Corey P.
Hero Member
- Messages
- 502
Hi all! I had lusted after a Geddy Lee Jazz Bass for a very long time, and in 2005ish a friend and fellow bass player had purchased one, but the thin neck was not suited for him at all. He wound up swapping the stock neck for one from an MIA P-Bass, and offered to sell me the Geddy neck, which I needed all of half a second to say yes to. 
Instead of trying to faithfully recreate a Geddy (beyond the Badass II bridge) I, having killed many hours of down time at work poring over Warmoth options and customer pics, elected to include essentially everything I've always wanted in a bass or guitar, namely a flame maple top and tobacco burst finish. This was the result:
^ That picture is from when it was first built (2005), I'll add several current ones once I figure out my new camera, I was just in a nostalgic mood as I'm planning my new build and discovered this forum in the process. Luckily I've babied it and she's fairly pristine.
The specs are:
Stock CIJ Fender Geddy Lee Maple/Maple neck
Warmoth Swamp Ash body (rear routed) with AAA Flame Maple Top
Tobacco Burst finish
EMG J/LJ pickups and BQC control system (18 volts)
Leo Quan Badass Bass II Bridge
I'd been fairly loyally using D'Addario strings but have recently been using/liking the Ernie Ball coated strings, and I've always used roundwounds, 45-105. The sustain, warmth and clarity are all pretty much ideal. The growl it packs when desired is also about my favorite sound ever. A local luthier, Mark Umphred, did the assembly and setup for me, and it couldn't play better.
I was unbelievably lucky to strike gold on my first effort in terms of nailing looks that suit my tastes and also having everything amount to a great sounding/playing instrument. It was an intimidatingly high bar to try to match, but I've been inspired of late and hope to have something great to share in the nearish future.
Instead of trying to faithfully recreate a Geddy (beyond the Badass II bridge) I, having killed many hours of down time at work poring over Warmoth options and customer pics, elected to include essentially everything I've always wanted in a bass or guitar, namely a flame maple top and tobacco burst finish. This was the result:
^ That picture is from when it was first built (2005), I'll add several current ones once I figure out my new camera, I was just in a nostalgic mood as I'm planning my new build and discovered this forum in the process. Luckily I've babied it and she's fairly pristine.
The specs are:
Stock CIJ Fender Geddy Lee Maple/Maple neck
Warmoth Swamp Ash body (rear routed) with AAA Flame Maple Top
Tobacco Burst finish
EMG J/LJ pickups and BQC control system (18 volts)
Leo Quan Badass Bass II Bridge
I'd been fairly loyally using D'Addario strings but have recently been using/liking the Ernie Ball coated strings, and I've always used roundwounds, 45-105. The sustain, warmth and clarity are all pretty much ideal. The growl it packs when desired is also about my favorite sound ever. A local luthier, Mark Umphred, did the assembly and setup for me, and it couldn't play better.
I was unbelievably lucky to strike gold on my first effort in terms of nailing looks that suit my tastes and also having everything amount to a great sounding/playing instrument. It was an intimidatingly high bar to try to match, but I've been inspired of late and hope to have something great to share in the nearish future.
