Bass VI MIJ 2013 setup advice and guide?

[andy_tchp]

Sounds more like it needs a fret level+recrown.

Truss rod adjustments and shims won't do anything for an uneven fret or frets.

[D.M.N.]

I received my MIJ VI back in mid-October and it's been an absolute joy. The action, as noted by others, is a bit high, but for me, that's totally fine. As a bass player, I usually have medium to high action on my basses, so the action on the VI doesn't bother me, especially with the lower tension of the VI strings. I haven't needed to mess with the bridge for intonation, it's seemingly fine, but if you DO need to adjust it, there's no need to replace the bridge or turn it around to achieve better intonation. The MIJ version has the correct 1" wide bridge, and will intonate fine. You can replace it with a Mastery bridge, but that's more of a preference thing than a necessity to obtain proper intonation. As others have mentioned, probably the single BEST thing to do with these is get a new set of strings. I bought LaBellas, but they certainly didn't set me back $70. If you go to LaBella's website and look up their Bass VI strings, you will see they have a few options, including build-you-own sets. I went with roundwound as that's what I use on all my basses, and I like a bright sound. I went with .025-.034-.044-.056-.078-.098, and they are so much better than the stock crap Fender ships these instruments with. I believe the total cost of these strings with shipping was $27ish. It's way cheaper to build your own. As far as the squealing pickups, I don't know what to say, mine haven't exhibited any such behavior. I've thought about upgrading them, but I feel like it's by no means a priority, the current ones work perfectly fine.

[automaton]

I just received mine today. I've had a Pawn Shop VI for a couple of months now, so I was a bit confused when I looked at the trem arm... The PSVI has a screw in arm, did anyone else get a slip in arm with their MIJ?

I'm definitely getting a bit of fret buzz, but mostly on the low E, so hopefully new strings will change that.

[knuckle_head]

There are several sources for round wounds . . . .

. . . . jus'sayin'