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NBD! A Precision by any other name... Or is it?

#22
MobileHolmes said:
That's really neat! My "P" bass is an MIJ of that era (a rebranded Aria Pro II I found out recently). It weighs 8 lbs flat
Click to expand...

You can't just say that without attaching a pic! I've come to love instruments of that era. A while back I purchased a '93 MIJ Fender Precision which would have come out of the FujiGen factory. The quality is excellent and sparked my love of Japanese instruments. I definitely over-romanticize the Japanese craftsmanship but there's just something about them...
 
#23
MHeardOnBass said:
Fender shaped headstock? Check.
Precision bass neck? Check.
Split coil pickup? Check.
Second split coil pickup? What?
Neck-through body? Excuse me?
Mockingbird electronics? Beg pardon?
XLR output? Leave.

This bass had popped up on Reverb before and I spent weeks biting my tongue. Finally someone ended my suffering and bought the damn thing. Or so I thought…

This week it popped up again from the same dealer. I don’t need another bass. I exclusively play P basses. I don’t need another. But then again, I don’t have a passive, fretted P with rounds…

I couldn’t get it out of my head. I’m a sucker for natural finishes with maple necks. My #1 bass has this scheme. My #1 guitar has this scheme. Heck, even my cat sorta matches.

I asked the dealer a couple questions and sent an aggressive offer. Got some answers, but no response on the offer itself. Lo and behold, the dealer applied a shop-wide sale that pretty much matched my offer. I could no longer resist…

Fresh out of the box, I am now the proud owner of a 1979 Fernandes something-or-other:

View attachment 4499136

While waiting, I did a lot of snooping. This appears to be a one-off. This was during the ‘stone logo’ era (~1977-81) where Fernandes contracted manufacturing out to Tokai Gakki. The body/neck appears to have started life as a FPM-80 (based on the bridge) or a BO-60, first seen in the 1980 Fernandes catalog. But the bridge pickup isn’t in the right position. And those basses had a rosewood neck. Also, the controls and hardware don’t match.

Fernandes would also release a Mockingbird bass in 1980 with similar, but not exact electronics. Those basses appear to have an exact replica of the Moser circuit whereas this bass does not

THIS IS PURE SPECULATION ON MY PART:

My guess is that this was a prototype for the eventual Mockingbird production, using a FPM-80 body. It could’ve also been a custom order, but there is no way of knowing for sure. What I do know for sure is that this is one unique instrument.

It’s a 2 piece sen ash body with a 5 piece maple/walnut neck that runs the length of the body. It has definitely seen a lot of action. The poly finish is pretty beat up and there is some slight separation between the ash and walnut at the bridge. Not sure how serious it is but definitely something to address.

View attachment 4499143

The truss rod is also absurdly difficult to access.

View attachment 4499144

It gets weirder. There are three knobs. Care to guess how it’s wired? You’re wrong.

View attachment 4499137

Inexplicably, it is wired V/V/Nothing. Top right (pic orientation) is the neck pickup, then to the left of that is bridge pickup. The other knob at the bottom does nothing. Doesn’t control the XLR volume and no combination of switches seem to help. Maybe broken? There are wires that run to the output jack, but not XLR. There are also wires that run to the switch with the red tip. No idea what this switch does yet but I'm sure they're related.

Either way, not a tone control in sight. Even stranger, when in the middle position, both the bridge and neck volume control acts as a master volume. No ability to blend whatsoever.

This is a bit of a disappointment. A tone control is essential for a P bass and it feels weird not to have one. That said, I’ve seen some other Japanese basses in the same vein with no tone knob. Wonder what the thinking was back then.

We also have a phase switch (only seems to effect middle and bridge position- maybe it’s a series/parallel switch?) and two coil taps. Adds some versatility but generally thins out the sound. Being a new purchase, I haven’t had a lot of time to see how I can fit those tones in yet.

I was also hoping that this would have the Moser Varitone switch found on Mockingbirds. 6 tone options in a passive bass? Yes, please.

Moser sells pre-wired Mockingbird circuits. At this point the game plan will be to drop that in this bass. Minimal modification should be required and it would turn this into a passive Swiss Army knife of a Precision, which was the original hope all along when I saw the control layout.

How does it sound? Well - like a P bass. I’m not sure what you (or I) was expecting but this is a welcome result. I wanted to get a passive, fretted P with rounds + some extra options and that’s exactly what I got. The bridge position pickup definitely has its own unique flavor vs that of a J. A bit fatter low but still has some burp on the D & G strings. I like it.

How does it play? Stupidly easy. Action is nice and low, neck is fast and there’s good access up to the 21st fret. The neck fills my hand perfectly. Nut width is somewhere between a P and a J, leaning towards the fatter side.

What does it weigh?? This was a big concern. Japanese basses during this era have a reputation of being heavy. I learned this is (partially) due to the fact that the Japanese bowling obsession of the 1960s and early 70s (who knew?) had waned and bowling alleys were being torn down. Many guitar manufacturers purchased the high quality wood used on the lanes themselves.

When I saw the shipping weight of 18lbs my heart sank a bit. I’m young(er) and strong but the thought of a 13+ pound bass hanging off my shoulder for a long gig is too much. I am thankful to report that it is a svelte 8.6lbs.

Anyways, I’d love to know if anyone has any information on this instrument. I plan to head over to the Fernandes club and poke around as well. Maybe @johnk_10 knows something due to his relationship with the original Mockingbird?

Thanks for checking it out!

More pictures:

View attachment 4499132 View attachment 4499134 View attachment 4499135 View attachment 4499136 View attachment 4499137 View attachment 4499138 View attachment 4499139 View attachment 4499140 View attachment 4499141 View attachment 4499142 View attachment 4499143 View attachment 4499144 View attachment 4499145
Click to expand...
Series/parallel switches. Individual pickups,and how they're wired together. So, switch A, and switch B turn the splits from series to parallel. Switch C would then turn both pickups from being wired together in parallel, to being wired together in series.

Red switch would then be the pickup selector. Mid/bridge/both. In series, the signal is passed through one, then into the other, In a chain. So, with the pickups in series mode, one variable resistor should also cut the signal to the other pickup as you turn it down. In parallel, each volume knob should work independently.

I don't understand how the xlr works though. It can't be giving off a mic, or a line level signal.

But, if you just solder in a capacitor, you'll have a tone knob.
 
#24
469E1035-6DFC-4E8B-8924-7FCC80718D54.jpeg
469E1035-6DFC-4E8B-8924-7FCC80718D54.jpeg
MHeardOnBass said:
You can't just say that without attaching a pic! I've come to love instruments of that era. A while back I purchased a '93 MIJ Fender Precision which would have come out of the FujiGen factory. The quality is excellent and sparked my love of Japanese instruments. I definitely over-romanticize the Japanese craftsmanship but there's just something about them...
Click to expand...

Non original pickguard (I broke the first one which was cooler) and replaced pickup. But an absolute banger of an instrument
 
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#26
MHeardOnBass said:
Awesome! What did you get??
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A little short scale guy with PJ pickups. It sounds awesome and plays like butter. I couldn't find much on the model number. There might not be many of them out there. The story is kind of similar to yours too - the bass was for sale, it disappeared, then the guy listed it for sale again and I got it for about $100 less than he originally was asking! Maybe I'll do a NBD on it some day soon (I also never did a proper NBD for a MIK Squier II I got last year as I was new on these forums). I just don't like gloating. To me, it's one of the best basses I ever played. To others, it's a cheap Fernandes. To each his own though! ;):thumbsup::cool::bassist:
 
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#27
MarMar said:
A little short scale guy with PJ pickups. It sounds awesome and plays like butter. I couldn't find much on the model number. There might not be many of them out there. The story is kind of similar to yours too - the bass was for sale, it disappeared, then the guy listed it for sale again and I got it for about $100 less than he originally was asking! Maybe I'll do a NBD on it some day soon (I also never did a proper NBD for a MIK Squier II I got last year as I was new on these forums). I just don't like gloating. To me, it's one of the best basses I ever played. To others, it's a cheap Fernandes. To each his own though! ;):thumbsup::cool::bassist:
Click to expand...

Can't wait to see the NBD posts! Around here, it's not gloating - we celebrate together.
 
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#28
JeezyMcNuggles said:
Series/parallel switches. Individual pickups,and how they're wired together. So, switch A, and switch B turn the splits from series to parallel. Switch C would then turn both pickups from being wired together in parallel, to being wired together in series.

Red switch would then be the pickup selector. Mid/bridge/both. In series, the signal is passed through one, then into the other, In a chain. So, with the pickups in series mode, one variable resistor should also cut the signal to the other pickup as you turn it down. In parallel, each volume knob should work independently.

I don't understand how the xlr works though. It can't be giving off a mic, or a line level signal.

But, if you just solder in a capacitor, you'll have a tone knob.
Click to expand...

I'm with you on switch C. A & B could be series/parallel for reach pickup but I'm not sure. It looks like the Mockingbird used coil taps for in the Moser circuit. I think the pickups are Dimarzios (or clones) that have the ability to coil tap. More investigation is necessary.

The red switch isn't the pickup selector - there is another switch for that. This switch only has two positions.

"So, with the pickups in series mode, one variable resistor should also cut the signal to the other pickup as you turn it down. In parallel, each volume knob should work independently."

I can't seem to get it to work this way. No matter what position the C switch (or any switch - I've tried every combo at this point) is in, if I have the middle position selected for the pickups and turn down either volume control the volume cuts as if it were a master.

I don't mean to come across as contrarian - I know how well versed in these things you are. I appreciate your input on the topic. It just seems like the circuit doesn't follow any logic.

As for the XLR - it works! I plugged straight into my Scarlett interface and on the instrument input with a healthy does of gain it made a passible sound. I was secretly hoping it was a piezo.
 
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#33
MHeardOnBass said:
I'm with you on switch C. A & B could be series/parallel for reach pickup but I'm not sure. It looks like the Mockingbird used coil taps for in the Moser circuit. I think the pickups are Dimarzios (or clones) that have the ability to coil tap. More investigation is necessary.

The red switch isn't the pickup selector - there is another switch for that. This switch only has two positions.

"So, with the pickups in series mode, one variable resistor should also cut the signal to the other pickup as you turn it down. In parallel, each volume knob should work independently."

I can't seem to get it to work this way. No matter what position the C switch (or any switch - I've tried every combo at this point) is in, if I have the middle position selected for the pickups and turn down either volume control the volume cuts as if it were a master.

I don't mean to come across as contrarian - I know how well versed in these things you are. I appreciate your input on the topic. It just seems like the circuit doesn't follow any logic.

As for the XLR - it works! I plugged straight into my Scarlett interface and on the instrument input with a healthy does of gain it made a passible sound. I was secretly hoping it was a piezo.
Click to expand...
You can't coil tap a split coil. It's one pickup, with two halves. If you coil tapped it, and selected one side, you only get sound from one side. The other coil would just be off.
 
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#34
MHeardOnBass said:
I'm with you on switch C. A & B could be series/parallel for reach pickup but I'm not sure. It looks like the Mockingbird used coil taps for in the Moser circuit. I think the pickups are Dimarzios (or clones) that have the ability to coil tap. More investigation is necessary.

The red switch isn't the pickup selector - there is another switch for that. This switch only has two positions.

"So, with the pickups in series mode, one variable resistor should also cut the signal to the other pickup as you turn it down. In parallel, each volume knob should work independently."

I can't seem to get it to work this way. No matter what position the C switch (or any switch - I've tried every combo at this point) is in, if I have the middle position selected for the pickups and turn down either volume control the volume cuts as if it were a master.

I don't mean to come across as contrarian - I know how well versed in these things you are. I appreciate your input on the topic. It just seems like the circuit doesn't follow any logic.

As for the XLR - it works! I plugged straight into my Scarlett interface and on the instrument input with a healthy does of gain it made a passible sound. I was secretly hoping it was a piezo.
Click to expand...
Piezo would've been cool. But, then it'd need to be hollow.
 
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#36
JeezyMcNuggles said:
You can't coil tap a split coil. It's one pickup, with two halves. If you coil tapped it, and selected one side, you only get sound from one side. The other coil would just be off.
Click to expand...

That's what I thought too, until I saw this FAQs on Seymour Duncan's website:

What is a coil tap? - Guitar Pickups, Bass Pickups, Pedals

You're right in saying that splitting a P coil would be useless, but tapping can give you another sound. Per SD:

"A coil tap refers to a lead connected to an individual coil’s winding and is used to raise and lower a pickup’s output and change its tone. This is most often utilized on single coil pickups where the player wants a higher output pickup but also wants to be able to switch to a lower output and more vintage-type tone using the same pickup."

But that's not all. When I look at Moser's website, it mentions that the three switches consist of two series/parallel switches (one per PU) and a phase switch. If they really were trying to mimic the Mockingbird's scheme than that's what they are. So you were right in your original post. So much to learn!

Full Vintage BC Rich Eagle Bass Electronic Circuit, pre-wired.
 
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#38
MHeardOnBass said:
That's what I thought too, until I saw this FAQs on Seymour Duncan's website:

What is a coil tap? - Guitar Pickups, Bass Pickups, Pedals

You're right in saying that splitting a P coil would be useless, but tapping can give you another sound. Per SD:

"A coil tap refers to a lead connected to an individual coil’s winding and is used to raise and lower a pickup’s output and change its tone. This is most often utilized on single coil pickups where the player wants a higher output pickup but also wants to be able to switch to a lower output and more vintage-type tone using the same pickup."

But that's not all. When I look at Moser's website, it mentions that the three switches consist of two series/parallel switches (one per PU) and a phase switch. If they really were trying to mimic the Mockingbird's scheme than that's what they are. So you were right in your original post. So much to learn!

Full Vintage BC Rich Eagle Bass Electronic Circuit, pre-wired.
Click to expand...
Trip. So, does it change the impedances?
 

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