LeftyBassist.com

This is a little FYI for anyone who has ever thought about it, but never made the calls...

A little bit ago, I was in the process of looking into getting my "dream" 5-string jazz bass. I was going to sell off a bunch of stuff and go for it... especially since I really only play 2 basses at a time and I own 6... but I wasn't sure which direction to go.

I've been gassing HARD for a Sadowsky for like 15 years, so I was headed in that direction... but after recently aquiring a Custom Shop Fender Jazz that is literally EVERYTHING I think a passive 4-string Jazz should be, I thought I'd look into going the Fender route and get the "real deal."

My quote was for a 5-String Fender Jazz... 70's style. Think Marcus Miller bass, but without any of the fancy electronics... I just wanted standard passive V/V/T. Other selections were a quarter-sawn maple neck, maple fingerboard, pearl blocks with binding, one piece LIGHT solid ash body, b/w/b pickguard, natural nitro finish... modern additions would be the 5-bolt neck, hipshot ultralight tuners, and a Badass II bridge.

So, I made a few phone calls and finally got a return phone call from a dealer the other day.

My quote?

$5,250 with a minimum 6-month turnaround.

The bass would be built by ONE person start to finish and that person would contact me directly regularly throughout the process with questions and/or updates.

It's actually about what I expected, but... even if you expect a dollar figure that high, it still feels sort of like a punch in the gut when you get it.

So, yeah... needless to say, I will NOT be going that route... at least not until I inherit a bunch of money or win the lottery. Especially since I just got a Mike Lull and now know first hand what is available for literally HALF that amount of money.

Anyway... just thought I'd share in case anyone was interested.

Thanks for sharing.
You can get TWO Nordstrands for just a few bucks more

If it's any consolation, not every Fender Custom Shop instrument is necessarily the bees' knees. I bought a 1993 FCS Jazz bass (used) in 2001 and had so many problems with it, that it ended up being used as the core of a Frankenbass that works much better.

Go figure...

I really recommend you try a Regenerate if you're contemplating the Sadowsky or Fender CS route. And I'm not just saying that because Rod posts here.

I've tried Sadowsky, Lull, Alleve Coppola, and own/owned both a couple Fender CS basses and Lakland basses and to my ears/hands the Regenerate are as good sounding and feel/play as nice as any other boutique Fender clone I've tried. Plus Rod will accommodate very specific requests in design and his prices are far lower than any of the brands mentioned above.