Squier Contemporary Active Jazz Bass HH with roasted maple necks

[user362432]

Recently I spot couple of those in special color version. What is interesting, they managed to get Roasted Maple neck.
Did anyone try these?
They are getting in Sire territory with much lower price...

 

[Yahboy]

String alignment are off.......

 

[user362432]

String alignment are off.......

OK. Anything else? How about sound?

 

[Yahboy]

OK. Anything else? How about sound?

I only have experience on the non-roasted neck version. One word, Yamaha trbx 304 sound much better ,lighter and smoother neck than this weird Squier.

 

[athfngl]

I bought one through Sweetwater a couple months ago, a 5-string with the matte burgundy finish. I returned it within a week. Your mileage may vary.

The good parts:

• I was able to find one just a hair under 9 pounds, which was amazing. The rest in stock were pretty heavy.
  
• I loved the finish - well, the color. More on the finish in a moment.
• The roasted maple neck played like a dream - velvety smooth. One of the only redeeming qualities.
  
• It actually sounded good!

The bad parts:

• The tuners were incredibly stiff; two didn't even get greased. I started to strip the gear on one of them when restringing it, the metal was terribly soft.
  
• The finish had a fair bit of debris in it - little embedded specs of dirt and whatnot. And it is a very soft/thin finish. I chipped the paint while restringing it, and the ball end barely hit the paint.
  
• Bad fretwork in a couple spots causing obnoxious fret buzz, which I'm amazed Sweetwater didn't pick up.
  
• Lacking active/passive switching. There's no cut, it's all boost.
• The nut was unevenly cut, so I had some issues with string adjustment there.

There were some other tiny complaints I had, but not worth noting. Personal preference stuff. Anyway, I returned it after a week, and I picked up a Yamaha TRBX505. For the same price, the TRBX blows the Squier out of the water. Fantastic build quality, more versatile sound, the neck plays just as nice... I would recommend it a thousand times over. If you have any particular questions, let me know.

 

[sonojono]

Reviving this thread after I purchased one used off the GC shelf. Previous owner was kind enough to leave the Nordstrand pickups installed on the bass.

It honestly sounds miles better than stock!!! I wasn't a fan of these particular basses as I had also came across the issues @athfngl mentioned about the tuners. I took the time to grease them each with lubricant while doing so improved quite a bit. However, for a Bass in the $500+ range with issues like that is an instant red flag in my book and are better off looking elsewhere.

For the price of $249.99 used. I scored!!!

 

[ErnieD]

I was watching the 5 string, grey, HH version of this bass on Ebay. Loved the idea of the roasted neck.

It was brand new and in a few days, I got a seller offered $100 discount on it. I was so close to grab it sight unheard. But did some research here and read similar quality issue stories. So even at that great price, I hadda pass. I am guessing my. '15 MIM Fender Dlx Active J5-vintage white, w/Dual Coil pups, may have very similar tone as to what this Squire would offer with those pups. Again, unheard but some Utube vids, just a guess.

Gigging that MIM ADJ-5 this weekend in a 90's country band. It's been parked for years and just seemed like it works for this style of southern-rock-trad-country music. So I busted it out; very nice.

I just ordered a Gen 2 MM Sire M2, blue w/maple board in the same price range. Will be my 3rd Sire, so I'm good with online ordering it. And I have 5 J5's already, two fretless. So looking to see what the M2 offers.

Too bad on these HH Squires if many have similar issues, I was very ready to try one. peace y'all, e.

 

[sonojono]

I was watching the 5 string, grey, HH version of this bass on Ebay. Loved the idea of the roasted neck.

It was brand new and in a few days, I got a seller offered $100 discount on it. I was so close to grab it sight unheard. But did some research here and read similar quality issue stories. So even at that great price, I hadda pass. I am guessing my. '15 MIM Fender Dlx Active J5-vintage white, w/Dual Coil pups, may have very similar tone as to what this Squire would offer with those pups. Again, unheard but some Utube vids, just a guess.

Gigging that MIM ADJ-5 this weekend in a 90's country band. It's been parked for years and just seemed like it works for this style of southern-rock-trad-country music. So I busted it out; very nice.

I just ordered a Gen 2 MM Sire M2, blue w/maple board in the same price range. Will be my 3rd Sire, so I'm good with online ordering it. And I have 5 J5's already, two fretless. So looking to see what the M2 offers.

Too bad on these HH Squires if many have similar issues, I was very ready to try one. peace y'all, e.

Agreed. The poor hardware quality is and was a huge turn off for me. Spent about an hour lubricating each tuner, the process was annoying but the reward was worth it. I personally love the neck and it’s sculpted heel which I found surprising to have such a feature on a Squier!

It’s just not worth the price tag.

 

[Hank Scorpio]

Reviving this thread after I purchased one used off the GC shelf. Previous owner was kind enough to leave the Nordstrand pickups installed on the bass.

View attachment 4733745

It honestly sounds miles better than stock!!! I wasn't a fan of these particular basses as I had also came across the issues @athfngl mentioned about the tuners. I took the time to grease them each with lubricant while doing so improved quite a bit. However, for a Bass in the $500+ range with issues like that is an instant red flag in my book and are better off looking elsewhere.

For the price of $249.99 used. I scored!!!

View attachment 4733744

For $250 with those pickups, I'm guessing you're getting the bass itself for not a lot of money! Great deal, at that price I'd happily get some replacement tuners and even a preamp is necessary, as long as the neck feels good.

 

[sonojono]

For $250 with those pickups, I'm guessing you're getting the bass itself for not a lot of money! Great deal, at that price I'd happily get some replacement tuners and even a preamp is necessary, as long as the neck feels good.

Neck feels like a dream! I’m already planning to replace the stock factory preamp to an Audere preamp soon. Replacement tuners I’d have to shop around for, perhaps res-o-lite tuners for this bass? Will see after I go through a batch of basses I’ve purchased this month for review

 

[ErnieD]

Sounds like you had a pretty quick fix for it, mostly. But Darn, at just $4 bills for a 5er mighta been worth it. Those Nordy pup should go a long way to improve that bass.

Still looking forward to my new M2-5. And I'm falling in love with my MIM Dlx J5 again. I took my older, Carvin SB5000 to rehearsal last nite to compare. The Carvin sounded abit bigger than the MIM. And its' got that lovely birdseye fretboard that plays so nice. But overall I liked the tone that MIM DLX5 was getting.

I'll use my Gen 1 BF Big Twin T-3 way cab, w/Quilter 800 BB amp at gig, so the MIM will sound way bigger as well, LOL. Good ol' outdoor gig on the lake in Hot As* Texas, lordy. peace, e.

 

[jd56hawk]

Only thing mine needed?
Proper strings.
Absolutely no pickup, electronics, fret or hardware issues.
Wouldn't trade it for a Player Plus.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

I played the new PH five. Fit and finish were competent, the preamp was a waste of space. It was heavy too.

 

[ejaggers]

There's a guy trying to sell an HH Contemporary on CL for many months now for $399.
I've seen them for less and still not sell very fast.
It doesn't appear to be a very popular bass IMHO....057912

 

[Wicked G]

There's a guy trying to sell an HH Contemporary on CL for many months now for $399.
I've seen them for less and still not sell very fast.
It doesn't appear to be a very popular bass IMHO....057912

I've had my Satin White for over a year now and I also paid less than $399. In my case 3 of the 4 tuners needed to be replaced and even those are not all that great. There is a carve on the edge of the fretboard near the 12 fret. The finish feels like there are sand particles mixed into the paint and it is freaking heavy. Easily the heaviest bass I have ever owned.

And with all of that, I still have it mainly because it is pretty and sounds pretty good. It is nowhere near the level of my Squier 40th Anniversary Gold Editions or my Fender Player Plus Tops. But it works for practice and when I do take it out I get positive remarks on the looks. Now the 40th Anniversary Gold Edition Jazz Basses are awesome. I wish the Contemporary was at that level.

 

[Blues Bass 2]

I've had one for a few years although not a roasted neck and it's my favorite bass . The tuners and bridge are fine on mine . I changed the pickups to Nordstrand Big Blades and the pre to an Audere classic 3 band . It now sounds incredible and plays like a dream . The only downside is it weighs 10.5 pounds , I call it the beast . I'm 70 years old and have no problems playing it standing up .

 

[Barmy]

I have the matte black exclusive to GC. It took me several tries to find one without jagged fret ends, but I kept pursuing it because I loved the neck. I still love the neck and I really like the pickups, but the preamp is pretty much a missed opportunity. And yeah, it’s heavy — no getting around that.