The Squier Mini Precision Bass Club

[spellbookhq]

I got these (made by The 7th Songs / Keftone): Electric Bass Guitar PB Plain Enamel Precision Pickup Alnico 5 10.8K Black | eBay

Cheap as dirt, but I wish the stock pup would be as good as this. The sound you get from it, I'd say, is shocking in the same way the price is shocking. Now I wonder if I should install something like EMG Geezer like you, Seymour Duncan SPB-1, Fralin, Nordstrand NP4... I wanted to test the idea, and so far it worked perfectly, but I don't have a budget for a nice, proper boutique pickup.

Good luck with the new EMG. From all the reviews I've read while I was researching new pickups, this bad boy is one of the best.

Thanks! Pretty unbeatable price. Thought it'd be good to know which one's exactly, for the sake of the thread.

I just sold my old bass, and put the budget straight into this mini P project. Still though -- nothing wrong with upgrading step by step, over time!

 

[TK4261]

I put a Bartolini B Axis Alnico V P pickup in my Mini and I love the tone of it.

 

[spellbookhq]

I put a Bartolini B Axis Alnico V P pickup in my Mini and I love the tone of it.

Nice build! Wood knobs + beveled edge wood pickguard looks elegant af.

 

[RodRy]

Nice build! Wood knobs + beveled edge wood pickguard looks elegant af.

Yeah, that @TK4261 does some very tasteful mods to basses. I've often been curious to see what he does next.

 

[Crackle]

Curious which knobs you got? Also putting in EMG Geezers and it seems like the stock knobs won't fit once I do so.

The pots that come with the GZR pickups have .25 inch solid shafts. You are correct that the original knobs won't fit. The knobs I installed were purchased almost 20 years ago, so I can't tell you exactly what brand or model they are. The bottom line is you will need knobs that fit .25 inch solid shafts WITH SET SCREWS. The thing is, push-on knobs will not work with solid shafts.

 

[spellbookhq]

The pots that come with the GZR pickups have .25 inch solid shafts. You are correct that the original knobs won't fit. The knobs I installed were purchased almost 20 years ago, so I can't tell you exactly what brand or model they are. The bottom line is you will need knobs that fit .25 inch solid shafts WITH SET SCREWS. The thing is, push-on knobs will not work with solid shafts.

Thank you for this info! Went ahead and ordered new knobs from Stew Mac (1/4" round shaft with set screws).

 

[Squirrels2Nuts]

I'm looking at this ad for a short scale made in USA Fender P-Bass, but I can't find any other information online about it.

Buy or Sell Used Guitars Locally in City of Toronto | Free Local Classifieds - Kijiji

Guitars and bass are available for sale in City of Toronto- Gibson, Ibanez, Fender, Epiphone, Martin, electric, acoustic guitars & more on Kijiji Canada's #1 Local Marketplaces.

www.kijiji.ca

From the ad:
Specs: Poplar body with gloss black finish, 4-ply pickguard(W-B-W-B)
One-piece maple neck with ebony fretboard
Fender standard split single-coil P Bass pickups
4-saddle P Bass chrome bridge
Modern C-shaped 12" fretboard radius with 21 jumbo frets
4 in-line chrome key peg tuning machine heads
1 volume, 1 tone with chrome knurled barrel knobs x2

The owner says it's 25.5" from nut to saddle, doesn't know what year it is, and says it has standard gauge strings on it.
Did Fender USA ever make one of these? All I can find are MIM and MIJ short scale Fender basses.

 

[spellbookhq]

I'm looking at this ad for a short scale made in USA Fender P-Bass, but I can't find any other information online about it.

Buy or Sell Used Guitars Locally in City of Toronto | Free Local Classifieds - Kijiji

Guitars and bass are available for sale in City of Toronto- Gibson, Ibanez, Fender, Epiphone, Martin, electric, acoustic guitars & more on Kijiji Canada's #1 Local Marketplaces.

www.kijiji.ca

From the ad:
Specs: Poplar body with gloss black finish, 4-ply pickguard(W-B-W-B)
One-piece maple neck with ebony fretboard
Fender standard split single-coil P Bass pickups
4-saddle P Bass chrome bridge
Modern C-shaped 12" fretboard radius with 21 jumbo frets
4 in-line chrome key peg tuning machine heads
1 volume, 1 tone with chrome knurled barrel knobs x2

The owner says it's 25.5" from nut to saddle, doesn't know what year it is, and says it has standard gauge strings on it.
Did Fender USA ever make one of these? All I can find are MIM and MIJ short scale Fender basses.

It does look a bit smaller than the Mini P / Junior Precision 28.6" scale.

There are a couple red flags for me:
- I've never seen a brand new Fender bass that didn't come with clover shaped tuners. So if he's saying it's "new" / as shipped, that probably isn't correct?
- Why is the neckplate blank / unbranded?

My guess is that it's either Frankenstein'd together, or it's a altogether fake. That said, I'm no expert. If it's something extremely obscure hopefully someone else will chime in with an ID for you. If it's legible in the pics, you can run the serial number and see what comes up:
[This invalid link has been removed]

 

[HaphAsSard]

I'm looking at this ad for a short scale made in USA Fender P-Bass, but I can't find any other information online about it.

Buy or Sell Used Guitars Locally in City of Toronto | Free Local Classifieds - Kijiji

Guitars and bass are available for sale in City of Toronto- Gibson, Ibanez, Fender, Epiphone, Martin, electric, acoustic guitars & more on Kijiji Canada's #1 Local Marketplaces.

www.kijiji.ca

From the ad:
Specs: Poplar body with gloss black finish, 4-ply pickguard(W-B-W-B)
One-piece maple neck with ebony fretboard
Fender standard split single-coil P Bass pickups
4-saddle P Bass chrome bridge
Modern C-shaped 12" fretboard radius with 21 jumbo frets
4 in-line chrome key peg tuning machine heads
1 volume, 1 tone with chrome knurled barrel knobs x2

The owner says it's 25.5" from nut to saddle, doesn't know what year it is, and says it has standard gauge strings on it.
Did Fender USA ever make one of these? All I can find are MIM and MIJ short scale Fender basses.

Not that I'm aware of. Fender Japan did make a guitar-scale Precision at one point, the MPB-33, but it was 22.68" scale:
Actual Fender Mini P Bass is News to Me - 22" Scale!

 

[fnkyhd]

just found this thread after getting a Squier mini p bass yesterday. i sold all my noisy caitlin bread pedals to get it with store credit at my local shop:

noise! ... is it my Caitlin Bread pedals?

anyway lots of good info here thanks. initial thoughts:

ordered the GHS short scale flats because the labella warning about winding over the non silk part. i had no idea they made sets just for these.

love the stock pickups. i wanted a passive bass and this one sounds good to me. looks a little silly perhaps but that's normal, in fact i should hike it up like it's a mandolin .

maybe new tuners at some point.

i did have to back off bring the bridge adjustments a lot to get the intonation, not perfect but better. one thing i dont like about it is that with slinky strings and jumbo frets i'll be playing sharp until i get better (lighter touch). maybe do some fretwork on it but i want to get to know the neck first ...until then microtonal music it is!

i also loosened the truss rod 1/4 turn. my notched straight edge for guitar fits starting on the third fret. it was dead flat, wanted just a bit of relief. will give it a day and adjust again if needed.

can't wait to try it with the band. some things are easier to play on it, others not so much!

 

[elderdawg]

just found this thread after getting a Squier mini p bass yesterday. i sold all my noisy caitlin bread pedals to get it with store credit at my local shop:

noise! ... is it my Caitlin Bread pedals?


ordered the GHS short scale flats because the labella warning about winding over the non silk part. i had no idea they made sets just for these.

love the stock pickups. i wanted a passive bass and this one sounds good to me. looks a little silly perhaps but that's normal, in fact i should hike it up like it's a mandolin .

I thought the stock pickups sounded ok until I replaced the factory rounds with flats. In my opinion flats on this scale, with the factory pu's, make it sound too muddy. So I am going to put rounds back on my Mini. Cheaper and easier than replacing the pu's.

 

[fnkyhd]

I thought the stock pickups sounded ok until I replaced the factory rounds with flats. In my opinion flats on this scale, with the factory pu's, make it sound too muddy. So I am going to put rounds back on my Mini. Cheaper and easier than replacing the pu's.

I have to agree. ive been playing it with the tone all the way to treble and at our session i had to switch back to my sr300 because it couldnt cut through the rest of band. i will mess with the amp a bit and the battalion pedal to see if i can get better tone. the compressor on the battalion jacks the noise too much so i dont use it.

 

[elderdawg]

I have to agree. ive been playing it with the tone all the way to treble and at our session i had to switch back to my sr300 because it couldnt cut through the rest of band. i will mess with the amp a bit and the battalion pedal to see if i can get better tone. the compressor on the battalion jacks the noise too much so i dont use it.

So to get better tone balance across all 4 strings, I just started by replacing the E and A with rounds, and left the flats on the D and G. So far I like it. Just wondering how common it is for mixing rounds and flats like this.

 

[GrahamNN3]

It does look a bit smaller than the Mini P / Junior Precision 28.6" scale.

There are a couple red flags for me:
- I've never seen a brand new Fender bass that didn't come with clover shaped tuners. So if he's saying it's "new" / as shipped, that probably isn't correct?
- Why is the neckplate blank / unbranded?

My guess is that it's either Frankenstein'd together, or it's a altogether fake. That said, I'm no expert. If it's something extremely obscure hopefully someone else will chime in with an ID for you. If it's legible in the pics, you can run the serial number and see what comes up:
[This invalid link has been removed]

Fender Precision Junior Bass - NBD Fender Precision Jr. circa 2004 - 2006

 

[spellbookhq]

It does look a bit smaller than the Mini P / Junior Precision 28.6" scale.

There are a couple red flags for me:
- I've never seen a brand new Fender bass that didn't come with clover shaped tuners. So if he's saying it's "new" / as shipped, that probably isn't correct?
- Why is the neckplate blank / unbranded?

My guess is that it's either Frankenstein'd together, or it's a altogether fake. That said, I'm no expert. If it's something extremely obscure hopefully someone else will chime in with an ID for you. If it's legible in the pics, you can run the serial number and see what comes up:
[This invalid link has been removed]

One retraction here -- I just picked up a 2012 Fender Classic Series Made in Mexico Cabronita, and it came with an unbranded neckplate. So I guess the blank backplate doesn't necessarily disqualifying it as genuine MIM Fender. As far as I've heard the Jr. Precision didn't have a tone control (vol only), so if that is a Junior P the tone control must've been added later. No way those are the stock tuners though. And the logo looks a bit suspect. But who knows!

 

[andare]

One retraction here -- I just picked up a 2012 Fender Classic Series Made in Mexico Cabronita, and it came with an unbranded neckplate. So I guess the blank backplate doesn't necessarily disqualifying it as genuine MIM Fender. As far as I've heard the Jr. Precision didn't have a tone control (vol only), so if that is a Junior P the tone control must've been added later. No way those are the stock tuners though. And the logo looks a bit suspect. But who knows!

Can confirm that certain MIMs come with blank neck plates, namely the Classic Series and Vinteras. IIRC the Player has a branded neck plate.

 

[mbolton]

Hi folks. I'm looking to mod out my mini a bit with a new bridge and pickups. My local guitar tech won't do any routing so I am wondering what options, if any, I have for direct pickup as well as bridge replacements. I asked and didn't get a response from my tech so wanted to check with others who've actually made these changes.

I gather that the Fender Hi-Mass and Hipshot Kickass should be drop-in bridge options but it seems there may not be any equivalent pickups. I keep seeing suggestions but can't get anything concrete; maybe they fit in terms of physical pickup size but not room for the wiring when its added. It seems there's usually some additional routing needed but mention of that usually seems left out when folks share their final results.

I was wondering what the general consensus is for Dimarzio's p pickup line and for the EMG Geezer Butler. I've read elsewhere that the Dimarzio Ps are maybe a bit too tall? Folks here seem to have success but, as I said, not sure how much of that is due to routing. The GZR meanwhile seems a tight fit which sometimes needs routing and also 1/4" set screw knobs? Maybe the SD Quarter Pounders or Nordstrand NP4s are other options? I know Jonathan Wong has done several videos but not sure if those were direct installations. Thanks for your assistance!

 

[spellbookhq]

Hi folks. I'm looking to mod out my mini a bit with a new bridge and pickups. My local guitar tech won't do any routing so I am wondering what options, if any, I have for direct pickup as well as bridge replacements. I asked and didn't get a response from my tech so wanted to check with others who've actually made these changes.

I gather that the Fender Hi-Mass and Hipshot Kickass should be drop-in bridge options but it seems there may not be any equivalent pickups. I keep seeing suggestions but can't get anything concrete; maybe they fit in terms of physical pickup size but not room for the wiring when its added. It seems there's usually some additional routing needed but mention of that usually seems left out when folks share their final results.

I was wondering what the general consensus is for Dimarzio's p pickup line and for the EMG Geezer Butler. I've read elsewhere that the Dimarzio Ps are maybe a bit too tall? Folks here seem to have success but, as I said, not sure how much of that is due to routing. The GZR meanwhile seems a tight fit which sometimes needs routing and also 1/4" set screw knobs? Maybe the SD Quarter Pounders or Nordstrand NP4s are other options? I know Jonathan Wong has done several videos but not sure if those were direct installations. Thanks for your assistance!

Based on advice from earlier in the thread, I put a Hipshot Kickass in mine and swapped out the stock pups for EMG Geezers. Both were drop-in replacements. Just snip the ground wire coming off the stock pups and leave it where it is (running through the hole to the bridge). The rest of the install is fully solderless / snap-in. You could do it yourself. Yes, the control cavity is small, but I was able to get everything to fit -- just be careful not to get any wires caught between the body and the pickguard when you screw it back on. No need for routing.

EDIT: Yes, the stock knobs won't fit anymore, if you go EMG GRZ. There's a link to which Stew-Mac set screw knobs will work, somewhere earlier in the thread.

 

[mbolton]

Based on advice from earlier in the thread, I put a Hipshot Kickass in mine and swapped out the stock pups for EMG Geezers. Both were drop-in replacements. Just snip the ground wire coming off the stock pups and leave it where it is (running through the hole to the bridge). The rest of the install is fully solderless / snap-in. You could do it yourself. Yes, the control cavity is small, but I was able to get everything to fit -- just be careful not to get any wires caught between the body and the pickguard when you screw it back on. No need for routing.

Thanks so much for responding. I had seen one of your earlier posts regarding the knobs:

Thank you for this info! Went ahead and ordered new knobs from Stew Mac (1/4" round shaft with set screws).

...and so wasn't sure how much work would altogether be required. If it came to that I'd be more comfortable taking it to my tech and just wanted at that stage to have everything together for them.

 

[spellbookhq]

I had seen one of your earlier posts regarding the knobs

Credit to @Crackle for that tip re: correct knob specs to match the EMG GZRs. Realized I actually didn't include the links! 1/4" round shaft with set screws, as found here:

Dome
Dome Knob - StewMac
Item numbers start with "# 0157-"

Flat Top
Flat-top Knob - StewMac
Item numbers start with "# 0190-"