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SX Jazz basses....

Thedaivisch

Thedaivisch

Sep 3, 2009
111
91
#1
Hi,

I want to pull the trigger on a SX Jazz bass (as a modding project - I've got a pair of Sadowsky HC pickups and I'm thinking maybe a John East Pre). These babies are very hard to get hold of in the UK, but I've found a Spanish supplier. I'm pretty sure I want a lake placid blue jazz, but I'm struggling to figure out the different models. Can anyone tell me the difference between the SJB and FJB models?

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Dave
 
#4
Thedaivisch said:
Hi,

I want to pull the trigger on a SX Jazz bass (as a modding project - I've got a pair of Sadowsky HC pickups and I'm thinking maybe a John East Pre). These babies are very hard to get hold of in the UK, but I've found a Spanish supplier. I'm pretty sure I want a lake placid blue jazz, but I'm struggling to figure out the different models. Can anyone tell me the difference between the SJB and FJB models?

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Dave
Click to expand...

From what I can tell the main difference is in the headstock. The first having a Fenderish headstock (only available in certain countries) and the second having what we call here the "old" headstock which has been replaced with the new "ursa" headstock that everyone hates.

Give the original passive pickups a try first. You may be surprised at the tone, though they are single coils and do hum soloed. Obviously Sadowsky pickups and John East preamp would be a huge step up but make sure wallet is full first...

Note SX bass often need some improvements like shielding, fret leveling, setup and strings before you even start. Sometimes a bit of clean-up on the neck joints helps a lot too.
 
#5
bassbenj said:
From what I can tell the main difference is in the headstock. The first having a Fenderish headstock (only available in certain countries) and the second having what we call here the "old" headstock which has been replaced with the new "ursa" headstock that everyone hates.

Give the original passive pickups a try first. You may be surprised at the tone, though they are single coils and do hum soloed. Obviously Sadowsky pickups and John East preamp would be a huge step up but make sure wallet is full first...

Note SX bass often need some improvements like shielding, fret leveling, setup and strings before you even start. Sometimes a bit of clean-up on the neck joints helps a lot too.
Click to expand...

I've already got the Sadowskys - they're sitting in my drawer :) I took them out of my Sadowsky MV4 and replaced them with Nordys.

Do you think an Aria STB would be a more solid, better constructed bet?

http://reverb.com/item/7539-aria-stb-jb-electric-bass-guitar-4-string-vintage-sunburst-jazz-style
 
#6
bassbenj said:
From what I can tell the main difference is in the headstock. The first having a Fenderish headstock (only available in certain countries) and the second having what we call here the "old" headstock which has been replaced with the new "ursa" headstock that everyone hates.

Give the original passive pickups a try first. You may be surprised at the tone, though they are single coils and do hum soloed. Obviously Sadowsky pickups and John East preamp would be a huge step up but make sure wallet is full first...

Note SX bass often need some improvements like shielding, fret leveling, setup and strings before you even start. Sometimes a bit of clean-up on the neck joints helps a lot too.
Click to expand...

That's a huge exaggeration. Not "everyone" hates it. Plenty of people are fine with it.
 
#8
I can't help you with the differences 'cause I can't read Spanish. But, I speak from experience when I say all of the SX jazzes have something good to offer. And LPB is the best SX solid color ( even though they darkened it after I bought mine),

IMGP2723a.jpg


And I hope you do spend some time playing the stock pups. At least one person has put the stockers back in after trying a "better" pup.
 
#10
dabbler said:
I can't help you with the differences 'cause I can't read Spanish. But, I speak from experience when I say all of the SX jazzes have something good to offer. And LPB is the best SX solid color ( even though they darkened it after I bought mine),

IMGP2723a.jpg


And I hope you do spend some time playing the stock pups. At least one person has put the stockers back in after trying a "better" pup.
Click to expand...

Also, it looks like some of your basses have 70s pickup spacing?
 
#13
Thedaivisch said:
Wow. That is a crazy collection! You obviously have a LPB fetish :)

Do you think the color in this photo is just bad lighting? Seems a lot darker than yours..

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Click to expand...

Not sure. That headstock was never available in my market and SX changed the color to something closer to that picture when they changed the headstock in my market. So all I can tell you is, my basses are no longer available new with my headstock and my color.
 
#17
C.Linton said:
That's a huge exaggeration. Not "everyone" hates it. Plenty of people are fine with it.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't call it a "huge" exaggeration...Batman, just an exaggeration. I've seen maybe a couple posts (at least one for sure) where the person found the URSA headstock better looking than the the older ones. We could run a poll, but judging by TB posts I'd say it's more that "plenty" of people hate it rather than are fine with it. Generally speaking I could give a rat's butt about headstock shape, but I still changed all my Ursa headstocks with a bandsaw.

But hey, if you like it, then that's great for you. My favorite shape is the "old" Sadowsky-like shape. I do have an SX that was the old "canoe paddle" headstock and I bandsawed it into a Fenderish shape. Even though it still has a huge "SX" on it I still feel a bit guilty about the "fake" shape, but the old "fishhook" just HAD to go.

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#18
Thedaivisch said:
Hi,

I want to pull the trigger on a SX Jazz bass (as a modding project - I've got a pair of Sadowsky HC pickups and I'm thinking maybe a John East Pre). These babies are very hard to get hold of in the UK, but I've found a Spanish supplier. I'm pretty sure I want a lake placid blue jazz, but I'm struggling to figure out the different models. Can anyone tell me the difference between the SJB and FJB models?

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Dave
Click to expand...

If you look carefully at the one in the first link you'll see that there's a thin piece of foil between the bridge and the bridge pickup. This is the bridge ground, which is done as a wire in a channel on the other one. Fender used to do the foil strip method years ago but switched to the channel method later. It depends on the look you want since they both work the same.
 

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