Let's see your BASS!

[Achtane]

Pink.
Or black.

[Derelict78]

I like the black on black action!

[backwardsvoyager]

Pink.
Or black.

[greyscales]

If I had a pink one I would definitely try it. Now I kind of want a shell pink Mustang with a black guard... Warmoth needs that body shape.

[backwardsvoyager]

That would look sweet.

By the way, how does the Squier compare to the MIJ as far as the sound and feel go? I'd imagine the maple board would make a noticeable difference.
I was looking around for the Squier to try before I splurged on my MIJ but couldn't find any.

[greyscales]

I had a feeling someone would ask that. As a disclaimer, I've only had it for a day but played it quite a bit and set the action/intonation already.

The most noticeable difference between the two is the neck shape and feel. The CIJ has a gloss finish so it can feel a bit stickier (steel wool will fix that), whereas the Squier has a satin-ish, almost unfinished feel. The Squier neck is a bit chunkier and it isn't quite as truly round (almost blockier maybe?), but not in a bad way. Might be more comfortable for people used to a P bass. The CIJ is a bit thinner, more like a Jazz neck.
The Squier could use a bit of fret work. Edges are not really dressed and I had one dead-ish fret when I dropped the action. But neither of those are deal breakers by any stretch. Just pop the action up on the G and take more steel wool to the fret ends to ease it up for now. Meanwhile the CIJ is pretty much perfect. One HUGE thing in the Squier's favor is the truss rod access. Fuck heel access, man. It's hard to really perfect the CIJ's action without a lot of time that I didn't want to spend without a backup.

I need to drop the pickups and swap the strings on the Squier before giving a ton of comments on the sound. So far it is a bit brighter. Not a crazy amount due to the Mustang pickups' sound (which are just as good as the CIJ). The fresh strings also give it a bit more zing, and I'm not a huge fan of the stock strings as is. At the moment it is pretty hot because the pickups are sitting close to the strings, which some may like but is messing with my SS/BS Mini a bit. Something sounds a bit... funky about the tone control on the Squier. Like it is more midrange-y when it is rolled off. Not a huge fan, but I don't really mess with tone controls anyways (not sure if you saw my Jag bass).

Honestly, buy the Squier with confidence. It is definitely a bass I will gig with. The hardware is just as good as the CIJ's and anyone with a bit of ambition can get the neck feeling top notch.
Is it on the CIJ's level? Um... maybe? With a good fret job and better strings it would be close to equal. Unless you really love glossy necks with rosewood fretboards. But I'm keeping both for sure.

[backwardsvoyager]

Interesting.
I'm glad I went with the MIJ because it was pretty much perfect right out of the box, aside from the stock strings I cannot find a single thing to complain about and any future mods will be purely cosmetic.
Heel access is silly but it's a vintage reissue so it's to be expected.

Seems like the price difference is a lot more than the quality difference if the only noticeable upsides of the MIJ are the fret work and tone control, though. Squier are killing it these days.

[colin]

Definitely the black guard, gives it a nice 70's Fender vibe.

[foomanfat]

NBD

[hollowhero]

Gibson FTW

[greyscales]

That looks fucking pristine. Nice find.

I've only played one Grabber but it was yummy.

[backwardsvoyager]

GORGEOUS!!

so... are you gonna scrub that signature off of it?

[foomanfat]

I got so hypnotized with playing it, I forgot the sig was there.
Definitely getting scrubbed.

[backwardsvoyager]

I got so hypnotized with playing it, I forgot the sig was there.
Definitely getting scrubbed.

i think the sig only adds to the resale value if the bass is shaped like an axe anyway

[foomanfat]

Word.
I think Gene Simmons' signature is straight worthless, because: A. He has to have signed so much crap and B. He's alive.