Jump to content
Why become a member? ×

Geddy Lee USA signature Jazz Bass


geofio
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hi Cosmo hope your well sir, The neck is just wonderful really , it is a lot chunkier and feels way better than the jap model, everything feels tighter and better on the bass it is quite heavy too, the pickups sound amazing they have both low end way beyond the jap model and lots of high end zing !!! only issue i had was to intonate the E string it was a bugger to get spot on, got there in the end i raised the saddle up higher and that took care of the problem , machine heads feel really high quality to me , they are very confident and smooth, neck just feels incredible, it is thick but not difficult to play , gives the bass a nice quality feel the binding is almost light brown !! as are the inlays on the fretboard, the Geddy bridge is solid and works well only thing is fender give you the incorrect allen key and also a truss rod tool that is useless as it is a flat head screw on this neck !! saddles adjust with ease and are smooth, big thumbs up from me i like it. and the case is pretty nice too. George

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's all I've used (bar one acoustic gig) since I brought mine back from Canada a month ago. It actually seems to sound better with every gig. I much prefer the neck to the Japanese one and the tone is definitely superior too. Puzzled by the incorrect tools in the case - I was actually wondering if there had been a tool mixup in the shop, but it would seem not.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Got mine towards the end of May any it's had a lot of play - practise and gigs - since then, neck is indeed sublime. Odd tools are just annoying though! It's not quite as versatile as my Dingwall Z3 but very easy to play. Looks stunning too - the quality of the inlays and binding are fantastic, particularly the binding covering the fret ends. Quality.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

UPDATE on using the USA Geddy Lee Jazz Bass, had this a couple of weeks now, got to say it is one of the best sounding basses i have had in my hands ever, i tried different strings on the bass, the fender 45-105 strings that come with the bass are just awful !!! i then tried a new set of rotosound 45-105 roundwounds, they sounded great at first but just died a few days later not good value at all and this is the new foil packet strings, i then installed a set of Elixir nanoweb 45-105 and wow now we are talking the tone is bright, full of life makes the bass sing they really do, the Elixirs don't sound as zingy as other strings but i prefer that as what you get with Elixir actually stays there , unlike the other strings that sound amazing for a day or so then no life what so ever.
The new Geddy Lee bridge is just awesome so easy to adjust and intonate, nice smooth feel to it, almost the exact same as a badass, only this has rounded edges, rather than the sharp edges on the badass, the pickups on this bass are just superb sounding honestly these will be hard to beat , using the neck pickup on its own the bass has a lovely warm almost p bass like tone, the bridge pickup has growl and bite and when you combine both and adjust the balance between the two you have a full range of usable tones , sounds best with both on max !!!! the neck on this bass is just fantastic, i have had the mexican and japanese versions, the best way i can describe the feel of this neck is this neck feels real !!! there is a solidity you just do not get with the other two versions although those are great feeling necks in their own right !!! the neck is a lot thicker everywhere but has a smooth fast feel to it the binding on the frets is faultless it just is !!! the only problem for me is the width of this neck at the body end i am finding it hard to play certain things i can play easily on my Rickenbacker's, but that is probably down to me playing Ric's for 37 years, i am so used to playing those basses everything else feels alien to me. Guys who are used to jazz necks will love this neck, with the varnish removed from the playing area and rubbed with oil, it has a great feel, your hand just slides up and down effortlessly, the nut is a bone nut and was cut to perfection, the hardware up in the headstock just feels top notch very smooth and accurate tuning . the body of the bass is very sleek and very smooth and is cut to perfection to fit the body, the wood used is select Alder at the fender plant, if you are after the tone that Geddy has you have it in spades with this instrument, it feels great , has good balance, neck is a joy to play apart for me the width at the body end !!, i am trying my best to get used to the bass so i can keep it, it is up for sale on Here, it records well and is easy to get a great tone that you need for a particular song. comes with the new style Fender hard case and all the candy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

thank you afterimage, oh yes go try one if it is set up ok you will love it, only problem is after you play one you will want it badly trust me lol. cheers G ps i have decided to keep mine it just sounds too good to part with. i will get used to the neck.

Edited by geofio
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've got a set of the new Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats on mine at the moment and they're really good on it - tons of attack and brightness - been on the bass a month and not lost any edge. Certainly have more zing than any rounds I've tried after a month - they seem to be more consistent so you don't get the immediate hit you do with rounds.

glad you decided to keep your Ged geofio - it'd have been a shame losing so much on a sale this new!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was surprised you were thinking of selling it, so nice to see you're keeping it. I'm a confirmed Rick user, but I'm loving my USA GL Jazz. It feels good and the more I use it, the more I realise how much better it is than the Japanese one (which I still think was great at around £600 or whatever it was). The sound is significantly superior too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As the guys who own this bass know what i am talking about it has a fantastic feel to it this bass, sound wise it is just soooo right !!! lots of bottom end with fantastic bite at the same time, a fantastic feeling bass, whether it has Geddy lee's name on it or not i would still want it, this is a well designed instrument with a lot of nice touches, i haven't picked a Ric up since i have had this bass !!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='geofio' timestamp='1442343553' post='2866277']
As the guys who own this bass know what i am talking about it has a fantastic feel to it this bass, sound wise it is just soooo right !!! lots of bottom end with fantastic bite at the same time, a fantastic feeling bass, whether it has Geddy lee's name on it or not i would still want it, this is a well designed instrument with a lot of nice touches, i haven't picked a Ric up since i have had this bass !!!!
[/quote]

If you decide to sell any of your Ricks let me know ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

George, can I ask something quite arbitrary?

I know you have a passion for things Rush/Geddy Lee; you've been a Rickenbacker player for a long time and it's pretty clear you reached a fork in the road and you're smitten with the US Signature bass, but I'm curious. I'm wondering whether the US signature edition would actually have gotten a look in had it not have had Mr Lee's signature on it somewhere?

P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not speaking for George, but in my case it was a factor, which I acknowledge probably seems quite sad really. There now follows a lengthy explanation as to how I have ended up with 3 signature basses, two of which are in my top 4 'go to' basses. I'm happy with my purchases and don't feel I need to justify them to myself, but I understand that many will be bemused or maybe even horrified that I allowed myself to be influenced by a squiggle on a headstock or scratch plate.

Years ago, I played in a Rush tribute. I already had a Rick and over time, as we incorporated more 80s stuff in the repertoire, I found myself wanting a Wal as the Rick didn't sit quite right in some of those songs, so I bought one. Having become geeky enough to use the correct instruments on most of the 70s & 80s stuff (yes, I even got a couple of Rick double necks for a few songs), I got a Japanese GL signature too. As time went on, I had become more sensitive to certain songs that the Rick was passable on, but had featured a Jazz on the original recording, so it seemed to make sense at the time. I was pretty happy with the Japanese Jazz, but it sounded a little thin and although everyone else raved about the neck, I found it just slightly too narrow at the nut end. Not enough to stop me using it, but not my preference outside of the songs I felt it sounded best on.

Fast forward a few years and I stopped doing the Rush stuff, but all the basses saw action with my other bands when I felt they were appropriate. By this time I had also picked up a Chris Squire signature Rick. So many people had tried this particular bass (the very one I now own I mean) and raved about it and as I have always had a soft spot for Ricks, I thought I'd try it and move it on if I didn't think it was right for me. It played beautifully and saw a few years service in a couple of prog bands I was in, where it just seemed to sit perfectly in the mix, so I kept it. I was now a very 'sad' person with two signature basses, both from bassists I have been influenced by. Actually I was very happy as I liked both basses a lot, even if there were a couple of niggles about the GL.

So this year I was in Vancouver when Rush played there in July. I went up to a nearby music shop with the intention of trying one of the latest Ricks as I was curious about the walnut ones and thought I could get one cheaper in Canada. They didn't have one and none of the Ricks they had on the wall screamed 'try me'. However I spotted the US GL and was curious to try it (I had seen Rush less than 48 hours earlier, which probably didn't help). I had read a few very positive comments about this bass and was considering trying it out in the UK, as it sounded like it would address the two things that weren't quite right for me on the Japanese one. So I asked if I could have a play while I chatted with the sales guy. He was a very pleasant person who had toured the UK a few times, recently with Devin Townsend. While we sat talking, I became aware that I really liked the feel of the bass and while I couldn't be certain through a different amp, the tone seemed to have the solidity that I missed in the Japanese version. Given the exchange rate, I decided to buy it and I'm really glad I did as it has exceeded my expectations from that positive impression I gained in the shop.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='jonsmith' timestamp='1443172815' post='2872759']
Not speaking for George, but in my case it was a factor, which I acknowledge probably seems quite sad really. There now follows a lengthy explanation as to how I have ended up with 3 signature basses, two of which are in my top 4 'go to' basses. I'm happy with my purchases and don't feel I need to justify them to myself, but I understand that many will be bemused or maybe even horrified that I allowed myself to be influenced by a squiggle on a headstock or scratch plate.

Years ago, I played in a Rush tribute. I already had a Rick and over time, as we incorporated more 80s stuff in the repertoire, I found myself wanting a Wal as the Rick didn't sit quite right in some of those songs, so I bought one. Having become geeky enough to use the correct instruments on most of the 70s & 80s stuff (yes, I even got a couple of Rick double necks for a few songs), I got a Japanese GL signature too. As time went on, I had become more sensitive to certain songs that the Rick was passable on, but had featured a Jazz on the original recording, so it seemed to make sense at the time. I was pretty happy with the Japanese Jazz, but it sounded a little thin and although everyone else raved about the neck, I found it just slightly too narrow at the nut end. Not enough to stop me using it, but not my preference outside of the songs I felt it sounded best on.

Fast forward a few years and I stopped doing the Rush stuff, but all the basses saw action with my other bands when I felt they were appropriate. By this time I had also picked up a Chris Squire signature Rick. So many people had tried this particular bass (the very one I now own I mean) and raved about it and as I have always had a soft spot for Ricks, I thought I'd try it and move it on if I didn't think it was right for me. It played beautifully and saw a few years service in a couple of prog bands I was in, where it just seemed to sit perfectly in the mix, so I kept it. I was now a very 'sad' person with two signature basses, both from bassists I have been influenced by. Actually I was very happy as I liked both basses a lot, even if there were a couple of niggles about the GL.

So this year I was in Vancouver when Rush played there in July. I went up to a nearby music shop with the intention of trying one of the latest Ricks as I was curious about the walnut ones and thought I could get one cheaper in Canada. They didn't have one and none of the Ricks they had on the wall screamed 'try me'. However I spotted the US GL and was curious to try it (I had seen Rush less than 48 hours earlier, which probably didn't help). I had read a few very positive comments about this bass and was considering trying it out in the UK, as it sounded like it would address the two things that weren't quite right for me on the Japanese one. So I asked if I could have a play while I chatted with the sales guy. He was a very pleasant person who had toured the UK a few times, recently with Devin Townsend. While we sat talking, I became aware that I really liked the feel of the bass and while I couldn't be certain through a different amp, the tone seemed to have the solidity that I missed in the Japanese version. Given the exchange rate, I decided to buy it and I'm really glad I did as it has exceeded my expectations from that positive impression I gained in the shop.
[/quote]
Out of curiosity was it at Long & McQuade or Tom Lee?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...