Baloney Balderdash

Well, the Zoom B1 and G1 Four (yes, I do own both) are crap compared to the B1Xon and G1Xon (yes, I won both) that they released around 2013 I think, which were actually even better than the contemporaneous Boss multi effects, and which used the same digital effect models as featured in their current production Multi Stomp boxes. Much more versatile, flexible and tweakable, and as far as I am concerned sounds far better too. Also Zoom used to be utter crap before around the 2010's as well, a shame they reverted back to that. Just because digital effect models needs more DSP power to run doesn't automatically makes them better than some that consumes less DSP power, the legendary Lexicon reverbs is one obvious example of this.

Well the expensive BAE preamp/DI did sound ever so slightly marginally better to me, like clearer, more well defined, and having more depth, though the cheap Focusrite preamp came in as a close second to me, and the mid priced one last, and that in all examples, except for the second, I believe picked played, example, where to me the Focusrite actually sounded best to me, but with the BAE as a close second, and again the mid priced one last. However my judgement might very well to some degree have been affected to differences in your playing and slightly different set output levels of the 3 preamps, so no finite conclusion really. Some of this uncertainty in the test result could have been avoided/eliminated by running the same played piece through each preamp using a looper or similar, to make sure that all 3 preamps actually received the exact same signal, which most definitely wasn't the case playing manually. In any case the ever so slight different in this raw DI'ed signal is going to be diminished even further, quite likely to the point of it becoming absolutely and completely indistinguishable once pre production have been applied to the recorded bass track, and for sure will in the final mix with other instruments. Also we are talking really minimal differences, and who even know how close it matches what you actually recorded with the inevitable YouTube compression having been applied to this video when you uploaded it. I think the only thing I really can conclude from this video is that the mid priced preamp demonstrated in this video most likely is not worth it, and in my personal current economical situation that the BAE isn't really either, but might had been if I had happen to be rich.

Well, there is actually such a thing as single even 10" speakers that can handle 500W alone, can't see why 2 10" speakers shouldn't be able to handle 500W if they are specked right (which i very much assume they are, anything else would be rather silly), that they happen to be 10" speakers means little in terms of power handling. Also you don't get 500W from a 250W combo amp by connecting a matching extension cab (unless it is actually a 500W amp to start with, and the stock speakers are just not of optimal Ohm rating for the amp alone).

Was it a bass by any chance? Also hopefully his "funny" "friends" payed him for a new trumpet.

This is so cool! I've actually considered for quite a while buying a Harley Benton short scale P bass and then moding it into a five string, since that one got a 42mm nut width, which is not too common on short scale basses, for tuning E to C. Is this 4 to 5 string conversion set still available, and if, where would I be able to buy one (preferably from a EU located shop, so I don't have to pay import fee)?

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Of course entirely up to you, but may I suggest a reverse P pickup orientation, to even out the natural tonal difference (I am talking even of notes of otherwise the same octave, due to the gauge difference) between the lower thicker gauge and higher thinner gauge strings, rather than ascending it, as a traditional oriented P actually does. That is getting a more even tone and response across the strings.

Right below the picture of my previous pedal board/setup:

I don't know who exactly an unplayable low E string on a 4 string bass would be acceptable to, not even on a 100£ instrument, except apparently Fender.

@SteveXFR I have just updated the signal chain listed in my forum profile to reflect these changes, so should be a bit easier for you to get a proper overview now, without crosschecking needed: https://www.basschat.co.uk/profile/50585-baloney-balderdash/

Those two are very accurate names too for this bass, not just random silly word plays. Like it literally feels like Fender is taking a pee up their customers backs.

Well, it's admittedly kind of complicated, but have a look at my forum profile where I have my whole signal chain listed. However I am in the middle of rearranging my setup so that would be the old setup listed, used for a Harley Benton GuitarBass (take on the Fender Bass VI concept), tuned in F# standard tuning, that is 10 half steps bellow regular 6 string guitar E standard tuning, played with a pick, to suit playing my 28.6" scale Ibanez Mikro Bass instead, also tuned in F# standard tuning, that is 2 half steps above regular 4 string bass E standard tuning, but played using my fingers, better. So far I've settled with almost the exact same setup for my basic clean tone, except for the Joyo Oxford Sound having been swapped out for a Behringer GDI21, Tech 21 GT2 clone, with the Drive knob just barely above minimum position, which in practice would translate to just on the verge of breakup, the Treble control (shelving filter, freq unknown) at about 11 o'clock and the Bass control (shelving filter, freq unknown) at about 1 o'clock, using the California (Mesa Boogie) amp emulation setting, Clean mode, and miked speaker emulation mode on Center position, and then the Joyo Orange Juice that was placed in one of the effect loops of the Boss LS-2, blended with "clean/dry" signal, being replaced for a Joyo American Sound (still blended with "clean/dry" signal via the LS-2), Tech 21 Blonde clone, the gain dialed in to just on the verge of breakup, a wide curve around 800Hz boosted about +3dB pre gain stage, and a wide curve around 400Hz boosted about +2dB post gain stage, finally the 160 Comp compressor model at the very start of the always on patch used on the Zoom MS-70CDR now having been removed and the very subtle compression instead being handled by the EHX Black Finger, which primary task though still is to function as a tube preamp stage. Might be subject to change, as I am still in the process of rearranging my pedal setup, but this is as least what at this point seems like a quite likely final setup as far as my basic "clean" tone goes. Oh, and also, the Moksy XP booster at the very start of the signal chain, right after the bass, now has both internal dip switches disengaged, which would translate to a subtle low end boost, and is run on 18V, the latter resulting in a bit more clarity, and the TC Electronic Sub'N'Up Mini pedal following it, used exclusively for a 1 octave up effect, is also now not quite an always on effect anymore, but more of an almost always on effect. All in all resulting in a bit more mellow, or rather perhaps a bit less aggressive, tone with overall a bit more low end, better suited for finger picking techniques. I apologize for the wall of text, but yes, as said, kind of complicated, and at least I tried to give as thorough an answer as possible. Hopefully it was of more help than confusion.

Well, my main setup is "amp-less", or perhaps more correctly stated pedal based. So yes. I use a combination of several gain and EQ stages, among those 2 tube preamps, one of them also functioning as a DI, and then a faux, EQ based, cab sim, which basically is just a LPF, then from that tube preamp with DI functionality either into a mixer, used a headphones preamp, and a fairly high end studio grade, that is FRFR, set of headphones, for home practice, or into the Effects Return, basically being poweramp input, of a 160W Peavey guitar combo, with the build in 12" speaker disconnected and instead hooked up to a FRFR passive PA speaker, 15" woofer/mids driver 1.7" high frequency tweeter/high mids horn, with great low end representation, for band rehearsals/jams/back gear gigs, or the PA system of a given venue for playing live gigs otherwise. Works great, the main advantage being consistency of tone whether I practice at home, jam or rehearse with band, play live or record, and another great advantage being flexibility of tailoring tone, specifically in mine which, as said, is made of a combination of several EQ and gain stages, but while keeping it primarily analog.

Congratulations. Honestly the headstock also looks nicer than the Epiphone one. Actually even really nice, and not paddle like at all like the Epiphone one. Tuners too.

Fender have finally managed slacking behind sufficiently to undertake Gibson in the race to the bottom of the big corporate business low quality racing lane. Now if they could only crack the code of how to design their headstocks to snap off at one wrong look they would truly become untouchable. Absolute minimum quality for absolute maximum prices here we come! Every capitalist's wet dream. Hell's the limit for how low we can go from here!

Why get a lower end Harley Benton at a 100£ that's boringly absolutely perfect, when you can get this unique abstract piece of art with a genuine Fender logo on for just 12 times its price, that's right just 1200£ of thrilling imperfection!

Except what? That's exactly what the sentence you replied to imply:

While I do really love the Joyo Orange Juice, so much that I own no less than 3 of them, and all currently in frequent use on my main board, from how I understood the OP it doesn't seem to me like it would do what OP is looking for. The Joyo Orange Juice excels at either a really dynamically sensitive low gain tube like breakup grid in one end of it's gain spectrum, or at the opposite end of it's gain spectrum a really grindy and biting type high gain overdrive/medium gain distortion. It doesn't really do low end grunt or fuzzy, and is really more grindy than gnarly. It does do grindy exceptionally well though on higher gain settings, and as said on lower gain settings it does dynamically sensitive tube like breakup grid really well too. I might have interpreted what OP is looking for wrong though.

Here's a great demo of the DiMarzio Model P, compared to a regular standard stock Fender P pickup, that I think demonstrates the character and qualities of the Model P really well :

Generally speaking I would think a regular traditional Mustang pickup would have less low end and low mids, more high end, and overall adding less coloration on their own, perhaps slightly more open and neutral sounding, due to the slightly more narrow coils of a Mustang pickup versus those of a P pickup, as well as a somewhat sharper, more prominent, attack, due to the single pole pieces per string of a regular traditional Mustang pickup versus the dual pole pieces per string of a regular traditional P pickup. However this is all qualified speculations based on the known effects of the physics/design of the respective pickups as I haven't actually got any personal experience with Mustang pickups or looked deeper into this subject matter (like I haven't actually read up on documentation on the tonal differences between Mustang and P pickups in specifics, watched comparison videos e.t.c). In any case I assume these would be relatively subtle differences (and as said very generally speaking, as it obviously would depend on the specific individual pickups) as the regular traditional Mustang and P pickup still share a very similar basic design/typology, though in my experience subtle differences can actually be quite essential when we are talking tone and music in general.