Customize Your Playtech for Under 30,000 yen! AB420 Edition #30kPlaytechChallenge

Cheena: Check out the #30kPlaytechChallenge on Twitter to learn tips on how to customize your Playtech for under 30,000 yen!

Related Articles
＜First Installment＞
Customize Your Playtech for Under 30,000 yen! PB450 Edition
Customize Your Playtech for Under 30,000 yen! TL250 Edition
＜Second Installment＞
Customize Your Playtech for Under 30,000 yen! ST250 Edition
Customize Your Playtech for Under 30,000 yen! JB420 Edition
＜Third Installment＞
Customize Your Playtech for Under 30,000 yen! LP400 Edition

This time, we would like to introduce Playtech's new 4-string active bass AB420 and its variation, 5-string AB520.

PLAYTECH / AB-420 Cherry Burst

The regulations are as follows

• Do not touch the wood as much as possible.
• Simple modifications such as drilling a few holes, extending with a reamer, etc. are acceptable.
• Basically, the price should be within the range of the actual instrument.
• 30,000 yen doesn’t include the price of the instrument itself.
• Make the most decked out guitar that you can.

That's it.

Nemoto: I'm anxious to see if I can come up with something interesting.
By the way, my personal impression after playing it in the showroom was: “The sound is youthful and strong. I should note that it’s a standard guitar that’s easy to handle. I prefer the 4-string, but the powerful 5-string seems to be better received. I think it is good to buy it for a trial because it is not badly made and it has an excellent price. It's cheaper than expensive compact effectors.” *There are individual differences.

I am a bassist who likes an active bass, so my impression is naturally dry because I understand an active bass better.

Cheena: We both like active basses, so it is very difficult to do any work on them. I'm of the school of thought that anything is fine as long as it sounds good.
I'm going to do some heavy modifications to the AB420, with the EMG PJ Set to occupy 2V1T and the other hole as a selector.

EMG / PJ SET Black

EMG / 3-POS Toggle BK

Total sum of 2 items: ¥25,080 (current price as of August 25, 2022)

There are various knob arrangements, so as a fan of strange arrangements, I think the most interesting and intuitive way to use this is to put the knob on the neck side is the front Vol, the bridge side is the rear Vol, the knob closest to the body side is the master Tone, and the selector on the string side is parallel to the string in operation direction.
If you only need the master Vol, you can use both switches on the string side and the side intuitively.

Nemoto: Oh, well. I think that arrangement is easy to use.
Then I guess I'll have to go with....

SEYMOUR DUNCAN / SPJ-3s Quarter Pound PJ Set

MONTREUX / Sprague Orange Drop 716P 0.047uF 400V [886]

Total sum of 2 items ¥24,500 (price as of 2022.8.25)

Make AB420 passive! I felt so deceived after hearing the Powerful QP! Long sustain! You mean like that?
I know I denied using active from the start, but I'm going to keep it active next time.

Cheena: It's just a simple PJ. Like very normal, not a mistake. ......
I don't think I have any complaints about crushing the rear if you do this.

DIMARZIO/ DP127 BLACK Split P

DEL RITMO / Black candy 0.047uF/630VDC

SCUD / KB-110

FERNANDES / POINTER WASHERS NICKEL

SCUD / CTS-B500MM CTS millimeter size compatible pot

Total sum of 5 items: ¥15,248 (price as of 2022.8.25)

DP127 for the front and passive tone for the amount of balancer can be crushed. This is important.
The view that active EQ treble cut is not natural is reasonably widespread (Atelier Z M#245 and ESP Cinnamon also use passive tone), and it can create a bit of a high-end feel.
Knobs and pointer washers are a hobby. They are useful if you have them.
Then you can remove the rear or leave it, your choice. If you want to remove it if you don't use it but don't want it to look bad. You can put a pickup fence or an appropriate plate on it.

Nemoto: This is also good. It's true that passive tones are useful to have. Then I'll do it with a minimalist one. Something I was wondering about the AB series was the nut and string height. String height is easily adjustable, but the nut is not so easy to change. The AB420’s nut size is W5.7mm.L42mm.H8mm

WARWICK / Just A Nut III Graphite 44mm

There was no adjustable nut in the right size, so I changed to this one because it was the closest. If you shave both ends, it will fit. Maybe... I think we should customize a lot of things based on this.

Cheena: Adjustable nuts are surprisingly expensive...

Nemoto: If it's brass, it's over 10,000 yen... Graphite is about 3,000 yen, so it's okay. If you can find one that fits the size, you can use a regular nut. They cost about 1,000 yen. If it's too much trouble to find one that fits, it's a good idea to take it off and cut it down.

Cheena: Yes, that's right. Some adjustable nuts require a lot of work. To be specific, they are the rotary adjustable ones represented by Atlansia and Allparts, but there is a mix of designs where the end of the rotating part is at 0F and the center of the circle is at 0F.
Be sure to apply a string to see where it holds before you implement it...
Now let's move on. It's time to unleash the AB520...
The pickups on that one use a 3-ear, or rather, a Music Man-type hum.
It's quite big, so most pickups will fit in it.

Nemoto: Interesting modifications... interesting modifications...

EMG / P5

Total for one item ¥12,800 (price as of 25.8.2022)

My turn! Two P5s mounted in reverse! Reverse PP!
I've grown quite fond of reverse P since I've owned MTD. It's a bar magnet, so I don't mind if the mounting position is a little off and I also like B.C. Rich and Kramer PPs.

Cheena: Actually, most of EMG's soap bars with “P” in the name have a reverse-P arrangement.
If you put in a 40P5 or something like that, you get the same kind of sound.

Nemoto: I didn't know that.

EMG / 40P5

So this is it. This one looks better and more comfortable.

If so, I'll put it in a slant arrangement (reference link is Fender PB-555. Needless to say, it's impossible to tilt it this far.

Cheena: That's cool.
Slant-P or....speaking of that, I noticed that if I adopt that front OPB conversion on PB450 that Nemoto suggested before for AB420, I can make a slant-regular SS arrangement. Isn't it quite good?

Haeussel Pickup / P-BASS OLDSTYLE JB Doppelmagnete

SEYMOUR DUNCAN / SJB-3b Quarter Pound Jazz Bass Bridge

GOTOH / GB707/L2+R2 Chrome

Total price of the three items: ¥25,280 (as of August 25, 2022)

I want to play the guitar with a pick, so I use Doppelmagnete and 1/4lb strings, and GB707 post strings to stabilize it. I'd be happy if I could play power chords with fine strings that are easy to hold down.

Nemoto: This is very complete. The dialogue format is great because it can be derived from other people's ideas.

Cheena: The writing is also going well. It's wonderful.
You said you were going to make AB520, but I suggested 420. 520 would be...

BARTOLINI / NTMB+GFL

I'd like to bypass the front end or both in the series, and use this for the wiring to make it Stingray.
Anything 3-band is fine...

Nemoto: Stingraying is very practical and nice.
Then, I'll go with

MONTREUX / Switchcraft straight toggle switch [813]

MONTREUX / Deep toggle nut for LP NI [1655]

Total of 2 items ¥4,220 (price as of 2022.8.25)

Let's go with this. The target was Fender's Dimension Bass (2PU).
This was a minor model that was marketed as the “third standard” after the JB and PB and disappeared in a flash. It was heavily criticized, but I thought it was a design that Leo Fender would have made if he had been at Fender (if he hadn't made Stingray), and I appreciated it highly. If I find one, I'll buy it. The original is a 3-way lever switch, but it's hard to zag it, so please use a toggle switch.

Cheena: As I recall, it was an active 3Band equalizer. Depending on the model, you can select which coil to use with the selector...
I think there is also 1PU.

Nemoto: There were also 5-strings and squires. I was really into it, but it was wiped out. Was that an almond burst? There was a color like cherry burst and I liked that.

Cheena: That unique pickup was cute... It had a strange look with the pole piece that was horizontal, but not long enough to be a blade type.
It was like a soft Times Square.

Nemoto: Nemoto: It's similar to the one on Meteora now. I don't think they'll bring it back now that Meteora is done....

Cheena: I believe the Meteora can be replaced with a Rio Grande Powerbucker or similar pickup... The Dimensions were the original shape with the top and bottom of the pickups forming an arc if they were Deluxe series... Modern Player is a 3 coil soap bar as far as I can see.
Neither of them are likely to be loaded on the AB520, and besides, they are 4-string pickups to begin with, but they are good enough to be called the strongest looking bass pickups.
The large pole pieces lined up in two rows of eight are spectacular.

Nemoto: I checked it out. It sure is spectacular.

Cheena: Well, since we're at this point, shall I introduce the modified 5-string bass that was turned into a 4-string?

Nemoto: Thanks for your time. That's exactly what I was going to write. lol
In the U.S., you sometimes see people putting only 4 strings on a 5-string, right?

Cheena: Yes, ...... Basically, it is a modification to reduce the number of parts, but first of all, the bridge and nut are replaced due to the use of a 4-string pickup.
The nut has 4 strings in the thick neck, so it is quicker to buy a blank and cut it yourself.
Remove one of the pegs. Maybe it is common to remove the furthest one. The empty hole should be just filled with a 14mm rod.
On the bridge, I have not checked if it is safe to use the original screw holes as they are, so I think it would be safe to fill them once and re-center them. If the four screw holes are lined up symmetrically, then four solo bridges would be cool.
This modification will, of course, reduce tension and cause the neck to warp backwards. Please adjust it.
Here's what I think.

Nemoto: If the 5th string is unmodified (just remove the 5th string), the A string will sound unnatural (I think it's common in the middle of odd-numbered strings), so it's better to modify it properly.

Cheena: Besides, it will warp.

Nemoto: Warping is scary. I have a Gibson '71 SB400 with a 2-piece maple neck.

Cheena: Well, should we go back to the normal modification of AB520?

Nemoto: Yes. Let's do the one without any mistakes....

DELANO / PMVC5FEM2-AS

Total for 1 item ¥16,800 (price as of 25.8.2022)

I'll try to make it like a Sandberg, a brand I'm personally very interested in. Sandberg tends to want to put a hum on the rear, like with the JH, PH, and HH. I want to feel the essence of that, so I'll change the front to a P type, though I suppose a J would be fine too. At any rate, it will be more manageable than the HH. I think it would be better to create the sound mainly with the front.

Cheena: Keep the rear and PH? Sounds like a bass where high power is the name of the game...

Nemoto: Probably JH is easier to handle. Because there are a lot of Warwick JHs.

Cheena: JH is definitely easier to handle, but I feel it's a bit boring. I'm sorry to say this, but there are many cases where the front is backward compatible with the rear... This is even more noticeable when it's active, and it's like, “Why don't you just add EQ to the rear?”

Nemoto: When I played Warwick, I thought that with JH, it could go rather well with just a balancer. It's just not interesting, though. It's just somewhere in the middle.

Cheena: Yeah, it's a middle ground.
I don't think it's good to be too disingenuous, so let's go back: ......

BARTOLINI / DL5CBC

This is placed in the front and the rear is bypassed.
I used two capacitors (0.001uF and 0.047uF) for tone and low cut for a muffled sound.

MONTREUX / Sprague Orange Drop 716P 0.001uF 600V [888]

MONTREUX / Sprague Orange Drop 716P 0.047uF 400V ［886］

SCUD / PUSH-500B ミリ規格プッシュ・プルポット

The low cut is to stop the 5th string from making a gong sound. This is the total price for the four items: 19,430 yen (as of 2022.8.25)

Nemoto: It looks very fuzzy.
Does it sound like Jack Bruce? I thought so, but everything is different from EB, so it won't be like that...

LACE ( レース ) / Aluma Bass Bar4.0 chrome

I'll put this on the rear and bypass the front. It's cool and I'm going for a clean sound with a low output PU. The opposite in many ways.

Cheena: One PU is in fashion, isn't it?
By the way, if you order from Lace, you can order the Aluma/Alumitone series in anodized aluminum color.
I'd like to use red or something like that at least once. ......

Nemoto: That's new to me. I have a Lake Placid Blue base, so I want to order it in blue.

Cheena: Normally available are Anodized Black ($128), Plated Chrome, Gold ($138), and Color Custom Blue, Red, Green, Purple ($135). In addition, there is a Relic Black ($125) and Orange ($135), but these may be in short supply or limited.

This splendid blue also looks like it would go well with Lake Placid Blue. ......

Nemoto: I can only say that it is brilliant. I want one.
This is getting long, so let's wrap it up here.
Thank you very much!

Cheena: Yes, you're right. Thank you very much!

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