5 string set for 33.5 scale bass

[ugly_bassplayer]

Title says it all, looking for a 5 string set of strings (BEADG) for a bass with 33,5 inch scale.
With the low B on regular sets, the string gets thicker when winding close the the post and often breaks.

Any suggestions would be more than welcome

thanks

 

[michael_t]

Title says it all, looking for a 5 string set of strings (BEADG) for a bass with 33,5 inch scale.
With the low B on regular sets, the string gets thicker when winding close the the post and often breaks.

Any suggestions would be more than welcome

thanks

What's the actual measurement on your bass from where the ball end is seated to the B tuner post?

 

[michael_t]

By the way, any specific type of string you're after?

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

Roundwounds
It’s a 70s Yamaha lawsuit precision bass, the exact measurement from saddle to nut is 33,75
Yes, it was measured by a skilled tech.

That .25 less than 34 is enough to break regular scale low B strings.
Tried D’addario 125 and 130, both broke.

yes I intend to tune this bass BEAD
It already is but the .125 has been unwound and soldered to be thinner wound around the post to avoid breakages
I want something that fits out of the package

 

[michael_t]

Roundwounds
It’s a 70s Yamaha lawsuit precision bass, the exact measurement from saddle to nut is 33,75
Yes, it was measured by a skilled tech.

I wasn't asking about the "scale length".

I need to know the measurement from the ball end to the B tuner post so we can determine the proper "winding length" you need for that bass. Please and thank you.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

I wasn't asking about the "scale length".

I need to know the measurement from the ball end to the B tuner post so we can determine the proper "winding length" you need for that bass. Please and thank you.

sorry, ball end to middle of tuner post is 36 3/16” inches.

 

[HaphAsSard]

^ This.

By the by,

the exact measurement from saddle to nut is 33,75

I wasn't asking about the "scale length".

When exact scale length is unknown, the correct method to measure it is from the boardward edge of the nut to the crown of the 12th fret, multiplied by 2: this removes intonation compensation at the bridge saddles out of the calculation.

[Again, as said by Michael, this is not germane to the topic at hand: beside scale proper, basses vary wildly in "afterlengths" (distance from ball to saddle, but also from nut to 1st tuning post), which reflects in their string full-gauge winding length requirement.]

 

[HaphAsSard]

sorry, ball end to middle of tuner post is 36 3/16” inches.

For completeness's sake, what is the *minimum* requirement: in other words, what is the distance between ball- end and nut?

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

For completeness's sake, what is the *minimum* requirement: in other words, what is the distance between ball- end and nut?

Ball end to nut 34 11/16th”
Thank you for all your help
Very much appreciated

 

[michael_t]

ball end to middle of tuner post is 36 3/16” inches.

Ball end to nut 34 11/16th”

The shortest B string in a factory "long scale" 5-string set that I know of is 36.5" in winding length (ball end to taper), which is still a bit too long. Does this bass have a type of bridge where the ball end can be pulled down farther by way of a spacer?

"Medium scale" by GHS is 35.5" in winding length, which would be perfect except for the fact GHS doesn't offer any 5-string sets in "medium scale".

You might also want to check into Pyramid strings. Their "long scale" (at least on some sets) is 36".

EDIT: Stringjoy (US) and Newtone (UK) have custom options for both gauges and winding lengths.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

The shortest B string in a factory "long scale" 5-string set that I know of is 36.5" in winding length (ball end to taper), which is still a bit too long. Does this bass have a type of bridge where the ball end can be pulled down farther by way of a spacer?

"Medium scale" by GHS is 35.5" in winding length, which would be perfect except for the fact GHS doesn't offer any 5-string sets in "medium scale".

You might also want to check into Pyramid strings. Their "long scale" (at least on some sets) is 36".

I think I’ll try adding a small bushing next to the bridge to pull back the ball by 1/2”, imo that seems the easiest fix

 

[michael_t]

I think I’ll try adding a small bushing next to the bridge to pull back the ball by 1/2”, imo that seems the easiest fix

By the way, the 5-string set with a low B with 36.5" winding I'm thinking of is the GHS Super Steels. E-G are 38".

 

[micguy]

With that scale, what you need is a bridge with through hole mounting to take up some of the extra string length. Strings nowadays are made to accomodate 35 inch scale instruments, and even on a 34, you've gotta pay attention to where the B string tuner is (The Fender design puts it to close to the nut) and where the string is anchored on the bridge end. You take that down to a 33.5, and you've got to be even more meticulous about things - you need to make the instrument accomodate normal strings, not the other way around.

 

[HaphAsSard]

You might also want to check into Pyramid strings. Their "long scale" (at least on some sets) is 36".

Alas, per their latest catalog (p. 15), Pyramid only makes their flatwounds 36.4" long ball to silk: the roundwounds are 37.4".

@ugly_bassplayer:
Warwick* makes long-scale string sets that have a 36" winding length; unfortunately, they only specify that for their black nylon tapewounds: it is not certain it applies to other product lines. Still, you could try one of their Red Label nickel-plated sets (they're inexpensive and well-received)
Warwick Red Label Bass String Set, Nickel-Plated Steel - 5-String, Low B, Medium, .045-.135 | Bass North
and see for yourself whether or not they fit. Failing that, I'd certainly try the bushing trick.



* [They also happen to make off-the-shelf medium-scale 5-string sets, but per the same information they provide regarding their tapes, these may be too short for you, i.e. only 34" ball-to-taper. They're also harder to find. Their USA online outlet has them
Warwick Black Label Bass String Sets | 5-String | Medium Scale | Stainless Steel
but the Canadian distributor they point to
Link Removed
does not.
Speaking of medium-scale fiver options,
there is also a single D'Addario low B (XLB130M) you can purchase at their website;
and also a (possibly discontinued - I can only find it in European stores) Dunlop set, part no. "DBSBN45125M"; similarly to the Warwick set, both of these alternatives are probably too short, at 34" winding, for the OP.]

 

[ole Jason]

Can you post photos of the headstock and how the B string is wound? Half an inch difference shouldn't be causing strings to break with any regularity. I've done all sorts of dumb stuff in my youth with B strings and they very very rarely actually broke.

 

[Rabidhamster]

Can you post photos of the headstock and how the B string is wound? Half an inch difference shouldn't be causing strings to break with any regularity. I've done all sorts of dumb stuff in my youth with B strings and they very very rarely actually broke.

Yeah Id be interested in where its breaking exactly, a burr in the string to tuner contact area would seem a more likely culprit.

 

[Killing Floor]

Send a message to Stringjoy

 

[iiipopes]

What's the actual measurement on your bass from where the ball end is seated to the B tuner post?

This ^ Let us all repeat the mantra:
1) measure from the ball anchor to the middle of the lowest tuner post;
2) measure from the ball anchor to the tuner side of the nut;
3) Purchase a set of strings that the winding or speaking length of the string is between these two measurements.

That said, 33.5 is close enough to 34 that regular long scale strings may work, depending on where the B string tuner is, and short enough that GHS medium scale strings may work, depending on where the string anchor is. I string my 33-inch scale bass with a plate bridge with regular long scale D'Addario XL170B plus a 130 B string, but then again it is a custom neck which I specified to the luthier use a 2+3 tuner arrangement so the B string tuner is far enough up the headstock to not bind.

 

[eddododo]

Interesting issue. I’ve gotta say, I’ve used too long a B string such that the entire length after trimming is full thickness many times, and I haven’t had an actual problem ever ..

I certainly agree that it’s a bad practice, but suffice to say that being careful and deliberate during installation has been more than enough to avoid any breakage.. the only time I’ve ever experienced a break/issue was from removing one of these compromised strings and using it on a different bass, such that tension is put across the ‘kinked’ part..

It can also be helpful to use a little extra length, such that even a badly damaged kink becomes completely irrelevant because there are extra winds and virtually no force is transferred between the sounding / suspended portion of the string and the inner wrap and kink.



All that side, a spacer between ball-end and bridge sounds like a pretty agreeable solution for you, provided you don’t need .5” worth of spacer, lol.

If you have any hardware stores nearby that have the Hillman bins of loose fasteners and hardware, they are likely to have a few different kinds of tube/sleeve spacers.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

Yeah Id be interested in where its breaking exactly, a burr in the string to tuner contact area would seem a more likely culprit.

It breaks when the full string radius hits the tuner post.