Aye! True that. Yeah, I think I'll just have to trade in for the strings... I'll think about it.
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Can a long scale bass strings be put on a short scale bass?
- Thread starter Basswoman99
- Start date
True! I'll just buy a proper strings from it. Saves me from the troubles...View attachment 1176174 View attachment 1176172 View attachment 1176185 As you've probably figured out by now, the answer is; yes, you can, But...
- It depends on the bass. All of these basses are short scale, but;
--- this Gretsch is so large, it needs long scale strings generally, but a couple brands of mediums will work - sorta:
--- this Epiphone needs medium scale strings generally, but a couple brands of short scales will work - sorta;
--- This Kramer Duke needs short scale strings; and, even then, not all of them will work on it.
- It depends on the tuners. Guitar-style tuners (like the Kramer) have holes too small for the large diameter of a cut-off long scale string. Tuners with small diameter shafts may work, depending on the particular brand/type of strings. Or, they might not... Large diameter shafts will probably work, but it's a pain to get the strings to wind properly...
- It depends on the strings. This is generally a bad idea with flat wounds, but, depending on brand/gauge, you might get away with it, if you put the right angle bend in the string first, before you cut it. Rounds? I've done it, but I bent the strings first, and was very slow and careful with winding them on the tuner pegs. Even then, it required a lot of hand-bending the strings to get them to wind properly...
Honestly, the only time I'd do this would be: if I had to play right now, and had no choice; if I was flat broke, and had no choice; or if the strings I really, really wanted on my bass only came in long scale, so I had no choice. Otherwise, it's just more trouble than it's worth...
Besides the wrap as you mentioned, there is also the poor witness point on that string, thelook of the nut, and most important of all, the name on the headstock, if a certain thread about the builder has any meaning.
True that. This bass was / is of particular interest as it's 33" scale, same as my Valenti 5. The ideal string would have a 35.5" winding length...good luck finding that! The fact that it's a Prat is purely coincidental but, yes, I do recall seeing the aforementioned thread.
Riis
Every set of strings I have are cut. Often strings are longer than needed. Ever see someone with thirty winds climbing All over themselves? Or that person with the ends of the strings poking out five inches. I cut them about four inches past the tuner. Poke the end down the center hole in the tuner then bend the string 90 degrees down then bend it again to start around the post. This usually gives me about three wraps. That is clean and very safe to get good tension. I had to edit this. I typed this on my phone. I hate bad spelling.
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Don't tell anyone but I use one of those gadgets that pushes ball joints in, like 10000 lbs of pressure.
I don't understand how you guys are not cracking the E-string at the tuning peg...
I've got a 28.6" fiver and there's no way in hell I'm going to get a long-scale B to fit
I've got a 28.6" fiver and there's no way in hell I'm going to get a long-scale B to fit
I have two short scale basses with long scale strings on them. Tape wounds running on one now for the last 3 years. The other is currently running D'Addario half rounds cut down with no problem.
Had an Ernie Ball long scale roundwound E string on it before that. When you're playing somewhere and can't get short scale strings, you don't get a choice.
Had an Ernie Ball long scale roundwound E string on it before that. When you're playing somewhere and can't get short scale strings, you don't get a choice.
Round-wound or Half-Rounds might work, sounds like a lot of players roll that way.
Long Scale Flats on the other hand - would be near impossible. The fat part breaks if you crimp it to go down the hole.
You've already got the P-Bass with tort. Might as well go all the way and grab some short scale LaBella DTF flats. ;^)
Long Scale Flats on the other hand - would be near impossible. The fat part breaks if you crimp it to go down the hole.
You've already got the P-Bass with tort. Might as well go all the way and grab some short scale LaBella DTF flats. ;^)
???????Don't tell anyone but I use one of those gadgets that pushes ball joints in, like 10000 lbs of pressure.
Well, this is actually my first short-scale bass, and I use flats. If you have a Fender or other bass with fat tuning posts, there won't be a problem. But the tuning posts on my bass are not that wide, and flats don't bend as well as rounds do.
I've never seen official (as in string manufacturers) sources stating that short-scale strings are, generally speaking, qualitatively different or wound at a different tension than long-scale ones. That I have never seen any means little, of course: any link you could find in support?
AFAIK some makers just wind them to the correct length but with core and wrap diameters and materials identical to the LS counterparts. The string is then shorter and, when in use, tuned standard at a shorter scale ergo looser, but otherwise identical to its LS sister. Some brands use different gauges in SS sets than in the LS, their chosen gauge recipe for what they judge to be the best tone at 30" scale.
Occasionally string designers may tweak the core-to-wrap ratio to get some more tension at short scale without a gauge increase. The old D'Addario tension chart pdf shows the strings from the short-scale nickel-plated steel roundwound .050–.105 set to be more massive than the corresponding long, medium and superlong scale versions: vd. pages 10-11 (9-10 of .pdf file); cf. ("Unit Weight", i.e. mass x linear inch, column) items XB050S, XB070S, XB085S and XB105S vs. XLB050 etc., XB050M etc. and XB050SL etc.
Judging from tension figures given for the current set (EXL160S) at its [This invalid link has been removed], I don't think they bother making them like that anymore.
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What I'm reading so far from this tread is that everyone who has put long scale strings on a short scale hasn't had any issues but everyone who hasn't says it's a bad idea. I need flatwound bass strings that are medium gauged (50, 70, 85, 105). I can only find these for long scale basses(https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000EEJ7Q0/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_IKIECbKRDQ982). If anyone can find these in short scale please let me know! If not, tell me if I could put long scale string in a shorty or not.
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IME using shortscales for several decades, it depends on the strings and how small the tuning post is.
I've never had a problem using longscale Chromes on a shortscale with properly sized tuning posts. However around here they're now readily available in shortscale so I don't bother with the longscales anymore. The shortscales are not the same gauge as you want but I've never had an issue with them due to their gauge.
BTW, I currently use D'Addario shortscale nylon tapewound strings much more than Chromes and the nylon tapes are in the gauge you want.
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I think you are better off to use short scale strings if you can get the ones you want, however, you can usually cut and use longscales depending on the post size. Birdsong basses are designed to use longscale strings so theres no issue there.
My experience exactly! That's one reason I don't have a short scale since I moved from 4s to ERBs. However, let me also say that in my previous experience for some basses to crack the E string at the tuning peg was not totally universal. I found that it sort of depends on the design and layout of the headstock. Some have a much more serious problem than others. I'm not quite sure what it is that actually makes the difference. But I can't see wrapping a fat B string around a tuning post and have it work well unless the string was specifically made for that scale length.
