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My Japanese Family
- Thread starter ClassicJazz
- Start date
My Japanese Family starts with D.T. Suzuki the Zen Buddhist teacher. Then Honda Civic silver, Honda Civic red, brass instruments Yamaha 6340ST trumpet and 232S cornet, (both superb Schilke copies) Ibanez RB400 bass (unmatched 4), Honda Fit, Honda SUV. I would add enjoyment of shakuhachi music.
Leaks oil like a sieve. Just spend ~$4k to fix replace all the seals, and now it's leaking worse.
Here are mine, the Jazz Bass Special has been my only instrument for more than 10 yrs. until a BL requested to get a spare so I got a Marcus Miller. The Jaguar was bought for a special project, I barely use it -too many switches- but sounds so good that I kept it for 18 yrs.
Leaks oil like a sieve. Just spend ~$4k to fix replace all the seals, and now it's leaking worse.
Ugh.
Leaks oil like a sieve. Just spend ~$4k to fix replace all the seals, and now it's leaking worse.
That's a drag. Would hope there would be a warranty involved...
Love seeing these Japanese basses. Been eyeing a headless Bacchus for a few months now. Here's my Japanese bass: 2001 Killer Beelze. Made for a player that did played punk/heavy music in D-standard, which means it's an extra-growly jazz. Adore it. Need to put Gotoh res-o-lites on it.
Actually they have been around for a while. But only for the Japanese market. I had mine shipped over from Tokyo. They are not sold in the US. Shame, they make some beautiful instruments.
There's a whole world of Japan/Far East only basses (and guitars) that are just fabulous, and it's a real shame they are so rare on THIS side of the Pacific.
AtelierZ — AtelierZ guitar works
Bacchus（バッカス）ベース・ギター専門店 バッカス堂 / SOAR MUSIC (bacchusdo.com) w/links to Bacchus, Momose, and STR
Deviser ｜株式会社ディバイザー｜長野県松本市のギターメーカー Another part of Bacchus and the many lines they sell, and this is handier IF you look for the ENGLISH button at the top left !
ESP GUITARS JAPAN Their Japanese website with their various brands and home market basses. Navigators are dead beautiful lawsuit copies of the classics, impossibly good. Grass Roots are their budget line. If you really want your mind blown as to what ESP can do when it wants, just click on the 'Exhibition Series 2021' picture. I dare ya . . .
Link Removed
MOON GUITARS｜ムーンギターズ (moon-guitar.co.jp) Got to have one of those all-white Larry Graham Jazz Basses? This is who makes them.
TAURUS corporation | 株式会社トーラスコーポレーション (taurus-corpo.com) A Japanese distributor that handles MIA Collings guitars among others, and the MIJ Van Zandts, like Navigator, screw-perfect Fender and Gibson copies.
東海楽器製造株式会社 (odn.ne.jp) Current day Tokai.
TUNE Official Web Site - テューンギターマニアック (rim.or.jp)
【 公式 】イケベ楽器店｜日本最大級の楽器通販サイト (ikebe-gakki.com) A big Japanese retailer. The truly obsessive will stroll through these pages and see Gibsons and Fenders and others over there . . . in versions you don't see over here in some cases.
INNOVATION ROAD - Yamaha Corporation The Yamaha Musical Instrument Collection. Now if next door they had the Yamaha Motor Collection . . .
AtelierZ — AtelierZ guitar works
Bacchus（バッカス）ベース・ギター専門店 バッカス堂 / SOAR MUSIC (bacchusdo.com) w/links to Bacchus, Momose, and STR
Deviser ｜株式会社ディバイザー｜長野県松本市のギターメーカー Another part of Bacchus and the many lines they sell, and this is handier IF you look for the ENGLISH button at the top left !
ESP GUITARS JAPAN Their Japanese website with their various brands and home market basses. Navigators are dead beautiful lawsuit copies of the classics, impossibly good. Grass Roots are their budget line. If you really want your mind blown as to what ESP can do when it wants, just click on the 'Exhibition Series 2021' picture. I dare ya . . .
Link Removed
MOON GUITARS｜ムーンギターズ (moon-guitar.co.jp) Got to have one of those all-white Larry Graham Jazz Basses? This is who makes them.
TAURUS corporation | 株式会社トーラスコーポレーション (taurus-corpo.com) A Japanese distributor that handles MIA Collings guitars among others, and the MIJ Van Zandts, like Navigator, screw-perfect Fender and Gibson copies.
東海楽器製造株式会社 (odn.ne.jp) Current day Tokai.
TUNE Official Web Site - テューンギターマニアック (rim.or.jp)
【 公式 】イケベ楽器店｜日本最大級の楽器通販サイト (ikebe-gakki.com) A big Japanese retailer. The truly obsessive will stroll through these pages and see Gibsons and Fenders and others over there . . . in versions you don't see over here in some cases.
INNOVATION ROAD - Yamaha Corporation The Yamaha Musical Instrument Collection. Now if next door they had the Yamaha Motor Collection . . .
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I was lucky to live in Tokyo from 1982-88 as a teenager - that's when I learned to play guitar and bass and owned several Fender Japan instruments - I only have a Strat left from that time.
I guess I'm nostalgic about them, I've managed to collect these, which are all made in Japan but for the US market. The Bass VI is from 1996, the red one is a Donald Duck Dunn Signature P (1998?), and the white is an Alembicized Classic 70s P-Bass (from 2011) - after this pic was taken I put Alembic witch hat knobs and a Bad**ss II bridge on it to 70cize it even more.
I also owned some non-Fender made in Japan stuff - my first bass (1983 or 4?) was a Greco EB-3 copy which I foolishly sold - then I had a Fernandes copy of Paul McCartney's Rickenbacker, then it was all Fender for a while. But in the 2000s I was in Japan for a few years and found a Tune 8-string which I sold when I came back to the US. It was cool but the pickups didn't agree with me. Wish I had some more pics of it, but at least I've got a recording (which also has a Japanese Roland RE-201 Space Echo on the 8-string)
I guess I'm nostalgic about them, I've managed to collect these, which are all made in Japan but for the US market. The Bass VI is from 1996, the red one is a Donald Duck Dunn Signature P (1998?), and the white is an Alembicized Classic 70s P-Bass (from 2011) - after this pic was taken I put Alembic witch hat knobs and a Bad**ss II bridge on it to 70cize it even more.
I also owned some non-Fender made in Japan stuff - my first bass (1983 or 4?) was a Greco EB-3 copy which I foolishly sold - then I had a Fernandes copy of Paul McCartney's Rickenbacker, then it was all Fender for a while. But in the 2000s I was in Japan for a few years and found a Tune 8-string which I sold when I came back to the US. It was cool but the pickups didn't agree with me. Wish I had some more pics of it, but at least I've got a recording (which also has a Japanese Roland RE-201 Space Echo on the 8-string)
The current MIJ familiy. I'm claiming MIJ for the PJ but... no sticker so it could be MIT. JimmyM's old Matsumoko Beatle bass is gotting a lot of playing time along with a decidedly not MIJ Acinonyx...
The 2017 Subaru Outback and Toyota Highlander in the garage don't count as they were both built MIA.
Well maintained Subbies will basically run forever. Frank Murray (The lead vocal for Petty Fever) is coming up on 600k on his Legacy wagon.
I got a guy. His shop has done our maintenance since our first OB in 2001. It is easy to find thrashed Subbies here in the Cascades.
The 2017 is our 5th OB. We changed an 01 to an 05 limited for the missus. I changed an 03 basic to a used 07 basic with low miles when friends moved to Maui. They've all been great but... you gotta do the maintenance. Timing belt every 60k. Head gasket between 120 and 130k. I did oil and filter every 3k on the esrlier version. The 17 uses synthetic and I just have my guy do whatever when it goes in.
Nice to have a guy you can trust!
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Yep! Made by Matsumoko for Rat Schack between 67 and 69. Sold for $90 back then. This one had its pickups rewound by Pete Biltoft (Vintage Vibe Guitars). JummyM installed Labella flats. Like a good vintge MIJ it is quirky but cool. It is a ball to play. Sounds huge!
Nice! I knew the Shack got a lot of cool third-party manufactured stuff for them back in the day, but I didn't realize that included guitars and basses!
Also that Realistic logo looks surprisingly good on that headstock.
Neither did I... I read JimmyM's ad and thought, this might be very cool ;-) The realistic badge is kinda reverse chic ... but only if you get the reference...
It doesn't hurt that my main gig has a lot of Beatles and British invasion in our book.
This Bacchus looks very tempting.
I owned lots of Fender Japan instruments, still do: a Fender Bass VI from 2013, a Duck Dunn Precision, the Noel Redding Jazz, a Squier JV Preci, a 75 Jazz etc.
I thought this would be the best to buy, if you can not or will not afford US Fenders. Now I own 5 US Fender basses and I like them a lot, but the japanese ones are every bit as good. Some might not have the greatest pick-ups or electronics - the cheaper ones. But the necks on all of them and esp. the general workmanship are better and more consistent than on most US Fender instruments. If I now try budget Fender instruments from Indonesia or Mexico, the quality is very good in relation to price, but the necks - I tried some Squier CVs - feel so cheap. Never was the case with japanese Fenders.
I owned lots of Fender Japan instruments, still do: a Fender Bass VI from 2013, a Duck Dunn Precision, the Noel Redding Jazz, a Squier JV Preci, a 75 Jazz etc.
I thought this would be the best to buy, if you can not or will not afford US Fenders. Now I own 5 US Fender basses and I like them a lot, but the japanese ones are every bit as good. Some might not have the greatest pick-ups or electronics - the cheaper ones. But the necks on all of them and esp. the general workmanship are better and more consistent than on most US Fender instruments. If I now try budget Fender instruments from Indonesia or Mexico, the quality is very good in relation to price, but the necks - I tried some Squier CVs - feel so cheap. Never was the case with japanese Fenders.
