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Lightweight 34" bass's ,SANDBERG, SPECTOR, ??

Old Ozzie Guy

Old Ozzie Guy

Supporting Member
Mar 5, 2023
943
1,699
Surfers Paradise Qld Australia
#1
Hi all, I'm struggling with my LPj dc (4.1kgs). Last weekend we played a 3hr gig on sat night, then Sunday arvo a 4hr. Old man syndrome! Yes we had 15 to 20 minute breaks, but, I really struggled with the weight. There are a few other short scales, I could get, but, I'm thinking, maybe time to go 34". The Sandberg jazz super light interests me, as dose the Spector Euro lightweight series. Anyone playing these? Any thoughts, experiences, or other lightweight models, brands? Ima little wary of utube demo's, I'm yet to find anyone reviewing instruments, saying how bad they are.
Any thoughts, be much appreciated.
P.S. the Sandberg is sub 3kgs, I'm sure I would notice the difference. I have seen a few 34" bass's that are 3.5 kg, any idear if that would b much difference to 4.1kg? Would 3.5kg b noticeable? I hope my last question wasn't a "how long is a piece of string " ,sort of question.
 
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#3
Sandberg or Spector would be good options but another interesting one (at least for me !) is the 34" scale Fender Bullet bass with a set of standard p bass pickups. They are hard to find but sweet sounding and light.

To me , the body of the Spector is a bit too small and I don’t bond with it, this is no problem with the Fender Bullet.
 
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#4
Old Ozzie Guy said:
Hi all, I'm struggling with my LPj dc (4.1kgs). Last weekend we played a 3hr gig on sat night, then Sunday arvo a 4hr. Old man syndrome! Yes we had 15 to 20 minute breaks, but, I really struggled with the weight. There are a few other short scales, I could get, but, I'm thinking, maybe time to go 34". The Sandberg jazz super light interests me, as dose the Spector Euro lightweight series. Anyone playing these? Any thoughts, experiences, or other lightweight models, brands? Ima little wary of utube demo's, I'm yet to find anyone reviewing instruments, saying how bad they are.
Any thoughts, be much appreciated.
P.S. the Sandberg is sub 3kgs, I'm sure I would notice the difference. I have seen a few 34" bass's that are 3.5 kg, any idear if that would b much difference to 4.1kg? Would 3.5kg b noticeable? I hope my last question wasn't a "how long is a piece of string " ,sort of question.
Click to expand...
Sandberg SLs are awesome, but are always in limited supply and have a long wait time. Talk to me nice and I might sell my TT SL. I've had it awhile and would like something else. Thinking about it...
 
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#8
Anything made from Empress will be light. This is available from Sandberg, G&L, and even Glarry basses.
I think Mike Lull uses it too.
Chambered bodies like Sadowsky can be very light too.
I contacted over 20 people on Reverb and not one Stingray Special was under 8 lbs. They used to be 10 lbs. on a regular basis.
I did find a fluke Squire VM P bass that weighs 7 lbs. 5 ounces. All the ones Sweetwater has right now are 8.5 to 10 lbs.
 
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#10
Jim C said:
Anything made from Empress will be light. This is available from Sandberg, G&L, and even Glarry basses.
I think Mike Lull uses it too.
Chambered bodies like Sadowsky can be very light too.
I contacted over 20 people on Reverb and not one Stingray Special was under 8 lbs. They used to be 10 lbs. on a regular basis.
I did find a fluke Squire VM P bass that weighs 7 lbs. 5 ounces. All the ones Sweetwater has right now are 8.5 to 10 lbs.
Click to expand...
I got a 7.8lbs Stingray 5 Special on Reverb and sold it here all in a matter of months. It was cool, but I like passive axes and something with at least a neck pickup these days.
 
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#11
I sympathize with your plight. I have the same problem at age 74. There are a couple of lighter weight basses you could look at though these may not quite what you are looking for. One is the Steinberger Spirit. It is 34" scale and weighs about 7.5lbs and is very comfortable to play sitting or standing. Another one is the Ibanez SRH series semi hollow body bass. I have the 5 string fretless SRH and it weighs about 7.4 lbs so a 4 string would be a bit lighter. Then there is the Hofner Violin bass which weighs in at about 4.5 lbs. Just a thought.;)
 
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#12
Old Ozzie Guy said:
Hi all, I'm struggling with my LPj dc (4.1kgs). Last weekend we played a 3hr gig on sat night, then Sunday arvo a 4hr. Old man syndrome! Yes we had 15 to 20 minute breaks, but, I really struggled with the weight. There are a few other short scales, I could get, but, I'm thinking, maybe time to go 34". The Sandberg jazz super light interests me, as dose the Spector Euro lightweight series. Anyone playing these? Any thoughts, experiences, or other lightweight models, brands? Ima little wary of utube demo's, I'm yet to find anyone reviewing instruments, saying how bad they are.
Any thoughts, be much appreciated.
P.S. the Sandberg is sub 3kgs, I'm sure I would notice the difference. I have seen a few 34" bass's that are 3.5 kg, any idear if that would b much difference to 4.1kg? Would 3.5kg b noticeable? I hope my last question wasn't a "how long is a piece of string " ,sort of question.
Click to expand...
I have two Sandberg SL’s.

A VS passive 5 and a TM5. Both are awesome, but probably because I prefer P’s, I really love the VS Passive. Getting another one of those would seriously feel worth the wait to me.

The jazz shaped ones (TT and TM) are very easy to find online in abundance these days. I run mine passive. The preamp is okay. I’ve seen many people change the pre out here in the states.

I owned a Stingray Special 5. It was 7.8lbs. Also a good choice. The Spectors you mentioned are great, but I’m not a fan of 35” scale basses so I’d say that’s something to keep in mind.
 
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#14
Old Ozzie Guy said:
Hi all, I'm struggling with my LPj dc (4.1kgs). Last weekend we played a 3hr gig on sat night, then Sunday arvo a 4hr. Old man syndrome! Yes we had 15 to 20 minute breaks, but, I really struggled with the weight. There are a few other short scales, I could get, but, I'm thinking, maybe time to go 34". The Sandberg jazz super light interests me, as dose the Spector Euro lightweight series. Anyone playing these? Any thoughts, experiences, or other lightweight models, brands? Ima little wary of utube demo's, I'm yet to find anyone reviewing instruments, saying how bad they are.
Any thoughts, be much appreciated.
P.S. the Sandberg is sub 3kgs, I'm sure I would notice the difference. I have seen a few 34" bass's that are 3.5 kg, any idear if that would b much difference to 4.1kg? Would 3.5kg b noticeable? I hope my last question wasn't a "how long is a piece of string " ,sort of question.
Click to expand...
I've tried the Sandberg and liked it. Sounded a little tired but good. A friend insists that it sounded exactly like his 60s Jazz...maybe it did.
Not bad at all. I am just not the biggest fan of their necks.
 
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#15
Gotta put Maruszczyk on your list of considerations. They offer maybe the best bang for our bass buck under the sun.

If you want something else to mull over in the realm of a J-bass, I'd say look into the Cort Elrick NJS. The one that I had for a while was actually better for me than the more premium Elrick NJS that I tried a year or two ago - the Cort weighed an even 8 lbs. and the NJS design includes a wider neck (1 5/8" at the nut) that's a better fit for my hands than most traditionally narrow J necks.

The only reason that I don't still have that Cort is because the TB'er who sold it to me came down with some serious seller's remorse not too long after we made our deal. Since the Cort didn't replace my other bass that's been my clear #1 player for a while, I was okay with selling that NJS back his way. I can absolutely see myself getting another one of those Corts sometime down the road if I really want a light and cozy fitting Jazz on hand.
 
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#18
I am playing the Sandberg TT5-SL as my one and only bass. It weighs in at a svelte 6 lb 5 oz! For a 5 string! I really like it a lot, and the weight difference from an 8+ pounder is very noticeable to me, especially on a long gig. I did change the pickups to Kloppmann 61 jazz. The stock to me were just ok. The Kloppmanns are in another league, both passive and active.
 
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#19
Old Ozzie Guy said:
There are a few other short scales, I could get, but, I'm thinking, maybe time to go 34".
Click to expand...
Man, I’m not sure this is a good idea. Is any of the problem pain in your left shoulder or fatigue on your left side? Going longer scale would probably not help if that’s the case. If it’s both shoulders equally, or in your lower back, then maybe…
The lighter the instrument, the more likely it is to neck dive. Short scales can do this, but really light long scale basses almost always do, to some extent. There are exceptions, but it is a literal “balancing act “.
In my experience, you start to experience diminishing returns between 7 and 8 pounds. My main five string is right about eight, doesn’t neck dive much, and is very comfortable. My main four string with flats weighs 6.5, but has neck dive that somewhat negates the extreme light weight. My short scale also weighs less than seven pounds, and balances MUCH better. I could play it all night, but it doesn’t sound as good as my long scale 4 string. Also, I’m just far more used to 34”. But if that weren’t the case… I’d probably switch to short scale.
I would try some lighter shortscales before moving to 34”. Danelectro or Mustang are some solid choices. If you’re really wedded to the sound of the Gibson, you may have to get creative with swapping pickups, or try to find a lighter one of those.
 
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#20
Old Ozzie Guy said:
Hi all, I'm struggling with my LPj dc (4.1kgs). Last weekend we played a 3hr gig on sat night, then Sunday arvo a 4hr. Old man syndrome! Yes we had 15 to 20 minute breaks, but, I really struggled with the weight. There are a few other short scales, I could get, but, I'm thinking, maybe time to go 34". The Sandberg jazz super light interests me, as dose the Spector Euro lightweight series. Anyone playing these? Any thoughts, experiences, or other lightweight models, brands? Ima little wary of utube demo's, I'm yet to find anyone reviewing instruments, saying how bad they are.
Any thoughts, be much appreciated.
P.S. the Sandberg is sub 3kgs, I'm sure I would notice the difference. I have seen a few 34" bass's that are 3.5 kg, any idear if that would b much difference to 4.1kg? Would 3.5kg b noticeable? I hope my last question wasn't a "how long is a piece of string " ,sort of question.
Click to expand...
I love Sandbergs and will probably always have one, but I see so many of the super light models get sold very fast. I have no direct experience but those who shared said they were amazing but the missing heft seemed to affect the tone in a negative manner.
Take that with the grain of salt as one of my main players is a headless chambered five string around 6.9lbs and it's a monster.
 
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