Chad Thorne Posted May 15, 2001 Share Posted May 15, 2001 Hi, folks, I'm a guitar player who started playing bass about 6 mos. ago. Whoo-ee! None of you guys tell us how much FUN bassplaying is! So different in concept from guitar playing. And liberating; as one who has sought for years to avoid trhe same old wheedlee-wheedlee in his guitar solos, I'm really relishing the "no-pressure - all groove" aspect of bass playing. If you experienced folks don't mind, I'll probably have a bazillion dumb questions to ask in the days ahead. Starting with: 1) What are the differences in tone, feel, application between roundwound and flatwound strings? I could do without the squeak but don't want my tone to be too muddy. 2) I have an opportunity to buy a new Fender MIM J-Bass. What does everybody think of this intrument? Thanks, - Chad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KJ Posted May 15, 2001 Share Posted May 15, 2001 Welcome to the low end Chad! I'm a bass player who has been moving towards guitar, so we have something in common. If by MIM you mean "Made in Mexico" I highly recommend buying the bass. After much screwing around with different basses and throwing away alot of money, I finally settled on a '95 Mexican Jazz. The quality is excellent and it is an excellent starting point for mods, or you can leave it as is. The stock pickups had great tone but were very noisy (60 cycle hum) when soloed. I swapped those out and replaced them with EMG J-V's running on 18 volts and replaced the bridge with a Badass II (highly recommended) Other than that my Mex has been my mainstay through tons of gigs and recording sessions. I recently picked up a '99 AmStd Jazz which I now use on gigs because my Mex is very heavy. I still only record with my Mex, tho. It is my baby and no matter what else i get, it will be my main bass. I've used both flat and round wounds, I prefer the rounds now, they give a good punchy tone and just feel "right" to me. KJ ------------------- "50 million Elvis Presley fans can't be all wrong" - John Prine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad Thorne Posted May 16, 2001 Author Share Posted May 16, 2001 Thanks for the input, KJ. Sorry about the code; MIM indeed stands for Made in Mexico (the guitars are known in some circles as "NAFTA-casters"). I've become accustomed to use the shorthand. I have in fact put a deposit on the J-Bass & feel good about it. I did notice the hum (in a music store filled w/fluorescent lights - why do they do that?) and just turned my body until it went away... BTW, is the "low end" anything like the "dark side"? LOL - Chad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spankmestudios Posted May 16, 2001 Share Posted May 16, 2001 I wouldn't buy any new Fender unless its a reissue or from the custom shop. I think there's a lot of other basses out there that play and sound better for the money. But if the bass your looking at is a steel, it might be worth the investment. Flatwounds will feel tighter and sound as you know deader. If you put them on a bass that usually has roundwounds on it you'll most likely have to re-adjust the neck. The only way to tell if you like flatwounds is to try them. ------------------ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badfish Posted May 16, 2001 Share Posted May 16, 2001 Hey Chad, I used to own a MIM J-bass and to tell you the truth, you might want to explore other options before buying it outright. I had nothing but problems with mine and it resulted in some frustration at gigs. If I was you I would try and find a decent used American made model and get the tried and true quality. As far as it goes with strings it depends on the amount of thump you want. Flatwounds wont muddy up tone unless you have a low quality bass or the neck isn't set up for them. I play tapewounds on my Gibson 4 and the tone is awesome, though there is not a whole lot of sustain. Guess what I'm saying is it all depends on the music you create and your personal touch on the strings. And by the way WELCOME TO THE LOW END Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad Thorne Posted May 16, 2001 Author Share Posted May 16, 2001 One of my problems is that I play lefty and good instruments are hard to come by. This particular piece seemed well-constructed, played well, I didn't notice any dead spots on the neck. I know on the guitar side MIM guitars are well-thought-of, good quality for the price point. But I'm not arguing! I still like to hear from others about their experiences w/MIM basses, and I appreciate you folks who have weighed in already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cornbread_medhotmail.com Posted May 16, 2001 Share Posted May 16, 2001 The Mexican basses are great for the money. Good used lefties are very hard to come by, so you may not have much of a choice. I would change the bridge to a thicker one with more mass. This will help with the sustain. Pickups are another story. I'm sure you will find almost as many differing opinions about them as there are people who post on here. I suggest trying out a few different ones and judge for yourself. Try active as well as passive. But, I suggest staying away from the cheap ones. You don't have to go out and buy a $400 set of Bartolini's, but that $20 set of EMG/Duncans/DiMarzio/etc may not suit your needs. As far as strings go, again, you need to try out a few different sets. Different basses sound better with certain types and even brands of strings. I'm partial to nickel rounds, but there are a lot of choices out there. Try flats and rounds and even the groundwounds. They're the "best of both worlds." Basically, if you have the chance at a good bass at a good price, then take it. Once again, welcome to the low end. Stay awhile. You will enjoy it. Chad (my name too) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansouth Posted May 16, 2001 Share Posted May 16, 2001 Chad, If you're serious about bass, I'd suggest a Music Man Stingray or a G&L over a Fender. Same basic idea, but with many refinements. You'll pay a little more, but you won't have to replace the pickups, bridge, etc. For a good selection of lefties, new and used, try the guys at http://members.aol.com/njgtrbass - they're straight shooters, no B.S. I've bought a number of basses there, and the service is always top notch. If you ever want to consider a REALLY, TOTALLY first class Jazz-style bass, you should try the Lakland Joe Osborn bass. It's pricey, though, and I don't know whether it comes in a lefty model. The guys at the store would be able to tell you. They have new and used Laklands in stock. Good luck!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 16, 2001 Share Posted May 16, 2001 Hey Chad, just the right oil on your fingers or even the right atmospheric conditions will control any rounwound squeek. It rarely happens to me. My strings are about 6 months old. I don't plan to change them until they're wasted. New strings might be noisey, i can't remember. http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lug Posted May 16, 2001 Share Posted May 16, 2001 Welcome to the low side of the force. I'm a lefty also, and I feel your pain. It is hard to find inexpensive, good quality left handed basses. As you can see, many have reservations about MIM fenders but I have heard that the newer ones have less quality control problems than before. A Leo Quan Bad Ass bridge or equivilent replacement is a must (see allparts.com for prices). But if you really like playing bass, its hard to go less than a grand on a "good" lefty bass. About the only two I know of are the carvins and yamahas (own a carvin, have only heard good things about a yamaha). If you can go more than a grand or look for used, dansouth is right on the money with the musicman stingray, sterling, or G&L. These are basses you will keep forever. I ended up with the G&L 2000 and love it. My carvin mentioned earlier is an early model fretless so its an apples to oranges comparison. Ed, our fearless leader, has a website with sound bites from carvins and a tasty jazz at edfriedland.com (Hey Ed, a search on your name gave over 4000 hits, you may think of running for president on day). Anyway, good luck on your search and stay low. You can stop now -jeremyc STOP QUOTING EVERY THING I SAY!!! -Bass_god_offspring lug, you should add that statement to you signature.-Tenstrum I'm not sure any argument can top lug's. - Sweet Willie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dansouth Posted May 16, 2001 Share Posted May 16, 2001 Roundwound strings can be noisy when soloed, but if you're playing aggressive music, the noise will all but disappear when the band kicks in. You can always cut highs, but you can't create them if they're not there in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad Thorne Posted May 17, 2001 Author Share Posted May 17, 2001 Folks, Thanks so much for the friendly welcome "to the low end" and all the great input. Being an old Fender junkie from way back I'm well aware that their quality is not consistent and you have to take 'em on a case-by-case basis. This particular piece, as I said, seems pretty good. I had already planned to swap out the pickups to something humbucking (I use Fender Vintage Noiseless in my guitars because 60-cycle buzz makes me psychotic), and I'll take the suggestion to change the bridge too. As far as quality goes this may not be my lifer, but it's a trade-up from my upside-down righty Epiphone P-Bass copy! On that one my arm keeps brushing the volume knob and turning it down (more psychosis). And I had to leave the strap attached to the upper horn because moving it to the lower makes the bass very neck-heavy. So the strap is in the way if I want to play in the upper registers above the 12th fret... Thanks so much again. Stand by for more dumb questions in the near future... This message has been edited by chad on 05-16-2001 at 06:41 PM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Friedland Posted May 17, 2001 Share Posted May 17, 2001 Chad, Considering that you're new to the bass, and a lefty, I think a MIM Fender Jazz would be a great starter axe. Yes, change the bridge and put some DiMarzio DP149 Ultra-Jazz pickups in it. Check out the thread down list called Aftermarket Pickups, and Cheapo Basses. I have a MIM Jazz fretless with the above mods, and it's great! <<(Hey Ed, a search on your name gave over 4000 hits, you may think of running for president on day).>> President? No thanks, not enough $$, I'll stick to playing bass thank you! http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/wink.gif Some of those 4000 hits may be about the OTHER Ed Friedland, he's a Dentist in Chapel Hill, NC that was accused of murdering his wife! Not to be confused with the pacifist, bass playing Ed Friedland that even though he may have felt like doing that to his ex-wife many years ago, resisted the urge and went on to live a happy, law-abiding life in Tucson, AZ! http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif ------------------ www.edfriedland.com www.edfriedland.com The Bass Whisperer Bass Whisperer TV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad Thorne Posted May 17, 2001 Author Share Posted May 17, 2001 Ed, thanks so much for your viewpoint. I think this MIM J-Bass is a pretty good 'un, and I'm interested to see how it improves after the mods. Thanks again, everybody - I really like the "vibe" on this board and will be checking in often, because I'm going to need LOTS of help! - Chad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.