Club Stambaugh - Show your Stammies!! [Part 4]

[Jared Lash]

I just think it's cool to see the range of stuff Chris will do.

This 8 string acoustic guitar caught my eye:
http://www.stambaughdesigns.com/buil....php?bom_id=32

How many builders will do electric uprights, 11 string basses, a straight vintage 70's jazz style, ampeg scrolls, headless fan frets, piezo fretless with huge cutaways, a Bootsy star bass, flying Vs AND acoustic guitars? Especially a 28" 8 string one that required a larger body size and additional bracing?

Crazy.

[SallyGrowler]

about time he updated his site!

I love my stammy!

[spade2you]

Pretty trippy acoustic. I didn't know Chris built them and had this built by KR. Similar concept, but I went with a fan to allow for use of normal strings.

[bluesblaster]

That Scroll bass turned out really nice, I had talked to Chris about doing something like this a few years back. Glad someone stepped up to do it, I think it turned out great.

[JamesGoodall]

Originally Posted by Jared Lash

How many builders will do electric uprights, 11 string basses, a straight vintage 70's jazz style, ampeg scrolls, headless fan frets, piezo fretless with huge cutaways, a Bootsy star bass, flying Vs AND acoustic guitars? Especially a 28" 8 string one that required a larger body size and additional bracing?

*begins counting on fingers and in head*
*comes to conclusion*
One. His name its Chris Stambaugh, and he's also one of the more reasonably priced luthiers. I believe that's why we're all here!

[Tunaman]

Originally Posted by Tunaman

Something like this... a SB / Soloist

SC 5 string, one switch that had 3 positions to control mid frequency

Volume, Blend, Highs, Mids, Lows

So my problem, the ONLY thing that kept me from buying it was the mid knob

When you turned down the mid knob it brought down the volume considerably across the whole range. It also didn't really cut the mids, maybe a little. If I boosted the mid knob, the mids were really present, pretty awesome but again a MUCH stronger signal than at neutral.

The rest of the bass? Exquisite, wonderful! The bass was at Ear Craft Music in Dover, NH by the way. Great guys

It was a shame because it was everything my EBMM Bongo wasn't... many times though I need to have a scooped, subbass like tone without mids & it just wasn't possible.

What gives?

Man, I'm still thinking about this bass... I really wish this mid knob didn't pull down the volume & actually cut the mids instead. Does ANYBODYS Stambaugh do this as well? I loved everything else about the bass... if I had another made I'm expecting it to do the same after talking to Chris.



Just like this one, 3 band EQ with the mid freq switch, blend & volume

[Jared Lash]

Well, one way to look at this: have you used a bass that does what you want (cuts mids appropriately without a big change in overall gain) the way you want it to?

If so, have Chris build a bass using that preamp.

[Tunaman]

Is this a common finding for the preamp he uses in the Soloist model? If it is... then I could go with another pre, if its just this bass then I could consider finding another soloist model

[Hotblack]

Originally Posted by Tunaman

Man, I'm still thinking about this bass... I really wish this mid knob didn't pull down the volume & actually cut the mids instead. Does ANYBODYS Stambaugh do this as well?

If that's the only issue, you should get it. Changing electronics, whether pots, pickups, or pre should not be a very big deal.

[fivestringgecko]

Originally Posted by Tunaman

Wwwoooowwwwwwwww... that's a pretty gorgeous finish. I haven't been to Chris' gallery for a while, didn't catch that one!
What is that... white stain (bleach?) on a burl top?

5sg.

[Tunaman]

Originally Posted by Hotblack

If that's the only issue, you should get it. Changing electronics, whether pots, pickups, or pre should not be a very big deal.

Is it an issue or is this how its supposed to be with this model?

[spade2you]

Originally Posted by Tunaman

Is it an issue or is this how its supposed to be with this model?

Chris generally makes everything 100% to the specs of the customer. I'm not 100% sure of what you're asking, but I don't think there are too many Stambaughs with standard features.

[Hotblack]

Originally Posted by Tunaman

Is it an issue or is this how its supposed to be with this model?

I'm not really sure. What you may find to be a pain in the neck may not be a problem for someone else.

However, what I do know is that the inherent "feel" of a bass is hard to replicate. If this bass is speaking to you, haunting your dreams (as it just might, considering the fact that you've posted about it a few times now) it is hard to replicate that certain something. You could have Chris build the exact same model, exact same specs, woods, etc... and it may not speak to you in the same way. On the other hand, you may like it even more.

[Jared Lash]

Originally Posted by Tunaman

Is it an issue or is this how its supposed to be with this model?

There is no standard preamp (or pickups for that matter) for the soloist model:

http://www.stambaughdesigns.com/news...s/soloist.html

So you'd be free to choose whatever electronics you wanted. Some are going to have much more drastic changes when you crank knobs. For instance, I think the Aguilar OBP-3 is a great preamp but it also has a LOT of boost and cut in it's EQ so it wouldn't be my choice for more minor tone changes.

The Audere, Mike Pope and Nordstrand preamps are all more subtle in their operation.

And for what it's worth my Stambaughs with Audere and Pope preamps did NOT have a drastic gain change when scooping the mids a bit. To be fair, I almost never cut mids and when I do it's generally a very slight cut but just as I do with any new bass I tried out some very extreme settings on both of my earlier Stambaughs when they first arrived.

[jasonbraatz]

Just get it, dude. The preamp is not an inherent piece of the instrument.

[Tunaman]

Thanks for the info guys... appreciate it

I didn't buy it on the spot for the reason that cutting the mids cut the volume so much but I'll go back after I sell the Reflex & take a 2nd look

Check the balance
See if I can get a warm scooped sound somehow
Check the weight

May be a while so I'll check back in with yall then

[spade2you]

Has anyone talked to Chris lately? Was he in the path of the storms?

[Jared Lash]

Originally Posted by spade2you

Has anyone talked to Chris lately? Was he in the path of the storms?

I talked to him on Monday just to ask that. Apparently they didn't feel any of the effects of Sandy in his neck of the woods.

[Hotblack]

Originally Posted by Jared Lash

I talked to him on Monday just to ask that. Apparently they didn't feel any of the effects of Sandy in his neck of the woods.

...and he has been making additions to the Build of the Month and Gallery sections of his site.

[Alvaro Martín Gómez A.]

Originally Posted by Hotblack

...and he has been making additions to the Build of the Month and Gallery sections of his site.

Wow! My bass is there!

I must send a message to Mr. Stambaugh for a couple corrections: The bass' scale range goes from 33" to 36" and the preamp is a Pope Flexcore.