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What can I do to improve my B string?

serein2j

serein2j

May 25, 2008
778
7
Austin, TX
#1
Maybe I'm beating on a dead horse here but I've done some searching and couldn't find much help... about the B strings. (Maybe I was searching for a wrong keyword)

I have a 2009 Fender Customshop Classic Jazz V bass and it's got pretty good low B string. It's strung with Sadowsky Standard blue label (w/ 130 gauge tapered core string through body) and it has pretty nice low B.

I think compare to my Stingray 5, low b on the Jazz is just as good....
BUT, couple days ago, I went to the Bass emporium for lesson and while waiting for Ed, I've tried a couple Sadowsky's for the first time and WOW. It's got some B!

Tone wise I liked my Fender better having more Vintage like tone. But the B string on the Sadowsky had more "Sizzle" than my Musicman or the Fender and made me thinking about Sadowsky........

And got me thinking if there's anything I could improve on the Fender to have a better B (or have more sizzle)....
I'm thinking about the fender mount Hipshot A bridge w/ string through option but kinda worried that it might change the tone...

Well... what do you guys think?
Tuners?
Bridge?
String Retainers?(I'm laughing at my self on this on but of well:ninja:)
Better Setup?

or Ultimate solution, sell/trade for a Sadowsky?


Here's some pics.... which might help.
download?fid=642221d25038a902fef423d09ad0a146&name=P1020992.jpg

download?fid=642221d25038a9021ee923d09ad0ad46&name=P1020993.jpg

download?fid=642221d25038a902d1f223d09ad0b946&name=P1020994.jpg
 
#6
Marton said:
I don't have a solution for you, but that's probably the best looking jazz I ever saw ! By the way, what's the color, tobacco burst or cherry burst ?
Click to expand...

It's Aged Cherry burst :)

stuonbass said:
Pre amp.
Click to expand...

I thought about replacing Fender preamp to Sadowsky but I'm afraid I will lose its tone...


Mike Shevlin said:
DR High Beams may help~ I don't have a lot of luck with tapered strings.
Click to expand...

Yea me too... especially when I'm having those double chord sound...
I guess I will try some DRs next...
 
#7
IMO there's very little one can do to improve a B string or the response and definition of any string for that matter. The extent of it would be a string change and proper setup and if neither does the trick then it just may not be a good one. If you happen to be really unlucky you could have bad pickups that need replacement. I suppose tone is subjective but IME taper core strings are great for the low B. The dissonance on some of the higer notes never seems to be that bad for me though.

This definitely won't help things any but I have yet to play a Fender B string that floored me like a Roscoe, Sandberg, Sadowsky, Lull, and a few others have. I happen to like the B on my FMT V (and the tone and feel overall are awesome) but I've definitely played better.
 
#9
Kwesi said:
IMO there's very little one can do to improve a B string or the response and definition of any string for that matter. The extent of it would be a string change and proper setup and if neither does the trick then it just may not be a good one. If you happen to be really unlucky you could have bad pickups that need replacement. I suppose tone is subjective but IME taper core strings are great for the low B. The dissonance on some of the higer notes never seems to be that bad for me though.

This definitely won't help things any but I have yet to play a Fender B string that floored me like a Roscoe, Sandberg, Sadowsky, Lull, and a few others have. I happen to like the B on my FMT V (and the tone and feel overall are awesome) but I've definitely played better.
Click to expand...

I'm pretty much in agreement with this. Maybe a different bridge can help but usually it's the bass itself that determines it somehow. Supposedly Fender has done some things to improve their B string sound, but I don't know what they did. I pretty much agree with everyone else here that my Fender Deluxe B is not all that bad but certainly not "to die for" the way the B on my Modulus or Ken Smith is.
 
#10
I've got an Ibanez BTB455 that I've been using Everly B52 medium guage strings on. Its the only "B" string I've used on this bass that has good definition with a strong presence and its even-sounding across the strings. Even slapping sounds good with this string. I had two other 5-string basses that never sounded good with any "B" string. Of course, the BTB is a 35" scale, the others were 34". That may have helped.

Invalid Link Removed

Lloyd Howard
 
#12
Different basses respond differently to different things. I have a Jaguar and a Fender Jazz. Both strung BEAD. I put Badass II bridges on both of them, The Jazz gained a little sustain but the B, which was good but not great stayed about the same. The Jaguar however was another story. There was a night and day difference, I get so much more fundamental from it now, wow! Both basses sport Rotosound Swingbass 665LD strings and both have Fender CS '60s pickups.
 
#14
I just want to say that's a great looking bass. If I were you I'd do everything in my power to make it work for me. Start experimenting with strings. I tend to like a lighter gauge, like a .125, on the B. It's counter-intuitive to me (what I think I'd like isn't what I actually like in practice), but I like them better.

The Hipshot seems a good choice to me, but only after a bit of trial and error with strings.

The post linking to a thread on Joe Bardens does inspire the question of how the Sadowsky and you Fender compared when not plugged in. Figure out if it's the electronics or the bass acoustically (or what combination of both) so you can use your money effectively. Strings are the cheapest thing to change and arguably will make the biggest difference, so start there. I think you'd have a very formidable bass with a Hipshot, some great pickups (never tried the Bardens but I haven't been disappointed with Fender's offerings) and the right strings.

KO
 
#15
I have both a Custom Shop V (Reggie Hamilton) and a Sadowsky NYC 5 and I think this is a two-part problem; one is that the Fender B string might feel looser physically and the other problem might be that it doesn't sounds as punchy or defined as the Sadowsky, which are really two separate issues. With my two basses, the Custom Shop V has a physically tighter B than the Sadowsky, but the Sadowsky's B sounds a lot punchier. I'm pretty sure that Sadowsky cut out the muddy hi-mid frequencies of their B string in their pickups, not preamp, because I play both basses in passive. To me, the difference between both B strings makes is quite noticeable at low volumes, like when messing around at home or at a music shop, but really not that noticeable at louder volumes where the Custom Shop's B really rivals that of the Sadowsky. I love my Custom Shop just as much as my Sadowsky, so you've got a tough choice my friend.
 
#16
kraigo said:
I just want to say that's a great looking bass. If I were you I'd do everything in my power to make it work for me. Start experimenting with strings. I tend to like a lighter gauge, like a .125, on the B. It's counter-intuitive to me (what I think I'd like isn't what I actually like in practice), but I like them better.

The Hipshot seems a good choice to me, but only after a bit of trial and error with strings.

The post linking to a thread on Joe Bardens does inspire the question of how the Sadowsky and you Fender compared when not plugged in. Figure out if it's the electronics or the bass acoustically (or what combination of both) so you can use your money effectively. Strings are the cheapest thing to change and arguably will make the biggest difference, so start there. I think you'd have a very formidable bass with a Hipshot, some great pickups (never tried the Bardens but I haven't been disappointed with Fender's offerings) and the right strings.

KO
Click to expand...

Yes, I will definitely work my way up from Strings and thanks for great advice!

john nam said:
I have both a Custom Shop V (Reggie Hamilton) and a Sadowsky NYC 5 and I think this is a two-part problem; one is that the Fender B string might feel looser physically and the other problem might be that it doesn't sounds as punchy or defined as the Sadowsky, which are really two separate issues. With my two basses, the Custom Shop V has a physically tighter B than the Sadowsky, but the Sadowsky's B sounds a lot punchier. I'm pretty sure that Sadowsky cut out the muddy hi-mid frequencies of their B string in their pickups, not preamp, because I play both basses in passive. To me, the difference between both B strings makes is quite noticeable at low volumes, like when messing around at home or at a music shop, but really not that noticeable at louder volumes where the Custom Shop's B really rivals that of the Sadowsky. I love my Custom Shop just as much as my Sadowsky, so you've got a tough choice my friend.
Click to expand...

Yes, this was exactly what I was wondering about. Like you said, physically my Fender feels tighter on the string for sure with same strings!(probably because string through on the Fender) but not as defined as Sadowsky. Maybe it's pickup thing.... we will see... I'm ready to do some experiment :)
 
#18
fwiw I was never happy w/ the B on my mia j V . . . I put in duncan 1/4lb's added a string retainer (I know the consensus around here is that doesn;t add tension, but It does feel tighter to me! mental? maybe. I love my ignorant bliss) and started using a SABDDI. set w/ hardly any drive and I absolutely LOVE the way it feels and sounds now... still haven't found THE string yet but for now it's WAY better for me.

and atop all of this, shortly after I got everything in place I fell in love w/ my p/j 4 all over again and hardly use the 5'r any more... :D go figure!
 

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