The pickup isn't bad or anything but like most Fender Japan offerings, it's just not very excellent. A little bit of dough spent on a quality replacement (of which Aero is pretty much your only option) really makes it sing, adds that oomph. It does remove the tinniness of the bass that some people associate with short scale basses for some reason, and replaces it with a much more of a P-bass sound. That and a quality set of strings and the Mustang Bass has great tone for miles.
My main problem is that the bastards are making the customer pay around 800$ to get a Fender Mustang Bass- with a bloody Duncan Designed. Luckily I didn't know that at the time I got mine (not that I would have not bought it) since I had serious GAS-itis. But, since Squier rules, nowadays you can just get their version with cooler colours.
Wild spirit of the Eagle, Black hawk, bird of prey design
Yeah but you can get the sucker used for under $500 all the time, and that neck is a joy to play.
And it's not like it's a ripoff. The RI Mustang Bass's body and neck are still beyond reproach. Don't get me wrong, the Squier short scale neck is great, and unlike half the people on this site, I love the satin maple finish, and the neck is great to play on, but the RI Mustang Bass neck has that unique profile (thinner, 7.25" radius), and it's a better neck than any vintage Mustang Bass neck I've ever tried, and it really nails the feel of a Mustang in a way that no meaty 9.5" radius neck can.
As for pickups, I haven't met a single stock Japanese or Mexican Fender that didn't better pickups. In any case, I spent $450 on my Mustang Bass, $150 on the pickup, so $600 was a fair price to pay for all that.
I finally broke down and got one of these cause they were on sale last month, a sunburst one.
unfortunately it's not really doing it for me, the frets are rough and tearing up my hand and it sounds just alright i guess. love the way it looks though. never played a real one so I don't have a basis for comparison either.
my question is, for $250 is it worth it to return it? (AMS, 45 day return) OR will this bass be discontinued soon and actually gain value in the coming years? I wonder that cause I never saw it at a store and it is never listed as available at any GC's in the SF bay area. I know it's hard to say but maybe someone understands what I'm talking about and has some insight.
thanks!
daftsupernova wrote:First of all, welcome to shortscale!
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Third, I think you can return it and ask for a different one if the frets are that bad.
Welcome.
Yeah, if you like the bass, but the frets are bad, well, quality control on these budget models isn't always great... you may have gotten a dud. The Squier Mustang I played was built well... but there's variety. If you don't like how it sounds, there aren't a lot of options for Mustang sized pickups, which might limit your pickup choices if you don't want to modify the body/pickguard. Something to think about.
I don't get the sense that these basses are going to greatly increase in collector value (but who's to say), so I wouldn't hold on to it banking on that alone. If it were a vintage Fender, on the other hand...
ekwatts wrote:That's American cinema, that is. Fucking sparkles.
citizens_X wrote:
when i first started playing guitar the jagmaster was the only offset that squier offered and the only offset bass you could get from them was the bronco.
Ever seen a jazz bass?
lol, yeah.
Jazz Bass = Jazzmaster bass
Aug wrote:which one of you bastards sent me an ebay question asking if you can get teh kurdtz with that 64 mustang?
robertOG wrote:fran & paul are some of the original gangstas of the JS days when you'd have to say "phuck"
Fretwork on Squier basses can be hit-or-miss. The Bronco bass I tried out at Sam Ash had fret ends you could grate cheese on, although I loved the neck otherwise. The one I later ended up buying was fine. If you like the feel of the bass otherwise, talk to a tech about what it would cost to get the frets dressed.