Who'da thunk it?

Minnesota Flats

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It is a beauty all right. Its minty condition has survived for over 20 years, so I handle it with a great deal of care and, happily, can report that I've managed to not put any dings in or scratches on it. I know that some guys don't worry about and may even relish "battle scars", but I like to keep my instruments as immaculate as I can. Not trying to disparage anyone who doesn't do that: it's just my personal preference.
 

hieronymous

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Personally I'm more of a neck pickup person myself, though I know that the lone bridge pickup is a legit way to go - a lot depends on playing style and other spots on the signal chain too. I'm kind of the opposite of the original idea in this thread - on the 2 pickup basses I have, I find myself often using just the neck pickup - and this is on Alembic-pickup equipped basses too. I used to prefer the two pickup sound with the scooped-mids and sparkly highs, but lately I've been going for more oomph (that's a technical term).

I like the idea of keeping an instrument in as pristine condition as possible. It's easier when they spend a lot of time in their cases! But if you want to play and hear them then you've gotta brave the world of tables and door jambs and swinging instrument cables... I am really lucky though to have some '70s-vintage instruments in pretty good shape and I try and keep them that way. I actually have very few instruments that I bought new, that might be an interesting poll.
 

fronobulax

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To veer and/or be completely irrelevant, I have never spent a lot of time chasing sound or tone. So I gravitate towards the simplicity of a one pickup instrument. Doing an A/B comparison from memory and different amps, I think I prefer a sweep spot vintage Bisonic in a '66, probably maple, Starfire I to a neck position vintage Bisonic in a '67 mahogany Starfire I. But the preference is not strong enough to get me to search for a '66 bass or a vintage Bisonic to swap into a Newark Street Starfire. In the situations where I play I am more concerned with my "presence" than my tone and the mix is not so busy that I need to work very hard to fit in. I also have found out that the sound I hear when playing is different from what people 10 feet away (or farther) hear. That said, in a two pickup instrument I also tend to gravitate towards the "more bass" sound of a neck position.

I bought my '67 used but I still tend to be protective, to the point that part of the justification for buying a Newark Street Starfire was that I could play it out and easily replace it if the worst happened.
 
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