Fender Aerodyne or Spector Legend w Barts??

Berberdeng

Berberdeng

Jan 26, 2020
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Machesney Park IL
#1
I am having the hardest time deciding which bass to go with. Fender Aerodyne MIJ (Basswood body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard, passive pjs) vs Spector Legend 4 2019 (Bart pjs, ash body, pau ferro fretboard, passive pickups active Pre)

I’ve literally been back and forth about this for weeks. I’m going crazy lol.

The problem is that there isn’t enough info out there on how the Spector actually sounds. I’ve never played a bass with barts and some of the clips I’ve heard make them sound dull. It LOOKS amazing and I love ash bodies. On paper it sounds awesome but I’ve had bad luck with other Spectors that LOOKED good but sounded like a big BLAH, so I’m weary.

Now, the Aerodyne seems to have it all. There’s plenty of vids out there showcasing its sound which is unreal and it looks amazing. The problem here is that the materials seem so basic. Also the finish is a huge fingerprint magnet. Not sure how much that would matter.

Are the better materials going to make a big difference? Are barts going to give me a good growly rock tone like the Aerodyne? Am I way overthinking this??? HELP!!!! :nailbiting:
 
#2
I picked up my Aerodyne yesterday, noodled around and thought to myself “what an awesome bass”. It’s the best looking Fender with a unique wooden P sound ( I think it’s because of the Basswood).
I never played a Spector Legend, so I cannot do a comparison. But I played a Euro, which is something in a different league and definitely on my GAS list. Unfortunately also in another price range. But definitely no big difference in quality and tone to the US version. Considering this I would choose the Aerodyne and buy the Spector Euro later after saving some money.
 
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#3
flashgod said:
I picked up my Aerodyne yesterday, noodled around and thought to myself “what an awesome bass”. It’s the best looking Fender with a unique wooden P sound ( I think it’s because of the Basswood).
I never played a Spector Legend, so I cannot do a comparison. But I played a Euro, which is something in a different league and definitely on my GAS list. Unfortunately also in another price range. But definitely no big difference in quality and tone to the US version. Considering this I would choose the Aerodyne and buy the Spector Euro later after saving some money.
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that was my thought is maybe it’s worth it to just go big when it comes to Spector and quit messing around with their mid ranges. The Legend I’m looking at just had a lot of higher grade specs compared to the usual Legends I’ve seen. Just afraid to not be satisfied again!
 
#4
Berberdeng said:
that was my thought is maybe it’s worth it to just go big when it comes to Spector and quit messing around with their mid ranges. The Legend I’m looking at just had a lot of higher grade specs compared to the usual Legends I’ve seen. Just afraid to not be satisfied again!
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i played once a Euro with EMGs, simply amazing. Don’t know if a Legend can give you that experience
 
#5
The last Legend I owned LOOKED amazing and was loud af but that’s about all it had going for it. The Q5 I currently have is about the same. Looks awesome, sound is improved with the EMG BTS pre, but is still boring sounding for the most part even with all the EQ fiddling in the world.
 
#6
I was recently in the same predicament. There's a bunch of sound bites on the F-Book Spector owners page, regarding the new basses with Barts. I owned a 2000 made Korean that had the EMG-HZ pick ups and I loved everything about that bass minus the Pick ups, from what I've seen the newer ones with Barts sound a a lot better, just remember they're passive with an active preamp.

What I wound up doing is taking the money for a new Legend and dropped it on a used Euro. Active EMGS kill it.
 
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#9
Man, I would love a Dingwall but there’s no way I can afford one! Hopefully they start making some more entry level basses. As far as Warwick, hell yeah, already have one lol. It’s great for all of my heavy stuff but I want something a little more versatile and with that sexy PJ tone. I’m in a 90s rock cover band and we play a huge variety of stuff. So the Warwick comes out to play for the heavier stuff but I need to finally settle on a bass that can just be “the one.” I know Spector makes good quality basses, more so than a Japanese Fender I think, but I’m just afraid of being let down again with the tones and uncomfortable playing. I’m just debating if I should go balls in with a Fender finally or keep trying to live that Spector fan life lol
 
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#10
The Spector's going to be a little better bass in every way except build quality right out of the box. The Japanese Fender will almost certainly be a better made bass, though the electronics are so-so (they can be quickly and inexpensively changed, though). Japanese Fenders are, in my experience, consistently better quality instruments than all but the very best USA models, among the best Fender's ever made.

Have you played Spectors? They're not for everyone, kinda like Warwicks, the reach to the first fret position tends to feel like the distance from Milwaukee to Kansas City. Bothers some, doesn't others.

Bartolinis are quality pickups, but always sound too smooth, sterile, and boring to me. I LOOOVE The Music Man sound, with the Sterling being the king for me, so my 'sterile and boring' is likely not yours.

Active vs passive? Do you have a need for both of these kinds of basses in your collection and can't decide which to buy first? They're VERY different basses, which perform in pretty different ways, and in my mind aren't really comparable.
 
#11
Berberdeng said:
Man, I would love a Dingwall but there’s no way I can afford one! Hopefully they start making some more entry level basses. As far as Warwick, hell yeah, already have one lol. It’s great for all of my heavy stuff but I want something a little more versatile and with that sexy PJ tone. I’m in a 90s rock cover band and we play a huge variety of stuff. So the Warwick comes out to play for the heavier stuff but I need to finally settle on a bass that can just be “the one.” I know Spector makes good quality basses, more so than a Japanese Fender I think, but I’m just afraid of being let down again with the tones and uncomfortable playing. I’m just debating if I should go balls in with a Fender finally or keep trying to live that Spector fan life lol
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Shoulda read the whole thread. Based on what you said here, I would strongly recommend the Fender. The Spector will be just another modern-sounding instrument, the Fender will be very different from your Warwick.

I've never played a Legend that was a very good quality instrument, nor have I ever played a Japanese Fender that wasn't (again, electronics notwithstanding). I'd personally do as mentioned in an earlier post; pick up the Fender and try a Euro or even US Spector in the future when you could realistically afford one if you fall in love.
 
#12
Thegrandwazoo said:
Shoulda read the whole thread. Based on what you said here, I would strongly recommend the Fender. The Spector will be just another modern-sounding instrument, the Fender will be very different from your Warwick.

I've never played a Legend that was a very good quality instrument, nor have I ever played a Japanese Fender that wasn't (again, electronics notwithstanding). I'd personally do as mentioned in an earlier post; pick up the Fender and try a Euro or even US Spector in the future when you could realistically afford one if you fall in love.
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Thank you for the insight! That helps a lot. I think holding out for a top of the line Spector later on is probably the smartest option I just didn’t know how the new Legends with barts compare to the Euros. I’d love to play one but I’ve never seen one in person in any shop around my area. It’s always freaking Schecter, Ibanez, or Squires lol.
 
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#14
A little late to the party here but I’m a HUGE fan of the new redesigned Spector Legend 4’s with the Barts.

I play primarily Fender and Lakland USA Jazz Basses (I own 12) but recently picked up a Spector. The Legend 4’s have the bolt on neck which is really appealing due to the fact that it’s a 1.5” neck width at the nut. All of the other Spector Basses are more similar to a P Bass with a wider nut width and a thicker radius. They are extremely light weight (about 7 1/2 lbs) and they sound KILLER.

I bought a second one and now my Fenders stay in the house or the studio while my Spectors get all the gig time.
 
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