Club Sadowsky (Part 31)

[pickles]

Originally Posted by maurilio

Nice.
Send down the bottom of the saddle …..

M

That was one of my thoughts. Are the saddles solid metal or are they plated?

[MikeBass]

Originally Posted by johndough247

Yea distance would help but yea a good stage mix (which is a crapshoot for me on most days) would be even better. Glad it's working out for ya, those cabs always surprise someone each time I bring it.

These basses seem to make almost any amp come to life (or shine a little brighter if it's already awesome), even when I teach High School kids who are still very green about bass in general, they're just amazed how much better it sounds when I plug my sadowsky into their practice amps:



Any bass that makes these amps sound good is nothing short of magical

Everyone is on wireless IEM. I have a LAcoustics (or par with Meyer in terms of quality) floor wedge in front of me. I'm not using IEM this service(s). And every one has their own mixer from the DigiDesign FOH board for their IEM and mine is controlling my wedge. So my mix iOS perfect for me.

And yeah, they make just about any amp sound good.

[maurilio]

Originally Posted by pickles

That was one of my thoughts. Are the saddles solid metal or are they plated?

chrome plated brass

I have also another solution, but takes more time and skills. (Which I did it on 'your' former M524).

M

[TXLawDawg]

Originally Posted by funkydanbass

Hi All,

I'm very close to pulling the trigger on a 5 String Sadowsky PJ.
I've been in love with the aesthetic quality of #4571 for some time and plan on copying the specs for the most part.

I really love the appearance of the dark ebony fingerboard but wonder what impact it will have on the tone. I plan on stringing the bass with TI Flats and am hoping to be able to cover fairly classic P tones for soul, country and blues through to slightly more modern tones for hip hop and modern RnB.

What's the general consensus? Would an ebony fingerboard negatively impact the tone?

I couldn't help but notice that you said PJ but the image is a JJ...does it have the universal route for JJ and PJ? If so......best of both worlds. My 24F5 has an ebony board and the notes seem to jump off it; almost like maple in terms of brightness but not quite and with a little spring to it if that makes sense.

Originally Posted by pickles

4688 is in my hands. It was very out-of-sorts setup wise when it showed up but I've been applying a steady dose of love and its really nicely dialed in now. New set of blue steels. Want to get some hi-beams on it but I don't have a spare set ... need to go shopping.

One issue -- the screw head under the G string saddle isn't fully flush, it sticks up above the base plate, and its preventing me from getting the G string saddle as low as I'd like it. The saddle pivots side to side across it as I adjust the screws and I can't go lower unless I shift the saddle out of proper intonation. I'm actually thinking that screw is pretty useless, since the string pressure is naturally holding the bridge down at that point. The base screws are the important ones, this is the forward screw. Suggestions?

Gotta say, this bass is better for me than all the prior NYCs I've had. Really special bass with tons of personality and a great textured, growly yet mellow tone.

Would this have the "new" HCs in it, and what year does 4688 correspond to?

Speaking of my 24F5, which is #4358, it's dated as being May 2005. My guess would be that #4688 would date to around 2006 and therefore, not have the newest version of the HC's in it. Edit: I'm assuming that the date is not written on the inside of the control cavity cover?

[pickles]

Originally Posted by maurilio

chrome plated brass

I have also another solution, but takes more time and skills. (Which I did it on 'your' former M524).

M

Neck shim?

[johndough247]

Originally Posted by TXLawDawg

Speaking of my 24F5, which is #4358, it's dated as being May 2005. My guess would be that #4688 would date to around 2006 and therefore, not have the newest version of the HC's in it.

Just curious, when did the new humcancelling PU's start rolling out?

[TXLawDawg]

Originally Posted by johndough247

Just curious, when did the new humcancelling PU's start rolling out?

Around mid-2010 if memory serves me correct and I'm speaking solely about the five string version. I have no idea on the four string versions.

[Vic]

Originally Posted by funkydanbass

Hi All,

I'm very close to pulling the trigger on a 5 String Sadowsky PJ.
I've been in love with the aesthetic quality of #4571 for some time and plan on copying the specs for the most part.

I really love the appearance of the dark ebony fingerboard but wonder what impact it will have on the tone. I plan on stringing the bass with TI Flats and am hoping to be able to cover fairly classic P tones for soul, country and blues through to slightly more modern tones for hip hop and modern RnB.

What's the general consensus? Would an ebony fingerboard negatively impact the tone?

I'm pretty much in alignment with KJung on this. I love ebony, but I'd never use it for a bass I wanted a "classic" tone on, or at least one more faithful to the Fender sound (though I know Sadowsky basses are gonna' automatically sound different from a Fender no matter what, which I'm treating as a given).

However, given your "modern" goals, that IS a good target for Ebony, so it's gonna' be more about what your more important sound is. Ebony is going to have a quicker attack and more edge up high, whereas Maple (my alternate suggestion for someone wanting to split classic/modern) is going to have more going on in the lower treble and upper mids. Great for cut, but a bit harsh for a modern sound. IMHO PJ basses have an inherent modern tone when blended, so if that was the fave tone, and especially for slap, I'd think ebony could work very well for that. However, it doesn't sound like that's really your focus...

I don't envy your challenge here, because you're talking about using flats, which I see as an optimal matchup with a rosewood board, and then maple, and then ebony (IMHO). I think with ebony, you'll find the high end so thin/clacky sounding you'll dial it back, and there won't be the upper mid/low treble there (like with maple, and to a lesser extent, rosewood) to help your mix definition. Don't get me wrong, none of these combos will sound "bad"... just varying levels of good, but your desire to use flats would at least give me cause for pause with ebony (at least on a fretted bass, my opinion flips for fretless). FWIW.

BTW, our own tombowlus has an Ebony boarded Sadowsky PJ5, so hopefully he'll chime in as well.

[nostatic]

Ebony on a fretted has a characteristic ping that you either love or hate (I love it, though in some tunes it might not be "right"). You can't really get rid of it with onboard eq. fwiw once the two basses I have in production are done, 4 of my 5 instruments will have ebony boards but I don't have any bandleader insisting on a "classic" sound. I can get close enough, and if they are really cranky I can pull out an ash/maple 4 banger JJ and call it good.

I do have a friend with a bunch of ebony fb basses and he swears by TI flats. He does kind of his own thing though, so he's not trying to fit into a typical band mold.

[funkydanbass]

Thanks for your input everyone. I think I will investigate getting a dark piece of rosewood to preserve both my tonal and aesthetic goals for this bass.

[TXLawDawg]

Originally Posted by funkydanbass

Thanks for your input everyone. I think I will investigate getting a dark piece of rosewood to preserve both my tonal and aesthetic goals for this bass.

You know, I just realized that you said "copy" the specs of the bass in the image...DUH! My bad...I still think the JJ/PJ route is the way to go if you're having one built. Back to my cave...

[Dinosaur Punk]

Originally Posted by Vic

I'm pretty much in alignment with KJung on this. I love ebony, but I'd never use it for a bass I wanted a "classic" tone on, or at least one more faithful to the Fender sound (though I know Sadowsky basses are gonna' automatically sound different from a Fender no matter what, which I'm treating as a given).

However, given your "modern" goals, that IS a good target for Ebony, so it's gonna' be more about what your more important sound is. Ebony is going to have a quicker attack and more edge up high, whereas Maple (my alternate suggestion for someone wanting to split classic/modern) is going to have more going on in the lower treble and upper mids. Great for cut, but a bit harsh for a modern sound. IMHO PJ basses have an inherent modern tone when blended, so if that was the fave tone, and especially for slap, I'd think ebony could work very well for that. However, it doesn't sound like that's really your focus...

I don't envy your challenge here, because you're talking about using flats, which I see as an optimal matchup with a rosewood board, and then maple, and then ebony (IMHO). I think with ebony, you'll find the high end so thin/clacky sounding you'll dial it back, and there won't be the upper mid/low treble there (like with maple, and to a lesser extent, rosewood) to help your mix definition. Don't get me wrong, none of these combos will sound "bad"... just varying levels of good, but your desire to use flats would at least give me cause for pause with ebony (at least on a fretted bass, my opinion flips for fretless). FWIW.

BTW, our own tombowlus has an Ebony boarded Sadowsky PJ5, so hopefully he'll chime in as well.

Originally Posted by nostatic

Ebony on a fretted has a characteristic ping that you either love or hate (I love it, though in some tunes it might not be "right"). You can't really get rid of it with onboard eq. fwiw once the two basses I have in production are done, 4 of my 5 instruments will have ebony boards but I don't have any bandleader insisting on a "classic" sound. I can get close enough, and if they are really cranky I can pull out an ash/maple 4 banger JJ and call it good.

I do have a friend with a bunch of ebony fb basses and he swears by TI flats. He does kind of his own thing though, so he's not trying to fit into a typical band mold.

I have three ebony-boarded basses, and one Rosewood Fender Jazz. I agree with everything that's been said about the tonal tendencies of ebony. You'll get an uncolored clarity with ebony that's different from maple or rosewood. If you're primarily after a vintage style thump, you might wind up fighting the immediacy that ebony brings to the sound.

However I am finding that my Sadowsky M5 is an amazingly versatile instrument. I've also been finding that some minor changes to technique and some modifications to the tone stages are giving me great approximations of classic tones when needed. In my case I'm running soapbars which are probably a bit more uncolored than the other pickup types. There are times when my bass (even though I'm running soapbars) reminds me of a PJ - but that probably has more to do with pickup location than pickup type.

It seems to me you're getting good advice from others on this thread - it maps to my experience with these woods.

I am sure everyone here has seen Roger's take on this, but it's worth linking to anyway.

[pnchad]

ebony is the traditional material for fingerboards oh, I don't know, the last 300 YEARS

I play almost exclusively fretless & DB so I may be biased but...

ebony is BOTH warm and bright at the same time - it is the material of choice - be happy any is still available

RW is the trad Fender material but I have to be honest here - on a fretted instrument it doesn't really matter - the strings don't even vibrate against the board itself

the ONLY time I've ever noticed an influence of board material on a fretted bass was a couple of maple boards I've owned on a Monarch Standard M/M/M & a Fodera Empire M/A where the board effected the slap tone (i.e. Mr. Miller)

I don't slap anymore lmao - lot's of this 'tone' stuff is in the fingers - there's no 'clack' or 'ping' unless I want it

BTW, I have a NYC M24/5FL LPB with an ebony board - it is one of the best recording basses I own - it is the ULTIMATE Dub bass - super lows

[maurilio]

Originally Posted by pickles

Neck shim?

not really. I 'shape' the whole neck pocket a little angled (tapered -?) so to keep perfect contact between body and neck, but having the neck a little tilted (in relation to the body).

Does it make sense?

M

[Ronen]

Originally Posted by pickles

That was one of my thoughts. Are the saddles solid metal or are they plated?

With the problem you are describing I don't think that sanding the saddle bottom is the right solution. It's not that your saddle runs out of space, it's the bridge base screw that is on its way. Take care of that screw, IMHO.

BTW, generally, shimming is the first thing to try when a saddle bottoms down and you need to go lower. Sanding the saddle bottom takes some of its mass. Maybe not something you'll be able to hear but still...

[pickles]

Originally Posted by maurilio

not really. I 'shape' the whole neck pocket a little angled (tapered -?) so to keep perfect contact between body and neck, but having the neck a little tilted (in relation to the body).

Does it make sense?

M

Does make sense, definitely outside my skill set. I think a neck shim is the right answer. Easy and reversible. Even if I ground down the screw head, it's still better to have more angle and down pressure on the saddles.

[bikeplate]

Hi

How about a new bridge or some parts to fix the one on there?

Rob

[Vic]

Originally Posted by pnchad

ebony is... - be happy any is still available

There's plenty still available. PLENTY. Just the pure black stuff is getting hard to find, so it's only an aesthetic issue. Check out the vid/book Taylor put out. Very informative.

RW is the trad Fender material but I have to be honest here - on a fretted instrument it doesn't really matter - the strings don't even vibrate against the board itself

Yes they do, because the fret "connects" the string to the board. It's not the same as fretless, but it definitely does matter.

IMHO/IME anyway.

[Ronen]

Originally Posted by pickles

Does make sense, definitely outside my skill set. I think a neck shim is the right answer. Easy and reversible. Even if I ground down the screw head, it's still better to have more angle and down pressure on the saddles.

I wouldn't recommend shimming unless it's really necessary. On a Sadowsky, most likely it is not. Just replace the base screw and see if that solves it.

[Vic]

Originally Posted by Ronen

I wouldn't recommend shimming unless it's really necessary. On a Sadowsky, most likely it is not. Just replace the base screw and see if that solves it.

+1

Shimming does work, and it's not a terrible thing to do, but it is technically at least a slight degradation of the neck coupling, so it should only be done if it must be. Not a big deal, but shouldn't be the first choice.