SR500 arrives - busted string already

[Mick Kahn't]

Well, the thing was only home for two hours with me before I'd busted a string.

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I know, what a dope. The missus was chatting about something and I couldn't quite hear her (upstairs etc) and so I wasn't paying attention (bad I know) and i overwound the tuner ...

New set of Ernie Balls for me in the morning then - can't get the Elixirs locally I don't think.

Anyway - now it's here and out of the box - should I be leaving it to kinda *acclimatise* a bit in the room where it'll be kept/played - I have to check the neck relief/action etc - action looks mighty high at the moment - bridge is all over the place (see pics)





Reading through www.tunemybass etc as I type ...

Thanks all - this is a big relearning curve - and I'm talking BIG

[Chris2112]

Ah, at least you know it's just from over-tuning it that you've bust a string. Easier to sort than having a sharp bridge saddle!

[stu_g]

i tweaked action on my 505 when i got that and it just fell into place nicely,i was expecting a nightmare as it is the first five string i own. im a big fan of the bartolini pickups though when you get your strings sorted im sure your gonna enjoy the bass

[6v6]

FWIW I've had an SR500 (from new) similar to yours for well over 2 years and still have the original strings on it, no problem with breakage, so must be a one-off due to the tuner incident!

I had to put a bit more tension on the truss rod (about half a turn as fretboard was too concave leading to high action), and also wind the bridge saddles down (about half a turn each) to get the action low after the bass settled in - I'm no expert at setups but made small adjustments checking carefully after each one and it's transformed the way it plays, really smooth, low action!

[Mick Kahn't]

Thanks guys - I guess the desired result is to get the action as LOW as possible and not get any fret buzz - so getting the relief JUST RIGHT ...

Edited September 25, 2012 by Mick Kahn't

[LukeFRC]

yes. It's painful reading but the thread with Wishface trying and failing to set his bass up had lots of good tips.

[Mick Kahn't]

God, 14 pages later ... That's an hour and a half I'll never get back but adds to my experience (whch isn't a lot) ... just had a look at my gap (albeit it the A string as I have no E of course) when the 1st and last frets are touched and the string is ON the frets all the way down - there is NO relief from what I can see .... just a quick check, it is 1.30am and no that bright in this room. I'll have another check tomorrow - off to the repair section to try and find a man who can ... if I can't, then well ...

Edited September 26, 2012 by Mick Kahn't

[Schnozzalee]

The amount of times i've done that - I just turn into a space cadet tuning strings. If you think that's bad, try setting up a Floyd Rose or a Bigsby!!

[daz]

I snapped two strings in under an hour once.

[mart]

[quote name='Mick Kahn't' timestamp='1348611560' post='1816102']
Thanks guys - I guess the desired result is to get the action as LOW as possible and not get any fret buzz - so getting the relief JUST RIGHT ...
[/quote]
That's a matter of taste; some like a higher action for various reasons. Most starters like a low action, as it makes things easier, but I think there are still plenty of long-in-the-tooth players who like it low as well.

Btw, I loooove your user name; wish I'd thought of it!

[gafbass02]

Yup, long In the tooth, low actionist right here, and that bass is giving me GAS

[artisan]

don't try setting the neck relief until you replace the E string.

[JellyKnees]

I brought a secondhand (but looked brand new) SR505 in the summer and the action was way too high. It was fairly easy to set up correctly though. Didn't like the nasty elixir strings it came with at all, currently using d'addario steels on it, which sound much better imo.

[Mick Kahn't]

Just bought some hybrid Ernie Balls strings in the same gauge as the originals so will replace later one by one ... then see where the neck is.

The call has gone out to a couple of local guys (from the repairs/luthiers thread) and I'll gladly pay someone money to set it up right in the first place. If I'm re-learning all again how to play, then I'm going to learn on a properly set up bass!

Whereas if I had a crap Spector I'd get the allen keys out and take my chances!

[JMM]

How much further did you tune it for the string to snap?

I've only ever known someone break a G string and when that went, it actually left a cut on his arm. Since then, I've always been a bit paranoid of snapping a G string popping, but I never imagined an E string breaking!

[StephenYork]

I bought an SR505 about 3 years ago, got it out the box and tuned up, that's how it has been ever since. I have changed the strings every few months, it plays great still.

Once you've got it set up it wil last ages, and look forward to playing it in