TheGreek Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Fellow BCers I'm hoping that somebody can give me some information about a [b]Fender Precision semi acoustic fretless bass [/b]which I bought just before Xmas. The serial number is [b]N032276[/b] which, according to the [u]Guitar Database Project [/u]website, was made in Japan in 1993/94. I have included some photos which might help identify the model. The person I bought the bass from said that it was a "rare model" (how many times have you been told this??) but I bought the instrument anyway because I had never seen a similar item. My local Luthier said that he had seen one before but didn't know too much more.. The seller also suggested that these basses were subject to recall after a lawsuit but I can't find any information regarding this on the web. I've been trying to research this bass but can't find any information about this instrument specifically. Somebody had told me that it was the [b]Aerodyne[/b] model but the bridge (seems like an acoustic rather than a steel bridge), pick ups (one pair of P Bass pick ups) do not correspond with examples I have seen for sale. Also the " f " hole on the body doesn't correspond with the Aerodyne models I've have seen which seem only to come in black rather than a natural finish on top and Mahogany bottom/back. This has no scratchplate or screwholes which might suggest it once did. The neck says "Made in Japan" but the plate on the neck says "Fender USA" - also the "ASE" logo is confusing - "s" looks like a lightning bolt - no idea if this is original or not. Any info you can give to identify this instrument will be much appreciated.. Mick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ou7shined Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 The ones I've found online are all MIJ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Could the neckplate have the USA on just because they didnt do a MIJ chamfuered one? The one fitted looks like the Jeff Beck and similar USA Strat ones to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ou7shined Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 It would seem that they came with Lace Sensor pups. [quote]Fender Lace Pickup and Piezo bridge with Volume, tone, and blend controls This is an amazing bass. It almost sounds like an upright with the straight piezos and the treble rolled off a bit. It's an electric bass with a fixed bridge and uses nylon wrapped strings. It's semi hollow so it has a nice wood sound to it. It's the only one like it I've ever seen. Fender only made these for two years and there aren't many around. It has a clicky sound if you blend the pickups which probably turned a lot of people off, but pure piezo or pure lace both sound great. Cutting 2Khz in the EQ takes a lot of the clicky piezo sound out. They should have built in a better blend switch, but other than that it plays like a dream....[/quote] [quote]Made by Fender for a limited run in the early 90's, this bass features a mahogany body with a beautiful blonde spruce top. Pickups include the solid Fender Lace Sensor P, and a Piezo bridge pick-up which allows for an incredibly smooth and deep tone[/quote] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delberthot Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Looks like it is Acoustic / Electric as opposed to being an S in the middle very similar to the [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=51218"]HMT Bass[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Burpster Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Is it a P or J width neck ? I cant quite work it out from your pics. It looks very Ovation Viper ish but with an added Lace sensor P pup.... Very Very interesting looking bass..... I didnt think I'd hear myself saying that about a fender again... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjb Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Looks lovely! If you decide to move it on give me a shout...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubinga5 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Ive seen one of these on TalkBass....ask there..it wont take long.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjones Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Yes I saw that one a while ago on ebay. There's a link on my post to a harmony central review [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=107822&hl="]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=107822&hl=[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted January 16, 2011 Author Share Posted January 16, 2011 It's now living with Philw down in Brighton - living in distinguished company... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wateroftyne Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Ah, missed this thread. Yep, it's an A/E Precison. Not too many of them about, and there's a few variations - MIA, MIJ... FWIW, [url="http://www.cafewalter.com/cafewalter/fetpre/index.htm"]Cafe Walter[/url] do a preamp mod for these that buffers the piezo, bringing it to life... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philw Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 [quote name='TheGreek' post='1091264' date='Jan 16 2011, 12:28 PM']It's now living with Philw down in Brighton - living in distinguished company...[/quote] And very nice it is too. I just checked to see if it already has the Cafe Walter piezo preamp fitted and is doesn't. P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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