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Post subject: How can i know the made year of my bass?
Posted: Sat Oct 11, 2008 12:52 pm
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Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2008 12:37 pm
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Hello all,

i'm new in the bass world, and i own a 4 strings precision special that i've been told it's an 1980 made.
how can i be sure of that?

the serial number printed on the head is : E0 11820.
it has an active switch, volume, treble and bass controls and the head has match color with the body.

another question i have - what is the 'special' means, what is the different from a 'regular' one.

thanx in advance,
Yaniv.


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Post subject:
Posted: Sat Oct 11, 2008 1:09 pm
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Professional Musician
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Joined: Tue Nov 27, 2007 12:52 pm
Posts: 2588
Location: Out there on the road
Welcome to the forum.

Your guitar was made at the
Fullerton Plant (Fender - CBS Era), USA
in the Year(s): 1979 - 1981


http://www.fender.com/support/usa_instruments.php
http://www.guitardaterproject.org/fender.aspx

No pics = no bass :wink:

Special means it rode the short bus. :wink:
Just a special issue bass. By posting some pics, the pros (BrotherDave and Jlarocho, etc.) will give you all kinds of details.


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Post subject:
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 6:30 am
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Joined: Tue Jul 17, 2007 11:26 pm
Posts: 2849
Location: Green Bay, WI
You know, we've been getting lots of these questions lately. Another way to find out is either ck through the other thread(s), sometimes on the same front page. Ck the search function, ck the FAQ? section. But what Zod suggested there.

_________________
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'89 Power Jazz Bass Special-BadAssIII, EMG P/J
Project PBass-EMG PX, Schaller BM Light Tuner
'05 Aerodyne JBass
'06 Spector Legend Custom Neck Through
VT Bass
Hartke TA5000 w/XL Cabs(210, 410, 115)


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Post subject: SWEET!
Posted: Mon Oct 13, 2008 2:45 pm
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Joined: Thu Aug 07, 2008 3:12 pm
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Location: Albemarle, NC
This is a really nice bass! Fender promoted it as a "NEW DIMENSION!"

Image

Besides a new dimension in sound it offered stunning looks. What was "special" about these rarities compared to the stock P-basses of the day were that they were very early active, if not the first stock active, Fender P-basses with gold plated hardware including a Fender logo embossed gold plated Schaller bridge, gold plated brass finger rest, white pickup covers and matching headstock. There was no confusing this for any standard issue passive Precisions of the day as you could spot one almost instantly from the cheap seats. I believe that the primary finish was Candy Apply Red and while other colors may exist I've never actually seen one. .

This model was just prior to the innovation of the P/P pup arrangement on the elite and subsequent P/J configuration concept, thus it featured the single P-bass pickup but the preamp made it one of the most versatile single pickup P-basses. One glance and you knew this P-bass was "special" even if too far away to read "SPECIAL" on the decal!

Some basic feathers of the other P-bases of the era included Alder bodies, 20 medium jumbo frets and your choice of rosewood or maple board with heel access to truss rod adjustments. As I recall the preamp made the two fretboards sound startlingly different. Some amps liked the hotter output better than others. There were no amps yet marketed to accommodate active pickups but some had variable drive controls. I also liked the separate treble and bass pots. A really first class looking bass that was rare enough then, but now you hardly ever see one. These were similar to the ELITE basses so far as the hardware goes but the Elite models had walnut bodies and the first P/P configuration, which led shortly afterward to a J pickup replacing the bridge P-pickup for the now classic P/J arrangement which had yet to be developed when this early SPECIAL debuted. .


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