Intonation problem (big one, i think!)

[Figas]

Greetings to all!! I recently purchased a new Gibson Thunderbird Studio 5. Since i didn't like the string that much, i changed them immediately to Rotosound's RS 665LD (5 string set, with 0.130 B). Probably because of this, or not, the fact is that the intonation was fairly bad, so I had to fix it. All Strings came out fine, except for B, because the saddle is already all the way down toward the end of the bridge (it can't go any further), and still the note is higher than the harmonic!
What should I do now? Change the action, different string setup, send it back to Gibson, or.. what?
Thank you very much in advance!!

[dave251]

I looked up some photos of the bass....and sadly, it looks as if you'll need to take the instrument back to the dealer and get it checked out with the fresh strings.

Those saddles look WAY long....looks like a design flaw, or perhaps the entire bridge is mislocated. Perhaps if you could take a closelup photo of the bridge and post it, we could figure out a way to cut the saddle length down.

However, you are having a very typical problem that a lot of fivers have.......

[Figas]

Thank You for your precious help!! Though it might sound akward, i thought about that too. Furthermore, I'm beggining to suspect that these "adaptations" of 4 string basses to five, done by most of the brands, don't work that well, for the reasons you've stated.
Anyway, my intonation is only out of tune by something like a 1/4 of tone or something like that. I'll try to lower the action a little bit, and try mount the saddle backwards, because if you realise, you can aparently do it, and this way gain something like 5mm (about 1/6"). As sson as I do it, I'll post my results here, just in case somebody else comes across the same issue.

Cheers!!

[Pilgrim]

I'm not sure that anyone will be able to hear an error of 1/4 tone on a low B string. It may turn out not to be a real problem.

[BurningSkies]

Originally Posted by Pilgrim

I'm not sure that anyone will be able to hear an error of 1/4 tone on a low B string. It may turn out not to be a real problem.

I agree. Not only that, but the 'tone creep' happens as you work up the neck, as a regular B string player, I can say that I'm not playing it that high up the neck very often. I'm guessing that most people will never notice.

[GeoffByrne]

If there#sa spring behind the saddle (& I don't know about TBirds) I've found that its removal gives a few extra mms.

[Figas]

Originally Posted by Pilgrim

I'm not sure that anyone will be able to hear an error of 1/4 tone on a low B string. It may turn out not to be a real problem.

Greetings!! Oh yes, you can. I assure you. Its not that you can distinguish it isolated, but in the middle of a sequence of notes (a complete song, in this case) you can. It just doesn't sound right. And I'm not talking of something that happens beyond the 12th fret, its more like the 4th or 5th (I too barely use B string beyond the 12th fret).
Anyway, the problem is now solved (thank god, I was sweating all over!!) Flipped the saddle position, so to gain those extra few mm, and lowered the action just a liiiittle bit, and that was it.
By the way, I strongly recommend using a good needle-type tuner for this, since digital ones can make it quite hard.
(Should I charge Gibson for this solution? )

[randbguy]

Hi figas and all, play it for a week and check it again. I'm finding with some strings the intonation on the B changes by a half inch in that time. That string streches more than the others I think and because of its mass is more subject to being sharp with the other strings at first. I have had a few B's that have behaved this way at first and then settled back to what you would think is the proper position after a week or so. If the other strings are intonating fine then the bridge is in the right place and be assured this is a string problem and not your new bass. Enjoy that thing buddy and let us know how things turn out!