Squier Precision - Vintage Modified or Classic Vibe?

[Ectagon]

Tried a Fender Precision American Standard not long ago, and I am now considering a Squire P-Bass (will fit my ambitions and wallet). I wonder:

Which one is the lightest and/or best balanced of the Vintage Modified or Classic Vibe?

Are there any substantial differences in tone and playability between the Vintage Modified and Classic Vibe, or is it just the finish that adds cost to the Classic Vibe?

Thanks.

 

[Poor Tom]

I had a VM for a short while. I returned it and got the CV. My pick is the classic vibe. Let me try to break it down a bit for you.

The VM has a much lighter body. Mine was so light that the neck greatly outweighed it and was quite unbalanced. I also found the sound of the DD pickups to be a bit muddy, and not all that great sounding(imo, of course)

The CV that I got is much heavier, which may be bad for long term standing, but can easily be dealt with if you have a quality strap. The overall body balance is much better thanks to the heavier body. I found the tone to be much better than the VM. It sounds much closer to the American Std than the VM does. Playability on it is also great.

CV was the winner for me.

 

[superfunk47]

VM will be lighter. CV will be overall much, much better.

 

[Ectagon]

Thanks Poor Tom and superfunk47. Very much appreciated.

I dislike both neck-dive and too heavy body. Guess I can't have it all with these Squires.

Anyone else?

 

[cujjo91]

I've never played the CV but my VM is great. But i had a Bassline 1/4 pounder pup put in and I also put a Gotoh 201 bridge on it. I love how light it is and mine doesnt have any neck dive.

 

[J. Crawford]

CV. Period.

 

[TrooperFarva]

I bought a Squier Vintage Modified P Bass for $200. I put about $100 into the electronics, with a Lollar pickup, and a completely new wiring harness. The weight and balance of the bass was always good, that's part of the reason I bought it. So now I have a bass that looks and plays great, and sounds as good as any p bass I've ever played.

 

[broadblik]

VM for me, didn't like the lacquer on the neck of the CV and the VM's pickups are nice, if the VM had the High Mass bridge of the CV's, it would be a sealed deal.

 

[fredolee16]

I own both models. CV is better in sound (in my opinion) and better sustain too!!

 

[Count Bassie]

Only have the CV 50's P-Bass. Nice bass, but I echo the dislike of the finish on the neck- it's laid on pretty heavy. Some steel-wool will help that though, when I get to it!

The CV 50's P-Bass is very light, sounds huge, and has a neck like a base-ball bat. Odd combination of features, but I like playing it. Balance is fine, weight is even easy for me, a 147-lb bundle of sticks and rubber bands.

The bass also looks very cool. It's radiant in the dark with a light on it.

 

[FL Knifemaker]

I never understood this P Bass neck dive phenominon. I've never played one that felt neck divey to me

Anyway, having played both, I MUCH prefer the sound of the VM. Considering they all seem to have horrible factory setups, it can be hard to make an assessment in the store IMHO, the VM pickup makes the CV sound anemic.

 

[Ezbass]

I've played the CV and was very impressed. If you can live with the colour (yep I'm shallow when it comes to colours) go for the CV.

 

[Nighttrain1127]

I have the CV and a MIJ 51 P- reissue the one the cv was based on also had a Vm -p bass they are both(vm and Cv much lighter than the Mij 51 RI. The necks on both are more substantial than a Jazz But the MIJ has a baseball bat like neck and the VM has the smallest neck profile of the 3. the vm is slightly lighter thewn the cv but I experienced no neck dive with either bass (maybe they would If I used a 1 inch wide nylon strap). The Vm has decent tone but is not as articulate as the cv and the cv has bottom end for days where the vm does not get that deep or tight also the cv can with the tone cut at min get very barky with the right attack sort of jazz bassish. Of the two I would take the cv myself just love the feel and tone(I sanded the finish off the neck made it smooth and easy to play. but I had no problem with it the way it was it was playable just a matter of preference in feel.

 

[mobis.fr]

i have a CV.

i compared it to 5 other pbasses at the store and the CV doesn't need to hide behind a MIM or a MIA. it is not as crispy as a MIA, but it has nice lows and a very nice growl!

the fretwork is excellent. and the finish flawless. the only bummer (besides the color ^^) is the tussrod. i cannot get the neck perfectly straight with the (stock) .105 daddario. too much tension i'm sure the fretwork can handle a 99% straight neck. right now i use a Eb tuning to get the action a little bit lower (about 0,7mm when pressed at first and last fret).
maybe something is wrong with the tussrod?

i also played a VM, but it was not that impressive.

btw: the bridge is not a standard one. i compared it to a gotho and the CV's was bigger! so the stingspace is a tad wider.

 

[9mmMike]

I have a VM TB that is very nice. It is real light (some cheap wood with a beautiful ash veneer) but I never noticed any neck dive. I use a Levi Comfort Strap with mine. I like the looks of the CV's but I like the feel of the neck on the VM. My VM's neck is way too white though. Looks like a sun-bleached leg bone or something.
I thought that I had read about some issues with the electronics of the VM Jazz models. Not sure about the P-Basses and my VM TB has a Fender PUP that is awesome.

 

[Fetzu]

Appearance-wise, I prefer the VM, which is why I bought one recently. Olympic White with a black pickguard, though mine has a tort on there. The neck is great, it feels to be just a tad bit smaller(width) than a standard P-bass, and I don't experience any neck-dive with it. The fit and finish appear above-average, and the tone is good enough for me. The bass is really light, which is great because I have shoulder issues. I am happy with my purchase. JMO

 

[Low Main]

The finish of the VM bass necks is nice feeling, but not durable. Ding one and see.

The stock tuners on the CV are far better than on the VM. Same goes for the bridge.

I love the small fretwire on the CV. Almost as small as Lakland.

I think the stock CV 60's P plays and sounds great right from the start (after I did my own set-up on it).

Interestingly, I didn't like the CV J basses nearly as much as the 60's P, even though they are as well made. The P just has something happening that the J doesn't have.

There are wood snobs and tone snobs who will tell you that the basswood that is used for the CV bodies is a bad choice of wood for a bass body.

Based on my experience, I disagree. Basswood is just fine. As far as I can tell, folks like Mike Tobias also think basswood is OK, and if there is a high priest of tonewoods in the Northern Hemisphere, it's Mike Tobias.

You may not like the color Sonic Blue on the CV 60's P, but as far as the quality of the finish goes, it's very well applied.

I was not surprised when they hit the CV line with a price increase recently. Still worth the money.

 

[AMJBASS]

For the money, the Squier Vintage Modified is a pretty nice bass. Fairly light weight with a good feeling neck. I have one, and it sounds quite nice. I did put a BAII bridge on it, but otherwise it is all stock. Great backup bass...