Return this new bass?

[Mastiff_5]

I don't get the frustrated tone of a few here towards a return...odd to say the least...

I agree. It is obviously out of whack, and among a bunch of bassists who certainly have preferences about string spacing - 17mm… 18mm… 19mm… - one millimeter obviously does make a difference.
(Plus, that would drive me nuts. Or, well, drive me to get a new nut)
But it may be easier, to the point made by several folks here, to call up ‘ol Fender customer service and see how they deal with it. I think you absolutely should not accept that, and you absolutely should not feel bad about it.

 

[friskinator]

In almost 40 years of playing, I have never once measured string spacing or paid attention to how the strings line up over the pickup poles. But you do you.

 

[DJ Bebop]

Your bass

One on Sweetwater

I think if the D string was under the string retainer better it would be the same?

 

[Element Zero]

I love seeing these types of posts because it just makes me so happy to not work in a music store anymore!

Been over 10 years for me. I miss my crew and some of the gear. Not the ridiculous crybaby customers.

 

[Element Zero]

So we gonna go around measuring our nuts seeing how equal they are?

*hint… NO ONE has symmetrical nuts…

Carry on.

 

[stevensivak]

That diagram illustrates exactly what I said on page 2. And you nuts who keep saying the same thing over and over "get a new nut"
need to have your eyes examined... the tuner is in the wrong position and that is no easy fix!

 

[Turnaround]

You can fix the nut and get a better string retainer but the location of those keys are off.

View attachment 7102602

If you located the string properly under the hold-down it wouldn't look like the key was in the wrong position. Likewise, if you set the witness point at the E tuner the string path to the nut would be straighter.

 

[tvbop]

Is it me or is that whole picture wrong. Strings, headstock, retainer, nut...all looks kooky to me. Just looked at mine and alls dead straight and even.

 

[stevensivak]

Fixing the retainer will help the D string but not the E string- SEND THIS THING BACK!

 

[Chrisk-K]

Is it me or is that whole picture wrong. Strings, headstock, retainer, nut...all looks kooky to me. Just looked at mine and alls dead straight and even.

I haven’t measured anything else besides the nut slot spacing, but something’s just off. Maybe, the tuner locations are all wrong.

 

[bigdaddybass12]

Return it, otherwise it will bother you for ever.

Exactly this! You may be making excuses for it too.

 

[FRoss6788]

You can fix the nut and get a better string retainer but the location of those keys are off.

View attachment 7102602

The D string needs to be placed correctly under the retainer, the E tuning key is fine, note the distance to the edge of the headstock. The string always bends a bit to get around the post.

 

[FRoss6788]

Maybe, the tuner locations are all wrong.

They're not.

They're exactly where they should be.

 

[Zooberwerx]

If you located the string properly under the hold-down it wouldn't look like the key was in the wrong position. Likewise, if you set the witness point at the E tuner the string path to the nut would be straighter.
View attachment 7102690

This is the E string “leaf spring” which frequently occurs when it does not transition to taper.

Riis

 

[Joe Nerve]

I'd have never noticed that, but if it bothers you - return it. If you don't, it will haunt you, and as someone else said, Fender needs to know this isn't acceptable. Their quality control has always been horrible. I don't think they care all that much.

 

[FullumMusic]

Something i haven't seen mentioned in the past 4 pages (unless i missed it):
Where are you measuring from?

Using a micrometer, measure from the center of the string to the center of the next string.

Don't measure from string side to string side. If you measure from the side of the string to the side of the next string, the thinner strings will always be further apart than the thicker strings because the thicker strings take up more space. Measure Center-to-Center.

--

As far as the tuning pegs, i've seen a lot of P basses over the decades where the E string has a slight bend towards the A string between the nut & tuning peg. It's usually very minor, just because of the thickness of the string. Even on the Fender website, if you look at the pics of the P basses, the E string always has a very slight slant to it.

But in these pictures the E string looks like it's VERY slanted between the nut & peg.
- It looks like it could be because the photos are slightly off-angle. Camera phones are a bit fish-eyed and anything not exactly perfectly dead-straight exaggerates angles. Even straight on, the further away from the center of the photo get a bit distorted.
- Also the E string looks loose, like it's not fully tuned up so there's curve to it; it's not tight & straightened which exacerbates it looking off.
- Maybe the E string is too long or something is weird where the full-width, un-tapered part of the string is wrapping on the post?

In real life (not in a picture), measure the spacing from Center to Center. Put a straight edge from the string center to the tuning pegs. (The E should be at most a string-width's off). If that all measures and lines up, nothing is wrong. Otherwise. talk to Fender or the retailer.

 

[Gopherbassist]

I don't know that I would notice this. Looking at your pictures I'm not even sure I can see it.

 

[gln1955]

Those slots are wrong. All this talk about tuner location and the retainer are immaterial. That isn't the problem.

If this was a bass I liked in all other respects, I'd just get a new nut and call it a day. It will be less of a hassle than dealing with Fender, packing and sending the bass back and waiting for a new one, which may have its own issues.

 

[Thunderthumbs73]

As I get older, I increasingly realize that it's important to pay attention to our nuts...

 

[Thunderthumbs73]

Those slots are wrong. All this talk about tuner location and the retainer are immaterial. That isn't the problem.

If this was a bass I liked in all other respects, I'd just get a new nut and call it a day. It will be less of a hassle than dealing with Fender, packing and sending the bass back and waiting for a new one, which may have its own issues.

This: