Seizing on the success of affordable Japanese import guitars in the '60s, companies like Greco, Ibanez, and others produced as many guitars as they could for the '70s USA guitar market. In this period, many designs were shameless copies of more expensive American-made instruments. Before companies like Fender hired teams of lawyers to fight the competition, some of these "Lawsuit Era" guitars made their way into players' hands.
This PB-450 "Spacy Sound" was made in Japan in 1981, and it's pretty obvious what they were going for here... this is a brazen copy of P Bass! It features a double-cutaway contoured body with a 34" scale. A single split-coil pickup is all you need, and the volume and tone controls give you plenty of flexibility. The Maple neck has a rosewood fingerboard and a 1-5/8" nut width, which gives a wide, playable feel up and down the neck. Nice weight, too—8 lbs 15.5 oz.
Considering this is only a MIJ copy, the workmanship and materials greatly exceed expectations—this is a highly-playable, highly-usable bass that will handle anything you throw at it. It appears to be a genuine Ash body (albeit, not a solid piece), and the three-tone sunburst is even a lacquer finish. On this 1981 Spacy Sound, all of the parts and hardware appear to be original, and although it shows some honest play wear, there are no signs of repairs or any issues. It looks like some finish chips around the edges have been filled in with sharpie, and the worst of the wear is to the back near the neck plate (see photos).
This 1981 Greco PB-450 is set up with low action and flatwound strings. In all respects, this Spacy Sound is a very nice Precision bass, but it just doesn't say Fender on the headstock. It's no surprise Fender contracted with Japanese manufacturers to build Fenders in Japan—instruments like this speak for themselves! This 1981 Greco bass includes a tweed hardshell case.