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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Mon May 12, 2014 10:14 am
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It was only 7 years old at the time. Just another bass. I might have done the same thing if it'd been mine at the time. Not the same as routing out a pristine '66 in 2014. I lost track of how many early '70s Ps I refin'd in the mid-late '70s. I still remember the stink of that goo-like epoxy remover. Like I said, they were just basses. They were everywhere and they were the furthest thing from collectible. They'll be collecting "vintage" Cabronitas in 2060 but that's not going to prevent me from modding mine to do what I need it to do today. (Not that I have any plans to, but we all get the point.)

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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Mon May 12, 2014 10:31 am
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As always Brother Dave is spot on.

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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Tue May 13, 2014 10:44 pm
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craig.p wrote:
What Dave said about modding this bass -- I'm sort of on the fence. I can see his point, but I think we need to understand this is a volume-production instrument and has been for quite some time, rather than some limited-issue/limited-time CS run. . .


These list for substantially more than a Standard. "Volume-production" is a bit misleading. Artist Series instruments all combined together are a small percentage of the MIM production. The bulk is mostly Standards with Deluxe Series models the second most produced. Collectively coming in third are all the Artist Series basses. Since there are several different artist series models each will be among the smallest runs at Ensenada.

While I would not say they are scarce exactly, there are way fewer of any Artist Series model produced than Standards. Do this. Go see how many Artist Series instruments are on the rack new at your local Fender dealer. I bet less than 10% of their bass inventory and maybe more like 2 or 3% or even 0%. Mostly they have Standards. The Steve Harris model seems to show up in more stores that I visit than any other. And of course they will order you any current model you want but you have to wait and wait. Stores know the market for Artist Series models are specialized and that most people just want the basic model so usually they don't stock many Artist Series models. That means they don't sell many of them either.


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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Wed May 14, 2014 5:00 am
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More to the point, the fact is that the market for these basses are any one of three kinds of people. Bassists who like the specs that the artist uses, Bassists who like the specs the artist uses and are fans, and fans. By modding an artist model bass outside of things like pickguards, ect. You have effectively killed the value beyond that of the instrument itself with all of these people. When you take away the reason that people are willing to pay more for an artist model. You are simply left with a parts Fender. Not that they aren't still great instruments. However, they will not bring the extra value they once held.

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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Wed May 14, 2014 8:54 am
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Quote:
More to the point, the fact is that the market for these basses are any one of three kinds of people. Bassists who like the specs that the artist uses, Bassists who like the specs the artist uses and are fans, and fans. By modding an artist model bass outside of things like pickguards, ect. You have effectively killed the value beyond that of the instrument itself with all of these people. When you take away the reason that people are willing to pay more for an artist model. You are simply left with a parts Fender. Not that they aren't still great instruments. However, they will not bring the extra value they once held.


Late to the dance but this recent post really sums it up for me and I give KOP a big +1.

When selling the modded Affprod signature series, you can say that it used to be a Affprod signature series, and still has that really spiffy decal and paint. It was $2000 new and I put $500 of modifications into it. It now sounds better than any other Affprod series bass, even better than his original. What will you give me for it?

$250

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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Wed May 14, 2014 9:58 am
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Whenever you do serious irreversable modifications to an instrument, you plan to keep it forever and do not care what it goes for after you're gone. T-Bone Wolk's '64 Precision hot rod will fetch a good price at auction once Daryl Hall is done with it. My '76 hot rod Precision?...not so much :? :roll: :lol:

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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Wed May 14, 2014 11:10 pm
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Yeah Linnen but when T-Bone modded his P-Bass they were bringing $200 to $250. The fact it was T-Bone's is the only reason why a modified P-Bass would even go to auction. If Blackie hadn't been Clapton's and used for all those records it would have been just another vintage Strat. Celebrity ownership adds value regardless of mods. Sometimes a lot. In this case it would add some for sure, but T-Bone wasn't the star Clapton is. There are Guitar Gods and there are good bassists who never get the fame the guitar guys get.

Anybody know where the Custom Shop copy of T-Bone's P/J went? Or for that matter his stock '61 P-Bass? How did Darryl Hall wind up with his #1?

In the studio T-Bone played a variety of basses depending on what sound was required but he is mainly remembered with his modded sunburst '64 P-bass as he almost always played it at live appearances. This was the bass he played exclusively on Saturday Night Live from the mid 80's through early 90's. The most obvious mod to it was an added a DiMarzio white covered Jazz Bass pickup at the bridge, the jack was relocated to the lower bout in the same spot as 51 P-Bass/Telecaster guitar and of course the electronics had to be modified to make it all work. As I recall he went with a stacked pot setup similar to the '61 Jazz on it for volume. There were two tone controls, one for each pickup.

He also used an 81 Gibson Ripper along with various Hofners and other P-basses including a black on black original 1961, but the modified '64 sunburst P was his number 1 bass. Todd Krause was the Fender Custom Shop Master Builder who replicated the '64 Precision which T-Bone immediately started using for road work shortly before he died suddenly of a heart attack at age 58 in 2010.

While best remembered as a pop/rock bassist, he was classically trained and was proficient on several other instruments besides bass including piano, accordion (his first instrument), Hammond B-3, banjo and both electric and acoustic guitar. The last time I saw him on TV he was playing acoustic electric guitar for Hall & Oates at the Troubadour in L.A. and I think this gig was exactly the time that Fender hand delivered his Custom Shop model to him at the Troubadour. For a while there was a photo in the Fender News section of him holding up both of them so you could compare them side by side.

The Custom Shop bass got a heavy relic treatment. It looked even more road worn than the original. The reason there may never be an Artist Series bass based on his '64 #1 is possibly because it was not an especially pretty bass looking a bit odd with the mixed color pickups. Wolk paid the Custom Shop for the replica, it was not a freebie. He visited the Custom Shop in person with the original one so they could replicate it. It was his intention to use the copy on tour and leave the actual #1 at his studio.

Besides mixing pickups on his '64 #1 P-bass, T-Bone was also known to mix strings from different sets on his instruments. It was not unusual for him to mix roundwound G & D with flatwound A & E strings. He was an original for sure. Besides being a fun guy, he was very in-demand as studio player not just on bass but on many instruments. He also was a producer, not for unknown projects either but for very major hit projects. It was a real loss to pop music in general and the NYC music scene in particular when he passed. At the time of his death he was working at his Manhattan studio on his first solo project which went unfinished. Personally, I always enjoyed his bassline on Hall & Oates "MANEATER" a lot. Very clean, very steady, very perfect, very pro. While T-Bone always said he looked upon James Jamerson as the "God of bass" T-Bone himself played bass with a pick a large part of the time.

He wasn't the first to convert a P-Bass to a P/J but was probably more influential in the acceptance of the mixed pickup arrangement than any other player by virtue of his weekly exposure on NBC's SNL show where he and G.E. Smith were often more up front and got far more on-camera time than today's SNL Orchestra musicians.

With G.E. Smith during the Saturday Night Live days (Smith was lead guitarist for Hall & Oates also, so he played with T-Bone there as well. Smith is presently lead guitarist with Roger Waters' "The Wall Live" world tour.):

Image

Vintage 2003 Hall & Oates tour shot:

Image

On stage with Hall & Oates during their 2009/2010 tour shortly before Wolk passed:

Image

(Portions of the above text copied from a forum post I made in 2010 after his passing.)


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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Mon May 19, 2014 8:16 am
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It has been done.
Now call me a butcher, but it has already been turning some heads in a positive way.
The guys at FEEDBACK (my local guitar store) really liked it, even said it looked more exquisite than the black on black.
And frankly I like it more now. It feels more like a real extension of myself, more than it was by default.


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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Mon May 19, 2014 9:54 am
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Very Nicely Done :!: Enjoy 8)


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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Mon May 19, 2014 10:31 am
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Black/Tort/Maple is a great combo. If I were to get a 58 RI I'd defintiely be swapping the gold guard for a tort to get this look. Very classy looking. Well done!

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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Fri May 23, 2014 3:52 pm
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I'll bet you got spanked a lot when you were a child. :lol:


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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2014 1:10 am
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And I bet youŕe the funniest guy on the planet haha.

With the base done I need to build a flightcase (And I say build, because I have this awesome idea in my head but have no clue where to start. 3 or 4 bases in the same case)

Iḿ pretty glad how my bass is now. Yeah sure if I ever (read im taking it to the grave) sell this thing its not a RW sig anymore. Itś MY sig bass with some RW influences =)

To the haters keep hating (oh god, sorry I sound like a poppy $@!&#*%) and to those that (kind of) supported me. Thanks. I hope you all (learn to) like it like I do.

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Post subject: Re: Roger Waters Bass customization
Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2014 3:06 pm
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Veel (speel)plezier met je mooie bas!!!!


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