• 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.

Do sadowsky basses really offer more fender basses?

#61
motleystew said:
I hate it when someone posts a thread and gets the "Look at the forum search" crap. Maybe people want to be in an active dialogue about a topic and not just read what someone else has said in the past.
Click to expand...

I've never seen that to be the case. Whenever a thread pops up that gets a "do a search" response, invariably the post was not anything thoughtful like "I've read a lot about this subject and I want some fresh opinions", instead it is always "wats better, a P or a J" or "are Sadowskys really worth so much money" or "what is the best bass overdrive pedal" etc. which to me is very obnoxious.

But I do admit that the most polite thing to do is say nothing. I'm just not polite 100% of the time. :)
 
#63
Yeah.. hate to admit it.. but I do think so.

The level of craftmanship is higher (even on metro models) ... and the preamp and pickups are just another planet..
mroe tight, powerfull... focused tone on Sadowsky...
fender is just "the classic".. Roger should give credit to J and P basses... but you know he fixed the minuses of fender preoduction and mantains high quality instruments...
We could not say the same for fender.. you should really go for a custom shop model (whose price is even higer of some NYC sadowsky models) or hope to find a good instruments.
With sadowsky you can pick one up without triying it and it will be fine (at least from what I've heard, seen and tried 'till now)
 
#64
Originally Posted by MyUsernameHere
emot-words.gif
Click to expand...

I have no idea what it is you're talking about mate, a good fretjob will get your action as low on a 7 1/4" Fender radius or 16" radius or a compound radius. Whether your fretboard is a radius (cylinder shape) or compouns radius (cone shape) will make no difference at all for the action i.e. how low you can go. The compound radius is only superior because of the choking thing when bending.

The trick is simply to have your frets well leveled, if you want really low action that doesn't buzz sand a fallaway into your top frets.
 
#66
Munjibunga said:
I don't think you mean a tangential line ... you're talking about a radius. You're really talking about a line orthogonal to that radius and tangential to the arc of the fretboard immediately below the string. Anyway, I think that, even if you pluck the string orthogonally to the radial line you described, the ellipse tends to precess, sometimes resulting in a delayed buzz when the angle of the elipse's major axis rotates to an orientation more nearly perpendicular to the fretboard. Higher action gives a little more room for this to occur without buzzing.
Click to expand...

LOL. Sure.

I'm a humanities looser trying to convey basic geometry when I haven't thought about it in 15 years...it was bound to be a miserable failure in one way or another.
 
#67
willsellout said:
Of course I did, you said this:


This statement is patently false. It could have lots of things going on and one of the most likely are the frets IME.



Dan
Click to expand...

Alright. I think I understand our misunderstanding here.

From the OP's post - the one I was responding to, not yours - he said that he noticed he couldn't get low action on "Fenders." He didn't say anything about the basses he owns not being able to be set up with the low action they were previously able to achieve. Nor did he say that his particular Fender basses were unusual in relation to other Fenders he had played as far as this goes. This isn't any bigger an assumption on my part than you guys assuming all the basses he had played needed fret jobs.

I took his post as talking about a general attribute of Fender basses as a whole. I didn't mention that his basses could use a fret-leveling because A) I don't necessarily think new Fenders need their frets leveled, and B) It was already suggested that he take that into account.

Again, I wasn't trying to argue with the fact that a bass that needs its frets leveled or crowned benefits from it. There's nothing in my post that says its a bad idea. At the same time though, a fret-leveling job has nothing to do with the intrinsic properties of a fretboard's curvature. I think you're confusing my making the latter point with me trying to make the prior one.

Anyway, you're absolutely right about about believing your own experience. Problem is, my opinion is born of my own experience just like your's is of your own. When I take measurements, I also find what I stated to be true.
 
#68
No doubt Sadowsky is of higher quality, tighter fit and better electronics then a Fender. For me, would I pay $1100 for a new Fender, no. Would I pay $3000 for a new Sadowsky, no. Even though the American Sadowsky basses are assembled in the U.S., the parts are made overseas, visit the shop cause their aint no sawdust on their floors. MIA Fenders are made in the U.S., but not even to the standards of a Sadowsky Metro or Lakland in my opinion. I have set up many a Fender bass and they are hit and miss. Sometimes you can get the neck nice and straight with low action and on some there is no way you can do it. On the Sadowsky basses I have played, everyone was set up nice and the frets were level.

For me, if I decide to buy a Sadowsky, it will be a used one. I have seen used U.S. ones as low as $1800. I would definitely buy a used Sadowsky over a brand new Fender.

Ok, I have said my thoughts, let my beat down begin!
 
#69
Sight down the side of a Fender neck and do the same with a Sadowsky. You'll see how it's supposed to be done.

I'm not clear on why the location of where products are made is such an issue. I've had 16 Fenders in my life, with some oldies in there. Some, not all, some were great basses. The two from the 60's were great. But for different reasons. Sadowsky spends a bit more time and effort on his basses. It's noticeable.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back