4004 owners Jps,Jeff Rath,Jared

ken_swearingen · Post by **ken_swearingen** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:25 am

Ive got a 4004cii on the way,cant remember what the pot mods were,that thread is long gone thanks ken

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:27 am

calling Jeff Scott!

Ken- haven't touched the pots yet, will convert later

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:46 am

I think it was just going with 1K pots and replacing the switch to get VVT. Try it for a while first.....I have a set of 1k pots and swapped them into my 4004Ci and liked the stock tone better. I felt it was a little "harsh". With some amp tweaking I may have been happier but "out of the box" it didn't sound as good as stock (IMO).

BTW Ken.....is it litterly on it's way or did you order it and have a while to wait? Just curious and what finish did you get?

highway_star · Post by **highway_star** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 9:59 am

My 4004C has stacked knobs so that each pickup has its own volume and tone control. I'm considering adding that mod to my 4004Cii.

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 10:51 am

the 4004 bass come wired with a toggle and a 500k ohm volume pot and a 500k ohm tone pot ... I rewired my 4004CI with 2 500k volume pots and one 500k tone pot ... I followed a jazz bass wiring diagram ... the 4004CI is walnut and has an oil finish ... it has a nice warm sound even unplugged ... my 4004L has a colder darker sound ... the gloss varnish finish makes for a deeper darker tone and a cold bite as well. I tried several different pickups and pots on it ... I finally came back the the original hb-1 pickups and put in 1000k ohm pots wired like a jazz bass ... I run the neck volume 6-7 range and the tone at 5 and the bridge volume at 10 ... If I turn the tone above 6 it get harsh and unpleasant ... I have never played a 4004CII so I am not sure if it would sound better with 1000k ohm pots or 500k ohm pots or you could experiment a 500k volume pot and a 1000k tone pot ... I bought a set of the stacked knobs and never used them ...

Also my 2020 bass has the hb-2 pickups ... these are very hot and thick ... So I wired that bass vol, vol, tone with 1000k pots and the pickups are so hot I can't turn up past 9 ... I run it neck volume 7, bridge volume 9, and tone 10 ...

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 10:56 am

The 4004 bass is a sleeper ... it is a very cool bass that is for the most part an unknown quantity in the bass playing world ... I don't like the factory wiring ... I prefer 2 volume controls ... and I prefer a white trc on the 4004L models ... but I love the hb1 pickups ... and I am a big single coil fan ... also the 4004 makes an excellent 4 to 5 string conversion bass ...

cheyenne · Post by **cheyenne** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 12:42 pm

My 4004CII is modded with concentric pots I got here:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_pickups/Potentiometers_and_push-pull_pots/5/Control_Pots.html

A little pricey, but extremely well made and compact.

jps · Post by **jps** » Tue Aug 23, 2005 4:52 pm

I have Clarostat 350K conductive plastic mil spec pots in mine. Wire it up just like a Jazz Bass:

http://fender.com/support/diagrams/pdfs/60SJAZZ/SD0131800APg2.pdf

I did a little routing near the toggle switch to accomodate the large Clarostat pots, if you use smaller diameter pots you shouldn't have to do so. Actually, I did it in the time honored RIC manner, I used a forstner bit to cut out the area in the control cavity!

edski · Post by **edski** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 3:38 am

I'd endorse Brian' suggestion. Try it for a while first: it might be flexible enough. While it certainly does not have the flexibility of a 4001 or 4003, it does get several different tones easily with the stock configuration.

If I were to change anything on my 4004 I'd probably go for the stacked pots.

incubus2432 · Post by **incubus2432** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 8:08 am

I'd also second (or is it "third") the stacked pots idea. If I was in need of various nuances to my tone I'd certainly go this route. Usually I have the controls cranked so just having the volume/tone suits me fine. I still kick around getting three stacked pots for my LK but I can't bring myself to take a drill to it.