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Yes, exactly the same. The one I bought from Gold Tone, I used on my Rondo Hadean blue solid body mod.
I was planning to go to NAMM on Sunday and visit the Gold Tone booth but at the last minute I couldn't go. Big bummer.
Can anyone offer insights into the difference between the 23 and 25 inch models? I'm planning to get the fretless, and the 25 seems like a good idea. I'm a guitarist for the most part but also play bass. Fairly small hands, but these are both so much smaller than my regular bass that they must both be pretty comfortable. I like the idea of more acoustic volume for small jams, buy want to check whether there is any other tonal difference that might make the 25 less desirable. Unfortunately I can't get my hands on one before I order, so any info and opinions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
I don't know about differences in the two scale lengths they offer, but I had the 23" model and as far as acoustic jams neither one is going to work. You will need to amplify at least a little bit to be heard. And as you stated your going fretless which is a wise choice. If I were to get another one I personally would get the solidbody fretless preferably with the longer 25" scale if it's available in that length. I don't believe you would hear much difference between scale lengths, but the longer one would be a bit more comfortable to play and have a slight edge in string tension. Good luck with whichever you decide to get! And make sure you post about it with pictures!
ok - that's good to know. I'll adjust my expectations.
BTW, it's not so much the scale that I expect to influence tone, but the larger body on the 25.
The solidbody looks cool, but I'm looking forward to playing on the couch unplugged and stuff. It will be much more palatable to my family than my regular bass, which means more playing time for me! Hooray!
BTW, it's not so much the scale that I expect to influence tone, but the larger body on the 25.
The solidbody looks cool, but I'm looking forward to playing on the couch unplugged and stuff. It will be much more palatable to my family than my regular bass, which means more playing time for me! Hooray!
Gents, I'm selling my 25" cheap if anyone's interested. It's got a g string output issue but otherwise good for couch noodling.
For couch noodling either one will work, but I imagine the longer scale with a larger body would have a bit more volume.
I've read the thread but my memory is not what it used to be so I'll go ahead and ask my question(s) anyway. I apologize if they are answered in the previous pages.
I have a GT 23" scale fretless, acoustic version. Love it - love the tone, find the neck to be a good fit (the Kala and Hadean ukes were a touch to small for me), and only have one problem with it. The D string output is lower but usable and the G string is way down - essentially disappears even though I can feel the bass vibrating and acoustically it's in the same ballpark. I've had two different instances of this model and they both behaved exactly the same which makes me think it's an inherent characteristic of the design or the piezo/electronics system they use.
In fact I like the strings that do work for me so well I want a solidbody, or maybe two (fretless & fretted) to give me more options when I choose to play rubber strings instead of my regular basses. But I can't see sinking more money into GT basses that only give me two and a fraction strings that are fully usable even though they've hit the sweet spot in scale length and neck size for me in this type of bass. I don't remember the U-basses I've tried that well but I know I had a Hadean uke at the same time as the first GT and it was better balanced - the G string wasn't an inaudible contributer to the sound.
If I use a Fishman ProPlatinum and crank the compression way up and cut the bass eq way down (or eq by cutting almost all the bass on the GT itself) I can get the G string into the usable output range (still not balanced, but usable) but at the cost of losing the meaty acoustic tone and replacing it with something much closer to a regular electric fretless. Less bloom, less depth, more growl, tighter. To me it loses some of the magic when I do that.
I've sent a question to GT about it via their website and . . . crickets
So I'm consulting the collected TB wisdom on these. Is this a solvable problem? I've considered taking it to a local acoustic guitar shop on the assumption they know piezos and might be able to fix it. Any way to swap in a piezo solution that has 4 separate sensors and a balancing preamp to get string-to-string balance good? Is this an acoustic-only problem that a GT solidbody wouldn't have?
On my first one I took it apart and checked out the bridge - took out the plastic shim and it made no difference. I'm not set up to try sanding the bottom of the bridge or other mechanical fixes but I didn't see anything obvious that I could fix.
I'm trying a Hadean solidbody to see what I think of those but I'd prefer the 23" scale and neck from the GT -- but not if it the output is so low on the upper strings they can't be used in whatever eq I want.
I have a GT 23" scale fretless, acoustic version. Love it - love the tone, find the neck to be a good fit (the Kala and Hadean ukes were a touch to small for me), and only have one problem with it. The D string output is lower but usable and the G string is way down - essentially disappears even though I can feel the bass vibrating and acoustically it's in the same ballpark. I've had two different instances of this model and they both behaved exactly the same which makes me think it's an inherent characteristic of the design or the piezo/electronics system they use.
In fact I like the strings that do work for me so well I want a solidbody, or maybe two (fretless & fretted) to give me more options when I choose to play rubber strings instead of my regular basses. But I can't see sinking more money into GT basses that only give me two and a fraction strings that are fully usable even though they've hit the sweet spot in scale length and neck size for me in this type of bass. I don't remember the U-basses I've tried that well but I know I had a Hadean uke at the same time as the first GT and it was better balanced - the G string wasn't an inaudible contributer to the sound.
If I use a Fishman ProPlatinum and crank the compression way up and cut the bass eq way down (or eq by cutting almost all the bass on the GT itself) I can get the G string into the usable output range (still not balanced, but usable) but at the cost of losing the meaty acoustic tone and replacing it with something much closer to a regular electric fretless. Less bloom, less depth, more growl, tighter. To me it loses some of the magic when I do that.
I've sent a question to GT about it via their website and . . . crickets
So I'm consulting the collected TB wisdom on these. Is this a solvable problem? I've considered taking it to a local acoustic guitar shop on the assumption they know piezos and might be able to fix it. Any way to swap in a piezo solution that has 4 separate sensors and a balancing preamp to get string-to-string balance good? Is this an acoustic-only problem that a GT solidbody wouldn't have?
On my first one I took it apart and checked out the bridge - took out the plastic shim and it made no difference. I'm not set up to try sanding the bottom of the bridge or other mechanical fixes but I didn't see anything obvious that I could fix.
I'm trying a Hadean solidbody to see what I think of those but I'd prefer the 23" scale and neck from the GT -- but not if it the output is so low on the upper strings they can't be used in whatever eq I want.
When I had mine I had low or no output on the E string. I tried pushing the saddle back and forth and it would come alive. You may have to replace the piezo. Did you call Goldtone? I called once a couple years back to inquire about the solidbody version and they were helpful.
Hey all, new guy jumping in here (I purchased Gorn Captain's Micro 25)...continuing the low output troubleshooting on the G. I do get some output, especially if I raise the treble slider but still way softer than the other stings. I'm tempted to try and swap in an Artec or similar. Does the piezo just detach from the saddle somehow?
You could take the issue directly to goldtone. The 5year warranty is transfered when the bass is resold.
I once sent them an email about whether i could use the aquila red strings(the ones for the shortbassone which is also ~25.5" scale). Never got an reply.
I have the Microbass 25 acoustic FL now for a year, and some of the fretlines/possition lines are starting to become loose, and i had to press them back. Currently it look like they are staying in place.
Huh. You know I actually did email them after my last post and was quoted a price of $40 + shipping for a replacement piezo saddle. Nobody mentioned anything about a 5 year warranty.
@Gorn Captain: And I didn't mention (nor did they ask) anything about changing strings...if that was an issue I would guess I could just change them back though.
Yea they charged me 40 for a new preamp for my used Microbass. My preamp kept cutting out and the tuner did not work.
I still have my 25 fretless. It basically handles like an acoustic guitar in terms of weight and scale. I swapped to Pahoehoe strings, which I still think was a good move. The Pahoehoe strings do stretch a lot, but the tone is better than the stock strings. They add more a "tubby" type tone. They are also more consistent string-to-string. I noticed the stock E and A were almost a different sort of string than the stock D and G.
So I did a 'tap test' on each of the 4 saddles, noticed that output seemed OK that way. Weird. Then I made a little tent out of credit card type plastic and slipped it under the G, suddenly got much better output. I took the saddle/piezo out & looked at the slot more carefully...mine wasn't cut straight, it had a little bit of a bend to it such that you could fit one end or the other in pretty easily but when you got the whole thing in it was really tight. I spent maybe 15-20 minutes sanding out the bridge side of the G end of the slot, from the end to maybe 1/2 - 1 inch in, until the whole saddle/piezo piece went in & out relatively easily, and the uneven output was gone! The G is still a bit softer if you crank the bass EQ, but I think that's just the difference between thick & thin strings.
That G string is also really stretched out. Might be part of the problem.
