NBD - Ibanez TMB35 Short Scale 5 String

[SamIAm]

Patty is here! (And I am in love)

Patty is my new peppermint green Ibanez TMB35.

 

For those of us who prefer short scale five stringers ... there is not a lot of choice out there (certainly not in the affordable end of the spectrum).  The TMB35 is a bass that has had fairly good reviews and does not break the bank.

 

I finally pushed the button yesterday (birthday treat for myself) and Patty arrived this afternoon.

   

 

 

Finish - Generally very tidy, the smallest of chips around the perimeter of the headstock (only visible from up close). Body finish is uniformly smooth, neck is nice and smooth. Frets seem to be level, no buzzing notes and their edges are clean with no sharp/jaggy bits.

Weight - Not as bad as I was expecting (but definitively heavier than one might expect from a bass of this size). Neck weigh however ... argh!!! Maybe as it is the first bass I've ever had with neck dive I am sensitive to it, but it is ... not nice! (But I have a plan) 

Tuners - Seem OK, turn easily and gearing is acceptable.

Strings - Ruff!  I need to get some some flatwound (or ideally tapewound) on ASAP!  Action and intonation not too bad for now, will tweak when I get new strings on.  Tuning is BEADG ... the low B is not too bad not floppy, but does rattle a bit if I pluck it with any wellie.  It's a 0.130, I might replace with a 0.135 which I've found to be great on a 760mm scale.

Pickups+Wiring - PJ passive pair. The Neck P Type seems an OK middle of the road pup.  The bridge J type is on the shrill side, hum noise is apparent.  The controls are Vol/Vol/Tone ... not a huge fan, but easy enough to change to Vol/Blend/Tone (The tone control crackles). Jack socket is a bit wobbly, and some of my plugins ... won't!

Feel - I like the feel of the neck and the width of the fingerboard.  When sitting, with Patty on my left thigh (in a high neck classical position) I can comfortably reach the full extent of the fingerboard.  When positioned on my right thigh or on a strap the head definitely wants to ostrich.

 

Overall, given the price point, I am very pleased with Patty and I would be very surprised if she is not with me for many years to come.  Whilst it would be possible to gig with her (once I've got some new strings on) I see her more as a strong foundation of a project bass ... I've already got some copper tape on the way from Amazon to line the cavities, I can definitely see myself changing out the pups and electronics ... most likely passive, not sure if I will stick with PJ or go another route, either way some channeling and probably a new pickguard will be called for.  I've read reports of others putting on lighter tuners to help reduce neck dive, but I am seriously considering if I can go headless ... this would totally resolve neck dive (and might even let me pop a cavity or two in the body to reduce overall weight even further).

But most importantly ... loads of playing  

 

TL;DR

Patty is a keeper.

 

For size comparison, here is Patty next to my Hohner Fiver 34inch scale

 

The Hohner (and a couple of other long scalers) are likely to appear in the Marketplace ... I am now totally convinced that a scale length over 30 inch is just too long for me!

 

S'manth x

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 20, 2022 by Smanth

[naxos10]

Happy new birthday bass Smanth.

I am glad that it's looking like it'll do the job you wanted it to.

[Pea Turgh]

I’m pretty sure someone did a headless conversion on a Talman here.  Lemme see if I can find it…

 

 

Edit:   Nope!  I can’t 😂. Anyone else remember it, or am I making things up again?

Edited December 21, 2022 by Pea Turgh

[Woodinblack]

I was sure someone did so did a search the other day, couldn't find it!

[SamIAm]

Could be this 

 ?

S’manth x

[PaulThePlug]

Micro 4 gets the French Treatment...

https://www.talkbass.com/threads/frankenstien-ibby-mikro-into-a-headless.1282890/

 

[Pea Turgh]

4 minutes ago, Smanth said:

Could be this 

 ?

S’manth x

Yep!  I got confuzzled 😂

[SamIAm]

2 minutes ago, Pea Turgh said:

Yep!  I got confuzzled 😂

Still ... basic concepts and approach are likely to apply

Same for the other link, thanks @PaulThePlug.

Also useful is a active thread here on BC where someone did a headless conversion of a MM Bongo ... there are some things there I've learned from.

 

S'manth x

[Pea Turgh]

The tuning bridge always seems a bit exposed on conversions, like it could easily get bashed hanging off the back of the body.

I had a Hohner Jack headless (damn, why did I sell that again?) that had  strap buttons either side of the tuners, so you could still lean it up against an amp etc.

[therealting]

6 hours ago, Pea Turgh said:

I’m pretty sure someone did a headless conversion on a Talman here.  Lemme see if I can find it…

 

 

Edit:   Nope!  I can’t 😂. Anyone else remember it, or am I making things up again?

As above, it was me, done by Feline Guitars with Nova hardware. Turned out great. It’s the bass I leave around the house. 

[Ralf1e]

On 20/12/2022 at 17:35, Smanth said:

Patty is here! (And I am in love)

Patty is my new peppermint green Ibanez TMB35.

 

For those of us who prefer short scale five stringers ... there is not a lot of choice out there (certainly not in the affordable end of the spectrum).  The TMB35 is a bass that has had fairly good reviews and does not break the bank.

 

I finally pushed the button yesterday (birthday treat for myself) and Patty arrived this afternoon.

   

 

 

Finish - Generally very tidy, the smallest of chips around the perimeter of the headstock (only visible from up close). Body finish is uniformly smooth, neck is nice and smooth. Frets seem to be level, no buzzing notes and their edges are clean with no sharp/jaggy bits.

Weight - Not as bad as I was expecting (but definitively heavier than one might expect from a bass of this size). Neck weigh however ... argh!!! Maybe as it is the first bass I've ever had with neck dive I am sensitive to it, but it is ... not nice! (But I have a plan) 

Tuners - Seem OK, turn easily and gearing is acceptable.

Strings - Ruff!  I need to get some some flatwound (or ideally tapewound) on ASAP!  Action and intonation not too bad for now, will tweak when I get new strings on.  Tuning is BEADG ... the low B is not too bad not floppy, but does rattle a bit if I pluck it with any wellie.  It's a 0.130, I might replace with a 0.135 which I've found to be great on a 760mm scale.

Pickups+Wiring - PJ passive pair. The Neck P Type seems an OK middle of the road pup.  The bridge J type is on the shrill side, hum noise is apparent.  The controls are Vol/Vol/Tone ... not a huge fan, but easy enough to change to Vol/Blend/Tone (The tone control crackles). Jack socket is a bit wobbly, and some of my plugins ... won't!

Feel - I like the feel of the neck and the width of the fingerboard.  When sitting, with Patty on my left thigh (in a high neck classical position) I can comfortably reach the full extent of the fingerboard.  When positioned on my right thigh or on a strap the head definitely wants to ostrich.

 

Overall, given the price point, I am very pleased with Patty and I would be very surprised if she is not with me for many years to come.  Whilst it would be possible to gig with her (once I've got some new strings on) I see her more as a strong foundation of a project bass ... I've already got some copper tape on the way from Amazon to line the cavities, I can definitely see myself changing out the pups and electronics ... most likely passive, not sure if I will stick with PJ or go another route, either way some channeling and probably a new pickguard will be called for.  I've read reports of others putting on lighter tuners to help reduce neck dive, but I am seriously considering if I can go headless ... this would totally resolve neck dive (and might even let me pop a cavity or two in the body to reduce overall weight even further).

But most importantly ... loads of playing  

 

TL;DR

Patty is a keeper.

 

For size comparison, here is Patty next to my Hohner Fiver 34inch scale

 

The Hohner (and a couple of other long scalers) are likely to appear in the Marketplace ... I am now totally convinced that a scale length over 30 inch is just too long for me!

 

S'manth x

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy birthday week S'manth.  ?? I thought you were a Thunderbird Fanatic. No more of them then?

Nice looking bass anyway🤗

[MJJS]

If you haven’t purchased strings yet, I’d recommend looking at Newtone strings.

 

https://newtonestrings.com/product-category/strings/bass-guitar-strings/?v=79cba1185463

 

 

Edited December 22, 2022 by MJJS

[SamIAm]

11 hours ago, Ralf1e said:

 I thought you were a Thunderbird Fanatic.

Not me

S'manth x

[SamIAm]

9 hours ago, MJJS said:

If you haven’t purchased strings yet, I’d recommend looking at Newtone strings.

 

https://newtonestrings.com/product-category/strings/bass-guitar-strings/?v=79cba1185463

 

 

I was browsing strings ... thanks for the tip.

At present I'm thinking about these

 

but am struggling to find them in stock anywhere ... I love the sound, the feel (and the look) of black tapewound.

 

S'manth x

[3below]

From experience, before you take the plunge do some measuring  - these are 32 1/4" Ball-End to Silk (according to the LaBella website).   Labella short scales will fit one of my short scale basses but not another one.  Measuring the strings I have (760FL S): 

Ball end centre to useable string start 3cm

Ball end centre to end of useable string 81.3cm

 

Whilst they state 32 1/4 length I would realistically work on having 32" (81.3cm).

 

Rather than converting to headless have you considered lightweight tuners - Hipshots have dramatically improved two of my basses

 

 

 

[Woodinblack]

20 minutes ago, 3below said:

Rather than converting to headless have you considered lightweight tuners - Hipshots have dramatically improved two of my basses

 

 

[Cato]

Re: neckdive

 

Before you do anything drastic it night be worth trying a really grippy strap that'll resist the pull of the neck.

 

Something like this maybe. (This is the first wide neoprene strap I found on a google, there are very similat products available for less money).

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ernie-Ball-Neoprene-Polylock-Comfort/dp/B07N8S47HL?th=1

Edited December 22, 2022 by Cato

[Pea Turgh]

This thread makes me want a headless Talman, too! 😂

[SamIAm]

13 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

 

 

Interestingly it was the in depth reviews by that fellow that moved me to "just push buy" on the TMB35.

 

There are a few factors relating to a headless conversion that apply in this situation:

Pros

• It is almost certain (tho I really need to do some more calcs/measurements) to totally resolve the neck dive.
• It may well reduce the overall weight of the bass.
• It should allow me to put a chamber on the back of the body to help reduce overall weight and still prevent neck dive.
• Stability of headless tuners.
• The headless mechanism (using grub screws at the 'headstock' end) will allow me to use long scale strings (I did this with Twiggy), a lot of which are not available in short scale.
• Shorter length overall of the bass.
• I like the look of headless and think a headless TMB35 would look really cool(IMHO).

Cons

• It is a non trivial amount of effort (I am no luthier, but I am happy it lies within my skill set)
• It will be costly for the headless parts ... it always is!  
• I may have to refinish the body, depending on what approach I can use for mounting the tuners.  If this is required, I'd probably go for a oiled/waxed finish ... but I'm not totally sure if the wood underneath would be suitable.
• It may well destroy any potential resale value, tho my intent is to craft a bass I love to play rather than sell on ... but you never know.
• It is a totally irreversible mod and once started, I am committed.

As you say, new tuning machines seem a common approach to reduce neckdive, are fairly straightforward and easy to reverse if I want ... but some of the headless pros are really attractive to me (Weight reduction via chambering/increased string choice).  I did also see a conversion where the chap a;so trimmed away the perimiter of the headstock, which is another option one might consider.

 

 

Did you actually go for the Hipshot Ultralites?  In my searching I came to the conclusion that the Gotoh Res-o-lite GB350 are the lightest (40g) and seem available at about £90-£100 for a set of 5.  I think the HipShots (USA 3/8 Inch Y-Key) are 42g and seem to run a lot higher price! 

 

S'manth x 

 

[SamIAm]

47 minutes ago, Cato said:

Re: neckdive

 

Before you do anything drastic it night be worth trying a really grippy strap that'll resist the pull of the neck.

 

Something like this maybe. (This is the first wide neoprene strap I found on a google, there are very similat products available for less money).

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ernie-Ball-Neoprene-Polylock-Comfort/dp/B07N8S47HL?th=1

Thanks @Cato, the strap I use is grippy enough to hold, but I loath the feel of it pulling on my shoulder, trying to drag my neckline down etc.  At present I am mostly playing sitting (cause my back is painful) where a grippy strap would not help (Tho I read about a neat trick where one hooks the strap to the bottom button and then sits on it which apparently stops any dive).

 

There are some other reasons I'm toying woth the headless approach (See my recent post)

 

S'manth x

[SamIAm]

24 minutes ago, Pea Turgh said:

This thread makes me want a headless Talman, too! 😂

Nods!  Apart from the practical pros, I think it would just be deeply cool!  I did rather like it when folks would come up after a gig where I played Twiggy to ask/talk about her ... and as a bass player it is nice to get noticed (one day perhaps for my playing too! lol)

 

S'manth x

[Cato]

4 minutes ago, Smanth said:

Thanks @Cato, the strap I use is grippy enough to hold, but I loath the feel of it pulling on my shoulder, trying to drag my neckline down etc.  At present I am mostly playing sitting (cause my back is painful) where a grippy strap would not help (Tho I read about a neat trick where one hooks the strap to the bottom button and then sits on it which apparently stops any dive).

 

There are some other reasons I'm toying woth the headless approach (See my recent post)

 

S'manth x

 

Fair enough.

 

I look forwards to another one of your excellent build diaries.

Edited December 22, 2022 by Cato

[tauzero]

2 hours ago, Smanth said:

Did you actually go for the Hipshot Ultralites?  In my searching I came to the conclusion that the Gotoh Res-o-lite GB350 are the lightest (40g) and seem available at about £90-£100 for a set of 5.  I think the HipShots (USA 3/8 Inch Y-Key) are 42g and seem to run a lot higher price! 

 

Cort use Hipshot Ultralites on the GB4/5/94/95 as they're light and cheaper than the Gotohs - https://www.btnmusic.co.uk/product/hipshot-hb6-ultralite-bass-machine-heads/ is a 4-string set but £34.40 for 3/8" Y-key in chrome - around half the price of the Gotoh.

 

I may have made a mistake - for some reason I thought it was for a set of 4, looks like it's for individual ones.

Edited December 22, 2022 by tauzero
Got it wrong

[tauzero]

And licenced Ultralites are £16 apiece but weight 95g, so double the weight of the USA ones. So 250g excess weight in total, or half a groat for the Neanderthals among us.

[SamIAm]

4 hours ago, 3below said:

From experience, before you take the plunge do some measuring  - these are 32 1/4" Ball-End to Silk (according to the LaBella website).   Labella short scales will fit one of my short scale basses but not another one.  Measuring the strings I have (760FL S): 

Ball end centre to useable string start 3cm

Ball end centre to end of useable string 81.3cm

 

Whilst they state 32 1/4 length I would realistically work on having 32" (81.3cm).

 

Rather than converting to headless have you considered lightweight tuners - Hipshots have dramatically improved two of my basses

 

 

 

Thank you @3below, I'd overlooked the bridge end of things!

 

• The centre-ball to witness point on my bridge-saddle ranges from 3cm (B) to closer to 4cm (G).  With the B, I could pop a washer or two on if need be to act as a ball-end stand off.
• The centre-ball to tuner side of nut is 80.5cm
• The centre-ball to middle of B tuner (the closest to the nut) is 85cm

 

So 81.3 would work nicely I think, putting the string-to-silk point just beyond the nut, but still short of the tuning machine. 

 

I am considering just a tuner change; the headless option has some more attractive points for me but is a major hassle! 

 

S'manth x