Years ago, back when Fender was running the American Design Experience, a way to get semi-customized American Fender instrument without going full-tilt Custom Shop, I put together an instrument that could not be bought right off the wall.
If I had made the decision to have this built, it would've included Fender Custom Shop '60s pickups and a '70s-style neck with blocks and binding. Much to my everlasting regret, I did not pull the trigger on it. In a way, it was a slap to the face when the Design Experience was closed, then later reopened as the Mod Shop, but with less options and higher prices.
This disappointing setback did not stop me from checking the Jazz bass options from time to time. So, when Fender deigned to add a blocked Jazz neck to the available options late last year, I was pretty sure I was going to finally make my move. I mean, it didn't have the binding I wanted, and to this day they still don't, but Mod Shop options come and go, so I knew it wouldn't stay there forever. However, I didn't just jump right in. I reached out to Warmoth, first.
I'd seen more than a few pictures of Warmoth's spin on a silverburst finish and, honestly, it never grabbed me the way Fender's does. The silver is notably brighter and the burst was a bit too tight to the body's edge. So, I wrote to them to verify if that is the one-and-only way they do it. Sadly, they confirmed that the differences were real and considerable, both in brightness...or, as we say in the art field,
"color value"...and the tightness of the burst.
To be fair, it's not bad, not by any stretch, but I know what speaks to me. I much prefer this Fender burst...
...to this Warmoth burst, especially when there is a lot of money on the line.
So, after a few emails,
polling my fellow TB'ers over which pickups to choose and consulting with the best artist I know
(sometimes referred to as "my wife" 
), I gathered together the funds, including a not-inconsiderable 10%-off digital coupon, bit the bullet and ordered a brand-new bass for the first time in six years and
only the third time in my life.
(Does buying one as six-years-old NOS and another with the firm intention of parting it out really count as "buying a brand-new bass"? )
And, for those who like to read specs, here's what I chose;
- Alder Body
- Slim "C" Maple Jazz Bass w/. Rosewood Fingerboard & Block Inlays
- 3-Ply Black Pickguard
- Generation 4 Noiselessā¢ Pickups
- Lightweight Vintage-Style Tuners
- 4-Saddle HiMassā¢ Vintage Bridge
- .105-.045 Nickel-Plated Steel Strings
- Deluxe Molded Case
As for any modifications, I've only made two. I added a Hipshot BT12 Drop-D tuner, 'cuz all of my basses get some kind of Hipshot Xtender, and I replaced the strings with Thomastik-Infeld Powerbass strings. To quote a fellow TB'er, they are
"the Rolls Royce of strings" and I figured my most expensive instrument deserved the best strings I had in reserve. Someday, I might go with some kind of series/parallel mod, but for now, it's fine as it is. Only time will tell.
It's worth noting I skipped the string-thru option. Personally, I don't hear or feel any significant difference. That, and all of my other basses are top-loaders. If I moved a strung-thru set to another bass, they would have a kink in them near the bridge saddles. So, I loaded them through the bridge and wrapped a single layer of white artist's tape around the ferrules to help keep them in place...easy-peasy!
In the
"pickups" poll, the overwhelming majority of voters suggested going with the Custom Shop '60s should I decide to swap out the pickups. So far, though, the Gen-4 Noiseless' sound quite good, so I'm not in any rush to change them out. That, and I recently dropped a set of CS '60s into a Non-Export Aerodyne, so that itch has been scratched.
One last story
(for now 
)...I took this bass with me on vacation right after delivery. I was at my mom's place
(oh, and Happy Mother's Day to all whom it applies! 
) and had some time to kill, so I broke out the bass to get in a little practice while
"feeling it out" for the first time. After a little while, my mom stuck her head in and asked me what I was playing. I told her it was the bass line to
"Let's Dance" by David Bowie, so she says to her husband,
"Check it out! Brian's playing 'Lets Dance'!" and, as an explanation, cues it up on their Alexa. Soon enough, I'm whaling away at the strings in time with the song, so they could hear both at the same time. It was such a fun
"shared moment" and on a bass that was less than a month old, no less!
polling my fellow TB'ers over which pickups to choose
--- congratulations on your new instrument! 
That's the one thing I forgot to post earlier! According to my digital postal scale, it was 9lb. 3.3oz. before adding the Hipshot Xtender and 9lb. 5.5oz. after installation. Either way, "very not bad".
