Just like 6-string LaBella 760FM, with no tapered B?

[dbcandle]

I absolutely *LOVE* my LaBella Deep-talkin' mediums (760FM), but the B won't intonate properly, on my 34" Ibanez, seemingly due to the B being tapered.

Has anyone seem any flats out there (for a 6-string bass!) that are identical to the LaBella Deep Talkin', but don't have the tapered B?

I'm not looking for a different sound (TI, Rotosound, etc.), I just want to get rid of that tapered B.

In theory I realize that I could have a "bad string", but I really suspect that my bridge does not provide for adequate compensation, and I really don't want to bother with moving the bridge.

 

[DavePlaysBass]

Is the saddle high enough to deal with the taper?

 

[dbcandle]

Is the saddle high enough to deal with the taper?

I'm at 4/64ths on the treble side and 6/64ths on the bass side (low B). I recently saw a Yamaha with a bridge having extra compensation for the low B: Invalid Link Removed

If you click on the big picture and look at the bridge, you'll see that the B has extra compensation. That is my problem - the B is "sharp" when fretted at the 12th.

Note: My problem is on an Ibanez SR w/34" scale.

 

[DavePlaysBass]

If you measure from the 12th fret to the B string with a capo on the first (takes the nut out of the equation) I usually have around 1/8". But I adjust to feel and sound. The higher the better on the B in my experience. This measurement technique came out of the Sadowsky article in the setup area.

As for it playing sharp at the 12, how sharp and is that a big deal. I usually intonate between the 3rd fret (D) and the 7th fret (F#) on the B string. If I can get these close, I call it good. For me it is the 3rd to 7th that is the sweet spot on the B string. In fact, open B almost never registers as intonated when I get done. I use the D as the reference.

You don't need that Yamaha extender. When you said you need more range of adjustment, I was thinking your were talking about the lateral saddle adjustment range. You of course know to move the saddle closer to the 12th fret if things are flat high up and vica versa.

Dave

 

[dbcandle]

...
As for it playing sharp at the 12, how sharp and is that a big deal. I usually intonate between the 3rd fret (D) and the 7th fret (F#) on the B string. If I can get these close, I call it good. For me it is the 3rd to 7th that is the sweet spot on the B string. In fact, open B almost never registers as intonated when I get done. I use the D as the reference.
...

I too intonate between 3rd fret and 7th (or so), but only because the string is not intonated properly.

It's not *that* big a deal, since I only hit the occasional note on the B, but it is frustrating.

 

[Karl Kaminski]

arise! zombie thread...

I've had the same issue with a tapered B not intonating well across the fretboard. I'm currently enjoying Labella Gold-White set on my ABG (Furch) so instead of trying to find a mix/match non-tapered string or swapping out the whole set for a different brand, I've experimented with removing the taper on the B by adding a spacer on the string. I've done this occasionally on my 5 string EBs, and it works well here too

1. taper


2. 1" spacer


3. spacer inserted


4. installed, no taper