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MIJ Fender P-Bass

Count Bassie

Count Bassie

Supporting Member
Jun 10, 2006
16,795
64,554
Smithfield, RI
#1
A dude I work with has sold me his old, hardly ever played Made in Japan Fender Precision (s# E+6 digits, 84-87 I guess, Fujigen-Gakki). I bought it partly for sentimental reasons, there's a story there... but I'm looking in here just to get a little advice, maybe.

A couple things of note... to adjust the truss rod you have to pull the neck. I don't love that, but maybe that's got a plus side?
The pickup sounds a little weak, but that can likely be eq'd into a better, stronger tone.
The bass is very lightweight, the neck is an easy player. The finish is tight, the neck appears snug in its pocket. The only thing to not love is the pickup, really!

Anybody here have an experience or mod story to throw down? I don't want to mod it, although I've got a FrankenSquier with Alnico V PJ pup's that is a killer...

I'll put up better pix, but here are a couple I snapped on the way to work the other day.
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#2
Beautiful bass....You said the PU's were a little weak, as on the negative side. Sometimes, well really a lot of times, louder tend to convince you its a better sound. If it records well (you have a home studio or access to a recording studio?) I am sure it will be great in a live situation. The bass looks great though. And its light... Nice picks. Good luck with it and have fun.
 
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#3
Bassist30 said:
Beautiful bass....You said the PU's were a little weak, as on the negative side. Sometimes, well really a lot of times, louder tend to convince you its a better sound. If it records well (you have a home studio or access to a recording studio?) I am sure it will be great in a live situation. The bass looks great though. And its light... Nice picks. Good luck with it and have fun.
Click to expand...
I did a rehearsal/run-down recording with it, though I wasn't quite comfy with it yet- she needs a proper setup (3 years under a bed in its case!), and some new strings. Also I jig my strap a bit differently. But a little time and getting her settled in will bring us around I'm sure.
Thanks for the good buzz, and the wisdom on the pickups thing. I'm aware that louder isn't better, though those Alnicos (on my Squier thing) are pretty dang killer.
I'll surely chime in again when I've got it together.
 
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#12
Count Bassie said:
I did a rehearsal/run-down recording with it, though I wasn't quite comfy with it yet- she needs a proper setup (3 years under a bed in its case!), and some new strings. Also I jig my strap a bit differently. But a little time and getting her settled in will bring us around I'm sure.
Thanks for the good buzz, and the wisdom on the pickups thing. I'm aware that louder isn't better, though those Alnicos (on my Squier thing) are pretty dang killer.
I'll surely chime in again when I've got it together.
Click to expand...
Well I had the same impression with my MIJ PB70 .. original pickups were sweet but a little too soft ... following the huge hype around them I then installed on it the EMG GZR pickups ... good and louder but with a little bit too much mids for me .. after I bought an Am. Pro. P bass loaded body with the V mods ... now those are my P bass pickups, a nice in-between amongst the original pickups and the GZR.
Wanting to experiment further I ordered a set of Fender PV ‘63 pickups ... I think they should sound good on the PB70
 
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#13
two fingers said:
Great basses. I own a CAR one from that era.

Yeah, here's the thing. I have toyed with the idea of swapping pickups in mine several times. I always crank the gain a little and it sounds so good that I forget about it. :D
Click to expand...
I'm not doing anything to it until I probably decide not to... lol. New strings (nickels), that's all I have in mind at this point. I have been gravitating toward this idea of leaving all of it alone... thanks for the confirmation!
 
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#15
I have a CAR '87 that has been through the ringer regarding mods and touring. It has the maple neck/fretboard with the heel adjustment, but is extremely stable. Once you get it set it should stay there for at least a decade or more if it's anything like mine.

I bought it new in 87, and have only needed to adjust the truss rod maybe twice tops. My other basses I have to constantly tweak the truss rod to keep them in the perfect spot, but not that old bass. Some where in the late 80's/early 90's I stripped the back of the neck and applied boiled linseed oil to it, and over the years it's polished itself to an amazing feel you can only get from thousands of hours of play. Regardless of taking the poly off the neck, it's still amazingly rock solid as noted.

These era basses are absolutely killer instruments. I'd leave yours stock and enjoy what it is. I wish I would have left mine stock, but I also learned how to mod and work on basses using this as a testbed for different ideas.
 
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#16
That looks tremendous. What an excellent instrument. There's a rare sunburst I wouldn't mind having. Usually don't care for that look. But you can see really nice grain through the finish.

Two things about the pickups. See if you can get them higher (some felt or like under them)and put some new strings on it. Bet that cheers it up. Also throw a better tone cap in it to make the tone circuit useful. Cost you all of five bucks.

"... to adjust the truss rod you have to pull the neck."

I adjust all truss rods this way. I even massage it into place (working up some friction with your hands), keeping the tension in my hands and not the truss rod. Don't make the screw do the work of bending the wood. It's there to hold your adjustments in place.

EDIT: Oh... as in remove. You don't gotta do that. File a groove in the pickguard, the body if you have to. You don't adjust a truss rod with the neck off the guitar.
 
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#18
Treadstone71 said:
Whoa, whoa there gents, why not just pull the pickguard off twice a year (or as necessary) to do truss adjustments? I bet there's a groove on the body for just that purpose.
Click to expand...

Actually, Leo's original design called to remove the neck to adjust, but if you read post #11, that's already been suggested.
 
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