Fender Highway 1 Jazz Bass

What year was it made? = 2009 Where was is made? = USA(Japan, Mexico, USA, etc...) =2009
How many frets, or is it fretless? = 20
How many strings? = 4
Solid-Top? Laminated top? = Solid
Which controls are given (volume, tone, selectors, etc...)? = Vol,Vol,Greasebucket Typical J
Make and model of pickups? = Fender Standard Alnico J
Active or Passive electronics? = Passive
Body and neck materials? = Alder body, Rosewood fretboard w/Graphite reinforeced neck
Finish = Nitro Laquer
Body style = Jazz
Bridge style = Badass II
Tuners = Stock HB7 style
Neck/Scale = Med Jumbo
Any included accessories? = Gig Bag, truss rod and bridge tools

How does it suit your music style (and what is that style)? I play all styles, but mostly Rock and Jazz
What amps and effects are you using it with? Chain: EBS MultiComp, Barber Linden EQ, Ampeg SVP PRO preamp, Mackie Power amp, into either 8ohm SWR Goliath III (for jazz) or 4ohm Ampeg PR410 PRO (for Rock)
Is it noisy? No On what settings? All
Rich/Full sound? Thin sound
What kind of sounds can the bass make? You can get a weak Geddy or a weak Jaco, but neither really floors me.
How much variety? Extremely limited
Is it noticeably better for the stage or the studio? Neither
Likes and dislikes? Completely HATE these pickups. They really fall short of expectation. Solo'ed: The neck sounds much better than the bridge, but when combined they really do not perform well. The volume pots are only usable through the first 10% of rotation. Not sure that I like the Greasebucket Tone. I understand the concept, but I don't know if I care for the results

How well was the bass set-up at the factory? The factory setup was decent, but the action was a little too high for my taste.
How well were the pickups adjusted? I needed to raise the low side to even the output.
Did the bass contain any flaws? No really big problems with the overall construction, but I can see where Fender cut the corners...tuners, strap buttons, pots, nut, pick-guard are all sub-par.

Will this bass withstand live playing? Have not been able to take it out.
Does the hardware seem like it will last? No. I am replacing the stock HB7 style tuners with Hipshots
Is the finish good enough to last, or does it seem thin and easy to wear off with lots of playing? I've got no complaints the finish...this bass looks really nice. I have the Honey Blonde.
Are the strap buttons solid? They are junk El Cheapos.
Can you depend on it? In its current condition..No.
How often does the neck/truss rod need to be adjusted? Not sure yet
Would you use it on a gig without a backup? Not sure yet

Warranty is 'ok'.

I've been playing for over 20yrs and own nothing but Fenders...stock '74 P, 80's P-Plus w/EMGs, '90 AmStd P w/Basslines Qtr Pound pup, '99 Amer Dlx J w/Bartolini's, '03 Amer Dlx P. Rig wise: Ampeg SVP pre through various 4x10 cabs.
This is a 'good' bass, but I purchased it knowing that I would be pimpin' it anyway.
- Volume Pots...only usable through 1st 10% of rotation
- Pickups...you can't get to nirvana with this sound
- Tuners...these are they same as you would find on the MIM's.
- Strap buttons...come one
- Gig Bag...another joke?

This bass has serious potential, but you can see where Fender cut the corners. If you are serious about your sound, you will probably have to drop another $150 on pickups and pots to get to the true potential of this bass. The tuners are crap. Replace them when you can, but I haven't noticed any slipping yet. I use a Hipshot detuner on my 4-strings anyway, so I suggest going the couple extra $$ to get a really nice set....it will pay off. Strap buttons and "Deluxe" gig bag?...come on Fender. The level of "value" has gone out the window unless you are ready to go into the the higher$$. After 20yrs of supporting the product line, I am disappointed with the lack of attention to details. It's a shame. Again, don't get me wrong...this bass plays well and sounds great unplugged, but view it as a good starting point for constructing a better instrument.

Mine is made in 2006 and it is not the upgraded version yet, so there is no Badass-bridge. It has the beautiful honey-blonde nitro finish and the standard jazzbass-features. I love the philosophy behind the Highway One series: everything you need, nothing you don??t need. That??s what it is.

I play mainly rock and alternative and this is THE bass guitar sound, if you ask me. Not enough sustain without the Badass bridge? How much sustain do you need? For me this bass guitar just sounds perfect.

I love the thin nitro lacquer although it will probably not last forever. But there are people who pay a lot of money to get an instrument that has been artificially aged. You can have that a lot cheaper if you buy a Highway One and really play it for a few years ;-) ...

The jazzbass is very comfortable to play. The contoured body rest beautifully in your hands. The neck profile is thin, the fretboard is rather narrow and the neck feels great with its satin finish.

As I said before the lacquer will not last forever. Aside from that the bass is rock-solid.

I am playing guitar for 26 years now and bass guitar for about 20 years. I never had a better bass guitar and could not be happier with it. There are more expensive versions of this model, but the Highway One is exactly what I want and what I need. It is a real player??s instrument. If it was lost or stolen I would buy another one immediately.

This is Fender's upgraded version of the Highway 1 Jazz bass. Mine was made in the USA in 2007.

It has a satin nitro finish (mine is the Honey Blonde), a rosewood neck, a Badass bridge, and carbon rods in the neck to add strength and eliminate dead spots

It came with a very nice Fender gig bag.

For my taste, I've always thought the Jazz Bass has the most elegant, flexible circuitry anyone's ever come up with. Two single-coil pickups, two volume controls, and one tone control. So simple, yet it gives you a very wide sonic palette. It's not a "one-sound" instrument.

The single coil pickups give it more mids, which makes it stake out a different territory in a mix.

I use Thomastik-Infeld Jazz flatwound strings. On low-volume gigs, I play through a Hartke Kickback 12. At large venues, I run through an SWR Workingman's 210C with the 2X10T extension cabinet. Depending on the music we're playing, I use fingers or a flatpick. I sometimes run it through a Rat distortion to add a little grit.

The setup and adjustment was flawless on mine. It came with a tortoise shell pickguard and black pickup covers. I replaced those with a white pickguard and white pickup covers, just because I liked the look.

This is a player's instrument. Everything I want from a Jazz bass and nothing I don't. The nitro finish will definitely show wear sooner than a polyurethane finish, but I like nitro better. Heck, people pay extra to have someone "relic" their guitar on a buffing wheel in a custom shop - wouldn't it be cooler to play one with actual wear that YOU put on it?

I've never needed Fender warranty work.

I've been playing bass since 1967. I've owned three Jazz basses before this one - a '65, a '72, and a '76. I'd put this Highway One up against ANY of them. The build quality is definitely higher than the '70s models - more like the '65 in weight and feel.

But you know what? On all three of them, the first thing I had to do was take off those big chrome hood scoops (leaving visible screw holes) to have access to the strings. I added Badass bridges to both the '70s Jazzes to get better sustain. And I ended up putting Seymour Duncan pickups on the '76, because the stock ones seemed to lack something.

This Highway One was ready to gig right out of the box - I didn't have to take parts off or put parts on. I think this is one of the best ideas Fender has had.

I have an early version of Highway 1 series J-Bass (substandard pickups and a standard bridge, the truss rod nut at the headstock), plugged or unplugged this bass is no comparison to a '60s J-Bass. The pickups are terrible, slap the E string and the note is flat and dies in the back side (Note: This is not the case when unplugged, the pickups are the problem). The sound when finger playing is not too bad, but bad enough to warrant a far better set of pickups. I have no doubt that replacing the pickups with a much better set and upgrading the bridge will improve the sound significantly.

The action on the Highway 1 J-Bass is extremely high, way too much relief, which makes it terrible to play off the rack - this is common practice to suck in amateur players. After adjusting the truss rod and lowering the action to a comfortable height, the playability is much better but there is string buzzing. It's obvious that in order to cut costs, Fender cut a lot of corners on this model. However, spending time on to get it setup just right with some minor fret work will greatly improve the playability and action even further.

The construction of this bass is definately not up to the standard of the vintage (pre '70s, that my Fender vintage) The shaping leading to the neck pocket from the bottom cutaway looks like a bad mistake. The glue line on the neck and fingerboard has also slipped, which is clearly visible. In addition, the glue lines on this 3 piece Alder body, are clearly visible also mostly on the front due to slippage. Not much time was spent smoothing out the curve on the upper back part of the body, as undulations are visible.The finish, especially on the body is also below standard, it has an orange peel affect which is really dodgy.

I also must question the ridiculous idea of inlaying the side dot markers half in the rock maple neck and half in the rosewood fingerboard - must of had a brain explosion that day.

If the glue continues to slip, the bass may fall apart, LOL. Well, it's not that bad, but the problem has to be stated. I'm not sure about tuners either, but I would replace them with a much better and lighter set after they start to slip. The bass needs to be retuned often, which is a shame. However, in saying all this, it has the potential to be a pretty good backup and even a main live bass. Would I use it on a gig without a backup? I wouldn't use any bass without a backup, that question is ludicrous.

I've been playing bass now for almost 30 years, I have also been setting them up for around 25 years and now I've started building them. I had a '69 P-Bass for around 10 years, which I unfortunately had to sell and have played a few '60s and early '70s J-Basses. Since the vintage basses are ridiculously priced right out of the range of most young players, many will settle for less by comparing substandard construction of one brand with that of another in this day of cost cutting madness. Hopefully, players will try before they buy: borrow a friends bass and play the thing is all settings - live and in the recording studio; play it through a good bass amp at the shop at a soft and medium volume level, then crank it right up.

To reiterate, the early version of the Highway 1 J-Bass needs a great set of pickups and better bridge, which will greatly improve the sound and playability. I made sure that I played this bass plugged and unplugged at the store prior to purchase, so I knew what I was buying. This bass was compared with the Mexican J-Bass and the American Standard J-Bass. I chose the Highway 1 for the price and that it had a reasonable sound unplugged and plugged, and the fact that I knew I could make it sound and play much better. The thing players should be aware of prior to purchase, is that whatever price you pay for it, you will pay more for new pickups and a bridge if you don't like it stock. If this bass was lost or stolen, I wouldn't buy another.

american 2006 upgraded highway 1 jazz bass with 3 tone sunburst!
4 strings, 20 frets
it is passive with 2 volume and 1 tone
2 Standard Vintage Alnico Magnet Jazz Bass Single Coil Pickups
came with gig bag
baddass 2 bridge

I LOVE THE SOUND OF THIS BASS, it is very rich and creamy!
it suits my musical style because i play all kinds to hard rock to jazz
i use a hartke A100 with it and it sound beutifull

great action, freat finish and fit!

it will easily withstand live playing
the hardware will last
i would use it at a gig without a back up

i have been playing st over a year and this kicks arse from my original bass which was a harkte thing (starter pack)
i would buy this guitar again if it was stolen

2004 serial, purchased new in July 2005 on eBay. It says Made In USA but I really don't want to believe that. These come with a gig bag. Passive pickups, rosewood neck. Standard Hardware. "Greasebucket" tone circuit that rolls off highs without boosting lows. What is the point of that? Body is Alder, neck is maple. Bridge through stringing. Overall it LOOKS really good, but read on.

I was looking for a USA Fender Jazz. I liked the looks of this bass so I bought it thinking it would sound better on my rig than the store's Peavey amp. Wrong. This thing has no boom to the bottom end. It is a sham! It looked great but sounded wimpy. Where's the beef? After seriously giving it a chance I took my elcheapo Jay Turser 401-B, which had been a backup for about a year, and started using it as my main bass. This situation made the Fender Highway 1 Jazz the backup. The Chinese made Jay Turser cost me $212 tax included and sounded way better than this USA made bass and the elcheapo has never given me any trouble. A sad day for America for sure.

It doesn't matter how gorgeous the three-color sunburst looked, and it was gorgeous. The neck on mine bowed within 3 months. After the tech tightened the nut at the next set-up it was much better. I kept it a while as a back up. I wasn't playing it at all due the wimpy sound but used it as a backup and eventually Sold it on eBay because I wanted to get a Precision. The buyer returned it due the neck issue. Apparently the tech didn't tell me he had tightened the nut as far as it would freaking go. Bummer. I resold it on eBay as needing a new neck. Long story short, I lose 300 dollars in 15 months on something that shoudl appreciate in value eventually.

I wouldn't buy another Highway 1 bass as long as I live and I have SERIOUS reservations about buying ANY new Fender USA product. Am I afraid it is going to fall apart? I AM CERTAIN MINE DID. This has really spooked me.

This bass needed to go back to Fender under warranty. Unfortunately being an American Idiot I neglected to send in the warranty card in 10 days. Fender wouldn't cover it. I had the receipt which is good enough for Ampeg, but not for Fender.

I wish this thing had been stolen because I have insurance and could have gotten more of my money back out of it. I would STRONGLY advise against buying this instrument unless you can fix truss rods or know a tech who does. I checked around my state and found ONE store that fixes truss rods but they were a 2.5 hour drive away, so I said the heck with it and gave up. Also, even when the neck was straight, the sound just didn't move me so why invest more money in it? I've ALWAYS had Fender basses and this is the worst one ever. I just bought a new Ibanez SRX700 to replace it. I am now Fenderless and intend to stay that way. That should tell you something. I have such a bad taste over this one that I'd have a serious problem buying another new Fender. WHAT A HUNK OF JUNK THIS BASS WAS INDEED. If you just HAVE to have a Fender, spend a little less and get the Deluxe Mexican Version. It MAY also be a turkey, but you'll be out 300 dollars less in the process. I discussed this issue with one very well know bass player who told me that she stopped buying Fenders long ago for the same reason. If you have one that is ok right now, consider yourself lucky!

American made.
20 fret.
One piece of alder as far as I can tell, and a maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard.
Passive (yes)!
standard bridge.
modern C neck design.
Special "greasebucket" circuit design.

It seems capable of many styles. I had the chance to use it with a tube pre-amp and I found it very capable of a wide variety of tones. Greasebucket control is alright, no problems. I believe it needs a better shielding job, florescents drive it nuts. I Strung her up with Ernie Ball Supers 100-45. These strings are brighter than the fender 7250's 100-45 which came with it, but the 7250's are a little more durable than the EB's. Pick-ups are great. It goes all the way from low to high any way you want it too, I found myself using my thumb, fingers, and slapping! Only thing I can't tell ya about is picking tho because I don't. Only sound missing is that P-bass sound, but I already have one of those!

Action was a about a negative 1 when I got ahold of this poor neglected bass. After adjusting the truss, bridge and intonation I would say it is about a 9. I play with the strings a little higher than, or right at Fender specs. A lot of people in reviews say they will buy a new bridge to replace the original, maybe I might try this, the original is a lightweight. But even with the original bridge I got a really accurate intonation, the harmonics all the way down to the 19th fret ring true! Also the truss works really well and smooth, it has held true after lots of playing. I have the strings as wide as the pickups will allow, which is pretty far.
The pickups were in the right places, like I wrote before, the setup was atrocious to begin with.
Everything was solid when bought, all screws tight, no stripping.
The finish is as good as any, it is the wood underneath I'm talking about!

The neck on this bass is very playable, a joy to play, BUT (there is always a but) if I had my way I would throw a quarter-sawn maple neck on it. This bass will withstand live playing as long as you are not gigging a lot in a punk band full of 19 year olds. I think the neck is a little fragile. I once dropped my p-bass american deluxe on it's head and it survived. I don't think this one would handle something like that. If anyone has a good reissue jazz bass neck in the original thick C shape you could throw it on here.
I have only had this bass for a week, it has worked well.
The finish of this bass could very quickly look like a Jaco relic's if not taken care of, I am not counting on it looking good for long tho.

I once had to have a different Fender fixed, it took a week longer than expected, but it was free.
I guess that doesn't count here, or does it?
I say an unofficial 8.

I have been playing 6 years and I think this bass is pretty good. The neck is fun to play and smooth. I have an Amer. P Deluxe and it's quality is stouter, but the tones I get out the Highway are much broader at half the price. Would be better with a nice solid quarter-sawn chunk of burds-eye maple for a neck, but you have to pay for stuff like that. The pick-ups work! Can't imagine anyone needing to change them.

Made in USA, 20fret, 2v1t, Satin, Alder body, Rosewood f/b

Sound is just awesome.
You don't have to purchase American Jazz Bass for 1000 bucks because you can get same sound quality out of this one. And it is almost half of price.
Pickup is little bit noisy but it's fender jazz. fine.
Rich and Warm sound but not so bright.
If you want brighter sound, choose maple models.
But this one's got kinda all covering sound.
Really good for Price

Action is fine. but finish is really weak so that u need to just relax with it.
tuning pegs are fine but there's no body through holes.

buy it~!! best bass for this price range

I have a 2006 fender highway 1 jazz bass,in sunburst,all the standard feautures,I swooped out the bridge for a leo quan badass II bridge and put new strings knucklehead doublewides 105-45 on it.

This was my first jazz bass and my 2nd fender in my life I have been playing G&L basses since 1986,I wanted to try a jazz for once and when the man said $500.00 I said "hell yah".

I didn't care for it at first after 20 yrs. of p.bass and p.bass copys I wanted a pbass sound,I bought it blind but it played so quick and the price was cheap so I thought I would suck it up,I am using a behringer ultra bass bx300 at this time which is a great amp,I was so frustrated I didn't know what to do I must have looked at every after market pick manufacture thier is folks.Then I had a idea So I rolled out my old 70's ampeg 810 cab and ran a cord from the power amp in and as a after thought put on some flat wounds I had siting around since 2002:Holy S**T BATMAN I ran both pickups wide open and BHAM did I have a sound to die for,I was nailing John paul jones sound on led zep 2-4.

I had a bow in the neck and the set up sucked but the bad ass and a tweak or two and I was good to go.finish is awsome.

I have every confidence this will last for 30 yrs. or more if treated right.

no reason to call.

I am really this maybe the first bass I don't change pickups on but boy do strings and speaker rigs change its tone.

made in US, bought in Germany (thomann)
Beautifull sunburst color?
2 pickups,.....

The sound is beautifull and precise (Rock/Blues).
I did not change anything on this bass guitar.

No problemo.
I like to play on it => It's a really good time.

I have to take care with it, because i've heard that it is less strong that American Standard.

I do not need them.

A very good bass for a guitarist (like me) who want to record his demos. 100 times better than the GSR200 Ibanez that I had before.

MADE IN 2005
20 FRETS
STANDARD J-BASS CONFIGURATION
SATIN FINISH
HONEY-BLONDE TRANSPARENT
GIG BAG INCLUDED

WHAT A SOUND!!!
NOT THAT IT DIDN'T SOUND GREAT AT THE STORE,BUT ADD A BADASS BRIDGE AND HEAR YOUR TONE GO THROUGH THE ROOF. PUNCHY, GROWLY, SMOOTH AND DEEP, OR
GLASS-LIKE HIGHS. THEY'RE ALL HERE. IF PICKUP NOISE IS TOO MUCH, JUST REPLACE WITH DIMARZIO DP123 OR DP149. THESE PICKUPS ARE PHENOMINAL AND COST LESS THAN 100 BUCKS WHICH MEANS YOUR HIGHWAY-1 BASS NOW SOUNDS BETTER THAN ANY A,ERICAN STANDARD OR DELUXE BASS FOR LESS THAN $800

HAVEN'T FOUND ANY PROBLEMS. ONE QUICK NECK ADJUSTMENT FROM THE STORE AND YOUR SET. AS WITH ALL JAZZ NECKS, THIN, FAST, AND COMFORTABLE. QUICKLY REPLACED THE BRIDGE W/ A LEO QUAN.(APPARENTLY THE STOCK BRIDGE HAS A TENDANCY TO SLIP, AND BESIDES THE ADDED ATTACK AND SUSTAIN OF THE LEO QUAN IS A STUNNING IMPROVEMENT) TUNERS SEEM FINE.

FENDER MAKES A ROCK SOLID PRODUCT. I LOOK FORWARD TO YEARS OF PERFORMANCE. OTHER REVIEWERS COMMENTED ON THE SATIN FINISH CHIPPING AWAY, BUT IF YOU TAKE CARE OF YOUR INSTRUMENTS LIKE AN ADULT YOU CAN AVOID ANY DAMAGE.

NO CONTACT YET!!

I'VE BEEN PLAYING BASS FOR 11 YEARS NOW AND HAVE GONE THROUGH A FEW BASSES. STARTED WITH AN OLD GIBSON GRABBER AND PLAYED IT FOR YEARS. WANTED SOMETHING NEW SO I TRIED AN IBANEZ ERGODYNE FOR A MORE CURRENT SOUND. THE GIBSON SOUNDED GREAT BUT PLAYED KIND OF SLUGGISHLY, THE IBANEZ PLAYED GREAT BUT SOUNDED RATHER TINNY AND FAKE. THE HIGHWAY-1 IS THE PERFECT COMBINATION OF PLAYABILITY AND TONE. BUY IT!! 2 SIMPLE ADJUSTMENTS MAKE THIS AN INCREDIBLE BASS FOR 100'S LESS THAN THE AMERICAN STANDARDS. I WOULD RATE IT HIGHER THAN 10 IF IT WERE ALLOWED

This bass was made in 2005. Classed as Made in USA. 20 frets, standard jazz kneck i think. It has volume of each pickup, one tone etc all the jazz standards. A nice rosewood kneck, with rolled edges, a nice touch, that you dont get on mexicans. The kneck is also graphite reinforced, but i dont understand why or how?? Came with a Gig Bag, its really good and handy. You must understand that i played a crap j bass copy for the first 3 years of my life, so this bas feels like a dream.

This bass just sounds so warm and phat just how i like it, with full on both pickups, and the tone rolled all the way in the opposite direciton, which i think is full bass. You can get it quite the opposite tho if you solo the bridge pickup and turn the tone all the other way. I really like its sound.

The set up seemed pretty good. Anything is better than my last bass. I looked down the kenck it looked good, almost exactly straight. No buzz on any fret. This was the first thing i checked , along with the intonation, which was perfect. I guess its the difference between a bass built on monday morning , or on an exhausted, lazy worker's firday night. I guess i got a monday morning one :D Oh wait, i forgot the intonation screw came out on the G string whi

The paint dosent seem very durable, but thast the point of the highway 1. so i really dont care, i got mine in honey blonde transparent , altho you can only just see a slight grain. I think the finish will wear off in places.
Oh wait, i forgot the intonation screw came out on the G string while i was gigging. that put me on a downer, i only had it for 3 days and then it just slowly moved itself out while i played. The saddle has stayed there tho so its just a case of getting a new screw, which i cant find anywhere? I think i will just upgrade the bridge, meh why not.

well i got the music store to order me a replacement screw, i could comment once i find out how much i will be charged!! altho it has a lifetime warranty, it wont let anyone outside of USA register online, so i dont know who i would contact if it broke?

Im really happy with this bass, it is really easy to play. my playing improved 10x. If lot or stolen, i would buy again straight away.

This is a 2004 year model Highway 1 Jazz bass, with satin lacquer sunburst finish on an alder body. It has a very slim one-piece 20-fret 34-inch-scale maple neck with a skunk stripe down the back, and a rosewood fingerboard. The electronics are passive and it came with two single-coil passive pickups. Each pickup has a volume control and they share a single tone control. The massive tuning keys are standard Fender as is the bridge, which I quickly replaced with a Leo Quan Badass Bridge II. The gig bag is nice but I am storing my bass in a hardshell case.

Well, Jeff Jenkins (see his review below) has it absolutely right about this bass. I play finger-style exclusively, mostly classic rock, some jazz and some metal, and this bass is capable of creating every sound I want. I am using it with a 300 watt Behringer BX3000T head, two Avatar cabinets, one with an Eminence 12? and one with two Eminence 10? speakers. I also practice through a Rogue RB-120BT, which has 120 watts and a 15? speaker. The bass sounds great through both amps. For effects I use a Digitech Bass Squeeze for compression and a Hartke Bass Attack to add tube-like warmth. It may be a fluke, perhaps a production fluke, but this bass does sound much better than its more expensive Fender brothers and sisters (the neck also plays easier). I know because I did side-by-side tests. The sound is aggressive, punchy and warm, and cuts through the mix well. I have never been a big believer in the whole finish-affecting-the-tone argument, but am starting to become one. Maybe it is the finish, maybe it is not, but the bass just sounds so very good I want to play it all the time. So, I'm with Mr. Jenkins on the whole psychological effect of owning this bass, and also must agree that you can pay a lot more money and probably not get a better bass. I must note, though, that even though the stock pickups sound awesome with both knobs at full, backing one of them off causes some hum. Wanting more control of each pickup's volume (for tone control purposes), I replaced the stock pickups with DiMarzio Jazz humbuckers (DP123 Model J) and the sound is even punchier. I thank Gigue for the fine Harmony Central review of these pickups and for web site at www.subsonicfamily.com/bass/, which has side-by-side pickup sound-file comparisons.

I saw the bass before and after the music store set it up and Fender had not set the neck up at all. It looked like an archery bow. The pickups were adjusted and I saw no flaws in the hardware or otherwise. The good folks at Music and Arts in Spartanburg, SC (where I bought the bass), set the neck up for me and did a darn good job. I played it for a while without adjusting it. However, being the anal retentive perfectionist that I am, I have (of course) made adjustments. One thing I like about the new Fender necks is having an open truss rod adjustment point at the head, because truly, each change of string type and/or gauge alters a bass guitar setup a bit. Another thing I like about this neck is that it is so very thin and fast. The action is now quite sweet. My string height at the fret closest to the bridge (20th fret) is 3/32? to 4/32?. I have a heavy plucking hand and so occasionally get some fret-slap noise on the A string. It is, however, not serious enough for me to raise the action further. A higher-tension string-set I had on resolved the problem but I did not like that sets tone and so went back to a lower-tension string. As far as finish goes, I am not a fan of the look of the dull lacquer finish (even if it makes the bass sound better). I prefer my musical instruments like my cars, all clean and shiny. So, it occurred to me to go to my garage and retrieve some non-abrasive, non-silicone-based carnauba wax (one from Sears and Meguiar's #7). Boy does it shine now. I challenge you to tell from off-stage that this is a lacquer finish. You can't. I keep it looking good between playings with Meguiar's Quik Detailer. One thing I wish Fender had done, though, is sand the body a bit more prior to painting. I know that the costs saved in the finishing process are what allows Fender to price this fine instrument so low, but the joint lines are visible. Oh well, it is the sound that matters.

I have owned Fender basses before and see the same rock-solid construction in this bass. All the hardware is solid, including the strap buttons. The alder body is quite a bit lighter, but that is a plus. My old Precision basses used to ?break my back? after about three sets. Others reviewers mentioned that the finish is not as durable as the polyurethane finishes. This may be true. I have tried several different sets of strings on this bass (ironically ending up with Fender OEM strings) and now notice little marks below the bridge. Other than that, there is really not much that can go wrong with this instrument. Being a passive bass, the circuitry is simple and there is no battery to die in the middle of a set. I guess if I used it as a battering ram, it could fail. :-) In less than a concert situation, I would not hesitate to play this bass without a backup instrument available.

I am pretty impressed with the fact that the neck and body are warranted for as long as I own them while everything else is warranted for a year, but have to give Fender the benefit of the doubt on customer support. This is my third Fender and I have never had to contact them for a single problem. I have a sense that their support people must feel like ?Lonesome George.? In my book, making a product that does not require customer support is the best kind of customer support.

I have been playing since 1964 but in 1976 took a lifetime sabbatical from music as a profession. As you may tell from my gear listed above, I am purchasing the highest-quality, lowest-priced gear I can get, and this bass is an incredible value. Including the cost of the new bridge and the new pickups, I have less than $800 in this bass, and this baby sounds and plays better than some $1,500 to $2,500 basses I have tried. What I like best about it is the aggressive, gutsy tone that is typically Fender, the tone by which all other electric basses are judged. It growls, it purrs, and it's a keeper. If it were stolen, I would replace it with another Highway 1 Jazz Bass, but would try to find the thief in order to instruct him in lessons of proper social etiquette.

Made in 2003, 20 medium-jumbo frets, Satin finish, standard jazz controls, all passive electronics, alder body, maple neck with the skunkstripe, rosewood fretboard, nice thing neck with a satin polysomething or other finish, supposed to come with a gig bag but the place I bought it from "forgot" that, so no luck for me in that area. The pickups were a little dull sounding, but hey... it's a fender, who cares?

I play mostly punk, blues and rock, and this bass works great for all of them... after I scrapped the pickups. Those pickups just didn't have the balls I needed, so out they went. It had a fairly mellow sound, little less bass and midrange than I like but still quality sounding.

This bass was great right from the start, but it felt a little... I don't know, I guess the best word is "weird". Something didn't feel right when I played it, turns out somewhere along the line someone swapped the standard .045-.110 strings for .045-.105 strings, so when I went to put on a set of my usual 45-110's, the damn thing got all screwy so I had to reset everything. Fortunatly the bozo hadnt reset the neck, which explains why it didnt play right. The neck is smooth as silk, with a gorgeous shiny finish on it (Ooooo.... shiny.....). The finish on the body was beautiful, but the damn thing keeps chipping off. Seems every show I play I put another scar on the poor baby. Still, I love it to death.

I'm not gonna lie to you... I'm a punk kid. I know it's not fashionable to say that, and I know the jazz community will probably turn their noses up at me because I don't know the difference between a mixowhateverthehellitscalled scale and a dorian scale, but it's the plain honest truth... I was brought up on bands like Rancid, Operation Ivy, Social Distortion, the Dropkick Murphys and many others that no one has ever heard of. Now, this being said, anyone who has ever seen a punk show knows that instruments are thrown around like the new guy in a prison. This bass has stood up to all my abuse I've heaped upon it, with the exception of the finish. Still, it looks like it's been in a knife fight but it still played great. The hardware is top notch, but I'm gonna replace the bridge with a Leo Quann BADASS II bridge just because I feel like it.

Never had to deal with them, this thing will never die.

If this bass disapeared I would hunt down the S.O.B. who did it and destroy them. This is my pride and joy, and if anything happened to it I would definatly replace it. I wouldn't mind having slightly hotter pickups in there, but you all knew that anyway. I love the feel and the sound of this bass, and my only complaint is that the finish keeps coming off. I played an American Jazz bass at the time, and I couldn't hear any significant differences between the two. So, since I was on a budget I went for the Highway 1 and I've never looked back.

If you would like to see my fender highway 1 in action, check out www.redrocketband.com... I know, it's not a punk band, but it's music... watch the video, look at some pictures, drop us an e-mail and enjoy yourself.

2003 Highway 1 Jazz bass, satin finish, sunburst, gigbag included. All the usual features of a Jazz.

I run it through an Ashdown 300w head and a 4x10 cab. It has a good variety of usable sounds, and has much more punch than I expected from a passive guitar.
I play in a covers band doing a huge variety of stuff, and the Jazz pretty much covers every sound I need without much fuss.

Part of the appeal of this bass, is the fact that it's gonna look old really fast. I've had it for about 18 months now, and it's starting to look pretty shabby.
The setup wasn't half bad, a bit of tweaking and I gigged it the first night.

This is my real problem with the guitar. Whilst I wanted the finish to look shabby, I didn't want the rest of it to follow suit with such vigour!
The strap buttons both need continual fiddling, and the holes are packed with all sorts to keep the screws in place.
The tone and volume pots hurl themselves off at irregular intervals.
Just the other day I noticed one of the machineheads is slipping quite badly.
Basically, after every gig, I have to screw the thing back together, and hope it dosen't fall off the strap/throw a control pot at the audience/give up a tuning peg.
This is the cheapest of my three basses, and it really feels it these days. I guess that Fender had to cut corners to get in in at the price it is, but I'm disappointed that some of the basics are so poor.
I think that anyone who treats their gear rough, should steer well clear.

Never bothered.

My other basses are a Stingray and a neck-thru Spector NS2000, both of which are so much better made.
The Jazz hasn't put me off Fender, as I really like the tone and the style of it. I only wish I'd gone the extra mile and bought a proper USA Jazz, rather than just seeing USA on the headstock and assuming that it would be a rock-solid instrument.
I'll get another at some point, but I'll be upping the budget to get something a bit more reliable.

Bought it for sensationell 390 Euros at Ebay Germany, great Deal!!!
It was completely new, with the original Gigbag and a lot of tags and stickers from Fender. Everything you expect from a Jazzbass. Honeyblonde with Rosewood Neck, perfect Setup, i will play Fender Basses for the Rest of my Life.

I changed my Sound totally, from Trace Elliot V-Type with 4x12 Cabinet and a 1983 Squier JV-Preci Hotrodded wit MEC-Active PU to SWR Workingmans 4004 with the Henry the 8x8 Cabinet. It was perfect for me. This Bass ist the perfect instrument for me, although the Squier was a real Rockmachine. I think, if you are looking for a Jazzbass-Sound with Vintage Features, you should test the Highway-One.

I took the bass and did not change anything. Top Player!! The Satin-Finish looks great, but it is not very durable. I play my Bass 10 months, and in 3 Years it will look quite relic. But that''s Rock''n''Roll!!!!

Finish is not durable, but it is authentic, no problem for me, it''s a player''s Bass!!!

I don''t have to deal with them and i never will. It''s a Fender!!!

I think, it is a very nice Fenderbass for a cool price, even if you would pay the actual recommended price of 700 Euros. I could compare it with an Ibanez Jazzbass, 70ies made, and it sounds perfect. I played many Fenders. US, Mexico and Japan, i loved them all, but this instrument fits the best....

2003 I think...made in USA...4 string sunburst satin finish.
Standard Fender Jazz passive pickups.
Alder body, rosewood fretboard, maple neck.

Sound is heavy duty old school to the max.
Using it through a Yorkville 200.
Not noisy at all....just real solid rich full sounds. This bass makes a great variety of sounds. Equally good for stage or studio.
I like everything about this bass.

Action was a bit high so I lowered it and now it is fine.
Pickups required no adjustment.
No flaws on the bass.

This bass withstands live playing with ease. Hardware seems like it will last a long time. Finish is a bit sensitive to bumps ( because it is flat). Strap buttons are ok. I have yet to adjust the truss rod. I would definitely gig without a backup.

N/A

I have been playing for five years and own a 1985 Ibanez Roadstar bass. I have read alot of people trying to compare the MIM Fenders and even the Geddy Lee to this one. I have tried all three and found this a much better sounding and feeling bass. Made in the USA with a fast neck and noiseless pickups make this the bass for me. Try before you buy because bass is a personal thing. I honestly think that value for money, you cannot buy a better bass

2003, USA Highway Jazz Bass as described below. Purchased new with gig bag, manuals, wrenches and polishing cloth. Not a ton of features but it's a timesless design whch gives you everything you really need.

Really sounds awesome! Warm, rich, full, round tone. Sounds like...well...a Jazz bass! I also have a Fender MIM Jazz bass and they seem identical except for the finish, and the pickups. The pickups seem a little hotter on the Hwy 1, but it's hard to tell since the MIM is fretless. The sales dude told me the MIM, CIJ and Hwy 1 necks and bodies are made in California and shipped to the various assembly plants. I believe it since the MIM harware, neck and body are the same. If you really like the satin finish, get the Hwy 1, otherwise MIM is the way to go. Same damn thing. My MIM was $225 used, so I feel a bit silly paying more than double for the same bass, but the satin sunburst finish is great. Not worth the price difference. I'm sure the Hwy 1 will retain it's value better than the MIM, but we're talkin peanuts here.

All of my other basses have active electronics and humbuckers. I was suprised at how much better the Jazz bass records than those active models. Looks like Leo had it right all along! Go figure, I could have saved thousands over the years!

Factory setup was awful. Every Fender bass I played at four different stores were setup like crap. Fender could triple their sales if they adressed this quality issue. Neck was badly bowed, bridge saddles way too high, pickups too low. After about an hour I had it set as good as these can get, which is very good, but generally not as good as an American Series. I removed the rattle trap of a bridge it came with and installed a Leo Quann Baddass II, which is much nicer. Really plays great now. Satin finish is really nice. The bass does seem to breath well and no fingerprints! Yay!

These things are solid. Write it into your will. It will be around long after many of us reading this review! (cheerful thought, huh?)

I've never contacted Fender. Never had to either.

Been playing for 30 years. I own Steinberger, Kubicki and Ibanez basses. I've owned Rics, Kramers, G&L and Fenders in the past. It's a great bass for what it is. You average, dependable, workhorse Jazz. Nothing fancy, but there's a reason most producers prefer to work with bassists who play Jazz and Precision basses. Deep full tone for days!

This bass was made in 2004 in USA, although I looked at the wiring diagrams published on the Fender.com webpage and it seems that the bass is built partly of Mexican parts. Otherwise, a classic jazz bass, two passive J pickups, two volumes one tone control etc. The neck is very fast, IMHO. One feature unique for Highway Jazz basses is their finish, which is satin, I guess. It has a vintage-like look, does not shine like a diamond, so if you are into that thing, you're gonna love it; on the other hand, it does not seem to withstand scratches as much as a polyurethane finish would. After some days of playing, you could see the bass has been used (very small scratches from the belt etc.). This may add to the "vintage" vibe of the bass, but to me that is an inconvenience.

The Fender Jazz is very versatile and will suit probably every style of music. The body is surprisingly leight and this is reflected in the sound. The bass slaps very well but sometimes lacks somewhat in foundation. I got the best results with DR Low Riders strings. The sound is very open. The bass has no active electronics but the basic sound of the bass is, in my opinion, what people expect of a bass guitar, and that is a very strong point in favour of the Jazz Bass. I have used the bass in studio and it records really nice

To my surprise, the bass hasn't been shipped with great setup. The screws of the tuning pegs were a bit loose and the action had to be set. But otherwise, fairly decent I guess, but not what I would expect from a company such as Fender. It came with all the stickers that the bass passed the controls, blah blah, but the set up was rather weak.

The hardware is so uncomplicated that it simply must last. I was adjusting the truss rod quite frequently because I have been installing various strings on it to find the rights ones, and the neck reacts very well. I have used the bass on gigs without a backup. No active electronics, therefore no worries about battery life.

Never used it.

I have been playing for about 15 years now. I have owned basses by Warwick, Aria and MTD. I purchased this bass because it is the "standard" and the sound engineers have know how to make a good Fender sound. When I played my Warwick and MTD, the sound would often suck because the sound engineer did not know how/did not have the time to voice the controls on the mix so that it suit the sound of these basses. I think I get a decent sound with the Fender on almost every gig. I am not stating here Fender is a high-end bass; it is not. My Warwick is better built and has better electronics, for instance, the MTD bass has more "balls" than the Fender. But the Fender jazz bass is a "standard", something you compare other basses to. I think you can't go wrong with a Fender jazz bass or a copy, because it has the sound that people want and are used to.

brand new Highway-1 jazz bass, 20 frets, passive electronics, vintage looking bridge/saddles, 3-tone sunburst with a satin finish ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS looking bass !! Alder body, maple neck,rosewood fretboard, medium frets, comfortable C-shape neck. Came with a gig bag..first gig bag I ever had...a friend said if you transport your ax a gigbag is fine, if a roadie transports it you need at least a bank vault to protect it.

I owned a P-bass many moons ago and I played a Jazz recently and really liked it. I will play older 60 ans 70 ish songs with this J-bass and the sound will do the trick. I haven't settled on an amp yet, but a 100 to 200 watt combo looks about right. This bass is absolutely quiet no matter where I have the controls which was a great reason why I wanted this particular piece. It has a nice bright sound when all controls are turned fully 'up' and can make a lot of good sounds by rolling off the the tone and one or the other pup. My favorite sound is to have both volume all on/ tone about 3/4. A very nice tone and vibe. And then roll the bridge volume pot back a tad and the thing just growls and jumps out. Cool !!

When I saw this thing at the dealer, the neck was really concave- it looked like an archery bow, suitable for launching arrows. It was the only American made J bass in 3 color sunburst, however, and the noiseless and impressive growl really hooked me. I told the clerk ( no luthiers present) that if they could get the neck/string height/intonation into spec I would consider buying it. They also had a bunch of MIM's, and MIJ's, and although some of them were nice, I really had my heart set on the Highway 1 and that satin finish. Also, an Aerodyne they had was a beautiful bass and played fantastic, but had some annoying electronic pops and buzzes. The dealer came around and after a couple days had a really nicely set-up bass which I was glad to take home.

I would play this bass live without a back up and without fear. It is well made and if my old P-bass is any guide, it should take my playing for years. I chose the passive electronics because of an incident ( actually a couple but not all with J-bass) where a kid at a multi band festival had an active J bass and the thing died in the middle of his set. He tried to get some other bassists to lend him their's, but because he was a truly brutal player nobody did. That band quit early. I also had a guitar with saddle piezo pickups crap to bed. To be fair, over the years I have also had passive pups die, but at least with this J-bass I will hopefully have at least one to get me through the set. I give it an 8 because you never know.

I have been playing on and off for over 35 years. I started out on bass and went from a Guild Starfire to a P-bass. Later I switched to guitar and have owned mostly Rickenbackers, in fact I sold a Rick 380 Laguna to free up funds to buy the J-bass. In my town, there aren't too many old guys like me that play bass to the older 60-70 styles of music and we could never get bass players to show up at parties and benefits. The last party I played at had 6 guitar players and no bass. I said screw that and bought the bass. When you look back over the decades you see two basses that really stand out- The Fenders and the Rickenbackers. Although I am partial to Rick guitars I frankly don't much care for the Rick bass looks and I feel that the Highway 1 bass is a great value and an outstanding bass.

Fender HWY1 jazz, as far as I know, made in 2003. according to the salesmen, it was american made with some mexican parts. 20 frets, light satin crimson red finish. Two volume pots, one tone. Two SC jazz pickups. Passive electronics. Alder Body, Maple neck with rosewood fingerboard. Comes with Deluxe Gig bag

In my band, we tend to play progressive black metal type music. This works really well for that, i've found. I typically use both pickups at full to reduce hum, and adjust the tone with my amp. I play straight in, but sometimes run it through the compressor on my digitech multi-effects processer. I can get a really nice boomy sound to a nice punchy, crisp trebly sound. This bass pretty much covers everything i would need in a bass.

I purchased this from a local music store, and it didn't need any adjustments from the store. Action was beautiful, pickups were fine. The finish, while absoltely stunning, seems to chip away easily. i accidentally bumped it against a chair and got a tiny chip on the backside, but its hardly noticable. The slim jazz bass neck is just amazing.

this bass seems very reliable, everything is on nice and tight. the finish is very light, and without a doubt will fade away with time (but thats to be expected, and will give the bass character more than anything). This bass so far has been very reliable in it's sound and overall feel and playablity.

so far i haven't had the privilage of having to deal with these folks.

I use this bass with a Kustom KBA 100x amp, with a multieffects processer and a distortion pedal (neither of the pedals are used live). If this bass was stolen, I wouldn't know what to do, because I couldn't afford another one, and going back to my Johnson P-bass copy wouldn't be fun (though purchasing another one would be top priority). This bass is DEFINATELY a worthy investment, it played and sounded better than any other bass in that music store, including the $1000+ fenders they had in stock. I would recommend it to anyone who wanted to upgrade.

This is a Fender Highway 1 Jazz Bass, in honey blonde finish, made in USA, supposingly in 2004.
It has an alder body, a maple neck and a rosewood 20-fret fingerboard. 4 strings.
The electronics is the standard one of the regular Jazz Bass : 2 J pickups, passive electronics, 2 volume + 1 tone controls.
The finish on the body is satin lacquer. This is half way between solid and transparent color, and it gives some kind of ?vintage? feel to the bass.
The bridge and tuners are the same than on the MIM Jazz Bass. This means you can?t mount your strings through body (only through bridge, vintage manner).
The neck has no graphite reinforcement, and the bass is delivered with a gigbag instead of a hard shell case. Here are the main differences between this model and the regular MIA one.

I mainly play rock, blues, pop and sometimes a bit of funk/jazz. I use it with an Ashdown MAG-300R head + MAG-210T cab (an extra cab, MAG-115, is currently on order).
If you use this bass will controls wide open, you have no noise at all. If you lower the volume of any pickup, then some noise appears. I don?t care about that, since I always play with controls all cranked up, and then I adjust my tone with the EQ of my amp.
This bass is very versatile. I didn?t find what it couldn?t do.
-1 for the noise, though it doesn?t disturb me at all, but it will probably disturb some other people.

Straight out of the box, the bass was very well setup. Decently low action, no buzz at all. Since I slap sometimes, and since I also play hard with my fingers, I prefer the action not to be at the lowest point.
No flaws, no oddities on the making and the finish. Excellent.
The bass is light, the neck is very thin, and the ?highway? name is a good choice, since this bass makes you want to play it more and more, and when you put your fingers on the board, you have the impression you can play anything at any speed.

Just received it a few days ago, so I can?t tell, but looks like it is very solid.

Didn?t have to deal with them. 5-year guarantee.

I?ve been playing for 28 years now. The weird thing is that I often changed basses, but never felt really happy. For the first time, I have the impression this is the one. And yes, I was stupid enough to search and search for so many years while the choice was obvious.
If it were lost or stolen, I?d probably pick another one.
I put 10 here, since what some people will call downside does not disturb me at all on this bass.

Standard Jazz Bass
Vol-Vol-Tune
Two j-bass style pickups. 20 frets. Maple neck with rosewood fingerboard.

Its not all flashy and stuff but its the standard passive setup. What else do you need on it?

wow
ok, this thing totally kicks. You can pretty much get any sound you want from this thing. It can be very bright or very boomy. Im going through a Yorkville Bassmaster xt200 combo and this thing rules. After trading in my old Yamaha and buying this it was like night and day. Very clear, very powerful, very Fender American Jazz Bass! Actually I liked it even better than the true American. The satin finish seemed to give it better sustain.

I do slap/pop and fingerstyle. I thought I was gonna need the actives to get a nice slap tone but after slapping it in the store I fell in love with the jazz growl. I MIGHT add a pre-amp but I dont know yet. The sound of it is unreal. So wonderful.

ok, the factory setup was OK but not good enough. But hey, thats not a problem. A few adjustments to the action, truss rod, and pickup height and its a dream come true.

The finish is sooo sweet. I have the crimson transparent model and the wood grain comes trough beautifully. Looks like one high class instrument.

the frets on mine are perfect. No buzz with low action. The bridge is alright, nothing too fancy but not crappy.
the tuners are great. neck is smooth and fast.

so, initially factory setup not great (when IS it great?) but after some adjustments, its the sweetest thing ever

this bass is built like a tank. not too heavy but not too light. Its just perfect for me. The strap buttons have been great so far. The satin finish may take some wear though. But thats all part of the basses character :D
It will look vintage soon enough. And actually, the satin finish looks better than the high gloss IMHO. The high gloss looks too much like plastic I think. This looks more like wood.

so far I adjusted the truss rod, etc once and its been great ever since

never goes out of tune either

this thing is gonna last a loooong time.

haven't dealt with em yet

Great bass
If you are a fan on the jazz bass sound then this is the bass for you. Everything about this bass is perfect.

It is a very versatile bass. Fits many different genres. The look is classic j-bass. It will never go out of style.

If it were stolen I would be crushed, but I would definitely buy another one (when I could afford it again).

Fender American Jazz Bass style for a fraction of the price of the high gloss one.
Best bass value out there. This is a professional instrument for a great price.

It's all in the name, US Special Highway 1 Jazz Bass.
Fender quality, made in the US, 20 frets, 2 passive j pickups, 2 volume/1 tone, and of course the special Satin sunburst finish.

I've been playing bass for a few years now, and this one fits any style you could want to play. I play some smooth jazz, all the way to worship music and metal. It's a versatile J sound that really can do anything.

This bass came really well set up, my only issue is a buzzing on my A string, at this point I'm pretty sure I've got a high 2nd fret. Other than that, the tuning pegs have been a joke. They are loose after only 8 months, and I'm going to have to take them off and fix the thin metal plate that's been bent.

Everything else is perfect.

The satin finish on my bass is starting to show wear, but that shouldn't surprise me with how hard I treat it, no complaints. Electronics have been fine, no loose wires or anything. I replaced the buttons with straploks as soon as I got it because I didn't want to drop this sweet sweet bass. For now it's my only real bass, soon I'll have a fretless to compare it to.

No problems yet. I did have to have my *cough* Squier *cough* serviced a while back, and Fender stepped up to fix the prob, so I'm sure they'll do 10 times better for a US bass.

I've been playing for a couple years, and I play this bass through a 220 watt Ampeg 2x10. I definitely played one of everything before settling for this bass, it will absolutely be the last fretted four string I ever buy for less than $1000. If it was stolen, I would track it down and use my old Squier to beat whoever took it, or just go shell out the cash for another one. Overall a great, extremely versatile Fender Jazz.

Alder body
Maple Neck
Rosewood Fingerboard
Single coil Jazz pickups
Passive Electronics
Satin Lacquer Finish (Best part of the deal)
34in scale, thin Jazz profile neck.
Gig bag

Hey Guys, this bass is it. I may have just stumbled across a fluke, but as a Fender Bass Buff, and a general bass freak, I can tell you that this bass is unbelievable for the price, matter of fact it is unbelievable, period! Imagine having tones of a great sixties pre-cbs jazz, but also having the sweet high end of a seventies bass, in a light weight, ultra cool looking package. This is it! Let me give you some examples, Geddy---in there, Flea---in there, Victor---in there, Marcus---yup, Joe Osborn--him too, Chris Squire---you get the idea. Trust me, Im a professional and I can tell you, I own a Sadowsky 24f-5, a Zon 5, a MusicMan 4, a Lakland 5, and have played many other, but nothing...Nothing...like this. $629 is street price with a gig bag in several finishs. The kicker is the satin finish, at first glance you might think cheap, but play it, you will see that this is what gives an electric instrument its tone, the ability to let a good piece of wood breath, no tons of glossy clearcoat to mask it. This bass is for real, and you wont get a better bass for 5 TIMES THE MONEY! Wanna make it really hot, get an outboard preamp from Sadowsky or Fodera, but the underlying tone is unmistakeably FENDER, which is the tone that all others have been built. I cant say enough about my new baby.

Action is never great from the factory, it was slightly high, but I had it set up in an hour, and it wasnt too far off.
I didnt adjust the pickups, they were dead on.
There are absolutely no flaws in this bass, Perfect.

As I said earlier, its my new baby, the Sadowsky and Zon are just available if I need them for certain tones, or studio, but this bass is now #1 in my collection, its the first thing I want to grab.
It makes me want to play!
Its a Fender so I dont think I need to say anything about a company over 50 years old about their reliability.
I never go without a backup, but with this one, I would.

Again, Fender

Im a pro player in Pigeon Forge, Tn. I do 2 shows a day, seven days a week, and we play everything from Bluegrass to Pop. I also do some studio work, and enjoy playing music such as Steely Dan, Weather Report, Rippingtons, Spyro Gyra, and anything Pop.

Your ususal jazz set-up: 2 volume and master tone controls, alder body, maple "c" shape neck with rosewood fingerboard, standard machine heads, the standard 20 jumbo frets, 2 Standard Vintage Alnico Magnet Jazz Bass Single Coil Pickups & vintage style bridge. The difference between this and the standard US is that a) it's cheaper but made in the US b) the trussrod adjustment is made from the headstock end (surrounded in brass) c)you don't get the string thru bridge and d) it doesn't have the stealth switch (places the coils in parallel). All of which I was more than happy to settle for, especially with the price! It came with a funky deluxe gig bag- which I parted with at the music shop to get a hefty discount on a hardshell. It comes in the following finishes: 3-Color Sunburst,Daphne Blue, Crimson Transparent, Honey Blonde all in Satin Lacquer Finish). As usual the sunburst requires more $$ out of your wallet... I was hoping that I could get in natural but I settled for the Crimson Transparent- it's a beautiful deep red that exposes the grain quite nicely.

I had a friend who always said "how the hell do you get that tone?" and it diddn't really matter what bass I was on, it'd sound pretty much the same (except for the reeeeeeaaaalllllyyy exotic wood basses or the basses that were so cheap they resembled something you wouldn't even use for firewood). This bass gives me that same tone coming from my pads but adds in the genuine jazz growl that i've fallen in love with (...making my girlfriend rather jealous hehe). With 2 rounds of pre-amping (from my amp and my Zoom 506II) I can do almost anything... of course it will always be a passive bass and will always have single coils, but you can still do a fair bit if you've got the gear.

P E R F E C T!

I've had a few sound techs (although I am a sound tech..anyway) come up to me and say that this jazz has a slightly funkier tone. And I said, yeah... jealous yet? hehe. As the other review says- the thinner finish pronounces the bass sound quite nicely with that added resonance and sustain. I know this bass will definitly last, just from the feel. What more can I say? it's a Fender, it's US made.

I played the new US Standard and found that the tone slightly differed (probably due to finish)... the sustain did last longer (string thru) but I use a fair whack of compression which holds my sustain longer. The one thing which Fender must we congratulated for is finally jumping on the parallel wiring option. There's an "invisible" switch at the centre of the colume pot that moves between series and parallel wiring. It's amazing how fat it can get! but then, i said... "my wallet isn't $3249 (AUD) thick." Then I played a Mexican- normal jazz tone, just not built as well. It diddn't feel cheap, just not as good. So my wallet and preference settled for the Highway 1. I don't want this gorgeous bass stolen or even borrowed! I want the tone to come through in the years ahead on my journey through this beautiful world of music. I am thinking of putting in a switch for the series and parallel option (but i'm not bugging to do it), but I love it just the way it is now :). All I have to say is that it's great that Fender have finally produced a product like this- not compromising on quality and construction but not making it so expensive that it's impossible to buy.

What features? This is a Tele.

Sounds exactly like what I hoped it would sound like. It airs up nicely with the Fender Blues Jr., especially for the way I use it. Clear, twangy, each note is individually articulated even in a full chord. Double stops ring out loud and clear. Single notes have a bell-like quality. Very even string-to-string volume and tone balance. Great for single note phrasing. 3 position switch really gives 3 distinct tonalities from the pick-up array. Volume rolls on and off evenly. When the V control hits the full on stop I hear bit of a microphonic "click" through my amp. Tone pans from bass to treble evenly. With too much reverb and heel muting it reproduces some really neat cowboy and surf record sounds. The maple fretboard compliments the simple layout and color of the guitar...plus it sounds snappier with a bit more briliance that the RW fretboard models I tried. I'll reserve a 10 for any guitar that can do it all.

Action came out of the case a tad high for my liking...but it was perfectly playable and EZ to adjust. Intonation was dead nuts on. This absolutely refuses to go out of tune. Pretty nice tuning pegs on this model. There are only a few things bolted to the slab and they all are well fitted. Neck joint and pocket are perfect. The two highest side dots (fret markers) are partially obscured by the neck pocket...might bug some people. I got the honey blonde...I love this finish...it is matte with a hint of grain peeking through. It looks like I have a really old faded Tele with no scratches on it. Neck is wider than I am used too...but the fretwork is first rate...nice "played in" feel especially if you like to wrap your thumb around the neck to cop the E string on barre chords. The saddle adjusting set screws scratch the heel of my hand. No obvious flaws anywhere.

This would definetly be something that you could play out with. Finish, while pretty, looks vulnerable...not as tough as the "deeper" finishes that are buffed out to a gloss. I don't expect anything to go wrong. This is a simple guitar and the design has been perfected over the last 50 years.

My dad bought his Tele from the same store in Irvine, CA. I trade there often for strings and incidentals. I went in for a mandolin string 75 cents..and spent 600 bones! They gave me a square deal, up-grading the gig bag to a really nice aftermarket molded case. Helpful. Freindly. Local.

Playing 39 years. This is my 2nd Fender and my 1st Tele. I had a Strat in 67'. I presently have a dreadnaught, classical, electric and a bass. Now the Tele...this model fills an obvious niche. Amps are a Princeton Chorus (analog) and a Blues Jr.. My favorite thing about the guitar is it's fundamental simplicity, everything I hear coming out of it originates from what I put into it...there are no bells and whistles. I love the old school appearance coupled with a sound that is still relevant to the styles of music I like to play.

US made Jazz Bass. 3 tone sunburst finish in a lighter satin finish, almost matte, not as glossy as the standard J bass. This is a good thing to me because I don't like the thick glossy finish on the new US basses. It will also wear well, I think. Chrome hardware, similar to US standard, and same electronics. Basically the same bass as the American Standard at almost half the price.

It sounds great! Like a Jazz bass should. The pick ups are fine. I may switch to Antiquity pick ups down the line but these are fine for now. The Lighter finish gives it a louder ring with more sustain than the Standard. It really does. I compared side by side. It sounds great through my 1973 SVT rig.

Nice action, comfortable neck and light body. Neck pocket is tight, tuning pegs are smooth. Everything is perfect.

Just bought it so I don't know how it'll hold up, but it's a Fender so I'm sure it'll be around for a while. Finish as I mentioned is thin, but that's good in my opinion. It'll look old in a year.

Never contacted Fender but I'm sure they're very nice.

Great Bass, right price. Pick one up if you want an American Fender Jazz but don't have a ton of money to spend. I love mine.