Fender Jazz Bass Geddy Lee Signature Cij

Ive owned many of these over the years and every one of them has been made exceptionally well. The pickups that come stock in it are actually pretty awesome. They're vintage, so the output is a little low, but thats what the volume/gain knob on your amp is for. The electronics all in all are pretty damn good stock even though the shielding plate in the control cavity doesn't seem to do much of anything, it may just be a design feature. The tuners feel a little cheap and they rattle when the strings are loose or off completely, but other than that they work fine and never go out of tune. I have never had to replace a set of tuners. This bass sounds amazing even all stock even though loads of people modify them to their personal taste.
There's nothing that looks to better in my opinion than a black bodied bass with a maple fretboard with black binding and blocks. It's a match made in heaven.
The neck is super thin front to back and is super fast and comfortable.
I've never played a bass with this much value for the price. Fender could easily charge as much as they would for an american standard.

Purchased the bass due to loving the thinner neck profile. Would have preferred 60s pickup spacing (bridge pickup is closer to the bridge for 70s spacing). Sound is pretty good - could use a little more bass. The tuners were junky and were immediately replaced with Hipshots. I tried to like the wider spacing that came with the bass, but eventually replaced the bridge with a new BA II that I cut to the standard 3/4" (19mm) spacing. The thinner neck without any graphite reinforcement requires adjustment every couple of weeks to maintain a low action and I routed a slot in the body to allow adjustment without taking the neck off (or loosening it). The fretwork was ok and I recently had the bass Pleked which did wonders. Overall, I am very happy with the bass after tweaking it.

Well, I got this bass all muddy and yucky from the previous owner who could have cared less about a $700 instrument. Funny story about it. I bought it disguised as two potential buyers; one offering 600 and one offering $500. Me as the $600 guy had to turn it down for personal reasons and so the guy came to me again disguised as the $500 person. So I bought it for $500. I pretended not to have a working phone which was how I pulled it off.

So, the bass. The build is phenomenal and everything is top-notch quality. It's a 2004 model and this must have been when Japan was seriously trying to outshine Fender USA with their models. Absolutely fantastic bass.

It plays well and the super skinny neck is what you can expect from any Geddy Lee model. Nothing special. Not very comfortable if you have hams for hands but for me, it's perfect. The newer MIMs have a thicker neck width but I'm content with mine.

The Geddy Lee MIM/CIJ models come in either black or 3-tone burst. While those are really fitting colours and look beautiful, I sure wish Fender would give us more choices for this signature; maybe a candy apple red or a seafoam green (Geddy does use these colours on tour too!!). I guess it's a money-saving thing? I have the black model. Hoping to get a sunburst one.

The pickups on these do sound sort of weak and too thin for my tastes. My last two Geddys were replaced with Fender Custom Shop 60s pickups which add meat to the tone and that punch that the stock pickups were lacking. If you do get one, try to switch out pickups with the set of your choice; guaranteed (or not) to make you happy.

I play with the bass everyday and it gives me great happiness playing it. The Rotosound Swing 66s I have one really make the bass sound like Geddy (according to fellow Vancouver TB members!) which is flattering but no way I can match a bass legend that is Geddy Lee. I can only hope to be a tenth of what he is and achieve 1/100th of what he's done for the past forty years.

The bass makes me want to practice and improve my skills. No other Jazz Bass feels the same as mine...not even the USA models that are being sold right now. Those are nice, but this one...is MINE!

I don't know what to tell you guys about the bass; it's a Geddy Lee signature. You either love it or hate it and I truly love this bass...to the point where I sold my Precision to save up for a sunburst MIM or a USA Geddy.

If you're a Rush fan or a fan of super thin Jazz necks, get this one! IF you're also poor like me but want something similar to a real 1972 Fender, this is as close as you'll get without getting into crazy debt. The AVRIs are too much, in my opinion. This is the best you'll get and you won't regret it. Long live Rush. Long live their legacy!