Carl Thompson called me yesterday....

[Brad Johnson]

Bottom line:
CT does not make custom basses to your specs
He builds his basses with maybe a couple of options

You either buy his stuff because you love it or you don't
Scale length, intonation, the way a bass sits, etc. are not really relevant as the builder has his way.

Imagine telling Carrol Shelby that his race winning cars would be much faster with a Chevy engine.
They very well might be but that's not what the he uses.

Carl does 32" and 36". So let him decide?


BTW Loved the analogy.

 

[Jazz Ad]

All I can picture is a shelf at Thompson's with a pile of already made 36" necks waiting for customers while the 34" shelf is empty.

 

[Bass Viking]

Wow-I've been called lots of stuff before, but humblebag is new to me!

Sorry if I offended anyone. If Leo were still alive and called one of us after having put down a deposit in the custom shop to discuss the tort pattern, how much candy to put in the apple, or the type of foam used in the mute I'd be just as excited.

Talkbass is my place to geek out about this stuff. And your place to tell me I'm wrong. Viva la vida!

This thread proves yet again that it DOES hurt to ask!

 

[blowinblue]

I'm fortunate to own some pretty cool basses, but if I could afford a Carl Thompson you would definitely see me posting about it and sharing my joy here on Talkbass. For me owning a CT is the 'final frontier' of bass guitar ownership. Did I just execute a humblebrag?

M. M.

 

[JZQuantum]

Will he take it back and remake it if you don't like the super long scale?

 

[TwentyHz]

Derailing for a minute here........ "Les is a polite and humble guy" ??? Have you met him? My band opened for him many years ago and he was a collosal dick, rude and really lame...........

Ah, no I haven’t met Les. I guess I mean he’s a polite and humble interviewee

 

[BASSDROID]

To the OP: my experience was similar but I don't regret it.

2007, I first approached Carl about building a large scale 6 string bass. He advocated 38 in and though I was originally thinking 36, I went with it. I say I have no regrets because the power and presence of a 38 in string is remarkable, comparatively speaking. I liken it to playing a Bösendorfer vs. just about anything else.

Disclaimer: I have a double bass background so the 38 inch string length is not particularly intimidating.

Fretles 6 121212
Fretted 5 32318

 

[Stub Mandrel]

I am far less of a craftsman than Carl Thompson; fact!

I've hand-made a one-off portable museum quality display unit that cost my client rather more than most of his basses.

I spent over six months on it with multiple visits to the client and that involved things as extreme as measuring the client's car and van to ensure it would fit in the back. Some of the client's expectations were unreasonable - I pointed pout that if I couldn't lift parts of the end product single handed, the project officer who was 2./3 my size would struggle. I shared hand-drawn and hand-painted samples, built a model of the finished article so show how it would work, a mini-diorama and CAD models. We tested different mechanisms and approaches. I made changes. I took the part-built display to the client for their approval before finalising it. End result, a very happy client that gave me more work.

Most of the cost of the work was all the experimentation and consultation that went into figuring out exactly what the client really needed - figuring out where what the wanted wouldn't be best but definitely not me giving them what I thought would be best, but working with them to figure out how to achieve their vision.

If I was making top-end musical instruments, I would take exactly the same client focused approach. Sadly my skills are elsewhere.

 

[TolerancEJ]

Wow-I've been called lots of stuff before, but humblebag is new to me!

Sorry if I offended anyone. If Leo were still alive and called one of us after having put down a deposit in the custom shop to discuss the tort pattern, how much candy to put in the apple, or the type of foam used in the mute I'd be just as excited.

Talkbass is my place to geek out about this stuff. And your place to tell me I'm wrong. Viva la vida!

I, for one, am happy to read about your progress. Although you have a decision to make, it looks like your build is close to the timeline presented to you.

I had contacted you about the ordering process a few months ago. I haven't initiated an order yet; I believe 2019 will be my year. It is good to know in advance that Carl prefers to build a 36" scale. I am not deterred by this news and I look forward to it.

Based on the majority of argumentative replies dominating your thread, I will not start a build thread when I initiate my order.

 

[michele]

You'll find his 36" neck are very comfortable.
Tell Carl Michele from Italy say Hi!

 

[Jim C]

Well if 36" is better, why stop there?
39" is only 5" longer than 100% of all the electric basses ever made
Give me a 40" or give me death
Screw all that and give me a Fender or one of the hand made derivatives

Take all the top 20 songs from 1950 to present that used an electric bass.
95% of these were with a 34" scale
How many years will it take to make this many hits with a different scale
(hint: is 500 years a long time?)

 

[JPMcGuire]

My opinion 33 to 34 all the way if that’s what your comfortable with. I have found it’s the best balance of low to high end response. My 6 Fodera is a 33 and it sings.

 

[spade2you]

For a CT, I'd consider 36" scale on a 4 string. 35" scale on a 5. 34" or 35" scale on a 6.

 

[J Gold]

Oil being applied, a few days from final assembly!

 

[cosmicevan]

View attachment 3500444 View attachment 3500445 Oil being applied, a few days from final assembly!

Oh man, I hope my bass is in this batch. I think it may have snuck in as the last neck for this batch or possibly the next batch. Get excited @J Gold

 

[TolerancEJ]

View attachment 3500444 View attachment 3500445 Oil being applied, a few days from final assembly!

That's awesome! I'm in CT's queue somewhere. Not sure when, but I eventually will have a Semi-Frills Fretless 6.

For a reference of time, approximately when did you place the order?

 

[J Gold]

I gave my deposit May 8, 2018.

 

[socialleper]

I gave my deposit May 8, 2018.

You have way more patience than I could ever have.

Over the years I've discovered that just because we have done something a certain way with our instruments for decades, that doesn't mean it is right. Musicians are slow to break out of old habits.
Things like 105-45 strings and 34" scale necks are mostly just standards developed to promote mass production. Even the way we tune our instruments is just based on something we decided to do and stuck to it.
Who knows, maybe 36" scale is the "right" way to go.

 

[DDXdesign]

and now I have CT gas again but I want a 32!

 

[cosmicevan]

You have way more patience than I could ever have.

A little over a year is actually kinda warp speed for Carl. I've waited yearSSSS in the past for an instrument. I think these days though, Carl isn't doing as many frills basses. When I ordered my instrument I was willing to wait the years for a frills, but Carl encouraged me to go for a semi-frills...I went with what I always go with when it comes to Carl's work and said - I trust your judgement. My only requirements are 32" scale length (due to joint issues) and also 5 string strung E > C.

Who knows, maybe 36" scale is the "right" way to go.

I would say it very much is. After trying many scale lengths, I found the best sound (for what I look for) is with 36" scale. It has a very piano like clarity to it even acoustically...I've never tried 38" though, but have heard similar descriptions for that scale length. I ended up going with 32" these days because the shorter scale is easier from a playability perspective and ultimately if I am wrestling with an instrument, it doesn't matter how clear and crisp the tone is, if I can't play what I want to on it.