- Feb 23, 2018
- 14,723
- 20,970
- Disclosures
- I suck, but nobody really notices
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
36.5" scale?
- Thread starter JeezyMcNuggles
- Start date
- Feb 23, 2018
- 14,723
- 20,970
- Disclosures
- I suck, but nobody really notices
- Feb 23, 2018
- 14,723
- 20,970
- Disclosures
- I suck, but nobody really notices
False alarm people. Move along. Nothing to see here.
Just in case someone else might be asking the same question, I'll post my comment on this anyway...
36.5" is the old winding length (ball end to silk/taper) used by GHS for "standard long scale" until it was updated to the current "universal long scale" with 37.25" winding length a while ago. As a result, most of the current offerings from GHS are 37.25" now.
As a regular user of GHS strings, I've noticed some of the new strings with 37.25" winding length still come in old paper envelopes with the old winding length printed on them, either 36.5" or 38". It's those old envelopes that have outdated info that doesn't actually match the string inside, which can be confusing.
Here's one example of what I'm talking about...
Here are the four paper sleeves for the GHS Pressurewound L7200 set I got recently. G, A, E have standard long scale 36.5", and D has 38". The actual strings inside are all 37.25". The PWs I've been using for the last 5 yrs have always been 37.25" in winding length, but obviously, GHS still has old paper sleeves to use up from way back.
Here are the four paper sleeves for the GHS Pressurewound L7200 set I got recently. G, A, E have standard long scale 36.5", and D has 38". The actual strings inside are all 37.25". The PWs I've been using for the last 5 yrs have always been 37.25" in winding length, but obviously, GHS still has old paper sleeves to use up from way back.
Last edited:
- Feb 23, 2018
- 14,723
- 20,970
- Disclosures
- I suck, but nobody really notices
Alright. You see, when I ordered the set for my jazz, I failed to notice that the package was marked 34+. So, with this set I made sure that everything was "standard long scale" then, I put the string through my bridge, and without tension it was already at the peg. I was like, "really dude!" And checked the package before I clipped and wound the string. Haha. It's all good though. I did right this time
36.5 winding I believe is stock on Fender strings too, or at least it was. It is my understanding that length was made to fit the standard 34" Fender bass originally.
Fender's "long scale" is now 37.1" in winding length just like D'Addario's "long scale". Elixir is one of the few companies whose "long scale" is still 36.5".
Last edited:
- Feb 23, 2018
- 14,723
- 20,970
- Disclosures
- I suck, but nobody really notices
Elixir hasn't made my strings in a good while now, that's why I'm forced to buy ghs. Boomers are good. They have about the same tone (it's pretty close) to the elixirs, and they feel nice. They just don't last.
If you find the Boomers too "dead" or "dark" once broken in, you might want to try the GHS Bassics. They're both NPS rounds, but very different in their tonal character due to the fact the Bassics are all stainless steel under the NPS outer cover, making them slightly brighter with a clear and crisp (not zingy) top end.
36.5" is the winding length it takes to get the windings comfortably past the nut, but finish them before the E string hits the tuner on a Fender headstock style (4 on top) bass. That's exactly what you want for a 34" scale length bass. Longer winding lengths (designed to accomodate 35 inch scales) often wrap the fat part of the E around the tuner post (as seen in a prior post) when used on a Fender headstock style 4. Whether or not that's an issue is for a separate (highly charged) thread.
Last edited:
...unless you want to put them thru-body. 36.5" is perfect for top-loading on a Fender, but barely long enough for thru-body. This is why a lot of manufacturers have moved to 37" - 37.25" for their "long scale", which would also be long enough for top-loading on a 35" scale.
Here's how the GHS Pressurewounds with 37.25" winding length fit on my Am Std P-bass thru-body:
Agreed. On all my basses, I have through body provisions for at least the lowest string - on some basses, for all the strings. I do that ( I build my own basses, so I get to decide this stuff) not because through hole loading is better sonically, but because I sometimes end up with strings where I need that to avoid wrapping windings over the B or E tuner post.
Um, when Leo went to top-load strings on the 1957 P-bass. Seriously, especially with GHS, "standard long scale 36.5" has been that way forever. It is only in recent years that "Long Scale Plus" of 37+ inches is what is included in most sets.
That is because D'Addario makes Fender strings under contract. A few other companies, whether original manufacture or under contract (La Bella for the B and E strings, and Ken Smith under contract to GHS come to mind) also make 36.5" low B and E strings.
Ric5
Inactive
- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
- 30,452
- Disclosures
- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
I have seen strings break when the part where it narrows gets into the headstock.
I solved that problem on this bass here this way
This bass is a medium scale and the long scale strings ended up at the wrong place in the B tuner.
- Feb 23, 2018
- 14,723
- 20,970
- Disclosures
- I suck, but nobody really notices
That's pretty nifty dude. You do that on every string, and no more limited string selection blues for you
Ric5
Inactive
- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
- 30,452
- Disclosures
- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
I have 2 basses that I do that just on the low B ... Because I didn't want to buy a different scale of strings for one bass.
There is a theory that the low b will be better because the cut string length is longer, but I suspect it is the distance from the saddle to the nut that really matters.
I had a 5 string bass years ago that every time I put a certain brand of strings on the B string would break at the machine head. My solution back then was to use a different brand of strings.
