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list your basses' flaws

Ibanez SR885: Neck pocket was cut improperly, causing all the strings to be about 1mm lower than they should have been until a mega shim was put in place. Ultra thin neck needed adjustment more often than most basses.

Zon Sonus 5/2: original neck had no truss rod and up-bowed. I have a suspicion that Zon necks aren't ready for the extra tension of a 35" scale. Zon replaced the neck, but returned it with a hairline crack in the finish by the neck pocket. The new neck also up-bowed, but I was able to adjust it thanks to the truss rod. Action could not be set as low as I would have liked.

Musicman 30th Anniversary Stingray: Low output on the G; forced me to lower the bass side of the pickup and raise the treble side pretty significantly.

Cort Curbow Fretless: Sloppy neck/neck pocket that allows about 1 mm of the wood of the neck to be visible when looking across the body. They all seem to have this flaw.

Warwick $$ Corvette: truss rod rattled in the body at one point -- don't know if you can call that a flaw, but it's the only time I've experienced it. I turned the rod a bit and then returned it to it's normal position; that took care of it. Also, the Warwick bridges made intonation adjustment a pain b/c the tailpiece gets in the way of the saddle screws.

Warwick Thumb: same story with the bridge. Also, I still can't understand the short upper-horn that leads to balance issues. Previous owner installed a JAN-III a tad sloppy -- I may just get a graphite one at some point. Otherwise may be the nicest basses I've laid hands on.

I would say that my other basses have been without flaws, though in many instances small design flaws (like the Warwick bridge issues) were found on some of my nicer sounding basses.
 
Basses:

67 P-bass with 61 Jazz neck: The G string saddle isn't cut right I think because the string kept slipping out when I dug in.

71 P-bass: Bent G string tuner.

62RI: Has an ugly headstock repair. Needs a refret. Cracked nut. The current one still works but its cut too low to compensate for the frets... or lack there of...

57 RI: There is a short in it somewhere. Horrible feedback when plugged in. Might be from beer.

08 P-bass: The knobs keep falling off. I put all my basses through a lot of abuse, and they take it in stride. The american standards have a really thin poly finish which chips easy. The stock pickup was kind of harsh. Replaced it.

08 5 String P-bass: Fragile finish. Had to get a new nut right away to string it E-C. Stock pickup is a bit harsh but I can't find a replacement. Added a jazz pickup to it.

Highway One P-bass with a Mike Dolan fretless neck: Neck is kinda dinged up in the back. Needs a new nut to be cut for it as the strings keep coming out.

Squier 5 string: Stock parts suck, with the exception of the bridge. The neck is also very wide. I replaced a lot of things on the bass.

G&L L1000: Needed a lot of work to get it back into playing shape. Still needs a refret and it has a bent G string tuner.

70s Jazz: Sounded a bit enemic stock. Needs minor fretwork done to it. Had a wobbly neck, since remedied, when I bought it new.

62RI Jazz: No real complaints aside from me not liking the way the tuners look.

Jaco Custom Shop Jazz: Awesome jazz bass, terrible relic job.

Rickenbacker: This bass has been through a lot of abuse but hasn't held up as well as my Fenders. Currently sports a non original neck from another 4001, different bridge and a P-bass pickup. Tends to pick up 60 cycle hum a lot. I don't like the string spacing or the scale length much. The huge sound I get with the P pup thrown in the mix makes it worthwhile.
Custom Jazz: A bit heavy, the knobs are wobbly. I had to sand the fingerboard and neck from a poor drippy epoxy job. The bridge is difficult to string with heavy gauge E strings. I have 110s on there currently where the E's silk is on the nut. I plan on swapping bridges soon eventually.
FrankenP-bass with a Fender Highway neck: Needs some minor fretwork as the strings get kinda buzzy (you can't tell when its amplified) when using a pick.

Sage: the non stock knobs are cheap and ugly. 35 scale took some getting used to, but I love how punchy it is.

Mosrite: Its a piece of crap, I never play it.

tbird: The neck is in 4 pieces, soon to be 5. Suffers from the chronic problem of being a thunderbird. I plan on getting it repaired someday as it was my father's bass for posterity's sake.
 
Me too!

1978 Fender Precision, with brass nut, EMG pickups
- Bowling alley finish on neck - I sanded it off
- Sound is not big/full enough (relative to my G&L L2500)

2005 G&L L2500
- HEAVY
- Neck finish (satin) was not ideal, so that got sanded off as well
- frets stick up ever so slightly at edge due to the way they were cut - don't affect sound at all

2006 Pedulla Thunderbass ET5 with knobs & tuners from THG knobs
- Heavy (not as much as the G&L L2500)
- Sound is perfect for jazz & funk, not classic rock as much, sort of too-chocolate (if that makes sense).
- Soft maple dents easily

1998 Warwick Corvette Standard Fretless
- WAY too heavy (solid bubinga)
- stock electronics are passive (prefer an active sound)
- unlined (more an issue with my technique than the bass)
- gets a pinched sound, not open / full enough, very mid-heavy, likely due to 10 pounds of bubinga.
- Plastic control cavity cover

Peavey Cirrus 6 (year unknown)
- knobs - I don't particularly care for those rubber jobs.
- Neck depth could be decreased (a la Pedulla) for shallower neck.
- Plastic battery & control covers
- gold hardware is wearing down (coatings coming off)

1940s German Plywood 3/4 size upright
- action too high
- not a deep enough tone
- very difficult to play (more of a player issue than a bass issue)
- unwieldy (relative to an electric bass)

Actually, the only bass I'm not completely sold on is the Warwick F-less. Meh. The rest are well loved & sound great, especially the G&L, Pedulla, and Peavey, when used in an appropriate setting.

ian
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Here we go:

2002 Fender Jazz Bass fretless:
-Not the sustain I'd like it to have
-Edges of fingerboard are to sharp

2008 Squier Precision Bass:
-Neck too big

2008 Cobelens & de Bruyne:
-Too heavy
-Neck waaaay to big
Those flaws will be gone with my new CODB :)

1998 Celinder J Update 4:
-Buzzing a bit to much

2001 Yamaha TRB:
-Sound misses depth
-Strap button keeps getting loose

2001 Yamaha BB N5II:
-Truss rod is broken
-Sound misses some depth

2001 Blade B2:
-Sound has too much treble
 
Well, if I gotta pick on 'em:

1976 RIC 4000 FG:
Neck dives, not as versatile as a 2 pickup bass.
Original pots were scratchy, so I replaced 'em with cheapies years ago, that needs remedying.
Had a normal amount of dings from 10 years of playing, anything occurring since is from 20 years of regular playing, no shame in that.
Was SO dirty when I first got it, I think EVERY beer and coffee in the county had been spilled onto/into it! YUCK! Took 3 days of thorough disassembly and cleaning to want to pick it up again.
Overall: Great in your face, easy playing bass.

1977 4001 White:
This poor baby was hacked at by every nutjob in town apparently, has a big screwdriver scar between the tail and bridge pup surround. Lots of miscellaneous scratches and dings.
When I first got it the bridge pup was a Jackson J pup, the neck pup was almost totally dead, wiring was completely thrashed, and truss rod nuts bent down into wood from improper adjustment attempt.

I've remedied the wiring, pup, and setup issues, though the stock bridge would tilt back while playing throwing off intonation, and I didn't want to drill through the tail to stabilize it, so I put a Hipshot replacement on. That works great, now it's a very good player, not perfect due to fret wear, they need some dressing to be perfect.
Overall: a great workhorse bass.

1981 4080 JG:
Heavy!!!!!
Guitar neck is awkward to play.
Cost me a pile.
Overall: The sound and playability is amazing!

Peavey Millenium BXP 5:
Tends to go sharp between gigs
B sounds a little dull
Not a Rick 5 string!
Idiot 'soundman' liked it better than my Ricks.
Overall: a good bass for very little money.
 
For some reason, every bass I own rushes a bit going into the bridges of some tunes, and they also have a hard time playing really even eighth notes. I guess I'll just keep buying until I find one that works better.:D

Same thing with every metronome I've ever used. They ALL seem to drag a bit. I attribute that to off-shore manufacturing.
 
Aria ZZB Deluxe Bass (blue sunburst)
Had to change the volume knobs and pack under the pickups to get them close enough to the strings as the pickups were weak.

Burns Bison Reissue Bass (white).
Uncomfortable neck length, but I got used to it. Loose volume knobs etc.

Cort Violin Bass (antigue sunburst).
Just lowered the action.

Danelectro Longhorn Bass (green burst).
Great straight out of the case. No issues.

Dean Rhapsody 8 String Bass (natural bubinga wood).
Great straight out of the case. No issues, except lowering the action, which was easily done.

Eastwood Classic Four Bass (White).
Lined up the wobbly volume knobs and the shaft broke, so I had to replace the pot. Awkward overall volume control on the 'lower horn' doesn't make much sense - find one sound and stick to it. One pickup is much louder than the other. Looks much better than it is.

Epiphone '58 Flying V Bass (black).
Loose nut, pathetic pickups.

Fender USA Standard Jazz bass (Candy Cola Red, 2008).
Superb. No issues.

Fender 60th anniversary USA P Bass (3-tone sunburst finish).
Superb. No issues.

Fender Precision Lyte Bass (Toffeeburst).
Superb. No issues. The best bass I have ever played.

Fender Squier Modified Vintage 50's Precision Bass (Sunburst).
Pickup is very muddy - just as expected, but so LOUD I had to recess it right down level with the bass body!

Fender Squier Classic Vibe 50's Precision Bass (Lake Placid Blue).
Weak pickup.

Fender Squier Precision Special Bass (Red sunburst).
Superb. No issues.

Gibson SG Supreme Bass (Quilted maple top).
Neck did a banana impression, but truss rod adjust sorted most of it.

Gordy XR Custom fretless 'Explorer' style bass (natural wood finish).
No issues at all.

Hamer B12S short scale 12-String Bass (Translucent cherry flame).
No issues at all.

Hamer Chaparral long scale 12-String Bass (Black)
Longscale 12 string bass is uncomfortable and hard to play. Not the basses fault - it's mine: I need to use it more.

John Birch SCDR stereo bass (greenburst).
Made in 1967 - this needed a good cleanup when I got it. A superb and very collectable bass. No issues.

Rickenbacker 4003 (in fireglo finish)
No issues - a lovely bass.

Rickenbacker 4003 (in midnight blue finish)
This bass was afflicted with the colour bleed from the blue finish. It stunk of wet paint when I got it. As I bought it from an importer, the warranty didn't cover it. The best player of the three.

Rickenbacker 4003 (in limited edition Blue Boy finish)
Arrived NEW with a slight dent in the rear of the body. A bit of a blunt and unsubtle instrument. Apparently blue Boy basses go green after a while, but mine hasn't yet.

Warwick Streamer Chrome Tone Bass.
Absolutely no issues.

Warwick Custom Shop Thumb bass (Walnut gloss).
Once set up to reduce fret buzz, it was fantastic. Too trebly to record with, though.

I don't count neck dive as an issue on any bass as I am hopefully old enough to be aware of it now and to handle it!!

Basses I've sold:

Wal Pro 1e.
Too clean. Wonderful action, graet for recording, but timid.

Squier Precisions:
Had a few early ones and parted with them when I first went over to active basses as they weren't getting used. No great issues.

Fender HMT bass
Horrible piezo pickup fed back live or the sound dropped out altogether. Body binding cut into my right forearm.
 
Aria Pro II RSB deluxe
Hasn't sold
Otherwise, great bass

Peavey T-40, Sienna burst

Hasn't sold
Otherwise, great bass

Sx Jazz SJB-75CT Nat
Little Bland
Can't quite get the action where I want her
Otherwise, great bass

Ibanez ATK700KA
Harsh treble
Heavy
Gloss finish that shows EVERY danged ding or scratch
Otherwise, great bass

Alvarez AEB6tp
Danged bridge has to be hogged out to accept B strings larger than .100
Tons of finish damage
Fights me every step of the way when it comes to setup
Otherwise, great bass
 
I've trimmed the herd substantially, so the basses I'm left with don't have too many flaws, at least in my opinion.

StammieII008.jpg


Fretted Stambaugh
-The Nordy Fat Stacks/Audere combo leaves it a bit low output. I wish I'd asked for a bit more gain in the pre.
-Is too bright sounding for me with new rounds (super jazz) - but I really dig it with TI Jazz Flats.

Fretless Stambaugh
- I suppose I could say it's a bit heavy
- Has a somewhat dry sound, but that's what I asked for
- I really have nothing bad to say about this bass

b4c.jpg


Carvin B4 (modded with Aggie OPB-3 & Basslines)
- This is a bit heavy (~10lbs) for a 4 banger
- 18 V pre has way more boost/cut for B/M/T than is sensible. I wish it was more moderate to make small adjustments easier
- Is too aggressive for some musical styles

ACG1-1.jpg


ACG Recurve 6
- Biggest flaw is that it isn't done being built yet. :bassist:

Takamine Acoustic (no picture)
- Has to have high action
- Very Low output on the internal pickup
- Not loud enough to play unamplified with acoustic guitars (I don't know any acoustic basses that are)
- Nice thuddy tone, but doesn't fit with anything I currently do
- Just a bass to have around when I don't feel like plugging in or have to be extra quiet.
 
2007 Fender Aerodyne non-export model:

- 4 strings. I've really come to like the expanded range of 5 strings.
- Volume pots are non-linear. Not so much a problem when full up, but they need replaced.
- Radius body with a recessed bridge. I want badly to put a high mass bridge on it, but haven't been able to find one that fits without modifying the body.
- Single coil hum from the bridge pickup.

Ibanez SR505:

- Active with no passive option. That's my only complaint.
 
For some reason, every bass I own rushes a bit going into the bridges of some tunes, and they also have a hard time playing really even eighth notes. I guess I'll just keep buying until I find one that works better.:D

Same thing with every metronome I've ever used. They ALL seem to drag a bit. I attribute that to off-shore manufacturing.

LOL! You're killin' me man...

08 Fender Am Std P - Flawless!

Me - flawed, depending on who you ask :)