Fender AV II 54 & 60 Precision plus AV II 66 Jazz.

[Linus27]

So you're telling me if I buy one of these basses, it doesn't come with the scew holes pre-drilled for the ashtray cover? Well that's me out then. It's bad enough having to plug my own lead in and turn the amp on. They'll be expecting me to play the damn thing next 😂

[Misdee]

It's easy to be flippant but I wouldn't underestimate the difference screw holes can make.

 

Screw holes make a Fender bass a de facto hollow body. Think of it as micro-chambering. There is bound to be differences in  both tone and weight between screw hole basses and the ones Fender couldn't be arsed with. If you look closely at some of the Masterbuilt Custom Shop basses, the screw holes are quite exquisite. God is in the details.

 

And if you think drilling a few simple holes is easy, wait until you need them drilling in your own head. Then tell me how easy it is.

[Agent 00Soul]

On 18/10/2022 at 18:00, MungoBass said:

 

What a great idea that could be! Imagine having a selection to chose from....

 

Select Body - Ash, Alder etc

Seect Shape - Jazz, P or PJ etc

Select Colour - .....

Select Pickguard - .........

Select Neck - Maple or Roasted Maple etc

Select Fingerboard - Rosewood, Maple etc

Select Radius - 7.25, 9.5, 12, compound etc

Etc etc....

 

It all comes in a box for you to put together!

You end up building your own custom bass.....to your own specifications....😁😁😁

 

 

 

I want an Ikea-style instruction manual with the two blobby assembly guys and no words!

 

I'm actually of two minds about this.  On one hand, ashtrays are more authentically vintage - which is no doubt why they are included in the case unmounted - but the fact remains that the vast majority of players since the 1950s have removed theirs because they hinder play - which is also no doubt why they are included unmounted.  I like the idea of having the option to install them, but I don't trust myself to drill the holes properly.  So I could really mess up the aesthetics of a beautifully finished instrument. And if I ever decided to take the ashtrays off, the screw holes that I added will now be visible.  But at the same time, pre-drilled holes would also mess up those same aesthetics if they were never used to install the ash trays.

 

If it were a Doctor Who episode, it would be called "The AV II Paradox".

 

 

Edited November 22, 2022 by Agent 00Soul

[Velarian]

I was watching a video about the 54 p-bass and noticed that the bridge saddles look like they’re made from some sort of composite material. Presumably this authentic to the period?

 

Anyone know what this is?

 

I’m guessing it wasn’t up to much and later versions were replaced with steel saddles. 
 

 

[Clarky]

Originally Fender used bakelite saddles, I believe

[Reggaebass]

According to my book the earliest saddles were made from pressed fibres ,and steel saddles replaced them in 1954, also the bass serial number was stamped on the early bridge plate 

[MungoBass]

2 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

According to my book the earliest saddles were made from pressed fibres ,and steel saddles replaced them in 1954, also the bass serial number was stamped on the early bridge plate 

The ‘bible’ strikes again! 🤣

[Reggaebass]

1 minute ago, MungoBass said:

The ‘bible’ strikes again! 🤣

It’s the only book I’ve memorised 😁

[Velarian]

33 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

According to my book the earliest saddles were made from pressed fibres ,and steel saddles replaced them in 1954, also the bass serial number was stamped on the early bridge plate 

Pressed fibres. That looks like it could be the stuff used in the picture. It doesn’t strike me as being a particularly robust material, especially when thinking about how the height adjustment screws might interact with it. Given that the bass is a 1954 reissue and steel saddles were introduced the same year, it’s strange that Fender did not use steel in this version as it would still have been historically accurate. 

[Clarky]

[Reggaebass]

20 minutes ago, Velarian said:

Pressed fibres. That looks like it could be the stuff used in the picture. It doesn’t strike me as being a particularly robust material, especially when thinking about how the height adjustment screws might interact with it. Given that the bass is a 1954 reissue and steel saddles were introduced the same year, it’s strange that Fender did not use steel in this version as it would still have been historically accurate. 

Perhaps 54 was the transition time 

[Clarky]

Interesting how the original saddles clearly were not fit for purpose from the picture above. So its a bit surprising that Fender should seek to replicate, even if for authenticity

Edited October 22, 2022 by Clarky

[SurroundedByManatees]

Maybe they kinda look the same, but the modern replica might be a more solid material. When looking at the above pic, it would be remarkable if Fender really delivered a bass with that unsuitable quality saddles.

[BassAgent]

I got the 54 in for reviewing for De Bassist (Dutch Bass magazine), very excited. It certainly looks the part.

[MungoBass]

1 hour ago, BassAgent said:

I got the 54 in for reviewing for De Bassist (Dutch Bass magazine), very excited. It certainly looks the part.

 

I will be interested to hear your thoughts!

[Velarian]

2 hours ago, BassAgent said:

I got the 54 in for reviewing for De Bassist (Dutch Bass magazine), very excited. It certainly looks the part.

Those bridge saddles still trouble me. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on how suitable they are. 

[Guest]

Here's a report on TB from a couple of days ago:

 

I'll go next.

 

I have a blonde '54 Precision weighing in at 7.9 lbs [3.6kg]

 

The quality of workmanship is truly outstanding. I used a fret rocker up and down the fretboard, and couldn't find any wobbles. As a matter of fact, I have the relief set at .08" [2.0mm] with a string height of 4/64" [1.6mm] and it plays like a dream. No buzzing or dead spots.

 

First fret  = .95" [24.1mm] Twelfth fret = 1.0" [25.4mm] Thick, but actually very comfortable to play.

 

Pickup = 6.28K. Correct vintage Formvar wire. Output seems a bit low, so crank up the amp. The resistor on the tone pot, although vintage correct, does affect the volume.

 

I tried some real Bakelite saddles with no appreciable sonic difference, so I'm keeping the Fender saddles. I am curious to compare brass saddles.

 

Intonation is not a problem. The D and G strings intonate quite nicely. The E and A strings were not bad, but I went with correct intonation on the A string, leaving the E a bit off. I don't play high up on the E string anyway.

 

Fender has really stepped it up with the American Vintage II series. If my bass is repesentative of the whole line, they have themselves a winner.

[MungoBass]

58 minutes ago, Ricky Rioli said:

Here's a report on TB from a couple of days ago:

 

I'll go next.

 

I have a blonde '54 Precision weighing in at 7.9 lbs [3.6kg]

 

 

What a great weight!

[Old Horse Murphy]

7 hours ago, Ricky Rioli said:

Here's a report on TB from a couple of days ago:

 

I'll go next.

 

I have a blonde '54 Precision weighing in at 7.9 lbs [3.6kg]

 

The quality of workmanship is truly outstanding. I used a fret rocker up and down the fretboard, and couldn't find any wobbles. As a matter of fact, I have the relief set at .08" [2.0mm] with a string height of 4/64" [1.6mm] and it plays like a dream. No buzzing or dead spots.

 

First fret  = .95" [24.1mm] Twelfth fret = 1.0" [25.4mm] Thick, but actually very comfortable to play.

 

Pickup = 6.28K. Correct vintage Formvar wire. Output seems a bit low, so crank up the amp. The resistor on the tone pot, although vintage correct, does affect the volume.

 

I tried some real Bakelite saddles with no appreciable sonic difference, so I'm keeping the Fender saddles. I am curious to compare brass saddles.

 

Intonation is not a problem. The D and G strings intonate quite nicely. The E and A strings were not bad, but I went with correct intonation on the A string, leaving the E a bit off. I don't play high up on the E string anyway.

 

Fender has really stepped it up with the American Vintage II series. If my bass is repesentative of the whole line, they have themselves a winner.

That pretty-much sums up my own experience with the 54 (except mine is in Sunburst). 
 

Interestingly enough mine weighs the same too. 

[Old Horse Murphy]

Not sure to go the whole Sting with this and keep the pickguard off. Well, it's got to be easier than tantric sex...less screws for a start. 
 

 

[PaulThePlug]

^ Luverly...

[Lozz196]

29 minutes ago, PaulThePlug said:

^ Luverly...

What he said

[Ander87]

On 13/10/2022 at 08:31, tayste_2000 said:

 

I could watch Sean Hurley play for hours

 

this is the most Commerford I’ve seen Sean play! What a guy!

[BassAgent]

I translated my review!
 

The design of this bass is almost seventy years old. In fact, if you count its predecessor too (and the difference between those two is marginal) it’s óver seventy years ago Leo Fender released his Fender Precision Bass design, and almost three quarters of a century later it’s still a big hit. But if you look at this particular bass closely, it’s basically a very expensive wooden board with strings, right?

 

The American Vintage series is a series that Fender has been making for many years now, under different names, but always with reissues of a particular iconic year. They make instruments that should look and feel like they were built forty, fifty or sixty years ago. This Precision is no exception. The classic single coil pickup (replaced in 1957 by the famous split coil), a one piece maple neck and not much else on it. Still this design has a certain something. It is of course a classic design, like the Fiat Panda or a Chesterfield couch, but apart from that, it’s a very balanced design that above all is supposed to be functional and simple.

 

Right, enough nostalgia about days of the past. This is a bass that was designed a long time ago, but this particular instrument is brand new and has to conform itself to the demands of the modern day and age. Is this almost 2500 costing bass fit for today’s stage? Well, for a start you have to have pretty big hands, especially on the left. The neck isn’t just made from one piece of maple, it feels like Fender has used an entire maple tree for it. It improves the stability of course, but it’s going to be a (literal) handful for people with small hands, or for those who are used to thinner necks. Let’s just call it an acquired taste.

 

Apart from the chunky neck the first thing that strikes me is the way this bass is built: it’s flawless. The see-through blond finish is perfect, the frets are great, the hardware works excellently (warning: the tuners turn the other way!) and the setup from the factory is also very comfortable. There are periods in Fender history where the quality control was so-so, but those days are long gone and this bass is a perfect example of that. This bass is equipped with flatwound strings as standard, which I think is absolutely required: that’s the way it was designed, that’s the way it’s supposed to be. Funny feature too: on the original basses from 1954, the bridge saddles were made of some kind of pressed fiber as a successor of bakelite, and on this reissue Fender has put “fiber” saddles too. No clue as to what this fiber consists of, but it certainly looks the part.

 

A Precision bass must sound like “grunt”. Well, this bass certainly does that. It doesn’t matter which amp you use, “grunt” is what you get. Most people know the classic grunt from a split coil Precision like on old Motown records, but this grunt is different. It has less low end and it sounds a bit rougher, possibly partly because of the higher output than a split coil Precision. It feels and sounds like there’s already a bit of overdrive on your sound. Is that an issue? Not at all, on the contrary: you get this rootsy kind of sound that fits perfectly with the image of this bass.

 

Let’s go back to that neck. As said, it’s pretty chunky. I don’t want to imply that that makes it uncomfortable to play, not at all. Playing this bass for an hour is an absolute joy. The balance is great, the neck isn’t very inviting to play fast licks (but let’s be honest: with a sound and feel like this, you don’t want to play fast anyway) and before you know it you’ve been playing the entire Motown and Stax repertoire. And when you’re finished doing that, grab your pick and play all Carol Kaye songs you know.

 

But it’s 2022 now and I feel I’m getting nostalgic again. So out with the old, in with the new! Dua Lipa, Harry Styles, Tame Impala, the whole shebang. And lo and behold, even with the most recent and modern music, this bass shines. A nice, balanced sound with which you can do anything you like. Well, as long as it contains “grunt”.

 

So yes, this is a wooden board with strings. And that’s exactly what makes it successful: you can do everything with it, because it doesn’t force you to do anything in a specific genre. A Precision always fits, and this American Vintage Precision is no exception. It isn’t cheap, but you could do all your gigs with it. As long as it contains “grunt”.

Edited November 17, 2022 by BassAgent

[Guest]

What a lovely bit of writing, I enjoyed that very much 😊