Squier Vintage Modified Precision V: who's got one?

[steve_rolfeca]

Minor update:

D'Addario balanced tension strings arrived from Bass Strings Online (EXL220BT set, plus a .145 B string). They really help with string-to-string balance. The B string in particular has more fundamental, and sounds less hollow and more in balance with the tonality of the other strings. Feel is better as well.

Overall tone is pretty much on par with the OEM nickel rounds, but with more punch and growl, especially on the E and A strings. An excellent upgrade, and well recommended over regular tension sets.

Installation notes: Had to adjust the intonation slightly, mainly bringing the E and A saddles forward. Had to widen the nut slot slightly for the B string. Lowered the nut slots slightly to improve the action in the first position while I was at it.

I also put a flush-mount Dunlop Straplok socket on the back of the bass, about 3" in from the end of the body. Not centered- roughly under the E string. Used a regular Dunlop Straplok pin on the upper horn, to push the strap further out from the end of the horn. Combined with the licensed Ultralites, the bass now balances perfectly on the strap, with the headstock a little higher than the body. No stress or strain on my shoulders or neck.

I had noticed that the D string seemed louder than the others at a jam last night, and that the E and especially the B strings sounded a little hollow relative to the others unless I boosted the low end EQ on my amp. After installing the new strings, only the balance problem with the D string remained.

Rather than fixing it by ear, I plugged the bass into my laptop, and used the VU meters and waveform plots in Audacity to adjust the pickup heights. I had to lower the D string side of the D-G pickup quite a bit and tweak the A and B string pickup heights slightly, in order to get the levels perfectly balanced.

All small, minor mods, but the bass now feels better than ever, and sounds more refined. I don't have to keep adjusting my attack in order to work around hot spots or dead notes. Can't wait to try it on the job again on Sunday afternoon.

 

[steve_rolfeca]

Almost forgot, a Straplok installation note, and comment about the body wood and finish:

- This is some soft basswood. A fresh HSS drill bit powered through the body like it was cream cheese.
- When i tightened the screw on the recessed Straplok socket, the finish wanted to suck in around it with relatively light torque on the screwdriver.
- The poly finish chipped very slightly around the edge of the hole, despite my taking the usual precautions (going light and slow with the drill, and putting masking tape over the drill site).
- Cheap white nail polish was a perfect match, which was a good thing since I had to fill a couple of tiny visible gaps at the edge of the hole.

Putting these two things together (soft, punky body wood and a fairly thin, brittle poly finish), I would be careful not to bang these things around.

Still, I'm more than happy to have an 8lb 6oz five-string as my backup, instead of a 10lb boat anchor like my MIM Jazz V and Ibby ATK305.

Speaking of which, it's time. If anyone looking for an active 5-string wants a two-pickup modified ATK or a MIM Jazz V with Duncan QP's plus an aftermarket tort guard and an Audere preamp, I'll probably be putting them up in the Classifieds in a day or three...

 

[RyanJD]

Set the intonation as best I could, no issues. Action is nice. I wouldn't want it much higher.

Notes past the 12th (or so) fret get just a little bit of noise. Perfect for giving them some character.

The only minor complaint I have is the amount of padding (or springs?) under the pickups.
Trying to raise the pickup under my B string, I can't get it too far before I can physically move the pickup up and down by moving my thumb just a little.
Easy, easy fix though.
Otherwise I can't find one thing I'm displeased with on this bass.
I'm with the guy who said they could slap the Fender name on the headstock and sell these for $700.

Also, I'm okay with the OEM strings. I forget how bright brand new rounds can be! So much snap! But they sound good.
Still looking to put Chromes on it eventually though.
Maybe I'll make some sound clips tomorrow if that would be beneficial to anyone considering one of these.

 

[RyanJD]

Still, I'm more than happy to have an 8lb 6oz five-string as my backup, instead of a 10lb boat anchor like my MIM Jazz V and Ibby ATK305.

Wow. You really scored with that one.
I blindly ordered one from MF and mine was 9.0 lbs, so that's pretty good I guess...
Though, I've never once given a thought how much a bass weighed until I started reading this thread and bought this bass.
It really isn't a factor for me...yet...

Thanks for the comments about the wood being really soft.
That's nice to know.
I had one of the first VM Jazz basses they made. It was that natural bass with a maple neck, black pickguard and block inlays...
Yeah, I remember the wood being really soft on that one.
Especially the neck. You could press your fingernail against it a little roughly and leave an indentation!

 

[arginator]

I would love to see an ashtray bridge cover on one of these. Anyone know if they make them for a five string bridge? Or if a standard one will fit?

 

[steve_rolfeca]

Wow. You really scored with that one.

I blindly ordered one from MF and mine was 9.0 lbs, so that's pretty good I guess...

It's very good. Just to be clear, mine started out at 8lb 12oz.

People who have back, shoulder or neck problems can be very sensitive to weight, or even slight imbalances.

Between the rear-mount recessed Straplok behind the bridge and a set of Hipshot Ultralite tuners, I spent over $100 on lightening and rebalancing this bass.

In the end, I lost 6oz (nearly half a pound), and moved the balance point substantially.

Total outlay including strings was about $450. For a 5-string P-bass that plays like butter and weighs less than most 4-bangers, I still consider it a steal.

 

[aproud1]

Rather than fixing it by ear, I plugged the bass into my laptop, and used the VU meters and waveform plots in Audacity to adjust the pickup heights. I had to lower the D string side of the D-G pickup quite a bit and tweak the A and B string pickup heights slightly, in order to get the levels perfectly balanced.

A guitar player showed me this method many years ago and it's definitely the best way to adjust pickups.

Just thought it was worth reiterating.

 

[Pier_]

Rather than fixing it by ear, I plugged the bass into my laptop, and used the VU meters and waveform plots in Audacity to adjust the pickup heights

great way, I use this method for every bass, and is really great.

The only minor complaint I have is the amount of padding (or springs?) under the pickups.

that happened to me with every Fender or Squier owned. ususally I put some sponge (cutting it from a dish sponge) under the pickup, leaving the foam attached to the pickups.
never had to change it, after setting the pickups.

Maybe I'll make some sound clips tomorrow if that would be beneficial to anyone considering one of these.

that would be great I'm waiting to decide, because I can't find a good sample hearing the 5th string in detail, to undertand if it sounds good, if the pitch on lower string is good, and if there's any noticeable dead spot (in particular on the 5th string).

if you can make some "in depht" sample like these: https://soundcloud.com/pierfrancesco-san/yamaha-bb415-low-b
https://soundcloud.com/pierfrancesco-san/yamaha-bb415-scala
https://soundcloud.com/pierfrancesco-san/yamaha-bb415-prova-dead-spots
https://soundcloud.com/pierfrancesco-san/yamaha-bb415-dr-hi-beam

those are sound samples for my ex Yamaha BB415, a great bass, but with dark sounding pickups. the split didn't help that much with the B string (in every sample you hear the same order, P, PJ and J), and it has some weak spots (the C# on the B-string wasn't great).

if you can sample this Squier ina similar way, I'll carve you a statue

 

[RyanJD]

that would be great I'm waiting to decide, because I can't find a good sample hearing the 5th string in detail, to undertand if it sounds good, if the pitch on lower string is good, and if there's any noticeable dead spot (in particular on the 5th string).

if you can make some "in depht" sample like these:

[...]

if you can sample this Squier ina similar way, I'll carve you a statue

Hey man, sorry I didn't see your post until just now, but I finished a short demo. Hopefully it has what you want.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f19/little-recording-my-new-squier-bass-1047363/

I made a thread about it, you can find the video there.
Thanks!

 

[bassnyc1]

I've been subscribed to this thread since it started. This bass quickly moved to the top of my G.A.S. list and it's been great reading everyone's comments so far! A few pages back, I noticed in a post from ggvicviper that he was selling his VM P5. I viewed his classified and realized that he's a fellow New Yorker and found out that our workplaces are near each other. I sent him a PM with my phone number and we arranged to meet the next day at Sam Ash.. When I got there, Larry Hartke was milling around, as usual and there was ggvicviper with the bass. I tried it, liked it and decided to buy in 5 minutes. Finally, after already giving me a good price, he knocked off a few more bucks because I had brought my own gig bag to carry it away. It was nice to meet ggvicviper and now.....I have my own Squier Vintage Modified Precision Bass V in a cool looking Candy Apple Red finish!!!

Edit: I'm having trouble uploading photos from my computer. I'll post some A.S.A.P.

 

[bassnyc1]

Link to some photos.....
http://s1011.photobucket.com/user/b...ntage Modified Precision Bass V?sort=6&page=1

 

[bassnyc1]

Woke up super early, before the kids(!) to perform a quick set up and cleaning of the bass. A few observations:

The bass itself is light. I think maybe around 9 pounds. It feels about the same as my Classic 50's P bass. The neck is definitely beefy, like a P bass. I'm used to ultra thin Jazz necks so it's different for me. The tuners work well. They turn smoothly there's no issue EXCEPT since they're cheaper, import ones, they are quite heavy and cause neck dive. Hipshot Ultralites are in my future; along with new string retainers (string trees?) Also, might get a new bone nut since the one on there "looks" cheap.

I took off the pickguard and the control cavity is pretty clean. The bass set up pretty easily. I'm not an expert at that stuff yet I feel I was able to do a decent job getting it playing to my liking. The bass came with a new set of chromes. I was excited to get a chance to finally try them out but in the end, I swapped them out for a new 5 string set of LaBella's that I had waiting. For me, it's an improvement.

Overall, I'm very satisfied with my purchase. It was nice to meet ggvicviper, a fellow New York TBer and he gave me a good price. The bass satisfies my P5 gas for now and it can serve as a very gigable backup to my Valenti.

 

[Pier_]

I made a thread about it, you can find the video there.
Thanks!

it's really great, thank you! the Low B seems really good, for it beng a P-bass.

I've red often about "Fender's fivers" that don't sound good in the B, but actually I think it's just because of the pickups, talking about their position, not quality.

a P bass has this pickup in the middle, it makes sound even the E string "less tight" compared to a bridge pickup, so it's actually normal if the B sounds less defined.

it's not a Stingray, or another bass with a big bridge pickup.

man, with this sample you bought me, I'm selling the Classic Vibe Jazz. stop.

I'll wait for a couple of samples with flatwounds on it, for i'm going to put straight on my Thomastik JF345 (they stand there, in a box, waiting to be used again).

 

[FourBanger]

Something is wrong...

I want one. I really really want one. And not just as a scond or knockaround, it would be my only bass. I knew it was cold here a few weeks afo but I didn't realize hell had actually frozen over.

Can the Admins change User Names?

 

[RyanJD]

Something is wrong...

I want one. I really really want one. And not just as a scond or knockaround, it would be my only bass. I knew it was cold here a few weeks afo but I didn't realize hell had actually frozen over.

Can the Admins change User Names?

Yeah, they can.
I was die hard on 4 strings for years until not so long ago.
You aren't losing anything by getting one, except for a wider neck and a little more weight, if those things bother you.
But they're easy to get accustomed to.

I'm enjoying mine!

 

[Dr. Cheese]

I think I will just make one of these a birthday present to myself.

 

[Bass4LifeRS]

Gigged mine yesterday. It really did the job well. (Country songs)

 

[FourBanger]

Yeah, they can.
I was die hard on 4 strings for years until not so long ago.
You aren't losing anything by getting one, except for a wider neck and a little more weight, if those things bother you.
But they're easy to get accustomed to.

I'm enjoying mine!

I was firmly in the 'don't need low notes' camp but all of the sudden had the relevation that more notes in every hand position might be a good thing.

I had tried Ibby fivers and they were too tight to be comfortable, and a Fender Jazz V with a nut so wide it could've been setup as a 12 course lap steel, but suddenly, somehow, the right mix of wide-ish bridge and medium nut was an eye opener. It was suddenly no longer physically impossible for me to work with.

And that Oly White/Maple just happens to be one of the few combos where I like tort, and a CAR/Maple is just so damned classic. Most of the better Squiers come in so few color options (better this year) that I rarely have looked at them without thinking I'd need a PG swap to like the look of them.

 

[steve_rolfeca]

...the Low B seems really good, for it beng a P-bass.

I've red often about "Fender's fivers" that don't sound good in the B, but actually I think it's just because of the pickups, talking about their position, not quality.

a P bass has this pickup in the middle, it makes sound even the E string "less tight" compared to a bridge pickup, so it's actually normal if the B sounds less defined.

it's not a Stingray, or another bass with a big bridge pickup.

IME/IMO, B string performance can be fairly subjective. Some people just want to hear a nice fat, round note.

Others are obsessed with getting a lot of articulation and pitch definition down low. This is where I've found that Fenders sometimes suffer in comparison to other fivers.

With a careful setup and balanced-tension strings, my VM P5 is about as good as I've heard from a Fender. Still, it needs a big, .145 B-string to get the best tension and tone. Even then, if I accidentally hit a low C# instead of a C, you can barely tell the pitch difference. I also notice the difference above the 7th fret, or if I plug into a cab that's a bit bass-shy below 50Hz.

Dingwall's 37" long OEM stainless B string is only a .127, and as a result, it sounds more defined and articulate down low, squeezes a pretty decent low C out of my little G-K combo, and still intonates nicely up to and beyond the 12th fret.

Not life-changing differences, but still noticeable to my wife and daughters, who aren't particularly sensitive to bass tone.

 

[bassnyc1]

Most of the better Squiers come in so few color options (better this year)

Does the VM P5 have more color choices this year?