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Seriously: Dingwall Afterburner 1 vs Squier Deluxe Jazz V active...

A

AlexanderB

Feb 25, 2007
4,204
2,181
Sweden
#1
Pretty much as stated in the (odd?) title:
Dingwall Afterburner 1 vs Squier Deluxe Jazz V active. What are your thoughts and experiences?

Having played exclusively 4-string basses since 1996 I figured it was time to break new ground. I am looking for a omfortable and well crafted bass with a refined/warm and full sound.

The Squier Deluxe gets a lot of positive reviews here for sure and having tried the CV and VM series, I see what you mean. The active preamp is not a bonus to me, but it can be bypassed with a mod, as I saw in one thread. The Dingwall also gets all "thumbs up" on this board, I think. A higher price will not always equal better performance, but the Dingwall seems worth what they are selling for?

Here in Sweden, an imported Afterburner (whitout the nice top) would cost about 7 or 8 times as much as the Jazz. What will the extra money bring me? Pros and cons?

One reason to go for the Squier is that I am having a 34" five string fretless built now. Sticking to a 34" fretted fiver will perhaps make the two transitions easier. (Going five string + going fretless five string.)

Please note: In this case I see no real "middle ground". I have tried MIM and MIA Fender Jazzes, Yamaha and Ibanez mid price models to name a few. To me it is either the semi classic (and good looking!) Squier or the "think outside the box" Dingwall.

/Alexander
 
#3
Thanks for the reply, Rich L. Can you please be more specific?
Why can not I compare the Squier to an Afterburner? The point is not to compare price, but performance, be it apples or bananas.

I do not gig that much that I would wear out either bass... :)

By the way, the "great (Ding)wall of China" is not an option for me...

/Alexander
 
#4
The Squier is not bad, but the ABI is A LOT better in everything, from construction to sound. Yes, apples to oranges, there's no comparison. I have a video of mine. It's not in English, but I put subtitles. Here:

 
#5
Is there a place near you that has any Dingwalls you could try out? It's really a personal choice, regardless of who say what about any instrument. I personally love Dingwalls (see avatar) but some never get comfortable w/ the scale length or fanned frets. The quality and craftsmanship is second to none.
Because the two you are comparing are so vastly different, the main difference that jumps out is price.
 
#6
I've owned both. While the Squier is a good bass for the $$$$, IMHO, it gets most of it's sound quality and B string tone from the preamp. The Dingwall is just a MUCH better crafted bass overall. The B string is awesome. The components are top notch. I wouldn't even consider getting used to the fanned frets, it takes only minutes. For the money, buy the Squier first and save up your beans for the Dingwall. You can always get most of your money back out of the Squier.
 
#7
Rich L said:
Is there a place near you that has any Dingwalls you could try out? It's really a personal choice, regardless of who say what about any instrument. I personally love Dingwalls (see avatar) but some never get comfortable w/ the scale length or fanned frets.
Click to expand...

Good points.

I owned an AB1 for approx 2 weeks. I hated it. It was an ergonomic as well as a tone thing. Many swear by them, but the AB1 (and all Dingwalls) just are not for me.

A DW is not a bass to buy without trying IMO - or at least with having prior experience with the Novax fanned fret system.
 
#8
Thanks for all the replies! :)

You can not buy (or try) a Dingwall in any Swedish shop, as far as I know. I have been in contact with Barry Lamb (Dingwall Customer support) and there was no discussion about any other opinions than factory direct sale/import.

I will fortunately not need to "save up my beans" to get the Dingwall, but there is still a 6 month waiting time...
In that case I will just have to assume that I will like the fanned frets and the ergonomics.

If people praise the fretwork, paint job, set up etc of the Squier - what more does the Dingwall offer in terms of craftmanship?

Is there a lot of difference in terms of sustain and dead spots?

/Alexander
 
#9
Aside from number of strings and tuning, those two basses have very little in common.

FWIW I cannot envision a scenario in which I would buy the Squier for myself. OTOH, if I had the funds available for that pupose, I would purchase the Dingwall today.

To be fair, the Dingwall is a pretty substantial financial commitment especially if you can't try it first. If it were a used instrument that would make the decision much easier because you would still be able to recover most, if not all, of your money if you were to decide it's not for you.
 
#11
AlexanderB said:
Thanks for all the replies! :)

You can not buy (or try) a Dingwall in any Swedish shop, as far as I know. I have been in contact with Barry Lamb (Dingwall Customer support) and there was no discussion about any other opinions than factory direct sale/import.
Click to expand...
Hi Alexander.

Have you tried posting on the Dingwall forum? There might be a Dingwall owner, not too far away from you, who could let you try out their bass in person. Dingwall owners are pretty cool about doing that.
 
#12
I bought my first AB I as a "cheap" Dingwall to use in "rough" gigs. Once I started playing it, I realize it's a great bass on it's own merits

And I would not base my opinion over all Dingwalls, based on an AB I. If all Dingwalls were the same I would NOT own 30 Dingwalls right now. I can identify similarities between same models, but the differences as well
 
#13
I sold my Highway One Jazz to get into a Dingwall Super J.

There was no comparison, the Dingwall was miles ahead in feel, sound, craftsmanship, and it weighed almost 2 lbs less. With out a doubt the best bass I've ever tried much less owned. And I make it a point to try basses whenever I have a couple hours to kill in town.

Yeah, it was more money. And like you, without any Dingwalls around to try I had to make the leap on faith.

If I have any regrets, its that I didn't do it sooner.

My experience with high end basses is mixed, but if you get a decent deal, and don't like it, you should be able to pass it on without a big loss. I tried to get my Zon Vinnie to work for me for a year. When I sold it on, I was out maybe $50 for shipping. It sold in a couple days. Super bass, just not for me.

Same with the HW1 Jazz. A mid range priced bass for a made in USA, it retained most of its value, but took longer to sell as there was more competition at the $500-600 price range.

The Dingwall forum is a great source. Keep in mind that you are talking to the "converted" over there. A nice bunch of guys. They are passionate about these basses, and for good reason.

Disclaimer: I'm a recent Dingwall convert myself! No going back to the parallel!

There are some new links to utube videos where Barry demos the whole line.
 
#14
Thanks for all the informative responses - much appreciated!

From an engineering point of view the Dingwalls make perfect sense - and the fresh thinking appeals to me.

My interest in the Squier based on the fact that it supposedly (almost?) reaches the performance level of a MIA Fender for a fraction of the price. In Swedish shops a 5 string MIA Jazz will cost me about as much as a factory direct Dingwall (including shipping). So there is some kind of a link between the Dingwall and Squier after all.

I guess that TB people that claim they prefer their Squier over Laklands, Fenders etc. have their personal reasons to do so.

I also guess the slight inflation of the American language has confused me a bit, too, in this matter. :confused:
All the "great", "fantastic", "awesome" etc in the Squier threads are probably closer to "really solid", "better than I expected" and "impressive" in my vocabulary... ;)

I will sure check out the Dingwall forum! Maybe I will end up with a very disparate set of basses; Squier JV P-bass, shortscale Danelectro Longhorn, luthier fretless 34" 5 stringer, fretless 4 string Warwick Rockbass Corvette and now an Afterburner? :D

And the allexcosta-clip was fun, too. I hope the mic survived the punishment! :D

/Alexander
 
#15
Baird6869 said:
Good points.

I owned an AB1 for approx 2 weeks. I hated it. It was an ergonomic as well as a tone thing. Many swear by them, but the AB1 (and all Dingwalls) just are not for me.

A DW is not a bass to buy without trying IMO - or at least with having prior experience with the Novax fanned fret system.
Click to expand...

Just a FYI.... Sheldon Dingwall IM'ed me immediately after my post asking for details as to why I was displeased with my AB1. Class guy and amazing cust service.
 
#16
allexcosta said:
The Squier is not bad, but the ABI is A LOT better in everything, from construction to sound. Yes, apples to oranges, there's no comparison. I have a video of mine. It's not in English, but I put subtitles. Here:

Click to expand...



You sound just like that guy in Bye Bye Brazil.I love that movie.
Anyway what is the length of your B and G strings.Maybe 36 and 33" respectively?

I have heard it is possible to have a fanned fret where one doesn't even notice it is fanned.I'd take the Dingwall anyday over any fender,of which I am a big fan. Obrigado.
 
#18
I've tried both, currently saving for a Combustion, wish I could afford an AB. (Took someone else's ABII for a spin two years back - boy, I was glad when I heard about the Combustion!) Took me all of about 5 minutes to get used to the fanned frets. I've also tried the 5 string Squier. The first difference I noticed was the difference in the string tension of the "B" - on the AB, the B is just as tight as the other strings. On the Squier, the B is a bit 'floppy,' it just doesn't feel as taunt as the upper strings. Tone wise, the AB was phenomenal. I'd only been playing a few months at the time, and even I could tell the difference in tone... If price isn't really an obstacle, I think you'll find the Dingwall worth it. Of course, as usual, YMMV, IMO, etc. As someone said above, there are always a few people who just can't get used to the fanned frets. At least with the Dingwall, if you find you just can't like it, you should be able to resell it at about what you paid for it to start with.
 
#20
I'll preface this by saying that I didn't care for that Squier when I played it - the 4 satring VMs and CVs on the other hand are great!

I think that you cam't really go wrong with an ABI. I've had mine for just under a year now and it's absolutely fantastic. A cracking bass that is gorgeous to play, listen to and look at. Yes, it's loads more expensive than the Squier, but in my opinion it's worth it. The guys at Dingwall make great basses and I'm entirely happy with my purchase.

edit: I actually bought my Dingwall without ever seeing one, let alone playing one and I must say I did dread it's arrival and the possibility that the fanned frets would be too much (I'd only owned 30" short scale basses before) or I'd hate the tone or something. Luckily this didn't happen.
 

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