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Be persistant and patient:)

C

chadds

Mar 18, 2000
12,025
7,720
Save the Cheerleader Save the World
#1
I chose a bass while it was under construction from a well known luthier. Spanish Cedar body, Ebony Fret bd, & Madrone top. Very beautiful. I have two similar basses from him. When I received it almost five years ago something was not right. It played well but sounded timid and had reduced output. He graciously had me return it and installed at no charge an upgraded preamp that had mid controls. Their belief was that that would allow a boost or cut in this area and be the fix.
It was partially effective. Meanwhile my other two basses were roaring, tearing up venues everywhere.
I changed strings from the stock D'Addarios to DR Sunbeams. Huge difference on this bass. I love the D'Addarios on one of the other basses.
Still this issue.
Changed to CB Bartolinis. Opened the sound up yet again.
Still this nagging issue. It was tired on a kicking gig. Reduced volume of about a third compared my others. Excellent in the studio.
The Luthier was partially correct in saying that the effects of the wood choices could be to blame. Making a compressed deep sound without much liveliness. I would just get hiss if I turned up the treble.
I was about to sell it. I had resigned myself to studio use only. Then....
I took it to my tech who Sadowski speaks highly of by the way. He asked the same questions about the woods. He asked how does it sound acoustically. I told him I'd been through all that but that the volume was only two thirds of my other two and about the no highs.
He placed it on his jig. He opened the back plate looked around then said, "hmmm".
He removed the jack and said, "hey did I see how tight that was?"
Drum roll please.......
The positive post was touching the shielding!!!!
Voltmeter confirmed suspicions. He said it would be like having a master volume turned down. I'd have reduced frequency response. Now insulated and isolated. Voilá!
It's unbelievable. Turns out that all the new ones have shrink tubing there to prevent this but mine was done when an "inconsistent" employee was on staff.:):)
Anyway, it's a Monster! The mids are huge. It's like Xmas in that I just got a new bass whose characteristics I'm just beginning to explore.
So hang in there.
 
#5
Okay.
Drum roll.
It's a Roscoe.
Here let me say that Keith and Gard were with me all the way. They never lost patience, or said, "oh well", but always had suggestions and delivered top drawer customer service.
The reason I wrote this was so that all of us can persist to draw the best out of ourselves and our instruments. Perhaps by heeding a hunch when all the "facts" say move on or forget the whole thing.

This LG 3005 has jumped up to favorite of my three when it was almost out the door.!
 
#6
chadds said:
Trying to not out the company. I'm a small business owner and people can make sweeping judgements, say about quality control. I wouldn't and will continue to buy their basses.
Click to expand...

Hey Chadds! :hyper:

...thanks for your patience as we went through this, sometimes the smallest of things can really take a while to figure out. We're sorry about the time it took to finally diagnose the situation, but thrilled that it is fixed, and that you're happy with it - that is one beautiful bass and always sounded great unplugged, now the plugged in tone matches it!

:D
 
#7
Here she is!
She was fabulous at an outside gig today. Articulate and huge!:)
 

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#8
IMO, seems to me that exchanging it outright for you would have been a quicker and more customer friendly solution.

If a 3rd party luthier can spot/fix the problem, the builder (after exchanging it) should have been able to as well.
 
#9
Thats one of the first things i would have checked. Im actually surprised it took qualified people that long to figure out. Not downing you or them, just kind of surprising anyone would consider the wood before all the electronics were gone over.
 
#10
I get that, good points, all! Yet, having two others and a life :) it was easy to put this on the back burner for stretches. Roscoe was sure that was not the issue because the absence of a shrink shielding was for a short period during the work of that employee.

I know where the buck stops. Don't make me correct in not wanting to out these folks.

Please enjoy my joy and realize if any maker isn't human than indeed aliens from space, walk among us and another of our questions is answered.:)
 
#13
Bass-Adrenaline said:
Thats one of the first things i would have checked. Im actually surprised it took qualified people that long to figure out. Not downing you or them, just kind of surprising anyone would consider the wood before all the electronics were gone over.
Click to expand...

See the problem was that it worked. On a quiet singer songwriter gig I could boost the eq. and compensate. Also if I played very gently as I would in such a gig it spoke evenly. Studio tracking it was really nice. (I say that now cause I haven't recorded the new improved beast!) Dig in or require some oomph out of the pre it would seem squashed or throttled back. It was more subtle than obvious. So on a bench it would seem "adequate". Hey the last luthier didn't catch it either on two other visits including when he installed the CBs. What's not subtle is the difference between it's chronic condition and it's new born "Hello, Here I Am!"
 
#19
Great story and a great looking bass! I'm sure its a super player, as well. Just to piggyback with you Chadds, every Roscoe I've ever played or seen, for that matter absolutely killed! Very top drawer in every sense. There is a local guy around my neck of the woods that has one and everytime I see his band...I get wistful.
 

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