I feel genuinely dissapointed.

[theavestruz17]

I don't know. Past week I received a Fender Player Jaguar in Tidepool. It was the bass i've always wanted since I started playing 10 months ago. I was really excited. I immediately opened it, went for my amp and plugged it. My god. The neck, the finish, the shape, the color. Everything felt perfect. It felt like my signature bass, like something that was tailored for me. Well, then I plugged it and the Precision pickup didn't work. I felt that like someone poured a bucket of cold water on me, naked, in the most icy winter. The Jazz pickup worked fine and I played it using this pickup the rest of the evening. Besides that only (and very important) failure everything was just perfect. It even came with new strings.

The next day I packed it again to return it to the seller. A couple days later they messaged me telling me that the only color available was silver and if I wanted them to send the silver one as a replacement. I thought "it's practically the same bass. same shape, same neck, same pickups, different color. it can't be that different."
I accepted, but boy, I was wrong.
The silver came in today. I wasn't as excited as the other day. I opened this one and even though they are the same model, the silver didn't even feel remotely close to the blue one. The strings are dull as hell, the frets feel smaller and overall, it doesn't feel as easy to play like the other. Well, I just feel really bad. I'm even thinking about selling it.

 

[catcauphonic]

Is the seller a store?

 

[theavestruz17]

Is the seller a store?

Yes

 

[king_biscuit]

The second one probably just needs to be set up with new strings. If you don't like the color though... Why not just fix the blue one? Whatever is wrong with the pickup/wiring would be an easy fix.

 

[theavestruz17]

For me the feel of an instrument is a very important characteristic. Disappointment with the feel of an instrument is the reason I don't buy on line anymore. I would rather fix the pickup issue than replace with a bass that didn't feel as good.

I thought it wasn't fair to pay another 150 bucks or so after paying 675 for an instrument that is supposed to work perfectly fine, but now I feel bad because the pickup change is an upgrade anyways.

 

[king_biscuit]

If the bass is new, just have it repaired under warranty. No need to "upgrade" the stock pickup, it is a good as anything aftermarket.

 

[catcauphonic]

I thought it wasn't fair to pay another 150 bucks or so after paying 675 for an instrument that is supposed to work perfectly fine, but now I feel bad because the pickup change is an upgrade anyways.

Are you being charged for the shipping on the return of a faulty bass the store sent you?

Your profile doesn't say if you're in the US or not, but here I would think if this is a new instrument from a reputable online store, and the bass isn't sold as B-stock As Is or something like that... then the store should have to eat the shipping charge.

 

[theavestruz17]

Are you being charged for the shipping on the return of a faulty bass the store sent you?

Your profile doesn't say if you're in the US or not, but here I would think if this is a new instrument from a reputable online store, and the bass isn't sold as B-stock As Is or something like that... then the store should have to eat the shipping charge.

Nope, they paid it

 

[catcauphonic]

Nope, they paid it

What was the $150 charge for?

 

[catcauphonic]

If the bass is new, just have it repaired under warranty. No need to "upgrade" the stock pickup, it is a good as anything aftermarket.

This ^

It's probably just a wire came loose during shipping, but they should take care of that for you

 

[monsterthompson]

Strings feeling different is just a roll of the dice. Shops generally don’t restring, so you get what you get, for the good or the bad. If you got an older bass in inventory, it probably had older strings.

The action of the bass is a similar issue. Basses in that price range don’t generally come with a fresh setup. If they do, and there’s shipping involved, there’s no way to know how much shifted in transit and/or due to temperature and humidity changes.

The fret size being different seems odd, but might be an “illusion” related to the setup not feeling as nice.

That’s a shame to have that feeling, after you had what you wanted in your hands. A new set of strings and a proper setup might get you sorted.

 

[theavestruz17]

What was the $150 charge for?

Oh, I meant paying 150 for new pickups.

 

[JKos]

Again, why would you have needed to pay $150 for pickups if you had had it fixed under warranty?

- John

 

[theavestruz17]

This ^

It's probably just a wire came loose during shipping, but they should take care of that for you

I opened the control plate and everything seemed correctly wired and soldered. I didn't get more into it to keep the warranty valid.

 

[mouthmw]

I doubt the pickup was faulty, most likely a bad solder. Easy fix. Even if the pickup was dead, they should have replaced it under warranty. If the bass otherwise felt great, it should have been a keeper. You might just need a good setup on the new one, but if a bass feels great from the get go, it's usually a sign of a nice, stable neck. I've got a nice Player P, but I've swapped out almost everything on it anyways (pickup, bridge, tuners), but I planned it for that anyways. What mattered to me was the neck stability, playability and a nice overall build quality. It passed with flying colors on all of that.

 

[Thumpin6string]

I'd tell the seller you want the first one repaired under warranty and sent back to you. No reason to keep one that you don't like.

 

[The Bass Clef]

Maybe try calling the store and tell them how you feel?.. Tell them that the old bass played and felt way better and you aren’t happy with the replacement. Maybe if they are an authorized dealer, they can fix the 1st one for you and swap ‘em back? I know it may be a long shot, but if it’s a bigger store, you could just send the 2nd one back for a refund and start over.

 

[theavestruz17]

Again, why would you have needed to pay $150 for pickups if you had had it fixed under warranty?

- John

Desperation. I thought of possible causes and solutions even before contacting the store.

 

[theavestruz17]

I'd tell the seller you want the first one repaired under warranty and sent back to you. No reason to keep one that you don't like.

Is this still possible after receiving the silver one?

 

[Gunga Din]

Is this still possible after receiving the silver one?

Tell them you're not happy with the replacement and want the first one fixed.