Short scale basses legitimate basses?

[Ric5]

short scale Ibby hollow body 5 string

 

[punchdrunk]

They certainly make a bass noise.

 

[deckstirparnell]

It doesn't really matter. If it works for the player, it's good. I started out playing shortscales with a flatpick. When I got my first Fender (71 Jazz), it just felt right to me and felt wrong to play with a pick. So goes the rest of my story until I went 5 string.
Saying that shortscales aren't legitimate basses is just plain snobbery. If the player enjoys playing it, gets what he/she wants out of it and it sounds good, what does it matter except to snobs.

 

[Gorn]

People say stupid things sometimes.

 

[And I]

The only basses that are not "real" basses are imaginary basses. If a short scale bass is not imaginary then it's real, by definition...

You may thoroughly disregard the opinion of anyone who says a non-imaginary short scale bass is not real.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

I prefer a 34" scale, but that is mostly muscle memory. I find that even a Ric, which is like 33 1/4 throws me off.
But my very first bass was a short scale, Danelectro short horn.

 

[JimChjones]

He started out on a Hohner because that was all he could afford. He moved to a Ric and then P bass when the royalty checks came in.

This.
Plus back in the 60s, early 70s, with the exception of the Gibson which has always been a marmite instrument anyway, the vast majority of short scale basses were, frankly, not very good. With the visible short scale instruments being either mediocre or idiosyncratic its unsurprising that short scale got associated with second rate.

 

[micguy]

Anything under 42" is short scale as far as I'm concerned.

I don't want to consider calling short scales illegitimate, as I've never played anything longer than 34's myself, and I don't want to be considered a bastard bassist by the upright crowd.

 

[WI Short Scaler]

Hard to believe it's even a question. Of course they are.

Always considered mine legit anyway.

 

[Joe Nerve]

When I switched from guitar to bass over 25 years ago, I had a Mustang. I thought it was a toy, I was embarrassed to play out with it, and I bought a 34" scale bass.

About a year and a half ago I bought a Mustang P/J.

I loved it.

Then I bought a Hofner, a Supro, a TMB30, a short scale Warwick, and MIA Mustang.

Those are now the only basses I play.

I play professionally and earn more money doing that than the vast majority of bass players (and I say that with tons of gratitude and a humble heart as I've also played more for NO MONEY than most ).

I challenge anyone to tell me my basses aren't legit. They sound better than a lot of my other basses, too .

 

[pappabass]

Tinky winky bass!

 

[yodedude2]

People say stupid things sometimes.

this should be a poll choice

 

[Gaolee]

For about 20 years, I only had an EB-2. It's a short scale, and nobody seemed to notice that it wasn't real.

 

[Rib 13]

Im going to try and give an answer to this otherwise absurd question

Back in the 70s and 80s, when the bass industry at large was going more for stringy-ness and clarity in bass tones, shorties were often not used because of their inherent 'woodier' tone coloration back then....Fast forward to today, including all the technological advancements over the decades, and many shortscales made today (or combined with newer tech amps/processing) don't sound much different than their longer-scale brethren

I hope that sorta answers the OP

 

[Warpeg]

Hmmm...how about a different perspective? Fender’s 6-string guitars have a scale length of almost an inch longer than Gibson’s. Is this to say that Gibson doesn’t make real guitars then?

Bottom line: an instrument’s scale length does not define its relevance.

 

[dave64o]

short scale Ibby hollow body 5 string

THAT video helped convince me to pull the trigger when I saw that exact bass pop up on Reverb earlier this year. Very glad I bought it - it sounds and plays great!

There are those who scoff at short-scales but, personally, I've always considered the unfounded opinions of the uninformed to be illegitimate. Yes, short-scales are legitimate basses!

 

[Fun With Dirt]

I am thinking that this should be lumped in with the "is a pick bass player an actual bass player" discussion.

 

[Herbie Chesnutt]

I was taking some lessons a couple years ago with my Mustang pj. The guy I was seeing wouldn't let it go. Busted my a$$ every session. So I finally brought my TMB100 and he loved it. I quit going to him after that cuz dude just rubbed me wrong. I'm not interested in dealing with a guy who clearly has "size issues" he has yet to deal with.

Wondering what the general consensus is on short scale basses. I have met many bassists that disregard short scale basses and say they are not "real" basses. I personally have no problem with them, I just prefer the longer scale. Not to say that I wouldn't play one if a cool bass came along.

 

[tekhedd]

I now exclusively play extended scale short scale basses. It's a short scale bass but with two extra frets, bringing the overall length to 34". The open strings are tuned down a whole step, resulting in a short scale bass with extended range.

If you haven't tried one, you should. They sell them at all major music outlets, but due to poor educational standards, they're usually incorrectly loaded with light gauge strings and tuned a whole step too high.

 

[ak56]

20-3/8" scale, 35" scale, 30" scale.
I consider all three legitimate basses.

Another question. For those of you who have alot of experience with shirt scales, does playing on a short scale for a long time mess up your muscle memory on long scale basses?

I switch between these three, and may have to pay extra attention for a few seconds, but the muscle memory is not messed up.

I drive both an automatic and a stick shift. I don't forget how to drive one just because I drove the other.