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S.U.B. Club
- Thread starter chrism2sych
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Hey guys, I am finally getting around to doing a full setup on the USA S.U.B. bass I picked up late last year and it got me wondering re: the specs for this bass.
I’ve searched around on the internet and wasn’t able to find any good info.
Anybody happen to know what the factory said the neck radius and nut widths were on the 4-strings? The nut width on mine (serial #44, from day 2 of production) measures at 1 11/16”. I don’t have any radius gauges, but saw an old ad for one at Chicago Music Exchange listing it as a 10” radius.
Anyone here have info to share?
Will post a pic when I get her all squared away. Cheapo black pearl pickguard looks great on the burgundy body but one of the holes is so far off, I can’t put a screw in it.
You get what you pay for!
I’ve searched around on the internet and wasn’t able to find any good info.
Anybody happen to know what the factory said the neck radius and nut widths were on the 4-strings? The nut width on mine (serial #44, from day 2 of production) measures at 1 11/16”. I don’t have any radius gauges, but saw an old ad for one at Chicago Music Exchange listing it as a 10” radius.
Anyone here have info to share?
Will post a pic when I get her all squared away. Cheapo black pearl pickguard looks great on the burgundy body but one of the holes is so far off, I can’t put a screw in it.
You get what you pay for!
Wow, I thought they only came in Red or Black with the rough paint finish. That is sweet and I am not usually keen on blue basses.
Mine is Cinnamon.Wow, I thought they only came in Red or Black with the rough paint finish. That is sweet and I am not usually keen on blue basses.
This one shows the color better. Before I replaced the pickguard.
My July 13, 2005 SUB 4 has the same 1 11/16" (1.68" or 43mm) nut width and a radius of 11". I know it's odd (literally), but the 10" radius gauge was high in the middle and the 12" high on the ends. It was relatively closer to 10" near the nut and relatively closer to 12" at the heel, but still, it's measuring out to be 11".Hey guys, I am finally getting around to doing a full setup on the USA S.U.B. bass I picked up late last year and it got me wondering re: the specs for this bass.
I’ve searched around on the internet and wasn’t able to find any good info.
Anybody happen to know what the factory said the neck radius and nut widths were on the 4-strings? The nut width on mine (serial #44, from day 2 of production) measures at 1 11/16”. I don’t have any radius gauges, but saw an old ad for one at Chicago Music Exchange listing it as a 10” radius.
Anyone here have info to share?
Will post a pic when I get her all squared away. Cheapo black pearl pickguard looks great on the burgundy body but one of the holes is so far off, I can’t put a screw in it.
The pickup is certainly wired in parallel (mine is the active version).
Thanks!! Mine is also active.My July 13, 2005 SUB 4 has the same 1 11/16" (1.68" or 43mm) nut width and a radius of 11". I know it's odd (literally), but the 10" radius gauge was high in the middle and the 12" high on the ends. It was relatively closer to 10" near the nut and relatively closer to 12" at the heel, but still, it's measuring out to be 11".
The pickup is certainly wired in parallel (mine is the active version).
Much appreciated!!
I hope to grab a USA SUB one day again, even though their prices have gone up considerably.
Boy howdy on the prices!
They used to be such a sleeper bargain, my two (a 4 and 5) averaged out to be $375 each, with cases and replacement pickguards (I like 3 ply black on them).
Yup! I'm not surprised, seeing as the old MIC Squier Classic Vibe instruments go for pretty crazy prices, SUB's are the real made in USA deal with a coveted 2 band preamp.
Hey, y’all, in another thread re: 2-band Stingrays, I stated that I was somewhat disappointed/frustrated with the tones that I am able to generate when playing my S.U.B., it just doesn’t sound “Stingray”-ish enough to me. I attribute it to my playing style.
The tone of my S.U.B. Is great (more p-bass-ish? than Singray-ish?), just not the Stingray sound I hear in my head. Over the years I have read lots of posts by those who love the Stingray sound, but can’t seem generate it themselves. I assumed that unfortunately, maybe I am in this group, too.
In a post in the other thread @Minimalist stated that he felt that:
That certainly is my experience.
What say you, assembled S.U.B. Clubbers? In your experience does/can the S.U.B. Bass sound like a 2-band Stingray or is it more of its own thing, tone-wise?
Looking forward to your responses!
The tone of my S.U.B. Is great (more p-bass-ish? than Singray-ish?), just not the Stingray sound I hear in my head. Over the years I have read lots of posts by those who love the Stingray sound, but can’t seem generate it themselves. I assumed that unfortunately, maybe I am in this group, too.
In a post in the other thread @Minimalist stated that he felt that:
and
That certainly is my experience.
What say you, assembled S.U.B. Clubbers? In your experience does/can the S.U.B. Bass sound like a 2-band Stingray or is it more of its own thing, tone-wise?
Looking forward to your responses!
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How about this one. I can never help myself I've never once kept instrument that I bought stock. The neck pickup is an EMG P bass soap bar. The EQ circuit is a EMG BTS I've been playing high-end jazz basses forever but this thing is a beast and it has become my main bass. I did put a true oil finish on the fretboard and the neck. I reshaped the headstock a little bit and upgraded the bridge. I didn't like the original pickguard so I modified it a little bit. A new string tree.
So that's it other than that I left it alone LOL
So that's it other than that I left it alone LOL
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It depends, if they're talking about the 2003-2006 EBMM SUB basses, made in USA, and they don't get a Stingray sound out of it... then it's on them
If it's the recent SBMM SUB... it sounds somewhat different, but I'd say it's still on them, as they sound pretty stingrayesque to me. Certainly I would never get anything vaguely resembling a Precision!
I wonder if the amp is part of the reason we hear these things. Small 'practice' amps are not very flattering to most basses, but Stingrays in particular (or any bass with a pickup close to the bridge). How does it sound through a multiFX with amp simulations and headphones?
It's... different, I kinda like it! Except the headstock reshape and string tree, sorry, I really don't like that
but the body looks great to me!
Agreed. The active US SUBs are 100% Stingray sounding. I'd say they sound more Stingray than the EBMM Stingrays with 3EQ.It depends, if they're talking about the 2003-2006 EBMM SUB basses, made in USA, and they don't get a Stingray sound out of it... then it's on them
If it's the recent SBMM SUB... it sounds somewhat different, but I'd say it's still on them, as they sound pretty stingrayesque to me. Certainly I would never get anything vaguely resembling a Precision!
I wonder if the amp is part of the reason we hear these things. Small 'practice' amps are not very flattering to most basses, but Stingrays in particular (or any bass with a pickup close to the bridge). How does it sound through a multiFX with amp simulations and headphones?
The SBMM SUBs--well... they still sound Stingray, but some have series wired pickups, which can sound a little more low mid forward, smoother highs. I can see how that might get confused with a P tonality, but even then, it's still a Stingray adjacent tonality.
If getting a P Bass sound is important to anyone here, do what I did. A EMG P Bass soap bar. It is a little narrower than a standard p-bass pickup would be and if you nudge that right in front of the music man pick up then you got the best of both worlds. On top of that the music man and the P bass blend really well together. I stumbled over this combination because I had a PJ base and I just didn't like the way those two pickups blended. So I replaced the rear Jazz Bass pickup with The Music Man pick up. I liked it so much that I ended up buying a sterling sub five string you saw my previous post I'm sure.
I have a bunch of really good jazz basses and I won't stop playing them but that Sterling that I put together is going on every gig I do now. I do Tower of power Earth wind & fire and also salsa and Latin jazz with the sterling and it's fat sounding it cuts and it has definition.
I do love the Marcus Miller slap tone and I definitely cannot get that with the Sterling but because of the p-bass pickup I can get a really nice Freddy Washington slap tone. Cameo, Louis Johnson, the Scofield pick hits stuff...sure those are easy. And If I blend in a little bit of The Music Man pick up to the P I can even get something that's close enough to the Marcus Miller tone.
But nothing really sounds like a mid-70s jazz bass and I have one of those
I just need to get used to bringing more than one bass
I have a bunch of really good jazz basses and I won't stop playing them but that Sterling that I put together is going on every gig I do now. I do Tower of power Earth wind & fire and also salsa and Latin jazz with the sterling and it's fat sounding it cuts and it has definition.
I do love the Marcus Miller slap tone and I definitely cannot get that with the Sterling but because of the p-bass pickup I can get a really nice Freddy Washington slap tone. Cameo, Louis Johnson, the Scofield pick hits stuff...sure those are easy. And If I blend in a little bit of The Music Man pick up to the P I can even get something that's close enough to the Marcus Miller tone.
But nothing really sounds like a mid-70s jazz bass and I have one of those
I just need to get used to bringing more than one bass
