Questions About 1975 Fender Precision Basses

Lots of maple boards in the 70s. FWIW, that was was Fender quality control started getting pretty spotty. Don't worry about the year - play instruments until you find one you like.

 

Well, I have a '76 Precision and the pickups are not particularly hot. I would say that the PUs seem a bit imbalanced. The E-string is notably quieter than the others even when adjusted nearer the string. The bridge was in the wrong place too!
Davo

 

Ugh. I cant believe people are mooning over 70's Fenders now, i was there, and a lot of it was crap. The best basses ever made are being made right now, and that includes the Pre CBS 60's basses. My first bass teacher had a 76' P, dont remember it being hot pickup, just all around.......meh. Sloppy neck pocket fit, sloppy tuners.

 

I had a '76 and a friend had a '75. I didn't notice and difference in pickup strength. Mine wasn't particularly hot either.

Rosewood is much less common in the 70s than maple. But I wouldn't go as far as to say it's "rare". Maple was just more popular then.

If I ever pull the trigger on one it'll be a fretless maple board one like early Sting/Police era. Just a great sound.

 

Answer: No. Nothing special or hot about 70's pups.

 

I have a 77 that has a nice hairy growl, not sure if I would consider it a hot pick up.

 

One of my very few on line purchases about 25 years ago was a '75 P bass ("A" neck, 'burst/rosewood) that was in very nice shape but I felt the pickups were weak enough that I wound up replacing them with an aftermarket set.

 

I haven’t noticed that 70s pickups are more powerful, but they definitely have a different sound. I’ve owned a few and always have perceived a noticeable difference, especially when recording. Mostly a deeper, darker, more growly sound. Sometimes, that can be perceived as more powerful.

 

Are you sure his pickup is the original?

 

It probably has aftermarket pickups.

 

One bass means nothing, you can't make this kind of generalization over that sample size. I have never heard of a 75's pickups being hot. How close are the pickups to the strings? Are they the original pickups. 70's Fender basses are going for stupid money these days, I don't care how old they are, the overall quality was horrible. Like most things, people talk themselves into hearing and feeling what they want to believe. If you want to say that you own a bass from 1975 because that is important to you, ok. But, I would say that 98% of those basses don't play or sound as good as today's MIMs, let alone the MIA's.

 

There is nothing magical or different about pickups that year. Also remember, they had pickups in a box, and got more when the box was running low. You can't make generalizations about one instrument.

 

Don't fix on a year or pickup. Almost same fenders can play way differently. Wait for the right one.

 

I have a '73 p bass, and it's my #1. The only bad thing I can say about it is that it is 10 lbs. Pickups are not particularly hot, but seem well balanced and are strong. It has a B neck. I've heard that earlier 70s Fender instruments tend to be better than the later ones, but I'm sure it's a mixed bag.

 

I'd double check that they're the original pups. A lot of players were upgrading to Seymour Duncan quarter pounders back then.