richieclare Posted June 13 Share Posted June 13 Hello there Long time lapsed bass player getting back into things but trying to be a little more technical rather than hit strings poorly. With that in mind I picked up a cheap bass off ebay that had some issues so that I could fix and learn. Apparently though 10 minutes of internet research doesn't qualify me to be a world class luthier (who knew?). So i have bass with a volume knob that buzzes when i touch it. It looked like the tone pot wasn't grounded properly so i poorly soldered some cable and the issue didn't magically fix itself. Should i just rip all this out and replace? Was also expecting to see some grounding to the bridge but doesn't seem to be or any channel to get to the bridge. The bridge also appears kind of janky - is this just because the screws that set the height are at mismatched heights? The spacing between the saddle seems different to the spacing of the holes Finally the neck and body all seem to be one piece of wood so I'm guessing I have no truss rod? There is a screw in the cavity near to the bottom of the neck but that kind of looks like it's holding the top part of the bass to the bottom but could it be for something else? The bass is too cheap to take to an expert and I did buy it to learn some of this stuff (it's not my main bass) so any advice (even if it is to throw it in a skip) would be welcome Thanks Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted June 13 Share Posted June 13 With this design of bridge the screws on the individual saddles are there just to allow you match the the radius of the fretboard. The overall string height should be adjusted using the thumb wheels under the bridge. I'd set all the saddles to the same height so that the strings just clear the lip at the front of the bridge. Then raise the whole bridge using the thumbwheels until the action of the G and E string is correct and finally use the saddle screws on the D and A strings to raise them up to compensate for the fingerboard radius. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richieclare Posted June 14 Author Share Posted June 14 16 hours ago, BigRedX said: With this design of bridge the screws on the individual saddles are there just to allow you match the the radius of the fretboard. The overall string height should be adjusted using the thumb wheels under the bridge. I'd set all the saddles to the same height so that the strings just clear the lip at the front of the bridge. Then raise the whole bridge using the thumbwheels until the action of the G and E string is correct and finally use the saddle screws on the D and A strings to raise them up to compensate for the fingerboard radius. so i shouldn't worry about them pulling to the left and right? The anchor points are spaced differently than the saddles and there is no groove on the saddle for the string to sit in so they don't stay sat on them very well. Is this just a problem because my strings are loose? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted June 14 Share Posted June 14 Can you show some photos of the whole bass with the strings in place? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richieclare Posted June 14 Author Share Posted June 14 Appreciate all your help with this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted June 14 Share Posted June 14 Thanks. I think your problem is that the adjustable bridge part looks like a repurposed guitar bridge. I suspect that the original saddle part had no intonation adjustment and was either a solid bar or had wheels for adjusting the string spacing but not the intonation. These were common on guitars and basses of far-eastern manufacturers in the early 70s. Those saddles would probably be OK if they were in the right place. Would it be possible to drill new holes for the intonation screws so that they were properly spaced? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richieclare Posted June 14 Author Share Posted June 14 Hmmm i'm not confident I'd drill new holes in the right place Should I be aiming for a straight line from the anchor to the nut? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted June 14 Share Posted June 14 Actually before drilling anything check that the bridge is in the correct place. Measure from the nut to the 12th fret. It should be the same measurement from the 12th fret to just past the lip of the bridge. I also notice that you are missing an intonation screw for the D string. It might be worth replacing the whole bridge assembly although that will mean losing the quirky character of the bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richieclare Posted June 14 Author Share Posted June 14 thanks - I'll give it a measure. the intonation screw fell out when i put the bass down to take the picture. I've taken the floaty bit that holds the bridge saddles (don't know the technical term) and there are more holes on the other side that look like a closer match to where the anchors are so i'm flipping it around to see if it fits better. If I buy a new bridge what do i need to look for? do i get a different bridge depending on the width of my neck or do i match the spacing at the nut end? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richieclare Posted June 14 Author Share Posted June 14 I flipped it so everything is sitting a little better BUT i'm not in love with it. Bass is hard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dare Posted June 14 Share Posted June 14 40 minutes ago, richieclare said: If I buy a new bridge what do i need to look for? do i get a different bridge depending on the width of my neck or do i match the spacing at the nut end? No. The gap between the strings flares out from the nut to the bridge end. If it didn't, you'd never get your right hand fingers between them to play. Measure the spacing between the strings on the bridge and look for something equivalent. Whilst the existing bridge may be quirky, it's also cheap 'n nasty. I'd replace it and keep the original. Something like a Gotoh 203 would be a great improvement and not expensive at less than £30. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.