I am going to make wood covers for the pickups, and also change the knobs and cut some jade inserts for the knobs. I will post the whole process somewhere, probably at [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
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New 6 strings from Rondo ($170)
- Thread starter sheepdog
- Start date
http://www.rondomusic.net/web846quilt.html
Anyone tried these yet? I figure the preamp will be cheap, but it would still be only $300 if I dropped in an OBP3. Pickups are usually decent quality from their basses. String through body bridge looks good. Body and neck are always worth the cost of admission. I was just curious if anyone had taken the plunge yet.
someone check my math for me...
2 1/4" string spacing at the nut
3 5/16" string spacing at the 24th fret
wouldn't that make string spacing at the bridge almost 3/4"?
I just got the green one last month. I wasn't looing for a 6 at the time but the price made me fall over.I now have an education in six string possibilites for the price of 2 tanks o' gas! I take it out every gig and I'm trying to find it's "voice" But it is a completely useable instrument. Fit and finish are fine. I had to tighten up some adjustments, and I changed out the strings and installed straplocks. But Otherwise it was good to go out of the box.You might benefit from a pre-amp. It's a little short on push. Most of my other basses blow past it in volume,but it sounds good. I don't have it here at work to measure so I have to pass on that account, but I' used to P-bass spacing an d it feels similar. Grab it the Green fretted has gone back up in price, won't be too long before the Blue goes up.
I've been eyeing the headstock with a cut in mind. It appears that you could loose about 3/4" off the edges and still retain structure. The logo would however become severly compromised, but hey? who plays the logo?
I have been looking at that as well. You could make a "V" cut at the top of the peghead, and remove the logo altogether, (kinda like that E Bay bozo who was making minor mods to Douglas and Brice guitars and basses, then selling them as $500+ "custom" instruments. He was even using some of the photos from the Rondo site
). You could take a bit off of each side as well and still have enough wood for strength.The tuners are pretty light, I took one off and compared it to a similar sized Spertzel German-made mini tuner. It was about half the weight, (and 1/4 the quality
), so I won't be trading 'em out for Ultralights until they wear out.I like this bass more every time I pick it up. I recently oiled the dry-as-a-bone fretboard. Improved the look and feel quite a bit.
I noticed some glue slop off of the fretboard dots, which were quite a bit lighter than the rest of the (dyed) fingerboard, but not noticeable when the bass is strung. The rosewood actually appeared to have been a lovely red shade that would've gone well with the blue or green colors.
Oh well, niggles aside, I'm still amazed at how much my $110 got me...
oyo
I have now had my 6 string fretted Douglas for almost 3 weeks. I like the sound, but it is quiet, making it hard to use in combination with other basses on stage. The neck dive was bothersome, but when I added strap locks, I put the pin at the bottom 4 inches up and I also bought a comfort strapp. I am really impressed with the strap. I already had some nice straps, but the Comfort really does make a difference. So, what is the best and least expensive way of getting the volume output of this bass higher? I admit, I have not looked for a trim pot inside yet. The bass is actually slightly heavier and has a slightly wider neck than my Carvin, but its sound (while not as rich) cuts through well and these are really good basses, especially for $110.
I have noticed this as well, I was considering a second 9v battery, but I don't think the little pre could handle it.
The Douglas doesn't have near the output of even my passive OLP MM copy, unless I crank the bass and treble up.
Still, it does sound good.
oyo
I'm scoring an HXB406 natural with a case for 150 bucks in a few hours.
Nice find!
Used?
B-Stock?
Do tell!
oyo
Here are the pu covers installed:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Check out the process on my mod project at [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Check out the process on my mod project at [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
I picked up a Copley 6-string that seems to be the exact same bass, but without the fancy top, and with an ash body. It's a pretty solid bass for the $100 I paid for it (used).
I found that my WEB puts out quite a high signal, even a lot more than my Peavey TL-5, I think as in most inexpensive instruments, that there is a lot of variation in sound and quality between them. I got hold of a Carlo Robelli which I re-finished, and it was a great sounding and playing instrument, and most of the reviews on them stink, except for the occasional rave review from someone who got a good one by chance. I continue to enjoy gigging with my WEB.
Hey, first post here. I just bought a silver WEB 846 tonight and am looking forward to getting it. I was looking to get a five string, but I noticed these have double truss rods so I thought why not get the extra string (haha). I've played on a few six strings before, my favorite being a Warwick Streamer, so I think I know what I've gotten myself into. I have two MIM Jazz basses, one fretless, and a cheap P Bass w/ flats on it right now so this will make for a nice addition to the collection. I'll report back when it gets here.
Alright, just got the silver WEB-846 today. Only two bad things to report: 1) the nut wasn't cut very cleanly but works fine and 2) the preamp picks up a bit of FM radio. Otherwise, after a complete setup which involved shimming the neck a bit (saddles were already as low as they could go), rolling the fretboard edges to smooth them over, and buffing the back of the neck with some 0000 steel wool, it's quite a nice sounding/playing bass and I haven't even gotten a new set of strings on it yet. I think I might convert it into a passive since the preamp is noisy and CTS pots are less than $5 each. If it wasn't for the noise (which I don't think shielding would help; it's not 60 cycle hum, more of a hiss), I'd totally leave it though since the bass boost sounds quite good (not so much the treble boost, but handy to roll it off a bit when needed).
Overall, I am quite pleased with how much instrument I got for the money. I like the pickups in it quite a bit and the bridge is solid, plus it's light for a six. The low B on it sounds great and isn't flabby, even with stock strings, plus I have a set of heavier D'Addarios in the mail from MF guaged .032-.135 so it'll have an even heftier low B when those arrive. I would recommend this bass to anyone who wants a six and has some experience setting up their own instruments.
Overall, I am quite pleased with how much instrument I got for the money. I like the pickups in it quite a bit and the bridge is solid, plus it's light for a six. The low B on it sounds great and isn't flabby, even with stock strings, plus I have a set of heavier D'Addarios in the mail from MF guaged .032-.135 so it'll have an even heftier low B when those arrive. I would recommend this bass to anyone who wants a six and has some experience setting up their own instruments.
I agree completely. I've had mine for a few months now and I really like it. I did have to file the nut down quite a bit as the nut on mine (a fretless) was cut for a fretted instrument. The only other thing I did to it was to install La Bella tapewounds on it and set it up.
