D-Basses P-Bass Clone

Purchased from: N/A
Direct at http://geocities.com/downye/index

Features: 8
My bass is a 2002 D-Bass P-Bass clone. These instruments are assembled by Eddie Downer in Monroeville, PA. It is a 21 fret 4 string with a 34" scale, finished in candy apple red with a bolt-on maple neck and fingerboard. The frets are "vintage style" (small). The body is solid mahogany. It is a passive instrument with a volume and a tone control. It has Mexican tuners, pots and a Mexican bridge (just like those on a MIM Fender); I ordered mine with a Fender "Original 62" pickup which was ~$50 extra (he also shipped the standard Mexican pickup). I rated it "8" for features; I mean, it is a passive P-Bass clone so it has what a P-Bass has.

Sound: 10
Here's the good news...the instrument sounds great for the traditional Chicago and West Coast blues that I play. I use it with an Ampeg B248 combo. It is never noisy and I would describe the sound as rich, fat and warm. It sopunds like a really good P-Bass; I attribute that to the resonant mahogany body and the maple neck. I got exactly what I was looking for, sonically speaking.

Action, Fit, & Finish: N/A
Here's what might be a problem for some people. If you know up front, like I did, what was coming and are prepared it is no problem but some people might be freaked out. Eddie assembles the instruments and ships them out right away. If you have any experience with newly assembled bolt-ons, you know that there is a "settling in" period...a month or two...during which the various components (bridge, neck, etc.) settle in. That means adjustments will be necessary, and lots of them! When you buy a bass in a store, the "settling in" period has long since passed and the final set up is done before you ever lay your hands on the instrument. I had to adjust the truss rod, shim the neck, adjust the bridge saddles and intonate the instrument (the small frets on my bass, by the way, make intonating the bass a breeze). After making the adjustments, the bass has been very stable and no additional adjustments were necessary except for the usual minor tweaking after I put on a set of GHS Brite Flats. Personally, I do not consider any of this to be a problem because I knew it was coming. The frets could have been levelled a little better but they aren't bad enough for me to do it and I have set up the bass with relatively low action. The tone control is very linear and actually provides for a range of tones between "thump" and "twang" which is unusual at this price point. The finish is very, very nice looking and appears to be lacquer rather than the thick goop you usually find on budget instruments. I will not rate this category because if doing set up work is a problem for you, you'll be very disappointed and if it is no problem for you, you won't mind at all.

Reliability/Durability: N/A
I have had the bass for about three and a half months and I have used it quite a bit on gigs. The hardware, like I said, is the same stuff found on Mexican Fender basses. It isn't elegant but it is servicable and the instrument stays in tune and the set up has remained stable. I expect that I'll have to adjust the truss rod every 3 months or so because I live in Minnesota and that's just a way of life here...I do it to all my basses. The lacquer finish is not as durable as the inch thick goop normally found on "affordable" instruments but it sure looks great and it came to me in perfect shape. I have installed Schaller strap locks but I ALWAYS do that on gigging instruments. I have broken my own cardinal rule and gigged with this bass without a backup on a few occasions but I never make it a general practice.

Customer Support: 10
I still communicate with Eddie regularly. He is very helpful and friendly and is a very fair and square guy. I don't think there is a warranty but that doesn't bother me because, more than likely, I would handle any problems myself because that's what I do! I'm sure if something serious cropped up, he'd do the right thing. I'm not worried.

Overall Rating: 9
I have been playing since the mid-60's. I also have a Reverend Rumblefish XL and a MIJ Fender fretless Jazz Bass as well as a Hamer Echotone 335 clone. If the bass were stolen or lost, I'd get another in a heartbeat. I love the fat sound and the vact that I can get the action low and it is very stable. I was looking for a "utility" instrument when I got this bass...something decent and cheap. Basically, what I got here was a bass that looks, feels and sounds better than any Mexican Fender, it has a good aftermarket pickup and it cost exactly what a Mexican Fender would have cost me. I had to do a little adjustment work but, like I said, I expected to do it and had no problem with it. I am very satisfied.

Submitted by Anonymous at 09/19/2002 08:57