Brought my 68 to play out tonight, but the drummer hasn't shown up yet. Hopefully soon. We are both itching to make some noise.
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Hofner-(not just Beatle Basses)-Group Part 2
- Thread starter Bryan R. Tyler
- Start date
Did I mention that I married way up and out of my league?
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And what bass strings aren't [as a rule] ?!
So does the £48 include VAT ?
And also includes shipping, or is it driving to a store nearby for them ?
Our big Canadian chain Long and McQuade wants $56.99 CAD for 4 string sets of LaBella DT Flats in general, but our 13% equivalent to VAT is added to that, plus either shipping or fuel to drive to one of their stores.
For me, the shipping would be the lesser evil, and not all of their branch stores have all sets in stock anyway.
£48 is about $78 CAD at present, BTW.
If I ordered those from USA, I would pay $42.95 USD plus a modest shipping fee, usually nothing extra at the border, and there is more likely a wider variety in stock there than online from L&M.
I would expect that you'd do better than me on strings made in Europe, the ones which you just ordered being an example.
To get those, I would likely need to ask Thomann, and their shipping from Germany is fast but their minimum price to ship anything to here from there is too expensive for lower priced items such as a set or two of strings.
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Yes here in the UK the price includes VAT I've never ordered, from Thomann though but have heard good things from those who have.
I would order strings at the going prices where is as is.
Once the supply chain issues crop we'll wish we had.
I bought a set of .039 Deep Talkin flats from Strings And Beyond a few months back in January and they were $39 plus free shipping to Calif. Prices are now $43.
With as much bass as a Hofner violin puts out I don't find it critical that a larger string is needed. There's always amp and EQ power assist.
Once the supply chain issues crop we'll wish we had.
I bought a set of .039 Deep Talkin flats from Strings And Beyond a few months back in January and they were $39 plus free shipping to Calif. Prices are now $43.
With as much bass as a Hofner violin puts out I don't find it critical that a larger string is needed. There's always amp and EQ power assist.
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For me, it's not a question of how much bass that an instrument outputs, that makes me put heavier strings onto short scale basses than onto long scale basses.
It's the science, and what I hear [better tuning and individual note stability from getting tension more like what I know already on long scale basses], and also a result of this, the feel of the strings in my fretting hand having some character, instead of emulating limp spaghetti.
I am inclined to agree with you about the supply chain, though if grocery stores are any indication, sometimes makers and sellers seem to be taking unfair advantage of the analysts' reports about this, and/or cherry-picking some products of a given category to be price-hiked and not other products of the same group.
BTW, SaB today still has a 20% coupon on their site's front page, FLAT20, which if used, gets us discount on all flatwound D'Addario strings, including their Chromes for bass, which as most of us likely know, come in several scale lengths.
I personally have not been using Chromes, but the short and medium scale sets would be about $31 net USD after applying the coupon.
Of course at that price, would need to buy 2 sets to get the free domestic shipping.
Guitar Strings and Beyond - Buy Guitar Strings Online and Save!
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Everyone has their own approach to an instrument and therefore have different requirements. I used to watch Dave Shallock then bassist for The Sons of Champlin. He played a J-bass and would pick with his fingers sideways by the bridge.
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Hopefully there are still some videos of him/them, possibly on YouTube.
I'd like to see how he's doing it.
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Well Dave you're in luck.
First clip I searched which I've seen many times and saw them play these tunes live many a time features Dave S. playing and singing backup on his J-bass.
Hope the clip plays in sync. It used to.
Check out @2:04 there's a better angle of him to see his picking style.
Seeing the SOC live was a treat. Recordings don't capture the sonics this band put out in any venue, large hall small beer joint no matter.
Schallock, the quintessential bass anchor. He would shake his head up and down on the beat to instate the down. Magic time all around.
@21:30-@22:30 you can see Dave bounce his head up and down in time.
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I waxed down my beat up Hofner using some Minwax paste wax.
I waxed down my beat up Hofner using some Minwax paste wax.
That is a beauty!
My parts came in to make a VVT control panel for the Ignition Club.
Still waiting for the eBay pickguard I plan to use to make the actual panel.
I'm also waiting on a Zero Design TS-18 zero-fret nut. The stock one is a disaster, plus the G-string slot is too low.
As far as I'm concerned, it's not worth saving- it's easy to see why I get occasional pops while tuning:
FYI, you should have seen the fingerboard BEFORE I cleaned, oiled and smoothed it. Sure, the crud in the pores and the scratches aren't visible to the naked eye under normal conditions, but this is why some of us occasionally get a bit snotty about the craftsmanship on the Ignitions. Chinese Epiphone guitars are much better, and I don't have a very high regard for the QC on most of them, either.
Properly set up, an Ignition can be a very functional, giggable musical instrument. But it's never going to be a collectible.
Next, I may make a solid bubinga one-piece bridge like I've made for a couple of Epiphone Violas, or try out a German Hofner bridge.
I think that should be it for mods...
Still waiting for the eBay pickguard I plan to use to make the actual panel.
I'm also waiting on a Zero Design TS-18 zero-fret nut. The stock one is a disaster, plus the G-string slot is too low.
As far as I'm concerned, it's not worth saving- it's easy to see why I get occasional pops while tuning:
FYI, you should have seen the fingerboard BEFORE I cleaned, oiled and smoothed it. Sure, the crud in the pores and the scratches aren't visible to the naked eye under normal conditions, but this is why some of us occasionally get a bit snotty about the craftsmanship on the Ignitions. Chinese Epiphone guitars are much better, and I don't have a very high regard for the QC on most of them, either.
Properly set up, an Ignition can be a very functional, giggable musical instrument. But it's never going to be a collectible.
Next, I may make a solid bubinga one-piece bridge like I've made for a couple of Epiphone Violas, or try out a German Hofner bridge.
I think that should be it for mods...
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Thank You !
I was unaware of these nuts.
Is this the brand which you ordered ?
ZS-18 Slotted Replacement Nut for Basses
ZS-17F Slotted Replacement Nut for Basses (Common on Fender P-Bass)
Have you had one previously ?
Sure, I can fiddle with files - and have on many instruments over the years, both for myself and other folks, especially as I used to do work for a music store at one period in the past.
But this is SUCH a slick idea as an after market mod which actually will improve how an instrument plays and tunes !
I will likely end up with these on more than one of my basses.
From where did you order yours ?
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Thank You !
I was unaware of these nuts.
Is this the brand which you ordered ?
ZS-18 Slotted Replacement Nut for Basses
ZS-17F Slotted Replacement Nut for Basses (Common on Fender P-Bass)
Have you had one previously ?
Sure, I can fiddle with files - and have on many instruments over the years, both for myself and other folks, especially as I used to do work for a music store at one period in the past.
But this is SUCH a slick idea as an after market mod which actually will improve how an instrument plays and tunes !
I will likely end up with these on more than one of my basses.
From where did you order yours ?
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Great post!!!!! I just ordered one of those nuts for my Jazz bass... It's going to take 8 days because its 'a lefty
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Thank You !
I was unaware of these nuts.
Is this the brand which you ordered ?
ZS-18 Slotted Replacement Nut for Basses
ZS-17F Slotted Replacement Nut for Basses (Common on Fender P-Bass)
Have you had one previously ?
Sure, I can fiddle with files - and have on many instruments over the years, both for myself and other folks, especially as I used to do work for a music store at one period in the past.
But this is SUCH a slick idea as an after market mod which actually will improve how an instrument plays and tunes !
I will likely end up with these on more than one of my basses.
From where did you order yours ?
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Sorry, I typo'd, and waited too long go back in to fix it.
The brand is Zero Glide, and Goldtone is the distributor.
Check your existing nut width and string spacing before you order- I've already noticed significant variations between various Ignitions and Contemporaries. If your bass needs different spacing, you can either order it uncut, or send them your string spacing info, and they will custom-cut one for you. Sizing information, and a measurement template, are available on the website:
https://gtmgstaticfiles-nbzlbgytj5a...om/zeroglide/pdfs/zero-glide-sizing-guide.pdf
I would recommend ordering direct from Goldtone if you need to take advantage of their custom work:
Zero Glide Replacement Nut System
There are a couple of sizes for P and J Basses, and a raft of others that you can order if you have basses with unusual nut dimensions. If you order them unslotted, then you can use a guitar-sized nut, and just place the grooves where you need them. Here's the master chart of what's available:
https://gtmgstaticfiles-nbzlbgytj5a...om/zeroglide/pdfs/zero-glide-master-specs.pdf
The standard width and slot spacing is perfect for mine, so I was able to order the TS-18 pre-slotted. This was great, because Canadian shipping dates and costs are all over the place at the moment. Although Stew Mac and various other vendors sell them, I got the best deal price and shipping-wise on Amazon.ca:
https://www.amazon.ca/Zero-Glide-ZS-18-Acoustic-Guitar/dp/B01DQNE71K
For those who like AJ at Backbeat Music, he dropped a new video yesterday.
I was sorry to hear that he's retiring. I gather that he's done setup work for a ton of people over the years.
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Thanks.
After my last post, I looked and found the Amazon pages, including the one which you linked.
Here's another, for 1+5/8" 'modern' Fender P and similarly nutted basses :
https://www.amazon.com/Zero-Glide-ZS-17F-Acoustic-Fender-Style/dp/B01DQNE7A6
A custom job from Goldtone is rather dear though, at $75 net USD, mentioned strategically at the bottom of this form :
Custom Nut | Zero Glide
I think that I'll leave my Ignition Club as it is for now, as IIRC I successfully filed its nut about 3 years ago, and do my first test of these on one of my two 30" scale Jay Turser JTB-40 P-ish basses, possibly the one which I'm not currently gigging, along with putting flats onto it similar to those recently installed onto the one which I HAVE been gigging.
However, the one which I HAVE been gigging has a crack in the original nut, in the A string slot, though the strings hold everything in place, but it might be the better candidate for a new nut, ANY new nut, and it already has new flats on it.
In any event, bottom line would be to try to upgrade a lower priced/risk bass first, and work my way upward later.
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It is sad, though he has great videos explaining how to do most everything from resetting a neck to adjusting the tailpiece and filing the bridge to get intonation just right. Of course, he has a master's touch.
With playing my 500/1 again I've just started watching these video's, he seems very passionate about the Hofner 500/1 basses.
