Modding a vintage Fender

[guts]

The character of your pickups is just not super important. You can generally make any pickup sound like what it needs to sound like for whatever music you happen to be playing.

You'll probably like how your guitar sounds better if you change them, but mostly because of cognitive bias.

If you're not happy with your tone, the first thing to try is playing with the knobs on your amp.

If that doesn't work, selling your amp and getting a different one is a better idea than changing your pickups. That's the part of your setup that you hear. That's mainly where the tone comes from. After your fingers, anyway.

If there's nothing wrong with the pickups, if they're functioning properly, there's no need to change them.

 

[DD Gunz]

1978 pickups are lacking in midrange? I am a huge fan of 70s pickups because of the midrange. I have a 77 that will tear down walls with midrange punch.

That said, I agree with previous comments about adjusting pickup height. Also, I don’t know what strings are on it. If they are old, change them. That will make a much bigger difference than swapping pickups IMO.

 

[DJ Bebop]

Don't do this, 62...

 

[Bill Whitehurst]

Good example, DJ.
Although now that modded 62 will make collectors gasp,
there was a time when it was just a used bass.
I can remember stack knob Js being looked down on because
Leo had moved on, so the 3 knob ones must be better.

Things change over time.
Maybe one day collectors will drool over 78 Ps.
I still see 70 Fenders as generally average with some
being great and a lot of others having big neck gaps
and/or a lot of extra weight.
My point, however, was anything is only original once.

There's a place for all original.
There's a place for modded.
You just have to decide which catagory that one is going to be in.
None of my basses are all original, but I still wanted to point out that
once you cross that line it's a one way street.

Either way, enjoy it.
It's yours to play, mod, preserve or use as firewood.

 

[dirtychinchilla]

Never say never, but the demographics are against it. Boomer musicians with loads of cash, reliving their childhoods (I'm of that age, but not a nostalgaphile) are what's driven up the prices of basses that were cool when we were young.

I don't think the next generation is as excited about old Fenders as some of my contemporaries are - once us boomers are gone, there's a good chance that demand for old Fenders will go down (the supply will go up as our kids sell off our old gear). Up until 2008, common wisdom (I didn't agree, but most folks did) was that housing prices never go down. Housing is less elastic than basses (people have to live somewhere, people don't have to have multiple basses). Basses may very well crash harder than housing. If you like old basses, having a few is just fine; I just wouldn't think of it as a safe long term investment.

I'm probably of the next generation at 29. Personally, I couldn't possibly afford an old instrument. Would it be better than a modern one? Personally I'm not convinced, and I'd be terrified of hurting the thing.

I've had by P bass from new since about 2003, and I know how I did every bit of damage to it (not that there's loads) and don't feel guilty. I'd feel much different if the instrument came with a history.

 

[I-play-bass]

So, just this past weekend I was up at my brother's house and we were soldering in a preamp into my '73 precision.

I felt the same way about the pickups when we got it, so I swapped them out for a Dimarzio model P.

I was tired of the old raggety bridge vibrating the saddle screws loose, so I put on a Badass II.

Eventually I got bored of passive (I was always a stingray guy) so we put in a SD blackout preamp.

Honestly, I don't think it will hurt resale at all as long as you retain the parts. 250k pots are still plentiful and the caps are still basically the same. Turning it back into what it was is like, ten minutes of work if you swap out the pickup.

 

[klejst]

Unless needed to be replaced due to damages I personally like to keep vintage basses as close to their original state as possible.

 

[StatesideRambler]

I'm probably of the next generation at 29. Personally, I couldn't possibly afford an old instrument. Would it be better than a modern one?

It might be but more likely it wouldn’t be.

Personally I'm not convinced, and I'd be terrified of hurting the thing.

There are a few people who want you to feel that way so they can lord it over you. Nonsense.

I've had by P bass from new since about 2003, and I know how I did every bit of damage to it (not that there's loads) and don't feel guilty. I'd feel much different if the instrument came with a history.

Right now you are the one giving your bass its history. By the time you’re a codger somebody may be pursuing yours as the holy grail.

 

[dirtychinchilla]

Right now you are the one giving your bass its history. By the time you’re a codger somebody may be pursuing yours as the holy grail.

Well it's mine, they can't have it.

 

[DJ Bebop]

Good example, DJ.
Although now that modded 62 will make collectors gasp,
there was a time when it was just a used bass.
I can remember stack knob Js being looked down on because
Leo had moved on, so the 3 knob ones must be better.

Things change over time.
Maybe one day collectors will drool over 78 Ps.
I still see 70 Fenders as generally average with some
being great and a lot of others having big neck gaps
and/or a lot of extra weight.
My point, however, was anything is only original once.

There's a place for all original.
There's a place for modded.
You just have to decide which catagory that one is going to be in.
None of my basses are all original, but I still wanted to point out that
once you cross that line it's a one way street.

Either way, enjoy it.
It's yours to play, mod, preserve or use as firewood.

Did that back in da 70's to it. It was, just a P bass and I was pursuing a sound.

Still, play it today. Don't regret it at all. My kids call it my Signature Model

This guy tore up a vintage bass too...
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[_Obra_]

No matter what you put inside it will always be 78 P Bass. I like mine S9 (79-82), collectors do not.

 

[DD Gunz]

So, just this past weekend I was up at my brother's house and we were soldering in a preamp into my '73 precision.

I felt the same way about the pickups when we got it, so I swapped them out for a Dimarzio model P.

I was tired of the old raggety bridge vibrating the saddle screws loose, so I put on a Badass II.

Eventually I got bored of passive (I was always a stingray guy) so we put in a SD blackout preamp.

Honestly, I don't think it will hurt resale at all as long as you retain the parts. 250k pots are still plentiful and the caps are still basically the same. Turning it back into what it was is like, ten minutes of work if you swap out the pickup.

God bless you. I hate high mass bridges and love the nasty vibe the late 70’s P provides. Give me a bent threaded saddle bridge and I am the happiest guy around. Not original to a 70’s Fender, but amazing none the less.

 

[Leonid Nidis]

IMO when it comes to standart p pickups that are working as they should where you play and how high the pickup is matters more than the brand.

BTW if someone comes to buy a bass from me and starts crying about non original soldier joints Ill show him to the door.

 

[I-play-bass]

God bless you. I hate high mass bridges and love the nasty vibe the late 70’s P provides. Give me a bent threaded saddle bridge and I am the happiest guy around. Not original to a 70’s Fender, but amazing none the less.

Hey, if someone's going to bastardize a vintage Fender, I'll take that bullet.

 

[bigtone23]

If you like the bass, change the pickup and enjoy the bass even more now vs considering selling it down the road, if that happens at all.
I echo the statement that if you play it a lot, it will get wear and tear (and maybe a switched out pot or jack) that will have more influence on value vs a solder joint.
In 1993, I bought a 1987 American Standard Strat (E4 serial) for a really good deal-$350. The original owner didn't play it, but let it sit on a stand for 6 years. It still looked new, save the yellowing of the plastic and neck finish from sunlight. It was a great feeling and playing guitar, so I could have chosen to leave in the stock pickups/controls and find myself not playing it as much, or dropping a pickguard assembly with pickups and circuitry that I really liked and playing the guitar a lot. Flash forward 25 years and that Strat is showing fret wear, scratches, dings, etc... which have devalued the guitar more than the three solder joints I had to breach to remove the original assembly (which has been safely stored in a plastic bag in a box since 1994). However, I love playing that guitar, and the wear and tear is mine. I think that's cooler than rolling dice on collectability.

 

[Mark Ambler]

I have a 78 P bass, maple ash cherry burst in pretty good condition. No way would I mess with it, pretty sure I'd be kicking myself in ten years time, probably sooner. Mines 8.3lbs so that's pretty desirable, in my book. If it was 10lbs and bad condition, yep, change the pickups if thats what you think will work for you. How about trying it with a outboard Sadowsky preamp instead?