I wanted to start this thread for the following reason:

My SKB3006 has the fastest slimmest 6 string neck I have ever played. I ordered it with a thin neck profile and Gard and the guys at the shop just did an amazing work. This neck is so fast, so thin and so silky smooth to the touch is just addictive! The best thing is that I love to play with a very light touch and almost no neck relief. My bass is set-up with an almost dead-flat neck (which I believe has numerous advantages to it, as some of you may have read in a Bass Player magazine article by the great Anthony Jackson)...the relief is about 0.2 milimeters (sorry I'm trained in metric system, but this is less that the thickness of your average piece of paper). The action is also super low...about 1.5mm on the B string and less than 1 mm on the G string (about 0.5 mm maybe)...and believe it or not it does not buzz whatsoever!. Simply stounding. What a great piece of work (and of neck engineering!).

Changing gears a bit now, I think it would help our fellow Roscoe-ites to know some details about set-up or maybe some people will have questions about it they can post in this thread. It is also interesting to know what is the set-up other fellow Roscoe-holics have and how they use it IMHO.

We normally shoot for 4-6 64ths on the low-B and taper it down to the G or C by 1-2 64ths.

Keith likes to drop the D and G strings a little lower than I like...but when they come in, the treble side is usually ULTRA-low...

Peace!

Changing gears a bit now, I think it would help our fellow Roscoe-ites to know some details about set-up or maybe some people will have questions about it they can post in this thread. It is also interesting to know what is the set-up other fellow Roscoe-holics have and how they use it IMHO.

I think that the most important thing in tweaking the action of your Roscoe is to leave the saddles alone! :D Virtually every Roscoe that shows up to my shop arrives with killer low action and is usually very close to being in tune (just a few cents off on the lower strings). But, action is a personal preference issue....you can and should set your bass up how you want. But, you should be able to make most action adjustements by simply tweaking the truss rod....a quarter turn here, a half turn there. I know that it's tempting to go straight for the saddles, but you shoutl generally start with the truss rod. ;)

I think that the most important thing in tweaking the action of your Roscoe is to leave the saddles alone! :D Virtually every Roscoe that shows up to my shop arrives with killer low action and is usually very close to being in tune (just a few cents off on the lower strings). But, action is a personal preference issue....you can and should set your bass up how you want. But, you should be able to make most action adjustements by simply tweaking the truss rod....a quarter turn here, a half turn there. I know that it's tempting to go straight for the saddles, but you shoutl generally start with the truss rod. ;)


+100

I think that the most important thing in tweaking the action of your Roscoe is to leave the saddles alone! :D Virtually every Roscoe that shows up to my shop arrives with killer low action and is usually very close to being in tune (just a few cents off on the lower strings). But, action is a personal preference issue....you can and should set your bass up how you want. But, you should be able to make most action adjustements by simply tweaking the truss rod....a quarter turn here, a half turn there. I know that it's tempting to go straight for the saddles, but you shoutl generally start with the truss rod. ;)

Yes, but with a caveat - if you are not 200% confident and comfortable adjusting your trussrod, PLEASE take it to a professional that knows how to do the adjustment.

The simplest and most correct way to adjust your action is also the simplest and most common way for the uninitiated to foul it all up. You CAN actually permanently damage a neck by misadjusting a trussrod.

That said, yes, this is the "correct" way to fix a playability issue with our bass. The bass is set up with very low action in the shop, but when it ships, the neck can move a bit, usually, it needs just a TOUCH of relief after shipping, if anything. But, if you don't know HOW to do this, please have a professional attend to it. If you break a rod or cause a permanent warp from misadjusting your trussrod, it COULD void your warranty!

Yes, but with a caveat - if you are not 200% confident and comfortable adjusting your trussrod, PLEASE take it to a professional that knows how to do the adjustment.

The simplest and most correct way to adjust your action is also the simplest and most common way for the uninitiated to foul it all up. You CAN actually permanently damage a neck by misadjusting a trussrod.

That said, yes, this is the "correct" way to fix a playability issue with our bass. The bass is set up with very low action in the shop, but when it ships, the neck can move a bit, usually, it needs just a TOUCH of relief after shipping, if anything. But, if you don't know HOW to do this, please have a professional attend to it. If you break a rod or cause a permanent warp from misadjusting your trussrod, it COULD void your warranty!

I'll second this! :)

I should have added that I have never adjusted the rod on my bass since it came at the end of the winter. It is warm and humid now in NYC and the neck has moved only a bit (less bow)...simply put, it is a very well made very stiff neck! It has been almost dead-flat since it came. With the weather change I feel it is a teeny tiny bit flatter (almost zero relief) but still no buzzes.

Silly question - but worth asking, which way to turn the truss rod allen key to do what to the neck. I also have not adjusted my neck after 8 months but warm weather has caused a little fret buzz.

Good info about adjusting the saddles though.;)

I'm glad this forum is here.

:)

Silly question - but worth asking, which way to turn the truss rod allen key to do what to the neck. I also have not adjusted my neck after 8 months but warm weather has caused a little fret buzz.

Good info about adjusting the saddles though.;)

OK, primer on trussrod adjustment time! ;)

The trussrod pulls against the tension of the strings, the strings will tend to pull "up" on the headstock, the trussrod pulls "back" on the headstock against the string tension. Adjusting the trussrod is really balancing between the two tensions (of course the stiffness of the neck also is in play, but for ease of discussion, we will leave that out! ;) ).

To give the neck relief you will loosen the trussrod, if there is too much relief you need to tighten the trussrod.

If you are getting "buzz" in the middle to lower frets, you don't have enough relief, typically. To get that corrected, you need to loosen the nut on the trussrod. If you have really high action in the middle to high frets, you may have too much relief in the neck, and need to tighten the nut on the trussrod.

Typically, I "sight" along the neck, using the string on each side as a reference. A properly set up neck will appear to be almost parallel to the string, dropping just very slightly from the nut to the last fret. If you see it rising up to the string in the middle, then dropping away toward the end of the fingerboard, there isn't enough relief. If you see it dropping away in the middle, then "rising" toward the end of the fingerboard, it has too much relief. For some players, particularly those with a "heavy hand", a bit of relief in the middle of the neck is good, to allow for the larger travel of the string when it is struck with great force.

The rules are simple:

A LITTLE goes a long way. I never turn a trussrod nut more than 1/8th of a turn at a time before checking it again. I also prefer to wait a while between turns, allowing the neck to "settle" a bit (there is a trick to make it settle faster, but I WILL NOT tell it to anyone!!! :eek: ).

Lefty loosey, righty tighty. You use that little ditty while looking at the neck from the bridge on basses with the trussrod adjustment at the heel of the neck/body (such as ours). On basses with the trussrod adjustment at the headstock, you would use the same ditty, but reverse your point of view, and you would say it looking from the headstock toward the bridge.

Any other questions, feel free to ask! :)

Gard

Beautifully put - I have printed that off and stuck it on the office wall.

Many thanks.:)

I see no reason to mess with the setup on either of my Roscoes. I have never owned basses that have played so perfectly (for me) right out of the box (and one of them I bought used).:)

Yes, but with a caveat - if you are not 200% confident and comfortable adjusting your trussrod, PLEASE take it to a professional that knows how to do the adjustment.

The simplest and most correct way to adjust your action is also the simplest and most common way for the uninitiated to foul it all up. You CAN actually permanently damage a neck by misadjusting a trussrod.

That said, yes, this is the "correct" way to fix a playability issue with our bass. The bass is set up with very low action in the shop, but when it ships, the neck can move a bit, usually, it needs just a TOUCH of relief after shipping, if anything. But, if you don't know HOW to do this, please have a professional attend to it. If you break a rod or cause a permanent warp from misadjusting your trussrod, it COULD void your warranty!

+1

The first area to check is the truss rod adjustment but if your neck has the correct amount of relief......leave the truss rod alone!:)

Whether it's the truss rod, the bridge adjustments or shimming the neck, if you're not a competent repairman, take your bass to someone who is.;)

Oh geez...all of this talk of "ultra low action with no buzz" is absolutely killing me. I just can't wait to get mine. I have never been able to get the action low enough on any of the basses that I have ever owned (although a Warwick Streamer SSII did come close once.) I have come to realize that most basses do have their limitations when it comes to "low" and "ultra low acton" and fret buzz. From the way it sounds though, the Roscoes will be just what I need. Most of the people who have ever picked up my basses and tried them out have usually said that they are "too low for them to dig in", but I am just the opposite. I can't can't seem to get them low enough. This is actually quite thrilling for me to think that I will obtain something that I have been wanting since buying and selling so many basses all of these years just to find "the one" as far as a playability that suits me.

BTW, there's no really good bass tech's in this area so I guess I'll just have to take a drive and visit Dr. Keith and Dr. Gard if my Roscoe's get sick. ;)

Oh geez...all of this talk of "ultra low action with no buzz" is absolutely killing me. I just can't wait to get mine. I have never been able to get the action low enough on any of the basses that I have ever owned (although a Warwick Streamer SSII did come close once.) I have come to realize that most basses do have their limitations when it comes to "low" and "ultra low acton" and fret buzz. From the way it sounds though, the Roscoes will be just what I need. Most of the people who have ever picked up my basses and tried them out have usually said that they are "too low for them to dig in", but I am just the opposite. I can't can't seem to get them low enough. This is actually quite thrilling for me to think that I will obtain something that I have been wanting since buying and selling so many basses all of these years just to find "the one" as far as a playability that suits me.

BTW, there's no really good bass tech's in this area so I guess I'll just have to take a drive and visit Dr. Keith and Dr. Gard if my Roscoe's get sick. ;)

My Roscoes' have very low action, with no buzzing whatsoever. And I do dig in quite often, but they handle it beautifully. The only other bass that I have owned that was able to handle action this low was a Peavey Cirrus 5 that I owned a couple years ago, but IIRC, it wasn't quite this low and totally buzz-free.

I'm having trouble finding the right allen wrench to fit in the area for the truss adjustment. I just want to add a little relief. There's not much room in front of the rod to get a wrench in there. I've never had this trouble with other guitars/basses I've adjusted. What size is it? I don't want to scratch my bass trying to get a wrench in there.

My Roscoe needs a shim, a fret-level job, the saddles tweaked, etc. It's going to be worth it though.

Carlo Bowry is a guitarist who teaches at the Liverpool Instutute for the Performing Arts, and he plays an Ibanez Joe Satriani sig model with the lightest of touches and with incredible skill. I used to be a journalist on Sounds and Kerrang (UK music mags) so I've critiqued a lot of musicians and Carlo is one of the most technically accomplished I have ever had the pleasure to hear. That I have worked with him off and on for the last decade is just jam.

He recently picked up my SKB 3005 and said "[profanity deleted] me!!! This thing has a lower action than my [profanity deleted] guitars!"

Roscoe set 'em up nice.

Carlo can be found in you tube under the name Carloguitaro (his vids sometimes feature members of the Mothers of Invention, often Jimmy Carl Black or Ike Willis, guesting with his Liverpool - based Frank Zappa tribute band The Muffin Men). I'm delighted to say that my ugly mug appears on none of the vids, so no critiques of my bass playing possible... :) One vid is from the 10:10 Ensemble gig at the Glastonbury Festival which is the Muffins with a splinter group of "more adventurous" musicians from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

He's worth checking out - even though he is a treble guitarist... :)

I know this is all a bit off topic - but he LOVES Roscoes and knows a thing or two about set ups. Roscoe can't be bettered in his opinion.

Both my new to me Roscoes are set up quite well. Who knows what has happened to them since they left the factory years ago.

However the fretted saddles are bottomed out and I think it could actually go lower. The curious thing that happened is the bass came with a set of very worn DR which still sounded great but I put on a new set and the bass did not feel as 'low'. Any suggestions given that the saddles are bottomed out? I could give a small turn the truss rod.

When I switched from the D' Addario strings to the Black Beauties I made a slight truss rod adjustment and adjusted my bridge height (I play with a real light touch). I have since change the strings twice using Black Beauties. I have only had to fine tune the saddles for intonation sharp or flat.

I take my SKB3006 to Guitar Center, Sam Ash and other local shops pretty regular under the pretense of trying out amps, I actually like showing it off and giving serious bassist a chance to try out a Roscoe. The first thing they notice is the beauty, the second is how low the action is without any buzz and how easy it plays.

I'm having trouble finding the right allen wrench to fit in the area for the truss adjustment. I just want to add a little relief. There's not much room in front of the rod to get a wrench in there. I've never had this trouble with other guitars/basses I've adjusted. What size is it? I don't want to scratch my bass trying to get a wrench in there.

I'd like the know the answer to this as well. I'm going to have to cut down an allen wrench to get in there, and I have no idea which one to cut.

The Roscoe truss rod key is a 9/64ths allen. I believe they (Roscoe) custom cut each one for the bass that it's shipped with. Since they are truely 100% hand made, the access point is a tiny bit different from bass to bass, so they might trim the keys that are shipped with the basses a little to make sure there's safe clearance.

If you're having a clearance problem, you can take any standard 9/64ths allen wrench and trim it down with any $20 grinder from Home Depot or Lowe's... We've done this for a couple of our local customers who lost theirs.

Peace!

The Roscoe truss rod key is a 9/64ths allen. I believe they (Roscoe) custom cut each one for the bass that it's shipped with. Since they are truely 100% hand made, the access point is a tiny bit different from bass to bass, so they might trim the keys that are shipped with the basses a little to make sure there's safe clearance.

If you're having a clearance problem, you can take any standard 9/64ths allen wrench and trim it down with any $20 grinder from Home Depot or Lowe's... We've done this for a couple of our local customers who lost theirs.

Peace!

So, THAT'S why you e-mailed me wanting to know the size of the trussrod allen key!

:spit:

(...for the record, I've already answered that question in Gtrslngr's other thread...;) )

The setup on my roscoe was great from the factory, but a let another TBer (Vic) check it out and set it up. He shimmed the neck, put some DR lowriders on it, adjusted the saddles and for me it is even better than before. The action is lower on the high register, not that I am there much, but it makes slappin easier. I love my roscoe.

I'm confused about the "sighting" technique that Gard mentioned. When I do that with my SKB, I can't see the neck bow away from or toward the strings in the middle frets. All I see is that the string is closer to the fret at the first fret than at the 24th -- but that's not "bowing". Is it? So maybe my SKB is perfectly adjusted, or, I'm not sighting correctly. (It plays very well.)

Alembic tells you to hold the lowest string down at the 1st and 24th frets and that neck bow can be determined by the clearance between the string and the 12th fret. When I do that on my Roscoe, the clearance is less than a credit card's thickness. Is this a valid method for Roscoes, which have a bolt on neck? (Alembic is neck-thru.)

If saddles are not to be used for action adjustments, are saddle-heights adjusted to make sure that each string is the same distance to the frets? In other words, are saddles adjusted only so that the strings follow the curvature of the fretboard from bass to treble sides? If so, what's the best way to match that curvature?

Well I could have put my calipers on the bag-o-spares you sent us, but it was easier to email you... ;)

So, THAT'S why you e-mailed me wanting to know the size of the trussrod allen key!

:spit:

(...for the record, I've already answered that question in Gtrslngr's other thread...;) )

The Roscoe truss rod key is a 9/64ths allen.


Thanks, I don't remember ever getting an allen wrench with mine... Time to bust out my dremel.

Email me your name/mailing address offlist at james@theperfectbass.com and I'll see if we have a spare that we can mail you if you'd like.

Peace!

Email me your name/mailing address offlist at james@theperfectbass.com and I'll see if we have a spare that we can mail you if you'd like.

Peace!

It's simple gestures of goodwill and kindness like that which restore my faith in human nature.

Props for James.
:bassist:

It's simple gestures of goodwill and kindness like that which restore my faith in human nature.

Props for James.
:bassist:

+1

Things like this are what make the Roscoe experience even more special! :)

I'm confused about the "sighting" technique that Gard mentioned. When I do that with my SKB, I can't see the neck bow away from or toward the strings in the middle frets. All I see is that the string is closer to the fret at the first fret than at the 24th -- but that's not "bowing". Is it? So maybe my SKB is perfectly adjusted, or, I'm not sighting correctly. (It plays very well.)

Alembic tells you to hold the lowest string down at the 1st and 24th frets and that neck bow can be determined by the clearance between the string and the 12th fret. When I do that on my Roscoe, the clearance is less than a credit card's thickness. Is this a valid method for Roscoes, which have a bolt on neck? (Alembic is neck-thru.)

If saddles are not to be used for action adjustments, are saddle-heights adjusted to make sure that each string is the same distance to the frets? In other words, are saddles adjusted only so that the strings follow the curvature of the fretboard from bass to treble sides? If so, what's the best way to match that curvature?

The described Alembic method is fine. Make sure that you do it with the bass in the playing position. Nominal relief typically is around .3-.5mm at the 8th fret.
The amount of relief that you want depends greatly on your technique (primarily how hard you play and the style you play).
As for the saddle heights, I like to follow the curvature of the neck but I do usually start around 1/16" from the bottom of the G string to the top of the 24th fret and graduate to 3/32 from the bottom of the B string to the top of the 24th fret. Again, the preferred saddle heights are also greatly determined by your playing style and technique. Hope that this helps....

It's simple gestures of goodwill and kindness like that which restore my faith in human nature.

Props for James.
:bassist:

I placed an order for a Roscoe and just got an empty case, James can you send me a Roscoe Bass to go in it? :D

I placed an order for a Roscoe and just got an empty case, James can you send me a Roscoe Bass to go in it? :D

James, don't do it, it's a scam!!!

:eek:






;)

Email me your name/mailing address offlist at james@theperfectbass.com and I'll see if we have a spare that we can mail you if you'd like.

Peace!

If he doesn't have it, I've got a box of 'em on my desk, and I'll do the same...

:)

(Thanks James, all us Slidell boys are good folks, aren't we? :cool: )

If he doesn't have it, I've got a box of 'em on my desk, and I'll do the same...

:)

(Thanks James, all us Slidell boys are good folks, aren't we? :cool: )

Will you send a couple to the frozen North? A couple of neck bolts would be cool as well. One of the ones on mine is a little corroded on top.

Thanks guys! It's also part of the TPB Experience! That's how we roll down here in South Louisiana! ;)

+1

Things like this are what make the Roscoe experience even more special! :)

Ha! Yeah...I'll get to that right after LSU wins the BCS Championship... :crying:

I placed an order for a Roscoe and just got an empty case, James can you send me a Roscoe Bass to go in it? :D

Will you send a couple to the frozen North? A couple of neck bolts would be cool as well. One of the ones on mine is a little corroded on top.

PM or e-mail me your address, I gotta go to the post office later today and will be happy to drop 'em in the mail.

:)

Ha! Yeah...I'll get to that right after LSU wins the BCS Championship... :crying:

Careful, you had better qualify that with a "this season", Clint has a good memory, if they win next year, he'll be lookin' to collect!!!

:eek:


;)

(...s'ok, he's a Cowpatties fan, so he will also soon feel a similar sorrow...:smug: )

Ha! Yeah...I'll get to that right after LSU wins the BCS Championship... :crying:

This offer expires in 90 days... :ninja:

This offer expires in 90 days... :ninja:

Nice recovery.

;)

JOME77 -- Thanks for your very helpful reply.

This offer expires in 90 days... :ninja:

Drats, my evil plot has been foiled by those medling kids and their dog!!! I guess I can throw away the PDF I printed off from this forum to use at a future date. :spit: Well Gard, there goes your 50 free Sushi dinners. I was planning on cutting you in.

Hey James, do you remember the offer I made a year or so ago when you were giving away a Roscoe? The offer still stands, I will tattoo "The Perfect Bass" Logo on my butt if you will give me a Roscoe bass. :eek:

JOME77 -- Thanks for your very helpful reply.

No problem!:)

Hope you get that Roscoe playing like BUTTER!

Email me your name/mailing address offlist at james@theperfectbass.com and I'll see if we have a spare that we can mail you if you'd like.

Peace!


Me?

Thanks for the offer! :cool:

But I've got a boatload of allen wrenches around that I can dremel down no problem. It's just that I only want to try out a really minor tightening. But, without knowing what size to start with, it would take forever to cut one down, check it for fit, rinse, repeat.

So, while I really appreciate the offer; your gift of knowledge was all that I require. Ya' know, "teach a man to fish " and all that. :)

[QUOTE
Hey James, do you remember the offer I made a year or so ago when you were giving away a Roscoe? The offer still stands, I will tattoo "The Perfect Bass" Logo on my butt if you will give me a Roscoe bass. :eek:[/QUOTE]

Okay! Perhaps you will understand if we don't want to see this. Not the finished art or the procedure on YouTube!

Hey James, do you remember the offer I made a year or so ago when you were giving away a Roscoe? The offer still stands, I will tattoo "The Perfect Bass" Logo on my butt if you will give me a Roscoe bass. :eek:

Okay! Perhaps you will understand if we don't want to see this. Not the finished art or the procedure on YouTube!

I thought I would put it on Christmas Cards this year.

I thought I would put it on Christmas Cards this year.

Your new nickname is "Grinch" 'cuz the thought of that just ruined Christmas for me...

:eek:




;)

Your new nickname is "Grinch" 'cuz the thought of that just ruined Christmas for me...

:eek:

;)

Just for you Gard.

No disrespect intended for The Perfect Bass for the placement of the logo, you guys are awesome in the deals you provide bass players.

HAHAH!! That's awesome Clint! I'm sure that'll end up all over the web in places we don't want it...but whatever... They say any press is good press right!?!

Here's a deal for you...get the tattoo FIRST and we'll get that Roscoe right out to you! Tomorrow... ;)

(JIC, I am just kidding...do get the tattoo, but we will not send you a Roscoe for it. Well, maybe we can send you a Squier... heheheh...)

Clint, you ain't right....

:eek:


:hiding:





:D


...which just means you fit in perfectly!

;)

Just for you Gard.

No disrespect intended for The Perfect Bass for the placement of the logo, you guys are awesome in the deals you provide bass players.


That is indeed awesome Clint!:D

Sorry to bother you men...
:)

But back on topic, just to add a bit of infos.

Which ajustement should be generaly done at the change of seasons ?

Correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that when winter come the nut must be tighted to compensate for the neck bowing.

And in spring/summer, it should be loosed to add some relief.

Is it correct ?

Sorry to bother you men...
:)

But back on topic, just to add a bit of infos.

Which ajustement should be generaly done at the change of seasons ?

Correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that when winter come the nut must be tighted to compensate for the neck bowing.

And in spring/summer, it should be loosed to add some relief.

Is it correct ?

Ludo -

I don't really consider the season change a reason to adjust the neck. I only do neck adjustments when they're necessary, for whatever reason - not just because it got cooler and drier.

For the record, on both of my basses, once the setup was to my liking, they haven't been touched - the fretless in almost 2 years, the fretted is approaching a year now.

:)

Gard,

Well my bass is not yours unfortunatly but you already know that.
:)

You've already heard about my particularly unstable neck and things haven't change.

At any important change in weather that neck move, and it goes particularly crazy when winter comes.

On the other hand, I totaly agree with you, my fretless seems to be much more stable and haven't needed any adjustment since its arrival, even after shipping through atlantic ocean via UPs. A quick tune and it was ready to go.
:)

But the freted is just so unstable it makes me jalous of all those people who keep saying that Roscoes have one of the strongest neck.
:(

Ludo -

Well, we are working with wood here, and it will react. Sometimes almost imperceptibly, other times noticeably so. (For the record, I played a Zon Sonus Special 5 fretless for 5 years, and it also changed with the weather a bit, not enough to be a problem, but on hot days, you would get just a bit more relief in the neck! :eek: )

All I can tell you is that you'll have to adjust the neck when it needs to be adjusted. :hmm:

I've had those necks myself, and it's just part of the day to day caretaking on a bass sometimes.

Something to note... We've noticed that while the standard Roscoe neck is indeed incredibly stable, the "Wedge Neck" option seems to be even more stable than the standard neck.

In general, we see a small percentage of them needing just minor setup adjustments after they've been here a few weeks, but it seems that the Wedge option seems to react to temp and humidity even less than the standard neck...

So in addition to the added beauty of the wedge neck option, I believe there is a structural benefit to that upgrade as well!

Peace!

Hey Shiveringbass,

Just a line to let you know you're not alone.
I've had my Roscoe for over 3 years,
and I too, have had to adjust my Roscoe's truss rod
every winter and spring.
My Roscoe lives in my basement,
and it gets really cold down there in the winter.
The cold makes the maple contract so much,
I can feel the ends of the frets along the edge of the neck.
But it only takes a quarter turn rod adjustment,
to get the action back where I have it set.
I don't consider the neck unstable,
it's just reacting to an extreme temperature change.

This offer expires in 90 days... :ninja:

Hey James, when LSU wins the championship, I will be looking for my Roscoe on Jan 4,2008. I think that falls within the 90 Days you gave me. I think I will take a Century V.

Hey Gard I was thinking of stopping by the shop on Dec. 7th to snap some pictures, I will pick out my wood choices at that time.

:hyper:

Hey James, when LSU wins the championship, I will be looking for my Roscoe on Jan 4,2008. I think that falls within the 90 Days you gave me. I think I will take a Century V.

Hey Gard I was thinking of stopping by the shop on Dec. 7th to snap some pictures, I will pick out my wood choices at that time.

:hyper:

I told him that was a BAD IDEA...

;)

...however, they still have to beat OSU (which they SHOULD easily do) for the deal to be sealed...

...any comment, James?

:D

Hey Shiveringbass,

Just a line to let you know you're not alone.
I've had my Roscoe for over 3 years,
and I too, have had to adjust my Roscoe's truss rod
every winter and spring.
My Roscoe lives in my basement,
and it gets really cold down there in the winter.
The cold makes the maple contract so much,
I can feel the ends of the frets along the edge of the neck.
But it only takes a quarter turn rod adjustment,
to get the action back where I have it set.
I don't consider the neck unstable,
it's just reacting to an extreme temperature change.

Hello Active Reasoner,

Thanks for your word. I had the same problem of fret hurting but it's OK now.

When I say unstable, it was not for those season adjustments.

Sometime, the neck will move with only 1 or 2 degres difference which arrives very often when you play in pubs or clubs.
You leave home with a perfectly set instrument and you finaly play with some important buzz or too much tension in the strings in the evening when the gig time comes.
;)

Regards

HAHAHA!!! Lightning DOES indeed strike, no?!

Ok, so I can't afford to send you a new Roscoe...even IF we win... But email me your t-shirt size and shipping address and I'll send you a free TPB t-shirt and PICTURE of a brand new Roscoe bass as a consolation prize today! ;)

I'd hardly say that the game will be "easy"... Although OSU's schedule is highly questionable, they are still a good football team. They are healthy, and unfortunately we are not.

If we can get our starters healthy for the game, I think we'll be favored to win, but with a small spread...maybe 7-10 points.

I'm still a bit shocked that we made it!

To make it all better, our new Director of Sales, Sean Morrissey is from Cleveland and a OSU DIE-HARD! He's already talking smack!

:p

I told him that was a BAD IDEA...

;)

...however, they still have to beat OSU (which they SHOULD easily do) for the deal to be sealed...

...any comment, James?

:D

HAHAHA!!! Lightning DOES indeed strike, no?!

Ok, so I can't afford to send you a new Roscoe...even IF we win... But email me your t-shirt size and shipping address and I'll send you a free TPB t-shirt and PICTURE of a brand new Roscoe bass as a consolation prize today! ;)

I'd hardly say that the game will be "easy"... Although OSU's schedule is highly questionable, they are still a good football team. They are healthy, and unfortunately we are not.

If we can get our starters healthy for the game, I think we'll be favored to win, but with a small spread...maybe 7-10 points.

I'm still a bit shocked that we made it!

To make it all better, our new Director of Sales, Sean Morrissey is from Cleveland and a OSU DIE-HARD! He's already talking smack!

:p

I was watching the announcement show, and was totally shocked when LSU didn't show up in the Sugar Bowl, I had pegged them for that one. When they weren't there, I thought maybe they got passed over completely for a BCS berth! I'm utterly blown away.

That said, Sean is going to be one very sad boy the day after that game, if LSU is healthy on the field by then. I doubt they'll be within 10....

HAHAHA!!! Lightning DOES indeed strike, no?!

Ok, so I can't afford to send you a new Roscoe...even IF we win... But email me your t-shirt size and shipping address and I'll send you a free TPB t-shirt and PICTURE of a brand new Roscoe bass as a consolation prize today! ;)
:p


James, you are a good sport and I would love a T-shirt from "The Perfect Bass".

I guess making friends with that VooDoo woman named Phyllis during the Bourbon Bowl last year paid-off.

I guess there are two loves in my life, big city living and a voodoo woman named Phyllis, Cao - Roberto from the classic Water Boy.

On the way Clint!

Peace!

I've got all 5 saddles out as far as they will go on my LG3005 and its still a bit sharp when fretted on the 12th fret while the open string or 12th fret harmonic are tuned. Anyone else ever encounter this? It's only out a little and I thought about maybe trying shorter screws to pull saddles back more, but it just doesn't seem like I should have to do that. The spring on the saddle of B string is pulled back till its sqeezed flat between saddle and back of Bridge.

I've got all 5 saddles out as far as they will go on my LG3005 and its still a bit sharp when fretted on the 12th fret while the open string or 12th fret harmonic are tuned. Anyone else ever encounter this? It's only out a little and I thought about maybe trying shorter screws to pull saddles back more, but it just doesn't seem like I should have to do that. The spring on the saddle of B string is pulled back till its sqeezed flat between saddle and back of Bridge.

I've had to cut off the saddle screws several times for various basses that utilize the Hip Shot bridge (and other style bridges that don't thread all of the way thru the saddle).
Not a big deal. I typically put the screw into a vise, clamping down on the threaded portion of the screw that I'm removing. Make as clean a cut as you can and then clean up the end of the screw via a small file. I use a nut with the same threads as the saddle to help clean up the threads on the screw and prevent damaging the threads on the saddle.

I've had to cut off the saddle screws several times for various basses that utilize the Hip Shot bridge (and other style bridges that don't thread all of the way thru the saddle).
Not a big deal. I typically put the screw into a vise, clamping down on the threaded portion of the screw that I'm removing. Make as clean a cut as you can and then clean up the end of the screw via a small file. I use a nut with the same threads as the saddle to help clean up the threads on the screw and prevent damaging the threads on the saddle.

Thanks Joe,
Thats about what I expected but I'm a little paranoid about cutting screws that I can't seem to find replacements for. I looked at ACE and Home Depot yesterday and I could not find a match. I did stick some washers on a couple of them and that did make it possible to shorten screw length a little which eabled me to dial in intonation. I would perfer to not leave the washers. Any idea about the screw size??
Thanks,
Mike

Mike -

Joe's dead on the money. There are times here at the shop when we need to cut a screw down to fit for intonation. As for size, let me know if you need replacements, I will help you out with those.

:)

Mike -

Joe's dead on the money. There are times here at the shop when we need to cut a screw down to fit for intonation. As for size, let me know if you need replacements, I will help you out with those.

:)

Cool. As you already know, I don't live to far away. I'm playing out this week and I would freak if I had to leave the Roscoe behind over a messed up screw. What hours are you guys typically open and entertaining visitors. I'm in Hendersonville now and lately I just stay too stinkin busy. I'll be driving through Greensboro again tomorrow, but I'm not sure I'll have time to stop. Even with making my own truss rod wrench and cuttin screws, my Roscoe is still amazing me beyond words.
Thanks,
Mike

Mike -

PM on the way....

i had the same issue with the same model (LG3005). I called Hipshot and they sent me replacement screws and springs free of charge right away.

Now its all perfect.

Good CS!


I've got all 5 saddles out as far as they will go on my LG3005 and its still a bit sharp when fretted on the 12th fret while the open string or 12th fret harmonic are tuned. Anyone else ever encounter this? It's only out a little and I thought about maybe trying shorter screws to pull saddles back more, but it just doesn't seem like I should have to do that. The spring on the saddle of B string is pulled back till its sqeezed flat between saddle and back of Bridge.

As some of you know I am a brand new Roscoe owner. I love my instrument, but its not perfect yet.

Since I got it, the high C has been quite a bit buzzy all over the fretboard.
The other strings could definitely have lower action and intonation is barely OK--notes are sharp 10-25 cents fretted at 12th and 24th frets.

I am experienced in performing setups. I do not want to mess with the bridge--at least just yet--but I have tightened the truss rod about a 1/4 turn (two 1/8 turns on different days). The action has gotten a bit better but the buzzing on the high C has worsened as well. I am thinking about putting on some D'Addarios EXL's (I don't know what I got from the factory, but the ball ends of the strings are gold, not colored like D'Addarios) and seeing if that helps or adjusting from there. Any advice specific to Roscoe SKB 3006's I should know about before going any further? Like I said, I am experienced performing set ups, but all of what I know is 12 years of trial & error, plus 8 years of reading Talkbass... I do not have any proper measuring tools--everything is done by sight and feel... Should I place a Stewart MacDonald order first?

Hehe... Yes, if you are interested in setting up your own bass, I HIGHLY recommend Dan Erlewine's Repair Series that StewMac offers... I'd also invest in their basic setup kit. That will get you everything you need to have a good handle on what you are doing and the tools to do it properly.

Addressing your problem directly, by tightening the truss rod, you are effectively placing the strings closer to the frets. So if you're already having fret buzz, you are just making that worse by not adjusting the bridge at the same time. Remember tightening straightens and can even pull your neck into backbow. Loosening the truss allows the strings to take a better bite and gives you more relief in the neck.

Intonation is a simple adjustment on the bridge saddles... Move the saddle closer to the neck to make the note sharper and farther towards the tail of the bass to make it flatter.

While Keith and Co do a great job on their setups, I immediately adjusted the D and G strings on both all of the Roscoes that I've owned as they tend to put these 2 strings a little closer to the frets than I prefer. I like my strings to get just a tiny bit closer to the frets as you go from Low B to G. My preferece is 6-8 64ths of an inch of height at the 12th fret on the B and 4-6 64ths on the G at the 12th. You may just need to raise those up a little at the bridge...

Peace!

Hehe... Yes, if you are interested in setting up your own bass, I HIGHLY recommend Dan Erlewine's Repair Series that StewMac offers... I'd also invest in their basic setup kit. That will get you everything you need to have a good handle on what you are doing and the tools to do it properly.

Addressing your problem directly, by tightening the truss rod, you are effectively placing the strings closer to the frets. So if you're already having fret buzz, you are just making that worse by not adjusting the bridge at the same time. Remember tightening straightens and can even pull your neck into backbow. Loosening the truss allows the strings to take a better bite and gives you more relief in the neck.

Intonation is a simple adjustment on the bridge saddles... Move the saddle closer to the neck to make the note sharper and farther towards the tail of the bass to make it flatter.

While Keith and Co do a great job on their setups, I immediately adjusted the D and G strings on both all of the Roscoes that I've owned as they tend to put these 2 strings a little closer to the frets than I prefer. I like my strings to get just a tiny bit closer to the frets as you go from Low B to G. My preferece is 6-8 64ths of an inch of height at the 12th fret on the B and 4-6 64ths on the G at the 12th. You may just need to raise those up a little at the bridge...

Peace!

Cool. Thanks for the info. I understand what tightening/loosening the truss rod does. I understand how to correct the intonation using the saddles. The ONLY string buzzing is the high C, so my plan is to tighten the truss rod until I get the action where I want it. By that time my high C should be VERY buzzy, but then I would raise it--alone--at the saddles.
Will adjusting the truss rod affect my intonation dramatically/a little/at all?

Sorry for the late arrival...

...OK, couple issues:

No, adjusting the trussrod won't have much of an effect on intonation (depending on how MUCH you adjust it....that is...).

Try lowering your neck pickup a bit, that may help. I'm finding that the Nords are very STRONG magnetically, and that can indeed affect the setup at times...they just pull the string closer to the fingerboard!

Try lowering your neck pickup a bit, that may help. I'm finding that the Nords are very STRONG magnetically, and that can indeed affect the setup at times...they just pull the string closer to the fingerboard!

Tried that. It went down a bit on the treble side, but it was pretty close to being bottomed out. It didn't make any noticeable difference to the action of the high C.

I've now got it very close to perfect intonation. Next, I'm going to try raising the saddles on the G and C strings since they are super buzzy from straightening the neck, but the other 4 strings seem to be just about right.

I have noticed that there is slightly more relief in my neck on the low strings side than on the treble. When I 'sight' the neck for relief, the high C is very parallel to the neck, but I can see a slight back bow on the low B side. Is this normal? Would getting lighter strings on the low end, thus decreasing the tension on that side help?

Judging relief by sight is tricky... Do you have a straight edge you can put on it? I'd make sure that what you are diagnosing is 100% accurate before changing strings up...especially if you are happy with the tone and feel of the gauges that you have on it now...

If you put a straight edge on it and you're getting different measurements on the treble and bass sides, you might want to give Roscoe a call... It probably won't be something we can diagnose on the forum and talking about it in person will be a little easier to troubleshooot.

Peace!

Judging relief by sight is tricky... Do you have a straight edge you can put on it? I'd make sure that what you are diagnosing is 100% accurate before changing strings up...especially if you are happy with the tone and feel of the gauges that you have on it now...

If you put a straight edge on it and you're getting different measurements on the treble and bass sides, you might want to give Roscoe a call... It probably won't be something we can diagnose on the forum and talking about it in person will be a little easier to troubleshooot.

Peace!
OK, at second sight, I can barely tell a difference in relief when hold 1st and 24th fret. I will get access to my straight edge this weekend and will let you know. Thanks for the help!

No problem! I'd also recommend that you get hold of some feeler gauges and use them to figure out what kind of relief you have rather than making a guess... Unless you've set up dozens and dozens of instruments and do it every day, you can misdiagnose a simple setup issue very easily.

Peace, and good luck!

No problem! I'd also recommend that you get hold of some feeler gauges and use them to figure out what kind of relief you have rather than making a guess... Unless you've set up dozens and dozens of instruments and do it every day, you can misdiagnose a simple setup issue very easily.

Peace, and good luck!
Right on! I have been setting up my own instruments since day one, 11 years ago, but have only begun to understand how to do it correctly (though I've never used measuring tools)!

I just got my Roscoe in AMAZING playing shape... nothing was wrong with the bass--it was my technique!
I realized my Stingray had no relief, extremely low action, but had barely any buzz (and here's the important part) depending on how hard I played! Every time I played the Roscoe, I was playing with much more force than I am used to because of the higher tension because of the 35" scale. For some reason I would dig in to the Roscoe and expect no buzz with a flat neck... the tension of the strings just make me play harder. When I relax and play with the same amount of force as I used to play with my Stringray, I get even less buzz with lower action BECAUSE of the higher tension.
So I have almost zero relief... the saddles could probably be even a little lower, but if I play with a light touch (like I am used to!) everything falls into place. Of course there is a bit of buzz when I play harder, but I LIKE it like that!

Should the saddles follow the radius of the neck (low B and E a bit lower than A) or should the low B be highest and high C be lowest in all your opinions?

Should the saddles follow the radius of the neck (low B and E a bit lower than A) or should the low B be highest and high C be lowest in all your opinions?

I always try to set the string heights so that the strings follow the finger board radius. Sometimes you have to vary it a bit but as a general rule they should follow the FB radius. I use a feeler gage and target .06" from the bottom of all strings to the top of the 24th fret. I consider that low action. I set neck relief at approx. .015-.030 at the highest point. It varys depending on the quality/condition of the fret leveling.
Most folks (and I know that Keith believes this) also believe that the more of the bass saddle that contacts the bridge, the better the transfer for sustain. This typically requires shimming the neck.

I set neck relief at approx. .015-.030 at the highest point.

Highest point when holding down 1st and 24th fret?

the more of the bass saddle that contacts the bridge, the better the transfer for sustain. This typically requires shimming the neck.
I am a bit confused here. The only way the saddle can contact the bridge more is if its dropped all the down so that the bottom of the saddle is touching the bridge right? How else would you make it contact the bridge more? Wouldn't shimming the neck allow for your saddles to be higher?

Highest point when holding down 1st and 24th fret?


I am a bit confused here. The only way the saddle can contact the bridge more is if its dropped all the down so that the bottom of the saddle is touching the bridge right? How else would you make it contact the bridge more? Wouldn't shimming the neck allow for your saddles to be higher?


i thought the same, but maybe he means shimming the front of the pocket instead of the back?

Highest point when holding down 1st and 24th fret??

Yes, with the bass in a playing position.


I am a bit confused here. The only way the saddle can contact the bridge more is if its dropped all the down so that the bottom of the saddle is touching the bridge right? How else would you make it contact the bridge more? Wouldn't shimming the neck allow for your saddles to be higher?

You are correct. The idea is to transfer as much sustain from the string, to the saddle, to the bridge and ultimately to the body.
Shimming could allow/cause the saddles to be higher. The trick is to shim the correct amount which allows the saddles to be lowed all the way.
Different techs have different opinions on this but it does make since when you consider the fact that the more contact surfaces that meet, the more area that exist for sustain to be transferred.


Hope that this is clearer!

i thought the same, but maybe he means shimming the front of the pocket instead of the back?

Hopefully my other reply cleared it up, but yes, sometimes shimming is required in the front of the neck pocket. Not very often though. If the strings are too close with the saddles all of the way down (without a shim), then a shim would be required in the front of the neck pocket.

I use a feeler gage and target .06" from the bottom of all strings to the top of the 24th fret.

Thanks for all your help JOME! :bassist:
Are you really getting your low B and E this low? :confused:

Thanks for all your help JOME! :bassist:
Are you really getting your low B and E this low? :confused:

For years I targeted .12 on the B and never really tried to go any lower. With all the more recent changes in technique (tapping) some players are asking for lower action so I started targeting .06. Certainly not all basses allow it but most Roscoe's and MTD's allow it but only if the player has a very light touch. I target .06 and raise it until I get minimal fret buzz.
My personal fretted basses are setup for .094-.12 at the B so I'm free to dig in when the adrenaline gets pumping.