What P bass am I looking for?

[musicman556]

This is the first time I've tried them aswell and I've only had them on about a month now. I personally prefer older/dead strings and these are actually really cool in terms of tone.

So I will first start off by saying they are very smooth on the fingers in terms of the coating. They are relatively lower tension compared to any other string I've tried which is nice for me because I have a bit of a heavy hand. They allow me to dig in without giving up any speed.

So for the tone, I relatively play with it rolled off for a more vintage groove and these strings while not dead, are not overly bright at all. Granted the Aerodyne has a hot pickup, these strings sound like freshly worn in rounds when the tone is dimed.

Geezer Butler actually endorsed these strings at one point and maybe still uses them but I'm not sure. Anyway paired with EMG Geezers would certainly peak my interest. I have yet to swap the pickups out but I already know it's going to be those.

Thanks for the detailed info! So... I kinda actually like brighter strings with the highs rolled back just a smidge. I like those upper mids to really be present.

Hm... strings are cheap. I may just give a set a whirl soon and see how I like them. Thanks!

 

[squeally dan]

FWIIW..........I bought a MIM road worn body Dirnt from Stratosphere about 5 years ago. I put an Allparts 1 & 5/8s inch wide Tele Bass neck on it which puts it 1/8" wider than a J neck but 1/8" narrower than a P neck. A happy median.

Has a S. Duncan SPB-1 pickup. And weighs around 8lbs, 10oz.

You can always take your Dirnt and buy some Gotoh Res O Lite tuners which will drop about 5 oz off of the weight. Ditch the guard and drop another 3 oz or so. A half a pound lighter!

As for your G and D tone issue..............STRINGS!!!!!!!! And/or the G & D coil might be too close, drop it down. I use TI Flats and the tone balance is perfect.

Where do you pluck the strings? In between the pickup and the neck might give you better warmth.

Good luck! The Dirnt is a nice bass!

Here's my "Dirnt vs the Cowboy" P Bass.

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That’s really cool. I love my Dirnt bass. It really sits well in a mix. Right now it’s my only bass, so looking for a 2nd P that hopefully is a little lighter.

 

[Nekomata]

G&L SB-1 man!

My 40th Anniversary edition. Weighs only 3.61 kg, thanks to the Okoume body), but sounds huge (the MFD split coil is something else...).

 

[Gervais Cote]

My 40th Anniversary edition. Weighs only 3.61 kg, thanks to the Okoume body), but sounds huge (the MFD split coil is something else...).

Very nice bass and I appreciate the shape of the headstock, I didn’t know G&L made that shape. And the finish with that wood grain……. !

 

[Nekomata]

Very nice bass and I appreciate the shape of the headstock, I didn’t know G&L made that shape.

Thanks! I believe the 'pre lawsuit' headstock appears only on a limited number of current models, such as this 40th Anniversary.

 

[squeally dan]

Very nice bass and I appreciate the shape of the headstock, I didn’t know G&L made that shape. And the finish with that wood grain……. !

Agree. I’ve never seen that shape on a G&L. I don’t have any experience with G&Ls but that is beautiful.

 

[maturanesa]

????

Yes. The coil for g and d are closer to the bridge. It sounds more edgy than the E an A that are warmer.

 

[Nekomata]

I’ve never seen that shape on a G&L.

Actually, it's quite different from G&L's initial version of the SB-1:

The 40th anniversary version is quite a bit more 'plump', and closer to the Fender design:

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

Agree. I’ve never seen that shape on a G&L. I don’t have any experience with G&Ls but that is beautiful.

All the CLF research models have that headstock, but I'm not sure you can get a new SB-1 with it. Not that you're looking for a new one, just adding what I know about the paddle v. the can-opener/eye-gouger headstock.

 

[squeally dan]

Holy cow !
A tele bass with the pickups and sound of a precision that doesn’t weigh too much. Looks like a near perfect bass to me.

Doesn’t have to be light but just a little lighter.

 

[Pep]

I second MIJ. You can get an Aerodyne Precision bass on reverb for $649. They aren't the vintage vibe in terms of looks and the pickups tend to be hot. However the neck is absolutely amazing and the weight is definitely on the lighter side as most average low 8s with some being mid 7s. Then I would swap the pickups for the EMG Geezers and be at one damn good bass for under $800. I have MIJ and MIA and the quality is certainly very similar with the price being 3x less for the MIJ. Whatever you decide, good luck on your journey to find " the one."

You mentioned the Aerodyne on Reverb for $649 and I couldn’t resist it. What I found out is it’s an overstock from Fender that is absolutely brand new but due to the low price they don’t offer a warranty.I thought it was wortha shot. I’ll let you know.

 

[Pep]

That's a very good pu too.

Two other pickups I love:

Lakland Split-Coil Neo-Punch
Kiesel SCP

 

[Pep]

Yes. The coil for g and d are closer to the bridge. It sounds more edgy than the E an A that are warmer.

Got it. I dudn’t notice the reversed position of the splits. I’ve always thought that set up would enhance the G & D.

 

[LadyLoveStingRay5]

Alright... working from home is the best! I went ahead and did the pickup swap over lunch break. Easy peasy. The aerodyne has an interesting/unique kind of barrel jack and ground wires coming from both the bridge AND the conductive paint in the pickup routes. I ended up having to do a li'l soldering at the jack, but that was easy and just took a couple minutes. The pickups fit beautifully, and I cut out a couple pieces of the super nice packing foam from the pickup packaging to use as the springs/foam under the pickups.

I'm impressed with the build quality and detail in the Aerodyne. I've got my eye on two more MIJ Fenders and this just continues to impress me and make me happy with my choice.

ANYWHO, here are some pics of before and after:
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I need to get back to work so I just did a quick function check and all is good. I liked what I heard so far!

Beautiful !!

 

[artimus667]

I got this Fullerton LB-100 from Sweetwater on an impulse. They had a few of these marked down as scratch and dent for around $1450. I picked the lightest one at just a little over 8lbs. All were under 9lbs.

It was a great purchase. Though marked as scratch and dent, I couldn’t find anything wrong. Very nice resonant ash body. Very, very good fret work. Very well balanced. I’ve got a lot of excellent basses to choose from at my house and this is the I’ve been choosing most often of late. I got lucky spotting it on sale. I see them popping up used fairly often. As Pbass options go, this one rocks.

 

[JumboJett35]

You mentioned the Aerodyne on Reverb for $649 and I couldn’t resist it. What I found out is it’s an overstock from Fender that is absolutely brand new but due to the low price they don’t offer a warranty.I thought it was wortha shot. I’ll let you know.

I grabbed one of mine when they were $599 last fall. They are amazing value for the money and honestly may be the best current overall value considering Japanese quality, unique colors and matching headstock, they're lightweight and they come WITH a gig bag and all for almost $150 less than a Mexican player series. Check out the Aerodyne Club here on talkbass. Theirs ALOT of info about them there and I'm sure everyone else will be happy to help with anything.

I almost forgot to ask the most important question, what color did you end up getting?

 

[squeally dan]

That’s a beaut.

 

[Bag of Lazers]

I got this Fullerton LB-100 from Sweetwater on an impulse. They had a few of these marked down as scratch and dent for around $1450. I picked the lightest one at just a little over 8lbs. All were under 9lbs.

Ah, so that's the big difference between the Tribute series and the California made ones... 6lbs! I had a LB-100 Tribute that was 14 lbs! Great tone though!

 

[Pep]

Okay guys my Fender White Aerodyne Precision arrived today. I played it tonite at rehearsal. 8.2 lbs and very comfortable. It has just a little “neck dive”. It plays great but sounds okay. . . . and I mean okay. It’s a bit too mellow for me.

I changed strings and will try it again on Thursday. If that doesn’t get it done I have quite a few pickups in stock. I know a set of those will give it a “kick in the arse”!

 

[musicman556]

Awesome! Enjoy it!