Guild Starfire Basses - 1967 & 1973

[sloop_john_b]

I've been really into Starfire basses lately, and I have the great fortune of having two here at the moment. I just had to do a YouTube comparison of the Bi-Sonic with the Humbuckers:

[jps]

Nice comparison. I prefer the tone of the Bi-Sonic pickup, it's meatier without that typical brash mid emphasis that most humbucking pickups produce. The mini switch, to me, just makes the tone two twangy with no real substance to the tone. How much do you want for the '67?

[collin]

Digging the sounds (and the Squarespace product placement)

[sloop_john_b]

Nice comparison. I prefer the tone of the Bi-Sonic pickup, it's meatier without that typical brash mid emphasis that most humbucking pickups produce. The mini switch, to me, just makes the tone two twangy with no real substance to the tone. How much do you want for the '67?

Thanks!

While I really like the huge low-end of the '73, I could see it easily getting lost in a live mix. The bridge pickup doesn't provide much help, either - the middle position is mostly neck pickup. I haven't measured these pickups, but I believe these humbuckers measure in at around 30k!

The '67 is my personal bass and NFS at this time. It's had a refret, changed tuners, and the riser is missing from under the Bi-Sonic, but it's otherwise all there.

The '73 is on the block, but is a fantastic bass in its own right! There is a lot to like about it -- it feels really solid and would be a great gigging bass for sure. The '67 feels a bit more delicate by comparison. The '73 also has the original case, hangtags, and is in SUPER condition. I would really like to keep them both but that sweet Bi-Sonic in the '67 takes the cake.

If the '73 had Bi-Sonics or even Darkstars, it would be the keeper for sure.

The mini-switch is totally-useless to me (and I'm sure most). Just another 60's/70's gimmick.

[sloop_john_b]

Digging the sounds (and the Squarespace product placement)

[johnallg]

Nice comparison John. Interesting differences. That mini-switch does seem the waste. I see the Orville in the background also. Wish I could bond with my Epi Bird.

[antipodean]

Digging the sounds (and the Squarespace product placement)

The whole concept of the dancing headless dude playing bass is pretty cool too....

To be serious (a struggle for me at the best of times), I prefer the '73 - it's definitely got a broader tonal range and sounds a shade sweeter to my ear, particularly with both pups engaged. I can also understand the miniswitch - a lot of bass amps back in the day were incredibly muddy, so a bass bleed switch may have been worthwhile - with modern amps it's not so useful.

[sloop_john_b]

To be serious (a struggle for me at the best of times), I prefer the '73 - it's definitely got a broader tonal range and sounds a shade sweeter to my ear, particularly with both pups engaged. I can also understand the miniswitch - a lot of bass amps back in the day were incredibly muddy, so a bass bleed switch may have been worthwhile - with modern amps it's not so useful.

Don't get me wrong, the '73 is quite nice! Personally, I am a one-pickup guy when it comes to my basses. On my two-pickup basses (Thunderbird and 4003), I even have one of the pickups disconnected completely. The '67 just happens to have one really sweet sounding pickup, surprisingly devoid of mud for the position its sitting in!

I gigged with the '67 for the first time last night. The good:

- Short scale is wonderful!
- Nice & light.
- No feedback at all.
- Sounds GREAT!

The bad:

- The bridge-side strap button is pathetic (its a plastic acoustic-guitar type "push-in" thing) and popped out a few times.
- The finish is much thinner than anticipated and the area where I pick shows significant wear - after ONE show! Looks like I'm keeping this one.

[Happyface]

Yes, that tailpeg is a nightmare waiting to happen. In fact it did happen for me on a Guild M-85. I took them out, filled the holes and put in straplock posts on both of my Guilds. I guess that nips the collector's value, but so does the bass crashing to the floor!

Thanks for the post!

[chromium]

While I really like the huge low-end of the '73, I could see it easily getting lost in a live mix. The bridge pickup doesn't provide much help, either - the middle position is mostly neck pickup. I haven't measured these pickups, but I believe these humbuckers measure in at around 30k!

Yep- measured mine at around 33K. Huge sound from those Guild pickups!

Something that helps with the live mix is to use an EQ to notch out some of the extreme lows. I do this with my Gibson EBs as well (similarly massive, "coloring" humbuckers).

[pag]

I would love to see a re-issue of the long scale Jetstar (JS2) basses.

[sloop_john_b]

I would love to see a re-issue of the long scale Jetstar (JS2) basses.

Any reason? The originals are plentiful and cheap.