SPECTOR® Club - Part 60

[Fat240]

I play in drop C# and find that a .120 is great for that tuning. no problems with the stock nut or bridge. I'm using d'addario balanced tension sets

lol i use 45-105's for that lol

.130 .086 .065 .047 is what I use for C#, F#, B, E with drop B. C# is intonation is setup at C on the low string. That is between 39 and 40lbs across the fretboard and even with the thick gauge it plays better than the lighter sets. If you compare that with the .115 or .120 sets they is a big difference in the truss setup. The balanced sets will allow for a lot less tension on the neck. Even though the neck is setup flat with both gauges the balanced set will pull less on the neck. I can play drop B with .110's but that is a lot to tension on the neck in comparison. Heavy uneven tension across the fretboard is not good for my basses especially the older one's with no reinforcement rods. I was reading in Bass Player where DR is making Geezer custom .120 set for C standard tuning for the Sabbath tour.

 

[brotherbassj]

Coop has a lot of experience with Circle K (fat240) so he's a good one to talk to about those strings and drop tuning. I believe he got Bunkaroo interested, myself and John Deluca....they can be pricey but I think they are worth it.....I got balanced tensions

 

[Rivoli67P74]

Hi Spector club members, very sad to have to part with my early SB-1 but reality sets in. I have it on eBay as of today. Peace, and keep the drummer in the pocket

 

[iceboxbass]

Hold the phone boys.......

If it's stock it's got EMG-SSD pups.
These are passive. Not hooked to the battery in the first place, so.........no advantage.

Second, this also has a Tone Pump "Jr.". Has anyone tried running one of these at 18 volts? Not sure if it's meant for it or can take it without problems.

Look before you leap boys.

Phat, what are you running in your Legend 6's? TP? Or TPJr?

 

[johnsonabq]

Hi Spector club members, very sad to have to part with my early SB-1 but reality sets in. I have it on eBay as of today. Peace, and keep the drummer in the pocket

Here's the link...

 

[iceboxbass]

I'm rocking some LaBella flats here. I don't know if it's because it's a Spector but the flatwounds still have a bright attack to them, especially if I dig in at the bridge. It's like a Spector on some kind of mild anxiety medication now.

Still cuts through a mix like a bastard.

Hahaha! I wonder how different are the Labella strings to GHS?

My brother also plays flats on his Rex Pro.

Wow! Now that's different than most. Have you heard his Rex with flats?

 

[johnsonabq]

Got the CRFM back from my bass tech. He likes it too. Thought I'd take a quick shot of my budding Spector collection.
It's a start.

 

[brotherbassj]

Got the CRFM back from my bass tech. He likes it too. Thought I'd take a quick shot of my budding Spector collection.
It's a start.

Let me be the first to say.....very NICE!!!

 

[grendle]

Interesting. I've always played with bands in standard - 440 tuning with the occasional Eb tuning. I'm realizing there are a lot of people out there using special tunings in order to achieve a certain "sound". My guitarist has a Hipshot extender on his 'Paul for drop D but that's it. That's of no consequence to me when I'm on my 5. I just recently bought a CRFM 4 string (EADG) and am diggin' on that when I can, but I still love to go to that low B when the song allows. As you said, just my personal preference.

Yeah it's really for the tone. We tune to dropped C# for the singer, and it just sounds cool for the songs. Tried dropped C and it was too low, it just didn't work. I haven't played in E in probably 15 years. Oh and you think your Spector sounds mean in E? There is NOTHING that takes a detune like a Spector! That's the voice of god right there. Or as close as you can get.

 

[delucajohn2000]

.130 .086 .065 .047 is what I use for C#, F#, B, E with drop B. C# is intonation is setup at C on the low string. That is between 39 and 40lbs across the fretboard and even with the thick gauge it plays better than the lighter sets. If you compare that with the .115 or .120 sets they is a big difference in the truss setup. The balanced sets will allow for a lot less tension on the neck. Even though the neck is setup flat with both gauges the balanced set will pull less on the neck. I can play drop B with .110's but that is a lot to tension on the neck in comparison. Heavy uneven tension across the fretboard is not good for my basses especially the older one's with no reinforcement rods. I was reading in Bass Player where DR is making Geezer custom .120 set for C standard tuning for the Sabbath tour.

It's amazing how different their tunings are with each singer. With Dio, they tuned a half step down (hey, that is Lee's bands name, LOL) and with Ozzy they are using C standard. I know they tuned to C# way back in the day too after Paranoid if I am not mistaken.

I have my NS-4 tuned down to D G C F with a .115 set of the new Dunlop Heavy Core strings and the tension feels great but that is a massive neck on that bass so I don't think it will move. They have been on for almost a week and the neck is still great on that bass and the tension is nice. I am going to see how C G C F feels with that .115 but I think it will be too floppy.

Coop has a lot of experience with Circle K (fat240) so he's a good one to talk to about those strings and drop tuning. I believe he got Bunkaroo interested, myself and John Deluca....they can be pricey but I think they are worth it.....I got balanced tensions

Yeah, I have a set of the .158 set of Circle K's on my Rebop 5 tuned down to G# and they feel great. I really want to get another set but will wait for a sale since they are really pricey. That set comes to a little over $40 at normal price so it's a bit hard to justify at the moment. One day I should just drive to Virginia to pay Coop a visit so he can set my Rebop up He really knows what he is doing with all the drop tunings and the different tensions.

 

[johnsonabq]

Yeah it's really for the tone. We tune to dropped C# for the singer, and it just sounds cool for the songs. Tried dropped C and it was too low, it just didn't work. I haven't played in E in probably 15 years. Oh and you think your Spector sounds mean in E? There is NOTHING that takes a detune like a Spector! That's the voice of god right there. Or as close as you can get.

So what you're doing is tuning down a step and a half? I can see why you go for higher gauge strings. How far can you go without changing the nut?
Hell... that kind of pitch shift would make Michael Jackson sound like James Earl Jones! LOL

 

[iceboxbass]

Very cool. I just did this to my CRFM and in a couple of days I'll get another battery coupler in the mail and I'll do my Euro's OBP-3.

NICE how's the CRFM sound now? You'll really love the OBP 3 @18V.

Congrats!
"Big Blue" is the sweetest Coda I've ever seen. Bahama Blue has always been a favorite of mine, but it really pops when you see it on a Jazz-style body with a BEM neck & abalone inlays...

Thank you Its a lot of AAAA Maple top covered in Bahama Blue for sure. This is totally different than when I modded my former Forte 4 OBP 2...so many more tonal adjustments with the Coda. Of course the Coda has Aguilar pups vs. EMG. It has a lot more head room for sure. What surprised me with the Coda was when I had both pickups at 100% I rolled back the bridge pickup to 75% and THERE it is...that awesome growl! I thought to myself...huh,no way...that's got to be wrong, so I did the opposite, bridge 100% neck 75%, not there. So I found that magic position on the Coda 5XL.
My wife commented to our dog Olivia, "you better hang on Olivia...he's going to blast us out the window." Lol Yeah...a lot like that.

 

[johnsonabq]

NICE how's the CRFM sound now? You'll really love the OBP 3 @18V.

I'm diggin' it in the sterile headphone environment (That's how I practice at home). The test is tomorrow night when I plug it in with the band and see how it keeps up with the Euro. The Euro won't be 18v yet though. Before the mod I thought the CRFM rocked with a pick but wasn't quite up to the Euro with fingers. We'll see what tomorrow night brings.

Ultimately I want to put a Spector 9v in the Euro and even though part of me wants the CRFM to stay stock I may put the Aggie that comes out of the Euro and put it in the CRFM. (maybe)

 

[iceboxbass]

Hi Spector club members, very sad to have to part with my early SB-1 but reality sets in. I have it on eBay as of today. Peace, and keep the drummer in the pocket

Whoa! Marvelous looking Spector history! GLWTS!

 

[iceboxbass]

Got the CRFM back from my bass tech. He likes it too. Thought I'd take a quick shot of my budding Spector collection.
It's a start.

Very NICE Spector family.

 

[Zitch]

Lee, Omer got you liked. I couldnt help myself, put a bid on the SB-1, im sure ill get outbid by someone with higher resources but i figured its worth a shot, very cool unique piece of Spector legacy there.

 

[NOLA Bass]

Okay, it turns out I'm doing exactly what Geezer is doing. If you read that story in Bass Player where he talks about them being tuned C standard (which is where my band tunes), he had DR make him sets with a .115.

I was stuck buying some GHS Boomers one day (only thing that was close to what I wanted gauge wise) and it turned out the .115 was really right on the money.

For those wondering how we ended up tuning to C standard, this same lineup was originally a cover band. We tuned to D standard to help with all those high vocals. We had been working on the original project and our singer was struggling with some of the vocals (our guitarist is the main writer and that includes vocal lines and lyrics). I just so happened to be home sick for a practice and they tried C. I got a text saying, "we tried tuning down to C, sounds amazing, tune to C for next week". Thus began the shopping for a 435LX!!! ; )

 

[Splods]

Invalid Link Removed

I have a slight feeling that this is a scam. No custom USA inlay, no signature, Back of headstock looks drawn on.

Tempted to offer $2

 

[johnsonabq]

Let me be the first to say.....very NICE!!!

Very NICE Spector family.

Thanks guys! Can't wait for the NS-5XL to join it. Then if the CRFM works out, an NS-2 might be in order.

 

[AdamR]

Wow, Lots of low tuning going on here, My band is only in E flat.

Just got home from rehearsal, The Ampeg 810 and the CRFM killed it. Everyone loved the tone. Much tighter then the old GK Neo 212. Very focused. The new singer came with lyrics to 3 of the songs. We got 2 of them down. Couldnt be happier despite having to call it an early night so my wife could go to work.

The best part is our new singer has lots of connections. He was a drum tech and lighting tech for years. He toured with Lizzy Borden and Iced Earth among others, Plus worked at a few local venues. I cant wait to get out an play some shows again.