BigRedX Posted September 21, 2018 Author Share Posted September 21, 2018 I'm now after my first set of replacement strings for the Barracuda. Easy I thought. I'll contact Burns and ask them what they fit as standard, because they are exactly what I want, and where I can buy another set? Unfortunately the prompt reply back from Burns was that they didn't know, the supplied strings were fitted on the bass when it was made in China, but could offer me a set of Picato flat wound strings for are more "authentic" sound at £35 a set. When I pointed out that the "authentic" sound I was after was that of New Order and The Cure, they weren't able to help any further. A quick on-line search reveals that there are not very many options for Bass VI owners. Apart from the Picatos, LaBella do both flats and round-wounds for the Bass VI, and D'Addario do a set but for some inexplicable reason they are the ridiculously light gauges that Fender/Squier fit to their Bass VI models and everyone with any sense replaces immediately (perhaps @D'Addario UK would care to comment on this). Before I get another set of LaBella Round Wounds are there any other manufacturers offering round wound Bass VI strings with suitably heavy low E and A strings? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsmedunc Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 40 minutes ago, BigRedX said: I'm now after my first set of replacement strings for the Barracuda. Easy I thought. I'll contact Burns and ask them what they fit as standard, because they are exactly what I want, and where I can buy another set? Unfortunately the prompt reply back from Burns was that they didn't know, the supplied strings were fitted on the bass when it was made in China, but could offer me a set of Picato flat wound strings for are more "authentic" sound at £35 a set. When I pointed out that the "authentic" sound I was after was that of New Order and The Cure, they weren't able to help any further. A quick on-line search reveals that there are not very many options for Bass VI owners. Apart from the Picatos, LaBella do both flats and round-wounds for the Bass VI, and D'Addario do a set but for some inexplicable reason they are the ridiculously light gauges that Fender/Squier fit to their Bass VI models and everyone with any sense replaces immediately (perhaps @D'Addario UK would care to comment on this). Before I get another set of LaBella Round Wounds are there any other manufacturers offering round wound Bass VI strings with suitably heavy low E and A strings? La Bella website offers custom sets. Just choose what string guages you want really. Shipped from the USA cost around £21 and they arrived within a week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
floFC Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 The Schecter Ultracure is fitted with Ernie Ball Hellcat VI Custom Strings (90-75-56-44-34-24) as standard. Maybe your authentic sound is with light gauges Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlloyd Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 On 07/06/2018 at 18:54, BigRedX said: I've also found this from Music Man. Its slightly under 30" scale length and pickup type and placement seem to indicate it's more of an A-A Baritone guitar than a Bass VI, although it does have a 44.5mm wide nut. It's also probably the blandest of all the instruments listed here IMO... I had the OLP version of this, strung E to E and it was surprisingly good... and about a tenth of the price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted September 21, 2018 Author Share Posted September 21, 2018 Well, my plan was to get another set of LaBella Round Would Bass VI strings and then send the old Burns strings to Newtone to see if they could make a similar set, when I discovered Axion Custom Works Bass VI Strings on the Newtone site. At £18 plus postage for a set, that seems like a really good deal, and the gauges look pretty good too (quite how anyone can think that a low E string lighter than a 95 is going to be anything other than a floppy mess I don't know). Certainly cheap enough I'll let you all know what I think when they arrive and I've fitted them on the bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted September 21, 2018 Author Share Posted September 21, 2018 3 hours ago, floFC said: The Schecter Ultracure is fitted with Ernie Ball Hellcat VI Custom Strings (90-75-56-44-34-24) as standard. Maybe your authentic sound is with light gauges It may have been, but both the Ultracure and the Hellcat VI have been discontinued, and the strings are nowhere to be found on the Ernie Ball web site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete.young Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 10 hours ago, BigRedX said: (quite how anyone can think that a low E string lighter than a 95 is going to be anything other than a floppy mess I don't know). It's not all about the diameter, the tension is primarily a function of the string core. Might work out well. The new bass looks excellent from the photos - by the sound of it this is as close to a happy ending as you were likely to get from an off-the-shelf solution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted September 25, 2018 Author Share Posted September 25, 2018 Strings from Newtone arrived yesterday. Having some free time, I was going to fit them this morning until I noticed a warning on the back of the packet telling me not the cut the strings to length until they have been fitted. Why is this? Now since the Barracuda has bass guitar style machine head posts with a slot and the hole down the centre of the slot, rather than guitar style posts with a hole, I have to cut the strings to length before they can be fitted. I'm waiting to hear back from Newtone about why I shouldn't cut the strings first, but is there any proper scientific reason for it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted October 4, 2018 Author Share Posted October 4, 2018 Got a prompt reply from Newtone basically saying that because the strings are wound on a Hex Core, I don't need to worry about cutting them before fitting. It would have been a good idea if the packaging reflected this advice. Anyway the strings are a higher tension than the ones originally fitted to the Barracuda as evidenced by the tail-lift of the vibrato mechanism. I'll need to adjust the vibrato springs to compensate. However they are IMO much better strings for both feel and sound, and at £18 plus P&P a set a far more affordable alternative the the LaBella Round Wounds. I'd whole-heartedly recommend these if you are looking for round wound Bass VI strings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted October 5, 2018 Share Posted October 5, 2018 https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/danelectro-63-baritone-bass-vi-guitar/1315730446 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted October 5, 2018 Author Share Posted October 5, 2018 12 minutes ago, TheGreek said: https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/danelectro-63-baritone-bass-vi-guitar/1315730446 Interesting. Any idea what the nut width and string spacing at the bridge is? How do I ask a seller a question on Gumtree? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGreek Posted October 5, 2018 Share Posted October 5, 2018 The seller has listed their phone No and you can also send an email. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted January 20, 2020 Author Share Posted January 20, 2020 An update to this thread prompted by the other one on Bass VIs... After 18 months of using the Burns Barracuda and slowly becoming acclimatised to the narrow string spacing at the bridge, as I've been using it exclusively with one of my bands - Hurtsfall: However over the new year a post popped up on my Facebook news feed about a proposed Eastwood version of Peter Hook's Shergold Marathon 6-String Bass. I'm in two minds about this, I'm not a big fan of Eastwood's "parts bin" approach to making instruments as using standard guitar and bass hardware tends to lose the features that made the instruments interesting in the first place and they tend to end up with guitars and basses that are essentially one of the standard Gibson or Fender models but with a weirdly shaped body. However this bass looks on paper at least to be pretty good. I've been in touch with Eastwood and the important specs (for me) are: nut width 50mm string spacing at the nut 40.5mm E-E (which isn't as wide as I would like but with an overall width of 50mm probably alterable with a new nut), String Spacing at the bridge: 65.5mm which is very good. All I have to do is decide which colour to go for... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mangotango Posted January 20, 2020 Share Posted January 20, 2020 1 hour ago, BigRedX said: An update to this thread prompted by the other one on Bass VIs... After 18 months of using the Burns Barracuda and slowly becoming acclimatised to the narrow string spacing at the bridge, as I've been using it exclusively with one of my bands - Hurtsfall: However over the new year a post popped up on my Facebook news feed about a proposed Eastwood version of Peter Hook's Shergold Marathon 6-String Bass. I'm in two minds about this, I'm not a big fan of Eastwood's "parts bin" approach to making instruments as using standard guitar and bass hardware tends to lose the features that made the instruments interesting in the first place and they tend to end up with guitars and basses that are essentially one of the standard Gibson or Fender models but with a weirdly shaped body. However this bass looks on paper at least to be pretty good. I've been in touch with Eastwood and the important specs (for me) are: nut width 50mm string spacing at the nut 40.5mm E-E (which isn't as wide as I would like but with an overall width of 50mm probably alterable with a new nut), String Spacing at the bridge: 65.5mm which is very good. All I have to do is decide which colour to go for... Before you go crazy on that....I spoke with the Shergold guy at the Bass Guitar Show back in November. He assured me that they were going to be building basses again "very soon". Now I know that their more modern offerings aren't exactly the same as their 1970's product, so there's no guarantee that they'd build the 6'er; but Peter Hook's bass (along with Mike Rutherford's double-neck) must be the company's most iconic instrument, so maybe, just maybe..... Give them a call/send an e-m. Worth a punt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted January 21, 2020 Author Share Posted January 21, 2020 17 hours ago, mangotango said: Before you go crazy on that....I spoke with the Shergold guy at the Bass Guitar Show back in November. He assured me that they were going to be building basses again "very soon". Now I know that their more modern offerings aren't exactly the same as their 1970's product, so there's no guarantee that they'd build the 6'er; but Peter Hook's bass (along with Mike Rutherford's double-neck) must be the company's most iconic instrument, so maybe, just maybe..... Give them a call/send an e-m. Worth a punt. I've contacted them through their web site. However the indications are that the Eastwood version will be available some time in March, and who knows when Shergold will have any bass guitars available? I'll wait and see what I hear back... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Krow Posted January 21, 2020 Share Posted January 21, 2020 BRX - you ever considered the Gretsch G6120TB-DE Duane Eddy 6-String? Not been able to find any info on the string spacing on this yet, so if anyone has to hand please divulge. Not cheap - but utterly gorgeous!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted January 21, 2020 Author Share Posted January 21, 2020 41 minutes ago, Al Krow said: BRX - you ever considered the Gretsch G6120TB-DE Duane Eddy 6-String? Not been able to find any info on the string spacing on this yet, so if anyone has to hand please divulge. Not cheap - but utterly gorgeous!! Looks fantastic! Considering what I will most likely end up paying for a Gus Bass VI that is relatively affordable. However the pickup positing is very "Baritone Guitar" rather than Bass VI, so I'd need to try one both from a string spacing and tone PoV. I've sent an email to Gretsch asking for the string spacing measurements at the nut and bridge and if they know of any UK Gretsch dealers that have one in stock so I could go and try it. If I get any information I'll post it here. In other news I have just had a somewhat coy reply to the message I sent to Shergold. Reading between the lines, there are probably basses coming at some point, but it doesn't appear as though there are any plans yet for Marathon 6-String Bass. Given the difference in appearances between the 70s and current Masquerader guitars, it might be that even if they were to do one, the Eastwood version could well be closer to the original! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Krow Posted January 21, 2020 Share Posted January 21, 2020 Here's my current "alternate" Bass VI - an Ibanez GVB36 strung E to E (with C string detuned to B as with a normal 6 string guitar). 14mm string spacing at the bridge down to 9mm at the nut. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Krow Posted January 21, 2020 Share Posted January 21, 2020 8 minutes ago, BigRedX said: Looks fantastic! Considering what I will most likely end up paying for a Gus Bass VI that is relatively affordable. However the pickup positing is very "Baritone Guitar" rather than Bass VI, so I'd need to try one both from a string spacing and tone PoV. I've sent an email to Gretsch asking for the string spacing measurements at the nut and bridge and if they know of any UK Gretsch dealers that have one in stock so I could go and try it. If I get any information I'll post it here. Thanks - do let us know what you find. I'm trying to have a break from new gear buying this year and already feeling like I'm already starting to make better use of my existing kit, rather than chasing after the latest shiny toy. Means that gig monies and gear sale proceeds are accumulating on the side and that Gretch is definitely a contender for 2021 What's a Gus Bass VI going to set you back, if I might dare ask, if it makes the Gretch relatively affordable?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Low End Bee Posted January 21, 2020 Share Posted January 21, 2020 This could fit the bill? https://eastwoodcustoms.com/projects/peter-hook-signature/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted January 21, 2020 Author Share Posted January 21, 2020 1 minute ago, Low End Bee said: This could fit the bill? https://eastwoodcustoms.com/projects/peter-hook-signature/ That's exactly what I was talking about a few posts up. Not completely sure about the pickup position - my favourite sounds on the Burns Barracuda all use the middle pickup either on its own or in combination with the neck or bridge pickups - but if the measurements I have been given by Eastwood are correct the string spacing problems I have been having should be sorted. I've got just over 6 weeks to make a decision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted January 21, 2020 Author Share Posted January 21, 2020 1 hour ago, Al Krow said: What's a Gus Bass VI going to set you back, if I might dare ask, if it makes the Gretch relatively affordable?! Somewhere between £5k and £6k depending on the exact specification I go for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Krow Posted January 21, 2020 Share Posted January 21, 2020 4 minutes ago, BigRedX said: Somewhere between £5k and £6k depending on the exact specification I go for. You're making me feel better about getting a "modest" Gretch already 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted February 2, 2020 Author Share Posted February 2, 2020 I've just put down my deposit on the Eastwood... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Britsie Posted February 3, 2020 Share Posted February 3, 2020 And which colour did you go for?😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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