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BABICZ FCH BRIDGE


Scuba_Demon
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Hi,

Does any one have any experience of the Babicz FCH bass bridges which look to be direct replacement for Fenders Jazz and Precision type bridges.

There seems to be reams written on the Badass II and Gotoh 201 bridges but not seen anything on the Babicz.

They seem to have a novel cam feature for the saddles which seems to make some sense but any feedback would be appreciated.

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  • 2 weeks later...

[quote name='lozbass' post='1062690' date='Dec 18 2010, 05:52 PM']If this is what I think it is, I saw them a few years ago and was mighty impressed. You're right though, very little in the way of further detail on the web. I'm not sure that they're still in production - great idea though[/quote]


They are still in production. You can get them on Amazon or via the Bass centre. I emailed the UK distributer because I wanted a black one, and you can only get them in chrome over here at the moment (weirdly, they seem cheaper over here than the 'States, which makes a change, this might be a discounted price to get them established).

I have read a few forums on these, including a thread I started here before I realised you'd already posted on them, and the consensus seems to be, if you have a guitar with a good resonant body, these won't dampen it and tighten up the top end like a badass might, while still transferring plenty of vibration from the strings. Lokks the mutt's nuts too. This is the bridge that I will definately be fitting on my current custom build.

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[quote name='Max Normal' post='1073502' date='Dec 31 2010, 10:12 AM']They are still in production. You can get them on Amazon or via the Bass centre. I emailed the UK distributer because I wanted a black one, and you can only get them in chrome over here at the moment (weirdly, they seem cheaper over here than the 'States, which makes a change, this might be a discounted price to get them established).

I have read a few forums on these, including a thread I started here before I realised you'd already posted on them, and the consensus seems to be, if you have a guitar with a good resonant body, these won't dampen it and tighten up the top end like a badass might, while still transferring plenty of vibration from the strings. Lokks the mutt's nuts too. This is the bridge that I will definately be fitting on my current custom build.[/quote]

Bass Direct have them I believe

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Well I took a punt on one and have just received it from the Bass Centre (£69). I did not like the thought of faffing about filing grooves in the Badass and the Babicz seemed to be a more advanced design with its novel cam feature.

I intend to fit this to my Squire 70's VMJ but cannot comment on any difference to the sound yet as I am banned from my workshop (the kitchen) over the holidays especially after the managing to smash the kitchen light with my bass (but that's another story).

Any way if the theory holds true it should make a difference. I guess I will try it with my existing strings first to get a valid comparison before restringing

Although I cannot comment on the tone yet one thing I can say is that the design appears to be well thought out and very sound with an additional screw on each cam to lock it in place once the action is set and another screw for each saddle to clamp the saddle to the base plate once the intonation is adjusted, so it should be rock solid in use.

Overall it seems very impressive with super smooth chrome plated finish but I was surprised to find out it was made in Taiwan not the good ole US of A, but if it was I guess it might have been a bit more pricey.

I will update this post with some further feed back once fitted.

Happy New Year.

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  • 5 months later...

I installed one of these today on my medium scale MIJ Fender Jazz. Jeff Berlin's tech hipped me to these + said they're well engineered and he's converting his own basses to them. So, I made the jump on his recommendation.

I can't say the sonic differences are huge, but it seems to have a little more sustain, and seems a little 'fuller' in general. Otherwise, thankfully, it sounds like my Fender Jazz. I may be having a placebo effect, I'll wait and see.

It fixed a problem with wandering saddles on my old Fender bridge and is easy to set up. It is easier set up than the old bridge, plus the saddles and cams are lockable in place. When I tune up, I notice the note seems to stay more stable on my Petersen tuner also. I'm not sure what to make of that.

Nicely made, a breeze to install. I like it.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I've just put one on my MIM 70's Jazz. The notes do seem to ring a bit more than before, very easy to fit too. It looks a beautiful piece of engineering. I will report back when I've played it in anger for a week or two. It'll get a bashing at Saturday night's gig!

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Further to my post, gigged with it on on Saturday night. Love it to bits. It's a beautiful piece of engineering and (dare I say it?) an improvent on the Badass 11. Everything feels more solid and sounds so much clearer. Also no nasty little grub screws sticking into your hand like nearly every other bridge I've tried!

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  • 4 months later...

Ok, I've had the Babicz on my MIJ Fender 32" Jazz now for a while.

I like the bridge a lot. It is really easy to set up and locks everything firmly into place. The engineering is great, height adjustments are much easier than they used to be.

I have emailed the manufacturer to state that I think it could use an adaptation to allow for quicker string changes. Looks to me like it would be simple enough to mill slots into the top of the bridge to permit this.

I think a piezo option would be nice.

I'm not hugely convinced it changes the tone of a bass, although I understand the engineering principles involved might state in theory that it should be otherwise. On the whole, though, I consider that a plus, as my Jazz still sounds like a Jazz.

Other people's experiences may vary. I find a preamp or string gauge changes the tone more profoundly than the bridge, at least on this bass. It is my favourite bridge though, and I look forward to seeing if future versions include the modifications suggested.

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