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Fender Mustang Club

#5,231
Heres my 1975 Mustang with my Fender CS instruments :)

175987.jpg
 
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#5,232
Greywoulf said:
A different take on these 'contours'-- Since I only play seated now with my Mustang (and other basses) resting on my leg and with my arm draped over the top edge, I don't see or feel where 'body contours' are helpful at all? In fact I feel they sometimes make my playing more uncomfortable as the upper part of the bass that my arm rests on is thinner and sharper on contoured basses. I see these contours as perhaps only being advantageous over a slab body if one plays mostly standing and with the bass strapped on rather low, so the upper cutout part leans back into you belly. ~~Otherwise? Well.....??
I also have an Ibanez Mikro which is even lighter than my Squier Mustang but has the Ibby body contours, and I find no real advantage to it having that upper body contour cutout. Playing the Mikro is indeed different from playing my slab Mustang, but IMO it's not better (or especially worse for that matter), it's just 'different'...
I'd be interested to read others' takes on this?
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This is interesting part of playing with many positions on the topic. I was taught never lay your arm across the bass, so contour or not won't matter.

I place may arm in front of the bass and never rest may arm on the body. I went back and looked at some pictures of older famous players that I like and there are the same - never resting their arm on the wood body.

But I guess it is a point of preference and likes.

Greywoulf - I agree with you on sitting - at my church gig I sit all the time and it is not any issues with or without contours.

Rock on the shorties.
 
#5,233
HelpImaRock said:
Greetings Earthlings!

I'm getting ready to buy a Squier Mustang Bass and the first order of business will be to replace the stock rounds with LaBella flatwounds. I have LTFs on my top loading Reverend Watt and I'd like to use them on the Squier when I get it.

Tonight I emailed LaBella to see if I could use medium scale LTFs on the string thru Squier. Amazingly, they responded (I expected tomorrow at the earliest).

The standard Mustang DTF 43-104 set is 34" from ball end to silk
The medium scale LTF set is 34 1/4" from ball end to silk.

Has anyone used the medium LTF set on a Mustang?
If so, does the speaking length of the string wrap around the E tuner?
Does that extra 1/4" come into play?

Additionally, LaBella recommends "massaging" part of the string where it comes through the body and tuning up to pitch slowly.
Click to expand...

Wow - I was told by LaBella - the only string you could use on a Mustang, were the special flats they make for Mustangs. And that the regular flats would break at the bridge of a Mustang.

Wonder what is right. Please let me know how it goes,
 
#5,234
LennyJ said:
Wow - I was told by LaBella - the only string you could use on a Mustang, were the special flats they make for Mustangs. And that the regular flats would break at the bridge of a Mustang.

Wonder what is right. Please let me know how it goes,
Click to expand...

I bought the bass in January and changed the strings to LaBella LTF medium scale in February. Still going strong.
 
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#5,235
LennyJ said:
This is interesting part of playing with many positions on the topic. I was taught never lay your arm across the bass, so contour or not won't matter.

I place may arm in front of the bass and never rest may arm on the body. I went back and looked at some pictures of older famous players that I like and there are the same - never resting their arm on the wood body.

But I guess it is a point of preference and likes.

Greywoulf - I agree with you on sitting - at my church gig I sit all the time and it is not any issues with or without contours.

Rock on the shorties.
Click to expand...
The cutout is important to me. I really feel the lack on the Mustang to the degree that I think about taking a belt sander to it. If I was better at refinishing, it would be a no brainer for me.
 
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#5,237
Djadja said:
I ordered a Serek LZN B90 for my Mustang on Monday and it is slated to arrive on Monday. I've talked to my tech about routing for the new design and hopefully will be on his schedule for sometime next week. I'm really excited about it.
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check back in with us (maybe with sound samples!) once you're done with that mod. I'd be stoked to hear it! I've actually been emailing with Jake at Serek a little about adding a LZNB90 to my mustang as well! Are you putting it in the bridge position?
 
#5,238
I finally replaced the flats on my vintera mustang with rounds, and I've got the nordy pickup in there as well. The flats i had on there before were DR Legends--by many accounts a "good" string--and... well... i just don't like flats. The E string was tubby and undefined, sounded like a completely different string than the other 3. I have my trusty sunbeams on there now (45-105) and it made a big difference in my enjoyment of this bass! Even slap sounds good which was surprising.

The Nordy pickup is a bit underwhelming. This thing still has less--a lot less--output than any of my other passive basses. The tone is good; it sounds like a mustang should, and my amp has a volume knob so it's not a big deal. But the "additional output" norstrand promises for the NM4 isn't a real thing as far as i can tell.
 
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#5,240
And I said:
okay upon playing it further... yeah these nordy's have spank and growl that the stock pups don't. i like 'em. might just be that the rounds vs flats... but these pickups seem more responsive to variations in how hard i pluck. seems to have more nuance to it.
Click to expand...

I think the NM4 really shines with brighter flats (Chromes, cobalts) or less bright rounds (coated, nickels, etc.). But thats just my experience.
 

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