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The things I hate about loving short scales

#85
rockscott said:
All shortsales are not muddy! My birdsong for the most part has a precision bass sound however, it can sound as bright as a rickenbacker with the treble cranked! My sg is set up with highbeams, it sounds like a gibson, not muddy!
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The strings can make a big difference as well.
Flatwounds sound horrible on my EB3 copy--but Chrome roundwounds sound great.
 
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#86
Adgeed, it took me decades to find the rights strings on the right bass! For the most part im using Dr suhbeams, highbeams. and pure blues. ernie ball bronze on my acoustic. I picked up a set of colbalts a couple months ago but blew a tuning key on my artcore while stringing her and have not gotten around to fixing it.
 
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#87
One of the nice surprises I've had is the quality of most of the short scale basses these days. My Epiphone is miles ahead of the old FT-280 that I played in junior high.

Add that to the fact that the lower end of the price spectrum seems to be where the hottest competition is between companies and the results can be quite nice. Am thinking of the Jaguar SS, or Hofner Ignition series or the new Ibanez Talman. Yes, I wish there were more choices (would love to see a modern version of the old Yamaha BB300 series in short scale) but what is there is generally very, very good. And from checking out eBay there appear to be a number of short scale basses that are only available in Japan that might sell here in the US.

As to string choices, it can be all about preference. Personally like the GHS Precision flats on this bass, but wish the E had been .100 rather than .095. Have adjusted technique to make it work just fine. Then again, the only basses I've liked round wound strings on were my short scale Alembic, Rick Turner Electroline and a MIJ Fender Jazz bass where I pulled out the frets and put a few coatings of boat epoxy on the fingerboard.
 
#88
rockscott said:
Adgeed, it took me decades to find the rights strings on the right bass! For the most part im using Dr suhbeams, highbeams. and pure blues. ernie ball bronze on my acoustic. I picked up a set of colbalts a couple months ago but blew a tuning key on my artcore while stringing her and have not gotten around to fixing it.
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Hey--I use different gauges on different guitars as well--they work better on one than another.
 
#89
When will we play a bass that gets the sound we want playing the music we play in our bands - without having to justify it by anything other than the sound and that we like the feel? Having to justify that our bass is okay because a famous bass player played it is a waste of time and signals our insecurity.

A large number of the posts at TB are of that sort. "Star Bassist played a Squier" (so it's good enough for me) or "Star Bassist played a MIM" etc.

Let's just play our basses because we like them and can get the sounds we need out of them.
 
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#90
Faraday said:
When will we play a bass that gets the sound we want playing the music we play in our bands - without having to justify it by anything other than the sound and that we like the feel? Having to justify that our bass is okay because a famous bass player played it is a waste of time and signals our insecurity.

A large number of the posts at TB are of that sort. "Star Bassist played a Squier" (so it's good enough for me) or "Star Bassist played a MIM" etc.

Let's just play our basses because we like them and can get the sounds we need out of them.
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I don't remember seeing or hearing about any "star" bassist using a Silvertone Model 1444 dolphin nose or an Ibanez Mikro. Oh well, I guess I'm not one of the cool kids. ;)
 
#91
I play 7 and 8 string guitars and one of my 8's are a 30' scale which is super long for a guitar and would be described in the opposite spectrum of the "small hands" description to the "larger hands". I really think that is the way some companies market it. I have a 30" 6 string Kiesel that doesn't look feel or sound like a toy at all. Plus I bet a bunch of people look "small" with a long scale bass guitar if you are less than 6' LOL
 

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