Andyjr1515 Posted May 13, 2020 Share Posted May 13, 2020 The bass looks delicious. I'm sure you'd make just as good a job on a guitar. I think you could sneek it in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexel Matador Posted May 18, 2020 Author Share Posted May 18, 2020 (edited) This just occurred to me last night and I can't believe I didn't think of it before. Below is a diagram of a string passing the nut on a multiscale bass (headstock on the right). The red arrow is where the string technically "ends" according to it's trajectory along the scale length, but the green arrow is the last point where it touches the nut. It seems to me that this in theory would produce either intonation problems, a poorly defined open string note, or both. What is normally done in this situation? Does the nut placement have to be compensated back slightly towards the headstock to account for it? Or are the slots shaped in such away to allow the strings to exit the nut at the correct point? Or does it not matter? Looking at pictures of other multiscale basses, I can't see anything obvious, but I'm thinking now that maybe I need to move my nut slot - not impossible, but it won't be pretty! Any input would be much appreciated. Edited May 18, 2020 by Rexel Matador Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itu Posted May 18, 2020 Share Posted May 18, 2020 If you have a zero fret, the nut can be practically in any angle. I have seen a fanned fret bass with the nut perpendicular to the side of the neck (and strings). If you have time and want to experiment, you can carve the nut the way you want. Should it overlap the fretboard, the stem could be thinner than the top of the (zigzag shaped) nut. Then the string path could be made straight from the bridge to the tuner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted May 18, 2020 Share Posted May 18, 2020 Unless you have massively thick strings (I'm talking size of a bishop's finger) I am pretty sure it would be sonically undetectable and probably immeasurable. And even if it was, you could file a small flat at the top edge of the nut with a needle file. It would be pretty invisible - you would only be squaring off the edge of the groove for half the width of the string. But personally, I reckon even that would be more trouble than its worth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexel Matador Posted May 18, 2020 Author Share Posted May 18, 2020 Thanks - I figured it would be a negligible effect or I would have found more online about it. It did find a close up image of a Dingwall where the nut is sort of rounded over, which might be an idea. The lowest string will be a .130, so I might try something for that one, at least. If I mess it up it's an easy enough part to replace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexel Matador Posted May 18, 2020 Author Share Posted May 18, 2020 In other news, I've started oiling the body and neck. That they will pretty much exactly match my kitchen table is a happy accident. As I rather suspected all along but didn't want to admit to myself, cherry isn't really robust enough for a bass neck, but I've come this far so I'll see how it goes. It's not all sappy and knotty like the body, at least. In any case, it's a bolt-on so I can make another one somewhere down the line, maybe with a nice dark fretboard. I could even swap them out depending on my mood 😂 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpondonBassed Posted May 19, 2020 Share Posted May 19, 2020 18 hours ago, Rexel Matador said: As I rather suspected all along but didn't want to admit to myself, cherry isn't really robust enough for a bass neck What's happened to confirm that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexel Matador Posted May 19, 2020 Author Share Posted May 19, 2020 1 minute ago, SpondonBassed said: What's happened to confirm that? That's a great question, because I realise, now you've asked, that it's still more of a feeling than anything concrete. Seems ok today. I've left it quite chunky so it'll probably be fine. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpondonBassed Posted May 19, 2020 Share Posted May 19, 2020 29 minutes ago, Rexel Matador said: more of a feeling Can you give me an idea? Does it sound dull when you tap it or is it bendy for example...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexel Matador Posted May 19, 2020 Author Share Posted May 19, 2020 1 hour ago, SpondonBassed said: Can you give me an idea? Does it sound dull when you tap it or is it bendy for example...? Yes, perhaps a little bendier than others. I may well be wrong - I'm looking forward to getting it strung up anyway. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpondonBassed Posted May 19, 2020 Share Posted May 19, 2020 1 hour ago, Rexel Matador said: Yes, perhaps a little bendier than others. I may well be wrong - I'm looking forward to getting it strung up anyway. It will be interesting. The action of the strings against the truss rod would put the wood under compression. Unless you could get a significant angle between string and rod to triangulate you might get problems I suppose. I think it should be okay. If it looks on the dodgy side you still have the option of putting CF stiffeners in haven't you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexel Matador Posted May 20, 2020 Author Share Posted May 20, 2020 Forgive the background. I'm pretty happy with the way this is turning out. There are a few things still to do. The stupid EMG jack didn't fit into the jack plate I planned on using (it's a threaded one, so it's not just a case of widening the hole, so I either need to get a different jack or a different plate. One possibility is to make one from the same material as the scratchplate and control plate, which could be a nice touch. I'm still waiting for the neck ferrules and screws to arrive because I somehow managed to forget about them when I was first sourcing the hardware for this, but as it has the extra screws under the scratchplate, I was at least able to attach the neck just for the sake of seeing how it looks... ...and also checking the balance, which is perfect 😀, due, I assume, to a combination of factors all absent on my last build: long upper horn, small headstock, body shape that allows the bridge end strap button to be positioned quite high. I managed to file the saddles to accommodate the heavy strings, which is good. I lost a bit of the black coating along the way, but that was to be expected. I could paint them but I'm not really bothered. This bass will be gigged (if that's still a thing in the future!) so I'm sure it'll be all kinds of relic'd before too long. I also have a much bigger volume knob on order, so I'm going to try them both and see which I prefer aesthetically. I've roughed out the nut but need to level the frets before finishing it. Then I'll add the string retainer and we're good to go. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpondonBassed Posted May 20, 2020 Share Posted May 20, 2020 It's looking right nice and all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexel Matador Posted May 22, 2020 Author Share Posted May 22, 2020 Still missing a jack plate, but otherwise it's done. The neck seems fine - just a little truss rod tweak and all is well. The bridge placement worked a treat as well. I put the B string one a little bit further back than the measurements suggested and lined the others up accordingly, and all the strings intonate well inside the saddles' scope of travel. The flame on the side of the fretboard looks particularly nice. I'll get better pics when the jack is sorted. Maybe even a demo - build diaries never usually seem to cover what the thing actually sounds like! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpondonBassed Posted May 22, 2020 Share Posted May 22, 2020 It looks stunning. Did your concerns over the cherry neck evaporate yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rexel Matador Posted May 22, 2020 Author Share Posted May 22, 2020 8 minutes ago, SpondonBassed said: It looks stunning. Did your concerns over the cherry neck evaporate yet? They did, it seems fine! Very comfortable too 🙂 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabba_the_gut Posted May 22, 2020 Share Posted May 22, 2020 That looks lovely - something quite a bit different. The single, big volume control looks just right on that with the way you have done the scratch plate - follows the lines really well. Nice one!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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