Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Yesterday I got to play a 1973Guild Jet Star II. Pretty cool bass very fat sounding. The neck felt larger than my RIC but very comfortable.

More pics.

Did you buy it? How much are they asking for the bass?

The bass belongs to my bass teacher's father, unfortunately not for sale. If it was I think I would've snapped it up.

I think this Guild is very cool, i know someone with the matching guitar.

Oh wow, they would look great together. I also got to play an '88 Guild acoustic bass that just came into the shop, it was huge, very large body great tone and for an acoustic bass fairly loud that was around $1400. But it came with a host of extras. I'll get pics if its there on Tuesday.

Those early Guild AGB were quite nice, IIRC.

They are huge,but the payoff is in the unamped sound,they actually have decent volume. (For those campfire sing alongs of "another one bites the dust")

Looks exactly like the one I used to have, same color too...

I use a JS-II regularly. String it with flats and alternate it with my Ricky.

Mine differs from the one in the photo because I put Darkstar pickups on it.

If you like a thin neck, you'll love these babies. Really nice to play.

I had a nice JS-II. I got a little carried away with it and installed Darkstars and routed it for a custom "Alembic-ized" bridge - looks like the Hagstrom harp bridge, but was solid brass (base plate was chrome plated) with a big sustain block recessed into the body. All of this changed the character of the bass (obviously), and in retrospect I think I appreciated the bass more as it was in stock form. I'm probably in a minority there, but hey... I also like my Gibson EBs Theres no accounting for taste, right?

Here are some pics of my former Guild. Now resides with happy new owner in S. Korea....

Before:


After:

chromium wrote:I had a nice JS-II. I got a little carried away with it and installed Darkstars and routed it for a custom "Alembic-ized" bridge - looks like the Hagstrom harp bridge, but was solid brass (base plate was chrome plated) with a big sustain block recessed into the body. All of this changed the character of the bass (obviously), and in retrospect I think I appreciated the bass more as it was in stock form. I'm probably in a minority there, but hey... I also like my Gibson EBs Theres no accounting for taste, right?

Aint she pretty? I seem to recall some idiot tried to nickel & dime you on the price before it went to the mysterious orient....

How bad is the dive on these? Are they 30" scale?

sloop_john_b wrote:How bad is the dive on these? Are they 30" scale?

They are categorized as short scale, but you have to use 32" strings on them.

Mine has noticable head dive, even after I put a fishing weight in the cavity! But other owners say they have no such problem. So maybe I'm just unlucky.

Happyface wrote:Aint she pretty? I seem to recall some idiot tried to nickel & dime you on the price before it went to the mysterious orient....

I'd have liked to see it go to you, DJ. I hated to sell it, but after the mods it became sonically similar to my Distillate and Triumph (IMO) - enough to where I couldn't justify keeping it. I needed the funds at the time for a 73/MC Ric- no regrets there!

sloop_john_b wrote:How bad is the dive on these? Are they 30" scale?

Mine had the strap button relocated to the neck heel area, and with a 4.5" Levi strap the balance wasn't bad. Keep in mind that I also gig a 70s Mockingbird and a non-reverse Thunderbird- both of which are massive divers (still love 'em, though). The Guild was not in that same league, IMO.

I used EXL-170S short scale strings on mine.