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SBMM Joe Dart 2025 just dropped

#141
joeLowB said:
Love the toothpick trick. I've used it to redeem misplaced pickup anchors and to hold down a hose bib on the outside of my house.

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Ha! I haven't used it on any DIY house projects yet, but have had to re-secure many a strap button with it in my time. Say what you will about Rick QC over the years, and plenty of people do, but if that's the only issue on an otherwise dope-ass $500 bass, I ain't even mad.
 
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#142
don21480 said:
picky issues:
the protective film on the back plate left a really hard to remove glue residue that took some serious work to remove
the knob is a wobbly crooked fit so I removed it and put one of those brass sleeves over the pot shaft - much better
the black stripe on the knob is poorly finished - a fine point sharpie fixed that
the matte black finish shows fingerprints and oil from your skin
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The knobs are definitely the "cheap" version of the classic RCA knobs. Rough edges and such. So if you like the knob style you can easily replace it with a nicer one.

I have a couple of different colors leftover from experiments on last year's JD so I will probably replace the one on the new JD III as well.
 
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#143
It s finally at home !!!!!
 

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#148
Still getting along with my JD lll - just converted the volume to tone so now it's tone only - much better for my purposes in a cover band that does everything from Motown to Funk. I like these flats and the pickup and the tone control gives me plenty of options. I wish I was talented enough to get all the different tones I need without a tone control like Joe - but this works for me.
 
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#152
Bass came yesterday and I had some time this morning to pull it out and set it up. It's really nice, the setup out of the box was fine, only took about 5 minutes to get the action where I want it and get a good even volume across the strings, the nut was set just right and the neck hasn't needed anything yet. Fretwork is great, nothing high or low, no sharp ends. Tuners hold tune but otherwise feel like garbage, the cheap guykers I put on my Glarry feel better than these, and I'll probably swap them out eventually. Weight is good, just under 8 lbs and sits where I want it on a strap. I always thought the volume knob looked a little silly on these and I haven't changed my mind, this'll get a stacked volume/tone pot and a nice new knob this weekend.

All that said I'm very happy with it. It looks and feels like a toy next to my Fender P, but on the plus side it fits great in my nice guitar travel bag, so that's a win. Worth the wait.
 

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#153
Ekibnur said:
Bass came yesterday and I had some time this morning to pull it out and set it up. It's really nice, the setup out of the box was fine, only took about 5 minutes to get the action where I want it and get a good even volume across the strings, the nut was set just right and the neck hasn't needed anything yet. Fretwork is great, nothing high or low, no sharp ends. Tuners hold tune but otherwise feel like garbage, the cheap guykers I put on my Glarry feel better than these, and I'll probably swap them out eventually. Weight is good, just under 8 lbs and sits where I want it on a strap. I always thought the volume knob looked a little silly on these and I haven't changed my mind, this'll get a stacked volume/tone pot and a nice new knob this weekend.

All that said I'm very happy with it. It looks and feels like a toy next to my Fender P, but on the plus side it fits great in my nice guitar travel bag, so that's a win. Worth the wait.
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Nice!

I'll be interested to get your reaction to the stacked tone/Volume control !
 
#154
My Joe Dart II arrived yesterday. I was quite worried when it arrived because the box was shredded. I've never received a box in such poor condition. Much to my relief, the bass and gigbag were unharmed.

My first impressions mirror others. I love it. The fretwork is good, action is right, balance is nice. The pickups are hot but that's an easy remedy. No issues with the bridge or nut. No dents or dings in the body or neck, which is smooth and fast. Hardware quality isn't great but that's to be expected at this price point. It's a joy to play and sounds way more expensive than the purchase price. Overall, my expectations have been exceeded.
 
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#155
joeLowB said:
Nice!

I'll be interested to get your reaction to the stacked tone/Volume control !
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I installed it over the weekend and it seems pretty good. Put on a 0.015 µF which is my favorite for a p-bass. I'm still giving the flatwounds a fair shake, but I'll probably replace them with some bright stainless rounds eventually so I think this'll be a good match up. I put on a knurled silver knob (which is what I had lying around) and while it matches the bridge and tuners it kind of clashes with everything else, so I need to find a good knob for it.

I've got the JD3 shortscale, so rolling off the tone puts it into pretty thumpy bass territory and sounds really nice with some grit. I could have just used an EQ pedal to get the same thing, but when I play live it's mostly covers, so I like having the knob for quick song to song adjustments and not fiddling with my pedals.
 
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#156
Ekibnur said:
I installed it over the weekend and it seems pretty good. Put on a 0.015 µF which is my favorite for a p-bass. I'm still giving the flatwounds a fair shake, but I'll probably replace them with some bright stainless rounds eventually so I think this'll be a good match up. I put on a knurled silver knob (which is what I had lying around) and while it matches the bridge and tuners it kind of clashes with everything else, so I need to find a good knob for it.

I've got the JD3 shortscale, so rolling off the tone puts it into pretty thumpy bass territory and sounds really nice with some grit. I could have just used an EQ pedal to get the same thing, but when I play live it's mostly covers, so I like having the knob for quick song to song adjustments and not fiddling with my pedals.
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Excellent! Glad the install went well.

I'd guess rounds might line up better than flats with the .015uF cap.

Glad this is working for you!
 

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