- Apr 15, 2010
- 3,914
- 7,324
- Disclosures
- Spector Artist
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
My VM5 Nighthawk is the twin of yours. It’s a keeper, as far as I’m concerned… along with my Mk1 TSBS.
GLWTS!
I've got a hardcore relic'd VM5, and it's one of the very best basses I've ever owned or played. I will often grab it over my Roscoe or MTD or FBass - it's that good.
Wouldn't mind having another, so this gives me something to think about.
Picked up a second Sandberg, a VM5. It’s really amazing. I’ll post pics and details soon. I noticed that the volume pot only controls the volume about 10% of the rotation. I also wish that the tone pot had a bigger effect as it doesn’t seem to roll off much treble (passive mode). I compared it to my TM5 and it’s basically the same preamp function - so nothing wrong with either bass but just wondering if there is anything that could be done about either of those? I’ll all reach out to Sandberg, but maybe someone in the club knows.
I don't think anything is particularly wrong with that is in the basses, just that that the volume pot doesn't seem linear and the tone isn't as impactful. Anybody else notice these and do anything about it (mod)?
All: I've put a couple of my Sandberg Cali 5s up for sale. (Three others are staying with me...) The F/S threads are linked in my sig, below.
An ash/rosewood TM-5, an alder/pau ferro VM-5, and an ash/pau ferro TM-5. Er...once I got onto how good these basses were for what I do, I went on something of a buying binge. Time to move a couple along!
Certainly you can change what you want on Potentiometers, make them vintage, linear, tapered - same for capacitors of your choice to suit your needs/ears
I have my Electra P listed in the classifieds, Classic Booster on order.
Weird question: I’ve my VM4. Passive only. Volume and blend knobs.
With my Traynor 100 (or 300), the bass is really trebly. I have a hard time cutting the treble down in the mix. Take out too much and it loses all punch.
is it the bass itself just being too trebly? Is it the Delanos? The low notes are a tad thin. Plenty of mid-to-high range. Or is it my amp/cab? I’ve played it through a fender rumble 2/10 and a Mesa powerhouse 6x10. This bass is just high on treble.
love the bass. Any suggestions to bass it up?
With my Traynor 100 (or 300), the bass is really trebly. I have a hard time cutting the treble down in the mix. Take out too much and it loses all punch.
is it the bass itself just being too trebly? Is it the Delanos? The low notes are a tad thin. Plenty of mid-to-high range. Or is it my amp/cab? I’ve played it through a fender rumble 2/10 and a Mesa powerhouse 6x10. This bass is just high on treble.
love the bass. Any suggestions to bass it up?
Attachments
Couple suggestions:
- Check the pickup height Maybe they are too low
- Neck pickup would be bassier than the bridge
- Maybe it’s a string thing, what strings are you using? Stainless would be quite bright, maybe try something a tad higher gage if you are using light and switch to nickel or even tape wound
- Consider adding a tone control. You could move the volume and pan to a stacked pot
the pickup height could be an issue. I’ll check that first.
Always using EXL170’s.
hadn’t thought about a tone pot. Could definitely help. Although I usually leave them at 10.
Thanks for the tips! Will explore!!
JD
All good advice. I do not have nor have I ever worked on a Sandberg (I want one) so I cannot definitively say if this is the case on your bass but, I'm always surprised at the number of basses I see with maladjusted pickup heights. Basses that use foam to supply the upward pressure on the pickups should be checked more often than those that use springs. The foam wears out over time and the pickups often recede into the cavity or become unstable or wobbly. If you depress a pickup and it doesn't instantly spring back into the original position the foam probably needs changed. I generally set them to 2mm with the strings fretted to the last fret to start. I then raise or lower them to achieve the type of sound I'm looking for or to balance the volume between 2 pickups. In my experience, it seldom varies by much at all from the 2mm. I recently replaced the foam under a fender P-Bass where the split pickups were both set to incorrect heights and were tilted in different directions, one toward the neck and the other more toward the bridge. I adjusted the heights and made sure both pickups were perpendicular to the strings. The owner was flabbergasted by the difference this made.
Sascha Erni
Making things go whoomp, whoomp since 1994
For what it’s worth, with my passive VS4, I had to LOWER the pickup until the bass opened up for me. It’s now at ~3.5mm on the E string, 2.5 on G (last fret depressed, measured between top of pole piece and bottom of string). Was 2mm on all strings prior to adjustments.
I was surprised how dramatic (for lack of a better word) the change in character turned out with such a small adjustment. So, yeah, some experimentation might be in order, be it to get the PU closer to the string, or further away. Tiny fractions of an inch can make a huge difference.
I was surprised how dramatic (for lack of a better word) the change in character turned out with such a small adjustment. So, yeah, some experimentation might be in order, be it to get the PU closer to the string, or further away. Tiny fractions of an inch can make a huge difference.
this, we're dealing with magnetic fields and where the string vibrates with(in and out) of them will determine how much or little signal is transmitted. It's all season to taste, and you may simply find that one pickup doesn't taste good to you.
My 1st Sandberg. What an incredible bass!!
