"Official" Mikro Bass Club Part 2

[BONNIEandCLYDE]

This is our first post here on TalkBass, so I will induce us. Me and Bonnie (my little sister) have four 4-string Mikro basses. Three black one one prurple one, plus a black Iceman Mikro guitar. This morning Daddy just bought us a used Mikro 5-string bass. Daddy says we have more Mikro basses than anyone else and that makes us experts so we should do a review.

THE BAD STUFF: The neck is too wide for our hands, so Daddy gets to play the bass until we get older.

THE GOOD STUFF: The bass sounds great. Even when you don't play the low B-string, it has a bit of a different tone than the 4-sting Mikro bass. The pickups seem to be better than the ones in the 4-sting Mikro bass. Bonnie has ears like a hawk and she says much smoother, punchier, and not so noisy like the 4-string ones. The strings are the same junky ones that come on the newer 4-string Mikro basses (with the red wrapping at the top) but for some reason Daddy says they feel and sound a lot better on the 5-string. He says the action setup it came with was very good Nice and low and no fret buzz.

Daddy says he can't believe what a bargain the little bass is. He normally doesn't like 5-stings basses and just bought this cause he got such a good deal he couldn't say no. He says it plays and sounds, and feels better that a lot of $500 5-strings he has played. Daddy has been playing it a lot this afternoon. He says he was planning on restringing it EADGC or making a guitar bass out of it, but might leave it the way it is. The notes on the B-string sound like a monster is coming and rattling the floor.

Sincerely,
Clyde

[WildWes]

Welcome to MikroWorld Clyde of B&C. You certainly do seem to have more Mikro basses then anyone I know of.

How old are you and Bonnie and how long have you both been playing?

If your father gets a chance, ask him to post a picture of all your basses. WW

[BONNIEandCLYDE]

Mr. WildWes,

I am just starting to play the bass. We have drums and guitars and keyboards too.

Bonnie will take a picture next week with her camera. Right now one bass has the strings taken off and one in on the workbench. We are sodering in pickups and doing wiring different. We like EMG pickups. They are louder and deeper sounding.

Bonnie says her bass is more purple than yours is. She doesn't play it much. We don't have purple drums though so now she wants those. She has a lot of purple clothes. She mainly sings and dances and shaks her booty a lot. She makes up song words also.

Sincerely,
Clydehttp://www.talkbass.com/forum/images/smilies/guitarist.gif

[loopee]

LOL.....

[SBassman]

Ok, I finally made a Mod.

A really complex one. Removed hideous faux chrome knobs, replaced with nice black ones. I was dying to finally get to that - really hated those stock knobs. Not sure why they use those. There Have to be about 5 billion alternatives on the planet that would cost the same. Anyway, I'm finally posting a - crappy cell - pic.

[mystic38]

Just put a set of D'Addario ENR71S half rounds on my friends Mikro for her and it has completely transformed the tone... from a lightweight, twangy, not even ho-hum sound to Whoa!!...

highly recommended if you want more weight and even tone

[BONNIEandCLYDE]

GOOD DEALS:

Musiciansfriend.com has some good deals right now. A new orange 4-string is on sale for $139.99 and Ibanez Mikro gig bag for $19.99.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/searc...Ntt=mikro+bass



STRINGS:

Yes Mr. Mystic38, Daddario strings are the best. We have Daddario Chrome flat wound strings on two of our basses (one is regualr light gage and one is super light gage). Bonnie has Daddario tape wounds on hers, but she just got some Thomas Infelds flat wounds she likes a lot too. They are flexable like the tape wounds but punchier sounding. She likes the black color of her tape wounds look better on her bass and match her black knobs, so she can't decide what one is better.

We have a lot of different strings people on TalkBass.com have given us or sold to us for not much money. Some of Daddys friends have given us their old strings too. Here is a list of some of our stings we have:

Labella round wound
Rotosound 66 round wound
Daddario round wound (different gages)
Dadarrio chrome flat wound (different gages_
Dadarrio tape wounds
Thomas Infleds flat wound
GHS pressure wound
Fender flat wound

Daddy says we are very lucky to have such nice strings and we should make a video or recording of the different strings so you people can hear what they sound like on the Mikro bass. He said maybe we can try to do that in next month. Until then, we just had a vote and Daddario chrome stings won. We don't have a set of the Daddario ground wounds yet but we hope to find a set soon.

Daddy says if you have an older made in china Mikro bass the strings that came with it were fairly good. The new made in Indonesa Mikro bass have thinner stings with red wraps at top. They feel rough on the finger, bend too much, rattle if you play hard and sound junky. He says if you buy a new Mikro bass the best thing you can do is buy Daddario stings. Be sure to buy the short scale version. It will make more difference than changing your pickup or anything else. It will also play and feel better.

Yours truly,
Clyde

[SBassman]

I have a set of DAddario black tapewounds on it now, and they sound and feel great on this bass.

[WildWes]

I initially replaced the stock Mikro strings with D'Addario ENR71S half rounds. Just recently, I replaced those with GHS Boomers (light), but don't care for them and will probably go back to the D'Addarios.

[CaballoViejo]

For those of you Mikro 5-string owners who are as dissatisfied as I was with the excessive floppiness and crappy intonation of the factory-fitted B (and perhaps E), here's how to fix these problems:

1. Move the bridge about 7 mm further away from the neck, and

2. Install the recently-released balanced-tension D'Addario EXL170BT_XLB145 42 lbs set (you can get them from BSO, natch).

Here's how the bridge looks after doing the above:



With the saddles positioned as in the pic the intonation's excellent, but there's still scope for them to be moved in either direction if needed, without having to shorten any screws and/or springs.

I guess I'll have to fill the old upper screw holes eventually, but even now they're hardly noticeable unless you go looking for them.

Of course because of the thicker B and E the nut slots need to be enlarged, but that's not a particularly difficult job if you have the right files and a little patience.

Oh, and here's a pic of the whole thing, just so that I can get a number, I mean once you've seen one Mikro 5er you've seen them all, really:

[WildWes]

Originally Posted by CaballoViejo

Oh, and here's a pic of the whole thing, just so that I can get a number

Thanks for posting your Mikro5 upgrade CaballoViejo.

As requested by the Mikro5 owner henceforth to be known as the "down under thunder", MikroWorld Extravaganza Inc & Associates hereby designates CaballoViejo as #49.

Enjoy your Mikro5 walk about mate.

01 pixiechick
02 unbridled
03 gassieball
04 mongo2
05 sxlover
06 baptistcreature
07 roadkill
08 walpow
09 jags
10 1120beismon
11 gregdunn
12 mekanamom
13 lycanbreed
14 smellkellhell
15 willqx4
16 yodedude2
17 castle1227
18 mr.gone
19 fuzzy beard
20 jimijames
21 skipsinclair
22 quadrogong
23 paulnyc
24 skyboltone
25 hammerhed
26 toddj1s
27 marcocolo
28 crome23
29 noiseninja
30 wildwes
31 lownote floyd
32 usmc_lb
33 tadog
34 pcake
35 n4vgm
36 mercury4
37 micahwc
38 macheted01
39 carpediem930
40 grifo21
41 aj brown
42 rane
43 jcorneli
44 melikecookies
45 dasbusking (Danas daddy)
46 mx21
47 edt844
48 trayster2
49 caballoviejo
99 elevensixty

[CaballoViejo]

"down under thunder"? Think I'd better stay off the beans!

[WildWes]

Originally Posted by WildWes

I initially replaced the stock Mikro strings with D'Addario ENR71S half rounds. Just recently, I replaced those with GHS Boomers (light), but don't care for them and will probably go back to the D'Addarios.

Just picked-up some GHS Premium Flatwounds (purple silk) for my Stagg Fusion SS. Already had some on my SX Jazz SS and really like them. Getting ready to order another set for my Mikro. Sweet!

Originally Posted by CaballoViejo

"down under thunder"? Think I'd better stay off the beans!

I was referring to master of the low note. I didn't know thunder = farting in your part of the world.

[41 hertz]

Hi there I've been a fan for a while now and just got my Mikro.

I wonder if I could have #50?

My next step is to put on some chrome flat wounds and swap to tuners. As delivered the nut was a little high and the frets were sharp enough to scratch myself badly. The intonation and action were almost perfect though.

[WildWes]

Originally Posted by 41 hertz

Hi there I've been a fan for a while now and just got my Mikro. I wonder if I could have #50?

My next step is to put on some chrome flat wounds and swap to tuners. As delivered the nut was a little high and the frets were sharp enough to scratch myself badly. The intonation and action were almost perfect though.

Why certainly 41 hertz.

Finally!!!! Someone has requested to become the possessor of MikroWorld Membership #50. Blessed by the State of Georgia, the US Supreme Court and that plastic superhero ring decoder thingy I found in my Cracker Jacks 50 years ago, I submit for your approval..........41 hertz (ie, #50).

So it has been written, so it shall be.

01 pixiechick
02 unbridled
03 gassieball
04 mongo2
05 sxlover
06 baptistcreature
07 roadkill
08 walpow
09 jags
10 1120beismon
11 gregdunn
12 mekanamom
13 lycanbreed
14 smellkellhell
15 willqx4
16 yodedude2
17 castle1227
18 mr.gone
19 fuzzy beard
20 jimijames
21 skipsinclair
22 quadrogong
23 paulnyc
24 skyboltone
25 hammerhed
26 toddj1s
27 marcocolo
28 crome23
29 noiseninja
30 wildwes
31 lownote floyd
32 usmc_lb
33 tadog
34 pcake
35 n4vgm
36 mercury4
37 micahwc
38 macheted01
39 carpediem930
40 grifo21
41 aj brown
42 rane
43 jcorneli
44 melikecookies
45 dasbusking (Danas daddy)
46 mx21
47 edt844
48 trayster2
49 caballoviejo
50 41 hertz
99 elevensixty

[41 hertz]

All hail Might WildWes and the rest of the Mikro Bass crew! Long may they thunder!

[Adam Harzuf]

Try Thomastik Jazz Rounds JR324 strings for a much better tone then D'addario Half Round and smooth feel.
Here are my impressions of the JR324.

[LUpton]

Originally Posted by CaballoViejo

For those of you Mikro 5-string owners who are as dissatisfied as I was with the excessive floppiness and crappy intonation of the factory-fitted B (and perhaps E), here's how to fix these problems:

1. Move the bridge about 7 mm further away from the neck, and

2. Install the recently-released balanced-tension D'Addario EXL170BT_XLB145 42 lbs set (you can get them from BSO, natch).

Caballo:

Did you have any problems with that long scale .145 vs the tuning peg for the B? I have one of the Brice 30" SS basses, and when I tried to put a used long scale XL .135 B on it, I ended up with the fattest part of the string around the peg, and it snapped the outer winding, causing the string to unravel. (Admittedly, it may be because it was a used string, and was previously bent.)

How about a pic of the headstock with the XL's installed?

I have XL's on 2 other basses, but I am still searching for the proper strings for this little guy. Not sure I want to commit to a .145 B....

Thanks,
Larry

[CaballoViejo]

Larry I didn't have any problems at all fitting the .145 B. Just removed enough of the outer winding to stop it wrapping around the post and it hasn't shown any signs of wanting to unravel:

[LUpton]

Thanks for the picture - that approach sounds encouraging, I'll have to give it a try.

Larry