The Valenti Megathread (Mk. II)

[grayta]

I put AERO1 in my JO5 and my voice came right out. To each his own Tim, but I have NEVER heard as nice a low B as I do with the Aeros. They do claim they reach lower in HZ than any other. Must be why Fodera uses them. They are a bit phatter and slightly darker as compared to the Nordy's in their type 1 config. But, that's me, my voice.

Hmmmm, sounds like they deserve a test run. Since I have two JO5s and the plan is to "retire" one from the stage after the P5 is built I may have to give them a shot. With the Audere pre pickup swaps are a breeze so why not.

 

[MikeBass]

Mike, I'll host some mp3s for you if you like - contact me offline.

Thanks Will! I'll hit you up after the holiday.
I'll rip some from the DVD. Heck, If I can I'll rip the video of the tunes I use it on and post them on YouTube as well. Just don't know exactly how to do it. But I'll try!

 

[MikeBass]

I dig the color Nino!

BTW, are Valenti basses exclusively fitted with Norstrand pups? I know that they are the brand most here seem to prefer. Just wondering if its exclusive, although I played that ebony-necked EMG one at last years NYC gtg./.

Mine has Sadowsky electronics, as ordered from Nino.

I have one with Sadowsky pickups and preamp;
and one with Nord pickups and preamp.

You can spec whatever you wnat, I bet. Ask him!

Mine has EMG 40J's and an Aguilar OBP-3 preamp. He can stick pretty much anything you want in there as long as he can get it. I talked to him about one with Bartolinis but he said that they don't return his calls.

-I got one with nordy pick ups and Aguilar OBP-3 preamp.
-I also have another with Nordy pre and Nordy pickups.

Mine has Nordy p/ups and a Sadowsky pre-amp.
If that helps!!! LOL!!!

I'm pretty sure Nino will do pretty close whatever you want.
If you haven't figured that out yet! LOL!!

 

[Altitude]

If I can I'll rip the video of the tunes I use it on and post them on YouTube as well. Just don't know exactly how to do it. But I'll try!

I can help you there too. I purchased a software program that rips MPEG video from DVDs - I use it all the time to put movies onto my iPod to watch on my business trips. If you send me a DVD, I can easily get you back postable files.

 

[MikeBass]

I can help you there too. I purchased a software program that rips MPEG video from DVDs - I use it all the time to put movies onto my iPod to watch on my business trips. If you send me a DVD, I can easily get you back postable files.

That may have to happen as well!!!

 

[BuffaloBass]

I'm unsure if this is appropos in a megathread, but a question for Nino...

as I get to know 067, ( I;m not picking up the heavier bigger Lakland JO much anymore), a few things I've noticed about " my voice" in general.

I tend to prefer the sound of the neck pup, and often favor it. To wit, most J basses will "bark" , if the bridge pickup is too near ( < 4mm) the G string , This specifically on a pluck. So everytime I set up a J bass for me, the bridge goes way down ( I have 067 bottomed out, and therefore dont want to lower the action anymore) , which gets rid of that "barK' as I call it, a shrillness in a plucked high note, and also allows me to keep the pickups balanced and hum free, while still getting more neck in the mix.

As a custom builder, I'm wondering out loud if there is anything you might suggest in a custom build to get my "voice" without resorting to unequal pickup heights, etc, or is this exactly how a bass is custom setup to its player?

 

[OrionManMatt]

That may have to happen as well!!!

Do you have a PC or Mac?

 

[Nino Valenti]

I'm unsure if this is appropos in a megathread, but a question for Nino...

as I get to know 067, ( I;m not picking up the heavier bigger Lakland JO much anymore), a few things I've noticed about " my voice" in general.

I tend to prefer the sound of the neck pup, and often favor it. To wit, most J basses will "bark" , if the bridge pickup is too near ( < 4mm) the G string , This specifically on a pluck. So everytime I set up a J bass for me, the bridge goes way down ( I have 067 bottomed out, and therefore dont want to lower the action anymore) , which gets rid of that "barK' as I call it, a shrillness in a plucked high note, and also allows me to keep the pickups balanced and hum free, while still getting more neck in the mix.

As a custom builder, I'm wondering out loud if there is anything you might suggest in a custom build to get my "voice" without resorting to unequal pickup heights, etc, or is this exactly how a bass is custom setup to its player?

Have you tried a humcancelling J5? IME, the Sadowsky HCH5 set are very quiet and sound just as great passive as they do active.

The Nordy Humcancelling sound great but IME are a little nosier than the Sadowsky pickups.

 

[Chef]

I'd agree: the HC's in my Sadowsky RV5 are dead quiet and still have great JJ vibe.

It was weird at first, because I'm so used to J's of various incarnations having *some* noise. I thought the RV5 was dead when I first plugged it in. It wasn't, just dead quiet.

Hi Nino! Thanks for the great basses!

 

[Nino Valenti]

No... thank you guys.

Chef, did you ever try the HCJ5's in #100 before you sold it?

 

[Chef]

No sir, I did not.
The "60's spec'd" bass I traded for was gonna suit me better than the "70's spec" one I had...and vice versa for the guy who got that beautiful CAOJ bass-which was just a fine piece of art!

I'm quite happy with that LPB I traded for.
So, I have that one (alder, maple neck, pao ferro f/b, Sadowsky Singles and preamp) and the Sadowsky RV5 (alder, maple, morado f/b, Sadowsky HC's and preamp.) The basses spec very much the same, pickups aside. I was quite surprised at the diff b/t the two pickups, and I like having both choices!

 

[BuffaloBass]

Have you tried a humcancelling J5? IME, the Sadowsky HCH5 set are very quiet and sound just as great passive as they do active.

The Nordy Humcancelling sound great but IME are a little nosier than the Sadowsky pickups.

A little noise don't much bother me.

I went ahead and ordered up some AERO Type I's. One thing I do notice about the NJ5's is that they are, as seems customary in many bass pickups to me, mid heavy. That is not the natural voice of #067. I am hopeful the AERO's, as is customary for them, bring out its natural tone, which is "scooped" as compared to the signal.

Will try and do a A/B comparo for all , yet it won't be thru anything special gear wise. Still, methinks you'll still hear the difference. ( we are doing some recording, so there is an outside shot I can have it done at the pro studio).

It may illustrate a slightly different tonal palette avail from Valenti basses.

067 is weird man, this girl likes it hard! I am falling in love! I get to play 'er hard tomorrow for three sweaty hours after the Sabres game. Always a great gig IF THEY WIN!

And judging from my last expereince with #008, she'll take everything I give her, and beg for more.

Swapping to ridiculously flat response pups will really let her shine. Plus, I know I'll get more output from the AEROs, which helps being a totally passive player.

The Nordy's are good, don't get me wrong. But I can hear them almost as much as the bass. I want all Valenti in my hands! It may seem odd, but when I tuck that upper horn into my breast bone/solar plexis, I want not much between my soul, the instrument, and the groove.

 

[MikeBass]

A few "action" shots of my Valenti.......that bass tore it up......
Again Nino, you created a beautiful piece, thank you.

(feel free to steal for your site Nino if you want)

 

[grayta]

Looks like a cool gig-great pics, awesome bass.

 

[capnsandwich]

A few "action" shots of my Valenti.......that bass tore it up......
Again Nino, you created a beautiful piece, thank you.

(feel free to steal for your site Nino if you want)

Sweet pics and I still want to test drive that Valenti. Was that a church gig or band gig?

 

[Sterling_Bass]

MikeBass, that is such a good looking bass. You rock it well on stage.

 

[landry.bass]

Hey Nino, how much does it cost for a pair Sadowsky SCJJ5s in one of your basses?

 

[Sterling_Bass]

You're better off sending Nino an email. He'll respond to it faster.

 

[landry.bass]

Cool, thanks.

 

[Nino Valenti]

There is no upcharge for Sadowsky SCJJ or HCJJ pickups in one of my basses.