Dead spots.........

[ToadWarrior]

I loathe them, all my basses (Hof Icon, MiM Jazz Bass, Rick4003) have noticeable dead spots.

Not just on one note on one string either, I can feel my rick vibrating on every A note, even the 5th fret E string sounds abit hollow compared to the other notes.... On my jazz it's the C note A string, G's on the Hof.

I'm thinking that maybe feeling the resonance in the bass is just causing me to think these notes are dead or something like that.

Going to the music store I was able to find these resonance points to varying degrees on every bass (less on short scales and 5 and 6 strings.)

Yeah, I hate em.

 

[elgecko]

Carbon fiber neck...that is all.

 

[ToadWarrior]

So I am forced to choose between a soulless robot neck or the ol' natural inconsistency...... The bass gods can be cruel indeed.

 

[Bongolation]

I'm thinking that maybe feeling the resonance in the bass is just causing me to think these notes are dead or something like that.

What did you think a dead spot was?

D -- open or on the G string is a killer on many Fenders.

 

[ToadWarrior]

What did you think a dead spot was?

D -- open or on the G string is a killer on many Fenders.

I knew what they were, but I mean, whenever I feel any resonance in the neck maybe I find myself perceiving some kind of sound loss that is very minimal/non existent...

I dont really know what I'm trying to say.

 

[JimmyM]

I knew what they were, but I mean, whenever I feel any resonance in the neck maybe I find myself perceiving some kind of sound loss that is very minimal/non existent...

I dont really know what I'm trying to say.

You're trying to say that you think way too hard about stuff that doesn't matter

 

[johnk_10]

i've found that a super stiff wood neck (usually maple) with a high resonant frequency will generally have the least noticable dead spots, that's why they're so minimal on graphite necks.

 

[Bongolation]

I knew what they were, but I mean, whenever I feel any resonance in the neck maybe I find myself perceiving some kind of sound loss that is very minimal/non existent...

I dont really know what I'm trying to say.

You're absolutely right. You are feeling a dead spot.

You can feel a dead spot more clearly than hear it.

About thirty years ago, some guy asked me to explain a dead spot.

Exaggerated for illustration purposes, I told him, "When you play a normal note, the string vibrates and the bass stands still. When you play a dead spot, the string stands still and the bass vibrates."

Some dead spots will nearly shake your teeth out.

 

[ehque]

You want "soul" from your bass, you gotta live with it. For me, the "soul" comes from the fingers, so graphite is better. YMMV. I've never seen a carbon neck kill "soul" before.

I have a carbon fiber bass with a dead spot. The B (11th fret on high C) is about 10-20% quieter. ;-)

 

[ZolkoW]

we hear often that dead spots are the illness of Fender type necks... I worked on a Warwick Thumb fretless 5 string (wenge neck) recently, that has a very noticeable dead spot on almost every C# note.. actually worse, than my bolt-on five string. so... I think it simply happens

 

[madmatt]

I've noticed the harmonic on my Fender P's D string does not sustain half as long as the other strings.
Kinda sux.

 

[mongo2]

I've noticed that my shortscale bolt-on necks are better able to respond in a manner that minimizes deadspots compared to my longscale bolt-on necks.

I've played neck through basses with deadspots and graphite necks with deadspots.

 

[chadds]

I've noticed that my shortscale bolt-on necks are better able to respond in a manner that minimizes deadspots compared to my longscale bolt-on necks.

I've played neck through basses with deadspots and graphite necks with deadspots.

Shortscale? That's because the whole neck is one dead spot.

 

[Menno]

So I am forced to choose between a soulless robot neck or the ol' natural inconsistency...... The bass gods can be cruel indeed.

Vigier basses (and guitars) don't have deadspots; the necks are 90% wood and 10% carbonfiber. And the necks are awesome and certainly not soulless.

 

[Stealth]

About thirty years ago, some guy asked me to explain a dead spot.

Exaggerated for illustration purposes, I told him, "When you play a normal note, the string vibrates and the bass stands still. When you play a dead spot, the string stands still and the bass vibrates."

This is about the most awesome explanation of dead-spots ever.

 

[mongo2]

Shortscale? That's because the whole neck is one dead spot.

Invalid Link Removed

 

[chadds]

Shite on that. I loved my Gibson EB2D & my Guild B30. Now later I found more musically expressive long scale instruments. String length has it's advantages. But hey I play professionally weekly with a Guild Ashbory. Can't get much shorter.

 

[bassben12]

Is there a way to remedy the problem. I've noticed some dead spots here and there on a couple of my basses

 

[Stealth]

Apparently there's something resembling a small C-clamp that you bolt onto the headstock that "breaks up" the dead spots, but the name eludes me right now. Alternately, if I remember right, some luthiers place small weights inside the headstock itself which also serves the same purpose - the point is in the extra weight. If the rest of the bass is already well-balanced, this shouldn't add any extra neck dive.

 

[SoVeryTired]

Fat finger?