What would Your Ideal SE Bass Be Like?

[CoreyT]

I have been wanting an SE bass for awhile now.
After playing the Grainger prototype last September at a PRS Meet & Greet at my local dealer, I would really like to get a bass later.

I have been reading up on basses and they have changed a lot over the years.
Most now are coming without a toggle switch to change between pickups, and they have a blend knob instead to go between the pickups.

My ideal SE bass would have:
* Traditional PRS double cut body, similar to my 408
* Two volume knobs, one for each pickup
* Either one tone control with push/pull for splitting the coils
* Pickup blend control
* Pickups could be passive or active, does not really matter to me
* Bolt on or set through maple neck
* Rosewood fretboard

I had not touched a bass guitar in over three decades until I tried that Grainger prototype, and I think it would be fun messing around with one at home.
I could even use it with my Zoom R24 recorder to add a track to my playing guitar along with the drum kits built into the Zoom.

 

[John Beef]

I'm a big fan of the balls to the wall P-bass tone. Good stuff. I know there's more to it than just a pickup, so I don't know if a PRS bass would ever do that for me, but here it goes...

I want to say, PRS doublecut shape with beveled top. P pickup in the middle - one volume and one tone. Set neck. Ash body with maple neck and maple fretboard. Shorter scale length, say maybe 32" instead of 34. Satin neck finish. Wide-fat profile. Hipshot ultralite tuners.

 

[CoreyT]

I totally forgot about the satin neck.
After getting my Zach Myers I wonder why all guitars do not come satinized.

 

[Sage]

Double-cut PRS shape with beveled top and figured maple veneer (an SE version of the Grainger shape, like the current SE Cu24 is to the USA version).
Dual J pickups, passive.
All-maple body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard.

I'd buy one of those for sure.

From what we've seen of the Kestrel, it looks like it'll be flat-top with forearm contour, passive dual J pickups, maple neck, rosewood fretboard. Dunno about the body. If I had to guess, I'd guess mahogany.

 

[watelessness]

it would be like a Fender PJ

 

[CoreyT]

I checked out those Hipshots, very nice.

Question, do they make locking tuners for basses, or are the strings to thick for a pin or cam to grab onto the string and lock it?
I have lockers on all of my guitars, and I like them for speed of string changes, and no chance of me making a string go flat by the core breaking by not winding it correctly onto the shaft.
Fubbed up a mass of strings that way in my youth, and I said never again after I learned about locking tuners back in 2012 when I got back into guitars again.

 

[mjreardon]

I have been a bassist primarily for most of my playing days. My main bass is a Fender Am Std. Jazz V and my other bass is a MIM P-bass with a pickup upgrade...I say that to say this, please don't do another Jazz/Precision variant. There are enough of those on the market as-is and, frankly, I prefer actual Fenders to all the clones anyways.

That said, I would love to see an SE version of the GG bass. Maybe go solid colors instead of the veneer flame-top (though I wouldn't turn my nose up to a veneer either) 3-band EQ with passive bypass (controlled via single switch instead of both volume pots), dual-coil SE versions of the GG pickups, 24 frets, mahogany body, maple neck, rosewood board with SE bird inlays, with 4 & 5 string versions coming in at or just below a $1000 street price.

Question, do they make locking tuners for basses, or are the strings to thick for a pin or cam to grab onto the string and lock it?

If they make locking tuners for bass, I haven't seen them. I've never seen the need for them either, even cheap basses will hold their tuning better than most guitars, especially guitars with tremolo.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

please don't do another Jazz/Precision variant. There are enough of those on the market as-is

That's kinda where it seems like this may be going from the limited pics so far, I know PRS has to go for a certain price-point, but it would be cool to see the distill some of the GG mojo into an affordable package.... Bassists for the most part didn't go gaga over the original PRS bass or the later CE bass, it seems like the Grainger might be getting the most interest of all of the PRS basses produced.


I hope they do something special for the bridge design too, I found it a little "out-of-place" to see some of the Graingers come with traditional bent baseplate bridges.

 

[WEDGE]

I would like to see a neck that has J bass slim width, I can't get used to the wider P bass necks.

 

[CoreyT]

Rob Chapman, the guy who makes the videos with Andertons in the UK has his line of 6 string guitars that are made by the same people who make the PRS SEs.
He is coming out with a bass soon, and his bass player has the prototype which they will be making improvements on.
All I can say is after seeing the video of his bass player playing it that I hope the PRS one is just as nice or better, and as pretty as it.
The Chapman ML B1 is gorgeous.
I probably should not post the link here, but you can find it on YouTube under Rob's account, it was just put up yesterday.

If the PRS SE does not come out for a long time, I will spring for the Chapman one, it is that nice.

 

[Sage]

I would like to see a neck that has J bass slim width, I can't get used to the wider P bass necks.

+1. The main reason I stick with my Squier is because of the slim J bass neck.