iconic Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 (edited) Ok just a brief review of the newest bass to the fleet, the J&D or Jack & Danny Brothers Vintage 1975 Jazz, mine is surf green. linky:- [url="http://www.dv247.com/guitars/jandd-jb-vintage-1975-sfgr-bass-guitar-surf-green--201561"]http://www.dv247.com...f-green--201561[/url] [b]delivery[/b]: £119.00 to door, order took 3 days to delivery from DVD 247, arrived very well packed with seperate inner and outer boxes with bag for allen keys for truss rod and saddles, ohh and foam under the strings for transit. [b]finish & fit:[/b] surf green paintwork is flawless and the colour IS the same as the pictures on the website Under the pickguard the pup wiring is routed properly so no ugly troughs running thru/across the body, you could play without the pickguard should you wish. as supplied cap is .047 as usual with most bass's, wiring and soldering is VERY neat and tidy indeed. 3 ply pickguard fits as it should....I'd love a tort' on it, so may look into that? neck finish overall is good, neck to body pocket gap is tight, frets are fine, no high frets at all, fretwork side edges have the mearest hint of roughness but only if you pick with your finger, I can't feel anything when playing. The size is typical jazz width wise but slightly deeper than my Squiers. The gloss laquer is flawless on neck rear, fretboard and head. Binding is good fit but being picky (as if I paid far more for it ) there is some very slightly tardy finishing on the binding at the heel end but you do need to look for it. tuners work as they should, not too stiff, not too loose, hold tune overnight fine. [b]intitial set-up:[/b] well 'as landed' set-up wouldn't make much difference to me as I would always set a bass up and low a a snakes belly in a rut if possible. First things first, the trussrod came slackened off completely. I pulled the trussrod up fine to give me the usual hint of a gap at 8th fret. Nut next, I checked the string over 1st fret gap and this was spot on at .55mm over the E string, which is quite low and how I usually set my bass up, most new bass's seem much higher (to be safe I guess?) than this but she was spot on across all strings, with the gap decreasing steadily. String height set up when checking string height over 12th fret was just over 2.2mm, I then dropped the string height on the E string to a tad under 2mm, decreasing across the others and NO string buzz at all across all strings, I could go lower...this bass can certainly take a low set-up indeed! [b]sound: [/b]the original strings come with a label declaring "Jack & Danny Brothers US made" or someething like that, I haven't a clue who makes them, she is on std strings as I write this...they are rounds and work fine, feel like my Fender Superbass, not rough at all. Sound with all pups up & tone wide open (treble up)! is very bright, clear & piano like (hi-fi some may say?) but rich enough, super loud too, I went from Squier VMJ and the difference was amazing, this bass has hot pups! The VMJ sounds quite tame compared to this J&D...the CVJ sounds like its on flats in comparrison. with rear pup on only tone up good olde jazz honky nasal stuff and clear...quite addictive actually. with front on and tone down, good smooth deep tone for when bright isn't required...I may drop a bigger cap in her though as most of my bass's have a .1uf cap, that's just me, good have that option. obviously loads of tones in between. One thing I did notice when slapping away to Level 42's 43 was a loud cracking noise like a tired speaker, if I play gently this went away as I'm a bit untidy when trying to slap, quite heavy handed. So I concluded the front pup too high for my style. I wound the neck pup down as far as it would go but it was still too high, so I took most of the foam out from under the front pup, dropped it down further (too far really!) and all is well. Haven't lost much volume either...did I mention hot pups. The pups have quite deep magnets...not sure what this means? [b]Summary[/b]: So there you have it, it's not a Fender Custom Shop but it works fine, and as with most cheap bass's with a good set-up I reckon they are good enough for most, better than me and stonking good value for the fun you get with them...and this one is crushingly beautiful in this colour combo. I would buy another if it got stolen. For those whom would purchase simply for the Surf Green body (and why not), it's well finished Alder, quite hard as the pick guard screws don't 'slack' after coming out a few times, and no nastyness under the pickguard, not heavy too, feels like a CVJ, the VMJ is a bit heavier. I can't say if an AllParts or Fender neck would fit though, I can't do all the hard work! cheers guys E&OE I've read this thru a few times, if theres any missing words ( a bad habit of mine) I do have an excuse but the gist is there Edited January 19, 2014 by iconic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grassie Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 I've seen these on Ebay and wondered how good they would be for £119, sounds like you got a decent bass for not a lot of money. I'd put a white pearl pickguard on there though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redstriper Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Thanks for the excellent review - I think I'm going to have to buy one now, (I've only got 4 Jazzes at the moment) Just one question, what is the weight? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iconic Posted January 19, 2014 Author Share Posted January 19, 2014 Also for a cheap bass it has a serial number, a little unusual, unless its a part number of course? [b]WSM1305B11.062[/b] and a picture 'saying' don't put it in a bin.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lw. Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Nice review - quite tempted for a cheapy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderbird Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Very good review and it sounds like the bass is a right bargain. Love the colour and blocks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iconic Posted January 19, 2014 Author Share Posted January 19, 2014 (edited) [quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1390163405' post='2342235'] Thanks for the excellent review - I think I'm going to have to buy one now, (I've only got 4 Jazzes at the moment) Just one question, what is the weight? [/quote] without scales....feels like a Classic Vibe Jazz weight...erm not heavy, but feels substantial enough, sorta typical...if that helps...which it probably doesn't Difficult to compare to VMJ's. I've had two VMJ's the first was a genuine boat anchor that would of saved the Amoco Cadiz, the second VMJ feels erm...normal. Edited January 19, 2014 by iconic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redstriper Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Thanks, my CVJ and VMJ were/are about 9.5 lbs - a bit on the heavy side but probably average, I guess this is about the same. I like hot pickups, all my Jazz basses (including Fenders) have sounded quiet compared to my '63 Fender. I know I can just turn the amp up, but it's not the same as a loud source signal imho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassman Sam Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 (edited) Great review, I'm very tempted to get one at this price. I don't want to spend a lot on a bass due to the RA but I need to build up playing hours when I'm not having a flair up. This would do the job nicely but I hate black blocks on maple necks. What to do? Edited January 19, 2014 by Bassman Sam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mornats Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 You're not helping my jazz GAS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom1946 Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 I ordered one on saturday after reading about them, can't go wrong for that money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 (edited) Great review! These basses look awesome (it helps if you like black blocks on maple - which I DO!) so it is good to know that they sound decent as well. I wonder if that body would fit a standard Fender J neck? At that price it's cheaper than a refin in surf green.... Edited July 1, 2014 by Conan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theyellowcar Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 [quote name='Conan' timestamp='1390205076' post='2342474'] I wonder if that body would fit a standard Fender J neck? At that price it's almost cheaper than a refin in surf green.... [/quote] This. Throw in a white pearl plate and that's me sold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HowieBass Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 I'm not after another Jazz but I'm just wondering if the workmanship and playability of the J&D Jazz extends to their Precision bass clone... http://www.dv247.com/guitars/jandd-yc-pb-4-string-bass-guitar-black--201637 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roceci Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 iconic, good to see you pulled the trigger on one of these in the end! Damn you for writing a much better review than I did tho ;-) Hope you're as happy with it as I am with mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iconic Posted January 20, 2014 Author Share Posted January 20, 2014 [quote name='roceci' timestamp='1390248201' post='2343175'] iconic, good to see you pulled the trigger on one of these in the end! Damn you for writing a much better review than I did tho ;-) Hope you're as happy with it as I am with mine. [/quote] It was your review that pumped my GAS sir! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iconic Posted January 20, 2014 Author Share Posted January 20, 2014 [quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1390247652' post='2343166'] I'm not after another Jazz but I'm just wondering if the workmanship and playability of the J&D Jazz extends to their Precision bass clone... http://www.dv247.com/guitars/jandd-yc-pb-4-string-bass-guitar-black--201637 [/quote] Aria do a cheap jazz with a precision neck, STB-JB the quality of mine is amazing, no excuses anywhere on my example....the J&D is very good for the price, the Aria STB-JB is exceptional. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 [quote name='tom1946' timestamp='1390203288' post='2342466'] I ordered one on saturday after reading about them, can't go wrong for that money. [/quote] ah, we're sooo bad! mine has already been shipped Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 I just hope they don't come out with one in shell pink too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clashcityrocker Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 Good review! I want the blue one but only if my CV rosewood neck will fit it,get your Phillips screwdriver and tape measure out ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HowieBass Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 I wonder how many of these budget line basses come from the same factory? Wondering now whether to pull the trigger on a J&D P bass or the Aria STB-PB equivalent for about £30 more? Damn GAS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon_kemo Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 [quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1390247652' post='2343166'] I'm not after another Jazz but I'm just wondering if the workmanship and playability of the J&D Jazz extends to their Precision bass clone... [url="http://www.dv247.com/guitars/jandd-yc-pb-4-string-bass-guitar-black--201637"]http://www.dv247.com...r-black--201637[/url] [/quote] I bought one of these Jazz's and a Precision from them a couple of years ago. While the Precision was a nice bass it seemed to have a lower quality feel to it than the Jazz. I felt it was better than the Squier Affinity and Vintage Icon Precisions I had at the time though and happily gigged it a few times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grassie Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 If they do a Fiesta Red jazz with a tort pickguard I'm having one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roceci Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 [quote name='iconic' timestamp='1390253422' post='2343277'] It was your review that pumped my GAS sir! [/quote] Glad to oblige mate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twincam Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 Lovely colour but can't help think that the Harley Benton vintage jazz with ash body and Wilkinson pups is a better buy tho and cheaper even with shipping.Also comes with quality strings too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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