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basses for newbies (SX batch build thread)

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#943
You may recall several months ago, someone on the forum mentioned in passing that these might be super cool bridges.
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Punkster said:
One question here, Chunger! Have you tried to add a nicer bridge? let's say umm.. Babicz Full Contact Hardware? i haven't tried it.. but based on the reviews from GC and MF, damn, it seems like a sadistic bridge..
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HAHA!! i recommended that :D:D:D:D

I mean, i should get a free bass cause of the whole thing of the bridge and stuff :rolleyes: haha jk..

It's good to see that my thoughts were taken seriously :D

Keep it up, Chung!
 
#944
chunger said:
While installing the new pup in #7, I went ahead and grounded the alnico pole pieces except I thought of a trick to ensure I don't ground the pickup output lugs in the process:

p503710016-6.jpg


A little piece of electrical tape is all that's needed. Now I don't have to be so anal about the position of the copper tape under the pup.





Onward!
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you could paint the solder dots with nail polish as well and achieve the same thing even cleaner. I am way digging this thread. I've been reading it on and off for three days. My eyes are all bugged out!

H
 
#945
A quick note about the Babicz. . . as of right now, I still think the price-performance king of the hill for aftermarket bridges is Gotoh 201 via Warmoth @ ~$30.00 .

but, because the Babicz is able to run significantly lower than the Gotoh, you might be able to run without a shim on the Babicz. . . or if already shimmed actually fit with the Babicz when the Gotoh will not go low enough without physically modding the saddles or reverting to the stock SX saddles which are not machined or coated as cleanly as the Gotoh ones. If that is the situation, the added cost of the Babicz outweighs the extra work and hassle of running a bridge that doesn't go low enough.

I venture to guess that ~50% of SX's even when shimmed will not be able to run the Gotoh without saddle mods. . . even with the neck shimmed. . . if set up for low-ish action.

Another note. . . while the stock saddles fit on the Gotoh, and the unit is functional, the saddle screws and the channels in the base plate do not line up absolutely perfect, so there is a little bit of wonkiness in that setup.
 
#946
#2 has been spotted "in the wild". Note: this bass is still running stock SX pups. Dave typically plays a very muted staccato style, so it may actually s not run into "SX effect". I think he is still waiting for jazz bass pickup development to finish up before going to Nords on #2.

He's still rockin' the blue tape on the pickguard :ninja:

p433062726.jpg


FB link to pics: http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...15.91469.1278101007&pid=1724516&id=1278101007

I'm not sure if it the link will work due to FB privacy settings.

Basses are moving. . . I wish I had more standard grade basses for students. Those seem to be popular and a good fit for some new students (actual newbies? . .. say it ain't so.). Looks like #17 is sold to Diz, #11 is out for a test drive, and #10 is going to get dropped off at the studio for someone to check out. . . #13 and #5 are with Jasaman with a couple of new students interested. If you build it, they will come :D .
 
#947
chunger said:
A quick note about the Babicz. . . as of right now, I still think the price-performance king of the hill for aftermarket bridges is Gotoh 201 via Warmoth @ ~$30.00 .

but, because the Babicz is able to run significantly lower than the Gotoh, you might be able to run without a shim on the Babicz. . . or if already shimmed actually fit with the Babicz when the Gotoh will not go low enough without physically modding the saddles or reverting to the stock SX saddles which are not machined or coated as cleanly as the Gotoh ones. If that is the situation, the added cost of the Babicz outweighs the extra work and hassle of running a bridge that doesn't go low enough.

I venture to guess that ~50% of SX's even when shimmed will not be able to run the Gotoh without saddle mods. . . even with the neck shimmed. . . if set up for low-ish action.

Another note. . . while the stock saddles fit on the Gotoh, and the unit is functional, the saddle screws and the channels in the base plate do not line up absolutely perfect, so there is a little bit of wonkiness in that setup.
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What about Hipshot or Leo Quan Bridges? How would they stack up in this regard?
 
#949
HEADLE said:
you could paint the solder dots with nail polish as well and achieve the same thing even cleaner. I am way digging this thread. I've been reading it on and off for three days. My eyes are all bugged out!
H
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Just another comment on the problem of magnet/pole piece grounding. My G&L Tribute had a pole piece noise injection problem due to no grounding. Didn't have any copper foil with conductive glue handy and anyway on the MM pickups there is only an edge of the pole pieces barely visible.

In an early incarnation I actually had thin wires running from the bridge (grounded) to the pole pieces on the top of the bass. Well that certainly was not boutique! So here's the helpful hint: It's called a "CircuitWriter" conductive pen. You get them at Radio Shack. [Radio Shack # 276 0037] Not expensive. Has a rattle-ball for mixing. There is a valve on the tip to seal it between uses. (You push down on it to write)

Too cool for words. use it to fix broken conductive paint or ground anything that needs grounding!
 
#951
tlr1293 said:
OK - I've scoured this thread - what exactly is "SX Effect"?
I know it exists - I just need everyone else's interpretation of it...

Thanks all.
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I believe the "sx effect" is a bit of distortion coming from driving it too hard, I could probably find it but I'm too lazy to dig through the thread right now.

Edit: Found it.

The "SX effect" we discovered in testing has been bugging me. That is, everything sound beautiful under a certain threshold. . . then, dig in a little too hard, and the bass distorts. All 3 instruments exhibit this trait. It was particularly evident when tracking the slap lines on Fantastic Voyage. You really had to feather the bass and tread lightly.

So far, this is the only critical deficiency I've found on the batch. I am thinking about standardizing on Nordstrand NJ4 and NP4 pickups for the rest of the builds.

I've ordered 2 sets to test. Still on the prowl for something more affordable, but I figure I can keep the leads long, the pups will not lose much value just by themselves since they are a well-known item.
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#953
I was talking amp development and basses with a friend tonight, and he mentioned that I needed to set up a facebook fan page for this project, so I figured why not? It's a work in progress and it would take loads of work to update that to the level of detail this thread has, but please add a "like" if you get a chance and want to get some updates that way.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Chunger-Bass-Guitars-by-Studio-939/171572666192570
 
#954
p738100243-5.jpg


Looks like I will be able to do several samples for NAMM. . . this is going to get real exciting real fast.

Picked final graphics last night. Went simple, clean, reserved.

We are confirmed for chambered bodies which is nice. Because the factory does not utilize CNC process for body fabrication, it will be based on pin router/template setup. I will not be able to chamber the area beneath the top arm cutout, and I will not be able to follow the belly cut as closely as others are able to do with CNC (can't afford too many depth changes in the build process). So, I will not be able to reduce weight as much as Sadowsky or Warmoth, but I will be moving in the right direction.
 
#956
chunger said:
p738100243-5.jpg


Looks like I will be able to do several samples for NAMM. . . this is going to get real exciting real fast.

Picked final graphics last night. Went simple, clean, reserved.
Click to expand...

It's amazing what a simple rotation will do! Very, very nice! Gives the headstock a simple elegance worthy of the final bass. Love it!

By the way, I've been working on my SX collection and the transformation has been incredible! I can see why you complain about the SX bridges. I managed to get them working with a bunch of prying and adjusting on the saddles, but they sure are less than optimum. I only wish there was some nice alternative like the Babicz for 5 and 6 string SX spacing. Boo.
 
#960
bassbenj said:
According to Chunger they don't go low as the SX Bridge whereas the Babicz actually goes lower!
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Actually, the only one that I know for certain does not go as low as the stock SX or Babicz is the Gotoh 201 that was installed in #3. I have not put hands on the hipshot, badass, or schaller bridges to confirm or deny that they go as low as the stock bridge.
 
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