Fender Precision Bass Lyte

Mid 90's MIJ Sunburst finish. PJ configuration with active electronics. Gold hardware with P body and J neck (rosewood board).
No accessories. Changed out the standard push-on type strat knobs to gold P knobs because the stock knobs were coming apart and becoming very loose.

Playing rock, nu-metal, jazz, and funk. The sound of the stock Fender pickups was surprisingly good. The active eq allows me to dial in just about any sound I need. I have noticed no problems with hum or any other noise. It has a warm sound and I am happy using this bass at any type of event. The active electronics are another story. The active electronics cavity has no shielding and the wires are just thrown together. The shielding job was absolutely terrible. When I got this bass it would eat a 9 volt battery in around 5 hours. I took it to my tech and we had to end up changing the preamp out and now it is equipped with a Bartolini Pre. Much better sound and the battery actually lasts.

I purchased this bass used and it was set-up properly with very low action when I got it. The finish is a typical MIJ sunburst with noticeable dents, swirl marks, and chips in the body/finish. This does not affect the sound or playability at all. The gold hardware has no rust visible but is tarnished in numerous places. The bass is good looking but the finish could have been done a bit better with regards to the sunburst finish...but for the price it's ok by me. The gold Gotoh style tuners keep it in tune very well.

This bass is a killer. It has quickly become one of my favorite basses. It feels very comfortable and is extremely light. I have been playing bass for about 15 years and have currently around 9-10 basses depending on which day you find me. I was very skeptical about purchasing this bass used through the mail without playing it first. As soon as I got it in I saw the very visible finish/body damage marks it had but once I started playing it I absolutely feel in love with the feel. It's nice to be able to play a 2 hour set and not have sore shoulders when you're done...this thing is super light!

My tech had difficulty getting a preamp schematic from Fender for this bass. The support was friendly but could not provide the info we needed so we had to scrap the original preamp (no biggie because it was a total piece of junk) and replaced it with a Bart preamp. Much better sound now.

Overall, as I mentioned before, I have been playing bass for around 14-15 years. I own a few basses and generally keep all of the basses I purchase. I compare this bass to others I have namely being 70's model MIA P-basses and such. This bass is a joy to play and sounds wonderful. It's very light and gives me the best of both worlds in the P body and a J neck. I like the J neck because it's slimmer and this particular bass has a fast neck. I can play just about any type of style with it. I would be devastated if I lost this bass. I would attempt to immediately replace it.

this is a 1996 precision bass lyte. it has active p and j pick up's (runs on a 9v battery). 4 knobs: volume, bass, treble, and tone. it has 22 frets and gold hardware. it has a flamed quilted finish with a matching headstock. i added gold schaller strap locks (woohoo) because i would hate to drop this baby. This thing ways damn near nothing.

i play punk/emo and occasionally ska and jazz and this bass suits the styles well. this bass has a deep bassy tone which i love. i play it through a 2002 Peavey TNT 115. all an all this bass sounds amazing no matter what style your playing.

the neck is fast and skinny which makes the action that much better. my tone and volume knobs are kind of loose and the finish on the back has cracks running through it but that is because of its every day use and my unruly stage anticts.

This bass kicks ass no matter what. i have never ahd to make any adjustments besides changing the battery and changing the strings to Ernie Ball super slinky's. i have played countless gigs with it and have never needed to bring a backup.

never had to deal with fender.

ive been playing for 3 years. i own a 1986 westone spectrum 4 string which weighs about 20 pounds (the fender puts it to shame in anyway possible). I also own a fender 15 watt practice amp, johnson 66 watt, and a 200 watt peavey tnt 115s. i love this bass because it is just amazing. this baby will crush all the competitors and then come back for more. simply amazing.

This 4-stringer has a Rosewood fingerboard with 21 frets. In the electronics department it sports a P/J-pickup combination wired to an active preamp that shapes your tone via bass and treble (boost/cut), master volume and pickup pan controls. The bass has an ivory-white finish and quasi-gold hardware. The finished shows a small, but traceable, smear in the paint.

For the past eight years, I have used this bass in Latin Jazz, Blues, Bossa Nova, Salsa and even Country gigs. I have played this bass through SWR, Fender, Peavey, Hartke and countless other rigs. But despite the amp-cabinet configuration, the bass has always exhibited a pleasant glassy top with scooped mids and punchy bottom. The active preamp lets me dial in tones for just about every situation.
However, the instrument is not perfect. I noticed some variation in output from string to string. The problem was solved with a compression unit.

When I bought this bass, it was a set-up nightmare. The action was too high, due in part to poor truss rod adjustment, and the pickups were pretty uneven. Rather than tinker with it (like the previous owner) I took it to a guitar tech and got a set-up job that fixed all the problems. The finish on the instrument - other then the paint smear - is pretty good for a bass in this price range. The frets are even with no sharp our rough edges and the fingerboard is free of cracks and any visible damage. The only problem I have with the instrument is the placement of the battery in the preamp. The thing is jammed into the electronics separated only by a small piece of foam. I dread changing the thing for fear breaking a wire loose.

Like I mentioned before, I've played this thing for eight years and I have never had any problems with it. For many years, it was the only instrument I took to my gigs.

This is something that I can't really comment on. Why? Simply because I've never had the need to call on Fender.

The biggest advantage this bass has, aside from its versatile sound, is the weight. I own a 6-string Ibanez and after a couple of sets with it, it's a relief to sling the lightweight P-Lyte over my shoulder. The bass also has a good slap tone.

this is the best damn bass ive ever owned playing 6 years

sound? sound? with the digital pick up and a yorkville stack we were ratteling vender consessions right off their tabls

action...feels like the bass plays itself

well it has got the hell beat out of it but its still kickin hard...in fact i think this bass actually like the abuse

?...never delt up with this aspect

overall this bass has made my music carrer a walk in the park

Japaneser. I got one of the first-year runs. 1 P and 1 J p/u's. "Metallic Black" glossy (Black with gold glittery-type thingies mixed into the finish-looks extra cool with the gold-plated hardware). Basswood body and 3-pc maple (?) bolt-on neck which is T H I N and well finished (satin). Active electronics with Bass Boost/Cut, Treble Boost/Cut, Vol and p/u panner--all black "rubberized" and numbered. I assume that the p/u's are Fender-brand, single coil humbucking. Nice molded body with rounded horns and sides. very a-typical of the Fender P-Bass look. Fender finally got out of the 50's with this one! Toners are (as mentioned above) gold-plated as is the bridge and keys are smaller than the standard P-Bass style (another move out of the past) and are about the same size as Sperzel Locking Tuner keys. This bass also had a headstock overlay that matched the body. Made for a nice looking axe! Graphite (?) nut. Rosewood fretboard. Gold-plated retention plate on the neck heel that held the neck to the body. Strap buttons are also gold-plated. this was a NICE looking axe (did I say that already)?

I play Punk, Metal, Prog, Jazz, Rock. This Bass did the trick. I use a Carvin PB 300 with a 15" cab attached and/or jack into a PA depending on where/what/who/when/whatever. I used a Korg A4 and NightBass SE with this unit. It had a very shapable sound, never noisy. I could slap, tap, bang, crunch, pluck, pick, ANYTHING with this unit. This baby was my main weapon for YEARS. NEVER needed a backup. My only complaint about the tone was it could get REALLY tinny if you panned all the way to the J pickup at the bridge, which I NEVER did live or studio. I don;t know anyone who would do that anyhow.

Setup was fantastic. Action was great. Like I said earlier, the neck is thin and thus FAST. The neck finish NEVER help me up. I did do some adjustment of the P p/u's, but that's just me. I like to tweak. Never had to touch the J. One flaw that I did find was that the neck-joint came loose at the screws around 6 months after I began playing it. I tightened the screws and one of them did not stop! So if you own one of these, BE CAREFUL with these screws. I decided to bond threaded seats into retapped holes and use new bolts to fix this (like I said, I like to tweak). It did come out of tune a few times, but I just adjusted (once again) the tension on the tuners and vwah-lah!

Gigged this thing like a wet bitch. Never did me wrong. DU-RA-BUL. The finish did wear from above my "pluck zone" and would not buff out, even tho I tried to. Who knows, maybe the buffing wore it down! Not enuf to matter.

As stated earlier, F A S T neck!

Strap buttons were reliable and held it to me as needed.

I never really had to adjust the truss.

Never had a backup. Never needed one.

Never needed it. Never had it repaired. I'm pretty handy, so if shit happened, I fixed it. See above.

Been playing Bass for (GOD!) over 20 years. This was my fav bass. I had to <sniff, sniff> sell it <whimper> cuz I got po' in the mid 90's <sob!>. THAT HURT! (I did keep my Carvin Fretless 4 though--one of the few things I was allowed to keep after my dee-vorce). I want to get another one, but would rather have a 5-banger. Fender has not done this yet, but it doesn't matter; I have a '94 Warwick Fortress 4-str and my Carvin Fretless and these are enuf for now. If they DO come out with a 5-er, I would buy one in a heart-beat. (BTW, I make just a bit more money now!)

I LOVED the weight. This bass was a nice respite from the standard bass weights that I had been subjected to. This, the thin neck, the looks and the tone were what really got me. Basswood is the shit for weight. This made the head tip the bass down a bit, but that just gave me a reason to hang on to the neck!

For the price, you can't beat it. It rivals several of its higher-end counterparts. It's the sound of a Fender P/J without the heft. This puppy was lighter than my guitarist's Strat!

E-mail me if you want more opinions.

MY P-BASS LYTE WAS MADE IN JAPAN IN 1996
THE BASS ONLY HAS 18 FREATZ THIS IS A BIT OF A STUPID IDEA IT SHOULD HAVE HAD 22 BUT HEY NOTHING IS PERFECT.
THE CONTROLS ARE VOLUME BASS BOOST/CUT TREBLE BASS/CUT AND PIKE POT
THE PICK UPS ARE 2 FENDER COSTOM P STYLES AND A 1 STANDED FENDER J STYLE WITH ONE OF THE MOST AMAZINGLY LOUD 9 VOLT ACTIVE ELECTRONICS I HAVE EVER HEARD.
THE BODY IS MADE IN BASS WOOD WHICH IS REALLY EASY TO KNOCK THE NECK IS MAPLE AND ROSE WOOD I WOOD HAVE LIKED AN ALL MAPLE NECK BUT WHAT CAN YOU DO!
MINE IS IN BLACK METALIC I HAVENT SEEN ANY OTHERS IN THIS COLOUR I HAVE SEEN THEM IN GLOSS BLACK RED WHITE AND THE HORRIBLE BURST BUT NOT BLACK METALIC.
THE P BASS LYTE IS A MUSIC MAN STINGRAY BODY WITH A JAZZ BASS NECK STUCK ON IT
WITH THIS BASS I GOT GIVEN A GIG BAG A 30FT LEAD AND A SETR OF ERNIE BULL STRINGS NOT BAD HA!

THE BASS GIVE S A REALLY GOOD LOW END BUT DONT EVER EVER EVER USE THE JSTYLE BY ITSELF IT SOUNDS TURD BUT I BONT CARE I DONT LIKE TERBLE BASS BASS SHOULD BE BASSY AND THATS WHAT THIS BASS IS "BASSY"
I AM RUNNING THIS BASS THOURGH A PEAVEY BASS STACK BUT THIS BASS SOUNDS GOOD THOURGH ANYTHING THIS BASS HAS BEEN PLAYED BY MYSELF (A VERY DEEP ROCK AND METAL PLAY) MY BASS TEACHER (A FUNKY BASS PLAYER) TOO NAME A FEW AND WE ALL GOT ON WITH THE BASS SO MAKE YOUR OWN MIND UP ON WHAT SOUNDS THIS BASS CAN DO!!

THE BASS WAS SET UP BADLY AT THE FACTORY BUT IF YOU LIKE THE BASS GO TOO THE BLOKE BEHIND THE COUNTER AND SAY TO HIM YEA I WOULD BUY THAT BASS IF THE ACTION WAS SET UP AND IF YOU REPLEACE THE NUT WITH A BONE ONE AND 9 TIMES OUT OF 10 HE WILL 30 MINS AND A 1 POUND NUT IS WORTH 300 POUND OF YOUR MONEY.

I COULD USE THIS BASS AT ANY GIG IT IS HIGHLY RESPONSIVE AND WHEN YOU PUSH IT. IT WONTS MORE.
THE HARDWHERE IS SLIGHTLY BETTER THAN THE ONES ON THE STANDED P BASS AND WHEN DID ANYONE HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THEM
I CAN DEPEND ON IT I DID FOR 6 MONTHS THE ONLY BUT OF A TURD THING IS THE WOOD IS TOO SOFT AND JUST KNOCKS I HAVE TWO BENTS IN THE BACK AND IT ONLY GOT TAPPED
AND WOULD I PLAY IT AT A GIG WITHOUT A BACK UP NO OF COURSE NOT I WOULDNT DO A GIG WITH ANY BASS WITHOUT A BACK UP

I HAVE BEEN PLAYING 2 YEARS I ALSO OWN A YAMAHA RBX 765A A WESTFILED A SQUIRE P BASS (EVERY HOME MUST HAVE ONE)A PEAVEY 130WATT MARK 3 BASS COMBO A PEAVEY FIREBASS STACK AND A TRACE BOXER 15 WATT HIP OF TAFF. I AM ALSO LOOKIN AT UPGRADING MY 5 STRING TO A TGB YAMAHA.
IF IT GOT LOST OR SOMEONE STOLE IT NO I WONT REPLACE IT I WOULD GET A BETTER 5 STRING BECAUSE I HARDLY PLAY IT ANYMORE.
I BOURGHT THIS BASS BECAUSE IT LOOKS GREAT IS LOUD AND SOUNDS DECENT WHAT ELSE DO YOU NEED.
IF YOU MUST GET A FENDER BASS THEN GET A P-BASS LYTE BUT IF YOU WONT A GOOD CHEAP ACTIVE BASS WITH BETTER SOUND BETTER HARDWHERE AND JUST A BETTER BASS FOR LESS GET A YAMAHA RBX760A2

White P-style bass with P+J pickups, active, good solid feel and a fast playing neck. Nice Ivory white finish.

Unlike the other reviews of this bass, i have nothing but positive comments with regards to the tone and versatility. With control over pickup blend, bass and treble tone and a responsive volume, most sounds can be easily obtained. Yes, the jazz pickup can be noisy, but this is a problem with all the active basses I have used, and playing live it doesn't notice at all.

The bass was not too well set up, but with a little tweaking it now plays fast, smooth and with perfect intonation all the way up the neck. No dead spots, wolf notes or any of the other problems i've had with my other basses. All hardware on the bass was reasonable quality, and is still working fine, and the neck was perfectly fitted, which may have been helped by the micro tilt system.

I've no reason to believe this bass won't last forever. It only needs tuning once a month or so (unless idrop it), the truss rod stays fine, only needing small adjustments if different string gauges are fitted. I've used it at many a gig without backup, but if the bass did break i would yodel my basslines.

never had a problem, so no idea.

Iv'e been playing for many a year, and this is still the best 'workhorse' I've used. The bass is light enough you can play all night without needing a chiropractor as a roadie, and perfectly balanced. The sound is strong and versatile, the tuning solid as a rock, and its the only instrument i've ever had that has given me NO problems.

The other reviewers have pretty much described it. Mine has the foto-flame finish, which actually looks very good (deep tobacco sunburst). If I were to buy one new, it would be the deluxe because KNOWING this has a foto-flame is the worst thing about it!
However -- Regarding features: Active pickup system, PJ, yada, yada. What more do you need in a bass?

I've played guitar for nearly 30 years (Yikes!) and bass for about 3. I have a flock of guitars and several amps and have gotten more positive comments on the sound of my bass rig (especially the "punch") with this bass than nearly any other combination I've put together. I play this bass through a GK 400RB and two Ampeg Classic cabs; a 1x15 topped with a 4x8 with tweeter. Great rig ... and portable! For the curious, the amp is racked with a Korg tuner and I sometimes add an Alesis NanoComp. No effects! I think with bass, less is more.

Frankly, I think this bass is great ... but think any prospective buyer should take the other reviwers' comments seriously. This is clearly a mass-produced low-cost item. Caveat emptor. It looks great. The neck and pocket/fit on mine are fine. Tuners are great. Bridge is fine, though the plating (gold) is kind of cheezy. Don't look into the control cavity if you get queezy easily; it's a rat's nest of wires. But, as I have said above and will probably say again, it works!

I play this all the time and have never had a problem. Of course, I take care of my gear and actually LIKE tweaking the action. I adjust the truss rod at least twice a year ... and do not change strings that often ... but I think basses need that sort of truss rod attention. I have about a dozen guitars and have only had to tweak a truss rod on one of them maybe once or twice in the past couple of decades! FWIW, I also tweak the truss rod on my P-bass fretless (made from Tokai body and StewMac neck) so I think the adjustment question is more about basses than Lytes. Long necks, big strings, lots of tension, there you go!

Not an issue. I've never had to contact them about this bass.

Find me another LIGHT bass with active electronics that WORKS reliably, isn't head-heavy, and doesn't look goofy for $340 and I'll buy it. The name "Precision Lyte" is misleading because this neck feels much more like a Jazz and the body feels smaller than a strat. Not only would I replace it with another if stolen, but at this price, I would buy another one to have as a spare in case this one disintegrates suddenly. I can (and have) play all night and still want to play more. Try that with a standard P-bass. Yes, a separate battery compartment, threaded brass inserts for neck and control compartment covers, tidy wiring, and a gorgeously machined and plated bridge would be nice, but I'm not willing to pay two or three times more to get it. If you are ... there are lots of opportunities, so go get'em, Tiger!

22 frets and some uh... active pickups.

it sounds good until the settings get unset and the saddles mess up.

it's good as far as wood and pickup adjustment but its really touchy to temperature and humidityas far assaddles and trus rod.

i would play a gig with this bass but not without a back-up. don't buy this guitar unless you want to change the settings every week.

i dunno.

i hate the pickups the bridge and the paint stuff scratches really easy. I would buy a turd with strings before i bought another one of these.when my strings break i pick up that card with da Smiley Face!!!

1990 (before the split into Deluxe and Standard models) Japanese make
active PJ pickups, frost white, gold tuners, strap buttons, jack, brass bridge. BALSAWOOD body, rosewood fretboard. Volume, bass & treble control, pickup selector. Weighs very little.

J pickup is so noisy, it's almost unusable. Sound from most settings is pretty good though. Not a very strong sound, you can only get so much out of basswood. A little raspy and a little muddy, now that I've heard some of the better basses out there.

Fairly bad. Neck is not centered well, finish nicks easily, all hardware works its way loose too much. Hard to set up, but you can get it to be very fast if you work at it. The excellent playability is the only reason I'm even going to rate it medium here. Not really a precision neck at all, much closer to a jazz. (The whole association between this bass and a Precision is unclear at best)

Has lasted 9 years of hard use. Only thing I ever had to do besides normal maintenance was replace the jack when it was out of round about a year ago. It looks a lot worse for wear, but still plays like a trooper. Great backup bass for anyone, and great only bass for beginner / intermediate.

My only dealings with Fender was calling them up to ask what diameter the truss rod was. They told me 7mm, which turned out to be wrong (it's 5mm). Fender in general has a pretty bad reputation.

Very usable bass. For the price, it's especially impressive.