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How many here use HipShot D-Tuners?
- Thread starter JAUQO III-X
- Start date
No BillI was just trying to help.
Here's what Hipshot did for me(for those who haven't seen it).
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=632677&highlight=
That is awesome! Nice job Hipshot.
The only reason i have one is because it came on a bass I bought from a fellow TBer.
I don't use drop D tunings really but I still have found it a useful tool. I almost want another one, since the bass it's on I'd like to keep in standard tuning for my main band. But a new band is using some drop tunings where I think the hipshot would be useful. I haven't quite figured out which bass I'll use for that band yet, though.
I don't use drop D tunings really but I still have found it a useful tool. I almost want another one, since the bass it's on I'd like to keep in standard tuning for my main band. But a new band is using some drop tunings where I think the hipshot would be useful. I haven't quite figured out which bass I'll use for that band yet, though.
scotch
It's not rocket science!
- Nov 12, 2006
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Well... it's not good news for the Hipshot, I'm afraid! 
Didn't even get to try actually using the thing as installation was a fail. And I don't believe it's due to my diy skills, the tuning post hole is incorrectly drilled on the BT3 I purchased.
If you look carefully in the photo, you can see that after I aligned the tuning post so it would not bind, the holes don't line-up with the factory drilled holes. Also, the plate is askew. I tried mounting it with the screw holes aligned "as-is", but while the plate and holes lined up perfectly, the hole for the tuning post was off by about an 1/8th of an inch- rendering the post unturnable and entirely in a bind. In order to make "it work", I'd have to wood-fill the original screw holes, redrill new holes to accommodate the Hipshot, and then proceed with a tuning base that isn't aligned perfectly in reference to the others. Not worth it for tuning down a whole step!
Additionally, I was let down by the accuracy of the post and key. I used to have an American Deluxe Jazz w/ a Hipshot that I bought aftermarket. A BT4- which installed perfectly and also looked identical to the stock tuner it replaced. (looked like this: Link Removed)
This BT3 I just got has 2 differences, albeit small) form the tuner it is designed to replace. First, the post lacks the additional internal "divot" around the crown that the original has. Also, the base of the clover-leaf key itself lacks the "rivet" detail of the original. Both of these aesthetic differences are minor- however, given the fact that the key I purchased doesn't even fit correctly, I'm pretty disappointed overall.
I guess I'll have to ask the vendor I purchased it from on eBay to take it back. I'm just out $12 for shipping both ways,.. but I'm a little annoyed.
IMPORTANT UPDATE!!!!!
Bill, from Hipshot, was kind enough to respond very promptly to my problem via email. He sent a new baseplate to try free of charge. Time from contacting Bill, to recieving plate was less than a week!
The new base plate fit better, but not perfectly. However, I managed to make it work by slightly reaming out the tuning peg hole with my Dremel tool. Now everything is installed & works great!
There's just an ever-so-slight misalignment present at the tuning peg hole
with both factory baseplates I've received. The problem doesn't reveal
itself until more than 2 of the mounting screws are secured- then the tuning
post needs to be forced in at a very slight (yet important) angle. By just
barely grinding the hole out (not noticeably to the bare eye, more of a
'reaming'), I managed to enlarge it enough to prevent binding, but still fit
tightly enough not to wobble.
I would guess that either:
1) the headstock profile isn't perfectly parallel front-to-back on my
basses' neck, or
2) that the BT3 baseplates' peg hole is possibly milled at an angle not
perfectly perpendicular to the plate, or
3) that the peg hole on the baseplate is slightly off exact center in
relation to the screw holes.
I'm inclined to discard the first scenario as the identical misalignment
exists on 2 different instruments manufactured 7 years apart. Again, the
instruments are stock Fender American Vintage Reissues- a '62 Jazz and '57
Precision.
Anyway, I'm happy I got the BT3 to work with a minimum of modification on my
part. I'm having no trouble operating either the tuner, or the Extender
itself.
Thanks to Bill at Hipshot & our own Jauqo for their help! Hipshot is definitely putting their customers 1st!
Didn't even get to try actually using the thing as installation was a fail. And I don't believe it's due to my diy skills, the tuning post hole is incorrectly drilled on the BT3 I purchased.
If you look carefully in the photo, you can see that after I aligned the tuning post so it would not bind, the holes don't line-up with the factory drilled holes. Also, the plate is askew. I tried mounting it with the screw holes aligned "as-is", but while the plate and holes lined up perfectly, the hole for the tuning post was off by about an 1/8th of an inch- rendering the post unturnable and entirely in a bind. In order to make "it work", I'd have to wood-fill the original screw holes, redrill new holes to accommodate the Hipshot, and then proceed with a tuning base that isn't aligned perfectly in reference to the others. Not worth it for tuning down a whole step!
Additionally, I was let down by the accuracy of the post and key. I used to have an American Deluxe Jazz w/ a Hipshot that I bought aftermarket. A BT4- which installed perfectly and also looked identical to the stock tuner it replaced. (looked like this: Link Removed)
This BT3 I just got has 2 differences, albeit small) form the tuner it is designed to replace. First, the post lacks the additional internal "divot" around the crown that the original has. Also, the base of the clover-leaf key itself lacks the "rivet" detail of the original. Both of these aesthetic differences are minor- however, given the fact that the key I purchased doesn't even fit correctly, I'm pretty disappointed overall.
I guess I'll have to ask the vendor I purchased it from on eBay to take it back. I'm just out $12 for shipping both ways,.. but I'm a little annoyed.
IMPORTANT UPDATE!!!!!
Bill, from Hipshot, was kind enough to respond very promptly to my problem via email. He sent a new baseplate to try free of charge. Time from contacting Bill, to recieving plate was less than a week!
The new base plate fit better, but not perfectly. However, I managed to make it work by slightly reaming out the tuning peg hole with my Dremel tool. Now everything is installed & works great!
There's just an ever-so-slight misalignment present at the tuning peg hole
with both factory baseplates I've received. The problem doesn't reveal
itself until more than 2 of the mounting screws are secured- then the tuning
post needs to be forced in at a very slight (yet important) angle. By just
barely grinding the hole out (not noticeably to the bare eye, more of a
'reaming'), I managed to enlarge it enough to prevent binding, but still fit
tightly enough not to wobble.
I would guess that either:
1) the headstock profile isn't perfectly parallel front-to-back on my
basses' neck, or
2) that the BT3 baseplates' peg hole is possibly milled at an angle not
perfectly perpendicular to the plate, or
3) that the peg hole on the baseplate is slightly off exact center in
relation to the screw holes.
I'm inclined to discard the first scenario as the identical misalignment
exists on 2 different instruments manufactured 7 years apart. Again, the
instruments are stock Fender American Vintage Reissues- a '62 Jazz and '57
Precision.
Anyway, I'm happy I got the BT3 to work with a minimum of modification on my
part. I'm having no trouble operating either the tuner, or the Extender
itself.
Thanks to Bill at Hipshot & our own Jauqo for their help! Hipshot is definitely putting their customers 1st!
Ric5
Inactive
- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
- 30,452
- Disclosures
- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
How many here use HipShot D-Tuners?
Never did and never will ... a better solution is fatter strings and a DGCF tuning ... or better yet BEADG.
Never did and never will ... a better solution is fatter strings and a DGCF tuning ... or better yet BEADG.
scotch
It's not rocket science!
- Nov 12, 2006
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I know... just disappointed. Hopefully this is just a defective unit (drilled incorrectly), and another Hipshot would work fine. Just based on the other Hipshot products I've owned (previously mentioned BT4 and a Trem-Setter on my Strat), I anticipated a fit's-like-a-glove experience.
If Hipshot is at fault, it is the first time I have ever heard of something like this with any of their products.
But when humans are involved any thing is possible.
scotch
It's not rocket science!
- Nov 12, 2006
- 6,944
- 2,083
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- Please see Profile for Endorsement disclosures
Upon further inspection... I believe it's actually the screw holes that are shifted. The post hole lines up nicely with the 2 base plates of the Hipshot itself, so it must be that the screw hole template was slightly off when the base was drilled. Unfortunately, this small deviation rendered the unit useless.
scotch
It's not rocket science!
- Nov 12, 2006
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Well, it's definitely mis-drilled to fit an American Vintage Reissue Jazz! I'd be ok with slight aesthetic deviation, but it's unusable without some minor carpentry work to the bass itself. The quality of the components of the Hipshot is top-notch as usual, just the fit is awry.
Scotch it will be taken care of. Contact tb member Billw97 who has posted in this thread.
scotch
It's not rocket science!
- Nov 12, 2006
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- Please see Profile for Endorsement disclosures
I sent him a note, thanks. Hipshot seems very responsive to customers- so I expect we'll arrive at a solution!
scotch
It's not rocket science!
- Nov 12, 2006
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- 2,083
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- Disclosures
- Please see Profile for Endorsement disclosures
UPDATE:
Bill from Hipshot contacted me directly about trying to figure out what the problem is. I suspect that the Fender Vintage Reissues simply do not work with the BT3, or as originally conjectured, mine is defective. I tried this BT3 in my '57 Reissue P-Bass as well- with the identical fit problem.
Pretty amazing to get emailed back from the manufacturer on a weekend! Cheers, Hipshot!
I'll keep everyone posted as this progresses.
Bill from Hipshot contacted me directly about trying to figure out what the problem is. I suspect that the Fender Vintage Reissues simply do not work with the BT3, or as originally conjectured, mine is defective. I tried this BT3 in my '57 Reissue P-Bass as well- with the identical fit problem.
Pretty amazing to get emailed back from the manufacturer on a weekend! Cheers, Hipshot!
I'll keep everyone posted as this progresses.
I am not much of a fan of the hipshot xtenders.
The biggest problem is the amount of extra time it takes to get both the D and the E properly tuned. Tuning the D with that little thumb screw just isn't my idea of a good time. Also tuning the E and having to guess how far it is going to slip the first time you detune/tune it is rather annoying. I realize it offers the benefit of frontloading the tuning to before the set, but I never really found it to be that big of a deal to drop down in between songs.
I also think the accuracy claims are a little optimistic. I think as long as you are using roundwound strings you are going to have little grooves that catch your string differently every time and give you some amount of variance. Yes, it gets pretty close, but my E never ends up exactly where it started.
The biggest problem is the amount of extra time it takes to get both the D and the E properly tuned. Tuning the D with that little thumb screw just isn't my idea of a good time. Also tuning the E and having to guess how far it is going to slip the first time you detune/tune it is rather annoying. I realize it offers the benefit of frontloading the tuning to before the set, but I never really found it to be that big of a deal to drop down in between songs.
I also think the accuracy claims are a little optimistic. I think as long as you are using roundwound strings you are going to have little grooves that catch your string differently every time and give you some amount of variance. Yes, it gets pretty close, but my E never ends up exactly where it started.
PICTURE TIME!
Before; the stock BT-1, when first installed on my JB-2:
Link Removed
After, with the BT-1 modded by Bill to look like G&L OEM:
Link Removed
Link Removed
Thanks again to Bill & Jauqo III-X.
Before; the stock BT-1, when first installed on my JB-2:
Link Removed
After, with the BT-1 modded by Bill to look like G&L OEM:
Link Removed
Link Removed
Thanks again to Bill & Jauqo III-X.
- Mar 24, 2005
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- 81
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- Seymour Duncan/Basslines SMB-5A Endorsing Artist
Hey, what about ME? Don't you remember that it was I who first mentioned that Hipshot Products does custom work . . .
. . .
Hey, what about ME? Don't you remember that it was I who first mentioned that Hipshot Products does custom-orders . . .
Depends on what you call custom.
- Mar 24, 2005
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- Seymour Duncan/Basslines SMB-5A Endorsing Artist
like I mentioed in my earlier post (#76)
"special order GB-7's that I use (with a longer string post than the "normal" GB-7 string post)"
The GB-7's that Hipshot Products made for me have a longer string post that is tapered - thinner at the base, thicker at the end . . .
I also see that Bill from Hipshot Products DID do the mod that I had suggested (using a shorter clover arm)
All-in-all I'm very pleased with the service - and price - that I recieve from Hipshot Products . . .
and I'm glad that plankspanker13 has been helped, too . . .
. . . Also, your dual-extender key is VERY cool, indeed . . .
Well I am sold now. Will be ordering one for my Geddy Jazz. The fender Reggie Hamilton bass first peaked my interest about them. I am in the process of trying to make that Geddy Jazz an true swiss army knife. Just added the Audere JZ3. I think a Hipshot extender will do the trick. Thanks for all the input everyone.
Unrepresented
Something Borderline Offensive
Got one installed professionally recently on my jazz. So far, I'm not finding it as functional as I'd hoped it'd be, but this is more due to the realities of a drop D tuning than to the product itself.
