KC Strings c-ext

[G-force]

HI, I am considering buying one of these.

http://www.kcstrings.com/bass-extensions.html

Does anyone out there have any experience with them,
Thanks a bunch.

Glenn

[vejesse]

I do.

[Cody Sisk]

yep.

[G-force]

Originally Posted by DallasStrings

yep.

great! but i was hoping for more of a pro/con positive/negative response.

i do appreciate any and all feedback

[Cody Sisk]

I'm a "bad news first" kinda guy.

Cons:

The drawback is that the body of the extension is solid brass. It's extremely heavy. Oftentimes it can have a significantly negative effect on the sound of your instrument as it will stiffen vibrations in the neck. It can also be heavy enough to make your bass sit on its scroll and lift the lower bouts.

Don't get the slide extension. They are useless. You can't tune the slide position while you're playing. It's easier to just reach up there and pull a closer open/closed than to mess with that slide mechanism. Besides, the slide itself is pretty heavy.

Pros:

It's relatively easy to install if you have at least a little woodworking experience. Sometimes the added weight on the neck can darken or enhance the sound of your instrument.

The design keeps from having to drill/cut the scroll in any way. The installation is 100% reversible if you decide that it doesn't work on your bass. All that you'll need is to carve a new nut. Some like to keep their original nut and carve a new nut for the extension install.

You can quickly customize your closers for your playing needs. The gated extension comes with 5 closers but I only used two. I put a nut at the top for the C rather than an additional heavy closer and put the two closers on the whole steps.

Sometimes I find it useful to loosen the nut on my D closer and move it to E-flat.

It looks pretty cool. I also get lots of complements on the brass as I have shined it up on a buffing wheel to make it extra shiny.

It matches my gold-plated endpin rod..

[G-force]

Originally Posted by DallasStrings

I'm a "bad news first" kinda guy.

Cons:

The drawback is that the body of the extension is solid brass. It's extremely heavy. Oftentimes it can have a significantly negative effect on the sound of your instrument as it will stiffen vibrations in the neck. It can also be heavy enough to make your bass sit on its scroll and lift the lower bouts.

Don't get the slide extension. They are useless. You can't tune the slide position while you're playing. It's easier to just reach up there and pull a closer open/closed than to mess with that slide mechanism. Besides, the slide itself is pretty heavy.

Pros:

It's relatively easy to install if you have at least a little woodworking experience. Sometimes the added weight on the neck can darken or enhance the sound of your instrument.

The design keeps from having to drill/cut the scroll in any way. The installation is 100% reversible if you decide that it doesn't work on your bass. All that you'll need is to carve a new nut. Some like to keep their original nut and carve a new nut for the extension install.

You can quickly customize your closers for your playing needs. The gated extension comes with 5 closers but I only used two. I put a nut at the top for the C rather than an additional heavy closer and put the two closers on the whole steps.

Sometimes I find it useful to loosen the nut on my D closer and move it to E-flat.

It looks pretty cool. I also get lots of complements on the brass as I have shined it up on a buffing wheel to make it extra shiny.

It matches my gold-plated endpin rod..

Thanks so much! I too am considering the weight. My bass is HEAVY already and the scroll is not so large. So I am kind of wondering what to do. See here in Norway there isn´t so much experience in making these extensions.

[billybass]

I have used one of these for the last 5 years. I would not put one on a light bass, but on a big heavy orchestra bass it does not change the balance of the bass that much. The mechanism of the closers is fantastic. They are fully adjustable and stay once set. Make sure the fingerboard is thick enough and the scroll is not too far forward on the neck so that the height of the string at the e- stop is within range. I had mine powder coated black to look like ebony. It is a little vain, but makes it look more like a double bass extension than a bass trombone extension.

[vejesse]

My experience is similar to Mr. Sisk - they work fine as long as you don't mind the weight. You can use a little ebony nut instead of the last closer if you back file and remove enough material for the proper downward slope. I have seen two of them where the ebony fingerboard part became unglued from the brass so watch that. The mounting scheme they suggest is a little weak as well. After trimming the thing to length we would mill a slot in the brass at the fingerboard, then attach a brass cross piece into that slot. Similar to the piece of brass that fits under the nut for an ebony extension - that would get screwed down to the neck.

[Cody Sisk]

Originally Posted by vejesse

I have seen two of them where the ebony fingerboard part became unglued from the brass so watch that.

Most of the fingerboards I've seen come loose from the extension body after surviving shipping. I use 2-part epoxy to reattach. It's the best bond I've found so far between the brass and ebony..

[thebassbass]

here is one more option http://www.basscellar.com/inventory....nventoryloaded

i have no experience with extensions. just looks like the same deal but wood

[fdeck]

Originally Posted by thebassbass

here is one more option http://www.basscellar.com/inventory....nventoryloaded

i have no experience with extensions. just looks like the same deal but wood

I love the picture at their home page. Is that what happens when you have a brick pillar just outside your front door, or when two bassists show up at once?

[MDEbass]

I wouldnt reccomend it. I had borrowed an Anton Krutz bass for a couple months a little while ago with one of these extensions. Since they are solid brass, they add a ton of weight to the neck, making it difficult on the left hand, especially if you stand. If you're going to invest in an extension, consider Robertson's.

[G-force]

Originally Posted by thebassbass

here is one more option http://www.basscellar.com/inventory....nventoryloaded

i have no experience with extensions. just looks like the same deal but wood

This one looks great. Problem is I need one which can be shipped in the rough and then fitted here in Norway. At this point shipping my axe is cost prohibitive.

I am considering a machine ext BUT I really love the idea of the gate system.

[RCWilliams]

Just for the heck of it, let me explain the premise behind the sliding c extension. It was never intended to be used to re tune the extension during a piece. It was intended to be set for the lowest note to be played in a given piece and fingered for any thing in between. just like many wooden c extensions.

[Cody Sisk]

Originally Posted by RCWilliams

Just for the heck of it, let me explain the premise behind the sliding c extension. It was never intended to be used to re tune the extension during a piece. It was intended to be set for the lowest note to be played in a given piece and fingered for any thing in between. just like many wooden c extensions.

I must admit when you came out with a design that included closers instead, you had me hook, line, and sinker. We sell quite a few of these extensions to schools. I'll probably install a couple this summer..

[robobass]

Originally Posted by G-force

This one looks great. Problem is I need one which can be shipped in the rough and then fitted here in Norway. At this point shipping my axe is cost prohibitive.

I am considering a machine ext BUT I really love the idea of the gate system.

It's too bad that there don't seem to be any top-rung bass-specialist luthiers in Scandinavia, where there are so many great bassists, and a real demand for C-Extensions. If you can get to Cologne, Daniel Kress builds beautiful extensions, and offers the "no hole through the scroll" option if you want it. Personally, the KC device seems like way too much brass. Could they do it with wood, aluminum, or Delrin?

[Bijoux]

Originally Posted by DallasStrings

Don't get the slide extension. They are useless. You can't tune the slide position while you're playing. It's easier to just reach up there and pull a closer open/closed than to mess with that slide mechanism. Besides, the slide itself is pretty heavy.

Have you tried the pone with the slide?
if so, do you think that it would be possible and also effective if there was a way to mark the positions, so then you could move the sliders in the same place everytime?
Thank you.

[Cody Sisk]

Originally Posted by Bijoux

Have you tried the pone with the slide?
if so, do you think that it would be possible and also effective if there was a way to mark the positions, so then you could move the sliders in the same place everytime?
Thank you.

Your marks will go false as the string ages and normal climate-related changes happen to your bass.

Besides, lemme ask you this, how fast can you turn your C into a D? Slide, tune, slide, tune.. And in the middle of a concert? It's a fun gimmick but in my opinion, an impractical design. Their closer system just makes more sense. You can modify them so that they will open/close quickly and center the string every time. They can be adjusted for the amount of pressure on the string, and can be moved up and down on the track to tweak the tuning. You can have as many as 5 closers or as few as one. KC's extension body is a fantastic design. The evolution from the slide mechanism to a closer system only made them better..