Squier Bronco bass mods Ep.13: Tuners, nut & neck finish? Were the mods worth it?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.ค. 2024
- In this wrap-up episode, I will discuss whether aftermarket Gotoh and hipshot tuners will fit on this Squier Sonic series Bronco short scale bass, discuss the nut and neck finish, and discuss the cost of these mods. Was it worth it?
There is a lot of sonic potential in this Bronco bass and to highlight that, I have compiled a few back to back playing examples from previous episodes.
Thank you so much for watching this series! I hope you enjoyed it!
00:00 Intro & background
01:31 Examining the tuners and hole sizes
05:50 Examining the neck pocket
07:26 Nut discussion
08:43 Discussing the neck finish
11:30 Costs of the mods. Is it worth it?
15:01 Playing example
17:11 Other potential pickup configurations
18:10 Thanks!
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My Bronco now has a 51 P style pickup. LYWS is the brand and less than $20.00 US. Sounds good, very woody. Added a black pick guard on the black body. Maple board contrasts nicely.
That looks great! Bronco is such a fun modding platform. Thanks for watching!
Thanks for taking us along on this journey. It was entertaining and informative. All the best.
Thanks for watching! The series is likely to get revived with new mods!
I thoroughly enjoyed the series. For the most part, all the mods did pretty much what I expected, but you did do a few mods I wasn't expecting.
As for me, this summer, I plan on setting my Sonic P's neck out in the Florida sunshine for a few days. It is supposedly the UV light that yellows the maple in the neck. I will use a low cut box about the size of the neck, lined with foil to reflect the light further around the edges.
Thanks for watching! A local luthier friend who makes classical guitars uses a VU light box to tint necks! They look great!
Thanks for watching!
It is always a good day when you upload, man. Thank you sm
Ahh, thanks man! You’re too kind. Thanks for watching and happy new year!
Great series, and I really enjoy your playing. Much appreciated.
Thanks for watching and for your positive comments!
I love clicking on the link to see new content.
Wonderful series with your studio backdrop to make results more consistent.
Not simply modding a short scale (although this part of the market is under represented), it covers most practical ‘if I changed’ mod options!
Cheers!
Thanks so much for watching!! Thanks for the encouragement. Much appreciated!
Thanks for the series. I've changed my bridge and pick up (Dual rail humbucker) and really enjoying the new fuller sound. Thanks again..
Right on! Thanks so much for tuning in and watching! Hope you continue to enjoy your bass!
I saw another TH-cam video of a Bronco mod where they just smoothed out the neck finish using a Scotchbrite pad. I’m planning on trying that just to see how it will make the neck on the Bronco I just bought feel. Seems like a relatively easy way to make it feel a little better. Thanks for making this series!
That should work. I have been using 1000 grit super fine finishing sandpaper on other basses with glossy necks. Doesn’t take any finish off, just dulls it out.
Thanks for watching!
Thanks again, Jonathan, especially for the summary. I might yet give it a try, but in the meantime, I found a CV Mustang bass under the tree, and I like it a lot, perhaps even more than my Player Series. (Guitar Center had it on sale for $350 US.) Keep up the great work.
One heck of a present from Santa! Thanks for your loyal viewership from the beginning!
Very useful, thanks.
Thanks for watching and for your encouragement!
You seem to like this little bass. She is endearing and yet so simple
I do! For the low asking price, it’s a fun instrument and I’ve enjoyed filming this mod series. I also like white coloured basses!
Thanks! 🙂😎
Thanks for watching!
Love all the work put into this humble bass just for these helpful videos! I do not have the woodworking skills you have to try so much stuff out (for instance, making the pickup cavity larger, or this filling up of wood in the neck pocket-BTW, my Sonic Bronco did not have that issue, thankfully.) Also my soldering skills are quite suspect-have done so successfully, but more than a decade ago, and one of the times it was a bit of a noisy mess, and all my fault, not faulty electronics.
I just wanted to add that the worst repair person in the multiverse-myself-had no problems fitting in USA Hipshot 3/8 ultralite tuners (I did prefer the look of lollipops, but found ol' clovers at a great price, so I settled for the "standard"-also, I actually like the "bulgy"/fat look of the stock originals!) I did not need to modify the wood, or otherwise I wouldn't have been able to pull it off. Now, it took some pressure, but never too much that I felt I needed to be a "strongman", nor did I ever feel I was harming the headstock in any way. Also added an ultralite Xtender as I do on most of my basses. Worth all that money because I *love* the bass despite the low price (purchased at sale price-you can imagine the tuners/Xtenders are more expensive than the Bronco even at a discounted price!) Added the Babicz Z series bridge as well, super easy upgrade/sidegrade.
My point is not to counter your statements-it may very well be your particular model would need modification for the Hipshot Ultralites/Gotoh Resolites. In mine they looked normal! I loved the result-just think the factory standards are not super tight due to the low budget, but I assure you that in my bass, one could say my Hipshot tuners came stock with the bass the way everything looks installed.
Also love the stock nut, but may ask for an opinion from my favorite luthier to see if a graphtech would be a nice addition. Sincerely think stock works great (as did the original bridge and tuning machines quite frankly, but I must modify stuff! And the Xtender is something I always have use for. The Babicz Z Series bridge also changed the tone a bit, and I did enjoy the difference.)
I definitely do agree that it's worth it, especially if you love the sound and results. *Very* hard to find a bass customized for *you*, even at $599.00/799.00/1099.00. It's easier to make a bass one's own-as long as it's not utter cr*p-on a budget. When I see a bass I like at a higher price, I already am thinking "what would i change?" So this affordable price is even more ideal for myself.
I am sure with all your mods, you have a bass you love and can use professionally as a "mini-P" at a cheaper price point than, say the Schecter shortscale Banshee P clone ($799 retail). But EVEN if you had to pay overall more, isn't it worth it if you love the results of all your hard work and research on making your bass be, look, and feel the best it can?
Thanks so much-BTW, finally having someone soldering my DiMarzio Fast Track 1 and new 500k pots + output jack at long last!
So interesting about the hipshots!! The gotoh had no chance of going in with pressure! Wider tolerances and variability is unfortunately what happens with more budget friendly offshore manufacturing. Thanks for watching and for sharing! Appreciate the encouragement and feedback!
Hi Jonathan-inspired by your Bronco upgrade series, I have bought a Sonic Bronco (in white) to do my upgrades. I am looking to use all gold hardware, so hoping to use a Hipshot Kickass 4-string Bridge (5 holes). Also a set of Gotoh Compact Bass Tuners (or something like it).
For the pickup, I think I will go with one you suggested, the Seymour Duncan Hot Rail SHR-1N.(neck pickup), an easy option-I would like to go with something like the Geezers pickups, but the pickguard and routing would be too much work for me at this time. Looking to create a kind of "Atelier Z babyZ" tribute (on a budget). Wish me luck! Thanks for all the references!
That sounds so awesome! I hope all the mods work out to your sonic liking! Best to you!
I have ordered a black one with dark fretboard here local.
Can’t wait to have it in my hands 😊
Thanks for feeding my GAS.
Going to try a MM style bridge on it and make it stringthrough.
Refinishing a maple fretboard is a lot of work. It can completely change a neck though.
Good luck with the new bass! MM style bridge mod sounds cool!
Thanks for watching!
@@jonathanwong458music Thanks, it just arrived. Looks and feels great.
I like that the neck is narrower than the Harley Benton Shorty.
The laurel fretboard looks real nice. Not too light in color.
Frets have no real sharp ends. I’ll do the dots on the i.
That’s awesome! Have fun and enjoy the new axe!
Great series! Try Birchwood Casey Tru oil on your neck. Just sand lightly and apply. The feel and color looks great. I put a Bill Lawence HB PU in mine.
Thanks for watching! I’ve finished and refinished a few necks with spray lacquer and Osmo polyx oil. The feel of the Osmo is great. So smooth, without the need for a super dust free finishing environment.
About color shade of the neck. I also find them too pale (I don't have a Bronco but have a Squier DuoSonic) and was obsessed with having it tinted. Then I just exposed it to winter morning sun and it turned perfect!
The UV light strategy! Yes, I have a luthier friend who treats his necks in a UV box. Comes out beautifully tinted. Thanks for watching and commenting!
I very much enjoyed your Bronco series, Jonathan. You are thorough and meticulous and your delivery is so calm and pleasant.
You're the only person i've seen on TH-cam putting Pbass pickups in the Bronco. I've been wondering for quite a while how that would sound... thank you for doing that!
My two-saddle Bronco bridge spacing is about 17.5 mm, and i noticed the replacement bridges you tested are all 19mm. Does the Sonic Bronco come with a 19mm bridge? If so, do the E and G strings end up kind of close to the edge of the fingerboard?
Thanks for a great series, keep up the good work! 😊
Thanks for watching and for the encouragement! The stock bridge on the sonic series is a standard fender 5 screw 19mm bridge, so lots of aftermarket options there. The string spacing is accommodated by the sonic neck and there’s still lots of space on each side. I don’t have an affinity bronco to compare neck widths to, unfortunately. My guess is that the sonic neck is a smidge wider. Sonic neck width @ 19th fret is 2.25”.
Thanks again!
Thanks for your reply, Jonathan. I checked my bronco neck and it is also 2.25" at the 19th fret. It's interesting that squier would opt for the standard width bridge for the bronco after 20+ years, but I'm glad to hear the standard width works, it opens up way more possibilities!
Keep up the good work, cheers!
@@bobbo56 right on! Being able to intonate each string is a huge benefit for me!
When you put the rails humbucker in this bass, did you change the pots to 500k? Wondering if that would take the tone back closer to the original pick-up, but without the noise.
Good question. No, I left in the stock electronics and cap, so as to only change one variable at a time. But yes, a 500k vol pot might brighten things up a bit. Might get on the harsher side, but I haven’t tried yet. I had a 500k in briefly when I put in the Arctec soapbar and did not like it, surprisingly.
Thanks for watching!
Hi!! I love this series!! I got one like a month ago and I love how it sounds. I would like to see how it would sound with a set of mustang bass pickups
It’s a cool, relatively affordable bass! With mustang style pickups you are definitely committing to getting (or making) a custom pickguard as they are guard-mounted. It’ll definitely look cool. Sonically, my guess would be that the mustang would be more narrow bandwidth and less complex but more focused and to-the-point than the precision. But quieter than the stock single coil. As an example, here’s a comparison video I had made between a CV mustang and a player mustang:
Fender Player Mustang bass vs. Squier Classic Vibe 60s Mustang bass: Comparison of sounds
th-cam.com/video/YxdNdpk_qV0/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for watching!
@@jonathanwong458music Nicee, I'm going to watch the video. Thank you so much for answering!!
By the way, do you know where I could get a custom pickguard that will fit with that pickup configuration?
Check out eBay seller earlpilanz. They’ve been good with corresponding with me and if you provide exact measurements they can probably make it. Pickguard material options are slightly limiting, eg I don’t think they do metal anodized materials as an example.
WD music can also probably make things but may require a drawing or template example.
@@jonathanwong458musicEarlpilanz made the custom pickguard for my sonic bronco, and it was a perfect fit...abalone shell on top of the ultraviolet purple finish, very eyecatching
They’ve made 3 pickguards for me, all for different basses. All have been great!
You know weight is very important, my Bronco Sonic is light. Great for my 73 yrs old back. Also I went with a Seymour Hot Rails. It went in just fine but when digging in I sometimes hear a high pitch sound that is loud. Any thoughts, my solder work, pickup height, or string height? Love you channel and your teaching method. Thanks Mike
Hmm, re high pitched noise. When the power/hydro is dirty I sometimes get popping static noises, depending on the venue. Is it random or only when playing hard? If only when playing hard, could try lowering the pickup height. If it seems dependent on hand position, could also be a grounding issue. If it happens with other basses too, then likely a common amp or electrical issue downstream of the instrument. I suppose ‘cold’ or intermittent solder joints could, or a bad tone cap or a pot that’s shorting somewhere. Possible it’s a faulty pickup too, but SDs are usually pretty good.
Noise is a pain. I’ve gone down rabbit holes trying to chase certain noises in the studio (much more so in the previous one) only to find it was interference from a neighbour’s appliances!
Good luck and thanks for watching!!
I would recommend lowering the pickup, it won't cost you anything to try it out...I installed gretsch humbuckers in an old harmony but was never really happy with it and it sat in its case for a couple years...decided to take it back out and try again but was still disappointed so I tried lowering the pickups just an eighth of an inch...now it's awesome and I love it
Thanks I like this little bass. I will get it right soon.@@jasondorsey7110
Where did you find the pickguard ? Is it pearl white ?
Yes, it is white pearloid. It was custom made for me by eBay seller ‘earlpilanz’. I first featured it in ep.9. Thanks for watching!
So are there drop in tuner replacements available that don’t need drilling? 🧐
To my knowledge, the smaller sized common aftermarket options are 14mm. There may be smaller sizes available but would be likely more difficult to find/source. May just be easier to slightly enlarge the tuner hole, plug and redrill the set screw hole. But I’m not sure how much you’d be gaining, performance-wise, unless you had a broken tuner.
@@jonathanwong458music Thanks again, Jonathan! Yeah the stock tuners are okay, I guess. They could be a bit smoother… I tried to put some Schaller M90s in there and was surprised that the bore wouldn’t fit, as they fit my Squier Mini P Bass perfectly.
Hmm…Thought those schallers also had a 14mm barrel….also thought the tuners looked the same as the mini P! Interesting! Maybe there are slight tolerance variations on these squiers, hence your experience with the S4 was different too.
Thanks for watching and commenting!
Check out Roukangas Tube Powered pickups
That looks wild!!
I met him at NAMM, really nice guy, very creative. I tried out his Steambass, it was a dream to play.@@jonathanwong458music
So many innovative toys! Happy new year and thanks for your loyal viewership!