Dingwall Owners Club

[brownie_bass]

I'd pop new strings on ASAP. Super J's are really sensitive to strings they sound awesome with the right ones and so so with the wrong ones.

My first recommendation is Dingwall strings. Second would be DR Lo-rider ML.

Edit: I just read your next post.

Ha, thank you very much for taking the time to read and reply, Sheldon. Your product support is top notch.

I re-read your setup recommendations (on the dingwallguitars.com forum) and am anxiously awaiting the chance to give the SJ some TLC later today.

I agree. I really like the set of nickel wrapped Dingwall strings as well as the traditional steel strings.

I couldn't decide so I ordered both.

 

[BurningSkies]

Ha, thank you very much for taking the time to read and reply, Sheldon. Your product support is top notch.

I re-read your setup recommendations (on the dingwallguitars.com forum) and am anxiously awaiting the chance to give the SJ some TLC later today.



I couldn't decide so I ordered both.

Good call. Once I have some more cash dollars in my pockets I need to do a reorder of the nickel strings. The nice thing is that you can go back and forth between both and not have to monkey with your action and possibly not even tweak your neck relief. I don't.

Also, the strings are so easy to switch out that you can do it based upon what you want to hear for that project or gig.

I timed the move from SS to N the other day and it was less than three minutes. Fer real.

 

[BuffaloBob4343]

hey Bros, looks like I got an opportunity to make a move on a '98 or so Z2.

Can anyone give some info on the older 90's Z models? Approx value, what to expect quality wise, etc. I imagine they are no joke if kept in good condition.

I have an older Z2 4 string and I'm not sure on its birth year, but it is old enough to have the Bartolini PUPS.

I'm not sure on what is considered a good price, as it probably depends upon the condition.

BUT, trust me, when you pick up a Z model, you will feel the difference in quality and attention. I have owned played an older ABII, an ABI and a pre-fire Voodoo Prima.

They are all fine instruments. The Z2 and the Prima are simply at another level of fineness!!

Oh, and the Barts actually sound very nice but different. They are a somewhat darker tone than the FD3s and other current Dingwall PUPs. I like them, but I may still eventually replace them with more current PUPs at some point.

 

[factorplayer]

I have an older Z2 4 string and I'm not sure on its birth year, but it is old enough to have the Bartolini PUPS.

I'm not sure on what is considered a good price, as it probably depends upon the condition.

BUT, trust me, when you pick up a Z model, you will feel the difference in quality and attention. I have owned played an older ABII, an ABI and a pre-fire Voodoo Prima.

They are all fine instruments. The Z2 and the Prima are simply at another level of fineness!!

Good to know. I have but a Combustion at the moment but really looking to go deeper in the Dingwall catalog. Probably going to move on it pretty quick.

 

[groovaholic]

hey Bros, looks like I got an opportunity to make a move on a '98 or so Z2.

Can anyone give some info on the older 90's Z models? Approx value, what to expect quality wise, etc. I imagine they are no joke if kept in good condition.

They are GREAT basses.

I could leave it at that, but I'm happy to elaborate.

I got my first Afterburner in 2003 and was gigging enough that I wanted a backup. I realized quickly that once you've played a 37" B-string, nothing else quite satisfies.

So, in 2004, I found a purpleburst Z2 for a great price. It needed a new input jack, so I got "as is" pricing and happily soldered the 3 wires.

The purple Z2 was perfect for me because my prior main bass (from 1994 until I got my Afterburner) was a MusicMan Sterling and my band played heavy music spiced with a lot of funk.

I played the snot out of the Z2 from 2004 until 2008, when I started leaning on my good old Afterburner for the more classic vibes that were available from the neck pickup.

Eventually, I traded my Z2 for a gorgeous AB2 -- and I was happy with the trade -- as was the guy who got my Z2.

If I was to get another Z-series, I'd get a Z1 or a Z3, because I prefer the rumble of a neck pickup now.

But the neck on the Z-basses is incredible.
As nice as the Combustions are, it will feel like the thick end of a baseball bat after the Z2.

My current Afterburner 1.5 is my favorite of the three Afterburners that I've owned, and it's largely because the neck reminds me of that kicka$$ Z2...

 

[pbass6811]

Ok, So I decided to jump into the Dingwall pool head first!

I bought one of these a few weeks ago(I don't have decent pics of my personal instruments yet, so I'm using the best quality images I could find):

Matte Black Combustion. Loved it from the instant I picked it up and plucked a few notes! The B string is obviously amazing, but the rest of the strings are equally awesome! The TBer I got it from only had it a few days, so it was in perfect shape. The fanned frets didn't take any time to get used to and the tones I was able to get out of this with relatively little time to mess around with it were awesome!

I was so captivated by the "budget" Dingwall, that I went out and bought this:

Should be here first part of next week...
I've tried to do as much research as I could, but I'd like to ask what can I expect with the ABZ? I know it's ash instead of alder and it's passive, but am I gonna hafta crank my amp to get the ABZ loud enough to compete with 2 guitars? I'm not worried about it tonally, I'm sure it's gonna kill, I'm just thinking about it, volume wise? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Also does anyone make the Combustion bridge in black? I'd like to change all the hardware to black if possible...Thanks

 

[steve_rolfeca]

...I'd like to ask what can I expect with the ABZ? I know it's ash instead of alder and it's passive, but am I gonna hafta crank my amp to get the ABZ loud enough to compete with 2 guitars? I'm not worried about it tonally, I'm sure it's gonna kill, I'm just thinking about it, volume wise? Any thoughts would be appreciated...

The ABZ is going to feel sleeker and more expensive, in part because of the slimmer neck profile, with less "shoulder".

The pickups are quite sensitive to height, and can be adjusted to nudge the tone in one direction or the other. If this one is still wearing the factory setup, the output will be fairly hot for a passive bass, with plenty of bite and growl. I've played my ABZ and a Combustion back to back through G-K MB500 Fusion and MB800 heads, and either bass could drive them plenty hard at moderate gain and volume settings.

I'm wondering why you're worried about having enough output to drive an amp. Do you have to crank your Combustion's active EQ to get enough signal? If so, then there's a setup problem with the bass, pedalboard or amp.

 

[spiritbass]

The pickups are quite sensitive to height, and can be adjusted to nudge the tone in one direction or the other.

Exceptionally true on Dingwalls, I've noticed.

 

[pbass6811]

The ABZ is going to feel sleeker and more expensive, in part because of the slimmer neck profile, with less "shoulder".

The pickups are quite sensitive to height, and can be adjusted to nudge the tone in one direction or the other. If this one is still wearing the factory setup, the output will be fairly hot for a passive bass, with plenty of bite and growl. I've played my ABZ and a Combustion back to back through G-K MB500 Fusion and MB800 heads, and either bass could drive them plenty hard at moderate gain and volume settings.

I'm wondering why you're worried about having enough output to drive an amp. Do you have to crank your Combustion's active EQ to get enough signal? If so, then there's a setup problem with the bass, pedalboard or amp.

Thanks, Steve.

No, I don't. My question was based on a few things that I've read, like the ABZ is more subdued and less aggressive than the Combustion. I understand the how the tonal quality might be more "laid back", but I also took that to mean that there was less output. Also, the Combustion is the first bass that I've owned where the passive output is almost as hot as the active output(my last active/passive bass, a Fender American Deluxe Jazz 5, the passive output was so low, it was unusable live.). I kind of attributed that to the fact that the Combustion does have an active circuit. I was hoping that the ABZ would be at least as hot as the Combustion in passive mode. I forgot to mention that my Combustion has a switch, which I assumed was an active/passive bypass.

I was pretty sure that I would've found someone saying "this ABZ isn't loud enough" by now, but since that hasn't happened, I'm not super worried about it. I just thought I'd ask some of you guys that have them. I am really excited!! This is one of the few times that I've owned multiple basses from the same manufacturer at the same time(I had multiple Warwicks at the same time, multiple USA MTDs at once, & multiple Spectors).

I'd been wanting to just try a Dingwall for a long time, now I have two!

 

[spiritbass]

I'd been wanting to just try a Dingwall for a long time, now I have two!

Welcome the association of satisfied Dingwall players. Enjoy playing the frets off of your dynamic duo!

 

[brownie_bass]

Another quick update on the eBay SJ: a few minutes of tweaking the setup worked wonders. 1/4 turn of the truss rod and 1/4-1/2 turn on the saddle screws brought the action from painful to pleasant, with no unreasonable fret buzzing. It's amazing what a difference small changes can make. The strings are still an issue, but the overall impact is night and day.

The lesson: just invest the 15 minutes and set up a new bass as soon as possible.

 

[NaH]

Welcome the association of satisfied Dingwall players. Enjoy playing the frets off of your dynamic duo!

You: Look! I played the frets off my bass! I'll have to play it this way now.

Spouse: You can't fool me - you bought a fretless.








Ok - I'm in a strange mood.

 

[spiritbass]

Ok - I'm in a strange mood.

Been there.

 

[dukeorock]

Been there.

Live there

 

[BC82]

Calling ye old school Dingwallians.
I have been emailing a gentlemen in Canada about his combustion. It looks to be a transparent white Combustion. So my question is, were there some trans white version 1 combustions made? I attached the pics. Kind of looks trans but pics are not too good. Also the gstring is broked He is finding a box to ship it in. After that, should be able to seal a deal.

Also I'm not big on baltic amber pg. So if anyone has a black pearl pg pm me if you'd rather have ba pg. That's if the deal gets sealed.

Link Removed
Invalid Link Removed

 

[Bocete]

Yeah, that finish was offered in the first batch of Combustions. Not sure about the later batches. It is called "Blonde" and there are some pics of the same finish/pickguard/fretboard combo Invalid Link Removed.

You can also contact Dingwall directly about getting a different pickguard. They were pretty helpful with my Combustion's pickguard.

 

[BC82]

Yeah, that finish was offered in the first batch of Combustions. Not sure about the latter series. It is called "Blonde" and there are some pics of the same finish/pickguard/fretboard combo Invalid Link Removed.

You can also contact Dingwall directly about getting a different pickguard. They were pretty helpful with my Combustion's pickguard.

Cool thanks

 

[dukeorock]

Different strokes and all, but I think the pickguard looks great on that bass

 

[BC82]

Different strokes and all, but I think the pickguard looks great on that bass

As I look at the pics, I believe it is growing on me.

 

[spiritbass]

Link Removed

This is my favorite Combustion finish. I also dig Baltic Amber pick guards . This bass will look so much better 'in person' than in this unfocused, over-exposed picture. I don't understand why people don't put more effort into capturing the best possible images when offering instruments for sale.