Dingwall Owners Club

[Bassheart365]

Ok, so I'm gonna ask a question that I already have the answer to (from this forum).

So. Long story short - I've been given the opportunity to buy the Dingwall of my dreams. I have this fantastic friend who will lend me money with literally no strings attached. I mean it. He's just a normal guy that worked a lot when he was young, has no loans or obligations to anyone and is happy to lend me the money (he's also the singer of my band).

The only caveat is this: time. Money isn't an issue for me with my current job and salary, but since it's an international purchase, I can't break the payment down into mortgages. I can do so with my friend, however.

If I can get my custom bass sold, it will easily pay back two thirds of the loan. Remember, no interests or caveats with the actual loan. The problem is that I doubt if I ever will sell that bass at all. The second hand market for custom basses is already very difficult, for obvious reasons - even more so in Sweden.

Should I go for it?

(Like I don't already know the answer, haha)

 

[AB Nate]

Lol. And my wife just sent me the blue prints to our next house.

 

[The_Owl]

Your a lucky fellow to have a person like that in your life. It's great to have good people.

You have me curious what this dream bass is though??

Let's just say I have to practice a lot, and somehow get good enough to play it.

Do something nice for your friend, too. Go for it, but make sure he knows how much you appreciate his benevolence.

Oh believe me, if I go for it he will be showered with gratitude.

 

[bebass]

View attachment 2745255

Ha! Interesting graph. I just checked and Blue NG2 accounted for a significant part of our yearly NG2 sales, beating out even White, which was next by a small margin. Orange, Green, Red were fairly tied with Black being the lowest. But this may have been partly due to my underestimating Black as popular, because the last month shows Black surpassing Orange, Green, Red. Anyway, Blue wins with White right next to it. So put more blue in your graph, ha ha.

 

[spiritbass]

Still no new builds in my future, but I will soon be playing a new version of my '09 Super J/P. The adventure into AlNico V pickups continues... As soon as Adrian at Nordstrand Pickups works his mojo, it will be wearing a NP-4A-DW (Dingwall edition) at the neck position, and a Big Split-DW (they just fit in a Super Fatty shell) at the bridge. The anticipation is building...

 

[Lowendtech]

Still no new builds in my future, but I will soon be playing a new version of my '09 Super J/P. The adventure into AlNico V pickups continues... As soon as Adrian at Nordstrand Pickups works his mojo, it will be wearing a NP-4A-DW (Dingwall edition) at the neck position, and a Big Split-DW (they just fit in a Super Fatty shell) at the bridge. The anticipation is building...

That's something I'm interested in hearing about. My SJ/P4 has SF's and I'm looking for a bit of a different vibe for it.

 

[dazmond]

Let's just say I have to practice a lot, and somehow get good enough to play it.

Don't worry about that part. I don't deserve my ABII with my skills, but for the last year and a half it has really motivated me to get better! I've put in a ton of practice as it's just such an amazing instrument to play

 

[spiritbass]

That's something I'm interested in hearing about. My SJ/P4 has SF's and I'm looking for a bit of a different vibe for it.

I wish I were capable of describing the tonal difference between the stock pickup and the NP-4A-DW that I installed in my Super P. The old adage of "Talking about tone is like tap dancing about architecture." is so true. The actual frequency response didn't seem much different, but the stock pickup is more intense. The NP-4A-DW is just as punchy and present all across the board, but to my ears, sweeter and more musical. I simply don't know how else to describe it. A telling point - from what I've been hearing, the Dingwall crew has been sending out new FD-3 equipped instruments with FDV (AlNico V magnet-powered) pickups. If you decide to take the plunge, touch base with Jeff @ Dingwall for shells. They have been kind enough to ship them directly to Nordstrand for me. Sheldon and crew do plan to develop an FDV version of the FDP (split-P) pickup, but I have no idea of their timeline (I don't know if they plan on developing an FDV Super Fatty). This and my curiosity is why I have been paying Nordstrand to craft them for me.

 

[CL400Peavey]

Yep. Bought my original AB-1 and while I never should have sold it, I did...to a friend who I offered...the same price I paid for it. That was a bargain on the used market (about 3 years ago). The fact that the NG's are a good wait tells you that that model is in the same place. I put my deposit down today on one that was dealer ordered back in January. Demand is there whether it's at ~$1600 (NG2) or ~$5000 or more for more expensive models.

And I'm glad you did sell it. I just picked up a dingwall gig bag for it.

 

[BurningSkies]

And I'm glad you did sell it. I just picked up a dingwall gig bag for it.

That's probably the Dingwall bag I just turned down. I basically told Grasshopper that I've got plenty of bags and asked if they had any hardshells since this next Dingwall will live in a van and on the road. He actually didn't know of any that fit...

...which leads me to re-state to those who are wondering about a good reasonably priced non-bag, the Gator ATA style bass case does fit quite well without much play or wiggle...and retails for ~150$. The SKB Freedom case (rectangular) will also fit most Dingwalls.

 

[rockinbilly]

That's probably the Dingwall bag I just turned down. I basically told Grasshopper that I've got plenty of bags and asked if they had any hardshells since this next Dingwall will live in a van and on the road. He actually didn't know of any that fit...

...which leads me to re-state to those who are wondering about a good reasonably priced non-bag, the Gator ATA style bass case does fit quite well without much play or wiggle...and retails for ~150$. The SKB Freedom case (rectangular) will also fit most Dingwalls.

My NG2 5 string fits quite snuggly in a Fender P/J molded bass case !
I picked it up gently used for a buck and a quarter at the local shop.
I can't see risking this amazing instrument by carrying it around in a bag !!!!!
On that note, I have the deluxe gig bag I will be putting up for sale soon.

 

[bebass]

Don't worry about that part. I don't deserve my ABII with my skills, but for the last year and a half it has really motivated me to get better! I've put in a ton of practice as it's just such an amazing instrument to play

You know, I think you make a good point here. A nice bass DOES or at least certainly CAN help motivation. I didn't practice for about 30 years (I just played based on my previous 15 years of practice) and I am practicing again now that my sound is exactly where I want it to be.

 

[AB Nate]

You know, I think you make a good point here. A nice bass DOES or at least certainly CAN help motivation. I didn't practice for about 30 years (I just played based on my previous 15 years of practice) and I am practicing again now that my sound is exactly where I want it to be.

Same for me. Dingwall changed my motivation on a few levels. True story. Maybe something else high end could have done the same but I do not feel that is the case.

 

[Thumper]

The best thing Dingwall has done for me is it makes me happy, and better yet content with my gear. Instead of searching or lusting for new gear, I'm wearing my mojo into the finest basses I have ever played.

 

[J Posega]

I know this is the Dingwall club, but I thought I'd report in on another fanned bass I got to encounter.

After dropping my wife off at O'hare to catch a flight to the UK, I went to Milwaukee to stay overnight with a friend before driving eight hours back home. I stopped at a Music Go Round, which had an impressive selection.

They had an ESP fanned fret 5, the $999.99 model. 37-34" scale, felt like maybe 7 or 18mm spacing, Nordstrand pickups, ESP preamp.

It's a nice looking bass. Neck is wenge and some other wood, 5 piece. Tuners were Gotoh I think. Individual bridges. Hardware is black.

First problem: it's heavy. Around 10 lbs, at least. (Well, really problem 1 is that it's got a guitar-store setup, so the action was higher than most players would like).

Problem two: They clearly didn't "design" a fanned fret bass. They took an existing body shape, put things at an angle, and added all the extra length to the nut end of the neck. Upper strap button only came to about the 15th fret. I only played it sitting, but I could tell it would've dove to the floor on a strap, even with the heavy body. It felt like I had to lean over towards my left side to reach the lowest frets.

Problem two-and-a-half: the neck is slightly thick front to back, bigger than a Combustion. This would not be a problem, per se, if problem three was not a thing, and if it were properly setup. But as it is, it just made the reach to the lowest notes feel like more of a strain.

Problem three: the nut was not contoured along the top, and so the G string edge sort of dug into the palm when going after low B and E notes. It also has one of those ugly deals where the headstock is cut like a straight fret bass, and they've got that hideous bit of fingerboard sticking out behind the nut.

Problem four: overly complicated, so-so electronics. Not sure what variety of Nordy pickups are in the bass, but they sound great. The ESP preamp though? Blech. Barf. Ew. I remember why I hated active basses for so long now. The preamp is pretty standard: volume, blend, bass w/ detent, mid w/ detent, treble... but no detent for the treble pot. I kept it dimed and everything else flat. There are also two switches, but one didn't make any audible difference, and the other just made things louder? I think the battery was either almost dead, or the preamp was defective.

Even with a so-so to bad preamp, it's a decent bass. It's just not an amazing bass, and I certainly would not pay 2/3 of a Combustion for something that was not designed to be multiscale. Ergonomically, it's a disaster. Tonally, I could see it being a really great bass, but it's not physically nice to play. It's kludgy, and that isn't only due to medium-high action - it's another case of jumping on the bandwagon, like a lot of 35" scale basses. Builders need to learn that they can't just slap a longer neck on a 34" body and expect it to play well.

 

[EMoneySC2]

I know this is the Dingwall club, but I thought I'd report in on another fanned bass I got to encounter.

After dropping my wife off at O'hare to catch a flight to the UK, I went to Milwaukee to stay overnight with a friend before driving eight hours back home. I stopped at a Music Go Round, which had an impressive selection.

They had an ESP fanned fret 5, the $999.99 model. 37-34" scale, felt like maybe 7 or 18mm spacing, Nordstrand pickups, ESP preamp.

It's a nice looking bass. Neck is wenge and some other wood, 5 piece. Tuners were Gotoh I think. Individual bridges. Hardware is black.

First problem: it's heavy. Around 10 lbs, at least. (Well, really problem 1 is that it's got a guitar-store setup, so the action was higher than most players would like).

Problem two: They clearly didn't "design" a fanned fret bass. They took an existing body shape, put things at an angle, and added all the extra length to the nut end of the neck. Upper strap button only came to about the 15th fret. I only played it sitting, but I could tell it would've dove to the floor on a strap, even with the heavy body. It felt like I had to lean over towards my left side to reach the lowest frets.

Problem two-and-a-half: the neck is slightly thick front to back, bigger than a Combustion. This would not be a problem, per se, if problem three was not a thing, and if it were properly setup. But as it is, it just made the reach to the lowest notes feel like more of a strain.

Problem three: the nut was not contoured along the top, and so the G string edge sort of dug into the palm when going after low B and E notes. It also has one of those ugly deals where the headstock is cut like a straight fret bass, and they've got that hideous bit of fingerboard sticking out behind the nut.

Problem four: overly complicated, so-so electronics. Not sure what variety of Nordy pickups are in the bass, but they sound great. The ESP preamp though? Blech. Barf. Ew. I remember why I hated active basses for so long now. The preamp is pretty standard: volume, blend, bass w/ detent, mid w/ detent, treble... but no detent for the treble pot. I kept it dimed and everything else flat. There are also two switches, but one didn't make any audible difference, and the other just made things louder? I think the battery was either almost dead, or the preamp was defective.

Even with a so-so to bad preamp, it's a decent bass. It's just not an amazing bass, and I certainly would not pay 2/3 of a Combustion for something that was not designed to be multiscale. Ergonomically, it's a disaster. Tonally, I could see it being a really great bass, but it's not physically nice to play. It's kludgy, and that isn't only due to medium-high action - it's another case of jumping on the bandwagon, like a lot of 35" scale basses. Builders need to learn that they can't just slap a longer neck on a 34" body and expect it to play well.

That sounds a lot like my experience with the Ibanez SRFF806. Wonky neck shape in my opinion, weird electronics package, not ergonomic, hideous bit of fretboard above the nut on the treble side. I'm glad I had it for a while to try a multiscale bass, but it wasn't long after getting it that I ordered an NG-2.

I think these basses are overpriced, considering the poor designs, and how under-designed/built to actually compete with a Dingwall Combustion. Good for builders to be trying, but they ought to be putting in more effort.

I'm hoping the upcoming multiscale bass from Chapman turns out well. Small chance I'll buy one...but it'd be nice to have something good on the market to compete.

Lately if I come across people juggling the idea of getting an ESP/Ibanez multiscale I'm HEAVILY pushing them to just commit and get the Dingwall. They'll spend more and have to wait, but they're worth every bit of it all, IMO.

 

[AB Nate]

I know this is the Dingwall club, but I thought I'd report in on another fanned bass I got to encounter.

After dropping my wife off at O'hare to catch a flight to the UK, I went to Milwaukee to stay overnight with a friend before driving eight hours back home. I stopped at a Music Go Round, which had an impressive selection.

They had an ESP fanned fret 5, the $999.99 model. 37-34" scale, felt like maybe 7 or 18mm spacing, Nordstrand pickups, ESP preamp.

It's a nice looking bass. Neck is wenge and some other wood, 5 piece. Tuners were Gotoh I think. Individual bridges. Hardware is black.

First problem: it's heavy. Around 10 lbs, at least. (Well, really problem 1 is that it's got a guitar-store setup, so the action was higher than most players would like).

Problem two: They clearly didn't "design" a fanned fret bass. They took an existing body shape, put things at an angle, and added all the extra length to the nut end of the neck. Upper strap button only came to about the 15th fret. I only played it sitting, but I could tell it would've dove to the floor on a strap, even with the heavy body. It felt like I had to lean over towards my left side to reach the lowest frets.

Problem two-and-a-half: the neck is slightly thick front to back, bigger than a Combustion. This would not be a problem, per se, if problem three was not a thing, and if it were properly setup. But as it is, it just made the reach to the lowest notes feel like more of a strain.

Problem three: the nut was not contoured along the top, and so the G string edge sort of dug into the palm when going after low B and E notes. It also has one of those ugly deals where the headstock is cut like a straight fret bass, and they've got that hideous bit of fingerboard sticking out behind the nut.

Problem four: overly complicated, so-so electronics. Not sure what variety of Nordy pickups are in the bass, but they sound great. The ESP preamp though? Blech. Barf. Ew. I remember why I hated active basses for so long now. The preamp is pretty standard: volume, blend, bass w/ detent, mid w/ detent, treble... but no detent for the treble pot. I kept it dimed and everything else flat. There are also two switches, but one didn't make any audible difference, and the other just made things louder? I think the battery was either almost dead, or the preamp was defective.

Even with a so-so to bad preamp, it's a decent bass. It's just not an amazing bass, and I certainly would not pay 2/3 of a Combustion for something that was not designed to be multiscale. Ergonomically, it's a disaster. Tonally, I could see it being a really great bass, but it's not physically nice to play. It's kludgy, and that isn't only due to medium-high action - it's another case of jumping on the bandwagon, like a lot of 35" scale basses. Builders need to learn that they can't just slap a longer neck on a 34" body and expect it to play well.

Yup. Sounds pretty accurate. One store in town has one of those, the ibanez srff, and the schecter.
Of the 3 I'd take the ibanez.....barely. In all reality though. I'd take a good ebmm or something with great sound and action before I'd take any of the 3. None are good compared to a combustion.
Not trying to be biased, just expressing my experiences.

 

[AB Nate]

On this topic. Just curious of the other fanned fret basses out there? Not many I would like to try but just for the heck of it I'm gonna start a list of the ones I know of. Just copy and past the list and add your contribution.

-THE DINGWALL END ALL!

-ibanez
-Ltd
-schecter
-prometeus (way better neck then the above listed).
-acacia
-mayones( I've always wanted to try one. Parallel or FF)
-chapman?
ADDED:
-Kiesel
-Brice
-little
-Beardly Customs
-Conklin
-Blasius

 

[Charlzm]

I know this is the Dingwall club, but I thought I'd report in on another fanned bass I got to encounter.

After dropping my wife off at O'hare to catch a flight to the UK, I went to Milwaukee to stay overnight with a friend before driving eight hours back home. I stopped at a Music Go Round, which had an impressive selection.

They had an ESP fanned fret 5, the $999.99 model. 37-34" scale, felt like maybe 7 or 18mm spacing, Nordstrand pickups, ESP preamp.

It's a nice looking bass. Neck is wenge and some other wood, 5 piece. Tuners were Gotoh I think. Individual bridges. Hardware is black.

First problem: it's heavy. Around 10 lbs, at least. (Well, really problem 1 is that it's got a guitar-store setup, so the action was higher than most players would like).

Problem two: They clearly didn't "design" a fanned fret bass. They took an existing body shape, put things at an angle, and added all the extra length to the nut end of the neck. Upper strap button only came to about the 15th fret. I only played it sitting, but I could tell it would've dove to the floor on a strap, even with the heavy body. It felt like I had to lean over towards my left side to reach the lowest frets.

Problem two-and-a-half: the neck is slightly thick front to back, bigger than a Combustion. This would not be a problem, per se, if problem three was not a thing, and if it were properly setup. But as it is, it just made the reach to the lowest notes feel like more of a strain.

Problem three: the nut was not contoured along the top, and so the G string edge sort of dug into the palm when going after low B and E notes. It also has one of those ugly deals where the headstock is cut like a straight fret bass, and they've got that hideous bit of fingerboard sticking out behind the nut.

Problem four: overly complicated, so-so electronics. Not sure what variety of Nordy pickups are in the bass, but they sound great. The ESP preamp though? Blech. Barf. Ew. I remember why I hated active basses for so long now. The preamp is pretty standard: volume, blend, bass w/ detent, mid w/ detent, treble... but no detent for the treble pot. I kept it dimed and everything else flat. There are also two switches, but one didn't make any audible difference, and the other just made things louder? I think the battery was either almost dead, or the preamp was defective.

Even with a so-so to bad preamp, it's a decent bass. It's just not an amazing bass, and I certainly would not pay 2/3 of a Combustion for something that was not designed to be multiscale. Ergonomically, it's a disaster. Tonally, I could see it being a really great bass, but it's not physically nice to play. It's kludgy, and that isn't only due to medium-high action - it's another case of jumping on the bandwagon, like a lot of 35" scale basses. Builders need to learn that they can't just slap a longer neck on a 34" body and expect it to play well.

Here was my experience with that bass:

When you want to demo a relatively expensive bass...

 

[J Posega]

Yup. Sounds pretty accurate. One store in town has one of those, the ibanez srff, and the schecter.
Of the 3 I'd take the ibanez.....barely. In all reality though. I'd take a good ebmm or something with great sound and action before I'd take any of the 3. None are good compared to a combustion.
Not trying to be biased, just expressing my experiences.

I wouldn't know what to play if it wasn't a Dingwall. I'd likely go back to just 4 strings. Don't know about brand though.

On this topic. Just curious of the other fanned fret basses out there? Not many I would like to try but just for the heck of it I'm gonna start a list of the ones I know of. Just copy and past the list and add your contribution.

-THE DINGWALL END ALL!

-ibanez
-Ltd
-schecter
-prometeus (way better neck then the above listed).
-acacia
-mayones( I've always wanted to try one. Parallel or FF)
-chapman?

Kiesel (Carvin) has a few models
Brice/ Agile but they're so cheap
Little Guitar Works - if I were ponying up new-custom-Dingwall kind of money, I'd look long and hard at a Little with a fanned, Torzal twist neck