1972 Fender Musicmaster - Vlog

[@MatthewHammPDX]

Hi Janek. The universe gifted me the exact same bass in the same color and year. Someone had messed up the electrics and abandoned it in the basement (bass-ment) of a house I rented during the pandemic. It had been there so long that the felt in the case had started breaking down. It was a mess. I fixed it and now it's now my #1 go-to bass. It sounds tonally comparible to my vintage 4001 actually, but is way more comfortable. I kept bringing in my full scale basses to practice, but my bandmates kept insisting that they liked the tone of this MM the best. Now in a couple other bands and it's the same story. MusicMaster FTW!

[@siskokidd]

My first bass, given to me as a Christmas present in 1974. Loved it!

[@DojoOfCool]

My old buddy from high school has been on a zillion records and I'm always surprise at how many short scale bass he has. Once he discover how well they record he started collecting them. I see pictures of his gear from sessions and usually one or two short scale basses. Also Stanley Clarke his main Alembic is a short scale bass. A lot of people look at short scale basses like they are toys, but they get some really useful sounds.

[@siskokidd]

Have your buddy look into the Guild M-85II from the 70's. Dual humbucker, 3/4 scale. Glorious tone. Sheryl Crow is a huge fan, as is the bassist for Paul McCartney's live band when he's not playing bass.

[@danpszeniczny9664]

It's the size that makes all the difference and that makes it "gotta hold and play it" vibe

[@NorCalBASSIX]

Just picked up an "all original" Olympic white 1973 Musicmaster ,that was a factory repaint over daphne blue. Absolutely amazing bass!

[@timothyritchie5290]

Janek i would love a vlog tracking you through a composition. Perhaps a challenge to do something in a day and little spots to see how it evolves and your approach. I love what you do with the solo bass and would love to learn more.

[@DrBulbulia]

Great story about the MM! Wicked sound on the DVD clip -- boom! Will be great to see you and Chelsea celebrate the completion of the book. Warms our hearts to see this collaboration & your happiness together!

[@marunikusbakufu]

I am learning to play on a Squier Bronco which is basically a Music Master clone. I have smaller hands and I find the Bronco to be just so nice to play.

[@michellemonettemusic]

Very cool story! Somewhere in Between is a fantastic record. The DVD footage is looking and sounding awesome! Keep up the great work, both you and Chelsea :)

[@FarginBastiges]

I had a MM bass with the same triangular machine heads and it was best bass I ever played. The neck and fretboard fit my hands perfectly. There was something magical about that specific era (72-73); the later basses just didn't feel the same.

[@amslu]

I’ve got 78 with a proper bass pickup and it sings, great feeling neck and very lightweight:D love this shories, hope fender will reissue them

[@jasondorsey7110]

​@@amslu If it gets reissued at all, it will probably be Fender Japan that does it, they seem to have the most freedom to take risks...I'd love to see it too

[@larryn2682]

The first Musicmaster basses came out in 1970. It was officially introduced in 1971.

[@morrumband]

Its getting so everytime i hear you say "goodmorning coffee drinkers" i get a craving for coffee....

[@samuelslak5637]

Hi Janek,could you do vlog about polyrhythms,approach to learning them etc. :)

[@tyronemar]

Wow great vlog. Thanks for shareing. I own one i got for ----$10 dollars canadian at a garage sale. How lucky am i.

[@deasename5839]

Lucky find I've had my MM bass for 27 years paid 200$ with a block 80 amp. I was at a pawn shop n spayed a MM guitar for 75$ the neck was like a banana and it had quarters under the saddles to compensate. I made the kid throw in New strings and a gig bag. Must have been a new employee but he got a lesson. Anyway I ended up trading the guitar for a USA fender Daville with even spkrs. I still regret it some days but would never part with my MM bass. The guitar neck just needed adjustments.

[@TheTechnatron]

So some time back in your videos. I heard you talking about wanting something to practice with when you had no amplification. I've been using a I Rig 2 for this same problem. It's not the best but it fits the bill, and can be fun when I hook it up with a AUX cable in a car. Hope that might have helped. o/

[@KevinStudent]

Also, there's a vox headphone amp that plugs right into the guitar and you plug headphones into it. It also has an AUX in that you can use with your phone!

[@SteveSam66]

Janek, nice bass, cool story !!

[@jsetov]

Hey, not sure if you mentioned it in the video, but do you have the original pickup in it? Do you like the sound of it?

[@MatthewHammPDX]

I suspect it has the original pickup in it. If you're asking this question then you likely already know that the default upgrade is a rails-style pickup. Janek's bass still has the stock plastic cover on it, so I suspect it still has the 6-pole Strat pickup in it. I've been debating on whether to upgrade my MM, but I also don't want to mess with the magic that I have right now. I might just have to try it to see what happens.

[@diegoricketts595]

Hi Janek, I really enjoy your videos and wanted to ask you what's your opinion about the Hotone Skyline Wally Looper, I'm thinking on buying one. It would be my first looper, I just have a friend that have a looper, but I don't. Hope you can read this and answer. :) Cheers, Diego

[@natanwalden7108]

hi, what strings are they (the black ones). Thank you. Natan

[@cyberprimate]

Great tone. What string brand/gauge are used on your Musicmaster ?

[@KozmykJ]

Nostalgia is not what it used to be... My second bass ever back in 73 (or thereabouts) and a brand new one too. To be honest I didn't really like it that much once I'd got over New Bass Frenzy. But there again I knew bugger all about setup and intonation back then. That single pickup was a Strat type, 6 pole job ... It would be interesting to play one again

[@thomassmith3352]

How do you determine the year of your music-master Bass the serial number of my music master starts with 5

[@larryn2682]

There is probably a date seen if the neck is removed. The potentiometers inside have date codes. There are also distinctive features that changed slightly over the years.

[@warrenmmusic6381]

Thanks for answering my question!!!

[@studiodsr]

Great video! I get that this comment is 6 years late but just in case: 1. Did you ever consider changing the pickup, and 2. In your opinion is the MM tone better than the Mustang bass tone?

[@janekgwizdala]

I did consider having a pickup custom wound for it so it was more reliable and modern, but never did it. I ended up selling both the Musicmaster and the Mustang recently as they just weren't being played enough anymore. The sound of each instrument was totally different though. Not one better than the other.

[@nick1237811]

hey, great vlog. I don't know if this is a stupid question but: could somebody tell me what's that pickup thingy he has down the pickguard for? is it a pickup? thanks in advance anyways. sorry for my bad english.

[@niallf9653]

It's a finger rest. Many older Fender basses have them, sometimes they are above the strings to act as a thumb rest. I think it dates back to the early days of electric bass playing when the thumb was the usual way of playing. They are often just removed.

[@ggvbeer4339]

Bass : 0:00 - 0:14 ........ 4:42 - 4:52 ......... 5:50 - 6:00 .......... 8:16 - 8:21 ......... 10:00 - 10:24 ......... 10:48 - 10:58 ......... 11:47 - 12:33 .......... way too much talking ..

[@McDoinky]

oreg beer Well, he never said it was a demo

[@yb32]

how much does it weight?

[@warrenmmusic6381]

Hey Janek, Do you have the compressor running the whole time you play? I wanted to get a compressor to fatten my bass tone and was wondering if I should buy a pedal or an outboard compressor. It seems that if you have a compressor running the whole time you play, it would make more sense to buy an outboard piece and put it in a rack with my amp head. I was wondering why your thoughts were about this?

[@KevinStudent]

Check out Ovnilabs! Google that and he has a website dedicated to reviews of tons of compressors and is very well regarded on the subject. That might be able to help you decide! I personally like my little pedal compressor, but it's all subjective!

[@warrenmmusic6381]

kstud thank you for the info!

[@bcdrummer1962]

Hi Janek, I just watched the DVD shoot VLOG, at the end of the VLOG I was just sitting there grinning, for many reasons. And one of them was a pure happiness to see the connection you and Chelsea obviously have. Congrats on that, and on the shoot itself! OK, here's my question: I picked up a GO PRO 5 session after watching your VLOG on it, and I've used it on a couple gigs. Invariably, the power ran out towards the end of the 2nd set - ouch!!! Are you doing anything specific to feed power to your 5 session to catch entire gigs? Could you talk about power management of your recording devices and any tips/tricks you have? Thanks bro and best regards......Bill

[@KevinStudent]

Hey there! I found that the Gopros always love to suck through batteries. What I ended up doing is setting it to 720p at 60 fps, instead of maxing it out at 1080p etc. The 720p is still pretty good quality, and it lasts much longer. Also, depending on where/how you have it set up, you could plug it into a power bank and that should extend the life by quite a bit!

[@bentpolski]

Janek can you please tell me which Tape Wound Bass Strings you use!!?? Thank You!

[@everts2997]

I'm not sure but my guess would be D'addario ETB92. Mine look exactly like those, as in with the blue cloths at the top

[@130mMer5boc]

Sans chapeau is the way for you to go. Keep the hat for the tour.

[@ajadrew]

Great story..:-))

[@xh4r744]

You need to adjust the truss rod also not just the bridge

[@kephasbassmusic489]

I've just got myself one:-)

[@kindnick58]

JG!

[@bobdimartino6738]

just sold mine i think there overrated

[@bass08053]

Cool story