Leaderboard

Hey all. I have another quirky bass to give some TLC. A 1978 USA SD Curlee. Firstly, thanks to @Velarianfor picking this up from the seller and packaging it ready for the courier for me. Thank you. I've had a little play today and I think it has the ability to be a very nice bass. It has issues but it is 46 years old and completely original so can be forgiven. The bad points, frets very worn (so someone played it lots) crackly jack and tone doesn't work, the action is a little high and the trussrods are a known problem, although I haven't tried to adjust it yet, and it's cosmetically tired. The good points, brass Grover tuners, brass nut, brass bridge, brass covers on the back (do you see a brass theme here? 😁), Dimarzio Model P pickup with series/parallel switching and Dimarzio pots. Unconventional build but a very solid, substantial build. Mahogany body with a three piece maple bolt on neck that runs almost the entire length of the body, so a kind of neck through/bolt on hybrid. Frets are fitted directly into the neck with no fretboard. It sounds really good in series, clanky as the pickup is close to the bridge, but still thick and powerful, kind of like a Rickenbacker, parallel sounds a little weak but could be useful. The paint is wearing its battle scars with pride, chips, digs, scratches and checking. Not yet decided how far I'll go in cleaning it up, time will tell. It came in an old but substantial flightcase which was a bonus.

In case this is of interest to anyone - seems Cort have just released a new headless bass - looks pretty cool and for £700 seems fairly reasonable stacked against Ibanez etc. So new that there's nothing about it on the Cort website 😅 BassDirect have a Star Dust Black model after the green sold whilst it was typing!

The finishing is ...finished. This is 100% prototype, so I've not too worried about imperfections. Both the french polish and the Osmo I think have worked nicely. I'll do a proper write up on the finishes another day. There's still a bit more setup to do. Albeit with only a tiny amount of curve in the neck there's no fret buzz, so I may not bother fret levelling, they're level enough already. And the neck joint I designed to have shims inserted to dial in the correct bridge height, but again it's pretty much spot, none needed. There was a lot of new stuff for me in this build, including a pretty complicated neck joint, so to have the geometry all line up is really satisfying. The nut and saddle need work, and there's a bit of tidying here and there, but mostly it's done. I'll try taking some proper photos not under the clinical lights of the workshop, but here it is warts n all:

I may have missed the Acinonyx section of this thread, but I got this beauty a few weeks ago. I'm still recovering from a hand operation so decided to try the shortscale vibe again. I'd previously had a Sire U5 which was a cracking little bass, which sounded great, but just felt wrong to me,it was like Honey i shrunk the Aerodyne jazz, and I feel shortscales work when they are a bit quirky and different. It's based on the Goya Panther a daft quirky Italian bass from the 60s, as im a huge Abe laboriel fan, I'd always wanted to try one. It's beautifully made and feels like a much more expensive bass than the Sire (it is). Sound wise it's very vintage and thick and dark, but surprisingly versatile, and i usually dont use pickups solo, but both these sound really good on their own, and with both pickups on, a very good slap sound is achievable . The push button tone controls don't work for me, just varying levels of mud (sounds like a tone control 50% off then fully off, which i know some people love), I'd have preffered a standard tone control, but the flat sound sounds clear and punchy, so I'll leave it there, I'm also using a sadowsky preamp pedal with it and it sounds huge. Incredibly light and a fantastic comfortable neck, and the pickups/hardware are very high quality I'll have it for a while,as ive still an op on my other hand to do. I'm so ingrained in long scale I'm not sure I'll be permanent convert, although as in 50 next month, maybe a few gigs with this, will change my mind.

I'm back.

Back home now Roundwounds () removed and TIs installed. Most irritating of all I had to carefully reposition the knobs so that the little markers all pointed to 12 o'clock when everything centered and the volume on 11. My OCD now satisfied.

Not a pedalboard, I've gone down the pedal shelf route

https://www.debassist.nl/muzieknieuws/artikel/2-29077/paul-mccartneys-first-hfner-is-back?fbclid=IwAR1VFDoe-MdDDfPc-FhPFOuwmDQ87PkwRzG2mlQXU_4G14Gb9D4EA-7TkVA

As we're doing shelves now

Slav To The Rhythm ～ Grace Jones

I'm liquid and funky! "overall live bass duties are taken care of by band member Ely XXX, whose liquid yet funky and distorted basslines tie together the diverse styles displayed on the record...

Tiger Feet ～ Mud Side note - having posted, I watched a vid of Mud on TOTP doing this song and reverted to being a happy 9 year old. The care home awaits... 🤦🏼‍♂️

Fixed

Singer sounds like a bit of a w**ker. Sees a potentially successful band and wants to get his mates in. Perhaps you should turn the tables and get another singer in.

For once I’ve managed to post on the “How was your gig last night” thread, on the day after the night before. It was a lively night with the pub being pretty much full from when the host band kicked things off. It was the debut outing for my Rickenbacker. It got plenty of attention, in the main from the bass players, but a few of the guitarists and one of the drummers also oggled it. The singer will be back next month, so I’ll probably be back to the shortscale headless to avoid any whacks on the back of her head.

I very rarely do NPDs but I've recently been lucky enough to get hold of a few rare, weird and wonderful pedals so thought it may be fun to showcase them here. Moose Electronics very kindly put the Armada together for me. It’s a re-housed Pike Vulcan running at 18v using a charge pump, into a BOSS BF-3 and DD-3T. There is one power socket and the pedals each have their own in/out jacks for flexibility, or the far left and right jacks can be used as master jacks. I’ve used this combination a lot and love it so it’s great to be able to do what I want with one (very attractively painted) box. Watching the Poirot TV show is one of my guilty pleasures so I was delighted that Celebrity Pedals put together the POIROC-2 for me. It has top jacks and an extra LPF control. I was super lucky a few weeks ago when I managed to buy the Non-Human Audio Barbenloris. Dave’s pedals are fantastic and this lovely pink monstrosity is my favourite of the bunch. Clint at Deep Space Devices very, very kindly etched a Resurrector pedal for me showing the Nightsisters of Dathomir. I’m a Star Wars nut and I’ve been gathering Star Wars-themed pedals so I’m extremely pleased with this, especially the reactive paint (which is extremely difficult to photograph). Finally, Steen at Caveman very kindly modified my BP-1 so that the tuner-out now runs at 12v rather than 9v. This means it can power my BC1 without the need for another source of power.

@JohnH89 Thanks very much, keep hold of the vaneer for the moment. I'm going to focus on getting it built and working. Fripperies such as veneer backed headstocks are way down the list. It will work and sound fine without the walnet backing or I hope it will. The top middle is being printed and I have a midnight alarm set to add some embedded nuts in to it. Not happy about that, but paid and real work got in the way, delaying my personal and unpaid work. Just finished the design of the bridge adapter. This is specific to each bridge and bolts down to the middle sections below. Thats one of the reasons for the embedded nuts. It is supposed to be a genuine MIJ Fender Jazz Bridge, it looks like a piece of folded crap to me, but I'm assured its real. This will screw into the bridge adapter. The bridge adapter will screw into the body. This was a feature that worked well on my six string guitar as I made a measurement mistake on the six string and had to move the bridge back by 5mm, I just printed off a new adapter and used that instead. The above bridge screws into here. The eight outer holes are slighly resessed so they don't interfere with the bridge. The seven smaller holes hold the bridge, or at least thats the intention. Lets see if they pull themselves to pieces. You can also see the earthing strap exit hole on the top and the front entrance hole underneath a little cut away,

Right, Squier Jaguar short scale. That's why I am out!

That reminds me - must let Mrs S out of the hut soon. It's nearly spring. 👀

I'm a recent convert to bass, having been a very poor guitar player I am now mostly a novice bass player. First I had a fretless Sire P7, then recently added a Sire P8. They're very nice basses although I'm not sure I'm a fan of basses around 9.5 pounds. I also have some mild tennis elbow after playing the fretted bass. Anyway, I have been eyeballing the Vox Starstream A2S basses being blown out on the voxamps site, and was disappointed when the red version sold out. Anyway, today I bought the black version for £399, the last one by all accounts, so it should be here next week I think. I'm not a total fan of the look of the body, though a super-light bass will be interesting to try for sure. I'll post a pic when I get it. Cheers!

Spotted this yesterday online and was by chance going to BassDirect that day anyway. I tried it out - here's my summary from 5 mins with it: Good Good setup Sounded better than expected (compared to EHBs with Barts) Cool shape, love the contouring Pretty thick top Fairly light Pretty cheap for the spec Bad Several loose pots Tuners were a bit too tight to adjust easily Satin finish will very likely be quite fragile (same as Ibanez EHBs), make this with a gloss finish and multiscale and i'd get one.

You Debtor You Bet ～ The Whö

Bands mean people, and people are a problem. Always.

I’m after some advice regarding a bass I recently inherited … a vintage 4001 (made in 1976). My post is a bit long-winded, so please bear with me. It’s funny that I ended up with this bass, as I’ve always had a particular dislike for Rickenbackers. They’re literally the furthest thing from my traditional basses of choice (Warwick) … yet here we are, haha. I’ll never part with this as it’s a family heirloom. My uncle bought it new in 1977 when he moved to San Francisco to pursue a career in music, and played it the whole time since. However, the bass is not destined to gather dust either. It will most definitely continue to be used in battle, so there are some (reversible) changes I’d like to undertake in making it mine. I know that for many the only way forward would be to source original vintage replacement parts, though that’s not my aim here. My questions are as follows … The Bridge: Currently there’s a non-original bridge which doesn’t give me the range of intonation for the strings I want to use (the ‘E’ saddle is all the way back already). I’m considering the Ric-specific Hipshot model as it’s well engineered with enhanced adjustment, but also the Allparts replica as it’s in line with the original aesthetic and has the mutes. I was wondering though … * Is the Allparts replica prone to the same tail-lift as the original? * Is there a better option, or any other considerations that I’m not aware of? The Scratchplate: It appears to be non-original as a new set of holes have been drilled in the bass to accommodate it, and it doesn’t line up correctly (look how close it is to the edge beside the jack-socket!). • Where can I find a replacement with the correct dimensions and hole placement for a 4001 of this vintage? The Tuning Keys: Three are original, one is a Hipshot detuner. I’d like to replace them all. * Is there such a thing as a set of drop-in replacements (with correct hole spacing), that are NOT reverse geared, have a better gear ratio than the originals, yet have a similar aesthetic (black ferrules/ short stems) ? * If not, what are my options? Other than that, I removed the pick-up cover as it was in the way, but I’ll put a bezel in there so my thumb doesn’t get eaten by the dusty void. This is a wildly outlandish instrument to me but, despite its many quirks, there’s definitely ‘something’ about it that’s growing on me. It oozes mojo, sure … I’d never have imagined saying so, but I’m beginning to love it already. The photos are of the bass exactly as my uncle left it. He was a true Prog-Rocker, and a great player. It’s my desire that the bass should continue to be used and cherished … albeit with a few tweaks. Also, if anyone has any idea of the value (for insurance purposes), I’d be keen to hear it. Anyway, advice from those learned in things-Rickenbacker would be most gratefully received. Thanks 🙏🏻

So I did it in the end, I have bough a short scale bass - here in the classfields. Nice little bass for not a lot of money. The fretwork is very good, keeps a comfortably low action with "floppy" TI flats. Add that it has a 38mm nut width, neck not super skinny back to front but not chunky either. Overall it is very easy on the fretting hand. I like the sound. Tubbier than my precision, and it came with flats. I tried it on Cissy Strut and it was spot on! It is, however, a serious neck diver. I guess it's because of the short horn. I have put on hipshot licensed ultralight tuners, taken off another bass, and.. 260gr of car wheel balance weighs on the back it still needs a leather strap to stay in place 🫣 ...in the other hand, it still is a pretty lightweight bass. I bought it because, after trying the electric guitar, I have realised it is really nice to play with as little effort as possible for the fretting hand (that was before I realised how much stretch is required for some chords..). I would say the first impression was positive. Not sure this is a full conversion to short scale, I'll see..

It's made of plywood and sat in a loft for 50 years? I'd be surprised any of it was flat.

Bass plugged directly into a Hiwatt 200w PA head, controls set to 12 o'clock, with a choice of Ampeg 4x10 or Fender 2x12 cabs. Clean, always, whatever the song (pop/rock covers, SOAD, REM, Floyd, Radiohead, Bowie, Noir Désir, Bashung and more...). Just simple plug'n'play.

I feel like the bass sounds that typically get called "HiFi" aren't really about flat, uncoloured response at all, they're usually hyped at some point in the signal chain to emphasise the deep lows and high end, increasing the impression of a broad frequency spectrum.

Re the Bridge, the Ric tailpiece won't necessarily develop serious tail lift. Even if it does start to lift a little, it probably won't affect the playability. There are plenty of 4001s out there with the original tailpiece. Having said that; the Hipshot is a much easier bridge to work with. Intonation and string heights are easier to adjust and it's a drop in replacement for the original. Avoid the ones made of brass as they are ridiculously heavy Hipshot make or made replacement tuners (HB5) in chrome or black. Be aware that there are two different size ferrules. You will need to check the size of the holes in the headstock and specify which size you need. Pickguards / scratch plates can be a problem as the exact shape and size varies quite a bit, as does the position of the holes on the 4001. Robbie at Rickysounds is very helpful and knowledgeable so, it's worth a call. I think your options are either a custom pickguard with the holes in the right place or an off the shelf pickguard that might require holes to be drilled in the right place Rickysounds offers pickguards for various production years so you might get lucky with one of them

Yeah, but audiophools are nuts. These are the same guys who believe in all the nonsense debunked here: https://www.skeptic.com/eskeptic/10-01-06#feature True Hi-Fi makes no alterations to the sound. With recordings that's a good thing, as all of the EQ and other effects required to get the desired result have been applied in the studio. IMO electric bass requires alteration to the original signal, via EQ and speaker coloration and if you care for it effects, to give the best result. Even if the bass was recorded straight to the desk in the studio the chances of it not being EQ'd and compressed in mixdown are slim to none.

A quick sanity check to see if everything fits. Just laid this out, no proper assembly at all. It's 430mm from the nut to the 12th fret and 430mm to where the supports are on the bridge. The bridge doesn't have a lot of room but just enough, phew. If I was out by 5-10mm, I'd reprint the top left part and move the neck out by 5-10mm. Something is missing but can't put my finger on it

OK - here's the main 'Quick and Dirty Method' that I posted a while ago. But first let's start with the warnings/disclaimers/just general common sense stuff: Warning: This is NOT the way a pro-luthier would do it because it doesn't involve re-crowning and re-polishing the frets and other important stuff. The method is merely intended as a quick fix on your own bass and at your own risk. Also, the absence of a full finish-polish means it's not great if you string bend on your bass (most of us don't). And don't do this on someone else's bass or any particularly valuable one!!! 1. Quick and Dirty way of finding and tackling high spots on frets Use the straight part of an old credit card to use as a 'rocker'. Put the straight edge over 3 frets (use both hands...my other hand here is holding the camera) and does it rock? If it does, then it indicates a high spot at that string position for the middle fret of the three. Do this next to each string for that middle-of-the-three fret and repeat all the way up the board. Normally, when I'm not holding a camera, I would be holding the other side of the card with the other hand and just gently applying pressure on either side. Make a note of any high spot on a simple chart: You must be using the straight part of the card edge and not where it starts curving at the corners and also the edge must be covering only three frets at a time. As the frets start closing up, just use the shorter edge to make sure you're still only covering 3 frets: On a bass, for the first few frets, a credit card isn't long enough. Anything straight and thin will do! : Note, by the way, that you can't check the 1st fret (rare that this is an issue if the nut is cut properly) Next - on the frets where there is a high spot, mark the top of the fret with a non-permanent sharpie: Then take an emery board nail file (most supermarkets, Boots, etc): Use your finger to apply pressure and file gently back and forth in the direction of the fret and where the high spot was under that particular string. The sharpie line disappearing will show you if you're filing in the right place which only needs to be under the actual string that you marked an 'X' against on your plan. A bit either side is OK but don't stray to another string's position unless that was also marked as high. Make sure while you do this bit that the emery board is level so you don't scratch the fretboard itself (and if you have the opportunity, protect the wood with a couple of thin strips of masking tape). Check frequently with the credit card until it doesn't rock anymore THEN STOP! If you have a whole fret that appears to be high, first check that it is seated properly on the fretboard. If it isn't, tap it lightly along the fret with a hammer and recheck. If it's still high, then use the emery board, potentially along the whole fret - but check with the credit card at each string position frequently so you don't overdo it. The fret top will be slightly flat where you've levelled it. On a bass, Quick and Dirty says don't worry about that - I would defy anybody who says they can hear an intonation difference (although you can on a 6 string electric). Also the fret top will be slightly scratched. But the scratches will be along the fret direction and shouldn't give a problem. If it worries you, a fingernail buffer will polish those out to a decent extent (what's a fingernail buffer? Ask wife/partner/sister/mother...they will be in the same area as the emery nail boards)

@JohnH89 That's really helpful, I'll look at doing that. The back of the neck looks a lot easier for a veneer than the front. I can easily clamp it, as I do have a lot of clamps. Didn't know about the towel and hot water trick. The neck is maple (I think), but a heavy weathered finish. I am very unlikely to find a veneer that will closely match, so using a contrasting veneer would be best. I do like your walnut finish. That Black Bison Wax is expensive though I've just finished making the bushings to make the Hipshort Ultralites fit the neck. An easy 3D print even at 100% infill of about 10min each, nice and tight and the plastic won't deform (or at least I hope not, otherwise I'll have to do it in metal). 18.5mm external diameter and 16.75mm internal diameter. You can see two of them below. I've screwed the two Hipshots on to make sure they all fit. Now printing the last big piece of the guitar Relatively small at 22 hours Rob

How do you get your foot up there?

Get out. You're still in for the main challenge, splitter!

Wouldn't part with this for the world . Plays lovely ,Nice tone,Great Fingerboard rounded so makes it easier to rake the strings form the G string upwards. And all this for £399 Squid. And the Build quality is better than my Mex Fender which is £300 more . You just can't go wrong with these for the price.

Tree Minute Hero - The Selecter

That should narrow it down a bit!!

The way I approached it... I'm either happy just playing with my mates, and if I wasn't I'd leave and find some more chums to play with. We'd have a laugh, earn some shekels, but not take it too seriously. We're having fun, and if the fun ever stopper then so would I. Or I'd really go for it, be completely focussed and driven and end up with a decent paying job with a household name act. That never happened, because I was never driven to do so when I was young enough that it might have happened. It's the in between bit, the no man's land between the two, that seems to be the danger zone and I've been fortunate to avoid it and all the bull that seems to go along with it.

Weren't we all! Ashdown flatly refuse to drop the gimmicky VU to save real-estate. What meer mortals really want is this:

It's like so many things completely subjective. Old school thump, heft clean and so on mean different things to different people. No doubt people will come on to this thread and describe something as hi-fi when it is well know to add a colouring of it's own to your sound.Generally speaking it'll be as opposed to 'old-school' sound which in turn depends upon how old the person talking (typing?) is. Old school is usually boosted at 100Hz with little real bass scooped mids aroung 400Hz and without a lot of top end. Hi-fi then will generally be brighter sounding with less or no mid scoop and a lot more top end, but not everyone will agree of course. For me it's the sound of my bass but louder, and I practice at home with a Zoom and headphones or straight through the desk with studio monitors so that sound. I'd describe it as FRFR though (full range flat response) and it does me as a sound as it shows up all my mistakes which is what you want for a practice. Just like taste sound doesn't have very good adjectives. Try describing the difference between one curry and another, all different and there's a whole industry of food critics trying to describe food. We just don't have the words to accurately describe sound.

Reading this thread makes me realise what a great forum this, with everyone trying to offer help and advice. There's another bass forum I can think of, where they'd be at each other's throats by now. Friday glow of contentment settles over Chez Snorkie.

Putter don't preach - Mad Donna