Kramer 420s

[KramSttop]

Some info and what matters - something to listen to!

Kramer 420s Picked up very cheap @ the local music-go-round, day 1 got the intonation setup properly and made the volume control usable. Added some wire to the ground, beefed up solder joints where needed (terrible connects to the back of the pots) and replaced the 1/4" jack. FYI if you ever happen upon one of these basses, replace the 1/4" jack as its one of the poorest I have ever seen - lost contact with minor movements... probably why whoever prior to me got rid of this wonderful instrument =)

I like the narrow neck and the overall feel is great. Note that I've only has this thing for a few weeks and have been playing acoustic and electric guitar up to this point. Haven't held many basses but feel wise I'd take this over my buddy's fender jazz 5 string any day - the neck on that thing is wide to the point of being uncomfortable.

For this recording - running through an art tube MP, into the computer through a guitar rig mobile. Some EQ (scooped mid, bump round 2khz to bring out the PLINK's) and compression in the box. A track I'm workin on, and in the process of doin a basic bassline caught a groove and jammed on it for a while - I think the instrument really shines in this recording.

Movin With The Groovin Stuff - The Bass Mix by kramsttop on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free

The current rig as it stands is pic'd below - was built with acoustic/electric guitar in mind but works very well as a practice bass amp... gig ability, probably not... but excellent guitar amp - wish I had a decent mic to record it!

On a personal note, I love the bass... I have always loved bass in music, its so much fun to now play it!!! I found love, and she's mostly below 200hz =)

 

[Grebnaws]

I was given a kramer 420s (my first bass) but it didn't sound or play very well. I got a Peavey and decided to experiment with the Kramer but botched the paint job and ended up giving it a quick coat of BBQ grill paint from a leftover can. The body warped and split during storage and I knew it wasn't worth anything so I just went ahead with the changes.

The neck needed tweaking to take out excessive relief and brass inserts were used in the neck to secure it to the body. The neck pocket also had to be shimmed on the sides after warping. Pickups were replaced with Dragonfires, then all pots, capacitor, and jack were upgraded. I also had to hand file a few of the highest frets on the D and G string to prevent any buzzing. The tuners aren't very good but I don't plan on changing them unless a deal falls into my lap.

It took a little cash and effort but now the bass sounds completely different and all for the better. The action is much nicer and the sound is so much warmer and fuller than before. The output doesn't seem any higher with the Dragonfire pickups (they were advertised as high output, whatever that means) but changing the pots and capacitor greatly changed the tone. The pups and pots were changed separately so I did have a good base line to judge from.

The neck was pretty decent after I straightened it out but the frets just weren't level enough for the lowest possible action. If the neck were junk I probably wouldn't have done anything except give it away like the previous owner. Now it resides downstairs in abuse prone areas without making me nervous and gave me a little experience with simple wiring.