Duff Mckagen Signature.

[defiled]

Hey all, i was interested in the Duff Mckagen Signature model.

Im interested in it for the following reasons:

1. I love Duff's sound/style.
2. I hate pickguards (just my opinion) which is the main thing that has put me off fenders in general. So i love the look.
3. I was wondering about whether to take up the whole P or J thing and found out this was a PJ Bass (any opinions on PJ basses? not very good?)

Things im not sure about.

1. I did'nt know how good PJ basses were.
2. It's got quite a small scale, medium sized fretts and was wondering what effect this will have?
3. No experience in Fenders.

[Gravity Jim]

1. Mine is awesome.
2. 34" scale is the same as all Fender basses.
3. Most basses are very similar to Fenders, so you won't find it so alien.

[FrankJohnson]

Usually - you can use the P the J or blend them......

You should find it to be a pretty good pallet to work from.
I have seen them, but never played one . They should be a good bass though based on specs.

See if you can play one to check for feel.

You know what I learned in the past year or two?

Finding "your" special sound, your unique tone......doesn't really matter as much in the mix. Yeah....you want to get it to sound good - but I mean all the infinate tweeking and gadgets etc......

Just plug her in an play.....get a tone and run with it. Usually you get more comments for your playing if all your stuff is working right and you do your job!

[defiled]

Gravity Jim do you think you could do some amazing and maybe post a youtube video of you trying it out ;) Would be much loveage.

Also FrankJohnson i know what you mean but...hey if we're paying why not get what we want right?

Also well it has 20 medium-jumbo fretts, so it cant be 34" surely?

Sorry im relatively new to bass (5-6months, by the time i have the money for it like almost a year probably) And i've heard alot about 35" and different sizes etc but i never knew the advantages/disadvantages other than the obvious.

[Gravity Jim]

defiled - mine isn't a DUg McKagen, it's juts a P/J combination (an American Precision Deluxe, to be precise). So I don't think the video would do you much good... sorry.

But yes, a 34" scale Fender bass (Precision, Jazz, what have you) has 20 frets as a rule.

[chuckocaster]

it is also possible to have 21 frets, maybe even 19...

P/J basses are cool if you want to cover a lot of ground.

what are you playing right now?

[defiled]

Just an ESP starter bass :\

I dont like the idea of going up to a £250 bass, then a £350 bass y'know what i mean? I'd rather save the money in the long run and get a real good one.

I think im right in saying this is relatively new bass so i have'nt seen it at all, but my area has poor shops so i probably wont get to try it

Is a P/J Bass a lot worse than just a P or a J. Because i've never known what one to get, i suppose P due to the style of music but i still do slap and pop and jazz like playing from time to time.

[FrankJohnson]

it's juts a P/J combination (an American Precision Deluxe, to be precise)

I would like ot see a pic of it.

I installed Nylon wound 7120s on mine last night. It has a slight buzz because you don't ground out...I had the same prob on my jag but was able to fix it. I will try it on this one too....I love these strings!

If I can't - flats from Webstrings will be here on Monday or tuesday......


You can'tgo wrong with a nice PJ.

[defiled]

Man i hate the fact that there are no good music shops in my area, and even the good ones far out might not have this bass

[Gravity Jim]

Here ya go, Frank...




1996, Shoreline Gold and maple. It's real purty. P-style pickup is a replacement, a Fender "Original '62" and it sounds great.

[FrankJohnson]

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!! !!!




nice!!!!


action?

After toying with these 7120s, I have found it is a VERY relaxed instrument. not flabby - relaxed. I am toying with action about 3/32" straight across. I never had anything this easy.......not sure if I will keep it like this.....but it is FAST !

[Gravity Jim]

Mine, too... relaxed, not flabby is a fine description. Action is low and easy, but the bass rings like crazy and the whole neck and body just vibrate like it's alive with every note. No dead spots, no weird frets... it's juts about the nicest Fender I ever played.

I used to think that I had to have a Jazz ('cause I'm a guitar player, and conventional wisdom says we can only play the slimmer Jazz neck, right?) and that I only liked rosewood boards. Then a friend who wanted to sell this bass sent it to me on approval, and I was just completely knocked out by the neck and the versatility. i thinkt he color really accents the slightly more "space age" body shape of the Deluxe, too.

[chuckocaster]

Just an ESP starter bass :\

I dont like the idea of going up to a £250 bass, then a £350 bass y'know what i mean? I'd rather save the money in the long run and get a real good one.

I think im right in saying this is relatively new bass so i have'nt seen it at all, but my area has poor shops so i probably wont get to try it

Is a P/J Bass a lot worse than just a P or a J. Because i've never known what one to get, i suppose P due to the style of music but i still do slap and pop and jazz like playing from time to time.

i think the P/J bass is great for covering a lot of ground, this can be a good and bad thing. for me, i like one or the other, and that's just me. i'm not trying to discount the other way at all, so don't take it that way.

they way i look at it:

if i want a p bass tone, i'll pull that out. the p bass and esquire are a lot alike in their approach to making "that" sound, one pup, less magnetic pull on the strings. it's a enique sound, one that i really like.

but on the other end i have several jazz basses for "that" tone. it's different, equally loved and regarded, just a different of cat.

to me, people are either a p bass player, or a j bass player. personally i'm a p bass dude, but like i said, i also own j basses. i also own a couple other basses. i'm the same way with guitars, i have a select few that i really like, and several other "essential" models to own, just cause you need "those" colors in your soundscape.

all this to say, i think the duff mckagen should be a good way to go in your bass playing gear lineup. it's frustrating to not be able to play the things you are interested in, around here GC only carries run of the mill guitars, and there isn't a shop within at least an hour and a half that has any custom booteek stuff.

good luck on your quest.

[defiled]

Just to add a couple of things :)

1. Its passive, now i dont know exactly if this is good or bad, i've never even tried an active! My only bass at the moment is passive and well it seems fine...I dont even know what is 'good' and what is 'bad' y'know my bass has a what i'd call a nice sound, slap and pop is ok, slapping is'nt very good i dont seem to hear the sound as clear as other people.

2. It's bolt on, again like the pickup issue i dont know, i've got one bass and its bolt on i dont even know the difference between neck thru and bolt on (apart from the obvious fact that one is bolted on and one is one thing) like advantages/disadvantages etc.

Anyway thanks for all the info so far guys!!

Just wish i could play the damn thing in a local store!!