Fender Bass V

Fender Bass V
Manufacturer	Fender
Period	1965—1971
Construction
Body type	Solid
Neck joint	Bolt-on
Woods
Body	Alder
Neck	Maple
Fretboard	Rosewood
Hardware
Bridge	Fixed
Pickup(s)	1 split single-coil pickup
Colors available
Sunburst, Black, Olympic White, Candy Apple Red Metallic, Lake Placid Blue Metallic, and all the fender custom finishes at the time (most were sunburst)

1965 Fender Bass V

The original Fender Bass V was a quirky and unusual electric bass guitar model produced by Fender between 1965 and 1971. It was the world's first five-string bass guitar, a popular concept today.

The Fender Bass V is unusual in its dimensions: although it is three inches longer than a P-Bass, the Fender Bass V has only 15 frets. A high C string was added to a combination of traditional Fender body designs. (At the time, not much about electric bass construction was traditional because it was still a new technology.) The idea behind the top C string was to enable reading bass players to get to the high notes on the instrument easily, without having to go up the neck. The top note on the instrument is E-flat which is the same top note as a standard 20-fret 4 string Jazz or Precision bass.

Originally came with chrome bridge and pickup covers.

Players did not accept the Fender Bass V, partly due to its size and shape.^[1] Players also had problems with the small amount of space between strings. Only about 1000 Fender Bass V models were produced, before being discontinued in 1971.^[2] Surplus bodies were then used in the construction of the Fender Swinger.

Players

The following players are reported to have owned a Fender Bass V:

• James Jamerson, Motown legend
• John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin
• C.F. Turner of Bachman-Turner Overdrive

See also

• Fender Jazz Bass V

Literature

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fender Bass V.

• Peter Bertges: The Fender Reference; Bomots, Saarbrücken 2007, ISBN 978-3-939316-38-1

References