12 and 8 String Basses

[SpondonBassed]

9 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

It did, I didn't:

Thank you for choosing Andertons Music for your purchase.

To confirm that the following item(s) on your order are currently out of stock:

Spector Bass Legend 8 Classic Black Stain (Stockcode SL8CLBKS)

Our suppliers have informed us that we will be receiving our order on or around  25th January.

Ooh - thats soon

 

 

When does the chorus pedal arrive...?

 

 

Heeheehee

[Wolverinebass]

Nice. Hope it works for you.

As a few people have asked, here is my 8 string. 😊

[Woodinblack]

Thats nice. I still have a temptation to do the iceman as an 8 string, now I have seen one!

 

[Woodinblack]

Well, it turned up!

 

 

[visog]

Mr Squire indulging in multi-string goodness. Would love to know what song he was playing...

That headstock is a bit of a fruity proposition!

[AndyTravis]

That headstock looks like a painted turd

[visog]

Bet it was sounding good though...

[Woodinblack]

22 minutes ago, visog said:

Mr Squire indulging in multi-string goodness. Would love to know what song he was playing...

That headstock is a bit of a fruity proposition!

Probably going for the one:

 

About 11:54

 

[Jus Lukin]

-

Edited March 1, 2022 by Jus Lukin

[Al Krow]

Well I had the pleasure and privilege of trying out one of these last night:

And A/B'd it against this very bass:

First impressions were that the 12 is richer and fuller and why on earth had I ever been thinking of an 8?!

Second impressions when exactly the same riff was being played on both one after the other by @Wolverinebass and me listening carefully was, 'hmmm...actually that 8 is pretty darned good' and likely to be easier to play well for me!

I guess (and maybe this is pretty obvious to others) but the 12 string bass in terms of sound alone (not playability) is like playing a normal bass + 12 string acoustic guitar whereas the 8 is like a normal bass + 6 string acoustic guitar. A 12 string acoustic has that lovely additional fullness and richness of sound. But there's also a reason why most folk play a 6 string acoustic. 

[Wolverinebass]

4 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Well I had the pleasure and privilege of trying out one of these last night:

And A/B'd it against this very bass:

First impressions were that the 12 is richer and fuller and why on earth had I ever been thinking of an 8?!

Second impressions when exactly the same riff was being played on both one after the other by @Wolverinebass and me listening carefully was, 'hmmm...actually that 8 is pretty darned good' and likely to be easier to play well for me!

I guess (and maybe this is pretty obvious to others) but the 12 string bass in terms of sound alone (not playability) is like playing a normal bass + 12 string acoustic guitar whereas the 8 is like a normal bass + 6 string acoustic guitar. A 12 string acoustic has that lovely additional fullness and richness of sound. But there's also a reason why most folk play a 6 string acoustic. 

Just to clarify, I've got a USA Hamer not an Indonesian or Korean model.

[krispn]

Oooh 😉

[Cuzzie]

@Wolverinebass braggart.......

[Al Krow]

4 minutes ago, Cuzzie said:

@Wolverinebass braggart.......

Haha! Actually he's being VERY modest. You should see the rest of his bass gear!

[Wolverinebass]

9 minutes ago, Cuzzie said:

@Wolverinebass braggart.......

You should be the one who's bragging after getting virtually the same bass for half as much cash. 

[Cuzzie]

Ha

i was being humble, but now you put it that way.....

nah it’s a win win for both of us.

if it does really float my boat, then I may go custom like we talked about, Burt that is years away!

[Al Krow]

17 minutes ago, Cuzzie said:

if it does really float my boat, then I may go custom like we talked about, Burt that is years a couple of months away!

Spotted your typo and have corrected.

[Cuzzie]

@Al Krow you are on form today!😂

[Al Krow]

@Woodinblack

So you've managed to go from none to TWO 8 string basses in the space a week! Looking forward to your detailed write up in due course, but in the meantime what are your initial impressions of the them both?

How do you see yourself using them live?

I'm waiting for a couple of guitars (normal 6 string of the non bass variety) to sell and then that Schecter 8 is still very much on my radar (almost having been knocked off my GAS list by hearing it side by side against a 12 string, but not quite...)

[Woodinblack]

I currently have two, I am not going to end up with two. I am either going to keep the spector and push the dean on, or keep the deen and return the spector.

Initial impressions are stronger on the spector, as I got it on Tuesday.

Its the first spector I had, so obviously the feelings probably tie to that. The bass is lovely, it is not too heavy, the body is a great shape. the neck is a bit thicker and wider than I would like, its bigger than an ibby, but obviously most things are. The knobs are also the wrong way round (treble bass) as well as a bit abstract as there is no default position. however, sounds good and works well.

The 8 string part. I loved it for the first few minutes, then hated it, then went back to liking it. It *is* harder on your fingers to play, and easier to make mistakes from missing the strings. In general it is harder to play.

For some songs, punk, rock, it really does add some body to the song, especially songs where you are playing Guitar / bass / Drums. I wish I had had this in my last group, which was 70s/80s punk/pop based. Its also very good with delay effects, where the increased harmonics really shine. However, for my current group I couldn't use it as my only bass, as it really is no use whatsoever for Ska, which we do a fair bit of!

So the dean. Picked it up today, really cheap. Needed a decent amount of time cleaning it and sorting out a noisy socket. It is a little tattier, dent on the headstock, can see the lines from the wood, it is quite old I am guessing - oh yes, serial number says it is 08, so it is doing ok for a decade.

Between the Dean and the Spector on their own merits, there isn't much of an issue. The Spector is better. It is more comfortable, it has a slightly easier neck, the build is a lot better, more comfortable and looks a lot better.

But, the dean was a fraction of the cost - cheapest non harley benton bass I have bought, so it is not the most obvious comparison.

Plugged in, there really is virtually nothing to pick between them. The Dean has less treble, but almost certainly that is old strings vs the new ones on the Spector. Other than that, they sound the same, with almost identical blend between the pickups. The dean you can do a treble cut that you can't do on the Spector I suppose, that is about it.

So I don't know what is going to be around after I have decided, but one thing I know is that Spector has entered my head as a brand to explore more.

[Cuzzie]

Nicely put, there is no right or wrong, just right for you

[Wolverinebass]

33 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

I currently have two, I am not going to end up with two. I am either going to keep the spector and push the dean on, or keep the deen and return the spector.

Initial impressions are stronger on the spector, as I got it on Tuesday.

Its the first spector I had, so obviously the feelings probably tie to that. The bass is lovely, it is not too heavy, the body is a great shape. the neck is a bit thicker and wider than I would like, its bigger than an ibby, but obviously most things are. The knobs are also the wrong way round (treble bass) as well as a bit abstract as there is no default position. however, sounds good and works well.

The 8 string part. I loved it for the first few minutes, then hated it, then went back to liking it. It *is* harder on your fingers to play, and easier to make mistakes from missing the strings. In general it is harder to play.

For some songs, punk, rock, it really does add some body to the song, especially songs where you are playing Guitar / bass / Drums. I wish I had had this in my last group, which was 70s/80s punk/pop based. Its also very good with delay effects, where the increased harmonics really shine. However, for my current group I couldn't use it as my only bass, as it really is no use whatsoever for Ska, which we do a fair bit of!

So the dean. Picked it up today, really cheap. Needed a decent amount of time cleaning it and sorting out a noisy socket. It is a little tattier, dent on the headstock, can see the lines from the wood, it is quite old I am guessing - oh yes, serial number says it is 08, so it is doing ok for a decade.

Between the Dean and the Spector on their own merits, there isn't much of an issue. The Spector is better. It is more comfortable, it has a slightly easier neck, the build is a lot better, more comfortable and looks a lot better.

But, the dean was a fraction of the cost - cheapest non harley benton bass I have bought, so it is not the most obvious comparison.

Plugged in, there really is virtually nothing to pick between them. The Dean has less treble, but almost certainly that is old strings vs the new ones on the Spector. Other than that, they sound the same, with almost identical blend between the pickups. The dean you can do a treble cut that you can't do on the Spector I suppose, that is about it.

So I don't know what is going to be around after I have decided, but one thing I know is that Spector has entered my head as a brand to explore more.

As I said, the Spector is the better instrument. That's why it costs twice as much. I think that if I didn't have mine I'd be getting that or the the Schecter. It's what you're happy with really. You are completely right though, the Dean has less top than the Spector. The Spector has a better body material as the Dean is basswood, so I'd imagine it'd ding easier. 

However, it's your choice. As long as you're happy with it. Enjoy dude.

[Woodinblack]

The neck needs a bit of adjustment on the dean, it chokes the strings high on the lower two strings. I am impressed at the intonation of both of the basses though. I also notice that although the dean has wider string spacing at the nut (the bridges appear to be identical on both), the spacing between the pairs of strings is also narrower on the dean, so its easier to get caught between the strings on the Spector.

[Al Krow]

15 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

The 8 string part. I loved it for the first few minutes, then hated it, then went back to liking it. It *is* harder on your fingers to play, and easier to make mistakes from missing the strings. In general it is harder to play.

... but one thing I know is that Spector has entered my head as a brand to explore more.

Good review, thanks buddy. Picking up a couple of points:

The Spector lobby will be delighted to hear this. However, we need to tempt you back into the European rip off clone market, though, and get you playing Warwicks (and similarly Sandbergs instead of Fender) 

More seriously, I think that's going to be spot in terms of these being a different, more difficult, beast to play from a normal 4 string bass for those of us picking them up for the first time. And I'd presume that the 12 string going to be harder still to master; so for me the 8 makes for a good compromise.

One of the things that might be interesting with these 8 string basses is to get a bespoke nut made up with the string spacing suited to your playing style e.g. on the Spector so that the gaps between strings are smaller and more akin to the Dean if that is your preference?

[LeftyP]

Having just changed the four strings on my Chowny SWB-1 I hate to think what re-stringing a 12 string bass would be like!