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A semi-build with shades of P


Bridgehouse
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3 minutes ago, discreet said:

That's what I'm doing, Ultralites and a Hipshot KickAss. Heavier overall, but much better balance on the strap. 7.5lbs.

Yep. ;)

I'm tempted to fashion some custom saddles for the kickass. Not sure what yet. Maybe rosewood. Maybe ebony. Maybe even nut material. 

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4 minutes ago, Bridgehouse said:

I'm tempted to fashion some custom saddles for the kickass. Not sure what yet. Maybe rosewood. Maybe ebony. Maybe even nut material. 

I'd be interested to see how that goes. I've got the stock brass saddles in there and they seem fine. Does it make any difference to have the same material at each end of the string..? Replacing the saddles with nut material would be a lot easier than fitting a brass nut...

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2 minutes ago, discreet said:

I'd be interested to see how that goes. I've got the stock brass saddles in there and they seem fine. Does it make any difference to have the same material at each end of the string..? Replacing the saddles with nut material would be a lot easier than fitting a brass nut...

You know, I have no idea - it will be an experiment! I know the steel saddles are a bit brighter - I wonder if a wood or nut material saddle might be a bit more "acoustic" - thought it would be good to try on a semi-acoustic build. 

I'm sure there's some science here but I don't know ;)

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1 minute ago, Bridgehouse said:

You know, I have no idea - it will be an experiment! I know the steel saddles are a bit brighter - I wonder if a wood or nut material saddle might be a bit more "acoustic" - thought it would be good to try on a semi-acoustic build. 

Experiments are good. :) Everyone says the steel saddles are brighter, but whenever I use a bridge with brass saddles (which supposedly give a more 'mellow' tone) I find that in practise, brass is actually brighter-sounding. Going against a lot of received wisdom here - maybe I need my ears syringing.

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6 minutes ago, discreet said:

Experiments are good. :) Everyone says the steel saddles are brighter, but whenever I use a bridge with brass saddles (which supposedly give a more 'mellow' tone) I find that in practise, brass is actually brighter-sounding. Going against a lot of received wisdom here - maybe I need my ears syringing.

I think a lot of it is the language to be honest. Brass is more twangy (hence brass saddles being a good thing on a Telecaster) and steel can be more "metallic" - but depending on the strings, twangy or metallic could mean either are "brighter"

At the end of the day you have to pick a combo that works for what you want to hear. I'm actually most interested in the effects of the different materials on sustain..

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1 minute ago, Bridgehouse said:

I'm actually most interested in the effects of the different materials on sustain.

You're down the rabbit hole, there! So many different parameters have an effect on sustain -allegedly. I await the results of your experiments with interest, while very much standing on the sidelines of opinion! Increased sustain on a bass isn't something I've aspired to, which is probably why I know very little about it... :)

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1 minute ago, discreet said:

You're down the rabbit hole, there! So many different parameters have an effect on sustain -allegedly. I await the results of your experiments with interest, while very much standing on the sidelines of opinion! Increased sustain on a bass isn't something I've aspired to, which is probably why I know very little about it... :)

Oh don't worry - I know it's a rabbit hole ;)

In some ways, I think I'd prefer a shorter sustain on a semi - one of the reasons for looking at a wood or nut material saddle was to shorten sustain. Maybe. Or maybe not. 

Either way, I'm just going to have a play about. First priority is decent weight and balance, finding a decent pickup to match and getting the basics sorted.

Then I'll think about messing about with needle files ;)

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