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It's finished - Introducing .... The Status "JazzRay" Bass !!! (long post with pics)

#81
WOW!!!!!!
Thanks for putting the regular strings on it and posting pics, I can't decide what looks better. The regular strings make the chrome hardware and frets POP!!!
Yet the black strings give it a certain...elegance, I guess you would call it.
Just an all around amazing bass.
You get an A+
 
#83
Fender 32 said:
That's it ! The final coincidence - bassybill must be my long-lost twin brother .

(Must PM him now and set up that family reunion ).


Anyway Chris, a graphite-necked Jazz Bass is a far cry from a full-on Status Series II. For me, the Status bass wasn't "woody" enough and I didn't care for the rather "clinical" tone that much . My new FrankenJazz sounds more like a Fender Bass than a Status Bass, except that it's "cleaner, clearer and more responsive".
Click to expand...

That's true, that is.

I've owned two Status basses in the past, a Series 2000 and an S2. Both were really great instruments in every way, and I loved the sound of them, but that Status sound is pretty distinctive and neither of them really copped the classic old school tones (that's just an observation, not a criticism). But the clarity and evenness of response was amazing.

These graphite neck Jazzes definitely feel and sound like Jazz basses rather than Status basses, whilst retaining a lot of that clarity and evenness and for what I'm after they're very close to ideal in those respects. I found I wasn't playing the S2 much, so it went off to a good home where it would get played more. But I have been wondering whether to just keep the Status necked Jazzes and unload my Rick (:bawl:), Stingray, Geddy Jazz, 1978 P... none of these get played on gigs anymore, only at home.
 
#85
bassybill said:
That's true, that is.

I've owned two Status basses in the past, a Series 2000 and an S2. Both were really great instruments in every way, and I loved the sound of them, but that Status sound is pretty distinctive and neither of them really copped the classic old school tones (that's just an observation, not a criticism). But the clarity and evenness of response was amazing.

These graphite neck Jazzes definitely feel and sound like Jazz basses rather than Status basses, whilst retaining a lot of that clarity and evenness and for what I'm after they're very close to ideal in those respects. I found I wasn't playing the S2 much, so it went off to a good home where it would get played more. But I have been wondering whether to just keep the Status necked Jazzes and unload my Rick (:bawl:), Stingray, Geddy Jazz, 1978 P... none of these get played on gigs anymore, only at home.
Click to expand...

See :smug:, we're even thinking the same thoughts now :eek:! My Status went off to a good home too (I sold it on the Statii forum, to another guy in Germany).

Also, I am just starting to realise that I might actually be able to "shed" some of my basses, as this one has exactly what I need right now. Bliss :smug:!

:bassist:
 
#92
:hmm: Well, after 6 weeks of staring at it and scratching my head, I finally caved-in and decided that the bass would probably look a lot more "finished" if I fitted a pickguard :smug:.

So, I plucked up the courage, got the drill out and went for it :smug:. Here's the result - nothing too shocking, but it's certainly a better match now, when sat alongside it's (much ;)) older sister.

IMG_0636.jpg

IMG_0638.jpg


Before:

2a3a4027.jpg

b1a01a3e.jpg


My pair o' Jazzers:

IMG_0642.jpg


I really love this bass and it's become (by far) my most played instrument. In fact, since building this, I've decided to start selling off all of the basses that I don't enjoy playing as much (and that's most of them :p).

I'm a bit surprised now that nobody makes a Jazz Bass body with a StingRay neck, as it's a great combination (IMHO). The extra fret is comforting and I vastly prefer the wider string spacing (without the bulk of a Precision Bass neck :hmm:) of the StingRay, to the thinner and more "crowded" feel of the Jazz Bass. I do all of my finger excercises and scale practise on this bass now and after the "boring stuff"'s over, I still like to use it to noodle around on :smug:.

At last, I've moved a step closer to finding "the anti-GAS" instrument for me ;).

Merry Christmas all!

Andy :bassist:
 
#94
I can't lie.
I am a little bummed that you added the pickguard. The simplicity of the all black body was what gave the bass a unique charm that I loved.
But if it's what you like that's all that really matters.
Don't get me wrong, it still is an amazing bass.
I can only imagine what it plays like.
 
#97
Mikeyd74 said:
I can't lie.
I am a little bummed that you added the pickguard. The simplicity of the all black body was what gave the bass a unique charm that I loved.
But if it's what you like that's all that really matters.
Don't get me wrong, it still is an amazing bass.
I can only imagine what it plays like.
Click to expand...

Sorry Mikey :( (and Steve21 ;))!

I know that I said I wasn't going to do it, but a few people have said to me that it really looks a bit "Photo-Fit" (like to different basses, glued together) and it got me paranoid :ninja:. At least this way, the fingerprints don't matter so much, either :smug:!

I tweaked the neck a little too, recently. There wasn't quite enough "bow" in the neck for my taste, so the action went up a little and that made the gap under the strings a little bigger too - now, there's room for a pickguard as well as my fat fingers :p.

Anywho, Merry Xmas to all (hope you all get the Sadowskys/Alembics/Foderas that you've all beem dreaming of, in your present piles :D)

;)
 
#99
Though I am generally not a fan of PG's that one does make the J look more complete. The chrome control plate on it's own looked a bit tacked-on. I think a black chrome control plate and knobs would make it even better.
 

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