Sandberg appreciation society

[Sweeneythebass]

Has anyone bought a Sandberg from DV24/7 ? Lots of nice ones up there although quite a long wait for most https://www.dv247.com/en_GB/GBP/Sandberg-California-VM5-Ash-MN-Natural-Satin/art-BAS0008788-000

[knicknack]

@deadline Honestly I'd prefer my Masterpiece (and some other aged basses i own) to be a little less beaten up visually, but the way the necks feel played in is something I haven't found in an untouched bass thus far. In Sandbergs case the masterpieces get the heat and vibration treatment, and I would be sceptical if i hadn't tried the results! I have enquired about having all the good stuff without so much visual wear but it doesn't seem to be something builders are that keen to do for whatever reason! 

On a similar topic I left a slightly lifeless new JMJ Mustang on the Prime Vibe (this is the vibration treatment they use at Sandberg UK) for a week... to me the bass has just come to life. Might be all in my head, might be real! 

[krispn]

3 minutes ago, knicknack said:

On a similar topic I left a slightly lifeless new JMJ Mustang on the Prime Vibe (this is the vibration treatment they use at Sandberg UK) for a week... to me the bass has just come to life. Might be all in my head, might be real!

What sort of price do they charge for that? I’m asking for a friend 🤫

[knicknack]

@krispn I actually borrowed it from a local Basschat member and fellow Sandberg nut! Not available to buy any more by the looks of things, around $100 dollars. You're about as far away from Bournemouth as it gets if I remember rightly? 

Anybody thinking of taking the plunge on one of these? I think they look wicked, would love to know how they sound!

[deadline]

15 minutes ago, knicknack said:

@deadline Honestly I'd prefer my Masterpiece (and some other aged basses i own) to be a little less beaten up visually, but the way the necks feel played in is something I haven't found in an untouched bass thus far. In Sandbergs case the masterpieces get the heat and vibration treatment, and I would be sceptical if i hadn't tried the results! I have enquired about having all the good stuff without so much visual wear but it doesn't seem to be something builders are that keen to do for whatever reason! 

On a similar topic I left a slightly lifeless new JMJ Mustang on the Prime Vibe (this is the vibration treatment they use at Sandberg UK) for a week... to me the bass has just come to life. Might be all in my head, might be real! 

Ah, this makes sense to me, as I looked to much at just the visuals instead of considering the certain 'je ne sais quoi' that older/well worn instruments tend to have. Thanks, much appreciated!

[Cuzzie]

19 minutes ago, deadline said:

Ah, this makes sense to me, as I looked to much at just the visuals instead of considering the certain 'je ne sais quoi' that older/well worn instruments tend to have. Thanks, much appreciated!

Aside from the various treatments, it’s just a finish - I cannot stand Turdburst and barely tolerate tort

These worn in bases have an awesome feel to them

[SumOne]

With the TM5 it seems string spacing can be from 18mm-19.5.mm. But does anyone here know if you could have the 19mm+ spacing between all strings? It seems like the obvious answer is yes, but I've been caught out with this before on an ibanez - individually strings could be moved the maximum distance apart, but having all five of them that far apart meant the B and G were were easily slipping off the edge of the frets. 

Edited January 30, 2021 by SumOne

[pineweasel]

1 hour ago, SumOne said:

With the TM5 it seems string spacing can be from 18mm-19.5.mm. But does anyone here know if you could have the 19mm+ spacing between all strings? It seems like the obvious answer is yes, but I've been caught out with this before on an ibanez - individually strings could be moved the maximum distance apart, but having all five of them that far apart meant the B and G were were easily slipping off the edge of the frets. 

Here’s mine with the strings at 18.5mm centre to centre. I’ve not tried it, but it looks as if you could probably get away with 19mm, although the strings would be pretty close to the edge of the board. 

Edited January 30, 2021 by pineweasel

[dmccombe7]

Are the saddles adjustable for width ? 

Dave

[Reggaebass]

3 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

Are the saddles adjustable for width ? 

Dave

I’ve never altered mine from Sandberg, but yeah you can adjust the width Dave 🙂

[dmccombe7]

55 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

I’ve never altered mine from Sandberg, but yeah you can adjust the width Dave 🙂

To be honest i'm happy with mine the way it is from factory. Not measured it but i think its similar to my other basses which are typically 18mm on the Warwick and Overwaters and 19mm on the Fenders. It doesn't make much of a difference when playing altho i did have an ESP 6 string with 16mm spacing and i kept getting my positioning wrong but maybe that was more down to the fact it was my 1st 6 stringer.

Dave

[dmccombe7]

I'm now back to preferring my 4 stringers and just a lot happier with them than the 5 & 6 stringers.

Kinda odd as i was always asked to bring the 5 or 6 stringers to studios. Engineer loved the Dingwall NG2 sound as he said it was almost like a piano sound.

Dave

[Cuzzie]

4 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

I'm now back to preferring my 4 stringers and just a lot happier with them than the 5 & 6 stringers.

Kinda odd as i was always asked to bring the 5 or 6 stringers to studios. Engineer loved the Dingwall NG2 sound as he said it was almost like a piano sound.

Dave

Welcome back, 4 string and drop d tuner is where I live

[SumOne]

2 hours ago, pineweasel said:

Here’s mine with the strings at 18.5mm centre to centre. I’ve not tried it, but it looks as if you could probably get away with 19mm, although the strings would be pretty close to the edge of the board. 

Nice one, yeah looks like 19mm is just about be do-able. I had a 16.5 Ibanez that was too close, and now have 19mm Dingwall that is good spacing for me - considering getting a TM5 but the string spacing is my only hesitation....that and the fact I'm also considering a Lakland DJ5 or 55-02, anyone here have experience with each of them that would recommend one over the others?

[Cuzzie]

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CKwSHn1nfpT/?igshid=1wm33i16uk6na
 

this looks very very good

[dmccombe7]

Saw that on FB today as well altho it was a 5 stringer he was showing off.

Nice looking bass 

Dave

[M@23]

Yep, saw it on IG. It’s my 35th this year too... I’d love to mark the occasion with one of these! They look really good. Chambered bodies as well I think. 

[SumOne]

I just got a Sandberg California TM5 SL and it's my favourite Bass I've ever owned. 

I'm loving the thump of the MM pickup, and the warm tones that can be got from the Jazz pickup, and blending between them, good slap tones too, and nice muted sounds in passive with the tone down, and big dubby bass that can be added with the active EQ. 

Good neck and fretboard (although I've never understood the need for position markers down the middle of the fretboard- can't see them when playing), good ergonomics, comfortable and nice to play. And 3.3kg?!? I never had much of an issue with Basses being too heavy but it's so much nicer to practice for hours with a lighter Bass. I worried low weight would mean neck dive but I don't notice it doing that, not any more than any other Bass I've owned.

My only gripe is a bit of a gap (only about half a mm) between the neck and body where it joins on one side - it doesn't seem to cause any issues though, and the pickguard raised up in one part, and generally the hardware doesn't feel quite as high-end as the Dingwall Combustion I traded it for (or even my previous Ibanez which was half the price). And in an ideal world I'd like a mid EQ with 3 way mid frequency switch - that's one of the best features of the Ibanez SRMS805 and I think it's an option on the Lakland 55-02 via an internal switch.

I say 'favourite' rather than 'best' Bass I've owned because the Dingwall Combustion is objectively a better engineered Bass, but it didn't have the variety of tones I was after and was more effort to play;  it was 4.5kg, had a slightly uncomfortable reach down to B & E string 1st frets, and it ideally needed plucking in line with the offset direction of the pickups rather than vertically down the strings for consistent tone (if you plucked vertically down from the B to the G you'd go from being in front of the pickup on the B to behind it by the time you get to the G) . But if you were after a high quality well engineered Bass for something like session recording or technical stuff that prioritises note clarity and hi-fi tones, and great sustain, fast playing with lower action, and more consistent string tension and timbre then the Dingwall is the winner. What it comes down to for me though is what's comfortable and fun to play and gets the sounds you want, and for that the Sandberg is my favourite. 

Some Basses feel like an piece of engineering, others feel like they have character and should be named- this is one that needs a name....Maroon 5 if someone hadn't got their first, or perhaps Sandburgundy.

 

 

 

Edited February 2, 2021 by SumOne
typo

[knicknack]

We're back with the Hypotheticals again... I decided to go with Sunburst, it looks so good aged. So it's down to two... the classic 60s look or something a little more 70s standout. What do you guys think? I'm totally torn... the rosewood look never goes out of style, but all my basses are 60s-ish, so very tempted to go for something different! I have enjoyed both RW and Maple TT4s that i've tried so there's no preference there, it's purely aesthetic! Forgive the crudely drawn black blocks...

 

 

 

Edited February 2, 2021 by knicknack

[Bankai]

4 hours ago, knicknack said:

We're back with the Hypotheticals again... I decided to go with Sunburst, it looks so good aged. So it's down to two... the classic 60s look or something a little more 70s standout. What do you guys think? I'm totally torn... the rosewood look never goes out of style, but all my basses are 60s-ish, so very tempted to go for something different! I have enjoyed both RW and Maple TT4s that i've tried so there's no preference there, it's purely aesthetic! Forgive the crudely drawn black blocks...

 

 

 

Number 2

[ead]

8 hours ago, Bankai said:

Number 2

Completely wrong; no.1 of course  .  Plus if you go 70s ask them to put the bridge pickup in the right place.

[Daz39]

On 02/02/2021 at 10:28, SumOne said:

I just got a Sandberg California TM5 SL and it's my favourite Bass I've ever owned. 

I'm loving the thump of the MM pickup, and the warm tones that can be got from the Jazz pickup, and blending between them, good slap tones too, and nice muted sounds in passive with the tone down, and big dubby bass that can be added with the active EQ. 

Good neck and fretboard (although I've never understood the need for position markers down the middle of the fretboard- can't see them when playing), good ergonomics, comfortable and nice to play. And 3.3kg?!? I never had much of an issue with Basses being too heavy but it's so much nicer to practice for hours with a lighter Bass. I worried low weight would mean neck dive but I don't notice it doing that, not any more than any other Bass I've owned.

My only gripe is a bit of a gap (only about half a mm) between the neck and body where it joins on one side - it doesn't seem to cause any issues though, and the pickguard raised up in one part, and generally the hardware doesn't feel quite as high-end as the Dingwall Combustion I traded it for (or even my previous Ibanez which was half the price). And in an ideal world I'd like a mid EQ with 3 way mid frequency switch - that's one of the best features of the Ibanez SRMS805 and I think it's an option on the Lakland 55-02 via an internal switch.

I say 'favourite' rather than 'best' Bass I've owned because the Dingwall Combustion is objectively a better engineered Bass, but it didn't have the variety of tones I was after and was more effort to play;  it was 4.5kg, had a slightly uncomfortable reach down to B & E string 1st frets, and it ideally needed plucking in line with the offset direction of the pickups rather than vertically down the strings for consistent tone (if you plucked vertically down from the B to the G you'd go from being in front of the pickup on the B to behind it by the time you get to the G) . But if you were after a high quality well engineered Bass for something like session recording or technical stuff that prioritises note clarity and hi-fi tones, and great sustain, fast playing with lower action, and more consistent string tension and timbre then the Dingwall is the winner. What it comes down to for me though is what's comfortable and fun to play and gets the sounds you want, and for that the Sandberg is my favourite. 

Some Basses feel like an piece of engineering, others feel like they have character and should be named- this is one that needs a name....Maroon 5 if someone hadn't got their first, or perhaps Sandburgundy.

 

 

 

Sandburgundy? “Stay classy San Diego.”

Nice; the TM5s look lovely.

[Cuzzie]

59 minutes ago, ead said:

Completely wrong; no.1 of course  .  Plus if you go 70s ask them to put the bridge pickup in the right place.

Get a MarloweDK in the colour you want?

[dmccombe7]

14 hours ago, knicknack said:

We're back with the Hypotheticals again... I decided to go with Sunburst, it looks so good aged. So it's down to two... the classic 60s look or something a little more 70s standout. What do you guys think? I'm totally torn... the rosewood look never goes out of style, but all my basses are 60s-ish, so very tempted to go for something different! I have enjoyed both RW and Maple TT4s that i've tried so there's no preference there, it's purely aesthetic! Forgive the crudely drawn black blocks...

 

 

 

I prefer the maple neck with blocks one. I find the maple necks give more of a zingy sound than my Rosewood necks.

Maybe its all in my head tho.

Dave

[Lfalex v1.1]

Was beginning to like the look of Sandbergs, particularly the California P with the MM at the bridge. 

Had a fiddle with the configurator, but it won't do me a 5 string in any model 😡

Then I realised they're now subject to import duty post-Brexit.

I guess that's me out, then 😥