Fender American Series Precision Bass

2007 USA Made Fender Precision bass with S1 switch, Candy Cola red finish. Came with Fender Molded hard case, polish cloth, Fender strap and a few other things came in the case too. I usually don't like red guitars or basses, but this candy cola is a nice dark metallic shade of red. Came with a standard 3 ply white pickguard which I may eventually swap out for a white pearl.It's a P bass so it doesn't have a ton of features, but it does have more tonal variety than the new 2008 American Standard P bass which has no s1 switch.

Sounds thick and fat. I have a Stingray which doesn't sound nearly as warm as this fender bass, not that the stingray has bad tone it's just differnt and more active sounding. I bought this P bass specifically to set up with flatwounds. I currently have Fender flats on it and the tone is pretty amazing. Sounds awesome for Iron Maiden Steve Harris bass lines, old James Jamerson Motown stuff, or 60's era rock tunes. I currently play this P bass through a Gallien Krueger 700rb head 4x10+1x15 cab setup. For low volume practice I play it through a little Orange crush 35b bass combo amp. Through the Orange it sounds perfect for playing Cream and Black Sabbath tunes. The candy cola finish kinda clashes with the orange tolex, but the tone is great. Push the s1 switch and the American series P bass deviates slightly from traditional P bass tone territory to become a slap bass tone machine. Some say the S1 is crap but I think it's a nice feature, and it makes the bass more versatile.

I purchased this bass as a dent and scratch so I can't complain too much, since I got a nice discount due to 1 small scuff on the back of the bass. Setup out of the box was nice medium action with no fret buzz. Rolled edges on the fretboard are what really give the USA Fenders more of a quality feel, and make them more comfortable to play too. I have a 2006 American series strat which also has the rolled fretboard edges. Not to say that the MIM stuff isn't nice, but the USA Fenders just feel better to me, and you can tell that there's more attention to detail on the USA models. With the Mexican Fenders getting so expensive ($400 and up for a new 1) it really is to your advatage to find a USA made Fender either as a dent and scratch or on the used market. I've seen USA P basses sell for $600 which is just a bit more than some of Fender's specialized 50's 60's ect Mexican models.

Solid bass. Built like a tank. I'm not sure how the S1 switch will hold up over time, but I take care of my instruments. I'm not too worried.

Never dealt with Fender, but they are a huge corporation, so I don't have a ton of faith in their product support. There are a lot of Fender authorized service centers locally, so at least help isn't too far away if I ever require it. Not sure what Fender's warranty is, but it's probably pretty good. I know a lot of their stuff has a 5 year or lifetime warranty , so I should look into registering my instrument and/or sending in my warranty card after I finish typing this review. The bass was so pretty and has been so much fun to play that I totally forgot about filling out the warranty card which is probably in that plastic bag with all of the paperwork that came with the bass.

I've been playing guitar and bass for 15 years. I was going to purchase a 2008 Fender American Standard P bass until I found this 2007 dent and scratch for an awesome price. I really like the S1 system and the Candy Cola color. The tone is pure P bass. Lots of low end, with an extremely comfortable(not too chunky) neck. If lost or stolen I'd buy another P bass with the S1 for sure. I wish that Fender would include a tweed or tolex cases with their USA made instruments. The Fender molded hard case is pretty nice, but tweed or tolex is much more vintage and classic/classy. I see they have a new SKB plastic case included with the 2008 American Standards, but to me it looks even uglier than the molded case that comes with the 2007's. I used to play only Jazz basses, but they just never felt quite right in my hands. It took me a while, but I've found that Precision basses and Stingrays have the tone and feel that I want from a bass. You will not be disapponted with the American Series P bass!. You may even find an awesome deal on 1 since they're making room for the 2008's.

2006, USA made P-Bass, with a Orange Sunset Transparrent(looks more like fiesta Red tranparrent) Primium ASHwood body(this is a primium version of the American Series), Graphite-reinforced neck with modern C shape and satin polyurethane finish, Rosewood fingerboard with rolled edges, 20 medium jumbo frets, Open-back cast machine heads,
1 American Precision Bass split single-coil pickup, Volume and tone controls, S-1 switching (parallel/series), American string-thru-body bridge, Chrome hardware and a 3-ply parchment pickguard.

PS: Features is NOT ONLY counting the amount of pickups or controls the guitar/bass has.

This is The Basics Of The Basics, the most simple Bass-guitar in the world, but it feels sooooo.... Good to hold in your hands and play.

This Bass wil fit ANY & ALL types of music, both Vintage Jazz, Blues, Rock, Country, Folk, Bluegrass, and more moder stiles like Moder Rock or even Punk(just ask Mike Dirnt from Green Day).

I use it for the Gospel I play at our church, wich is a mixing between Bluegrass, Folk & Country Rock.

I play it though both a small Fender Rumble 25, and a Fender Bassmann 60' and a Large Hartke 150W(Don't remember wich model exatly, since it belongs to a frined of mine).

The Guiar was taken very good care of, since it was made in America
(they don't just let anything out of their factory), but, if you want the best sound & feel out of this Bass, you should probably have the pickup and bridge fine tuned.

This Bass wil outlive YOU. When your body has turned to dust, this Bass will be played by your Grandchildren.

Never had to deal with them.

I've had a cheap Stagg Jazz Bass, a Washburn RB2502(5-string) and i've played different Fender Basses, from a Mexico standard Jazz & P-Bass, up to an American Vintage 62' P-Bass, and I still chose this one, because of the sound and looks.

If it were stolen, i'd get the same one again(no question about it), but i woulde buy it from a real professional guitar-repairman/fine tuner salesman.

2006, American made. Twenty frets with a "gold" like sheen. I would not say they are jumbo frets, more of rolling hill than a pronounced hump. They feel like they suit the size of the neck and my fingers. Not hard at all to get used to, rather navigateable. It is a four string bass with a gold anodized cover. The bass comes with volume control followed down stream by a tone control and the jack input direct below the tone control. The pick ups are passive split coil P bass with raised "A" poles, Fender stock for 1957. The body is one piece of ash with "blue" veins showing through the white finish. The neck is one piece of maple with a very nice laquer finish. The bridge sits on top and strings are run through it's bottom. Tuners are of the reverse style with strap hook on the back of the headstock.., also on the top of the horn and bottom of the bass. The neck is comfortable and wide.., thick but not fat. It came with a tweed case, strap, bridge and pick up covers a cleaning kit and various cards, stickers and hang tags. It is a stock, American made, 1957 Fender P bass. It took a long time to find it.

I like the way this bass sounds unpluged. I run it through a pretty basic Fender bassman 10 combo and am able to get some, I repeat, some of the flavor that can be had. The sound I get from what I can do with finger placement behind and on the frets as well as the touch of the strings up and down the body is for me why I attempt to play the bass. I take lessons and if I could come any where near to playing like Carl Radle.., well you've heard it before. The pick ups are pretty quiet and could be loud. I don't play on stage.

I changed the strings and play Dean Markley LT 45-100 (2672). The finish was and is flawless with no over spray. I did adjust the sting height so that buzzing is not a factor and the next is and has been straight. I had to tighten one screw in the bridge and put Dunlop strap locks on the bass. I use a wide and thick soft strap as the bass is not light. I adjusted the pitch of the pick ups to get a uniform level of sound for each string. I will give it four in this catagory only because of the lose screw in the bridge.

I believe this bass will just get better with time and playing. The more I play it the beter it sounds and it stays in tune. I bought the bass on Memorial weekend 2006. It is Thanksgiving week 2006 and I adjusted the neck once. It is my only bass and I am a beginner and have yet to gig.

I have not contacted the company and it has a limited lifetime warranty.

I have been playing for five years and own only the Fender bassman 10 combo. I researched the bass for years and could never afford a new, American made Fender. It is what it is. Like a relationship, it feels good most times but sometimes not so good. With time and
understanding, we will be fine all the time. I don't have the time or advocation to make it a vocation. I have spent a lot of time with inexpensive basses.., SGR's, Mexican and Japanse Fenders, Epiphone Jack Casady and EBO's from Korea, I got to experiment with a lot. I really like this bass. I believe I will be able to do anything with it and the right sound system as time goes on.

2005 American Fender Precision bass with S-1 Switch. Rosewood fingerboard, black finish Alder body. String thru body option. Came with nice plastic hardsell case and accessories. Not a ton of features but all you need to get the standard in electric bass sounds.

I've owned a ton of basses and many vintage Fender Precisions (61, 66, 71, 76, 92) and this plays and sounds better than all of them. No deadspots,even sound across and up and down the neck, great sustain with strings thru body. There is the option of the S-1 switch, in regular setting you have the standard fat P-bass sound, depressed you have what I would call more of a early 50's P /Tele bass single coil sound. Thought I wouldn't use it but it's useful if you have to do a little slap or want some twang. Original pickup is great full and beefy.

The finish on my USA P is excellent, way better than the finish on my 2003 US Standard Jazz. The bass plays great with the satin finish neck and rolled edges. Neck is a little fatter than a jazz but not chunky. I really like the stock nickleplated steel roundwounds ...full, warm and loud , great medium tension...love the taper E. This is an immediate player right out of the box...you can backup pretty much any band with a great playing and sounding P. I play thru an Eden/Mesa boogie rig...P bass matches instantly.

This bass will be around long after me!

Fender on line support is there such a thing???

If your looking for that solid P bass tone don't waste your time and money on "vintage", clones/copies, Squire,Mexican etc. Just try out a few of the US P's and you'll find yourself a bass that you can get alot of mileage out of. I own a few nice jazz basses but the P can always deliver a great fat bassline.

This is a brand new Fender American Series Precision Bass with S1 switch. I purchased it new in January 2006, so I guess it was made in 2005.
Not much to say, this is one of the simplest basses on the market : 1 pickup, 1 volume, 1 tone control. Passive electronics. The S1 switch allows to choose between parallel and series mode.
The bridge offers two stringing modes : through bridge or through body.
This bass comes with the usual accessories Fender offers with any American model : molded case, strap, cord, truss rod tool, rag, humidifier.
Well, hard to rate the features. They are few but they are anything you need from a P Bass.

I use this bass with an Ashdown MAG300R head and an Ashdown MAG210T cab.
This bass should be called "plug and play" : so simple that it always shines.
On series mode (which is the "normal" P tone) the tone is deep and thick. On parallel mode then you reach a modern tone that is great for slap. That's not exactly what you may expect from a P, but in live situation it appears to be great having 2 very different tones by only pushing a knob. Though, I always use this bass on series (P) mode.
This bass has the typical P roar that can be heard in thousands hits. You can't go wrong if you want a tone that always cuts through and always gives serious background to your music.

The bass came flawless. The action was setup as low as possible, no buzz, no dead spots. I didn't have to make any adjustment.

After 3 months of intensive use, this bass is still flawless and nothing changed. No neck adjustment needed, bridge and tuners are stable and reliable.
I would certainly use it on a gig without any backup. Though, for tonal purposes, I play live with 2 basses (the other one being a J).

Didn't have to deal with them.

I've been playing bass for 30 years. I also own an American Series Jazz Bass (also with S1 switch) and a Fender BG31 electric-acoustic bass. Through the years I used to own many basses, such as Rickenbackers, Music Man, Ibanez, Warwick, etc., including 4ers and 5ers.
I love the simplicity of this bass, as well as its light weight. There's nothing I hate on it. Playing it is just daily happiness. Simple as that.

U.S. made 2004 model. 20 frets. Alder body. graphite reinforced maple neck, maple fingerboard, S1 switch, Chrome Red with b/w/b 3 ply pickguard (It looks so good !).

You want a real deep and warm P-bass sound ? you?re very close with stock pickups. In fact, the sound is good but with a little lack of articulation, especially on open strings. I replaced the PU?s with some Seymour Duncan Basslines - Hot for P-Bass (SPB2) - and the sound was there ? Oh yessssss ! ready to Funk ! The vote rises to 9 when Seymourized. (I reviewed the SPB2?s in the pickup section)The tone control is very responsive and well voiced , I can dial my tone from deep Motown sound to quite cutting edge style (hey it?s a PB ok ?).
Let?s talk about the S1 switch ? usefull on a Jazz Bass but absolutely useless on a P-bass, it?s a split coil, not a dual pickup set. I just don?t use it.

As all the string instruments that spent some times in factory storages and crossed the world for shipping, the set up was no good. Quite unplayable to me. The neck was slightly bowed and the action was much too high. What I do all the time is making my basses set up by a professional (not a guitar store dude ! I said professional ). Once set up, the bass was a dream to play, the neck is a true high-speed desert highway, very easy to play. The fretwork is very detailed and the overall craftsmanship is good.

Seems you could play baseball with it, Fender basses are rock solid. No flamed tops to scratch, cool high gloss finishes ? It shines like a muscle car in the light ? I love that.

Never dealt with Fender, my basses are checked / fixed by pros.

I?m a French Funk-Fusion bass player and i've been playing bass for 9 years now. Since then, I worked hard with my basses and amps, to achieve the biggest sound possible, not the loudest, not the crunchiest ? the biggest. I mean low end, growl and articulation to cut through the mix, be heard and handle a big bass sound with my overdriven bandmates. I?m very regardant to tone quality (that?s the reason why a changed the pickups ? the difference is very subtle but that?s what makes the difference). Fender P-Bass is legendary and sounds as good as it looks. Once correctly set up it?s a real pleasure to play. Remember ?You want a real deep and warm P-bass sound ?? ? ok take an US made Fender P-Bass ?. Just enjoy.

This beauty was supposingly crafted in late 2005. It is an American Series Precision Bass with S-1 switch. Made in America. I've been using it for one month now, daily and as a professionnal bass player.

I chose the black body w/black pickguard finish, and the fingerboard is made of beautiful maple. That contrast of dark vs light makes the bass look quite sexy.

The features are very few just like every passive 4 string Precision Bass, except the S-1 swicth I'm going to talk just under. Also, for a few nears now, all American Series (except the Highway 1 I think) come with a graphite reinforced neck with provides more stability.
The bass comes in a solid molded case and includes a strap, a cord and a setup wrench.

Despite of the extreme simplicity of this bass concept, I give a 10 because this simplicity is a major factory of why this bass is one of the most reputable (if not THE most reputable) bass standards in the world.

How does this P sound ? Well, on the standard mode, nothing makes you doubt it may be anything else. The P tone is fully there, with his rich low-mids and mids, providing that unique growl that so many manufacturers tried to mimic but very few succedeed to at a decent point.

I use absolutely no effects with this bass, unless you consider an UHF unit and a digital tuner as being effects. My main amp is an Ashdown MAG300R with the matching MAG210T cab. This amazing and cheap amp helps almost "caricaturate" the P tone. Incredible.

Now, let's pull the pot down to start the S-1 swicth, and suddently you are catapulted into a very different world. The mids and low-mids fall down, but the awesome lows and crystal highs show up. You seem to switch instantaneously from vintage world to modern love. This sound is inspired from Jazz Basses obviously, but there is something different. I'd say more of an active Jazz. But don't forget : this bass is 100% passive.

It sends millions more balls to the amp than any other bass I own in my arsenal (including, among others, an MM StingRay 5).

The electronics seems perfect since I heard no hiss or hum at all on this bass.

Now I'm not sure this bass is able to produce a very wide variety of sounds by itself. But unless your music is inspired from a planet that won't be discovered between 2248, this bass will fit your needs whatever your music style is. Mine is rock & blues, but I also play mainstream music in a cover band and no one complains I play my gigs with this "basic" passive 4er. Give a 10 again.

Surprisingly, the bass came out of the box with a flawless finish and a PER-FECT setup (at least for my way of playing). Strings don't buzz on the strings, but oppositely there is no room to park a Cadillac between the board and the strings ;)

The bass is very light and perfectly balance. The finish is simply sexy.

The bridge allows stringing through itself or stringing through the body. That's a nice feature but I did not A/B these yet.

Looks like it will survive even if Mad Max rolls on it with a tank.

Will not rate it, but my previous experience with Fender France shows they are not responsive at all for customer support.

I've been playing for 30 years now. I asked nothing between ordering this bass, except I asked the retailer to doublechock Fender QC had done their job properly before shipping it to me. They obviously did.

If it were stolen or lost, I would commit harrassment on Interpol phone lines until they find it. And sur I would be very sad. I never felt bored playing bass, but when I observe how I play on this one, I DO play (with the notion of "fun" this word includes), while previously I feel like I was just making music.

Yes, I would get another one immediately.

2005 USA made Fender Precison Bass. 4 string fretted. Volume/Tone controls. One PUP. Passive electronics bass, I don't like active basses period. Tone comes from the wood not processed electronics. Ash body maple neck with rosewood fretboard. Vintage 3 tone Sunburst. String through body for great sustain. Tuners are solid. Finish seems too thick to me, but beautiful. Neck is fat top to bottom but thin front to back. Graphite rods made this possible. Simple bass to use. I prefer it this way, not a lot of knobs to get out of position. Just adjust everything from the amp side. S-1 is ok, I'll probrobly never use it. In fact I'm going to remove the push buttom knob and install a regular Fender P Bass knob.

I play Praise and Worship music a few times a week and suits my style and need with no problems. I use an SWR Workingman 15 amp and sometimes DI to the soundboard in larger church's. Not noisy at all. Tones of growl and low end thud. Fills any building. Nothing I dislike about it. It a tone monster. Pickups have a high output which tranfers to "Fat Rich Tone". Hey my friends, it's Fender P Bass and no bass does it better than a Fender P Bass. Nuff said, now go get one. 40 years years from now these will be the ones to own.

Action had to be readjusted because I change strings and put on a heavier guage. D'addario Chromes 105-50's. PUP height was fine, also changed the pickguard from White to a Tortoise one. Looks really good now. The white one made it look to country and western, no offence, I'm from West Virginia and live in Michigan and love country music. No flaws. I love the rolled edged neck makes the bass feel broken in already.

There are 50 year old P Basses still in use out there and I'm sure I will get the same reliability from this one. I always gig without a backup but bring extra strings.

Never used Fender customer support in my 43 years of playing guitar and use of Fender products.

These new Fender Basses are the best that Fender has served up in years. Buy Vintage if you like and I've owned quite few of em, but these new Fender basses is where it's at. Tone, sustain, fit and finish. PUP's are hot with plenty of thump and growl. I hope I'm still around 20 years from now just to hear what this bass will sound like, If I can still hear. My grandson will be a happy young man when he inherits this bass................................................................................ E-mail me if you have any further questions.

MIA American Series Precision Bass, made in 2003, I believe
Alder body w/ black gloss finish
Maple fretboard
String through body bridge
Standard P-Bass control, 1 volume, 1 tone (note: This model came equipped with the S1 series/parallel switching system, activated by pushing down a switch built into one of the pots).
Came w/ hard molded case, strap, wrenches.

Sounds like a P-Bass should. Classic woody tone. Sound can be made quite a bit brighter (and lower output) by putting the pickup in parallel mode. Extrememly quiet, owing to the classic split coil humbucking design. Tone cap value is perfect. You can get anything from a bright snappy tone to a super-dark boomy sound.

I have used this bass both in the studio and in live performance and it excels at both.

Since buying this axe about a year ago I have replaced the stock pickups with Duncan Antiquities (which I also reviewed in the pickup section of this site). They definitely sound a little warmer, but the difference is subtle. Stock pickups were hotter.

I tried a few different strings on this bass, both roundwound and flatwound. With the exception of the stock strings (which have a slightly larger gauge E than the others I tried), the E string output tended to be a little low. This can be compensated for by raising the pickup on the E string side, but I felt I had to raise it more than one would think necessary.

I ultimately settling on Rotosound Jazz Bass monel flats. They sound bright and yucky out of the box, but I "aged" mine by coating each string with Vaseline and then thoroughly wiping it off. After doing this, the sound improvement was dramatic! All the sudden, this thing oozed classic vintage Precision tone!! I don't even have to put foam under the bridge to get the decreased sustain associated with vintage bass sound - the strings do it themselves. The flats sound especially great on the maple fretboard - it brings out a nice bite. (As a sidenote, I tried my "aging" process on some other flatwound strings and it didn't have nearly the effect that it did on the Rotosounds).

There is a dead spot on the G string (4th or 5th fret, I think). But that comes with the territory for 34" bolt-ons. My MIA Fender Jazz has the same issue.

Action, fit and finish were overall quite good. There seems to be a slight visible "line" in the finish on the back side of the body, but other than that, perfect. The fretwork is nice, although the fingerboard edges are not quite as smooth as my MIA Fender Jazz. There are a few fret edges that could have used just a smidgen of further filing.

Factory setup was so-so (this is typical). Had to tighten the truss rod/raise the action, per usual.

Control cavity shielded with conductive paint. Well done wiring & soldering. Quality pots.

One gripe: I feel like the truss rod nut is not sufficiently lubricated. A little too much resistance is felt when adjusting it. (if it wasn't for this, I'd give the instrument an 8 in this category).

This bass will definitely withstand years of live playing. It's built like a tank.

Due to the relative simplicity of the controls, this is a highly reliable instrument and a backup is only necessary if you're paranoid.

The only times I've had to adjust the truss rod is when changing strings (different tensions).

Haven't ever had to deal with Fender.

Been playing for 12 years, seriously for the last 4. I own quite a few other basses and this is definitely one of my favorites, especially for recording. This thing rules in the studio!

I bought it for one reason: to get that classic P-Bass sound. And it definitely delivers.

2003 model. 20 frets. Alder body. Maple neck, graphite reinforced. Maple fingerboard. Butterscotch blonde finish with black pickguard. Fender P pickup, S-1 switch. Fender tuners and bridge with standard or string through option. Comes with molded case, strap, cloth, cable, truss rod and allen wrench, etc.

I've always loved the fat, round tone of classic Motown, Stax/Volt, Atlantic R&B, and this certainly nails that. But it's at home in a country, pop, rock, metal or just about any setting. For a passive bass, the tone control is very dynamic, and depending on your technique, you can get a nice variety of sounds. A very resonant bass with good sustain and clarity. Sounds great with a pick or fingerstyle. The S-1 switch may or may not be your thing. I don't use it a lot, but I like it, as it adds even more versatility -- can actually get a decent slap and pop -- but it does cut the sound output considerably.

Well, it was well set up at the store and has been very stable in the year and a half I've owned it. Beautiful finish. Nice fretwork. Solid harware. Electronics work fine -- no hum or extraneous noise.

Very roadworthy. Everything about it is heavy duty. It'll probably be going strong long after I am. I'd definitely play a gig without a backup. Neck is very stable, has not needed an adjustment yet.

Limited lifetime warranty. I've not needed any warranty work done.

I've been playing bass for 17 years now. Own an '89 Fender Jazz Bass Special fretless and a Carvin PB-200 combo amp. Also play guitar (Takamine SF-261) and piano. I bought this bass after playing it in the store. Very comfortable neck and well balanced body. And the sound -- I could feel the low end notes vibrating my rib cage. Wow! Just could not put her down. Always a joy to play. I've got good comments from the audience whenever I've played her out. First time I played back a live performance on tape, it sounded just like it should. I would definitely buy another if it were lost or stolen.