Fender Rascal - in retrospect what about it's tone range?

[Sid the Kid]

The bass sounds cool on its own but disappears in a mix.

The thing just rattled. It it wasn’t the goofy way too big bridge saddles it was the pickups themselves. It always rattled.

It is actually bigger than a P bass. It didn’t just feel big, they are big. Playing “over the p pickup” on the rascal is Jaco land, so it feels a bit strange to play.

It was super easy to access the upper frets and the upper register sounded plump and sweet. The space between the frets is obviously smaller than a 34” bass, but it plays like a 34” bass. If reach is an issue it will not be easier for your shoulder than a P bass but it will be easier for the fretting hand. The construction and finish on mine was great and it has a cool look.

Overall it left me wanting more so I tried modding it, eventually trading it off. Replaced it with a PJ Mustang which is hilariously small by comparison.

 

[selowitch]

I liked the sound of it solo, at least. Ultimately not for me.

 

[fhm555]

i bought a set of Kent Armstrong lipstick tube pickups for a jazz bass and they did nothing for me at all. I couldn’t see paying 7~8 hundred for a bass with three of them in it.

 

[somebrains]

Something like this would be more useful:

 

[Double E]

I heard a cat play one of these at a gig once... a country act. He had it dialed in nicely for a good supportive country bass tone. Very tubby as you'd expect from a short scale.

I'd give it an A+ for tone, looks and overall cool factor.

 

[Bass V]

Something like this would be more useful:

ooooooh yeah, I have 0 problems with getting on with that! but it would be an add not a substitute

 

[somebrains]

I'm not with the lipstick tube sound for anything but slide guitar.

 

[Bass V]

I'm not with the lipstick tube sound for anything but slide guitar.

I was surprised tubes were used, then more so when they sounded so yummy and got glowing reviews, if indeed they sound that great. it looks like I'll never know for sure til I try a Rascal thru my amps and the chances of that are laughable at best. but I'm known for letting curious desire overwhelm me if a really good deal pops up to compensate for $hipping. but I want to thank you for submitting that video, I'd never heard of those makers and am suddenly a big fan after a bit of research.

 

[somebrains]

The J/MM pickup is unique bc of it's mixed coils.
I think Delano has a pickup with a similar design.

Think about what different pickup positions and pickup winds will do.

I tend to like overwound pickups, less highs and more mids and/or lows. You can accomoplish similar changes in tone by moving pickups around.

Find clips of the Stu Hamm basses, play a G&L or Warwick $$ with humbucker switching.

Enjoy the exploration.

 

[Bass V]

Find clips of the Stu Hamm basses, play a G&L or Warwick $$ with humbucker switching.

lol the ongoing love / hate affair with my G&L L2KT has been noticed by a few TB'ers over the year

 

[somebrains]

I have the same thing going with Warwick $$'s, I've gutted them for SD and Nordstrand experiments.

Lately I've been musing on 60's Guild and Gibson bass pickup positions.

We have more options than they did back then.

 

[Sonspace]

Hi folks, old thread but I was just googling my beloved Rascal, and it's vanished. I loved her at first sight and still do. Loretta.

I'm no gun player, I just jam with friends, but the tonal range is massive. I can choose a double bass, or a growl, whether I stand out in the mix, or blend. I love it. I upload the odd bit to youtube if anyone wants to know how it sounds.

 

[merseymale]

while not having an EB-x with a muddy yet I like the thot of a wooly yet diverse neck PU and this video (worthy or not) had a delicious sound that I hope can be easily found on the Rascal, and mixed with the other 2 PUs has me dreaming of a versatile bass unlike much else out there. I could be miles off base in my assumptive quest here but if these aren't great tone machines right out of the box then I'd be open to making it great for the stuff I play or may discover on a Rascal, which is not gonna be slap-happy to say the least lol (he did qualify it with the disclaimer to his credit) plus, other videos showed the provided example to not be far off the mark in a wide range of quality sounds, this was just the best audio I found and he had it at a moderate volume level as I usually would at home so maybe these PU falter when in a higher stress setting. even so, I'd like to think the electronics pax can be sweetened to exceed the stock setup's already impressive footprint, if that can happen I won't mind the ha$$le of getting it perfected.

So...didya buy in The End?

 

[Bass V]

So...didya buy in The End?

it turns out I'm short scale adverse, but these might not have that feel or tone should I handle one in the wild. kinda scarce.