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Post subject: 2006 MEXICAN P-BASS IMPROVE?
Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2010 2:27 am
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I would have liked to have purchased an usa p-bass but i could only afford a mexican p-bass. its not a bad bass at all but if possible i'd like to make it sound more like a usa p-bass. any suggestions on pickup replacements? or other ideas...? thanks in advance


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Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2010 9:18 am
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Location: SLO County CA
I have a 2001 MIM Standard P. I bought MIJ '62 RI pups off eBay to put in it ..... I never felt the need to.

YMMV

I also have two MIM Classic '50s P's ..... I'll never swap the pups. (these pups are better than the MIM Standard P pups)

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Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2010 1:28 pm
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why wouldnt you switch them? are they the same as standard USA PUPS or even if they are diff would it be a sigificant diff anyway if i changed em?


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Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2010 1:35 pm
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why wouldnt you switch them? are they the same as standard USA PUPS or even if they are diff would it be a sigificant diff anyway if i changed em?


I can't remember if they are the same as MIA's or not. I did do some checking in the past. Maybe I can find my notes.
Either way ... they are good enough for me ..... much like the MIM Standard P pups ..... they work for me. ... not for others.

Some folks are quick to swap out pups ..... it's up to the individual of course, but one should give the pups a chance first.


MIM Standard P: 1 Standard Precision Bass Split Single-Coil Pickup (Mid)

MIM Classic P : 1 Precision Bass Split Single-Coil Pickup (Mid)

MIA P : 1 American Standard Precision Bass Alnico 5 Split Single-Coil Pickup

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Post subject: Re: 2006 MEXICAN P-BASS IMPROVE?
Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:52 pm
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NoPro wrote:
I would have liked to have purchased an usa p-bass but i could only afford a mexican p-bass. its not a bad bass at all but if possible i'd like to make it sound more like a usa p-bass. any suggestions on pickup replacements? or other ideas...? thanks in advance


On the other hand, lots of people can't afford a Fender MIM bass. They are hoping to find a way to make their Asian knockoff bass sound as good as yours.

If USA P-Bass tone is really your goal, I'd save some of the gig money you make playing the MIM bass toward a real USA one until you do have enough. Better wood goes into the USA instruments. All the upgrades in the world won't change that, so no matter what you do to it, your MIM will never sound just like a USA Fender.

If you do go to a different pickup what sound you are looking for would matter a great deal in pickup selection. The pickup would make a difference in sound to you, but return very little if any of that investment when you sold or traded the bass. So do it to make yourself happy but realize you probably won't get any of that money back at trade in or sale time. I really like the Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounder pickup for edgy stuff. But it isn't right for everything. I also like the WILDE by Bill Lawrence P-Bass pickup for a very vintage round sound. And I use Lindy Fralin pickups too for vintagey tones. I think the Fralin is the vintage champ, but it should be since it costs nearly twice as much as the WILDE one. The WILDE pickup sounds good though for the price. You might actually like your original pickup better than any of these! Who knows?

$80 to $140 for a pickup, $25 for pots/jack, $100 for a high mass bridge and $25 for a brass nut are all things you could blow money on and you will still have a MIM bass.

One cheap thing you can do without spending much at all is upgrading the tone capacitor. That can make a big difference and only costs a few bucks. I like the Vitamin-Q tone caps which are nearly distortion free so you get a smoother sound. They are obsolete but I have a stash. I just soldered one into a bass for a friend. However, if you are into distorted bass sounds for metal or grunge or anything with a "CORE" suffix you wouldn't like those Vitamin-Q paper-in-oil caps much probably. Still an upgrade to a Sprague Poly or Mylar Orange Drop would not hurt and costs about 2 to 3 bucks for the cap if you can solder it in yourself. You can also find a CERAMIC cap just like the ones they are putting in USA basses for about $2 to $3. I don't like the way they sound much, but you can surely put one in. A cap switch is a very worthwhile little project that will make some difference in tone and it is very easy to do if you can solder. I also think a jack upgrade which costs about $5 for a USA Switchcraft jack is very sensible, especially after a year of steady use. Doing the cap and jack switch at the same time is a good idea.

I'd play it, enjoy it, make money with it and when I had enough saved then I'd trade it for a USA one if that is what you really want. I wouldn't drop a lot of money in it. Lots of people do though.

I have had several MIM basses both Jazzes and P-basses and the quality on these instruments has been really good, especially in the past 5 years and they are totally gigable basses. I have done pickup upgrades on some but not all of the Precisions and on none the Jazzes. Frankly speaking, most places I play I really don't want to take a Fender USA bass like outdoor festivals. The Fender MIM's are better than some of the other basses in the price class for sure and have the Fender sound and characteristics. I like a passive bass and Fender's MIM passive instruments are great for sure. Many other instruments in the price class are active and that is not the sound I want most of the time.

While there is a certain prestige that goes with having a Fender USA made bass, there is also prestige that goes with any Fender bass.


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Posted: Thu Jun 24, 2010 2:25 pm
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so true thanks for the replies. still kinda want to know if swapping the PUps for US pickups would make a significant difference? Being that ive never changed anything like PUPs myself just seems too difficult to do but might be worth it...is it hard to do or should only an experienced luthier do it?


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Posted: Thu Jun 24, 2010 6:37 pm
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I put a set of the Seymour Duncan Quarter Pounders in a MIM P-bass, and it sounds great. Hard to go wrong, very easy to do if you can solder.


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Posted: Thu Jun 24, 2010 8:47 pm
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NoPro wrote:
so true thanks for the replies. still kinda want to know if swapping the PUps for US pickups would make a significant difference? Being that ive never changed anything like PUPs myself just seems too difficult to do but might be worth it...is it hard to do or should only an experienced luthier do it?


Pickup changes are easy on a P-bass. 4 screws, two solder connections.

You will need a soldering iron, solder and common hand tools like a pocket knife maybe. I also recommend a paper clip to open the lug on the pot to take the leads from the pickup. They tend to get clogged with solder.

Pickup swaps are pretty straightforward. Unsolder the connections, unscrew the screws, remove old pickup, thread wires of new pickup through the channel and re-solder the connections as they were before. As long as you are in the neighborhood I would also go ahead and change out the tone cap for a better one and replace the stock jack with a USA Switchcraft jack. There is no tonal benefit to changing out the pots unless they are defective or worn out.

My soldering iron was like 25 years old and was taking forever to heat up and I don't think it was really getting hot enough so I just bought a new soldering kit at Radio Shack for $12 and I like it a lot and it is better than my old one for sure. It came with some soldering tools, some solder and a little stand.

For directions on how to solder connections visit this addendum page on my site and scroll down to where it says, "SOLDERING IS A SKILL." It is the last section on the page. Click on those links for handy soldering tips. Practice on some scrap wire and some old pots or something. It is a skill. You can learn it quickly though. Be careful as molten metal and soldering irons are a tad WARM. http://brotherdave.com/add_maint.htm

ALSO, always protect all surfaces of your instrument. I use beach towels. You only have to burn the finish on ONE instrument to learn that lesson.


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Posted: Thu Jun 24, 2010 10:39 pm
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thanks so much!!!


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