Fender Custom Shop Launches Adrian Younge Jazz Bass with Half-Fretless Neck & Built-In Fuzz/Tremolo
Back in 2021, we featured a one-of-a-kind instrument from the Fender Custom Shop as a bass of the week. Now, the bass has been made into a limited edition run.
The Fender Custom Shop Limited Edition Masterbuilt Adrian Younge Jazz Bass features the same unique design elements as the one-off, which was created by FCS Masterbuilder Vincent Van Trigt in collaboration with the Jazz is Dead bassist and producer. The new model, created by Masterbuilder Levi Perry, features an alder Jazz Bass body, fitted with a quartersawn maple “C”-shaped neck and a rosewood fingerboard. Although it features a Jazz Bass body shape, the bass is equipped with a Curtis Novak BS-DS pickup in the neck position and a Custom Shop Hand-Wound ’62 Split Single-Coil Precision Bass in the middle position.
The unique pickup configuration just scratches the surface of the bass’s jaw-dropping features.
“While nailing down specifications on this bass, Adrian requested something incredibly unique—a half fretless neck. So, this bass has vintage upgrade fret wire up through the 9th fret and is fretless from there all the way to the 20th. With the way Levi builds each neck, transitioning from fretted to fretless playing is effortless and intuitive, giving players a completely fresh approach on an instrument that could have been released in the late ‘60s,” the Fender Custom Shop writes.
What’s more, the Adrian Younge Jazz Bass is fitted with two built-in effects: a 60s-voiced fuzz and a square wave tremolo modeled after his vintage fuzz boxes. “Both effects are quickly turned on and off via the master volume and tone controls, unlocking another new set of sounds within this wildly inspiring Jazz Bass,” the company adds.
Check out the bass and hear about its creation from Younge and Perry:
Other features include a Journeyman Relic Aged Silver Sparkle finish, vintage-style hardware, and a certificate of authenticity. The Fender Custom Shop Limited Edition Masterbuilt Adrian Younge Jazz Bass is now available for pre-order, with a price point of $14,500.
Fender Custom Shop Limited Edition Masterbuilt Adrian Younge Jazz Bass Specs:
| Construction: | Bolt-on |
| Scale: | 34″ |
| Body: | 2-piece Select Alder |
| Neck: | Quartersawn Maple |
| Fingerboard: | Flat-Laminated Rosewood |
| Frets: | 20 - Half Fretted, Half Fretless |
| Inlays: | White Micarta Dot |
| Fretboard Radius: | 9.5″ |
| Nut: | Bone |
| Nut Width: | 1.5″ |
| Neck Shape: | 60s ″C″ |
| Pickups: | Curtis Novak® BS-DS, Custom Shop Hand-Wound '62 Split Single-Coil Precision Bass |
| Electronics: | Onboard Fuzz and Square Wave Tremolo |
| Controls: | Master Volume, Master Tone (Push/Pull for Fuzz and Tremolo Bypass) |
| Bridge: | 4-Saddle Vintage-Style |
| Color: | Aged Silver Sparkle |
| Other: | Deluxe Hardshell Case, Strap and Certificate of Authenticity |
In his time with No Treble, Kevin has met hundreds of amazing bassists and interviewed icons like Jack Casady, Victor Wooten, Les Claypool, Marcus Miller, and more. He's a gigging bassist performing jazz in Northern Virginia and bluegrass with The Plate Scrapers up and down the East Coast. Kevin appreciates all genres of music, from R&B to metal and everything in between. Connect with Kevin on Facebook and check his performance schedule on his website.
$14K. Wow. I think I’s buy an old ’66 P and a couple effects boxes. But to each their own.
Looks like the Barry Oakley Thactor but with p bass ups instead of jazz
Way over priced, it’s a block of timber with pick-ups if you’re pricing around fuzz, well there’s a pedal.
The additional of a Guild Starfire pickup to a Fender bass dates back to Berry Oakley.
Elexir string is the best
Tell the guy he has a pinky finger, godammit
I just had too….
It’s way too cool to pass up.
Thanks to Drian & Fender