• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

NBD—J back in the house!

DrThumpenstein

DrThumpenstein

Living for the groove
Supporting Member
Feb 8, 2015
2,527
9,924
St Louis, MO
#1
The challenge: Last Sunday, Mrs. Thumpenstein says, “Get something from Santa to put under the tree.” She knew I was gassing for an active J and said go for it. I was swamped for the rest of the week, so I only had 2 hours.

I went to a local music store and they had 2 identical Fender Player Plus Js in my preferred classic burst. I played back and forth between them for about an hour and took home the best-playing of the two, sworn not to touch it until today.

Well Merry Christmas to me! I got to spend a bit of time with it today and it’s exactly what I was looking for. Beefy, growly tone through the Subway stack. (WD800, 112, 115)

Christmas is a day of tradition and my tradition with Js is to break them in with some tasty Familyman, and I was able to EQ that right from the bass with the onboard preamp. Ran through a few Marley tunes and quickly dialed in the sound I wanted.

Then, with the EQ set flat, neck pickup favored, I played some Steely Dan (Josie always gets me going) and then switched to a few fusion jams. Finally, I started working through my band’s current set lists.

This bass feels like home. I discovered last year that I dig active basses and flatter radiused fretboards. I’ve known for a time that I prefer a narrow neck. This one is thicker than my others, but doesn’t seem to slow me down at all. It’s not super hot, but it drives the WD just fine. The pickups are a little far from the strings so it might be even hotter and growlier when I’m done getting it dialed in.

Before plugging in, I spent a little time setting it up, oiling the fretboard and switching out the strings. I’ll order some Labella DTB flats, but I had a set of Fender flats that are just broken in and they sound and play fine for now. (I know I can get more growl with the rounds that came on it, but I like flats and I’m getting most of what I’m looking for even with the Fender flats.

I’ll be swapping out the pick guard and a drop tuner, strap locks, and get a new strap. Then it’ll be in hot competition to be my #1 band bass.
E187CCBC-6C3C-4A2A-B8F2-1CA04AFB50F6.jpeg

Edited to add obligatory pic, which I neglected to do initially.:rolleyes:
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Ghastly, musicman556, elillywv and 43 others
#6
So I had a Lakland J that also had a white pick guard. Don’t know why, I just have a thing about white pick guards. I don’t like them. I took the guard off the Lakie and it looked great without a pick guard. Easy to cover the screw holes with some well-matched furniture stain and you really couldn’t tell unless you were holding the bass.

So this morning I decided to see what this bass looks like in the buff. To my surprise, there is a dime-sized hole in the body under the pick guard. No route or connection to anything else. Nothing in it except half of a torn sticker and what looks like perhaps the initials SB and an X, both drawn in ink. It seems to be a negligible amount of missing wood, so I can’t think it’s a weight relief kinda thing. (It’s not in the neck pocket, so I can’t refer to last week’s thread about that.;))

There was also something white sticking out from beneath the control plate, so I removed it and found it to be the edge of a sticker that said “tested“. Easy fix there.

The other thing that was slightly disappointing is how the finish is marred next to the screw holes, so there’s 2 reasons that this one won’t be going without some sort of non-transparent pick guard. I think it’s going to look great with a red tort guard, but I thought the Lakland looked great without one and I was hoping that might be an option, but not with that hole there.

Any ideas what that hole is for?
5282912B-85B4-4DC0-A23B-963C4C60821A.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Audiomicrowave and Killing Floor
#7
I have about finished completing the setup. It really plays very well. I think the two things that appeal to me about a flatter radius include getting the strings closer to the same height from the pickups and a more even output, and I don’t feel like I have to “reach around the corner” to play the fat strings as much as I do on a 7-1/4 inch radius.

I’ve got the pickup heights optimized, just a little bit below the warble when I dig in on both. Raised the bridge pickup quite a bit and the neck pick up a little bit.

What surprises me is that it really isn’t very hot, nothing like my other active basses. It’s fine, I’ve got plenty to work with. It surprises me that my passive Aerodyne with Geezers has as hot a signal if you go by the input light on the WD and how they drive the amp.

Bottom line, though, is that I am really digging this sounds I’m getting out of this. Classic J sounds. The pickups are noiseless as advertised, which is a real bonus on a J!
 
Last edited:
#10
DrThumpenstein said:
This bass feels like home.
Click to expand...

That's all that really matters - if it fits you to where you'll practice more, it's a great instrument for you.

Killing Floor said:
Fender drills a random hole under the pick guard on some models.
Click to expand...

They do it so we post pictures of it and talk about their basses. It seems to be working. ;-)
 
  • Like
Reactions: wmmj, spiritbass, Rocket Queen and 2 others
#18
Smooth_bass88 said:
I like that, J Back.

Nice jazz. I love the fretboard, looks luxurious.
Click to expand...
Thanks! My daughter got me a Dunlop maintenance kit for Christmas that had lemon oil with a little dauber-type bottle a that made it really easy to do without overdoing it. It did deepen the color a little bit and should help keep it from drying out too much. I usually oil my non-maple boards once a year or so.
 
#19
DrThumpenstein said:
The challenge: Last Sunday, Mrs. Thumpenstein says, “Get something from Santa to put under the tree.” She knew I was gassing for an active J and said go for it. I was swamped for the rest of the week, so I only had 2 hours.

I went to a local music store and they had 2 identical Fender Player Plus Js in my preferred classic burst. I played back and forth between them for about an hour and took home the best-playing of the two, sworn not to touch it until today.

Well Merry Christmas to me! I got to spend a bit of time with it today and it’s exactly what I was looking for. Beefy, growly tone through the Subway stack. (WD800, 112, 115)

Christmas is a day of tradition and my tradition with Js is to break them in with some tasty Familyman, and I was able to EQ that right from the bass with the onboard preamp. Ran through a few Marley tunes and quickly dialed in the sound I wanted.

Then, with the EQ set flat, neck pickup favored, I played some Steely Dan (Josie always gets me going) and then switched to a few fusion jams. Finally, I started working through my band’s current set lists.

This bass feels like home. I discovered last year that I dig active basses and flatter radiused fretboards. I’ve known for a time that I prefer a narrow neck. This one is thicker than my others, but doesn’t seem to slow me down at all. It’s not super hot, but it drives the WD just fine. The pickups are a little far from the strings so it might be even hotter and growlier when I’m done getting it dialed in.

Before plugging in, I spent a little time setting it up, oiling the fretboard and switching out the strings. I’ll order some Labella DTB flats, but I had a set of Fender flats that are just broken in and they sound and play fine for now. (I know I can get more growl with the rounds that came on it, but I like flats and I’m getting most of what I’m looking for even with the Fender flats.

I’ll be swapping out the pick guard and a drop tuner, strap locks, and get a new strap. Then it’ll be in hot competition to be my #1 band bass.
View attachment 4517611
Edited to add obligatory pic, which I neglected to do initially.:rolleyes:
Click to expand...
J bass with flats as #1? Mutiny!
 
  • Like
Reactions: CallMeAl and DrThumpenstein

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back