NBD - Fender Duff McKagan Bass

[PlasmaZombies]

Good evening all.

After a long wait this finally showed up today. A brand new Fender Deluxe Jazz Bass Special Duff McKagan signature bass in black!

I've only had an hour or so play time but first impressions are it's bloody gorgeous! Out of the box it plays well but I will probably lower the action to my personal preference and the Hipshot D-tuner needs some adjustment. Neck pocket is tight with no visible gap, paintwork is flawless on both the body and back of the neck. Fretwork is superb with no sharp ends. The nut width is definitely P Bass width 42mm and the thickness of the neck front to back feels deeper than my (now sold) 2017 MIM P Bass. 

Soundwise, loving the pickup switch and TBX tone circuit. It seems very versatile and just has so much grunt when you push the tone past the centre detent and engage the TBX circuit. With my EBS Multicomp and Darkglass B7K V2 it's all I need to give me the bass sound that I had in my head for so long! 

The only downside is that whilst everything is black...the side input jack is chrome..but that's just nitpicking. 

So if you're still reading..here are a couple of pictures.

[AndyTravis]

Looks brilliant 

[afterimage]

Nice it's great to get something different enjoy

[Doctor J]

1 hour ago, PlasmaZombies said:

...the answer is none, none more black.

[Lozz196]

Now that looks like a wicked bass.

[PlasmaZombies]

Thanks guys! I'm very happy with it! A slight action adjustment required for me and I'll check intonation at the same time. It's a pity that the Hipshot wasn't fine tuned already for me but won't take much to do that when I have some more time tomorrow.

Another thing I will add is that it feels heavy! Haven't anything to measure weight but as heavy as an old Warwick Streamer i had. Weight doesnt bother me though.

[Reggaebass]

That’s one nice bass , is the switch a pickup selector 🙂Edit,  I just read it , I was too busy looking at the pics 🙂

Edited May 31, 2019 by Reggaebass

[lou24d53]

Looks real cool...👍

Curious though, why they call it a jazz bass special when its DNA is 80% (at least) precision...? 🤔

[PlasmaZombies]

6 hours ago, lou24d53 said:

Looks real cool...👍

Curious though, why they call it a jazz bass special when its DNA is 80% (at least) precision...? 🤔

Yes I am wondering this myself but I suppose it's modelled on Duff' s Jazz Bass Special from the 80's. But to me it's a Precision bass no doubt! 🤣

[foxyFuze]

To chime in again regarding the P / J nomenclature: the new one seems to have wider and deeper neck and the Jazz pup is in the 60s, not 70s position, so it is a bit more Precision-like, but I guess they want to be clear about the heritage and celebrity link calling it a 'Jazz Special'.   

[2elliot]

That looks very nice. 

[BrunoBass]

Looks great. 

I’ve just nabbed one of these, picking it up on Tuesday next week. Can’t wait.

[Thunderpaws]

Looks really nice, super cool even, I love the look of the white version. What does the P pickup position do for the sound, does it brighten it up a bit? 

[PlasmaZombies]

10 hours ago, BrunoBass said:

Looks great. 

I’ve just nabbed one of these, picking it up on Tuesday next week. Can’t wait.

Great man! I really hope you enjoy it as much as I do! Postyour thoughts when you get it! 

1 hour ago, Thunderpaws said:

Looks really nice, super cool even, I love the look of the white version. What does the P pickup position do for the sound, does it brighten it up a bit? 

Yeah they both look great. The P pickup as far as I know is in the standard position and the pickup itself is the same as those in Mexican Standard / Player Series Precisions. It is a very typical P bass sound when solo'd - thumpy and middy. Select both pickups together and you have a bit more bite and cut..Great rock tones from a passive bass in my opinion. Hope that helps!

PZ

[bigsmokebass]

Nice bass, I'd have one but I've already got one too many PJ basses 😂🙈

Good specs along with the new Dtuner, inlays and pickguard 

[Cuzzie]

Looks good

why not just switch the chrome jack cover for a black one, costs peanuts, or get just with a sharpie

[PlasmaZombies]

10 hours ago, bigsmokebass said:

Nice bass, I'd have one but I've already got one too many PJ basses 😂🙈

Good specs along with the new Dtuner, inlays and pickguard 

You can never have too many basses 😁

[Grahambythesea]

On 01/06/2019 at 00:00, lou24d53 said:

Looks real cool...👍

Curious though, why they call it a jazz bass special when its DNA is 80% (at least) precision...? 🤔

Just thinking the same myself.

[BrunoBass]

Just picked mine up! That’s my evening done then...

(Mine’s the white one by the way).

Edited September 3, 2019 by BrunoBass

[PlasmaZombies]

6 hours ago, BrunoBass said:

Just picked mine up! That’s my evening done then...

(Mine’s the white one by the way).

Awesome! Post pics and I'm keen to hear what you think! Enjoy!

[BrunoBass]

On 31/05/2019 at 21:29, PlasmaZombies said:

It's a pity that the Hipshot wasn't fine tuned already for me but won't take much to do that when I have some more time tomorrow.

How did you get on fine tuning the Hipshot? I’ve got to do mine, on my new Duff. I gather adjusting them is a bit of a ball ache? 

Thanks! 

[PlasmaZombies]

12 minutes ago, BrunoBass said:

How did you get on fine tuning the Hipshot? I’ve got to do mine, on my new Duff. I gather adjusting them is a bit of a ball ache? 

Thanks! 

Not too bad actually. There's a good video on YouTube from the manufacturers themselves i think, which I followed step by step. It involves a bit of tuning, adjusting the thumb screw and retuning. Id say it took me about 45 minutes or so but once set up its sweet.

The odd time it might need some minor readjustment but you soon get used to it. I love being able to go from E to D so quickly! 

[BrunoBass]

Thanks, I’ll check out the video. 

Yeah I’m looking forward to the convenience of tuning down instantly. We’ve shoved all the Drop D songs in our set together, so we’re not constantly tuning up and down; it’d be good for the flow of the set to be able to spread them out a bit. I can now.