Indonesian Made Fender P Bass Special Passive P/J Worth Upgrading?

[Dave Skipper]

Hey All

I've been away for quite a while...I recently bought myself a cheap
Indonesian made Fender P Bass Special because I like the feel of the
neck and the unamplified sound it produces. I'm thinking of upgrading
as it's amplified sound seems very thin.

Unfortunately, most of the dealers I talk to say, "save your money and
get an American made version". I'm not convinced to do this ...yet.

I'm willing to put in Fralins to start. I think I'm going to go with
one upgrade at at time but am thinking of adding new nut, tuners and
bridge. I'd even consider new preamp if it can go active/passive.

So, is this type of upgrade worth it IYO?

Opinions needed and greatly appreciated

[Mike Rieves]

Post by Dave Skipper
Hey All
I've been away for quite a while...I recently bought myself a cheap
Indonesian made Fender P Bass Special because I like the feel of the neck
and the unamplified sound it produces. I'm thinking of upgrading as it's
amplified sound seems very thin.
Unfortunately, most of the dealers I talk to say, "save your money and get
an American made version". I'm not convinced to do this ...yet.
I'm willing to put in Fralins to start. I think I'm going to go with one
upgrade at at time but am thinking of adding new nut, tuners and bridge.
I'd even consider new preamp if it can go active/passive.
So, is this type of upgrade worth it IYO?
Opinions needed and greatly appreciated

The upgrades aren't likely to increase the resale value by much, but if you
like the way it plays and are planning on keeping it, that doesn't matter.
If it plays good, there's nothing wrong with upgrades to make it sound as
good as it plays. Just keep in mind that you aren't likely to get your
investment back if you sell it.

[Kloka-mo']

Hey Dave, welcome home :-)
If a bass sounds good acoustically, I would be weary of changing the nut and
bridge. If it's thin, then a good set of pick-ups should be all you need.
--
-rob Bartlett, TN
O>
/(\)
^^

Post by Dave Skipper
Hey All
I've been away for quite a while...I recently bought myself a cheap
Indonesian made Fender P Bass Special because I like the feel of the neck
and the unamplified sound it produces. I'm thinking of upgrading as it's
amplified sound seems very thin.
Unfortunately, most of the dealers I talk to say, "save your money and get
an American made version". I'm not convinced to do this ...yet.
I'm willing to put in Fralins to start. I think I'm going to go with one
upgrade at at time but am thinking of adding new nut, tuners and bridge.
I'd even consider new preamp if it can go active/passive.
So, is this type of upgrade worth it IYO?
Opinions needed and greatly appreciated

[John Bigboote]

Post by Dave Skipper
Hey All
I've been away for quite a while...I recently bought myself a cheap
Indonesian made Fender P Bass Special because I like the feel of the
neck and the unamplified sound it produces. I'm thinking of upgrading
as it's amplified sound seems very thin.
Unfortunately, most of the dealers I talk to say, "save your money and
get an American made version". I'm not convinced to do this ...yet.
I'm willing to put in Fralins to start. I think I'm going to go with
one upgrade at at time but am thinking of adding new nut, tuners and
bridge. I'd even consider new preamp if it can go active/passive.

A Made in Indonesia Fender? Not a Squier? I didn't know any Fenders
were made in Indonesia.

Regardless, I've wrestled with a similar issue, a MIM Fender that I
love the feel of, but the electronics are lacking. Basically, I love
the wood parts on the bass and nothing else. Someday I'll get good and
drunk and buy a new preamp, pickups, bridge, tuners and a custom
pickguard. Then the bass will be perfection. It will also have cost me
double the street price and will still be worth only half the street
price on the used market. So what? If it's perfect, why would I sell
it? And if I chose to sell it, why wouldn't I just put all the stock
pieces back on first?

By the way, I put Fralin split-coils on another bass, a Jazz. Yummy.

HTH,

-jb

[js]

MIMs are different. They're a close approximation of the real deal. In some
cases they're as good as the real deal.

I don't know what the exact acoustic resonances of wood shavings and resin
are, but I doubt Fralins would make much of a difference there. That' not
just polishing a turd; that's gold plating it and mounting an exhibition for
it at the Louvre.
--
Check out my band, West Eats Meat http://www.myspace.com/westeatsmeat

My Homepage, Back By Popular Demand: http://www.jmsjazz.com

"I don't mean to sound bitter, cold, or cruel, but I am, so that's how it
comes out."

- Bill Hicks

Post by John Bigboote

Post by Dave Skipper
Hey All
I've been away for quite a while...I recently bought myself a cheap
Indonesian made Fender P Bass Special because I like the feel of the
neck and the unamplified sound it produces. I'm thinking of upgrading
as it's amplified sound seems very thin.
Unfortunately, most of the dealers I talk to say, "save your money and
get an American made version". I'm not convinced to do this ...yet.
I'm willing to put in Fralins to start. I think I'm going to go with
one upgrade at at time but am thinking of adding new nut, tuners and
bridge. I'd even consider new preamp if it can go active/passive.

A Made in Indonesia Fender? Not a Squier? I didn't know any Fenders
were made in Indonesia.
Regardless, I've wrestled with a similar issue, a MIM Fender that I
love the feel of, but the electronics are lacking. Basically, I love
the wood parts on the bass and nothing else. Someday I'll get good and
drunk and buy a new preamp, pickups, bridge, tuners and a custom
pickguard. Then the bass will be perfection. It will also have cost me
double the street price and will still be worth only half the street
price on the used market. So what? If it's perfect, why would I sell
it? And if I chose to sell it, why wouldn't I just put all the stock
pieces back on first?
By the way, I put Fralin split-coils on another bass, a Jazz. Yummy.
HTH,
-jb

[d***@mac.com]

Post by Dave Skipper
I've been away for quite a while...I recently bought myself a cheap
Indonesian made Fender P Bass Special because I like the feel of the
neck and the unamplified sound it produces. I'm thinking of upgrading
as it's amplified sound seems very thin.
So, is this type of upgrade worth it IYO?
Opinions needed and greatly appreciated

Hang on a season, see if the neck is stable, truss rod works as it
should. Nothing wrong with "science experiments" to hasten the
assessment process , within reason <g>.

I'm not any kind of "techie", but I've had at least one bass that
"came alive" with the simple replacement of a volume pot that was not
obviously scratchy or otherwise defective-- an A/B comparison with
another similar bass showed the problem.

IMHO the place to start with "upgrades" is with new pots and output
jack and wiring. Cheapest first, and you'll want good pots/jack in
there if you do upgrade, anyhow. Check the PUP output, they might be
at least serviceable, and if the bass works on the job with a simple
adjustment of amp controls, then it works.

Thinking toward having something that plays and sounds good, as a
minimum investment/replaceable working bass. Nothing wrong with
upgrades, for sure. Nordstrand? --D-y

[Neil N]

Post by Dave Skipper
Hey All
I've been away for quite a while...I recently bought myself a cheap
Indonesian made Fender P Bass Special because I like the feel of the
neck and the unamplified sound it produces. I'm thinking of upgrading
as it's amplified sound seems very thin.
Unfortunately, most of the dealers I talk to say, "save your money and
get an American made version". I'm not convinced to do this ...yet.
I'm willing to put in Fralins to start. I think I'm going to go with
one upgrade at at time but am thinking of adding new nut, tuners and
bridge. I'd even consider new preamp if it can go active/passive.
So, is this type of upgrade worth it IYO?
Opinions needed and greatly appreciated

Do the pickups at first. Nothing wrong with having a few sets of
pickups around for experimentation. If for some reason you decide to
resell, just put your originals back in and keep the Fralins.

[js]

"Polishing a turd" aside, here's something to think about before you attempt
this:

This is an Indonesian Fender; whish means it's a Squier, correct?

If so, here's the problem - the body is most likely made from either a
"fibreboard" mixture of wood shavings and resin, or it's made of laminated
plywood.

These things are a NIGHTMARE to work on. they "chip out" like crazy when you
try to rout or drill into the body. Leave too little space between say the
PU wire holes and the battery holes, and the whole chunk will chip out.

Seeing as you will most likely have to re-rout the PU homes and possibly
rout a battery cavity, it's worth taking note.

They don't sand well either. it's very easy to take too much off, and there
are often voids in the "wood".

In the end, it's just cheaper and easier to buy another body, or a better
bass.

If you do decide to attempt it anyway, make sure you know what your are
cutting into beforehand, and be realistic about what you can and can't do to
the body. I speak from experience.
--
Check out my band, West Eats Meat http://www.myspace.com/westeatsmeat

My Homepage, Back By Popular Demand: http://www.jmsjazz.com

"I don't mean to sound bitter, cold, or cruel, but I am, so that's how it
comes out."

- Bill Hicks

Post by Dave Skipper
Hey All
I've been away for quite a while...I recently bought myself a cheap
Indonesian made Fender P Bass Special because I like the feel of the
neck and the unamplified sound it produces. I'm thinking of upgrading
as it's amplified sound seems very thin.
Unfortunately, most of the dealers I talk to say, "save your money and
get an American made version". I'm not convinced to do this ...yet.
I'm willing to put in Fralins to start. I think I'm going to go with
one upgrade at at time but am thinking of adding new nut, tuners and
bridge. I'd even consider new preamp if it can go active/passive.
So, is this type of upgrade worth it IYO?
Opinions needed and greatly appreciated

[John Bigboote]

Post by js
"Polishing a turd" aside, here's something to think about before you attempt
This is an Indonesian Fender; whish means it's a Squier, correct?
If so, here's the problem - the body is most likely made from either a
"fibreboard" mixture of wood shavings and resin, or it's made of laminated
plywood.
These things are a NIGHTMARE to work on. they "chip out" like crazy when you
try to rout or drill into the body. Leave too little space between say the
PU wire holes and the battery holes, and the whole chunk will chip out.

I'm be willing to bet money that no Indonesian Squiers are made of
either fiberboard or plywood. Every one I've see or heard of has been
made of basswood, which (as I understand it) has characteristics very
close to alder, but is a wee bit softer.

The MII Standard series, whether bass or guitar, are surprisingly good
instruments. IIRC, they're made in the Cort factory under contract to
Fender. The current crop of Vintage Modified fall under that umbrella,
and they're quite good for the money.

On the other hand, I wouldn't put a nickel of improvements into a
Chinese Squier.

I bought my daughter a MII Standard Strat, and the thing is awesome.
Bookmatched flame maple top (*not* a fotoflame), solid wood body,
excellent neck and hardware. The electronics are second-rate, but for
$250 street, it's an *astonishing* guitar. Has the American-style two-
point fulcrum, and sealed tuners. Add a set of Fralins and replace the
pots (not that they necessarily need it, but for less than 10 bucks,
why not?) and I'd put it up against any American Standard Strat -- and
it's prettier.

I also bought her an early '90s MIK Squier Strat off CL as a beater.
This one *was* made of plywood, but was still a very good guitar, and
it had *awesome* tone through the pickups. I sold it a while ago, and
kicked myself for not swapping the pickups into the Standard Strat.
Cool thing about that guitar is that it was *light*, probably three
pounds lighter than a solid-wood body.

FWIW, she also has an Indonesian Takamine electric-acoustic. That's
also an amazing guitar for the money. Maybe we just got lucky...

-jb

[js]

If they're using basswood now, that would be very cool. But to be honest,
it's hard to know what they're doing where in the eternal "race to the
bottom" we're in.

I wouldn't be a bit surprised if next year, they shipped the Mexi production
over to China, shuffled everything else around and sent the Squire
production to Nigeria. Free bank transfer with every purchase!

Point being, it's hard to say what's under the hood judging by model and
country anymore. I'd just make doubly sure I was cutting into actual wood
before I even ordered the pickups.
--
Check out my band, West Eats Meat http://www.myspace.com/westeatsmeat

My Homepage, Back By Popular Demand: http://www.jmsjazz.com

"I don't mean to sound bitter, cold, or cruel, but I am, so that's how it
comes out."

- Bill Hicks

Post by John Bigboote

Post by js
"Polishing a turd" aside, here's something to think about before you attempt
This is an Indonesian Fender; whish means it's a Squier, correct?
If so, here's the problem - the body is most likely made from either a
"fibreboard" mixture of wood shavings and resin, or it's made of laminated
plywood.
These things are a NIGHTMARE to work on. they "chip out" like crazy when you
try to rout or drill into the body. Leave too little space between say the
PU wire holes and the battery holes, and the whole chunk will chip out.

I'm be willing to bet money that no Indonesian Squiers are made of
either fiberboard or plywood. Every one I've see or heard of has been
made of basswood, which (as I understand it) has characteristics very
close to alder, but is a wee bit softer.
The MII Standard series, whether bass or guitar, are surprisingly good
instruments. IIRC, they're made in the Cort factory under contract to
Fender. The current crop of Vintage Modified fall under that umbrella,
and they're quite good for the money.
On the other hand, I wouldn't put a nickel of improvements into a
Chinese Squier.
I bought my daughter a MII Standard Strat, and the thing is awesome.
Bookmatched flame maple top (*not* a fotoflame), solid wood body,
excellent neck and hardware. The electronics are second-rate, but for
$250 street, it's an *astonishing* guitar. Has the American-style two-
point fulcrum, and sealed tuners. Add a set of Fralins and replace the
pots (not that they necessarily need it, but for less than 10 bucks,
why not?) and I'd put it up against any American Standard Strat -- and
it's prettier.
I also bought her an early '90s MIK Squier Strat off CL as a beater.
This one *was* made of plywood, but was still a very good guitar, and
it had *awesome* tone through the pickups. I sold it a while ago, and
kicked myself for not swapping the pickups into the Standard Strat.
Cool thing about that guitar is that it was *light*, probably three
pounds lighter than a solid-wood body.
FWIW, she also has an Indonesian Takamine electric-acoustic. That's
also an amazing guitar for the money. Maybe we just got lucky...
-jb

[Dave Skipper]

Post by js
If they're using basswood now, that would be very cool. But to be honest,
it's hard to know what they're doing where in the eternal "race to the
bottom" we're in.
I wouldn't be a bit surprised if next year, they shipped the Mexi production
over to China, shuffled everything else around and sent the Squire
production to Nigeria. Free bank transfer with every purchase!
Point being, it's hard to say what's under the hood judging by model and
country anymore. I'd just make doubly sure I was cutting into actual wood
before I even ordered the pickups.

The bass is a Squire and I don't see plywood or compressed particle
board in the control cavity as I disassemble it.

It did come with an awful (IMO) mirror pickguard. I decided to start
there and removed the sheen with lacquer/thinner. This worked great but
the damn ends broke on me while I worked on it - I hardly touched it.
Seems cheap unless the lacquer/thinner did something to it. I was going
to paint my own design under the now clear pickguard.

[Mike Rieves]

Post by js
"Polishing a turd" aside, here's something to think about before you attempt
This is an Indonesian Fender; whish means it's a Squier, correct?
If so, here's the problem - the body is most likely made from either a
"fibreboard" mixture of wood shavings and resin, or it's made of laminated
plywood.

I have an Indonesian Squier P-Bass, and the body is a solid single piece of
wood, not plywood and most definitely not "fibreboard". I know this because
I got it for half price because it fell off the wall at the music store and
there is a huge chip out of the finish that goes all the way to the wood
right below the strap peg. It may not be an expensive piece of tonewood, but
it is one piece of real wood. I think it's reasonable to assume that if this
Indonesian P-Bass is real wood then all Indonesian P-Basses are as well.

Post by js
These things are a NIGHTMARE to work on. they "chip out" like crazy when you
try to rout or drill into the body. Leave too little space between say the
PU wire holes and the battery holes, and the whole chunk will chip out.
Seeing as you will most likely have to re-rout the PU homes and possibly
rout a battery cavity, it's worth taking note.
They don't sand well either. it's very easy to take too much off, and there
are often voids in the "wood".
In the end, it's just cheaper and easier to buy another body, or a better
bass.

Being that it's one piece of real wood, the above isn't really applicable
and in any event, if one chooses to modify the body, it's no big loss if
something goes wrong. Since there are any number of good pickups that will
fit the P-Bass body with no modification there's not much reason to do any
routing anyway.

Post by js
If you do decide to attempt it anyway, make sure you know what your are
cutting into beforehand, and be realistic about what you can and can't do to
the body. I speak from experience.

Removing the pickguard will allow one to inspect the body material. If
John is right and it's plywood or pressed wood, I agree, attempting to
modify it will likely be disasterous, but if it's a single piece of wood
like mine, then go for it, but keep in mind that any modification will be
permanent.