Club Sadowsky!!!

[bass12]

Good point. One of the things I've always noticed about a Sadowsky is it doesn't have the tendency to kinda' disappear out from under you when you go up to the D and especially G strings. Basically, anywhere you go on the instrument, the sound is right there for you. You don't have to adjust your playing to back off of an overpowering string or dig in extra hard to bring out a weak one. REALLY nice.

++1. I've never been as comfortable on my Standard 5 as I have been on other 5s I've owned and have actually avoided using it as a result. I'd been thinking of maybe offering it up as a trade for another 535, in fact. Well, last night I decided to take it out on a low-key quartet gig (no drummer, just percussion - you really hear all of the subtleties of each instrument). I was blown away (as was one of my bass-loving bandmates) by the sound of the Sadowsky. The tone was so incredibly rich right up the neck - it was heavenly. I think I'll be holding onto that bass for a while yet...

 

[Keef Green]

Edit: Truss rods are pretty easy to replace... don't throw the baby out with the bath water. Truss rods can usually just be 'screwed out and a new one screwed in'. FYI.

I wont be throwing anything out. It was pretty playable just needed some set up work where the neck meets the body when my repair guy discovered it [truss rod] was all dicked up. Its a neck thru btw. He's got it apart on his bench right now conferring with Ken.

My wife knows how attached I was to it and also knows I've always wanted a new Sadowsky so I'm working it as best as I can... [wink wink]

So I guess its a NYC Modern 24 with a slightly shaved neck for me.

Thanks everyone for all the input.

 

[Sadowsky]

++1. I've never been as comfortable on my Standard 5 as I have been on other 5s I've owned and have actually avoided using it as a result. I'd been thinking of maybe offering it up as a trade for another 535, in fact. Well, last night I decided to take it out on a low-key quartet gig (no drummer, just percussion - you really hear all of the subtleties of each instrument). I was blown away (as was one of my bass-loving bandmates) by the sound of the Sadowsky. The tone was so incredibly rich right up the neck - it was heavenly. I think I'll be holding onto that bass for a while yet...

So let's figure out why you are not as comfortable on it as you should be!

Roger

 

[Chasarms]

.. . .I have never experienced a better B string than on my simple 34" scale maple Sadowsky neck. I've also never experienced a 'stiffer' neck... not sure how Roger does that on instrument after instrument. Solid as a rock.

If you are talking B string only in a vacuum, I would probably have to offer the most amazing B string award to the Modulus Quantum 5 that I regret parting with regularly. Although, if the Modulus is a 9.9, I'd give my NYC PJ5 at 9.2 or so. Couple that with the overall tone of the instrument and the general playabilty, and I would have to call the Sadowsky a better bass. So much in fact that the best cure for my regrets of parting with my my Q5 is playing my Sadowsky.

I would have to agree that making a good B on a 34" is well within reason. Other notable Bs I have owned was on a Roscoe (35"), but also a Fender American Deluxe PV which was a 34" and a G&L 2500. My SR5 had a pretty good B also.

 

[roadkill2309]

So let's figure out why you are not as comfortable on it as you should be!

Roger

+1. What is it about the neck you don't find comfortable?

When I was at the Sadowsky shop the Friday before 4 July, I found the necks to be pretty comfy, and I have very small hands. I think my favourite neck so far, in terms of thickness (and of basses I actually *own,* rather than those I've spent 5 minutes with in music shops, etc), has to be either my Lakland 55-02 or my Godin A5; I'm pretty sure that the necks on the 5vers I played in the shop would have been on that list as well, though.

 

[KJung]

If you are talking B string only in a vascuum, I would probably have to offer the most amazing B string award to the Miodulus Quantum 5 that I regret parting with regularly. Althoujgh, if the Modulus is a 9.9, I'd give my NYC PJ5 at 9.2 or so. Couple that with the overall tone of the instrument and the general playabilty, and I would have to call the Sadowsky a better bass. So much in fact that the best cure for my regrets of parting with my my Q5 is playing my Sadowsky.

I would have to agree that making a good B on a 34" is well within reason. Other notable Bs I have owned was on a Roscoe (35"), but also A Fender American Deluxe PV which was a 34" and a G&L 2500. My SR5 had a pretty good B also.

I played a Quantum 5 (actually a 'Sweetspot') for a while back in the day, and I agree, in a vacuum, that B string is scary good. I've posted before that this is where the myth of needing a 35" scale for a good B came from... since the Modulus was the first bass I was aware of with that scale length. We didn't realize at the time that it (IMO) had more to do with the uber stiff graphite neck than that tiny percentage increase in length.

However, I grew to dislike that bass (and the MTD's that I played for years also). GREAT B strings 'in a vacuum', but unbalanced (IMO) with the rest of the bass (funny, when I started to play Sadowsky basses and A-C's, I at first thought THEY were unbalanced, since the G and D where super fat and present, and the E and B were not HUGE... I was wrong!). Kind of like a 'good thing gone too far' with the MTD and Modulus IMO.

I MUCH prefer the B string as a logical and tonal extension of the E string. My Sadowsky (and Alleva-Coppolo basses... which also have stiff, flat sawn 34" scale necks) really sound similar when playing the open E and the E on the B string. My MTD's and Modulus did not... the E on the B was much bigger and deeper. I guess some would say that is a good thing. I again much prefer the bass to sound about the same from the highest to the lowest notes, versus the kind of thin G and D string and massive B string you find on some of these other 'boutique' intruments.

IMO there!

Edit: I like your description of 'in a vacuum'. That hits the nail on the head for me.... the 'huge amazing B string' on its own, or one that seems like your E string just going a bit lower in the context of the whole instrument.

 

[Jerry J]

Everything in my 38 years of guitar making tells me the thicker the neck the better the tone. But that has to be balanced against playability.

Roger

You know Roger, I have an early Metro RV4 with a neck that actually seems quite slender. Especially when you compare it to my later NYC JJ4's neck. That bass sounds GREAT and quite different than my ash/maple JJ. Of course the wood will make a difference. But this RV4 is really strong in the mids. I've been told repeatedly that I need to turn down since that bass is so punchy.

It just seems so opposite of what one would assume an alder/morado bass would sound like. This bass is strung with DR hibeams and I run the mix centered, bass at around 30% and treble at 10% with no VTC.

So the thoughts that a thicker neck sounds better has exceptions.

 

[bikeplate]

HI

I also feel that a slightly thicker neck is a much better neck to play over a long period of time. If you are in a "cover band" situation where you play 3 sets a night, many times a month, a thicker neck is much less fatigue than a thin neck. I had a Pensa that was super thin. My hand would pretty much cramp up. Same goes for many thin necked 5's Ive owned. Anyone else run into this?

Rob

 

[thisSNsucks]

HI

I also feel that a slightly thicker neck is a much better neck to play over a long period of time. If you are in a "cover band" situation where you play 3 sets a night, many times a month, a thicker neck is much less fatigue than a thin neck. I had a Pensa that was super thin. My hand would pretty much cramp up. Same goes for many thin necked 5's Ive owned. Anyone else run into this?

Rob

I have to agree with you Rob. It seems counterintuitive, but a thin neck really messes with my hand, whereas I have no trouble with necks that have a thicker profile. Never had an issue with any of my Sadowsky necks, but I used to have a Geddy Lee sig that would get uncomfortable to play after long periods of time.

 

[bass12]

So let's figure out why you are not as comfortable on it as you should be!

Roger

I bought my NYC Standard 5 because I'd been playing an NYC Standard 4 and figured that the NYC would be a logical choice for my move to a 5 string. For me there are basically two aspects of the Standard 5 that make it less desirable: the width of the neck from top to bottom/string spacing and the size of the pickups relative to the string spacing (I'll explain what I mean in a second). While the string spacing on my 4 string NYC suits me fine, I find it a bit wide on the 5. Could I get used to this? I'm sure I could, but it doesn't feel "natural" to me the way the spacing on my 535 does. The issue with the pickup size is that I tend to like resting my thumb on the pickup when playing on the E and B strings. The basses I'm used to playing have pickups that run roughly 2 cm past the lowest string. The pickups on the 5 are shorter relative to the placement of the lowest string and this means that my hand is more cramped when plucking. On one particular night I ended the last set with a lot of playing on the B string of my NYC. The next day my hand was in so much pain that I could barely grip a doorknob!

I've looked at other Jazz-style 5 strings and it seems as if the pickup detail I'm referring to is standard. Just for the record, I would never suggest that there is anything "wrong" with the design of the Standard 5. I simply see it as a matter of it's not being a perfect fit for me personally. My 535, on the other hand, feels as if it was built for my hands. Regardless of my discomfort on the 5 (which I'm hoping will subside), I wouldn't change a thing on my Standard 4!

 

[mindwell]

I assume Metros count? If so, sign me up. Here's me with my M5-24.

And apropos of the discussion regarding neck radius, Sadowskys DO have a thick profile relative to other comparable basses. As the picture shows, my hands aren't large, and my fingers are pretty short. When my bass first arrived, I was unsure about whether the neck was going to work for me. But I'm glad I hung in there, because the neck is very, very playable and with a bit of concentration on left-hand position, I can execute pretty much everything. And the ergonomics regarding the position of the upper horn relative to the fretboard allow the bass to hang at the proper height and close in to the body. Really like how it feels under my hands, though I am seriously thinking about getting the finish taken off the neck.

I've had the bass for almost 8 months, and I'm growing to like it more and more. It gets a lot of attention from other players, visually and sonically, and I can always count on cutting through a mix.

 

[bass12]

HI

I also feel that a slightly thicker neck is a much better neck to play over a long period of time. If you are in a "cover band" situation where you play 3 sets a night, many times a month, a thicker neck is much less fatigue than a thin neck. I had a Pensa that was super thin. My hand would pretty much cramp up. Same goes for many thin necked 5's Ive owned. Anyone else run into this?

Rob

I've had absolutely no fatigue issues resulting from my three-set-per-night cover gigs on my thinner necked 535 and Status 5 stringers.

 

[ClassicJazz]

So the thoughts that a thicker neck sounds better has exceptions.

Agree 100%

The neck on my '88 SWR is I think somewhere between a Geddy Lee and newer Sadowsky. And I absolutely love it! And that bass sounds....well I think is it the best sounding bass I have ever owned. Seems to get better every time I pick it up!

I was actually surprised when I visited the Sadowsky shop. Up until that point all I had played as far as Sadowsky basses was the SWR. When I tried some of the basses there they actually felt chunky to me. Very close to a Fender American Deluxe FMT Jazz bass I had. Comfortable, but I still preferred the thinner neck. So much so I had the fretless shaped to the same profile.

Like strings, necks I feel are a personal thang....

 

[bass12]

+1. What is it about the neck you don't find comfortable?

When I was at the Sadowsky shop the Friday before 4 July, I found the necks to be pretty comfy, and I have very small hands. I think my favourite neck so far, in terms of thickness (and of basses I actually *own,* rather than those I've spent 5 minutes with in music shops, etc), has to be either my Lakland 55-02 or my Godin A5; I'm pretty sure that the necks on the 5vers I played in the shop would have been on that list as well, though.

Hey there! If I remember correctly, your Lakland is much closer in design neck-wise to the Sadowskys than to the 535 that I'm using as my primary point of comparison here. I wouldn't think you'd have any problem adjusting to the neck on a Standard 5 (if any adjusting was necessary at all). It's funny, I have pretty long fingers (as you know), but I prefer a slightly tighter string spacing than what is offered on the NYC 5. Anyway, did I mention how incredible my NYC 5 sounds? It's the sonic equivalent of that "à l'ancienne" hot chocolate they serve at Juliette et Chocolat. Mmm mmm

 

[P. Bass]

Can anyone comment on the P. neck profile on the P 4 ? (1-3/4" nut)
Thanks. No disruption intended.

 

[littlebassboy]

the metro 5 has a slightly wider neck profile as compared to the nyc. how much does it affect the tone?

I use a stingray5 and totally love it as it could cut through mixes very well in large venue setup. its stock pickup is also very very quiet, in my opinion.esp at venues with high electrical current around that area. I'm looking at getting a mv5. anyone who has used both and could share his experience with it? the difference in terms of feel, tone n electronics.

thanks! =)

 

[Vic]

While the string spacing on my 4 string NYC suits me fine, I find it a bit wide on the 5. Could I get used to this? I'm sure I could, but it doesn't feel "natural" to me the way the spacing on my 535 does.

I'm confused. If you're talking bridge spacing, they're the same... 19mm (unless your 535 has custom spacing). If you're talking nut, you can order a narrower nut as a standard option.

 

[Fran Diaz]

I assume Metros count? If so, sign me up. Here's me with my M5-24.

you are #303. welcome

 

[Fran Diaz]

Can anyone comment on the P. neck profile on the P 4 ? (1-3/4" nut)
Thanks. No disruption intended.

as you can imagine, I'm not going to say anything but very possitive things. The P neck fits my hand like a glove; it feel thinner than my J, but this might be just a feeling because of its width. I also think that the extra wood on the neck contributes to the stiffness of the neck and the overall tone of the instrument.

I'd love to see the Metro line offering P size necks.

 

[iamthebassplayr]

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Those are some GREAT looking blocks. Thanks Roger for offering blocks (Though I'm sad about the binding )!!! Going to make my order (hopefully by the end of summer) so much sweeter!!!