello_bedwetter]

Thats right. I was just making sure. most of the replies mention the HW1 but as thats the older type they are quite had to find now.

The Highway One Jazz is the one in GC, Musicians' Friend, etc, catalogs.

 

[Hemispheres85]

I'm in the same boat as you! I'm looking upgrade from my Squier this summer if I can get the cash, and the Geddy and HW1 are the top options right now.

I must say, I'm EXTREMELY surprised by the overwhelming response in this thread to go for the Highway One. Check out this Thread-
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=376941

Geddy won to the HW1 40 to 14 in this poll and most of the responses were for the Geddy. This thread comes along and does the opposite thing a week later!

Right now I'm leaning towards the HW1 though. It's probably not as good-looking as the Geddy (mmmm, blocks) and isn't like a 70's bass, but It's got the same bridge and a great neck and finish.

 

[mello_bedwetter]

Is the Highway One like the old Fender Jazz? The new Jazz has an S-switch, right? Is that the main difference between the MIA Jazz and the Highway One bass? I'm just asking, I really don't have a clue. Btw, anyone have any pics of the Highway One in black? I'm curious how it looks because of the "thin" paint. Does the paint fade bad?

 

[GeddyisGod]

My camera isn't that great, or I'd put up some pics of my black H-one P. Mine hasn't faded much after a year, but there are some scratch marks starting to show from where I use a pick occasionally.

Other than the S1 switch and finish, the pickups, tuners, and bridge are different on the H1 vs the standard. No maple fretboard option either.

 

[wahman]

I went to my local GC and saw the P Fender Highway One for 649.99 (think it was honey blonde). I'm not sure what the Jazz version went for, but I questioned the guy about it and all he said was well list is $1049.00 (I thought nevermind...) It was the upgraded version...I would of jumped all over it, but a lack of funds stopped me...and I'm in no mood to add that to the GC CC...that may help you decide...or not...

 

[dave_bass5]

My camera isn't that great, or I'd put up some pics of my black H-one P. Mine hasn't faded much after a year, but there are some scratch marks starting to show from where I use a pick occasionally.

Other than the S1 switch and finish, the pickups, tuners, and bridge are different on the H1 vs the standard. No maple fretboard option either.

My HW-one P in black just arrived and i love it The neck is better than i hoped it would be. much easier to play (for me) than the MIM 50's classic i have here waiting to go back.
Only minor complaint is the back of the neck seems a bit rougher than my HW1 Jazz or the MIM. not a big deal as its smoother than my 55-01 and i had no problems with that.

Pics