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thanks,
yeah, I wasn't even really going for that but it does look vintage and I'm loving it too. I let Cliff come up with the shape of the pg and he did an amazing job I think.
Well, I did it. I put in the order for my next CB. Here's what I got so far:
SCB 6 fretted b-c
34"
alder or butternut body
doug fir 9 top
pau ferro FB
classic neck
nordy SEs in pau ferro covers
passive V V T
black hipshot hrdwr.
I'm looking at 9 months. Not too bad
SCB 6 fretted b-c
34"
alder or butternut body
doug fir 9 top
pau ferro FB
classic neck
nordy SEs in pau ferro covers
passive V V T
black hipshot hrdwr.
I'm looking at 9 months. Not too bad
Sending payment next week. LOL, no major changes to the spec list, but we're adding a zero fret. I don't have any real experience with a zero fret, but why not, eh?
Well, I did it. I put in the order for my next CB. Here's what I got so far:
SCB 6 fretted b-c
34"
alder or butternut body
doug fir 9 top
pau ferro FB
classic neck
nordy SEs in pau ferro covers
passive V V T
black hipshot hrdwr.
I'm looking at 9 months. Not too bad
Sounds cool. That's not a bad wait ether.
-ScottM
thanks, yeah nine months isn't bad at all since I'll have my new fretless to play with until then
Ok,quick question. Cliff wondered if I wanted a book matched acrylized maple board for a 34" scale 6er with 18mm bridge spacing. What do you guys think? As far as I can tell, THIS is the last detail.
Zooberwerx, what don't you like about the acrylized fingerboard, just curious.
Matt
I think it was mostly an issue of not being able to see the side dots in some places since the acrylized maple has uneven bright and dark spots (color wise). Cliff and I were going to get around this by placing MOP dots in the dark places and abalone dots in the lighter areas where the side dots happen to fall.
Do you mean two-tone natural color aesthetics? That's a function of the wood, not the acrylizing process.
If there is any way of getting around what Riis said he had problems with, then I would. They look really killer, and just really add to the over all look of the bass.
-ScottM
yeah, I was wondering if it was something else, 'cause I had an acrylized bubinga fretboard put on ( by Grandon at GW )an already existing bass and I love it. The tone is so clear and even. Like I said, I was just curious. The light and dark area would happen in the wood it's self.
This is true. I had the white MOP dots installed and its a big improvement. The acrylization had nothing to do with it. I also had some minor fretboard work done and this particular example was more prone to chipping. Its difficult to ascertain whether this was due to the wood, the acrylization, or a combination of both.
Riis
Interesting...what wood was it and what did you have done to it?
My process increases hardness, mass, weight and density of the wood which makes it great for fingerboard use because it increases the options that we have not had before like a fretless spalted maple board??. While it's worked just like regular wood, the wood fibers do not compress like regular wood and it does take a bit of experience working with it initially. Many builders have used the acrylized boards for a long time and have great chops with them....Bordwell, Bee Bass, Alan at ACGuitars, Ritter, Benavente and so on and so on.
Highly figured (maybe spalted?) maple. The FB had developed a hump and a dip requiring re-surfacing and re-fretting. The tech noticed a handful of "chip-outs" during the re-fret which he repaired. The FB took the re-surfacing well with a couple of extra observations:
*The final sanding brought out a trans-finger board tiger striping which was subtle before.
*Slight pitting and grain imperfections appeared among the more densely "spalted" areas. They can be seen up closely but cannot be felt, a trait which I attribute to the stabilization process.
Neat thing about replacing side-dot inlays: it ain't easy. We were pretty much resigned to fracturing the existing ab inlays and removing the fragments piece-by-piece. The finished product looks great; any inconisistencies appeared at the 12th and 24th frets with the double side-dots. They're off by a cat whisker in relationship to each other. In all fairness, you really don't want to monkey around too much for fear of damaging the surrounding wood.
As far as my own likes and dislikes, I found the stabilized FB to feel a bit unnatural at first but would not let this dissuade me from purchasing the instrument (obviously). If custom ordering though, I would prefer a conventional maple, ebony, or PF fingerboard as I'm more familar with their characteristics. Its the old dog / new tricks thing.
Riis
I already have a Conklin with a Dymondwood fingerboard, so I've had a little experience. I got it for maximum durability, although I grew to enjoy that it tolerates my climate better than conventional woods. I love ebony, but it tends to freak out when the winters get very dry and summers get humid.
I've decided to go with big MOP dots and I figure I should be fine. I don't want to jinx myself, but I typically play fretless, so I'm not terribly worried about this on a fretted bass. I could imagine the wood having different characteristics if someone were to work on it, but I'm hoping to avoid that.
My only slight gripe with the stabilized woods is that the tone seems to get a little too focused. I'm having Cliff use a butternut center block to "soften" the tone a bit. My usual tonal goal with the bass is to avoid being too bassy, middy, or trebbly. IMHO, something a little more neutral lends itself to stronger flexibility when I use the EQ. Then again, why I worry about versatility with so many basses is probably somewhat pointless, eh?
I've decided to go with big MOP dots and I figure I should be fine. I don't want to jinx myself, but I typically play fretless, so I'm not terribly worried about this on a fretted bass. I could imagine the wood having different characteristics if someone were to work on it, but I'm hoping to avoid that.
My only slight gripe with the stabilized woods is that the tone seems to get a little too focused. I'm having Cliff use a butternut center block to "soften" the tone a bit. My usual tonal goal with the bass is to avoid being too bassy, middy, or trebbly. IMHO, something a little more neutral lends itself to stronger flexibility when I use the EQ. Then again, why I worry about versatility with so many basses is probably somewhat pointless, eh?
Sounds like a plan. I have no complaints about the tonal characteristics of the stabilized FB. Coupled with the Nordy pups and Audere pre, this is the best sounding fiver in the fleet of 8 basses. It is not overly-focused in any one part of the spectrum and there are no annoying bumps. Even my tech called me during the recent repair to ask "what do you have in this thing?!?" Keep in mind that I'm essentially dealing with my favorite wood combination: maple neck / ash body. I still have reservations about some extensive exotic wood combinations. They make look great when completed but turn out to be sonic duds when plugged in.
Riis
does anyone have or know of a hardshell case that will fit an SCB ? I looked through a bunch of pages on this thread but didn't find it. Is there such a case ? Thanks
Matt
Matt
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