- Sep 4, 2010
- 3,304
- 2,730
- Disclosures
- Endorsing: Martin Keith Guitars
Had been looking for a Precision for a while, amidst stock problems and ridiculous 2nd hand prices, and found this one online in July as a MF return/scratch-and-dent with about $400 off the new price. Had been there for a while, not a good sign.
I had other doubts too. Gold hardware is a little tacky to me and it wasn't gonna be a lightweight given the comments online. I like alder, solid fender colors, the roadworn lacquer/nitro finishes and this wasn't any of that. I wondered if it would be different from the much cheaper (at regular prices) Professional II P-bass I had played in a store in Ohio a few months ago, which was built very well, but the tone did not inspire me. As we all know, it's a bit of a gamble with Fenders.
I gave it a shot, knowing it could be returned. First unpacking wasn't good: close to unplayable and sounded as dead as a doornail. Right, that's why it was so much cheaper. But on the other hand, the bodywood looked really good (2 piece ash with beautiful figuring) and the neck felt solid, with very well dressed frets. This felt and looked very well built, unlike the 2 lightweight AVRI basses I used to own, which either felt slapped together with woods so soft or insufficiently dried the strap buttons fell out within 2 weeks, or just didnt have the bottom to the tone you want from a Pbass, and didn't balance great.
Comes out the bass came with deadbeat roundwounds, and a recessed pickup combined with a monstrous backbow to the chunky neck. A substantial trussrod adjustment and setup with a new set of Labella LTFs later and boy what a transformation. This is a really good Pbass: even across all the strings, the right combination of warmth, thump and kick all across the fretboard-really what you (or at least, I) want from a Pbass. The more I play it the better it gets. Not even the dreaded dead spot around the d on the g string.
The weight is 9.8 lbs which is not super comfy, but just acceptable, however the balance on a strap is perfect. (I've never played a lightweight Pbass that sounded like a good Pbass anyway-see AVRI comments above).
I really believe they do pick better pieces of wood for this series - a bit 70-ties style old school with the relatively heavy ash body but man - what a great classic P-bass tone. And the neck is now super stable, no ski jump at all - that is a good piece of maple too. A joy to play Jamerson, reggae, soul, jazz or anything else rootsy, really. Some substantial playing time and it will shake loose the tone even more, easily bettering my lamented 76 Mocha that I sold years ago.
I lucked out.
I had other doubts too. Gold hardware is a little tacky to me and it wasn't gonna be a lightweight given the comments online. I like alder, solid fender colors, the roadworn lacquer/nitro finishes and this wasn't any of that. I wondered if it would be different from the much cheaper (at regular prices) Professional II P-bass I had played in a store in Ohio a few months ago, which was built very well, but the tone did not inspire me. As we all know, it's a bit of a gamble with Fenders.
I gave it a shot, knowing it could be returned. First unpacking wasn't good: close to unplayable and sounded as dead as a doornail. Right, that's why it was so much cheaper. But on the other hand, the bodywood looked really good (2 piece ash with beautiful figuring) and the neck felt solid, with very well dressed frets. This felt and looked very well built, unlike the 2 lightweight AVRI basses I used to own, which either felt slapped together with woods so soft or insufficiently dried the strap buttons fell out within 2 weeks, or just didnt have the bottom to the tone you want from a Pbass, and didn't balance great.
Comes out the bass came with deadbeat roundwounds, and a recessed pickup combined with a monstrous backbow to the chunky neck. A substantial trussrod adjustment and setup with a new set of Labella LTFs later and boy what a transformation. This is a really good Pbass: even across all the strings, the right combination of warmth, thump and kick all across the fretboard-really what you (or at least, I) want from a Pbass. The more I play it the better it gets. Not even the dreaded dead spot around the d on the g string.
The weight is 9.8 lbs which is not super comfy, but just acceptable, however the balance on a strap is perfect. (I've never played a lightweight Pbass that sounded like a good Pbass anyway-see AVRI comments above).
I really believe they do pick better pieces of wood for this series - a bit 70-ties style old school with the relatively heavy ash body but man - what a great classic P-bass tone. And the neck is now super stable, no ski jump at all - that is a good piece of maple too. A joy to play Jamerson, reggae, soul, jazz or anything else rootsy, really. Some substantial playing time and it will shake loose the tone even more, easily bettering my lamented 76 Mocha that I sold years ago.
I lucked out.
