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Short-scale basses are no substitute for long-scale basses?

Can a short-scale bass substitute for a long-scale bass?

  • Yes

    Votes: 322 83.6%

  • No

    Votes: 63 16.4%
  • Total voters
    385
  • Poll closed .
#41
I own a Canadian Dingwall AB-II 5 string, an Alien Audio 30" 5 string and quite a few 34" in between. Better sustain from the Dingwall, but in most situations, better tone (in the mix) from the short scale. What is the goal for the short string? Lower tension? Less reach?
 
#42
sleddogn said:
... why torcher the TB'ers with another one of these types of threads....
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Trying to glean suggestions and information from those with more knowledge, experience and wisdom than I. Don't knock it. That's what forums are for. Not just to reflect endless echoes of where everybody knows the same and thinks the same. If you have nothing to contribute, better to just not post and don't waste your time and mine.

I don't have the "same" strings ... they're all flatwounds, yes, but various makes and weights.
 
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#44
LetItGrowTone said:
+1
Info for the thread:
Way back, I chose the TMB30 (PJ, despite not really wanting the J pickup) because I figured out (don't remember how accurately) that the TMB30's P pickup location was proportionally the same as a full length P (see micguy's post above), while the other 30" basses, P or PJ, that I checked (don't remember which) were not, so they were proportionally more forward than a full length P, which I did not want at that time.

Another reason why the TMB30 sounds so good is the thick neck profile (thickness, not (nut) width). I didn't have a clue about that at that time, but I believe it now, having learned this bitter lesson from a Fender J.
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Thinking about getting one, so thanks for the detail!! Very helpful.
 
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#46
wiscoaster said:
Yes, mostly, less reach = less pain.
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I have an idea for you then. Will post some pics tomorrow. Basically, I installed a reach extender strap point on a 34" scale bass and now the reach to the first fret is probably less than the first fret reach on my 30" similar model Alien Audio.

EDIT: stole the pic from a post from @testing1two. This is what Dingwall adds to some of their basses to give a more manageable reach to the first fret when you have a 37" instrument. I wondered how this would work on a 34" bass and tried it. It turned out great. Really comfortable reach, similar to a 30" scale instrument and all of the other distances are what you're used to on a familiar 34" scale.

3c455292-e18f-4dab-91a0-837308473550_zpsba92a5df-jpg.jpg
 
Last edited:
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#47
wiscoaster said:
Because I have a somewhat painful degenerative osteoarthritis at the base of my left thumb I've been playing bass mostly with short-scale basses. However, when comparing the "sound" of my rather ordinary Squier PJ long-scale bass against any of the other half dozen or so short-scale basses of various makes and models I've aquired and played it seems that it's becoming clear to me that any short-scale bass CANNOT substitute for the "sound" of a long-scale bass. What are your thoughts / insights / comments?
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You do the best you can with what you've got. It's a simple as that.
 
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#49
What I wanted from the first short scale I ever owned was easy playability. I'd joined a band of ex-pros, and I wanted a bass with a neck I could easily get around on. They threw a lot of R&B at me I'd never heard, plus a lot of Little Feat, Steely Dan, etc. Shorties really helped my get around the fretboard faster. A decade later, my priorities have changed: I need to be precise in terms of note duration and placement. The big loss, and if you've been there, you know what I mean: I have to be careful now in many of the little joints we play, to not swing the tuning pegs into the face of the guitarist who stands next to me.:D
 
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#50
wiscoaster said:
Because I have a somewhat painful degenerative osteoarthritis at the base of my left thumb I've been playing bass mostly with short-scale basses. However, when comparing the "sound" of my rather ordinary Squier PJ long-scale bass against any of the other half dozen or so short-scale basses of various makes and models I've aquired and played it seems that it's becoming clear to me that any short-scale bass CANNOT substitute for the "sound" of a long-scale bass. What are your thoughts / insights / comments?
Click to expand...
You might want to try a good short-scale bass.
Photo-Collage-1635466536069.jpg
 
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#54
in my experience this is a false premise. I've been playing 34"scale basses and upright bass all my life until recently, when I bought a short scale (30") Gretsch as a backup to my upright bass in case something happens on a gig. Sounds just as good as my 34" P bass, with similar flatwound strings. No real discernable difference, easier to play if you like a shorter scale, not an issue for me.
 
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#56
I voted No because in a length contest a short scale is going to lose 9 times out of 10. Some say Jamerson's long lost "funk" bass was a prototype 34" short scale, a 32" scale that was lengthened in production to 34" so it looked and played like a 34" but sounded like a 32". That's why the FBI wanted to confiscate it so badly. Those were different times. We've all grown since then.
 
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#59
I bought this SG beauty this past March.
For a couple of months, I kept comparing it to my long scale basses.

It does not sound exactly the same, it sounds different.

Once my mind embraced and accepted that axiom, everything was cool.

No, it doesn't have the piano-like sustain of a longer scale instrument, but it does have a place in bass music.
It's not like comparing different burgers, it's like comparing spaghetti and meatballs with yogurt.

I love the different tone it has. :thumbsup:

Mike
 
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