Recommended action for Ampeg Baby Bass

Is there some reason the heights wouldn't be similar to double bass string heights, which depend on strings used, playing style, comfort, and fingerboard scoop/dressing? 5-8mm G to E is a place to start.

 

The last is called a Romberg bevel, not very popular today, but many older basses have it. It gives the E a bit more room to vibrate, but this is mostly for gut strings, not for modern steel core.
Measurement is at the end of the fingerboard, air between fingerboard and string. 5 to 8 mm is rather low, but useful for higher tension strings. 5 mm for the G string, 8 mm for the E string the other strings in between. With metal wound synthetic core strings I prefer 6 to 12 mm, might work for metal wound gut as well. For naked gut and purely synthetic strings you can go up to 12 to 18 mm, but because of the distance it is harder to play in thumb position then.
The lower you go, the better your fingerboard needs to be dressed or you get buzzes at some positions on the board. If you like it low with your preferred set of strings, spend the money for a good setup if needed.

 

I play with the strings as low as they can go without buzzing. If you are using the original metal bridge, it's going to depend on the condition of your fingerboard as to how low you can set it (on my bass it isn't a great match). Many people have wooden bridges fitted so they can get a better setup. I assume that most players use a slightly lower action than they would on upright. I'm going to assume that the neck and heel are one piece or else there would be lots of problems with breakage at the heel.
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Bruce certainly will have your answers. My rubber trim is gone, too. I just go without it. I'm not convinced it makes a lot of difference in the sound. What I wonder is how many people have had fingerboards replaced on these to get rid of the Romberg bevel.

 

I'd love to try one! By the way, I read your other thread. Did you end up getting the Ray Ramirez bag? I'd love to see a picture!

 

Assuming baby bass fingerboards are the same as other DB's, an experienced luthier can dress the existing fingerboard to get rid of the bevel. There's no need for a replacement unless the board is already really thin. I had our local guru do this very thing for me and it was WAY cheaper than a new board.

 

This is a great and informative post. Having said that, if anyone has extra bridge rubber for an Ampeg Baby Bass, may I have it or buy it from you ? My first Baby Bass had it lost in repair and my second has the hard plastic kind. I love the sound of the old rubber as I play a lot of Latin gigs and haven't been able to find anything quite like it.
Thanks

 

They seem to be rare as hen's teeth, Leo. Ruben Rodriguez might have some tips. Mine broke at the E string long ago. Do you know if Andy G. used a wood bridge? I got one from our friend 65AmpegBB4 above in the thread. It's made out of plastic and it works great!

 

Thanks, Dylan. Yea, Ruben has helped me a lot in the past and recently came over to help take apart and pack a '65 Baby Bass to ship to LA to Oskar Cartaya. I helped Don Byron Sr. sell it. I'll give him a shout.

 

Funny bass story: The first time I ever played a Baby Bass I borrowed one from the late, great Victor Venegas for a session. When I started recording it, I couldn't figure out why I wasn't getting that classic Baby Bass thump on a cha-cha. I had no idea that the bass normally was supposed to have rubber on the bridge, dampening the strings. Victor had replaced the bridge with a wooden one to get more of an acoustic sound ! Also, at one point, I looked down and saw a big crack in the bass and thought I had done it ! Thankfully, it came with the bass. RIP Victor Venegas and and thank you !

 

CHANGE OF TOPIC, BUT SAME INSTRUMENT FOCUS: I recently purchased an Ampeg Baby Bass in Asheville, NC. It's in great shape and sounds fantastic through my 1967 Ampeg B15 flip-top. My question is this: Are these instruments dangerously sensitive to heat or humidity?
The reason I ask is because the salesperson warned me to keep it in a cool and dry space because the foam will expand and the instrument will explode if it comes into contact with heat or humidity.

In my searches, I found one text that mentions this happening during a set in Las Vegas back in the 70s or 80s when the stage lights got the instrument too warm. In the single paragraph mention of this phenomena, it is said that there was a faulty batch of foam for a certain run of the Baby Basses out of the thousands produced between 1962 and 1971.
The problem is, with these basses coming out of the watery area of NY and NJ in the 60s, and their prevalence in the son, salsa, tumbao, and latin jazz genres, it seems unlikely for this to be a major concern with these basses with there being hardly any mention of the problem beyond the one paragraph showing up in a memoir.

What have other Ampeg Baby Bass owners / players experienced through the years? Are these basses meant only to be played in well ventilated and air-conditioned spaces? Never a spring or summer festival stage in a warm or damp climate? Seems like folklore to me, but I'm still curious what others have heard, seen, observed.

 

It's been awhile since I visited this forum and I now see that other people have had the same issue as I have with those rubber bridge crowns on my BB-4. Mine perished not long after I acquired the bass...which was purchased on Craig's List and air-freighted via DHL from Washington state to where I live in Sydney, Australia... I have searched for a replacement material and come up with nothing. If you're still in the habit of popping out a bridge crown now and then, I'd happily send you money and postage to make me one. Cheers, Tina