Fender Rascal Bass....in Production??

[OutToPlayJazz]

That is one of the coolest looking basses right now...lucky man. Does it feel like a shortscale? I have heard that it feels a bit longer than say a Mustang. Thanks and happy birthday.

Thanks for the birthday wishes

It's actually quite a large bass - I'd say it's physically as long as a Jazz. The gaps between the frets are slightly shorter than on a 34, but what makes it short scale is the bridge placement. The Bass VI body is quite large and the Coronado style headstock is huge too. String tension is just about perfect on 40-95's as well.

It actually feels more like a 32" to play - I had Status Kingbasses made for me in the past and the dimensions feel quite similar. So no, the Rascal doesn't feel like a tiny short scale. More like a very slightly more compact instrument.

 

[Tbone76]

+1 on the feel of the bass. It feels almost like a jazz in size, and if the case cutouts were different, it would fit in a standard size Fender hardshell case. The most noticeable thing to me is the string tension, as it's less with a short-scale. I put a set of Chromes on it, and it stiffened the feel of the strings nicely.

 

[OutToPlayJazz]

I quite like the softer string feel. I play with a very tactile gentle touch anyway, but the lesser string tension makes the standard 40-95's feel like the 30 to 90's on my Status basses. Very flexible with great bend-ability. Although there's more flexibility to the strings, it doesn't have the slack feel of a Mustang or other usual 30" suspects.

Basically, the Rascal is an odd mix of dimensions and tension that just works very well.

 

[canuckshort]

Thanks for the answers. I think this is definitely one that I will play before I buy. However living in a smaller city in Canada, that may be difficult. Thanks again.

 

[Gorn]

I love the tone of position 4.

 

[KeithPoker]

i like 3, 1, then 6. i would string it with tapes too, i think.

 

[OutToPlayJazz]

Update...

I've got my Rascal strung on DR Marcus Miller Fat Beams 40-100 and it sounds stellar, giving the bass a totally different character to the original Fender SS strings.

I played it recently as a guest at a colleague's big band and in position 4 (rear two pickups) it sings. Very melodic and very well placed, even against 17 other instruments. I'm still very impressed.

 

[SneakyT]

Got to play one of these recently and was quite impressed, Surprisingly. Really impressed with the slap tone. Was not expecting that at all. Well worth checking out. That pickguard is not what I'd choose. Would love to see someone mod it a bit with Bass VI plates and a Tort.

 

[selowitch]

Good bass. Would consider one if it were lighter in weight.

 

[Jeff Bonny]

Based purely on looks I really wanted to hate this thing. But it's been out a while and since every one of the four or five I've played felt and sounded great I kinda have to really like it. My only real knock is that they are on average a little heavier than I'd be comfortable standing with very long. It's a very functional little bass that I'd bet Fender doesn't keep in the catalog forever. If that's the case in ten years it's going to be sought after not just because it's unique but because it is so playable.

 

[selowitch]

You're right, Jeff. There is something really unique and appealing about this bass. It has a sort of whimsical, mischievous design that makes "Rascal" the perfect name for it.

 

[Lownote38]

It looks cool, but they should have avoided using any type of Strat pickup. Especially one that Seymour Duncan describes as "jangley". The pickups should be bass pickups. Didn't they learn anything from the Musicmaster Bass (also a Strat pickup)???

 

[selowitch]

It looks cool, but they should have avoided using any type of Strat pickup. Especially one that Seymour Duncan describes as "jangley". The pickups should be bass pickups. Didn't they learn anything from the Musicmaster Bass (also a Strat pickup)???

I don’t disagree with you; however, it is possible to make Strat-style pickups work for bass. For example, an EMG-S set (designed for guitar) would probably sound great in a Rascal.

 

[Lownote38]

I don’t disagree with you; however, it is possible to make Strat-style pickups work for bass. For example, an EMG-S set would probably sound great in a Rascal.

No Strat pickup will catch enough low end in a bass (maybe an active EMG like you said). My complaint is with what Fender put in the Rascal for stock pickups rather than what you can put in it after the fact. At least a P-bass or a Jazz come with pickups made for a bass that are decent sounding.

 

[danosix]

It looks cool, but they should have avoided using any type of Strat pickup. Especially one that Seymour Duncan describes as "jangley". The pickups should be bass pickups. Didn't they learn anything from the Musicmaster Bass (also a Strat pickup)???

Actually - they are Danelectro style lipstick pickups - the only thing that makes them "strat" is SD makes them the right size to mount on a strat pickguard. Lipsticks are well established as a good (though unique) pickup for bass.

 

[Lownote38]

Actually - they are Danelectro style lipstick pickups - the only thing that makes them "strat" is SD makes them the right size to mount on a strat pickguard. Lipsticks are well established as a good (though unique) pickup for bass.

If you go to Seymour Duncan's website, those pickups are listed and designed for guitar and not bass.

 

[danosix]

If you go to Seymour Duncan's website, those pickups are listed and designed for guitar and not bass.

I know - because there are a million more guitar players than bass players and they've been modified (size only) to fit a guitar (strat).
The spec on the old Danelectros was identical on both guitars and bass and the SDs are nearly identical to them. The danelectro sound is one of the classic "alternative" sounds - they are among the most recorded basses ever once you eliminate Leos three classics.
They are quite low impedance (like half of a normal strat pickup) so they sound very different - very full range and yes a treble emphasis, but not as much as a strat because of the lower impedance. This means you might not like the sound - but they have been deliberately selected for that sound.
EDIT - the reason I know about these is I have researched them looking for replacement pickups for my varioys Danos (guitar and bass) and found that these are EXCELLENT Danelectro style pickups that don't suit my purposes because they don't come with the original Dano style mount and are a different hole size.

 

[hdracer]

If you go to Seymour Duncan's website, those pickups are listed and designed for guitar and not bass.

A 4.3k Lipstick pick up doesn't know if it is in a guitar a bass or a mandolin. It does not have poll pieces that can be misaligned with the strings that causes over tones.

 

[Lownote38]

I know - because there are a million more guitar players than bass players and they've been modified (size only) to fit a guitar (strat).
The spec on the old Danelectros was identical on both guitars and bass and the SDs are nearly identical to them. The danelectro sound is one of the classic "alternative" sounds - they are among the most recorded basses ever once you eliminate Leos three classics.
They are quite low impedance (like half of a normal strat pickup) so they sound very different - very full range and yes a treble emphasis, but not as much as a strat because of the lower impedance. This means you might not like the sound - but they have been deliberately selected for that sound.

Then I guess I wouldn't like the sound.

 

[Lownote38]

A 4.3k Lipstick pick up doesn't know if it is in a guitar a bass or a mandolin. It does not have poll pieces that can be misaligned with the strings that causes over tones.

It's about frequencies to me. I don't enjoy thin sounding pickups in a bass.