Sadowsky + Mesa + Bergantino = delicious
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Sadowsky + Mesa + Bergantino = delicious
I've heard that head and cab combination, more than once, in the past week...
... can't be coincidence.
Is that very dark Lake Placid blue?
deepestend
Commercial User
- Feb 21, 2003
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We just extended the sale to the 31st... closer to Roger's actual birthday. I just reset the coupons with the new date.
Very cool. I'm safe until you add more Verdine Whites in the colors I like since the sale doesn't apply to a depost/build. FYI, reverb is still showing #8529 as available and @Cazman scooped that one up.
Always wondered about this. If you're not changing the overall taper, does it really do anything for your left hand, or are all the benefits on your right hand?
Same neck taper as 19mm. Only difference is right hand spacing.
I actually do not care about bridge string spacing. If anything, the narrower bridge spacings are a bit faster on pizz response at the expense of slap access. But, don’t care either way.
Sadly...the aspect of the Sadowsky 5’s I can’t get with is the girth of the neck near the neck joint. I know the 19mm neck taper is set in stone, and I’m just an oddball voice in the wilderness on this one. Just have to live with my Fender Parts 5 with the Sadowsky preamp, while everyone else is merrily gigging their 19mm 5’s. Oh well. Hey, my NYC4 is KILLIN!!!
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I'm right there with you. The girth on my 5 is an issue for me
My Satin 4 is a speed demon.
“There’s no money past the 12th fret” anyways- maybe this is a reinforcement of that?
I think that’s a Will Lee quote, but not 100%
I think that’s a Will Lee quote, but not 100%
Love the feel of my Sadowsky fivers. The only thing I'd ask for is an option for asymmetric profile, but hardly anyone offers that so I never expect it... and it's a subtle difference anyway.
I was in a bit of a tone rut so I did a lengthy search of settings members have recommended over the years. A bit overwhelming perhaps and a couple of these might be duplicative but this should help me, hopefully others too.
1)For Motown tone, Roll VTC back 40% and bump bass a little
2)For Motown tone, Preamp flat, roll back VTC
3)VTC 50% and treble and bass bumped a little
4)Treble off, bass boost 10% VTC rolled back 20%
5)Slight J pickup, slight bass boost, roll off VTC a little
6)Crank treble, roll off the VTC in varying amounts
7)Bass boost 10-20, VTC 40-50, slight J pickup
8)80% P, slight bass and treble boost, roll back VTC 10-20%
9)P soloed, no other EQ
10)Both pickups full on, slight bass and treble boost, slight VTC roll off
11)Bass and treble flat, pickups balanced, roll back VTC 50%
12)Bass and treble boost 25-30% enhances various VTC and pickup settings
13)Passive mode, VTC rolled off 20% for vintage tone
14)For PJ, boost bass and treble, cut VTC a bit
15)For J sound roll back VTC a bit, preamp at zero
16)Boost bass and treble, favor bridge pickup halfway, roll off VTC to control bite
17)Boost bass and treble a bit, roll off VTC
18)Passive, Slight neck pickup, VTC rolled off just a bit
19)P pickup, VTC rolled off fully, 75% treble boost
20)With flats, VTC open, a bit of treble boost
21)With flats, preamp at zero, pickups even or favor the P, experiment with VTC
22)For classic Sadowsky tone just boost bass 10%; cut VTC for some tunes
23)With flats, P pickup, bass and treble boost, roll off VTC various amounts
24)With flats, bass and treble boosted 60%, pickups even, VTC open
25)Preamp flat, VTC open, pickups balanced
Cool! Thanks for this. I'm always trying to find that sweet spot.
That’s NOT the issue for me. But, thanks just the same.“There’s no money past the 12th fret” anyways- maybe this is a reinforcement of that?
I think that’s a Will Lee quote, but not 100%
What it boils down to for me is that the 19mm girth at the neck joint makes the bass feel more Precision than Jazz; purely in the way it feels and hangs on the shoulder. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some big girth P Bass necks, IF I am going for a P feel. To me the neck resonance plays a big role in the feel of the bass. 4 string Jazz Basses have that supple flexural character, particularly with the early ones. My 1 1/2” nut width NYC has it in spades, and is one of the finest J necks I’ve ever played, matching up quite well with my ‘62. You already toss some of that out the window when you go to 5 strings as it is.
The 19 mm girth at a 1/2 cm wider neck just exacerbates the decreased flexural feel. P Basses are having a big resurgence these days, and the 19 mm taper feeds right into that zone. I like my necks on a J to have a more supple flexural character; and 19 mm taper doesn’t get it for me. The best execution of a Jazz Bass feel on a 5 I’ve found was on the Fender Marcus Miller 5, which that company in their infinite wisdom decided should not be used on any other basses, and then put that design out of production.
It is what it is. Fortunately, I can do most gigs with my HipShot equipped 4.
This is great and thank you @Govner22 for pulling this together.
However, it does not take into account the rig and gear that is being used.
Now having said that I did play around with my RV5 J metro to get a passable Motown sound with the VTC and bass bump. Now that have a PJ, I can really nail it. I do that in Passive mode with the VTC dialed back for taste, soloed on the P pick up, of course.
Just saying these settings are YMMV so lots of fun experimenting needs to take place.
FWIW, I get my vintage P - Motown / Stax tone by panning 90% to the neck pickup, rolling my VTC on about 50% - 60%, and then rolling off treble to suit thud vs hollow bark.
Motown is one of those subjective tones that people hear differently, no?
Agreed, (I have a Metro PJ4, Mesa D-800 and Aguilar 2x12) and I would add “the room” to the variables. I just find that when I randomly tweak the knobs I often find something I like, tweak some more and then can’t remember the setting I liked.
Hey, Music is subjective!
One can certainly go deep down the rabbit hole trying to replicate Jamerson’s Tone. In a cover band context, I just go for what settings give me the best mix, with an appreciation for the reference tracks. The reality is that virtually no cover situation replicates the actual Motown mix; unless your gig is with the Funk Brothers at the Fox theater, which prolly ain’t happening again.
I turned the knobs until it sounded good and memorized the position, who knows where TH they are.
