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"Official" Mikro Bass Club Part 2

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#3
jags said:
Part Two!! How Cool!!
Click to expand...

You know it jags. I did't realize we were coming up on 1000 posts. :eek: The current MikroWorld line-up. It's a short-scale world. :hyper:

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 ???
20 jimijames
21 skipsinclair
22 quadrogong
23 paulnyc
24 skyboltone
25 hammerhed
26 ???
27 marcocolo
28 ???
29 noiseninja
30 wildwes
31 lownote floyd
99 elevensixty

PS: Very impressive modifications Marcocolo. If you ever get a chance, I'd like to see you post some photos of the electronics cavity. WW
 
#4
I thought we should include Marcocolo's modifications to his Mikro in part 2:

My Mikro
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I thought I might add my project to the list here. Hopefully this will aid others who want to upgrade their Mikro.

First thing I did was the bridge fix- shortening the screws and the springs. Then I cut the nut down to lower the action. This should be done by someone who knows what they are doing. And it did make a significant difference w/ the playability. Then I filed the fret ends to make it nice and smooth on the hands. Next, hit the fretboard w/ a couple doses of Gerlitz' "Guitar Honey". Great stuff.

So far no $ involved. I'm really liking this little gem and I felt I can live w/ the bridge and tuners for the time being. Electronics next.

Researched here and elsewhere the best options for a P/J. Listened to many clips of PU's. Was most concerned w/ getting a P that I would be really happy with. Wanted "vintage" sound. Also wanted both PU's to be silent.

Finally decided on the Seymour Duncan SPB-1 and the DiMarzio Area J (humbucking) combo. These I feel offer the best bang for the buck and actually the more I hear them, maybe for any bucks.

Ordered some Bournes 250K pots w/ 1/4" smooth shafts and got a 49 mf cap from a friend. Lined the control cavity w/ copper foil. Wired it as per SD site VVT configuration. Found some cool J bass tone knobs for all the controls. I think the smaller knobs go really nicely w/ the Mikro's small body.

And what about the 4th knob , you might ask? That's a "Certainbass" Veritone that I thought I'd try out. I had to use my Dremel sanding wheel in the control cavity to get it to fit. Took all of 10 minutes.

Lastly, added some GHS "Bright Flats" that someone in this thread recommended. I'm already a big fan of GHS's flats (have them on 2 other basses). On this bass I thought that w/ the J PU in the mix, some hotter strings would allow me to get a little of the Jaco thing going. Don't like rounds so......
Also, these strings have really nice tension on the really short scale of the Mikro. I know a lot of players complain that short scale basses have floppy strings. Not so w/ these.

End result? This mod took a nice sounding great little bass to the level of an exceptional sounding no excuses what-so-ever bass. REALLY. There is absolutely NO comparison between the original PU's and the new ones. P bass PU is as good as any I've heard. The area J sounds like a very good to exceptional bridge PU w/ zero hum. Without even touching the amp, I've got 5-6 really nice ,usable different sounds- a claasic P grind, classic J, the combo of the 2, a very good cop of Jaco thru the Veritone and a good cop of Jamerson thru the Veritone . And I haven't even experimented much so far. Actually, now the bass is dead quiet.(a pet peeve of mine).

So, $180 up front, $180 for the PU's and the Veritone and $40 for the strings and the pots, etc. For about $400 I've got a bass that I think, IMHO, sounds as good as just about anything out there. Well worth the time and expense.

Photo of his bass with 4 knobs:
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=232593&d=1319051865
 
#8
Just had my Modded Active Mikro played by a pro bass player through a major Bass Amp setup at my friend's band rehearsal tonight. Everyone was blown away!! The bass player is a big guy and the Mikro looked really small but it sure had a big sound! He played the Mikro the whole night and never even went back to play his own bass.

The band played a lot of 70's funk and dance tunes (Brick House, Carwash, etc.) and this little Mikro sure Popped! The EMG BTC active tone control sure does the trick to bring this little bass to life.

Here's the write-up on my bass from part one for all those that may have missed it.

Thanks!

:cool:
 
#9
Here's a pic of the control cavity. If you don't have a Dremel, you could just as easily enlarge the area for the Veritone w/ a 1/4" chisel in the same 10 minutes. I only had to remove less than 1/8" material and the wood is pretty soft.

As you can see there is plenty of room to have 4 controls. And if you didn't want the Veritone, there's tons of room. Just be sure to get mini pots. You have to enlarge the holes to 3/8" for the Bourne pots. I just used a normal hand drill on high speed and hold steady.
 

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#12
Well It started its life as a $40 CL find! That i just loved the short scale. Then in may i was involved in a bad motorcycle wreck! And spent 10 weeks off work with a broken leg.

So in a depressed rage i was playing and the A string was buzzing. So pissed off i took the strings off. Well then got tired of seeing the black bass in the corner! So i used my crutchs to go to the side porch and got my mother inlaw to bring me the bass, palm sander, and music!

Then i really got mad. The plan was to sand it down and stain it but after sanding for HOURS!!! i found it was not one peice of wood not even the same woods! So i chucked it across the yard! Left it out side all night i was so pissed. Well the next day i decided to finsh it. So i sanded the rest of it down.And took me a few days to figure out what i wanted to do wih it.

So my mother inlaw a SAINT of a woman! Is very artistic so i asked her to paint it. and after hours of talking about it she recommended inking it instead. And i am glad she did! So we came up with what i wanted scroll and a owl and she spent her free time over next few weeks working on it.

Well then it came out so amazing! I couldnt belive it only things wrong with it where done by me when i was sandin it and when i threw it! The art was so perfect for me! She even put my initials on it MPW ll.

So i took it to a guy i know who paints cars and had him clear coat it. It has one coat of somthing that is suppose to protect the ink from lifting. And then 3 coats of automotive clear coat!

So no there are no other pics. This started at a dark time for me but shows that over time all things can get better! So now i am trying to finsh it. I started another thread about the parts i want to install. Please stop by if you can help with ideals!
 
#13
Hmmmm, I'm on mother-in-law #2 and the word "Saint" has never been mentioned in the same sentence with either. Sounds like you have a keeper there. :D

What are the two tones (colors) comprised of (stain or paint)? The darker surrounding color looks somewhat opaque like a stain. Is the ink a permanant marker or something else?

You'll definitely have a unique Mikro once it's completed. WW
 
#14
If it's anything like mine was, the darker color around the edge is probably the super-thick ibanez sanding sealer. It's easy to sand off of the flat sides, but a real bitch to get off the edges. Mine looked exactly like that (sans drawings, of course) before I painted it.
 
#20
Great jobs!
Inspiring me to put sone more work into mine,
I want to get a replacement bridge that'd go a little lower than the stock model,
and ship her off for a refin as well,
I was thinking of getting a kind of a
dune-buggy candy apple sparkle finish & creating some sort of quasi-J bass/vintage looking pickguard for her.
 
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