Jaydee Basses

[BB3000S]

[quote name='purpleblob' post='589094' date='Sep 3 2009, 09:48 PM']I blame you all ! I've just put a deposit down/ordered a Jaydee Mark King III.[/quote]
Congratulations! I see myself heading down the jaydee road eventually, in large part thanks to this thread and the jaydee porn one.

[quote name='Mowac' post='585189' date='Aug 30 2009, 05:11 PM']The funk groove is pretty much for looks. Other bass manufacturers have there own variation of that design. The Status MKII has what they call a "Slap Ramp" in which the end of the neck tapers down to the body of the bass at the last fret. The Jaydee's purpose is to be a recessed area so that you don't grind away at the finish when popping and it allows more room for the index finger to get between the string and body. IMHO John Diggins should have made this wider than it is.

As far as weight, The Jaydee Series 1 weighs in at 12 pounds,4 oz. It's a beast. I'm 6'1" tall and so a bass this size looks great hanging on me. Mark King is only 5',7" and that is why his Jaydees looked bigger on him. I have seen some very impressive Roadies that were in a Series 1 size and looked remarkable. The only way a Fender would come close to the weight of a Series 1 Jaydee is if the Fender body was made of ash. I couldn't imagine a Jaydee Series 1 made from ash. I'd be like ,"My back!....I've pulled my back!" [/quote]
Oh my, 12 lbs is pretty hefty. I have two Fender J's in ash that weigh in at 11 lbs, and they do get heavy after a wile standing.

My ideal bass weight is 9-10 lbs, would a Seriess II/III be likely to land in that region? Then again, weight isn't a real dealbreaker - at 1.88m I'm a pretty big guy too so I wouldn't want a really small bass body either. How does the Series III body compare to a classic Alembic for instance?

Is sound characteristics very different between the three series?

[Mowac]

[quote name='BB3000S' post='590123' date='Sep 4 2009, 03:18 PM']Congratulations! I see myself heading down the jaydee road eventually, in large part thanks to this thread and the jaydee porn one.


Oh my, 12 lbs is pretty hefty. I have two Fender J's in ash that weigh in at 11 lbs, and they do get heavy after a wile standing.

My ideal bass weight is 9-10 lbs, would a Seriess II/III be likely to land in that region? Then again, weight isn't a real dealbreaker - at 1.88m I'm a pretty big guy too so I wouldn't want a really small bass body either. How does the Series III body compare to a classic Alembic for instance?

Is sound characteristics very different between the three series?[/quote]
A series III is probably smaller than an Alembic. I've never owned an Alembic, however, the Doc may know the difference. I would think that the sound qualities are different because of the woods invlolved, the electronics, and your playing style. The type of woods involved really determines how a bass will sound. I like Fender-type jazz basses made out of ash as that is an excellent wood for good tone and sustain. I've got this bass I won on ebay from what used to be called R.A.L basses in the U.S.(no longer in buisiness) for 60 GBP. I thought it was going to be a mediocre bass. Cheap price, cheap bass, right? I couldn't have been more wrong. This thing was built solid as a tank! It was built out of ash with above average quality hardware and parts. The neck had a P-bass string spacing at the nut but with a J-bass headstock. I couldn't believe that a passive bass could sound this solid with awesome sustain and killer tone. It sounded better than my other Fender that had high-end upgrades that I made. I'll post a pic of it and make a video with it at a later date. I also won another bass exactly like it from a bloke that lived 25 miles from me off Ebay for about 55 GBP! I got two identical great basses for around 122 GBP.

[Mowac]

:brow: [quote name='doctor_of_the_bass' post='584878' date='Aug 29 2009, 08:28 PM']Hallo!

The Mark King and Roadie models (plus the Session, Studio and Video basses) are/were available in three different body sizes. The Series I is the biggest, the Series II is a slimmer shape (still quite `long' in the body) and the Series III is a scaled down Series I. The GA24 models are a different shape again. All the basses share the same electronics and pickups apart of course from the Roadies which are available as either one or two p/up passive or active models, and of course, special order instruments.

Pickup placement - the Series I basses had the neck p/up very close to the end of the neck. The Series II Mark King basses (not the Roadie model) normally had the `funk groove' between the end of the neck and the front p/up - hence the p/ups were more closely spaced than the Series I. However, there are a number of Series II MK models out there that dont have the funk groove! There are also some Series II models with the same p/up spacing as the Series I models! Confusing eh!?

The Series III shape did not have the groove and the front p/up was further away from the end of the neck (similar to the Series II). Bryan (Mowac) has got a pic of three of his JD basses together, one being a white Series III bodied Roadie, plus his Classic Series I and MK Series II - can you post it here mate? You will then be able to see the differences!

Meant to say, you could have the following Roadie models - the I and II in this case refers to one or two pickups:

Series I, II or III body size: Roadie I - 1 pickup passive, Roadie II - 2 p/up passive, Roadie IA - 1 p/up active EQ, Roadie IIA - 2 p/up active EQ. All availalbe fretted or fretless and he has built 5 string versions (I had a fretless 5 string with a Series I body).

Here's some pics from the net of the three body sizes:

Series I in pearl pink:


Series II with funk groove. Note the narrower body width - the top cutaway is much narrower than the Series I


Series III in pearl blue - scaled down version of the Series I




Nick[/quote]

Nick,

Just a thought about how to determine the difference between the Series II and Series III's. If the string anchors are to the left of the XLR jack, It's a Series III, if it's right of the XLR jack, then it's a Series II. At least that is how I figured it out. My white Roadie is practically a Series III made from solid mahoghany. I'm seriously thinking about installing an exact XLR jack on my Roadie just to throw people off.

Bryan (Mowac)

Edited September 4, 2009 by Mowac

[BB3000S]

[quote name='Mowac' post='590156' date='Sep 4 2009, 10:11 PM']A series III is probably smaller than an Alembic. I've never owned an Alembic, however, the Doc may know the difference. I would think that the sound qualities are different because of the woods invlolved, the electronics, and your playing style. The type of woods involved really determines how a bass will sound. I like Fender-type jazz basses made out of ash as that is an excellent wood for good tone and sustain. I've got this bass I won on ebay from what used to be called R.A.L basses in the U.S.(no longer in buisiness) for 60 GBP. I thought it was going to be a mediocre bass. Cheap price, cheap bass, right? I couldn't have been more wrong. This thing was built solid as a tank! It was built out of ash with above average quality hardware and parts. The neck had a P-bass string spacing at the nut but with a J-bass headstock. I couldn't believe that a passive bass could sound this solid with awesome sustain and killer tone. It sounded better than my other Fender that had high-end upgrades that I made. I'll post a pic of it and make a video with it at a later date. I also won another bass exactly like it from a bloke that lived 25 miles from me off Ebay for about 55 GBP! I got two identical great basses for around 122 GBP.[/quote]
Sounds like you struck gold with the R.A.L. basses there! Never heard of them, would be cool to see and hear yours.

W.r.t. sound qualities I was thinking of the Jaydee series I, II and III vs each other (not Alembic). Are those three models really wildly different soundwise? Agree that ash, though on the heavier side, is a great wood for bodies. At the moment my preference is 1) Mahogany, 2) Ash, 3) Alder.

[4000]

[quote name='BB3000S' post='590123' date='Sep 4 2009, 08:18 PM']Congratulations! I see myself heading down the jaydee road eventually, in large part thanks to this thread and the jaydee porn one.


Oh my, 12 lbs is pretty hefty. I have two Fender J's in ash that weigh in at 11 lbs, and they do get heavy after a wile standing.

My ideal bass weight is 9-10 lbs, would a Seriess II/III be likely to land in that region? Then again, weight isn't a real dealbreaker - at 1.88m I'm a pretty big guy too so I wouldn't want a really small bass body either. How does the Series III body compare to a classic Alembic for instance?[/quote]

I've spoken to John about this in the past and he can make the bass out of a lighter wood (e.g. swamp ash) and he can also hollow the wings out at no extra charge. In addition, the 2 and 3 have smaller bodies than the 1. One day I hope to get one done that comes in no more (and hopefully less) than 9lbs. I've played one or two lightish Series 2s, but my Series 1 and 2 both weighed at least 12lbs.

[Mowac]

Here's that Jaydee Series III that is in the U.S. that is once again on Ebay. The price isn't all that bad. It's missing the pickup selector knob and one of the bridge saddles. No dings that I could see from the photos. Link is below if anyone is interested. It is definately a good candidate for anyone that cares to have a Jaydee refurbed instead having a new one built and at half the price of a new one. A worthy investment IMO.

[url="http://cgi.ebay.com/Jaydee-Mark-King-II-Supernatural-bass-Case-Jay-Dee-JD_W0QQitemZ270452144930QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar?hash=item3ef8343b22&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14"]http://cgi.ebay.com/Jaydee-Mark-King-II-Su...id=p3286.c0.m14[/url]

Edited September 6, 2009 by Mowac

[Kiwi]

I've owned both and I think Jaydees and Alembics are worlds apart in terms of tone. The Jaydees tend to have more prominent mid range and less thunderous low end (although the S2000 pickups are warmer to some extent). Alembics are almost the opposite, relatively flat in response. Although the maple necked/faced models are punchier than other Alembics in my limited experience.

[4000]

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='591192' date='Sep 6 2009, 08:43 AM']I've owned both and I think Jaydees and Alembics are worlds apart in terms of tone. The Jaydees tend to have more prominent mid range and less thunderous low end (although the S2000 pickups are warmer to some extent). Alembics are almost the opposite, relatively flat in response. Although the maple necked/faced models are punchier than other Alembics in my limited experience.[/quote]

I would tend to agree, IME they sound very little like each other. Indeed if you take Mark King as an example, his Jaydee sound and his Alembic sound were very different.

[BB3000S]

How about Jaydee series I, II and III - how do they compare sonically?

[4000]

My 1 & 2 sounded pretty different, but they had different neck construction (the 1 was IIRC mainly maple with walnut laminates, whereas IIRC the 2 was mainly walnut/mahogany with maple lams; of course the pickup placement is different too. I much preferred the sound of the 2, but YMMV.

[Mowac]

[quote name='BB3000S' post='591369' date='Sep 6 2009, 08:21 AM']How about Jaydee series I, II and III - how do they compare sonically?[/quote]
The Series 1 has a kind of upper-mid range sound(passive mode) with more of a bottom end in the neck pickup setting becasue the pickup is closest to the neck socket. This area needs some space to play with IMO like on the Series II and III models between the neck pickup and the neck. In other words, when you are slapping on a Series 1, you can't help but to slap right on top of the neck pickup. Mark King actually slapped his Jaydees over the end of the fingerboard. The Series II and III models are a tad less boomy on the low end because the neck pickup is moved back from the neck socket ,sound wise, that's the only difference that I can tell from the Series 1. The Roadie has a higher midrange sound from the Series I, II, and III models because it is constructed in solid mahoghany. Different woods produce different sounds in general. Ash has the best sound in my opinion because it's a heavier wood with more resonance and sustain, however, if a Jaydee that already clocks in at over 12 pounds were made of ash, it would probably weigh almost 20 pounds!....Ouch! I don't know if that helped with your question at all, perhaps the Doc can shed more light on the subject. I just know from my own experience because I own a Series I, II, and a Roadie. I e-mailed John Diggins once about Mark King's EQ setting on his Jaydee and he said that he would have the low and treble settings on full and the mid-range setting at center. Also if you've noticed Mark King's bass amp settings as on his Trace Elliots and Ashdowns, the sliders aren't in the traditional 'V' pattern but more of an 'm' pattern. Check that out.

Edited September 6, 2009 by Mowac

[doctor_of_the_bass]

Hallo

The difference in tone between the different body sizes is pretty small, I would say, since the pickups and electronics are all the same - however, as Mowac has already noted, the pickup placement does have an influence espec. on the sound of the Series I models (or those basses, Series II or III which have the Series I pickup spacing). Every JD I've ever had (probably over 12 basses over the years) has had that classic tone which can't be duplicated on any other instrument - the body wood/neck laminates will influence the tone to a point (the standard mahogany, maple and walnut necked models will sound slightly warmer than the maple/walnut necks) but the overall tone comes from the circuitry and p/ups. The Roadies had a warmer tone due to the overall mahogany construction but the hallmark JD tone is still very evident! The newer pickups sound different again and as Kiwi notes, the JDs and Alembics are very different beasts tonewise! My Classic could almost emulate an Alembic (the Classic having coil tappable p/ups) but again, its not the same!

[BB3000S]

Thanks guys, that's really helpful.
A Series I (for looks) with the neck pickup in the Series II/III position would probably be my first shot. If it could weigh in at max 11 lbs!
When I have a reasonable amount of funds I'll email John for sure, he seems to be a great guy.

When I close my eyes I see a pearl blue Jaydee with bound head, matching headstock and electric blue LED's... :wub:

cheers // Matt

Edited September 6, 2009 by BB3000S

[doctor_of_the_bass]

[quote name='BB3000S' post='591652' date='Sep 6 2009, 08:22 PM']Thanks guys, that's really helpful.
A Series I (for looks) with the neck pickup in the Series II/III position would probably be my first shot. If it could weigh in at max 11 lbs!
When I have a reasonable amount of funds I'll email John for sure, he seems to be a great guy.

When I close my eyes I see a pearl blue Jaydee with bound head, matching headstock and electric blue LED's... :wub:

cheers // Matt[/quote]

There have been Series I models made with the Series II p/up spacing! Will see if I can find you a pic! I love the pearl colours - my GA was ordered by a chap who wanted the pink to resemble that of MKs pearl pink JD under bright studio lighting (the pearl pink being more of a flamingo or coral pink shade, like Mowacs!). Pearl blue is stunning, especially with the maple/walnut body stringers.

[doctor_of_the_bass]

Heres a link to such a bass!

[url="http://www.jaydeeguitars.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=1042&g2_serialNumber=4"]http://www.jaydeeguitars.com/gallery2/main..._serialNumber=4[/url]

Just to say, there are TWO Jaydee websites out there:

[url="http://www.jaydeeguitars.com"]http://www.jaydeeguitars.com[/url] - This is NOT the official site!!! It was once but is not linked with the company.

[url="http://www.jaydeecustomguitars.co.uk"]http://www.jaydeecustomguitars.co.uk[/url] - This IS the official site!

[Mowac]

According to the current Jaydee U.K. site. The wait time for a new order is from a year to 16 months because as the Doc stated, John is currently on over 40 orders at this time.

Edited September 6, 2009 by Mowac

[AndyTravis]

I've recently got my hands on a Roadie IIA from 1987, tobacco burst.

The main power L.E.D. was intermittant after i changed the batteries, so I E-mailed the guys at Jaydee for advice.

Considering the bass is 22 years old, and i didn't buy it from them, they were great.

Andy Diggins e-mailed me straight away with a schematic for fitting a replacement, full of advice, he then offered to fit it for me, as i wasn't 1000% confident, for next to nothing.

He then contcted me to say newer Duracells don't get on with the older battery connectors, so there was no fault with the bass.

He didn't charge me for anything other than the shipping!

The bass is a winner, a boyhood dream, it sounds just like Mark King on the Level 42 Live At Wembley 1986 DVD, without being as expensive as the MK model. But it sounds like so much more, and plays like the b*llocks, a great bass.

I think after all the service, and the fact the bass is a revalation for my playing, i may just start planning my custom order.

Heavilly recommended!

[doctor_of_the_bass]

[quote name='AndyTravis' post='597784' date='Sep 13 2009, 10:22 PM']I've recently got my hands on a Roadie IIA from 1987, tobacco burst.

The main power L.E.D. was intermittant after i changed the batteries, so I E-mailed the guys at Jaydee for advice.

Considering the bass is 22 years old, and i didn't buy it from them, they were great.

Andy Diggins e-mailed me straight away with a schematic for fitting a replacement, full of advice, he then offered to fit it for me, as i wasn't 1000% confident, for next to nothing.

He then contcted me to say newer Duracells don't get on with the older battery connectors, so there was no fault with the bass.

He didn't charge me for anything other than the shipping!

The bass is a winner, a boyhood dream, it sounds just like Mark King on the Level 42 Live At Wembley 1986 DVD, without being as expensive as the MK model. But it sounds like so much more, and plays like the b*llocks, a great bass.

I think after all the service, and the fact the bass is a revalation for my playing, i may just start planning my custom order.

Heavilly recommended![/quote]

Great stuff! If you get chance to get down to Birmingham, nip to see the lads - the workshop is quite easy to find. I used to own the red JD on Live at Wembley - awesome basses!

Cheers

Nick

[AndyTravis]

Just as a bit of proof, here are a few pics.

The previous owner did a few messy patch ups on the paint and added/removed a thumbrest. It plays amazingly well though.

[doctor_of_the_bass]

[quote name='AndyTravis' post='597873' date='Sep 14 2009, 12:09 AM']Just as a bit of proof, here are a few pics.

The previous owner did a few messy patch ups on the paint and added/removed a thumbrest. It plays amazingly well though.[/quote]

Nice Roadie! Where did you find it?

Nick

[AndyTravis]

Spotted it in Johnny Roadhouse Manchester.

I think next time i'll go for a custom order, A Mark King Classic with the Saturn Inlays, possibly with fancier woods.

The Custom order Supernatural on the 1st page is awesome.

[Sonic_Groove]

[quote name='AndyTravis' post='598179' date='Sep 14 2009, 01:45 PM']Spotted it in Johnny Roadhouse Manchester.

I think next time i'll go for a custom order, A Mark King Classic with the Saturn Inlays, possibly with fancier woods.

The Custom order Supernatural on the 1st page is awesome.[/quote]

Well Done Andy:

You just beat me to this I was going to go back & look at it as a companion to my Supernatural MK (shop was too busy on the Saturday for me!) – Then it was gone

Nice Bass

B

[AndyTravis]

Haha, but you have the Mark King one, it'll be a few years before i get my mits on one of them - Does anyone ever sell them?!?!?

I wish the previous owner hadn't put a thumbrest between the two pickups - In the shop there was a Union Jack Sticker over the 2 screw holes.

Also, someone has done a few shoddy patches of DIY refin around the edge.

I am going to e-mail John Diggins and see What he can do about a partial refin.

Thing is it plays and sounds fantastic, and i may well just leave it as it is.

If i order one, it will be a Mark King Supernatural, But i'd probably get a Flame Maple Cap on each 'wing' and have a nice aqua burst or something.I want the Mark King connection, with its own twist, I'll see, if i think i can get rid of a couple of basses first. I'll keep that one pristine and use the roadie as my workhorse Jaydee.

I'm not the biggest fan of the Status Kingbass 1 or 2, and I don't want to remortgage to buy an Alembic. Plus, i'm so impressed with the help Andy at Jaydee gave me, i doubt i'd even go anywhere else.

[doctor_of_the_bass]

[quote name='AndyTravis' post='598245' date='Sep 14 2009, 02:56 PM']If i order one, it will be a Mark King Supernatural, But i'd probably get a Flame Maple Cap on each 'wing' and have a nice aqua burst or something.I want the Mark King connection, with its own twist, I'll see, if i think i can get rid of a couple of basses first. I'll keep that one pristine and use the roadie as my workhorse Jaydee.[/quote]

Do you mean something like this old girl...



Its being refinished in the same red as the bass featured on the first page of the JD website - it should be done soon - can't wait to get it back!

[AndyTravis]

Er...Yeah, hahah, pretty much that bass!

Maybe a bit more Blue than the green. And i was thinking a Tight Flame, rather than a quilt, kind of like a like a Gibson Les Paul.

That really is a nice thing. I would love the 'Classic' Red, but something like that really has it's own style.

Probably a smart idea to refinish to your current tastes rather than join the back of the queue for another one.

Just out of intererst, i see a couple of extra mini toggles, one for L.E.D.s on/off i'd assume, what to they all do?