Fender 50's Precision Bass

My bass is a 2006 Mexican built 50's bass in Black and originally with a horrible Gold aluminium pick guard (which was quickly replaced with a Fender Black guard)The neck is slim and fast and the bass is far lighter than my mid 70's USA bass, It has all the features that a Precision bass should have and does everything a Precision bass should do

With the standard pickup, the bass compared fairly well with my USA precision, but it definately lacked something (maybe warmth, maybe a little depth)over the American bass, I have since fitted a Lindy Fralin pickup, the bass now totally blows away the American bass for that classic Precision sound, I would have to say that this is probably the best upgrade you could carry out on a Precision bass, these pickups are every bit as good as people say they are!

Right heres the real gen on the bass, It was pointed out to me in a local music shop by the owner, I wasn't in the slightest bit interested, I hated the Black/Gold combination, I really wasn't looking for another bass and finally how could a Mexican bass even start to compare to my USA bass, He told me how good he thought it was and welcomed my opinion, reluctantly I picked it up and fould sitting in my hands the best feeling Precision bass I had ever held, the weight was perfect, the factory set up...perfect, everything about the bass (other than the pick guard) was perfect so perfect that I was not prepared to go away think about it and come back to find that it had gone and there and then I paid just over ??500 for it.
Now 2 years down the line the bass is the automatic choice for both stage and recording duties with the American bass long since retired to its case.
The only area of the bass that I still don't like are the reverse tuners, I found them stiff when I brought the bass and time has not improved things, the bass holds tune perfectly but the tuners and not a patch on the tuners fitted to my American bass, I would swap them but that would leave unsightly holes in the headstock.

The bass is totally without issue, no pops no crackle, nothing has needed adjusting or tightening. I am quite happy to play live or record with just the one bass as I am totally confident the bass will not let me down in any way

Two days after I brought the bass, I plugged it in and the sound was distorted, I checked both amp and leads and confirmed that it was definately the bass that was at fault, I returned it to the dealer who promptly sent it back to Fender UK, the bass was returned to me 3 days later in full working order as it has remained ever since.
I still dont know what the fault actually was but it was repaired quickly and effectively and most importantly at the first attempt

I have been playing for over 25 years now and have owned many basses over the years and have always struggled to find basses that I really liked, I had the pleasure of owning a 1966 Precision for a number of years which was a wonderful bass but when I cut back on band duties I was pursuaded to let it go (something I deeply regretted until I got this bass)If the bass was lost or stolen? (once I had stopped wailing) I would be straight to the local dealer ordering another (and another Black pickguard)and just hoping that the replacement was as good as the original.
The bass really is that good, suprisingly good, I am amazed how much better it is than my American bass, yes the American bass has aged beautifully and really looks the part but it weighs a ton, and was so badly but together its hard to believe Fender dared sell it, and yet day by day it is becoming more and more valuable! If I had to sell one?...... Genuine mid 70's Precision for sale.....any takers

I was looking (obsessing) for a new bass, making constant runs to guitar center (ugh!) and scouring the internet, including Harmony Central like mad.. I've always been a fender guy when it came to bass and the bass sound, they just feel right and sound right... at guitar center, the bass I just couldn't put down was the Geddy Lee, but I've always loved the P Bass for it's sound and simplicity. So I pulled a 57' Reissue off of the wall, it played ok, but not $1500+ ok... Due to the good reviews and tight budget (and my nack for always wanting to mess with stuff) I was curious about the 50's bass, could it be just as good as the US 57' reissue? Or Better? I found a dent scratch model in the Fiesta Red, which was not my first choice, and turns out is actually like a pinkish orange (wimpy salmon haha!) but whatever, on Musicians Friend for only $523, I figured if I liked it, great, if not send it back. Since it was so cheap, I threw a Leo Quan bad ass II in there, $593 out the door... Arrived with gig back and let me tell you, if you have a chance to pick up a dent and scratch, do it, you'll save cash and there wasn't a single dent or scratch, and I figured even if there were it only adds character... but there weren't, so I'll add my own. This is a Fender P-Bass, solid as a rock, simple and Beautiful. I'm adding several upgrades to soup it up quite a bit, but out of the box, great guitar.

Like I said, out of the box, it was great... but I was eager to throw that bridge on there, also put some Rotosound Swingbass' on... Adjusted the saddles and set the intonation and BOOM! This mother is a dream! I'm installing a black pickguard from Mighty Mite because I just don't dig the aluminum pickguard all so much, wondering though if that would effent the sound... probably for the better. But the last upgrade will be a set of DiMarzio's... Actually, went to Guitar center yesterday and played the Geddy again and my bass kills it, totally love my neck and just the fatness I get from this bass, I love my 50's Bass!

Compared to the standard mexican fenders, this guitar is no comparison. You can tell they took extra care putting this together. In fact, It appears just as or even more well built than the American 57'RI I played at GC you just don't get that cool little thumb thingy... If you own an American 57' reissue, I'm not knocking you, I just don't have the extra $1000 dollars, nor could I find a reason to spend what could be spent on a killer rig on the same guitar just because it's built in the states... this guitar is one of the best P- Basses I've ever played, but I do accredit a lot of that to the Leo Quan, they make the instrument play and feel like silk... that and the awesome neck on this puppy, rock hard maple goodness.

This thing was built for live playing, it's a P Bass... Hardware is great, may, replace the tuners someday, but we'll see. Can't wait for the finish to start wearing actually... I wouldn't gig without a backup just because thats foolish anyways, but the simplicity is the beauty of the P Bass, if you had to, you could with this. With mild maintenance, this will last forever...

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Been playing guitar for 10 years, bass 3 years. I've had a Schecter Model T and a Fender Geddy Lee... This outplays them both, totally happy with this purchase. I was wary about buying a Mex Fender, but now I'm completely stoked, I have an awesome bass. Check these out. Would definitely purchase another, Sunburst next time though.

Made in mexico vintage 57 precision sunburst. Bought this bass new off of ebay. The fit and finish was perfect right out of the box. It has a maple neck passive electronics, I did change the pups to regular fenders but stock pups were pretty good. With some light twicking bass sounds fantastic. Forget about talk of bad quality with mexican fenders, I've played both in my 30 plus years of playing and there is not much difference between the two, go with what you can afford.

This bass has the nice precision sound, nice round and full thru a fender 100 and a crate 160. With the gold pickguard and two tone sunburst it looks fantistic on stage, lot of compliments.

Afte changeing out pickups, a little adjustment to get the right sound its a keeper. This 57 copy is right on the money, they did a great job bringing this back to life, for a lot less green than the original.

This thing is built like a tank. I have an american jazz that stays in the case, I'm afraid it will get scratched. Not worried about this baby, this finish is hard as a rock. I believe this will hold up for a long time. I never take a backup, passave no worries.

Have not delt with warrenty service, don't think I will need to, fender builds good products.

Playing for over 30 years and if stolen would not hesitate to buy another one. I'm old school so I would go back to fender, even though I'v owned ibenez gibsons and several others I still like the fender jazz and precisions.

This is Fender's '50s Precision, made in Mexico with a neck dated October 2006. It is a reasonable replica of the mid 1957-mid 1959 P bass, with four strings, an alder body, one-piece maple neck, gold-anodized aluminum pickguard and a split-coil pickup. 20 frets, volume and tone controls. contoured body, 34" scale; the neck is the 7-1/4" radius, with a 1-5/8" nut.

The finish is "Fiesta Red" on which George Fullerton reportedly spent a day at a paint store local to the Fender factory. In my opinion, he should have stopped before the paint fumes got to him. The color is a sort of wimpy salmon or orange bubble gum, but is finished nicely with gloss (polyurethane, not vintage lacquer). The neck is finished in gloss, fretboard and all, just like the old Fenders.

Open tuners that turn backward, nicely done nut, standard top-loading 4-saddle bridge. It came with a gigbag, but I already had a '70s Fender hard case, so I passed on the bag.

Not a lot of features, which is fine. Basses don't need no stinkin' features.

I ended up paying $250 cash, plus two mutt basses and a guitar in trade. They currently go go $630.

This is the bass sound we all grew up with. It has that P split-coil midrange presence that always makes it punchy. My other favorite 2 basses, a Tribute L2000 and a Fender '51 P reissue, are killer instruments but this one has that sound. It is clear and present wherever you play on the neck. Deep bottom, clangy high end, it makes me play better because I can hear every note so clearly.

The first night I took it to rehearsal, the band seemed to like it (bass players know what I mean: you only get noticed when you go out for a beer). The second night, when I walked up to our rehearsal space I could hear this tremendous, midrangy bass line coming through the door: when I walked in, the lead player had the P in his hands and a big grin on his face.


This bass is the real stuff. For some reason I've played Jazz basses all my life (OK, here's the reason: they were all borrowed from bassists who owned Jazz basses) and I didn't realize how sweet the classic P sound was until I got hold of one.

There is a lot of buzz going around about Mexican Fenders, but this one is nicely put together. The action out of the box was excellent, and every fits very well.

After I had it a couple of weeks the neck had to be adjusted: all the relief had disappeared, so I loosened up the truss rod about a quarter turn. This brings up one of the flaws of the original design (and, since it's a reissue, you can't fault the current Fender people): you have to take off the strings, remove the neck, adjust the truss rod, replace the neck, string it up to pitch, set the action at the bridge, all to find out if you've adjusted the neck properly. If you haven't, start all over again! We'll see how stable this neck is, but the Fender design is pretty good, in my experience. If you can do your own setup, this is not a problem in any case.

The neck is otherwise superb. It's the nicest playing bass I own.

The overall quality of the bass is very good. No problems noted, nor anticipated.

This is another canoe-paddle, designed for '50s-era C&W fightin' and dancin' clubs. You can play a song, bat off the beer bottles, and whack your way out of the hall with this baby. It's Fender solid. Let's face it, Leo wrote the book on durable instruments. When Gibson was making delicate arch-top guitars, Fender was providing ordinance. I'll use it without a backup, but, since I have 2 other excellent basses, one of them will probably wend its way to the stage.

No experience, but my local dealer treats everyone right.

Going on 37 years, man and boy, guitar, Dobro, harmonica, bass. I went over to the dark side, playing bass exclusively, a year ago, and have gone through 5 basses in that period. I own 4 guitar amps, 2 bass amps, and a total of 11 or 12 instruments, not counting harmonicas: pedal steel, Dobros, electric guitar, acoustic guitars, and basses, as well as a digital project studio.

Currently I play dance halls with a band that has morphed into a pop-CW band: lead and rhythm guitars,drummer, me on bass. We play about 4 weekends a month. We're all "mature" (youngest is the 51-yr-old female drummer) and have a wealth of material.

If it went away, I'd go right out and buy another one. The only thing I don't like is the finish, BUT it really glows under the stage lights, so I can live with that.

There's nothing a bass needs that this one doesn't have, with the single exception of a low B string, but that's another story.

2006, mexican-made. black polyester finish. tinted neck. reverse tuners. 1.75" nut width. nice gig bag. it's a p-bass. not a lot of features, but i wasn't after more anyway.

sounds great. put rotosound 45-105 flatwounds on it. suits the old p sound i was looking for. playing thru an ampeg b100r. not noisy. balanced sound. sounds like i was hoping it would. pickups do not need to be replaced.

set up was pretty good. neck had a bit more of a bow to it than i wanted. easy to flatten it out a bit. pickups were adjusted in a way that tilted like the radius of the fingerboard -fender seems to do that often. g string was a little loud. leveled them out. sounds balanced now. all 5 bridge screws were stripped when i went to check their tightness! built up holes with toothpick pieces. tight now. nut spacing is pretty off between the d and g strings. will prolly have it replaced. everything else seems pretty good.

it's a precision. it'll hold up live just fine. hardware is typical and fine. finish would ward off a nuclear bomb. vintage strap buttons are a little wimpy, but fine. i'm sure it's dependable. neck will prolly need seasonal adjustments like most any other neck. would gig without a backup.

dealing with fender would probably be akin to requesting an audience with the queen, but maybe i'm wrong. i can prolly handle any repairs it may need though. 1 yr warranty, i believe.

been playing bass off and on for many years. i'm primarily a drummer though, for about 25 years. i wish i could have tinkered with the bass before committing to it, but it'll prolly be fine. i might get it again if it were lost. maybe a vintage bass, maybe an american p. i love the vintage vibe of this bass. i wish it was a little more perfect, but it is what it is. bought a '51 reissue, and although i loved the vibe and the awesome neck, the 2 saddle bridge was impossible to deal with. this model solves that problem. leo did get it right the 2nd time around... good bass. quality may vary from bass to bass. decent bass from mexico. tight neck pocket, unlike the japanese '51. nice bass. try the one you buy if you can first. cheers!

50s Precision Bass?? 20 Jumbo frets on a chunky naked maple, alder body poly finish, vintage reverse open back tuners, chrome hardward, Gold Anodized Aluminum pickguard, gig bag included. It has everthing you need to make good music.

This the perfect bass, exception the stock PUP a tad wanting, I upgraded to Fender 62 P-pups. I player thru an Amper 115 and Fender 210. No effects. This is a P-bass rich, full big bouncy bottom.

As noted, except for PUPs. Perfect setup, got in Fiesta Red, nice, not a flaw. Fret were smooth to the touch. The neck, the damn neck is so slick like goose shite, man I can't put it down.

simple, rugged construction. Its a P-bass, can't a simpler or more reliable. Recently, went to Amsterdam, to hang and play, all I tool was this P-bass. Left the Rick, Corona Jazz and took this and was not disappointed.

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I've been player for over 15yrs. I've had many basses. current arsenal, Fireglow 4003 Ricky, Fender: Jazz, Marcus Miller, Geddy Leet, Reggie Hamilton, OLP all four strings--ALL U NEED. I use a combination of Ampeg and Fender amplification, they really know how to amp their instruments. This bass is never in its case, a true stand rider always on stand by for use. Looking to add another to my collection, but not just anyone because I found a Holy Grail Bass; a bass, that's perfectly balanced, tight, punchy, bouncy, brilliant neck. Enuff said.