Ok... where do I begin.
This bass was found in the rattiest music shop in town.
I do not believe it to be a “real” Fender.
But!
I have spent years looking for a fiver that feels at least half way decent in my hands. And well here it is.
Action was high enough to bungee jump off of. Pickups hummed to a tune all their own.
So!
I went shopping(after I purchased the bass) and bought a set of MIM Jazz V pickups.
Funny story, they were only available on eBay. I called Fender and they flat out refused to sell me any five string pickups of any kind.
I bought all new pots. Again from eBay but they were also Fender brand pots.
Took the bass over to a local(sort of) shop and had them go to work.
Took 30 days.
Turns out the no name pickups that were in it were both the same size. So they had to route out the bridge pickup cavity to fit the new pickup.
They also cut me a custom pickguard that for some odd reason I just love. Must be the tort.
The neck and intonation went text book perfect and she’s home.
Strangely enough this puppy plays and sounds fantastic now.
Low action and those Fender pups are the stuff of legends. The lows thump and the mids sizzle and the highs just sing.
Currently wearing D’Addario NYXL’s and not being a fan of rounds I find their sound to be perfect. Another strange occurrence.
I did order a set of D’Addario half rounds and was going to switch right away but the NYXL’s are sounding great so I figured I would ride them out till they died and then try the half rounds.
If I don’t like them better I’ll go back to the NYXL’s.
So! How much for a fake Fender with all the upgrades?
Roughly $500. Maybe a tad less. But close. And that includes a Roadrunner case.
In a couple of weeks I’ll take it or rehearsal and see how much it likes Gallien Krueger.
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