Captain Rumble Posted July 30, 2016 Share Posted July 30, 2016 I bought this on here a few years back and I have never used it as much as I thought I would i just kind of never quite gelled with it if you know what I mean. Its well screwed together nice comfortable neck to play a little heavier than I would prefer but balances fairly well, my real problem I think is the sound it is very punchy (good thing) very powerful (i feel I am always trying to control it) but seems to lack a certain warmth don't get me wrong there's loads of bottom end available it's just slightly soul less to my ears, I'm hoping this makes some sort of sense to you all because I'm not sure it does to me. So I thought I would sell it looked at what was on the market with regard to price/quality comparison and stuck it up for sale in various places but no interest it would appear that despite the obvious quality Sandbergs have little resale value. And so the point of this post I'm wondering if its possible to lighten it a little and whats involved and is it something something I should ask a luthier to do and also if there is a pickup/ preamp change which could improve the overall tone and therefor make it a more attractive instrument for me to play. Any (polite) suggestions appreciated as despite playing bass for more years than i care to remember I have successfully managed to avoid learning anything usefull about bass guitars Cheers John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted July 30, 2016 Share Posted July 30, 2016 (edited) Punctuate! For God's sake, punctuate! Edited July 30, 2016 by discreet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Rumble Posted July 30, 2016 Author Share Posted July 30, 2016 Will that make it lighter or help the tone can it be retro fitted do I need an expert to do it for me not that it matters as I was never really into punc any way so not sure how punc tuating whatever it is would help the particular issue that i is facing if you know what I mean like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted July 30, 2016 Share Posted July 30, 2016 (edited) [quote name='Captain Rumble' timestamp='1469904177' post='3101940'] Will that make it lighter or help the tone can it be retro fitted do I need an expert to do it for me not that it matters as I was never really into punc any way so not sure how punc tuating whatever it is would help the particular issue that i is facing if you know what I mean like [/quote] Heh. Can't help you with the weight, but have you tried using different strings? This can make a huge tone difference. Edited July 30, 2016 by discreet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twincam Posted July 31, 2016 Share Posted July 31, 2016 (edited) Ok. Has the bass ever been set up? (Correctly) Also string wear is mostly for the better sounds like the bass hasn't been played. You would be surprised how the tone and feel can change with time. Yes can lighten the body. In many ways. Yes can change pre amp and pick ups with no bother. And it would change the tone. What are you looking for from the bass? Edited July 31, 2016 by Twincam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Rumble Posted July 31, 2016 Author Share Posted July 31, 2016 I have done a fair amount of tweaking myself i.e. pickup height, neck relief, bridge height, string type, make etc over time, and just recently had a professional fret polish and complete setup done by local guy Rich from Tonefinder. Unfortunately to my ears it is more aggressive and powerful than ever partly due no doubt to the new roundwounds and also the undoing of some of my tweaks. I have two other basses an early nineties mex fender jazz with Wizard Hammer pickups which sounds best (to my ears) with well worn in stainless steel roundwounds, and a bitsa P with Nordstrand np4 pickups and Daddario Chromes which tends to be my go to bass. Tall order I know but I was hoping for suggestion on how the body can be lightened or perhaps who could help me with such a thing, and suggestions on pick ups and or preamp or again who to talk to as I really don't know what the pros and cons are for differing pre's and pups. I guess there's a problem with sound being so subjective that I would probably need to be able to try different examples to explain what I liked or not as the case may be. I bought the Sandberg with the idea that it would be a good all rounder and I believe that it is, several local players including Rich at Tonefinder think it is a really nice bass and like what it does and others are not so convinced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manton Customs Posted July 31, 2016 Share Posted July 31, 2016 (edited) There's not a lot you can do to make it lighter that will reduce the weight considerably. There's little things you can do like replacing the tuners with light weight ones, replacing metal knobs with plastic, changing bridge etc, but none of it's going to equate to much weight loss Chambering would offer a fair weight reduction, but you'd need to think of a way to cover the chambers afterwards. This could be as simple as a larger pickguard (or adding one if it doesn't have one), or simply chambering under the existing pickguard if it isn't already so. If you went this route it wouldn't be particularly expensive. Edited July 31, 2016 by Manton Customs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Osiris Posted July 31, 2016 Share Posted July 31, 2016 This won't help with the weight issues, but I also have a Sandberg Basic (mine is the single MusicMan domino style humbucker model, but I had it routed to add a Precision pickup) and felt the same about the tone as you do i.e. punchy and powerful but lacking a bit of warmth. Having said that I don't think this is a unique fault to this particular instrument but typical of just about every active bass I have ever tried - others may disagree, but this is my experience and opinion, nothing more So assuming your bass is active, try using the bass in passive mode to warm the tone up. All you need do is to pull the volume pot away from the body until it clicks, then you're in passive mode. No mods to the bass needed and it won't cost you anything. It's got to be worth a go before chucking any more money at it. That's what I did and have never looked back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martthebass Posted August 1, 2016 Share Posted August 1, 2016 I can sometimes feel this way on active basses. Not sure what strings you've tried but I tend to put Status half-wounds on my actives which dials the harshness out sufficiently for me. I've had a Sandy Basic in the past (a Ken Taylor 5) and I couldn't get on with it either, somehow the Delanos seemed to be both dark and harsh at the same time. I couldn't deny the quality of the bass; if it had been a 4 string I might have persevered a bit longer however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Rumble Posted August 2, 2016 Author Share Posted August 2, 2016 Thanks for the comments and advice guys, I have used it passive and to my ears it maintained its tonal character so no joy there. As far as weight is concerned it weighs just over 10 pound and if I could get it down to 9 i would be happy, but not much point unless I get it to sound more the way I would like it to. I haven't ever used half-wounds so no idea what to expect might be worth a punt, I tried Thomastic jazz flats on it but didn't really do it for me. I keep coming back to pickups and preamp but that could be an expensive mistake if it doesn't improve things. Ho Hum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted August 2, 2016 Share Posted August 2, 2016 My Basic has a single MM pickup, is very light and sounds plenty warm (but it is wearing flats and plugged into an Orange Terror Bass!). If your pickup has the massive Delano / Musicman style pole pieces, perhaps a more traditional Precision pickup would help. But if you don't like the sound or the weight, perhaps it's time to move it on and just buy something else? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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