My Crap Bass

[Cosmo Valdemar]

+1 to everything said already - and there's no reason why this bass shouldn't play excellently, and I know from experience even this 'lowly' model of Spector can sound great.
Unless there is some inherent fault we don't know about, this is nowhere near a 'crap bass'. It just looks like it needs some TLC.

Edited September 6, 2012 by Cosmo Valdemar

[brensabre79]

Just because a bass is cheap doesn't make it unplayable or unfixable. Yes you can pay £1,000s for a handmade bass, but you're usually paying for the expensive materials and the persons time. A cheap bass will be made by machines using basic materials and have had very little 'human' time spent on the set-up (This is why they are cheap - not because they are crap). The 'low quality' part is often to do with the set-up, rather than the country of origin or the materials used.

My go-to recording bass is made from the cheapest parts I could find, the whole thing cost me less than £200, it plays like a dream and considerably nicer than my £1,200 US Fender I might add, which is caked in dust...

What it saved me in ££s though it cost me in time, I spent a long long time learning how to a) build it, and set it up properly. Now I do set ups for lots of people for beer money.
At first I was scared of breaking it, but you know what, its pretty difficult to irreversibly adjust a bass to the point of destruction. Don't be gung-ho, but don't be scared either.

Who knows, if you put in some time and effort into it, you might end up getting yourself into a sideline in setting up basses, or giving advice out on here to other folks with cheap as chips 'low quality' instruments.

[grunge666]

I wish this bass wasn't a Spector - I feel like it's belittling a manufacturer of some of the best basses I've ever played!
Budget/China/Korea/Czech - Spector basses are great.

I leaned to set up my basses, with practice/patience/persistance I find it theraputic and ultimately rewarding.

Take the time to learn the skill.

If not - I'll swap my Tokai TB48 for your Spector - it's already set up!

Edited September 6, 2012 by grunge666

[wishface]

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1346934748' post='1794985']
To me, you do appear to be defeatist, most of us on here probably started off with basses far worse than a 'budget' Spector that cost about £300.

I've had basses that I picked up for less than £50 which were virtually unplayable, but I did some research and found out how to service my basses, and made them all perfectly playable.
I'm no expert by any means, and even now I still google or go on youtube to find out how to do things, and for many years I steered clear of adjusting the truss rod, but once I plucked up the courage, I've never looked back.

You are getting some really sound advice on here, why not just give it a go yourself, and experience the pleasure you get, when you have done a good job of setting up your own bass.

If I can do it, then so can you!

Just give it a go.
[/quote]

Fair enough. I have tweaked it and it is somewhat better. My point is that a) i don't want to damage the only bass i have and the overall design of the instrument limits how far you can tweak it. I can't reduce the width of the neck, nor can i change the fact it has one pickup of whatever quality. I would have preferred a pickup, as an achor point, slightly less centrally placed for instance. It is what it is. I can tweak it and adjust that, but in the end it's all sows ears and silk purses.

[mushers]

could make a ramp up although i think they look odd
i have a musicman never use the pick up as a thumb rest im either muting with it or its floating

[wishface]

[quote name='brensabre79' timestamp='1346936718' post='1795021']
Just because a bass is cheap doesn't make it unplayable or unfixable. Yes you can pay £1,000s for a handmade bass, but you're usually paying for the expensive materials and the persons time. A cheap bass will be made by machines using basic materials and have had very little 'human' time spent on the set-up (This is why they are cheap - not because they are crap). The 'low quality' part is often to do with the set-up, rather than the country of origin or the materials used.

My go-to recording bass is made from the cheapest parts I could find, the whole thing cost me less than £200, it plays like a dream and considerably nicer than my £1,200 US Fender I might add, which is caked in dust...

What it saved me in ££s though it cost me in time, I spent a long long time learning how to a) build it, and set it up properly. Now I do set ups for lots of people for beer money.
At first I was scared of breaking it, but you know what, its pretty difficult to irreversibly adjust a bass to the point of destruction. Don't be gung-ho, but don't be scared either.

Who knows, if you put in some time and effort into it, you might end up getting yourself into a sideline in setting up basses, or giving advice out on here to other folks with cheap as chips 'low quality' instruments.
[/quote]

It's obviously not unplayable as I've been playing it, but that wasn't the point I was making. What I was saying was that if I have to fight theinstrument then the instrument is a problem. Not every bass is suitable for every player. Sometimes that's because the bass itself is crap, sometimes it's because the player has to get used to it. That was the point of the original question. If instrument issues can be addressed then all to the better. Now, other than the balance in sound levels across the strings (which is an issue), i haven't mentioned the tonal quality. I wouldn't expect it to be great anyway, but then it doesn't have a lot to work with: one tonal control and one pickup tha quality of which I do not know. Could be a decent pickup, or it could be the reason why the E is noticeably louder. Raising the pickup under the G string wouldn't be desierable because it would get in the way of my fingers.But with respect I'm not saying you can't make a decent bass 'cheaply'. I have no idea what your bass is like. It might well play like a dream, but then it's equally possible that I might find it difficult to play while you find it smooth. For instance if you look at Jaco's muting technique, he uses his 3rd and 4th fingers (big hands) to mute the e and a strings as he plays. I cannot do this at all, my hands aren't big enough and it totally shuts down movement on my picking fingers. Instruments can be just as temperamental as their players.

Edited September 6, 2012 by wishface

[thebrig]

[quote name='wishface' timestamp='1346945589' post='1795173']
Fair enough. I have tweaked it and it is somewhat better. My point is that a) i don't want to damage the only bass i have and the overall design of the instrument limits how far you can tweak it. I can't reduce the width of the neck, nor can i change the fact it has one pickup of whatever quality. I would have preferred a pickup, as an achor point, slightly less centrally placed for instance. It is what it is. I can tweak it and adjust that, but in the end it's all sows ears and silk purses.
[/quote]
One of the most played and recorded basses ever, only had ONE pickup, and a neck the width of a cricket bat!

[razze06]

If all else fails, and you can't get on with the shape of the neck, the position of the pickup, or some other fundamental characteristics of your bass, it's time to swap it for another one. I'm sure there will be plenty of people willing to swap your spector for another bass of similar value. A nice squier CV jazz would be a good one, for instance

[wishface]

the neck width will certainly be less of an issue if i can sort out the e string. but i don't know where to start with the volume issue.

[mushers]

[quote name='wishface' timestamp='1346951300' post='1795296']
the neck width will certainly be less of an issue if i can sort out the e string. but i don't know where to start with the volume issue.
[/quote]
could be a mix of different brand/gauge strings or pick up height

Edited September 6, 2012 by mushers

[thebrig]

[quote name='wishface' timestamp='1346951300' post='1795296']
the neck width will certainly be less of an issue if i can sort out the e string. but i don't know where to start with the volume issue.
[/quote]
Well you could start with taking the foam out from beneath the pickup if it wont go down any further.

You say "[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][i]it's as low as it's going to get. I'd have to completely unscrew it which means taking the strings off entirely. I can live with it as is[/i]".[/font][/color]
[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I don't want to sound harsh, but almost every suggestion made to you, you come back with a reason not to do it.[/font][/color]
[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][b]So what[/b] if you have to take the strings off, how long is i[/font][/color][color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]t going to take?[/font][/color]

But anyway! you don't need to take the strings off completely, you can just loosen them off enough to pull them away to the each side of the pickup, then you can get to the pickup easily.
You can either replace the foam, of try trimming it down so that the pickup screws down further than what it did, and then just keep adjusting the height until you get all the strings balanced correctly. It should take no more than 30 minutes or so.

[thebrig]

[quote name='mushers' timestamp='1346953745' post='1795328']
could be a mix of different brand/gauge strings or pick up height
[/quote]
Every now and then, you can get a 'dead/rogue' string in a pack, maybe this is the problem.

[thebrig]

Just a tip for when you next need to replace your strings on a budget.

Try these: [url="http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/products/11060-stagg_4_string_nickel_round_wound_bass_guitar_strings_45_105"]http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/products/11060-stagg_4_string_nickel_round_wound_bass_guitar_strings_45_105[/url]

I bought a pack to put on a bass I was selling, and I was pleasantly surprised as to how good they were, and the person who brought the bass from me actually emailed me asking what strings they were, as he liked them too.

They are: Stagg 4-string Nickel Round Wound Bass Strings 45-105, and cost £6.99 + £1 p&p from Strings Direct
[size=4][font=arial, helvetica, sans-serif] [/font][/size]

[wishface]

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1346953846' post='1795329']
Well you could start with taking the foam out from beneath the pickup if it wont go down any further.

You say "[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][i]it's as low as it's going to get. I'd have to completely unscrew it which means taking the strings off entirely. I can live with it as is[/i]".[/font][/color]
[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]I don't want to sound harsh, but almost every suggestion made to you, you come back with a reason not to do it.[/font][/color]
[color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][b]So what[/b] if you have to take the strings off, how long is i[/font][/color][color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]t going to take?[/font][/color]

But anyway! you don't need to take the strings off completely, you can just loosen them off enough to pull them away to the each side of the pickup, then you can get to the pickup easily.
You can either replace the foam, of try trimming it down so that the pickup screws down further than what it did, and then just keep adjusting the height until you get all the strings balanced correctly. It should take no more than 30 minutes or so.
[/quote]

I have tried everything. You didn't read what I wrote. I have adjusted the truss rod and i have altered the intonation. The only thing I haven't tried is completely taking the pickup out which, reasonably I think, I am more reluctant to do. Quite honestly I don't want to take the strings off right now, it took me a while putting these ones in as they kept slipping tuning because when I removed the strings the bloody nut fell off! I had to glue it back in.Lowering the pickup won't address the volume imbalance as all the strings will be equally farther from the pickup. So the problem might be the actual quality ofht epickup itself, but electronics is most certainly not my forte.

Edited September 6, 2012 by wishface

[wishface]

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1346954049' post='1795334']
Every now and then, you can get a 'dead/rogue' string in a pack, maybe this is the problem.
[/quote]

It's certainly possible; the flappiness of the string I think is the cause of a lot of my low E anguish. It simply moves too much. Lowering the action certainly helps, but that won't ease the problem at the source: the size of the string itself. I don't pluck particularly hard so it's not vibrating harshly because of the way i play, it's just moving across a lot of space which i think is the issue. So presumably a smaller, ie lighter, string would help. Maybe I could get a single string and see.

[thebrig]

[quote name='wishface' timestamp='1346954958' post='1795346']
I have tried everything. You didn't read what I wrote. I have adjusted the truss rod and i have altered the intonation. The only thing I haven't tried is completely taking the pickup out which, reasonably I think, I am more reluctant to do. Quite honestly I don't want to take the strings off right now, it took me a while putting these ones in as they kept slipping tuning because when I removed the strings the bloody nut fell off! I had to glue it back in.
[/quote]
I did not say adjust the truss rod or intonation, I suggested that you adjust your pickup so that you can get the balance across your strings correct.

A loose nut is not entirely uncommon, and now that you have glued the 'bloody nut' back on, it should not come off next time.

But again, I sense another lack of enthusiasm to act on a suggestion, and it appears that to do something 'properly', could infringe on too much of your time, so I'm afraid you are on your own from now on as far as I'm concerned.

[RhysP]

[quote name='wishface' timestamp='1346954958' post='1795346']
Lowering the pickup won't address the volume imbalance as all the strings will be equally farther from the pickup.
[/quote]

You only lower it on the E string side, not both sides.

[Evil Undead]

No disrespect intended, but if it's still not right, then you haven't tried everything. It just seems to me as though you're finding reasons to not sort the issue, and therefore you're finding reasons to be unsatisfied with your instrument.

I also don't understand how this is your only bass, you say you've had it for ten years, yet NOW you're fighting against it. If it really is a case of not being the right bass for you, how have you been ok with it for so long?

In my opinion, you either need to spend the time and effort learning how to set the bass up properly, or trade it for a different one, be unhappy with the set up on that one, not bother sorting it, trade that one... etc.

[nottswarwick]

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1346955692' post='1795360']

I did not say adjust the truss rod or intonation, I suggested that you adjust your pickup so that you can get the balance across your strings correct.

A loose nut is not entirely uncommon, and now that you have glued the 'bloody nut' back on, it should not come off next time.

But again, I sense another lack of enthusiasm to act on a suggestion, and it appears that to do something 'properly', could infringe on too much of your time, so I'm afraid you are on your own from now on as far as I'm concerned.
[/quote]

To the OP - I'm in agreement here. This is all great advice. Take it. Or pay for a proper set up. And if you don't like it then, trade it. End of.

Hope you sort it out. I'd do it for you but notts is too far. It's simply not a crap bass. I've gigged on a £100 Squier and it was fine.

[BassTractor]

My clear impression throughout this thread is that Wishface is in bad health. If true, it's not gonna help him if we claim he just can't be arsed.

That said, I think WIshface should be open about this aspect - if applicable.

best,
bert

[nottswarwick]

[quote name='BassTractor' timestamp='1346961593' post='1795471']
My clear impression throughout this thread is that Wishface is in bad health. If true, it's not gonna help him if we claim he just can't be arsed.

That said, I think WIshface should be open about this aspect - if applicable.

best,
bert
[/quote]

Fair play. Point taken. But still, it's going round in circles. Not my thread though so I'll step aside. If you ask for advice you need to be open to it when it is given, especially given the amount of people trying to help.

[Evil Undead]

[quote name='BassTractor' timestamp='1346961593' post='1795471']
My clear impression throughout this thread is that Wishface is in bad health.
[/quote]

Out of interest, where did you get this impression? I've read through the thread again and can't find anything to suggest this.

[wishface]

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1346959174' post='1795420']
You only lower it on the E string side, not both sides.
[/quote]

The E is noticeably louder than even the A string, lowering it there will also affect the A string. I just tried raising the pickup under the G string and it made no difference. Granted I can only raise it so far without taking the strings off (assuming there's a great deal of latitude anyway), but i didn't notice a difference.Maybe when I next change strings I'll dig the pickup out. But I'm not in any hurry to take the strings off right now anyway. I also don't want to end up unscrewing the pickup and finding myself somehow unable to replace it or some other nonsense. Regardless of how easy it may actually be, this is the only bass I have and if I get it wrong I'll be the one that loses out.

[wishface]

[quote name='BassTractor' timestamp='1346961593' post='1795471']
My clear impression throughout this thread is that Wishface is in bad health. If true, it's not gonna help him if we claim he just can't be arsed.

That said, I think WIshface should be open about this aspect - if applicable.

best,
bert
[/quote]

Excuse me? Isn't that a little bit rude?

[wishface]

[quote name='Evil Undead' timestamp='1346959795' post='1795433']
No disrespect intended, but if it's still not right, then you haven't tried everything.  It just seems to me as though you're finding reasons to not sort the issue, and therefore you're finding reasons to be unsatisfied with your instrument.  

I also don't understand how this is your only bass, you say you've had it for ten years, yet NOW you're fighting against it.  If it really is a case of not being the right bass for you, how have you been ok with it for so long?

In my opinion, you either need to spend the time and effort learning how to set the bass up properly, or trade it for a different one, be unhappy with the set up on that one, not bother sorting it, trade that one... etc.
[/quote]

The only thing I haven't done is take the pickup out. Why my reluctance to do that, when I don't particularly want to remove the strings, should be taken as laziness is completely beyond me. I have taken up every suggestion that's been made and that includes not fiddling with the truss rod all at once. I have made a slight, as was suggested, adjustment, and now it is 'resting', again as was suiggested. Again do NOT tell me that I am or am not doing anything, that is exceptionally rude and needlessly provocative.