Capo on a long scale

[Hey_Pauly]

Anybody ever put a capo on a long scale bass to shorten the scale? Obviously you would lose some of the higher notes but otherwise does it work OK?

[alyctes]

Tried once or twice. Lost intonation if I put it up more than a couple of frets. But that could be the cheap stuff (bass, strings) I was using?

[Hey_Pauly]

[quote name='alyctes' timestamp='1506210650' post='3377117']
Tried once or twice. Lost intonation if I put it up more than a couple of frets. But that could be the cheap stuff (bass, strings) I was using?
[/quote]

I am thinking of putting it on the second or third fret.

[CameronJ]

Are you trying to capo the bass and tune it so it's still standard tuning (EADG) after being capo'd??

[Hey_Pauly]

[quote name='CameronJ' timestamp='1506215710' post='3377130']
Are you trying to capo the bass and tune it so it's still standard tuning (EADG) after being capo'd??
[/quote]

Yep, that is what I had in mind.

[CameronJ]

I've never thought of that! As others have suggested, it should be fine if it's only a couple of frets maximum. Those first couple of frets are a few inches though so they'll go a long way. String gauge will obviously play a part in the end result.

[Hey_Pauly]

[quote name='CameronJ' timestamp='1506219419' post='3377134']
I've never thought of that! As others have suggested, it should be fine if it's only a couple of frets maximum. Those first couple of frets are a few inches though so they'll go a long way. String gauge will obviously play a part in the end result.
[/quote]

I think I am going to give it a shot.

[Paulhauser]

String tension will be an issue. To have regular (EADG) tuning at, say, the 3rd fret you have to tune the bass 3 semitones down first, then capo. This will make the stings a lot floppier if you don't use heavier gauges. But you should try, there is nothing to loose.

[Geek99]

Yes
When I was too tired to think about doing it any other way like re voicing or changing key
It worked just fine

[Grangur]

Are you sure that the fret spacing on a short-scale is identical to that on a long-scale when cappoed?

I would expect it to be different. In which case, its not going to work. The intonation will be all wrong.

[ikay]

A 34" neck capoed on the second fret will give a scale length of about 30.3". Intonation should be fine, it's no different to just tuning down a tone but only playing from the second fret upwards.

There's a handy online fret/scale calculator here - [url="http://www.buildyourguitar.com/resources/fretcalc/jscrptclc.htm"]http://www.buildyourguitar.com/resources/fretcalc/jscrptclc.htm[/url]

Edited September 24, 2017 by ikay

[Andyjr1515]

Using the same strings, as folks above say, the tension will be lower and so you might get a bit of fret buzz. Also, the string tension difference will, actually, affect the intonation a small amount, but which of course you can adjust.

Scale-wise, it is as ikay above says.

Main thing is just try it - should broadly work fine

[Andyjr1515]

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1506246672' post='3377243']
Using the same strings, as folks above say, the tension will be lower and so you might get a bit of fret buzz. Also, the string tension difference will, actually, affect the intonation a small amount, but which of course you can adjust.

Scale-wise, it is as ikay above says.

Main thing is just try it - should broadly work fine
[/quote]
You may also need to slacken your truss rod a tad for the same reason but, again, just try it first. Might be perfectly playable whatever.

[Hey_Pauly]

Thanks everyone for the input

[Hey_Pauly]

I did it. I bought a new to me Specter and capo'd it at the third fret. Plays very nicely. Here's a pic.

[attachment=254279:20170924_145339.jpg]

[Geek99]

I had to play a johnny cash song in f# and capo on 3 is exactly what I did