Bass deliveries straight to home

[LITTLEWING]

How do people find on average the condition of a bass on arrival? I know it's best to try a few at a store and go home with the best one, but to save a round trip of a load of miles I'm looking at buying a Mex Precision online from a very well known store and wondered if in general for instance they're actually ready straight out the cardboard box to do a two hour pub set and have no real issues? Or is it a case of sharp fret ends and buzzes where they've just been screwed together at the factory and sent straight out to punters?

[Cato]

I don't think the average shop does much more than tune them.

The set up and intonation, or lack of,happens at the factory, so a mail order bass (barring any accidents in transit) will generally be in the same condition as the same model if you picked it up in a shop, although the mail order one generally won't be pre tuned.

Edited March 4, 2016 by Cato

[Woodinblack]

Depends on the shop I guess, but most of the new basses I have had from shops tend to be pretty set out of the packet, if you like 'normal' settings (they tend to all be a bit high action for me).

[Luulox]

I don't know if I have been lucky but every bass I have ordered online as turned up needing very little if any setting up.

[dannybuoy]

I think most shops just ship them out as they receive them from the factory and very few open the box to inspect them or set them up before they get shipped out. So it's luck of the draw really!

Edited March 4, 2016 by dannybuoy

[ambient]

It'd just be a 'generic' set up at best. Buying from a shop like the gallery for instance, it'd be setup to how exactly you wanted it.

[doomed]

Setup aside I wouldn't buy a Mexican Fender online after a recent visit to my local PMT, all the Mexican models I looked at that day had a very poor neck to pocket fit, you could have slipped a pick in between the neck and pocket edge on most of them. I realise this might have been a one off batch but it put me off, USA models looked fine, you couldn't fit a rizla in the joint's on my Squier's so I would expect a bass with the F word on the headstock to be as good if not better. I would go to a shop and choose if you have the option to do so.

Edited March 4, 2016 by doomed

[sykilz]

Strangely enough, Doomed, I got my Mex Jazz from PMT Southend, and the neck fit is perfect, whereas the US ones they had there had huuuge gaps!!! Proves your point though, bought unseen is a gamble!!!

[Lozz196]

I`ve bought all my recent Fenders online, either new or used, not had an issue with any of them. The post 2012 Series I`ve found to have really upped its game, great quality basses. The MIMs particularly I`ve been very impressed with. Seeing as new they`re about £550 in comparison to around £1300 for a US Standard, they aren`t as far away in terms of quality and playability as the price gap would suggest.

[ambient]

Both of the Fenders I've owned were American, a US standard 5 string jazz, and a 5 string Marcus Miller. Both had huge, and badly cut (unsquare) neck pockets. Some scratch plate screws were put in at an angle, so the heads protruded.

I'd definitely want to see before buying.