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Just doesn't seem functional to me. If you want to protect the body from your fingers. It would seem between the pickups is where it's needed.
And if you want a little more space under the string for popping you just don't get a guard.
I don't really understand where the bikini guard is protecting anything...It certainly doesn't look good to my eye..
vision
It's all about the groove!
- Feb 25, 2005
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- 618
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- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: MTD Basses, La Bella Strings, and 64 Audio IEMs
The protection comes from slapping. If you slap alot on a bass with no guard, you will end up with a shiny spot in the finish between the end of the finger board and the neck p/u on the treble side of the bass. (Look at Victor Wooten's old Fodera for an extreme example of this.) So those half guards are perfect for preventing that.
You will even get that shiny spot on the pickguard itself if you have a black guard, and it doesn't take much slapping at all to get it.
I like solid (pearloid, mint, tort, etc.) half guards on some basses, and I like clear full guards on some basses (looks good to me on the Atelier Z's for example), but I've never liked a clear half guard.
Just the opposite. Too much space for many slappers on the Standard, hence the half guard. It isn't about protection, although it will keep that area of the bass finish from getting swirly and scratched up when slapping.
Some slap styles result in your knuckles and fingernails constantly hitting the body of the bass (hence, the famous 'slap swirl' that is often mentioned with used basses descriptions). The half guard puts that guard in the exact correct space while covering the minimal amount of wood.
I'm with most though, in that I would never consider a Standard for the above reasons (it is the primary reason I own a Vintage and not a Standard). However, if you want a Modern 24, then some sort of aftermarket guard would be needed by some.
vision
It's all about the groove!
- Feb 25, 2005
- 3,988
- 618
- 47
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: MTD Basses, La Bella Strings, and 64 Audio IEMs
+1...that's why you see some guys like Norm Stockton adding a "ramp" between the fingerboard and the neck pickup so there is less space between the stings and the body.
I think you're missing at least my point. I agree a lot of slappers do want less space, and I might as well, but at least IMHO, I don't like the half guard solution. I would much prefer something more like a ramp if I needed to solve the space reduction problem. The half-guards just look "bad" to me. IMHO!!
Chef
In Memoriam
I'm not even any kind of faux slapper, but I don't dig the aesthetics of that, even if it is functional.
I'd rather have a full guard, or some "more scenic" ramp...
I'd rather have a full guard, or some "more scenic" ramp...
Wristwatches looked bad to many older men when they first appeared a century ago, too. Half guards are unusual. Form follows function and that's a solution to someone's question. It's just an observation on my part. I don't care for it either but I'm conservative when it comes to Jazz basses. They have a traditional model to follow, IMO. I don't care for ones without pickguards either.
Aesthetics are obviously totally personal. I am (we are) just trying to explain why this is often done on Standards. I wouldn't do it either... that's what the Vintage model is for
.
I'm with you in general. I do still generally prefer the "vintage" look for a J, so the half guard will never be an issue for me, and it's true that several "looks" have grown on me over time and my opinion has changed, but I just don't see the half guards ever getting on my radar. Just me on that tho.
Chef
In Memoriam
I ran across a couple of modern 24s with that half guard on them when I was seriously considering one. I found one that I would have actually bought if it didn't have that. I think it looks completely out of place.
If I thought I had to have something like that. I believe a preferable solution would be something that static sticks on it and doesn't require holes. My brother-in-law had a nearly invisible vinyl/plastic film applied to the front end and side mirrors of his LS430. It is nearly invisible and does a really good job of keeping small rocks and such from chipping the paint. If it works for that application, surely it could protect the finish of a bass from the slap brigade.
If I thought I had to have something like that. I believe a preferable solution would be something that static sticks on it and doesn't require holes. My brother-in-law had a nearly invisible vinyl/plastic film applied to the front end and side mirrors of his LS430. It is nearly invisible and does a really good job of keeping small rocks and such from chipping the paint. If it works for that application, surely it could protect the finish of a bass from the slap brigade.
I remember kind of weeping a bit the first time I saw a clear half guard screwed onto a Modern 24. However, if you like the sound and feel of that bass and need that 'slap spacing just right, it works great. It's more common than many think.
You are correct. Some people are totally right, and others are totally wrong!!!!
Exactly
I have a friend in the building and designing side of the music industry who complains how hard it is to design for bassists. He feels they are sooo conservative. If its its not a classic looking "Fender" type, then forget it. He could be right.
I agree. I stick pretty close to the classic J look, with a few minor tweaks to make it 'my own'
Edit: This is the great Will Pope's bass, who is now..... playing a Sadowsky Metro PJ.
