Feel fine, seem very light weight with no neck dive. Pretty good for a bass of this weight.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
I noticed that the output of the J pickup on my P8 is quite a bit lower than that of the P pickup, especially on the D and G strings. I raised it up and angled it towards the higher strings but the difference is still quite noticeable. Does anyone else see a similar behaviour?
It's not a big issue since I'm more interested in the P-bass tones anyway and in my experience it takes a lot of skill (more than I currently have, anyway) to make a solo'd J bridge pickup sound good. Still, interested in what you all have to say about this
Edit: In case it's relevant: I put Chromes on but it was similar with the factory strings.
It's not a big issue since I'm more interested in the P-bass tones anyway and in my experience it takes a lot of skill (more than I currently have, anyway) to make a solo'd J bridge pickup sound good. Still, interested in what you all have to say about this
Edit: In case it's relevant: I put Chromes on but it was similar with the factory strings.
Last edited:
Hi!
Another one of my questions, just to help me unnerstan things gooder
My U5 with La Bella's on sounds brighter than my Sonic Bronco with Tonerider Apex Classic pickup amd Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats on
I love the sound of both, I'm not going to change either, but, I am a inquisitive cat:
I can see that body type of wood and shape, neck shape and wood and even, apparently fingerboard wood, and other things could be responsible for some of this, but
is it mainly (after strings) the pickups (and their positions that would be affecting the tone here?
As a science orientated guy, I would think that the main things would be, (in this order):
1. Strings (as they are what are vibrating (also guitar structure, but that's kind of secondary)
2. Pickups (as they are what are 'picking up' and transferring these vibrations), and where they are (as this affect where they 'pick up' the vibrations from the string, relative to nodes etc)
3. Other stuff (body wood and size and shape, neck ditto, fingerboard ditto,)
I am assuming same pre-amp (none here) amp and cabs etc to get rid of these
is that about, ball park, usually, generally, back of a ciggy packet, etc etc correct
Another one of my questions, just to help me unnerstan things gooder
My U5 with La Bella's on sounds brighter than my Sonic Bronco with Tonerider Apex Classic pickup amd Ernie Ball Cobalt Flats on
I love the sound of both, I'm not going to change either, but, I am a inquisitive cat:
I can see that body type of wood and shape, neck shape and wood and even, apparently fingerboard wood, and other things could be responsible for some of this, but
is it mainly (after strings) the pickups (and their positions that would be affecting the tone here?
As a science orientated guy, I would think that the main things would be, (in this order):
1. Strings (as they are what are vibrating (also guitar structure, but that's kind of secondary)
2. Pickups (as they are what are 'picking up' and transferring these vibrations), and where they are (as this affect where they 'pick up' the vibrations from the string, relative to nodes etc)
3. Other stuff (body wood and size and shape, neck ditto, fingerboard ditto,)
I am assuming same pre-amp (none here) amp and cabs etc to get rid of these
is that about, ball park, usually, generally, back of a ciggy packet, etc etc correct
As a science-oriented fella m'self, but admittedly with ZERO luthiery credentials, I've always expected that strings and pickups are going to be the primary determining factors of tone. Neck wood and body wood are next, I'd expect. That is, I think pickups and strings have the greatest capacity to change tone, then changing neck and fingerboard wood and then body wood.
Flame wars may ensue, but hey, take my opinions as from a fella with ZERO luthiery experience.
Flame wars may ensue, but hey, take my opinions as from a fella with ZERO luthiery experience.
Personally I think the whole "tonewoods" debate is useless when it comes to non acoustic instruments.
But people like these kind of things, and it gives manufacturers yet one more marketing thing...
Lumberyard: Hello
Leo Fender: Whats some cheap and nice wood you got lots of?
Lumberyard: We got tons of cheap Alder just in.
Leo Fender: I'll take it!
But people like these kind of things, and it gives manufacturers yet one more marketing thing...
Lumberyard: Hello
Leo Fender: Whats some cheap and nice wood you got lots of?
Lumberyard: We got tons of cheap Alder just in.
Leo Fender: I'll take it!
Setting aside technique factors like how and where you pluck the strings, in my opinion/experience, the most important things that affect a solid body electric instrument's sound are:
Strings
Pickups (both type and position)
Scale Length
Electronics (passive/active, EQ, etc)
Everything else makes such a minor difference that they concern me more for aesthetic/style reasons than tone reasons. But I'm also not going to say they make zero difference; just not enough to dramatically alter the tone created by the factors listed above.
Strings
Pickups (both type and position)
Scale Length
Electronics (passive/active, EQ, etc)
Everything else makes such a minor difference that they concern me more for aesthetic/style reasons than tone reasons. But I'm also not going to say they make zero difference; just not enough to dramatically alter the tone created by the factors listed above.
Thanks, so I think the difference in tone between my two short scale basses is mainly because of the different pickups and positions then - the different strings (LA Bellas and EB Co flats) cant 'overcome' that difference.
I'm happy with that as they sound very different
now that my curiosity is piqued ....
scale length affects tone because of tension?
so for same frequency (f) and strings (u), a short (30") scale will have just over 3/4 (0.78 ish) the tension of a long scale (34")?
How does that tension affect the tone? You will still have the same fundamentals and harmonics. Are some damped out easier with lower (higher?) tension? or is it something else
sorry, I'm a Geek
I'm happy with that as they sound very different
now that my curiosity is piqued ....
scale length affects tone because of tension?
so for same frequency (f) and strings (u), a short (30") scale will have just over 3/4 (0.78 ish) the tension of a long scale (34")?
How does that tension affect the tone? You will still have the same fundamentals and harmonics. Are some damped out easier with lower (higher?) tension? or is it something else
sorry, I'm a Geek
Last edited:
Not as much a scientist/engineer as you are! But I can tell you that lower tension will yield a darker tone. Not sure why -- lower amplitude overtones?
Is it because the higher the harmonic the tighter the curvature on the string, and with a shorter scale the physical stifness of the string to bending cuts out the higher harmonics earlier than on a long scale?
Take the 5th harmonic there.
On the short scale bass the distance between the peaks will be shorter than on the long scale
And for a given string there is a limit to the curvature it's easy to bend into it
So, the shorter the scale, the more this 'resistance to bending at high curvatures' comes into play, so the higher harmonics are more subdued on a short scale bass so it sounds more mellow
That makes sense to me
But then, my wife tells me I am mad
What does she know? She is just a clinical psychologist
Yes it is sometimes challenging living with a psychologist
but not as challenging as living with me
This isn't rocket science. Take a piece of string pull on it, pluck it, and pull tighter. The frequency of oscillation increases and the harmonics are forced into the shorter wavelengths, with lower amplitude. Proportion of harmonics shifts into higher registers. Therefore it sounds brighter.
They taught a course called "Physics of Music" at college. Only physics course I was interested in taking.
A couple of my Sires...V3 with Turner Pickups Narrow Multicoils and Trickfish J-Core, V6 with same pickups and Trickfish/Mike Pope Flexcore. The V6 is almost impossible for me to put down.
NBD in the form of this Sire M6.
Positives: amazing sound, form factor, built like a tank.
Not-so-positives: headpiece cover is a hindrance when fretting a low F on the E-string, bridge knobs, D-string tuner "runs out of room" when tuning to pitch.
How does one obtain the replacement tuning knobs?
Turns out the original D string had too much slack when it was installed; I put a spare one on and there's tuning room to spare.
@LowEndOperative how do you adjust intonation on these? Do you have to move the whole tuner/bridge assembly?
Hope they are Allen heads so you can use an angled tool! Even so, inner strings would be difficult. Still not as bad as my Lightwave -- each individual complete string bridge/sensor assembly has to be moved to intonate!
Sure Z3 - any thoughts?
Hello looking to add something different to my bass collection and the Sire Z3 has caught my attention. I've got a Sire Jazz V3P and the playability and build quality are excellent for its price point.
Before I pull the trigger im looking to see if anyone has owned one and if they can give me some advice?
Specifically what is the neck like? How heavy is it? What's the tone like when the active circuit is engaged? Any issues with neck dive?
Lastly I don't have the cash for a proper muisc man so if anyone recommends a different bass my max budget is £350.
Cheers!
Hello looking to add something different to my bass collection and the Sire Z3 has caught my attention. I've got a Sire Jazz V3P and the playability and build quality are excellent for its price point.
Before I pull the trigger im looking to see if anyone has owned one and if they can give me some advice?
Specifically what is the neck like? How heavy is it? What's the tone like when the active circuit is engaged? Any issues with neck dive?
Lastly I don't have the cash for a proper muisc man so if anyone recommends a different bass my max budget is £350.
Cheers!
I have the sparkly one...neck is thicker than your V3P with 41.4 mm at the nut, but extremely comfortable(to me)... weight comes in at a little over 9.4 lbs(4.6 kg), not neck divey at all, but I use a thick padded strap while standing and play classical style while sitting. The pickup is ceramic and wired in series, so the output is a little on the high side, but the preamp is pretty good for dialing in a tone that you'd like. I ended up putting a Bartolini quad coil and a 3 way switch for mine, but it's an extremely solid instrument stock, in both construction and sound.
Hope that helps!
