Roscoe Beck V

[SlowpokeJoe]

Don't these have a cool feature whereby when you pull on the volume knob it cuts the neck pickup output or something like that? supposedly better for slapping. I seem to remember a video from back in the day where Roscoe talks about this.

That tone pull is there to emulate the tone of Roscoe’s early 60’s Jazz. You have to have the Parallel/Series switch in a specific position.

 

[sumeursault]

I had a green RB 5 back in the day. I sold it because I couldn't deal with the sticky wide neck as it made my wrist sore after a couple of sets. It had a ton of different tones with the cool split coil switching. If they were to reissue that bass with an Ultra V neck I would probably be standing in line to buy one.

I'd be in line with you, sir! (Although, I'm not sure I'd trust Fender's quality control...)

 

[sumeursault]

That tone pull is there to emulate the tone of Roscoe’s early 60’s Jazz. You have to have the Parallel/Series switch in a specific position.

View attachment 5149346

I think you only have to have the P/U selector in the middle for it to work. Coil taps can be in any position and it'll still work. It just doesn't function if you have either P/U soloed (which makes sense).

 

[sumeursault]

Since I have all these Roscoe Beck enthusiasts in one place, can someone measure the pickup locations for me?

According to what I've read, the coils for each P/U that are closer to the neck (the "front", let's say) are in standard 60's J-bass spacing.

 

[EtoBb]

Nice bass btw

 

[GreyBeard]

That tone pull is there to emulate the tone of Roscoe’s early 60’s Jazz. You have to have the Parallel/Series switch in a specific position.

View attachment 5149346

When I played my I set the neck pup to parallel hum bucker and the bridge to series hum bucker. Big, full, rich tone and totally passive.

 

[sumeursault]

yes, the 3 way switch contacts wear out (these are 20-25 year old basses so it's not too strange of a failure). It's not a complicated fix per se, just pull the old one and put in a new one ... easy to find them and fairly easy to repair as long as you are reasonably handy with a soldering iron.

Perhaps regular DeOxit maintenance would help with this?

 

[sumeursault]

When I played my I set the neck pup to parallel hum bucker and the bridge to series hum bucker. Big, full, rich tone.

That is a good combo. Interestingly (maybe counterintuitively), it brings out more of the character of the neck pickup, whereas doing the opposite brings out more of the character of the bridge.

 

[Alessandro Cruz]

So what makes these basses special? I've always seen people praising them, I'm just wondering what gives them the "it" factor. Thanks!

Here's your answer... It's a WORKHORSE tone machine.

 

[dylanjohnson]

Here is the original article in Bass Player Magazine. Fascinating, IMO.
Product Profile: Fender Roscoe Beck Signature 5-String

 

[MAJOR METAL]

I remember when these first came out! I found out about them in bass player magazine.

 

[sumeursault]

Here is the original article in Bass Player Magazine. Fascinating, IMO.
Product Profile: Fender Roscoe Beck Signature 5-String

Thanks for sharing this. I read the article before I decided to try and buy one, so I should've been aware of the gripes about the neck profile. (It also makes me feel very OLD, because I remember reading this when the article came out...)

I think the section at the bottom in which Roscoe explains the development process really explains why this bass is so unique. It was a total breakthrough in pickup design. Really cool

Played the RBV nearly all day yesterday off an on, so slowly getting used to it. Definitely have to be more cognizant of wrist fatigue.

 

[Bruce Calin]

It might give me carpal tunnel if I'm not careful...

I didn't play the RBV for a long time as I had only borrowed it, but I found that using DB techniques like arm weight and not squeezing excessively really helped to keep me relaxed and comfortable. Having a comfortable strap at a good length also helped. If I played more EB I would have been tempted to buy it, but playing it standing would probably have been too much.

 

[SteveFromBerlin]

If you are interested: Hereyou can hear my golden Roscoe Beck V in a friend's Yacht Rock composition:

 

[sumeursault]

I didn't play the RBV for a long time as I had only borrowed it, but I found that using DB techniques like arm weight and not squeezing excessively really helped to keep me relaxed and comfortable. Having a comfortable strap at a good length also helped. If I played more EB I would have been tempted to buy it, but playing it standing would probably have been too much.

Totally. I find myself using 3-finger DB technique in low positions, as well as the occasional thumb-fretting on the B-string. Definitely makes you work for it, which to a certain extent is a good thing on EB, because frankly it's a little too easy to play way too many notes.

 

[sumeursault]

If you are interested: Hereyou can hear my golden Roscoe Beck V in a friend's Yacht Rock composition:

Sounds killer! Do you remember how you had the electronics configured? Sounds like maybe middle position with the tone pot pulled out in parallel?

 

[SteveFromBerlin]

Sounds killer! Do you remember how you had the electronics configured? Sounds like maybe middle position with the tone pot pulled out in parallel?

Almost! It could have been the switch for the bridge pickup in the back position.

And thanks!

 

[Joebone]

I've lucked into a pair of these - one fretless, by way of an HG Thor fingerboard finish. They are gamechangers for me, as I better appreciate the virtues of passive operation after years of affection for the Sadowsky and John East preamp circuits. However, I'm not sure I can manage the ergonomics over time. The fretless board is more shallow, and perhaps was modified by HG Thor? It plays wonderfully, and likely is a lifetime keeper. However, the fretted neck is chunky, and I'm not sure I have the hand strength or technique to make it work...am contemplating lessons from a teacher who has good understanding of ergonomics... Meanwhile, a photo (Sadowsky Metro WL5 in the middle).

 

[sumeursault]

I've lucked into a pair of these - one fretless, by way of an HG Thor fingerboard finish. They are gamechangers for me, as I better appreciate the virtues of passive operation after years of affection for the Sadowsky and John East preamp circuits. However, I'm not sure I can manage the ergonomics over time. The fretless board is more shallow, and perhaps was modified by HG Thor? It plays wonderfully, and likely is a lifetime keeper. However, the fretted neck is chunky, and I'm not sure I have the hand strength or technique to make it work...am contemplating lessons from a teacher who has good understanding of ergonomics... Meanwhile, a photo (Sadowsky Metro WL5 in the middle).View attachment 5151727

Nice! The fretless will definitely feel thinner, both because you're subtracting the height of the frets and the board was probably planed down a bit after the frets were removed. However, the dimensions of the neck will probably make it harder to play in tune, unless you have huge hands of course.

 

[Joebone]

Interesting. Yes, no frets and some planing will lower things, but the maple portion of the neck is visibly thinner. Don't have calipers in current location, but gonna look into this. BTW, the RBV frets look to be of a narrow/low-profile spec, which I greatly dig.