Guitar Scale Acoustic Basses

[deepyellow]

I'm thinking of getting a Gold Tone Microbass 25, who's been playing one of these lately and can tell me about it?

I considered the options available and am happy with my Microbass 25 purchase.

Gold Tone were responsive and open to my request to install with Aquila Thunder Reds (92U as recommended for this scale length).

The set I shipped to Gold Tone ended up crumbly (shout out to Strings and Beyond for providing a full refund) so I ended up having them install LaBella Silverbacks instead.

I was initially reluctant since this would require some additional setup that likely wouldn't be optimal for poly strings (some minor bridge modifications and maybe some nut work to accommodate the .115 E string).

In the end, Gold Tone did a great job and I appreciated the additional volume and tuning consistency the Silverbacks provided by comparison.

I believe the Microbass 25 with Silverbacks compares favorably to other guitar scale acoustics and appreciate that it has a cutaway and came with a nice bag.

If I were to nitpick, the electronics may be less sophisticated than some offerings but I bought it primarily to play acoustically.

To that end, I have no complaints and hope this was helpful.

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

Haven't posted in here in a good while... my first entry was the Ibanez PNB14E, a cool little guitar-scale bass. I have given it to the girl who was the percussionist in a folk-oldtyme band. She seems to have bonded with it, and doing pretty well. And I still get to see it and play it sometimes.

I took this guitar on as a project; it started life as a Martin DC-X2e, an X series cutaway Dreadnought, with a solid spruce top and HPL Ziricote sides and back. Martin builds these in their Navojoa, Mexico factory, and they are a decent entry-level guitar with (fairly simple) onboard Fishman electronics. Well, this one was damaged and returned... so I got it for el-cheapo... and turned it into a D-scale BASS.


It turns out; Martin bass bridges are exactly the same footprint as their guitar bridges, and the outside string-to-string spacing worked out perfectly too. After the repairs were done, I refinished the top to a burst color to help hide the fixes. Moment of truth came two nights ago when I strung it up with a new set of D'Addarios, the EXP phosphor bronze set they make for the Taylor GS mini. They were plenty long enough for the 25.34" scale, and the longer pull I think gives them a little bit more snap.

All in all, a worthwhile project.

 

[JohnMalay]

Haven't posted in here in a good while... my first entry was the Ibanez PNB14E, a cool little guitar-scale bass. I have given it to the girl who was the percussionist in a folk-oldtyme band. She seems to have bonded with it, and doing pretty well. And I still get to see it and play it sometimes......

All in all, a worthwhile project.

Bravo! I love this kind of DIY tinkering. It helps remove the mystique of guitar building and is in the long tradition of Yankee tinkering.

I love my PNB14e and it has actually gotten me some gigs, in part because its sound is bigger and better than its appearance would indicate.

 

[steve_rolfeca]

Haven't posted in here in a good while... my first entry was the Ibanez PNB14E, a cool little guitar-scale bass. I have given it to the girl who was the percussionist in a folk-oldtyme band. She seems to have bonded with it, and doing pretty well. And I still get to see it and play it sometimes. View attachment 4995179

I took this guitar on as a project; it started life as a Martin DC-X2e, an X series cutaway Dreadnought, with a solid spruce top and HPL Ziricote sides and back. Martin builds these in their Navojoa, Mexico factory, and they are a decent entry-level guitar with (fairly simple) onboard Fishman electronics. Well, this one was damaged and returned... so I got it for el-cheapo... and turned it into a D-scale BASS.
View attachment 4995192 View attachment 4995193 View attachment 4995194

It turns out; Martin bass bridges are exactly the same footprint as their guitar bridges, and the outside string-to-string spacing worked out perfectly too. After the repairs were done, I refinished the top to a burst color to help hide the fixes. Moment of truth came two nights ago when I strung it up with a new set of D'Addarios, the EXP phosphor bronze set they make for the Taylor GS mini. They were plenty long enough for the 25.34" scale, and the longer pull I think gives them a little bit more snap.

All in all, a worthwhile project.

I like what you've done with the Martin.

Did you plug and re-drill for the A and D strings, or fit a new bridge?

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

I like what you've done with the Martin.

Did you plug and re-drill for the A and D strings, or fit a new bridge?

It was a total retro-fit. I bought a Martin bass bridge, just to measure/see if it would work... sure enough, Martin uses the same bridge for bass as guitar, even the saddle slot was in the correct location relative to the scale once located in its proper footprint on the top. After removing the original bridge, (heat lamp, shield, seam separation knife... I do this a lot...) I glued a shim inside the guitar over the bridgeplate, then plugged all 6 of the guitar's pin holes. After the new bass bridge was glued on (one of the last steps in this job) I drilled back through basically 'new wood' to create the new pin holes. A tapered reamer was used to fit the new much larger sized bass bridge pins.

 

[Chickenwheels]

It was a total retro-fit. I bought a Martin bass bridge, just to measure/see if it would work... sure enough, Martin uses the same bridge for bass as guitar, even the saddle slot was in the correct location relative to the scale once located in its proper footprint on the top. After removing the original bridge, (heat lamp, shield, seam separation knife... I do this a lot...) I glued a shim inside the guitar over the bridgeplate, then plugged all 6 of the guitar's pin holes. After the new bass bridge was glued on (one of the last steps in this job) I drilled back through basically 'new wood' to create the new pin holes. A tapered reamer was used to fit the new much larger sized bass bridge pins.

What glue do you use?

 

[EdwardofHuncote]

What glue do you use?

For the bridge and these repairs, just Titebond. If I'm working on old Nazarenes, I'll use hot hide glue, but I didn't stink up the shop for this one. If I really, really needed or wanted to, all this could be undone, and turn it back to a 6-string, but to tell the truth, it was a bit underwhelming to start with when unplugged. This thing is fun now!

 

[B-Mac]

Guild Jumbo Junior.
Arrived last Saturday
More about it here

 

[Sloppy Hack]

I considered the options available and am happy with my Microbass 25 purchase.

Gold Tone were responsive and open to my request to install with Aquila Thunder Reds (92U as recommended for this scale length).

The set I shipped to Gold Tone ended up crumbly (shout out to Strings and Beyond for providing a full refund) so I ended up having them install LaBella Silverbacks instead.

I was initially reluctant since this would require some additional setup that likely wouldn't be optimal for poly strings (some minor bridge modifications and maybe some nut work to accommodate the .115 E string).

In the end, Gold Tone did a great job and I appreciated the additional volume and tuning consistency the Silverbacks provided by comparison.

I believe the Microbass 25 with Silverbacks compares favorably to other guitar scale acoustics and appreciate that it has a cutaway and came with a nice bag.

If I were to nitpick, the electronics may be less sophisticated than some offerings but I bought it primarily to play acoustically.

To that end, I have no complaints and hope this was helpful.

Love my microbass 25. Gold Tone is a local business for me. They have a full workshop and take repairs. Not surprising they were willing to work with you on setup.

 

[JohnMalay]

83 pages! Who'd a thunk it!

Just checking in to say that I am playing my PNB14e in two acoustic/electric bands at the moment and the other members in both can't get over the sound. I can get pretty close to a double bass sound but the sound everyone likes is a punchier tone I get playing sharply with the very tips of my fingers.

In one band I play through the PA. In the other I play through either a Line 6 400w amp or an old Trace Elliot 50w acoustic amp depending on the gig. I can get great tone through any of them, although I will sometimes put a bass eq pedal in front of the PA as it starts getting boomy at louder volume.

I am still playing the original set of D'Dadarrios as I think they are mellower sounding with age.

Actually, I am thinking about getting back-up. Any thought comparing the PNB14 with the Guild Jumbo Junior and the Taylor Mini? Those are really the only other ones I am considering as I am familiar with both brands for quite a while.

Not sure I would pop for the Taylor as a backup, but there are some Guild's available at reasonable prices.

 

[steve_rolfeca]

83 pages! Who'd a thunk it!

Just checking in to say that I am playing my PNB14e in two acoustic/electric bands at the moment and the other members in both can't get over the sound. I can get pretty close to a double bass sound but the sound everyone likes is a punchier tone I get playing sharply with the very tips of my fingers.

In one band I play through the PA. In the other I play through either a Line 6 400w amp or an old Trace Elliot 50w acoustic amp depending on the gig. I can get great tone through any of them, although I will sometimes put a bass eq pedal in front of the PA as it starts getting boomy at louder volume.

I am still playing the original set of D'Dadarrios as I think they are mellower sounding with age.

Actually, I am thinking about getting back-up. Any thought comparing the PNB14 with the Guild Jumbo Junior and the Taylor Mini? Those are really the only other ones I am considering as I am familiar with both brands for quite a while.

Not sure I would pop for the Taylor as a backup, but there are some Guild's available at reasonable prices.

I had the AVN1BE, which was the PNB14's now-discontinued big brother.

Loved it, but in the end it was supplanted by the Guild. There's a big step up between the Guild and the PNB in terms of cosmetics, wood quality, etc. The nicely-padded Guild bag was a nice feature as well, further improving the price-competitiveness of the Guild. Sadly, the bag is an extra cost-option now, at least in Canada- just another reason to look for your Jumbo Junior Bass on the used market!

The two-knob controls on the Guild (vol/tone) are a bit restrictive (you can't crank the bass control and get huge Reggae tones without external EQ), but the tone is more complex and woody than the PNB. Besides, I can't remember the last time I plugged into an amp or PA that didn't offer at least 3-band EQ...

The unplugged tones are louder than the PNB, by a noticeable amount. Also, while it's only a two-fret difference, the 14th-fret neck joint makes it easier to play fills up the octave.

 

[JohnMalay]

I had the AVN1BE, which was the PNB14's now-discontinued big brother.

Loved it, but in the end it was supplanted by the Guild. There's a big step up between the Guild and the PNB in terms of cosmetics, wood quality, etc. The nicely-padded Guild bag was a nice feature as well, further improving the price-competitiveness of the Guild. Sadly, the bag is an extra cost-option now, at least in Canada- just another reason to look for your Jumbo Junior Bass on the used market!

The two-knob controls on the Guild (vol/tone) are a bit restrictive (you can't crank the bass control and get huge Reggae tones without external EQ), but the tone is more complex and woody than the PNB. Besides, I can't remember the last time I plugged into an amp or PA that didn't offer at least 3-band EQ...

The unplugged tones are louder than the PNB, by a noticeable amount. Also, while it's only a two-fret difference, the 14th-fret neck joint makes it easier to play fills up the octave.

thanks for the review. I just bought a mint used one on reverb.com from Chicago music exchange I didn’t ask about a bag so I may need to shop for one of those. The Ibanez is so small that it fits in a padded guitar bag, so that is what I have been using for it. I will post some thing when I get the jumbo Junior and have a chance to play it.

 

[JohnMalay]

thanks for the review. I just bought a mint used one on reverb.com from Chicago music exchange I didn’t ask about a bag so I may need to shop for one of those. The Ibanez is so small that it fits in a padded guitar bag, so that is what I have been using for it. I will post some thing when I get the jumbo Junior and have a chance to play it.

Guild arrived. First impression positive: better construction overall than the PBN13, better neck. First impression negative: volume from G string to E string is not as even as the PBN13 (loud E, not so loud G) and with a single tone wheel cannot be easily corrected as the PBN which has bass and treble knobs. Needs an EQ pedal.

 

[B-Mac]

Guild arrived. First impression positive: better construction overall than the PBN13, better neck. First impression negative: volume from G string to E string is not as even as the PBN13 (loud E, not so loud G) and with a single tone wheel cannot be easily corrected as the PBN which has bass and treble knobs. Needs an EQ pedal.

Sounds like your piezo under the saddle needs to be reset or the slot cleaned out and then reset the piezo

 

[JohnMalay]

Sounds like your piezo under the saddle needs to be reset or the slot cleaned out and then reset the piezo

I'm afraid you are right.

 

[B-Mac]

I'm afraid you are right.

Even happens to a Warwick. Don't sweat it. You can do this yourself.

 

[JohnMalay]

I'm afraid you are right.

As I removed the strings I started with the 2 in the middle. Before I took E and G strings off I noticed that if I pressed down the saddle next to the G the volume of that string immediately increased. So I assumed uneven pressure from the saddle to the piezo. The saddle rested without binding in the slot and was easily removed with my fingers.

My simplest solution was to lay a length of shim (an old piece of fabric insulated wire about the same thickness as the piezo) under the pickup in order to improve contact with the saddle when under string pressure.

Long story short, it worked. Probably not as elegant as the video, but completely reversible. The bass now sounds as it should.

It's another discussion if I should have had to do this on a bass twice as expensive as the PBN13e, the latter of which sounded plum even from Day One.

 

[Karl Kaminski]

yes , alot of times its actually the slot bottom that isn't flush/uneven resulting in hot and cold spots in the PUP element.

the cloth insulation is a great idea

 

[SBassman]

Hi. Have been gone a while, but picking my acoustic back up.

Wanted to give you all a heads up: Mimmo at Aquila has another string innovation just entering the market.
The new strings use copper instead of stiffer materials like steel or nickel. They also have a monofilament bioplastic core called Sugar. These combine for a warm, comfortable, unique new string.

Here's some really great news: these are being sized for 3 different acoustic bass categories:
- 18" - 21" bass ukes
- 23" - 26" guitar scale acoustic basses
- 34" acoustic basses.

I am going to be testing these strings soon, and I will post my results here.

Flat Spirals bass strings | Aquila Corde Armoniche
Test drive:

Test drive with Mike Upton of Kala

 

[Karl Kaminski]

Aquilastrings Flatwound ABG String set (Copper flats on Bioplastic 'Sugar' core)

These are really interesting strings, I would say they bring the feel and sound of a double bass string to shorter scale string instruments.

I received two long-scale sets prior to NAMM, and posted my experiences here.