ikay

Hmm, here's a post from 2009 abut something similar... http://basschat.co.uk/topic/64764-muddy-tone-on-e-string-on-mia-p-bass/

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1447846562' post='2910857'] One standout feature of the J-Retro is that it can fit the battery under the control plate ... I'm not sure how many (if any) of the other pre's mentioned here can offer the same? [/quote] The Audere JZ3 allows this as well, just drops in to a standard J cavity along with battery and with no mods. It also has an led which indicates when the battery needs changing

Single coil pups will add hum not hiss so sounds like the preamp. Later versions of the Mk1 had SC soapbars with a dummy coil. Does it hiss with the eq set flat or only when boosting the highs? There are output level and eq adjustment controls inside the control cavity, might be worth having a play with these to see if it makes any difference, if you haven't already.

Acoustic volume on my Mouse is about the same as a regular solid body. I had an RT Ren 5 which was somewhat louder, due to being fully hollow. My old Hofner Senator, also fully hollow, was a little bit louder than the Ren. Strings also make a difference, LaBella nylons are pretty quiet acoustically for example. If your practicing to a backing track of some sort, even at very low volume all of these would really need some sort of amplification.

The Audere JZ3 is also very good and worth considering - [url="https://www.audereaudio.com/Pro_JZ3.htm"]https://www.audereau...com/Pro_JZ3.htm[/url]

"...Beautiful L1000 on eBay UK at the moment.." Yes, this popped up while I was putting together my P1000, I've been watching it for some time! Very early one with slot screws for the pole pieces before they switched to hex. Board is rosewood I think. Really nice example from the look of it.

[Does it still sound like a p bass when running off a single coil?] Yes, in single coil it sounds like an early 50s P, in parallel very close to a split coil P (perhaps a little tighter due to the non-staggered poles), series gives a bit more heft and grunt but it's still very 'P-like'. It retains the essential characteristics of a P, all very no-nonsense, just plug it in and go.

Just bought a Hipshot d-tuner from Paul, pleasure to deal with, good comms, quick delivery, many thanks!

Are there any other Fender MIM models with that shaped headstock? Not sure where the neck would come from if it's not a kosher Mick Dirnt.

It has a series/parallel/coil split switch and a regular tone control with a .33 cap. I may experiment with the wunkay tone circuit as a next step but for the moment I'm plenty happy with it as it is . (sorry if this is a bit off topic)

The Squier fretless has an ebonol fingerboard with plastic/mylar fret markers that are just cut in to the surface. I had one some time ago which had the same problem. Very slight undulation in the board where the markers were, just enough to be annoying. I didn't notice it when I bought it but tried a few others afterwards and they all had it to some degree. It's a basic design flaw of using plastic fret markers.

I like the simplicty of a P. I also like the idea of a G&L, but without all the switches and knobs. So I dropped an MFD humbucker in my Matt Freeman. I couldn't afford an L1000 so I made a P1000 It sounds similar to a P but has a little more grunt on tap if needed. I'm rather liking it.

If the bridge has a flat baseplate an idea for an experimental (and easy reversible) bodge would be to remove the metal saddles and replace them with simple floating block saddles (one for each string) made out of wood. Similar in shape to the pic below. These could then rest directly on a piezo strip. Alternatively an even simpler one-piece wooden saddle, trimmed to height and angled for intonation, just resting on the baseplate. Just a thought.

What is the bridge assembly in question, does it have any floating components? Just putting an under-saddle piezo strip under a regular screw-down bridge plate is unlikely to work very well. The piezo needs to be under string pressure but screwing it down will most likely choke it. Same goes for the neck pocket. Ideally it needs to be under some sort of floating element that's in direct contact with the strings (eg. nut or saddle). I guess i's possible that putting a UST in a shallow channel at the front edge of a baseplate (near the saddles) might generate some output but it might be quite weak and lacking in depth and detail.

An Allparts P neck with maple board costs around £300 - [url="http://www.allparts.uk.com/products/replacement-neck-for-p-bass-solid-maple-w-finish"]http://www.allparts....-maple-w-finish[/url] An unfinished neck (no lacquer) costs around £200 if you want to do your own oil/wax finish. There are cheaper no-name necks on ebay if you're prepared to take a punt on quality. I was recently looking around for a P body and neck for a project bass to test some different pickup configurations and ended up buying a used Squier Matt Freeman off gumtree for £250 which was a much more cost effective way of doing it. The MF neck has a 41/42mm nut and feels very much like a standard P to me. Possibly a little shallower front to back but not much in it. The MF is a very nice bass for the money if you decide to go down that route.

My Zon Legacy Elite fretless was, I have to admit, superb. For some reason I didn't really bond with it though, partly I think because I just prefer the feel of wood. I put this down to old age and approaching senility.

A sweepable mid-freq control (like the East Mid Sweep) or an ACG/East filter based-preamp may help you find the tone you're looking for. I've had both on my ACG fretless (at different times) and both offer much more flexibility and control over voicing the tone to your taste than a regular fixed 2 or 3-band eq. Particulary effective for fretless.

Seems a bit of a one sided discussion! To balance things up I prefer wood. Granted composite is more consistent, but a traditionally built bass with a fabulous neck is a rarer beast altogether and a thing of great joy. It's the vagiaries of natural materials combined with craftsmanship and a dash of serendipity that give instruments individuality and character. Graphite is just good engineering, every one identical, consistency rather than character. Any one can do that

I've often wondered myself. Identical apart from bridge, pickup and pickguard as far as I can see. The Musicmaster 2-saddle bridge is a bit of an irritation but the strat type guitar pickup on mine sounded remarkably good!

For ref, the centreline of a Stingray pup is 344mm from the 12th fret. Scaled down for a 30" neck this would be 303mm. Same measurement to centreline of a P pup is 295mm (or 260mm for a 30" neck)