Dingwall for Non-metal??

[Ccwg_Bass]

Hi, 

 

has anyone got any experience of Dingwall basses for anything other than clangy metal??

 

I play in an alt.rock 3 piece and I’m really interested in moving to a 5 string. A good tight low B is something I would like, so naturally an extended scale length makes sense. I can take or leave the fanned frets really. 
 

Does anyone use a Dingwall for anything other than metal? What are the spread of tones like? What is the Darkglass preamp like? Is the overall package a one trick pony, or is there real versatility there that’s over looked? 
 

Cheers.

[asingardenof]

Lee Sklar has a signature Dingwall and uses his for all sorts of things. https://dingwallguitars.com/bass/lee-sklar-signature/

[Ccwg_Bass]

6 minutes ago, asingardenof said:

Lee Sklar has a signature Dingwall and uses his for all sorts of things. https://dingwallguitars.com/bass/lee-sklar-signature/

I’m looking for real world experience. Thanks for the link. 

[CookPassBabtridge]

John Taylor from Duran Duran also plays a Dingwall these days…in fact I think he’s got a signature model coming out. So I suspect you’d be fine for non-metal. Also, don’t forget their J and P models, which of course could be used for pretty much anything. 

[Dan Dare]

32 minutes ago, Ccwg_Bass said:

I’m looking for real world experience. Thanks for the link. 

 

Does Lee Sklar not live in the "real world"? I've seen/heard him play in many styles (but not "clangy metal", oddly enough). Metal players like Dingwalls because the long scale means the low end is clear (good for de-tuning), intonation is accurate due to the fretting and the pickups give even tone across a wide frequency range. That doesn't limit them to metal. I've tried one and I thought it was something of a Swiss army knife instrument, albeit a modern-sounding one.

[MichaelDean]

I've used my Combustion (with the EMG preamp) in a function band. Sounded great. I've just restrung it with Payson strings specifically for drop C for a Doom band I've joined and it sounds huge for that. 

 

You could have a look on YouTube for Claudio Rocha. He's a Dingwall artist who doesn't play metal exclusively.

 

Also, on Talkbass there are plenty of people who use their Dingwalls for other stuff. There is a massive thread over there. 

 

I'd suggest a day trip to Bass Direct and playing a few to see if it matches your style. Maybe bring your head and any pedals to see what you think with your gear. 

[Machines]

I use a D-Roc 5 and NG-2 in an originals hard rock/grunge band.

 

Generally clean tone but with occasional light drive. The passive D-Roc probably is easiest to fit in soundwise and I tend to use the Bridge & Middle pickups in parallel (sounds like a passive Stingray). Whilst the NG needs the treble rolling back a bit to not be too spicy, I tend to use both pickups in parallel or the neck alone (close as it'll get to a P).

 

I recorded for our new single yesterday - ran the D-Roc basically clean into DI and it sounded immense. Still very clearly a Dingwall, but without the clank most people are used to hearing.

 

 

 

 

Edited October 22, 2022 by Machines

[JapanAxe]

Plenty here who own and play Dingwalls, myself included. I live in the ‘real world’ of gigs in pubs, clubs and hotels.

 

Mine is a PZ5 and I use it on any gigs where a 5-string is called for (and often when it’s not). For me that encompasses pop, rock, soul, and disco. It is basically a Precision at heart, with the tonal range that you would expect. I can’t speak to the preamp as mine is passive. The spread of scale length (32in high G to 35in low B) works well and improves string balance, and I have had no problems using standard long-scale (34in) string sets.

 

I have little interest in metal, clangy or otherwise. PRS guitars are also popular among metal players, but they are by no means ‘metal’ instruments, and neither are Dingwalls.

[Guest]

I have 4 Canadian Dingwalls. Three have the Glock preamp and one is passive. I’ve been through most other brands and have settled with Dingwall because of the balanced tension and feel across all strings, the low B sounds and plays like an E string (and to date it’s the only bass I’ve ever played that really does this). I don’t play any metal. I did initially own an NG3 but IMHO it’s not worth the price tag for what it is (plays perfectly nicely but just doesn’t feel in any way special to me) and I didn’t take to the Darkglass pre (which I’ve had on another bass and didn’t like them either). The Glock is more flexible with the passive tone control and sounds more musical to my ears. The pickups make quite a difference too - the super fatty and FDV models sound very different to the neodymium FD3s in the NG range. 
They're not to everyone’s taste and the Canadian models are fast becoming out of reach for all but the wealthiest, but as a 5 and 6 string player for most of my career they’re at the pinnacle and I can’t see me looking elsewhere, at least for now.

[odysseus]

I used a Dinger 5 string playing indie rock as well as metal. They are pretty versatile instruments!

[Rikki1984]

 

 

 

 

 

I've found my Dingwall the most versatile bass I've owned. I find the pickups and preamp to be very flexible.

 

The fanned frets are easy to adjust to. The times they may cause slight issues is if your playing chords high on the neck or if you have smallish hands and want to do big stretches in the lower register.

 

I've attached some covers I recorded in the past that give an idea of the range of tones available. Apologies for the sloppy playing!

 

 

 

[chris_b]

You can play anything on any bass.

 

If you're after good 5 string basses also have a look at the German made Sadowsky Metrolines. These are excellent.

 

Bassdirect has a couple in their pre-owned and ex-demo section.

[neepheid]

No bass is tied to any one genre of music. Play what you like on whatever you like.

[Dad3353]

2 minutes ago, neepheid said:

No bass is tied to any one genre of music. Play what you like on whatever you like.

 

Well, almost. My vintage Hofner Verithin is not ideally suited for slap (thank goodness...), especially with its black nylon-coated Trubass strings..! 'Thump', yes, 'Slap', not really. 

[ead]

I use mine in a Dad rock covers band and an originals band that I'd say has a splash of Indie/Folk/Country in it.  No issues at all.

[msb]

I know quite a few Dingwall players, and they’re all over the musical map. 

[steve1879]

I recently bought an ng3 to use in a hardcore band, but decided to take it to an 80s cover band gig on Friday night. Used the neck and bridge pick up, with a slight bass boost and it was fantastic

[MGB]

Never in my life have I played clangy metal.
I have an AB1 5 string with Glockenklang preamp, 3 pickups plus the switches for parallel/series switching.
I play in a Bily Joel tribute band, a blues band, a jazzy soul band and do lots of other projects from pop to jazz.
The Dingwall handles it all with ease.  I was totally surprised the first time I played one, thinking this bass was made for metal because somehow that’s all we see on the internet. But it’s just a very very good and versatile bass.

Edited October 23, 2022 by MGB

[Chaddy]

On 22/10/2022 at 10:24, Machines said:

I use a D-Roc 5 and NG-2 in an originals hard rock/grunge band.

 

Generally clean tone but with occasional light drive. The passive D-Roc probably is easiest to fit in soundwise and I tend to use the Bridge & Middle pickups in parallel (sounds like a passive Stingray). Whilst the NG needs the treble rolling back a bit to not be too spicy, I tend to use both pickups in parallel or the neck alone (close as it'll get to a P).

 

I recorded for our new single yesterday - ran the D-Roc basically clean into DI and it sounded immense. Still very clearly a Dingwall, but without the clank most people are used to hearing.

 

 

 

 

The Beyer- DI on the floor , What is that being used for? 

 

[Tim2291]

Any bass is great for any style! I have an explorer that sounds identical to a P-bass. It all comes down to how you set your tone up. The joy of modern active basses is that most have very controllable pre amps so you can fine tune as needed, I played in a metalcore band, toured with them and still play the same Ibanez now for functions!

 

The only time you may get some odd looks is if you grabbed out your 5 String D-Roc on an old school jazz gig where image is important. Nothing to do with the sound, but the aesthetic may be wrong.

[Tim2291]

On 22/10/2022 at 17:37, Dad3353 said:

 

Well, almost. My vintage Hofner Verithin is not ideally suited for slap (thank goodness...), especially with its black nylon-coated Trubass strings..! 'Thump', yes, 'Slap', not really. 

Slap isn't a style of music . You could use the Hofner for funk if you really wanted!

[Tim2291]

On 22/10/2022 at 14:20, Rikki1984 said:

 

 

 

 

 

I've found my Dingwall the most versatile bass I've owned. I find the pickups and preamp to be very flexible.

 

The fanned frets are easy to adjust to. The times they may cause slight issues is if your playing chords high on the neck or if you have smallish hands and want to do big stretches in the lower register.

 

I've attached some covers I recorded in the past that give an idea of the range of tones available. Apologies for the sloppy playing!

 

 

 

At work so can't listen to your playing, which i'm sure is awesome... But I love the Star Wars poster in one of the videos  

[Machines]

19 minutes ago, Chaddy said:

The Beyer- DI on the floor , What is that being used for? 

 

 

I think it was a Behringer. Clean signal to desk direct from bass, then to effects & amp.

[Chaddy]

10 minutes ago, Machines said:

 

I think it was a Behringer. Clean signal to desk direct from bass, then to effects & amp.

Reason I ask is , I use the same model or the passive and it was the worse tone sucking P.O.S ever.  

[Machines]

19 minutes ago, Chaddy said:

Reason I ask is , I use the same model or the passive and it was the worse tone sucking P.O.S ever.  

 

I didn't listen to that signal alone, but the 4 combined (clean DI / 2 x amp mics / Amp post EQ DI) so hard to advise if this happened here also.