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So 70's Fender are desirable now?!
- Thread starter Vinnie Boombatz
- Start date
I wouldn't trade my '77-'78 Precision for anything. It was my first proper bass, bought for $400 in 1982, and it's staying in the family. To be honest, it weighs as much as a Buick and I don't gig with it anymore. But it sounds absolutely killer -- quintessential P-bass tone -- so I've got nothing but praise for my 70's Fender.
Smooth_bass88
vaxx!
- Oct 31, 2006
- 12,122
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- have been on nationally released albums, charting on the Billboard 200
70s Fenders are not bad. Yeah, maybe a few suffered from shoddy construction and Q/C issues, but those things are easily remedied by a good repair tech. And Fender has been making an AVRI 70s bass (first 1975, now 1974) since about 2000.
Yeah. As someone who remembers all the shite that came out then from cars to guitars and a lot of other total crap I can't imagine what the allure is.
I have a '74 P-bass and two '64 P-basses and the '74 is the lightest of the three. Generalities be damned I guess.
I don`t think it`s quite that simple. For collectibles, condition and originality matter more than playability and sound (which are subjective anyway).
I wouldn't say collectibility matters more than playability and sound, but I will admit that I did disregard the vintage factor. I recently sold a 1965 Kay guitar (the ones seen in pawn shops 20 years ago for $25) for $350. Although it had the cool vintage look, I couldn't imagine anyone paying that price if it didn't have that classic 60's sound that some people want.
The kind of thing people ignore to be a member of the prestigious vintage club. Who needs intonation when you've got mojo?
Throwing my $.02 out there...
I bought a 1973 Precision in 2012. Natural body and maple fretboard. It was in good shape, mostly original with a new truss rod and DiMarzio PAF's. I didn't play it much and it sounded ok at best. It did setup nice with very low action. It weighs about 9.5#.
As time went on I started playing it more and more, mostly at home and church. Then I had to start tweaking it. The capacitor died, so I took that opportunity to drop in a set of Fender Custom Shop 62 pickups, new wiring and pots. Next thing that happened is the next started shifting. I did the screen in the pocket trick, and raised the saddles and pickups a bit.
It used to sound good. Now it sounds absolutely amazing. Every time I play I get compliments on tone. It took some work though, and next up are new frets and nut.
I see where some of the complaints on 70's Fenders could have merit. Mine has a loose neck pocket. But if that's the worst thing about this guitar I'll take it, because it has mojo and has that classic Precision grind and punch. Is mine representative of early 70's? Probably.
I bought a 1973 Precision in 2012. Natural body and maple fretboard. It was in good shape, mostly original with a new truss rod and DiMarzio PAF's. I didn't play it much and it sounded ok at best. It did setup nice with very low action. It weighs about 9.5#.
As time went on I started playing it more and more, mostly at home and church. Then I had to start tweaking it. The capacitor died, so I took that opportunity to drop in a set of Fender Custom Shop 62 pickups, new wiring and pots. Next thing that happened is the next started shifting. I did the screen in the pocket trick, and raised the saddles and pickups a bit.
It used to sound good. Now it sounds absolutely amazing. Every time I play I get compliments on tone. It took some work though, and next up are new frets and nut.
I see where some of the complaints on 70's Fenders could have merit. Mine has a loose neck pocket. But if that's the worst thing about this guitar I'll take it, because it has mojo and has that classic Precision grind and punch. Is mine representative of early 70's? Probably.
Despite the objective and subjective reasons people deride Seventies-era Fenders, there were a few touches of engineering and aesthetics that some people dig…and by "some" I mean "enough of a demand that it's worth putting them back into production". Things like bound & blocked necks, vintage-style pickup design, thicker necks with curvier fretboards or the placement of the bridge pickup…these are qualities that many people find attractive and sonically/ergonomically pleasing. There's no right or wrong to it, nor any reason to get cracked up over it. It's just a matter of individual preference.
Collectibility matters more when it comes to values. It's not like all of the pre-CBS instruments were monster players.
This is one of my favorite subjects because I started playing in the 70's and the "experts" spoke glowingly of pre-CBS and everything else was pure crap. And of course the folks who mindlessly bought into that repeated it at every opportunity. Before you knew it it becomes "general knowledge " how bad 70's Fenders were. That continues even to this day.
In the meantime folks like me were wondering what the heck those folks were smoking. Because they bought and gigged with 70's basses and they sounded amazing and typically nothing like pre-CBS. The lesson in that is to actually try things for yourself... or let others supply a nice box for you to occupy. Not sure where the fun in that is but oh well.
As anyone with a calculator function can attest, 70's instruments are mostly in the 40 year old range. That alone makes them vintage. The fact that with the heavy 70's Jazzes they have a signature sound certainly doesn't hurt. You can buy them as players or collectibles, the collectible side is what pushed the values up and that should hardly be surprising to anyone who's really paid attention to the market.
I have two bone stock 78 Jazzes and they are beasts. And I know better than to give them away.
I sold a 71 burst P last year. It was heavy and it sucked the volume outta the E string but,....it had a tonal quality that I have never heard from another bass, thick and sonorous, absolutely lovely.
It also had a neck that was as stable as steel and dead straight. They have there charms no doubt.
It also had a neck that was as stable as steel and dead straight. They have there charms no doubt.
70's Fender basses will always be special to me, as when I first came of age, they were everywhere. I don't own any, and realize my only interest is the 70's logos... big or small. So much cooler than any other Fender logo, IMHO. Fender did reissue the '75 and then the '74 Jazz. They need to offer a 70's P in the AVRI line. I'd be all over one, if the logo is done correctly. I do own a Franklin fretted. Cool logo, but not 100% correct.
This will get some blood boiling!
CBS Fenders are a lot like AMF Harleys.
flame on.
CBS Fenders are a lot like AMF Harleys.
flame on.
