Thoughts about getting a Fender 1979 P-Bass

[DanAdams]

My question for you is "Why do you want a 79 Fender bass?"
You probably know that you can certainly get a bass that will play and sound better for a much lower price, and there are modern basses, or vintage basses from other brands that look similar and are more consistant for a lot less money, and that a late 70's Fender has a decent probability of being awful...
So why do you want a 79 Fender that you can't try first???

 

[Rickybass4001]

I love my old '77 P-Bass. Been to heck & back with it. It is definitely a tone monster, especially after installing the BadAss II. My action is low like my Rickys and have no issues.

As mentioned earlier, it's hit or miss and suggest playing and possibly take to a good shop to it look it over. The seller should not oppose this. Unless they're out of state.

if you have a chance to get a '70s P Bass reasonable, then give it a go.
Good Luck.

 

[Willie5String]

Hi, guys!

so, im thinking about getting a 1979 fender precision bass (black finish, maple neck, beautiful). Love P-Bass tone and the look of relic instruments.

but there are some things that im worried about since i have no experience with vintage precisions.

things that i worry: intonation and low action with no buzz.

I worry about these things because considering its a pretty old bass, seems like a crime to do anything that could loss its originality, like leveling the fingerboard or something like that.
Maybe would it be better to get something like a professional II? Is it better built?

thanks a lot for your time! Also, sorry if there is already a topic about that, i couldnt find it

1970's models aren't really collectors items, at least in my mind. You like it, but it and play the heck out of it.

As far as action height, my 73 is a bit below factory specs and doesn't buzz, if it did, it would go in for a PLEK setup.

 

[Killing Floor]

Even with a very old instrument, fret work can be considered normal maintenance and should not affect the value. In fact, worn frets or poor playability from installation or uneven wear is worse for the value than replacement. Just have a pro do the work.

Anyway, the main thing to me is whether the neck is straight-ish and the truss rod turns freely and has room for adjustments.

Good luck.

 

[BrassedOn]

I like my '77 Fender P, my daily driver. I have it about 1/64" below spec, and touched up the fret level for the second time in its life last year. and recrowned. Some need a little extra fall away above the 15th.

Older basses can have flaws like a twist in the next or a hump near where the neck meets the body like 15th fret. So if don't trust your eyes and buying in person, nice to have a notched fingerboard ruler handy. And at this vintage, pulling the neck out of the pocket enough to test the the truss rod is responsible and reasonable. Bring a couple Philips screwdrivers and maybe a large standard.

 

[Michael Stanley 2112]

I own one, purchased from a friend, a few years back.

The bass had been sitting in his office at school in a cardboard "case" for about a decade. He told me he just never really liked the neck and preferred Jazz basses and his arthritis was starting to act up.

The metal parts were rusted, in fact, two of the saddle adjustment screws were so rusted, I couldn't do a proper set-up on it. I actually knew about this, going in because I had attempted to do some maintenance for him a few years before.

So, being it's a "classic" (I don't put too much stock in a '79 P-bass being vintage, but whatever) instrument, I wanted to get some input from Fender on how to proceed.

I can give you the long story, if you like, but the outcome was the only bridge to replace the old one was actually a Jazz bridge. It turns out there's not much difference, but the differences are there, if slight.

The tuners are servicable-to-good and didn't suffer from any rust.

I have no buzz to complain about and the Maple fingerboard plays very nicely. I'm not really a fan of maple fingerboards in general nor in Fender Maple fingerboards, in particular. So, for me to say it plays very nicely is a rave review.

In general, if this is one of your "holy grail" instruments and you can get it for a decent price (some people are out of their ever-lovin' minds), I would say to get it and you can message me with any particular questions. I'm happy to help.

 

[oren]

I love my 78 P bass, but that's largely because I bought it brand new and it's lived through a lot with me along the way, and each of its scars, nicks, scratches, and gashes bring a story to mind. It sounds great, never needs adjusting and weighs somewhere around 11 lbs (it's been a few years since I wore it standing on a whole gig). But if it got stolen or destroyed, I'd have no hesitation replacing it with a new Pro II or maybe an American Vintage II. Those are fine instruments, and the quality is far more consistent now than it was back in the day. Buy a new one now, and in 40-some years you can be the envy of all the kids with your vintage axe and your stories!

 

[Mrtoodamnsabre]

id say with the mid to late 70s ones try before you play it, obviously, the CBS years do have some duds but ive never encountered one. those old necks are really something else, they're really beefy and they dont quite make em like that anymore, very hard to find a single piece maple these days. old basses sometimes dont wanna adjust as readily as newer ones do, and some of them are pretty complicated to set up. iirc the 78s have the goofy microtilt 3 bolts? maybe not though.

my question is since its a fender and the design is relatively unchanged since the 50s, why not go for a 80s or 90s fender? woods gonna be 30+ years old, its gonna be built a little better than a late 70s fender with better materials and itll cost a lot less!

 

[Port]

I don't think you'd have a problem with intonation. I'd be most concerned with the neck and would ask about frets, straightness, bow, twist, "ski jump" (slight rise where neck meets body), nut, truss rod tightness/operation. I prefer original tuners. Ask about weight. Consider a pro set-up, it can work wonders. I favor early 70's stuff and own three Precisions - '71, '72 and '76. They were all good to start with but took a little set-up work to get to my liking.

 

[elgranluis]

Hi, guys!

things that i worry: intonation and low action with no buzz.
it

if it's at a reputable dealer like you mention , simply pay them to set up the bass as low as possible , and ask them to send you the measurements. It's cheap insurance that the bass can be setup to your liking. If it can , then proceed to purchase the bass.

 

[LEK]

20 years ago when guitar center still had a ton of vintage stuff near me I tried several 60's and 70's jazz and p basses, and even an early 80's fullerton reissue (and I have those in strats). A '79 p bass had the deepest woodiest unreal tone - beating the crap out of everything else. I bought it and have used it on every recording/song for the last 20 years. Heavy as hell and someone played the crap out of it orange nicotine stained and some cracks here and there. Still like everyone else said u need to try it. I'm now on a mission for a jazz bass!

 

[coy garcia]

I have a 73 and a 77 both have stable necks and frets are still good but the 73 has a worn nut. I think these necks hold up because they are as thick as a baseball bat... they do sound great. Since they haven't really changed I 'd go for that 70's aged mojo...and take it to a guy if something needs fixing.

 

[Michael Stanley 2112]

I have a 73 and a 77 both have stable necks and frets are still good but the 73 has a worn nut. I think these necks hold up because they are as thick as a baseball bat... they do sound great.

Nuts are something I have NEVER liked on any Fender instrument. One would think, for the money they charge, they could include a bone nut (or at least a higher quality synthetic).

It makes them look incredibly chintzy.

 

[coy garcia]

Nuts are something I have NEVER liked on any Fender instrument. One would think, for the money they charge, they could include a bone nut (or at least a higher quality synthetic).

It makes them look incredibly chintzy.

IMHO everything about Fender P's are cheap and lazy but they balance well and sound great on all our favorite records. I now have a custom fretless neck with ebony zero fret on my 73' but when I had the original neck on it I did several studio recordings with pieces of paper shoved in the groves to get the nut raised and it still sounded better than my expensive basses in the studio... go figure.

 

[Michael Stanley 2112]

IMHO everything about Fender P's are cheap and lazy but they balance well and sound great on all our favorite records. I now have a custom fretless neck with ebony zero fret on my 73' but when I had the original neck on it I did several studio recordings with pieces of paper shoved in the groves to get the nut raised and it still sounded better than my expensive basses in the studio... go figure.

The first thing I replace on almost any instrument (guitar or bass) is the nut. I like making them, myself so it doesn't cost me more than $13, plus my time, but it's time well spent. There's something very "zen" (for me) working on my own instruments.

 

[MingusBass]

No risk, no reward, I took a chance and landed a fantastic '78 Jazz about five years ago.

 

[nixdad]

Hi, guys!

so, im thinking about getting a 1979 fender precision bass (black finish, maple neck, beautiful). Love P-Bass tone and the look of relic instruments.

but there are some things that im worried about since i have no experience with vintage precisions.

things that i worry: intonation and low action with no buzz.

I worry about these things because considering its a pretty old bass, seems like a crime to do anything that could loss its originality, like leveling the fingerboard or something like that.
Maybe would it be better to get something like a professional II? Is it better built?

thanks a lot for your time! Also, sorry if there is already a topic about that, i couldnt find it

My concerns would be weight & finish. Many late 70's Fender basses were notoriously heavy, and Fender had some sort of "finish rot" issue at the time with black finishes on many of their instruments (the finish would turn gray, crack, and generally look nasty.) You said the bass you're considering is beautiful, so it appears it didn't suffer such a fate.

They made boat anchor basses in the 70's.

+1. This was especially so in the late 70's.

Also, a 79, could be anywhere from 79 to 82ish if you're going by the serial number.

Agreed. My son bought what we thought was a '79 several years ago. It wasn't until the original pickup failed (which is a rarity) that we saw an '81 sticker under the pickup.

 

[nixdad]

No risk, no reward, I took a chance and landed a fantastic '78 Jazz about five years ago.
View attachment 4903997

Beautiful! Man, I LOVE the Walnut finish. My first P-Bass was a '75 with the same finish and RW fingerboard. Classic!

Nice matching doggie as well!

 

[andare]

Hi, AGCurry! My worry about intonation is that I had a vintage musicmaster before and a hofner viola that were not able to tune the octaves and since I record a lot, that become quite a problem, and im worry that by any construction issue, that could happen with the P Bass too. am I worrying for nothing? x.x

Those basses have subpar bridges though. The MM only has two saddles. Precisions have the classic 4 saddle bridge that works like a charm.

I second making sure you play it before you buy it or can return it.
Don't know why late 70s Fenders might be desirable to anyone but if it feels good you will know it's a keeper.

 

[vin*tone]

If you're fussy and can't try it… don't do it. It could be an amazing bass….. or not.