SPECTOR® Club - Part 49

[Jaymi]

the 35p/j's would be fine...the TP will imitate the sounds from the I Hill or Wimbish bass...the 18v US pre will give you more headroom..

[worshiprocker]

The only thing I know about Wals are that they take effects pedals well! And to 2nd what Jamie said, the guys you mentioned have since sold off the Wals

[bunkaroo]

Originally Posted by Jaymi

the 35p/j's would be fine...the TP will imitate the sounds from the I Hill or Wimbish bass...the 18v US pre will give you more headroom..

Would you say the headroom is the only difference between the US 9v and 18V when using the soapbar P/J's? I'm hoping that my NS-5XL with the 40P5 and 40J is close enough that I don't feel the pull to order an NS-5XL with a 9v. I don't know if a 9v can be fit into the NS-5XL I have as I assume another hole would need to be routed, and I don't think I'd be comfortable with that.

[awilkie84]

Originally Posted by Jaymi

the 35p/j's would be fine...the TP will imitate the sounds from the I Hill or Wimbish bass...the 18v US pre will give you more headroom..

I don't think a 35 would fit on a Rebop 5, would it? They use 40HZs, don't they??

The TP feels too harsh, to me.
Does anyone know if a US 18v will fit in the Rebop's cavity? :S

[bclark812008]

as far as the Wal/Spector discussion, I was/am a pretty big Tool fan so when I stumbled across a Wal 5-6 years ago, I got all giddy and had to play it. I thought the clouds would part and heaven would shine down upon me as while the angels sang along! I fiddled around with the control's for a good 30 min and it did nothing for me. I started playing 46 and 2, but alas, I didn't feel anything. I even tried Schism, Lateralus, a few Geddy licks and nothing. I went home a bit heartbroken that day! Oddly enough, the same thing happened when I tried my first Fodera!

When I got my first US Spector, the first note I hit almost made me cry! I still miss that Forte and as soon as I can afford it, I will buy another one!!

Spectors, IMO, have and do it all!!! That's why I have been playing them almost exclusively since around 2005!!

[smadder]

Originally Posted by brotherbassj

Come on Steve........you have to add a couple more brands to "modern bass tone giants" and actually what makes these two "modern" They both were made famous in the 80's right? LOL (putting on fire retardant suit). I've often heard of MTD and Sadowsky referred to as "the modern bass" tone, although some refer to it as "hifi bass tone?"

First bass player I saw play Spector=Sting First Wal player I knew about=Geddy

I had heard of Wal but thought of it as Elitist, played by few......much like Fodera and Alembic in my mind.....

Oh yeah, I know. That's why I put the quotes around it. Us older dudes remember that whole movement in the 80s towards more aggressive, clearer, active tones. Remember the first active seymour duncans with the eq switches right on the face of the pickups? Everyone was chasing that type/classification of tone back then. Spector led the way, particularly in terms of entering into the bass world's public consciousness, if that makes any sense. IMO the big revolution was in the active electronics and custom, brand-specific and unique preamps like the US 9v. I know Alembic is known to have started all of that (whether they had the idea first or not I'm sure is a long debated topic that I am definitely not starting a debate on here) back on the late 60s early 70s, but Spector was in your face through that whole 80s era, across genres. You couldn't turn on MTV and NOT see a Spector in every other video (slight exaggeration, but man they were everywhere!). My brother and I will hang out on holidays and watch VH1 classics, wax nostalgic, and I'll sit there yelling out "Spector!" almost every other video that had band members in it holding instruments. It's why my ideal bass is still a white Spector NS-2. It's just part of my bass brain. I only wish I'd had access to hear one and play one when I was younger. Nothing sounds like it.

[Jaymi]

Originally Posted by bunkaroo

Would you say the headroom is the only difference between the US 9v and 18V when using the soapbar P/J's? I'm hoping that my NS-5XL with the 40P5 and 40J is close enough that I don't feel the pull to order an NS-5XL with a 9v. I don't know if a 9v can be fit into the NS-5XL I have as I assume another hole would need to be routed, and I don't think I'd be comfortable with that.

your bass should be fine as it is...headroom is a big part..there is a little difference in the tone...the 9v is a tad more grit..9v will not fit if the batteries are in a separate routed space...

[Jaymi]

Originally Posted by awilkie84

I don't think a 35 would fit on a Rebop 5, would it? They use 40HZs, don't they??

The TP feels too harsh, to me.
Does anyone know if a US 18v will fit in the Rebop's cavity? :S

the 18v will fit in the bop cavity...you will have an extra hole...

[JPSBassist]

Originally Posted by awilkie84

I don't think a 35 would fit on a Rebop 5, would it? They use 40HZs, don't they??

The TP feels too harsh, to me.
Does anyone know if a US 18v will fit in the Rebop's cavity? :S

And have you checked to see if your TP has the output adjustment trim pot? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9x1TNtUKI0

The USA 18v Circuit will fit in any 4 knob Spector bass, but you have to put it in the bottom three knob positions and you'll have to widen the pot holes some.

Then you'll have an empty pot hole you'll need to put a dummy pot in.

So the pot position closest to the strings would be a dummy, the other pots would have your controls.

[awilkie84]

Originally Posted by Jaymi

the 18v will fit in the bop cavity...you will have an extra hole...

Originally Posted by JPSBassist

And have you checked to see if your TP has the output adjustment trim pot? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9x1TNtUKI0

The USA 18v Circuit will fit in any 4 knob Spector bass, but you have to put it in the bottom three knob positions and you'll have to widen the pot holes some.

Then you'll have an empty pot hole you'll need to put a dummy pot in.

So the pot position closest to the strings would be a dummy, the other pots would have your controls.

By trim pot, I'm assuming you mean one of those blue square pots with a white flat-head adjustment knob hidden somewhere inside the control cavity? I'll have to check when I get home.

Good to know that the 18v will fit, but I'm not a fan of having empty/dummy pots. I wonder if the tone control can be split into 2 separate pots.

[JPSBassist]

Originally Posted by bunkaroo

Would you say the headroom is the only difference between the US 9v and 18V when using the soapbar P/J's? I'm hoping that my NS-5XL with the 40P5 and 40J is close enough that I don't feel the pull to order an NS-5XL with a 9v. I don't know if a 9v can be fit into the NS-5XL I have as I assume another hole would need to be routed, and I don't think I'd be comfortable with that.

Yeah... I don't know if anyone has noticed this on the new Spector Website yet....

http://www.spectorguitars.com/news/october-15-12.html

But I figured this would be a pretty big announcement to some.

The 34" scale Kramer-Era NS-5™, the one with dual J pups and the USA Spector 9v circuit... it's being added to the 2013 Spector lineup. And you can order one now.

Dave Fowler just got the first one last week. And it's killer.



http://youtu.be/jufILycg6vQ - It'll sound like this one.

[JPSBassist]

Originally Posted by awilkie84

By trim pot, I'm assuming you mean one of those blue square pots with a white flat-head adjustment knob hidden somewhere inside the control cavity? I'll have to check when I get home.

Yes. Adjusting that will make your TP sound A LOT better. Much less harsh.

Originally Posted by awilkie84

I wonder if the tone control can be split into 2 separate pots.

Just put a dummy pot in it anyway. Then it still looks like you've got 4 pots. You can crank the dummy one up and down (even though it doesn't do anything and is not connected) to confuse people in the crowd when you play. LOL.

And no. The 18v Spector Circuit is also on a circuit board, a much smaller one, but a board none-the-less. So the pots are attached. Sorry!

[dukeisdog]

Originally Posted by bclark812008

as far as the Wal/Spector discussion, I was/am a pretty big Tool fan so when I stumbled across a Wal 5-6 years ago, I got all giddy and had to play it. I thought the clouds would part and heaven would shine down upon me as while the angels sang along! I fiddled around with the control's for a good 30 min and it did nothing for me. I started playing 46 and 2, but alas, I didn't feel anything. I even tried Schism, Lateralus, a few Geddy licks and nothing. I went home a bit heartbroken that day! Oddly enough, the same thing happened when I tried my first Fodera!

When I got my first US Spector, the first note I hit almost made me cry! I still miss that Forte and as soon as I can afford it, I will buy another one!!

Spectors, IMO, have and do it all!!! That's why I have been playing them almost exclusively since around 2005!!

So I guess I'm not the only one that feels that way. The minute I got my Euro 5LX I knew I was in bass heaven lol. I've since picked up a nice fretless stingray 5 and sold it because it just didn't have what the Spector has. I'm in the same boat with this Dingwall Combustion I recently got. This this looks killer, and has it's own tone of it's own, but I'm still gassing hard for a nice green Spector 5er. I really don't think I'll be happy playing too much else out there, and everything that catches my eye is too pricy just to buy unseen and gamble on.

I guess I'll just stick with the Spectors

[spector_boogie]

To the Wal artist thing-
those guys would sound like those guys (Justin, Flea, Geddy) no matter what they played which is why when I too got mine, and my chops weren't instantly up to that level, I was a little depressed...

[Jaymi]

Originally Posted by JPSBassist

Yeah... I don't know if anyone has noticed this on the new Spector Website yet....

http://www.spectorguitars.com/news/october-15-12.html

But I figured this would be a pretty big announcement to some.

The 34" scale Kramer-Era NS-5™, the one with dual J pups and the USA Spector 9v circuit... it's being added to the 2013 Spector lineup. And you can order one now.

Dave Fowler just got the first one last week. And it's killer.



http://youtu.be/jufILycg6vQ - It'll sound like this one.

I am still waiting to play Dave's LOL

[j.kernodle]

the NS5 looks killer! what a great combo. Two J's and the US 9V.

I'd like to resubmit my idea to reissue the NS2-0. That's right. A forte, but with a natural oil finish. Optional US9V circuit, but standard with the Aggie OBP-2.

That right there is good times!

And PS, thanks to the crew for entertaining my Wal discussion detour. Appreciate your candor and first hand experience!

[awilkie84]

Originally Posted by JPSBassist

Yes. Adjusting that will make your TP sound A LOT better. Much less harsh.



Just put a dummy pot in it anyway. Then it still looks like you've got 4 pots. You can crank the dummy one up and down (even though it doesn't do anything and is not connected) to confuse people in the crowd when you play. LOL.

And no. The 18v Spector Circuit is also on a circuit board, a much smaller one, but a board none-the-less. So the pots are attached. Sorry!

K. Last question, I swear. lol
Are the 18v US circuits easy to find used? I could get one from Spector for $199, but I'm sure used might be a better option.

[brotherbassj]

Originally Posted by awilkie84

K. Last question, I swear. lol
Are the 18v US circuits easy to find used? I could get one from Spector for $199, but I'm sure used might be a better option.

They are NOT easy to find used. Your best bet is Spector. You alternative is an aguilar obp-2 or obp-3 wired at 18 volts........

[Jaymi]

Originally Posted by awilkie84

K. Last question, I swear. lol
Are the 18v US circuits easy to find used? I could get one from Spector for $199, but I'm sure used might be a better option.

Buy a new one....they all rock!

[steamthief]

Originally Posted by JPSBassist

Yes. Adjusting that will make your TP sound A LOT better. Much less harsh.

If you haven't done so yet, also try wiring the TP to 18V. Pretty simple job and makes the TP smoother and less "raw."