U.S. Peavey Club

[AudioTaper]

Yeah, I put a Hipshot bridge on my 2000s Ric. It is not cheap and a new EXPENSIVE bass shouldn't immediately require a replacement bridge, and some aftermarket pickup route hole cover.

In case y'all don't know, the Ric bridge is not adjustable for intonation, while strings are on it. Also, the whole saddle assembly (all 4 string saddles = 1 piece) is loose/free floating and only adjustable for height via 2 allen screws. So, each string is not individually adjustable except by filing the string slot deeper. And, the saddle assembly teeters on the ends of the 2 allen height adjustment screws. It can rock back and forth, completely messing up intonation and string height... there's nothing you can do about it.

Agreed 100% that a new expensive bass shouldnt need work.

The bridge design sucks. I've worked on a few and that Ibanez/Electra copy was just as bad.

I feel bad planning on replacing the ABM on the Cirrus, nothing 'wrong' with it except its gold. It's getting a Hipshot A style with Ghost saddles.

 

[TinIndian]

Since Ric copy's were brought up, My 1st full scale bass was a 70's Ibanez Ric copy. I played it all thru high school and had it about 10 years altogether. It drove me nuts after owning it for awhile. No amount of tightening of the neck screws would stop the neck from shifting, the neck pickup was so microphonic that you could talk into it and it sounded, almost, but not quite, completely UNLIKE a Ric.

And to bring it back to Peavey I bought my 86 Foundation S to replace it as my main player.
Guess which one I still have?

 

[kodiakblair]

@TinIndian
You are aware Ric don't wax pot their pickups, they are also microphonic.
Your copy may have been closer than you thought

 

[AudioTaper]

Since Ric copy's were brought up, My 1st full scale bass was a 70's Ibanez Ric copy. I played it all thru high school and had it about 10 years altogether. It drove me nuts after owning it for awhile. No amount of tightening of the neck screws would stop the neck from shifting, the neck pickup was so microphonic that you could talk into it and it sounded, almost, but not quite, completely UNLIKE a Ric.

And to bring it back to Peavey I bought my 86 Foundation S to replace it as my main player.
Guess which one I still have?

Well!? I'm on the edge of my seat here!

It was probably very similar to the one I had. Here's a 20 year old picture of a picture I found. No pickguard and electronics but you get the idea. And to keep it Peavey, my old T-Max running a 210TFX and 410TXF. 500 Watts at 2 Ohms, this was a great setup. I wish I still had it (but my back and legs like the new smaller cabinets)

 

[TinIndian]

@TinIndian
You are aware Ric don't wax pot their pickups, they are also microphonic.
Your copy may have been closer than you thought

LOL

 

[NicJimBass]

Hey all,

Been playing the heck outta the B-Quad 5, and it's super comfy, and sounds great. I'm curious as to what my options are to get it close to stock, meaning a piezo bridge, and (most likely) a pieced together preamp. Getting a 2 band pre will be no issue, and I already have an EMG stacked volume pot, so I'm good there. I'd need some way to incorporate the piezo bridge, and then a diagram to wire the switch for the outputs. Any ideas/advice?

 

[songwriter21]

Agreed 100% that a new expensive bass shouldnt need work.

The bridge design sucks. I've worked on a few and that Ibanez/Electra copy was just as bad.

I feel bad planning on replacing the ABM on the Cirrus, nothing 'wrong' with it except its gold. It's getting a Hipshot A style with Ghost saddles.

I'm not a fan of ABM bridges, either, but for a different reason. I like really low action, almost on the board, and ABM's design could never come close to that playability for me because of those goofy saddle inserts. I replaced it with a Hipshot A, too, but discovered an obstacle. The baseplate is a good bit shorter towards the pickups than the ABM. Therefore, I wasn't able to intonate some of the strings without the saddles running out of room (falling off the plate), as the ABM saddles are further out on a longer plate. I actually made a hybrid design of four, yes four, different bridges...A-style plate (correct screw pattern), ABM traditional barrel saddles, another ABM bridge's longer screws, and some springs mixed in from a Schaller roller bridge for more length. The smaller barrel saddles don't fall off of the plate like the larger A saddles do. It looks a little goofy, but this concoction did/does the job fine with how the strings lay/align, believe it or not. This came from a lot of frustration, and in the end, dumb luck. I removed and kept this bridge when the bass sold, so I can use it for another possible future Cirrus purchase.

 

[NicJimBass]

I'm not a fan of ABM bridges, either, but for a different reason. I like really low action, almost on the board, and ABM's design could never come close to that playability for me because of those goofy saddle inserts. I replaced it with a Hipshot A, too, but discovered an obstacle. The baseplate is a good bit shorter towards the pickups than the ABM. Therefore, I wasn't able to intonate some of the strings without the saddles running out of room (falling off the plate), as the ABM saddles are further out on a longer plate. I actually made a hybrid design of four, yes four, different bridges...A-style plate (correct screw pattern), ABM traditional barrel saddles, another ABM bridge's longer screws, and some springs mixed in from a Schaller roller bridge for more length. The smaller barrel saddles don't fall off of the plate like the larger A saddles do. It's not pretty, alignment-wise, but it did/does the job. This came from a lot of frustration, and in the end, dumb luck. I removed and kept this bridge when the bass sold, so I can use it for another possible future Cirrus purchase.

View attachment 3754175

I've had this issue on other basses. If you are able to move the entire bridge toward the pickups, the Hipshot could work, as is. Not knowing where the original holes from the ABM lie is the biggest part of the equation, as having them exposed isn't ideal, at all. It's best to measure the scale length, and have the bridge saddles be at 35" near the middle of the bridge, so there's room to intonate in either direction.

My apologies if you already knew this, I've dealt with it on several other basses, and I was able to get everything lined up and intonated correctly, even though it's super ugly under the bridge itself!

 

[songwriter21]

I've had this issue on other basses. If you are able to move the entire bridge toward the pickups, the Hipshot could work, as is. Not knowing where the original holes from the ABM lie is the biggest part of the equation, as having them exposed isn't ideal, at all. It's best to measure the scale length, and have the bridge saddles be at 35" near the middle of the bridge, so there's room to intonate in either direction.

My apologies if you already knew this, I've dealt with it on several other basses, and I was able to get everything lined up and intonated correctly, even though it's super ugly under the bridge itself!

I'm not a fan of more holes, just because of possible resale value.

 

[AudioTaper]

Songwriter, I thought that was a B style at first, HA!

I think I'll be OK.

 

[AudioTaper]

I'm not a fan of more holes, just because of possible resale value.

On this bass, I have absolutely no concern with resale value. It's going to be a Frankenbass and it will be awesome (for me at least)

 

[Chef]

Hey guys, this is a Peavey thread, not a Ric thread.
Please stay on topic
Thanks

 

[Raw N Low]

Songwriter, I thought that was a B style at first, HA!

I think I'll be OK.
View attachment 3754233

That's a cool looking bridge. I've never been a huge fan of the gold hardware on the Cirrus, or any bass for that matter. I wonder if the Cirrus bolt-on neck profile is anything like the G or GV series.

If so, perhaps I will start looking for a Cirrus bolt.

 

[TinIndian]

Songwriter, I thought that was a B style at first, HA!

I think I'll be OK.
View attachment 3754233

Thats a piezo equipped bridge?

 

[AudioTaper]

Thats a piezo equipped bridge?

Mine is yes. Graphtec Ghost loaded Hipshot A. My plan might get me banned from the Cirrus page.
Yes, I'm going to mock it up before I plug in the router.
No, that's not the only pickup that's going in. Nordstrand is closed at the moment, but that gives me time to figure out how the heck I'm going to configure the switching and knobs....

 

[TinIndian]

Mine is yes. Graphtec Ghost loaded Hipshot A. My plan might get me banned from the Cirrus page.
Yes, I'm going to mock it up before I plug in the router.
No, that's not the only pickup that's going in. Nordstrand is closed at the moment, but that gives me time to figure out how the heck I'm going to configure the switching and knobs....
View attachment 3754384

I'm diggin where this is going. Are you using a Bart Pre AND a Nordstrand? I just see the two boxes? I assume 1 would be for the Piezo system then.

 

[songwriter21]

That's a cool looking bridge. I've never been a huge fan of the gold hardware on the Cirrus, or any bass for that matter. I wonder if the Cirrus bolt-on neck profile is anything like the G or GV series.

If so, perhaps I will start looking for a Cirrus bolt.

My bolt 5 feels pretty similar to G-Vs I've owned...slim and fast...guessing 17mm?

 

[kodiakblair]

I like really low action, almost on the board, and ABM's design could never come close to that playability for me because of those goofy saddle inserts.

All you needed to do was file down the bottom of the insert blocks,not the groove but the actual bottom of the block.

Action on my oldest Cirrus is 1.75mm and it could go a lot lower,have 4mm of the saddle blocks still exposed.

 

[AudioTaper]

I'm diggin where this is going. Are you using a Bart Pre AND a Nordstrand? I just see the two boxes? I assume 1 would be for the Piezo system then.

Going to spill my can of beans here... but I guess I wouldn't really care if someone 'copied' me.

Nordstrand Zen Blade in the 'neck's position
Nordstrand Big Blademan in the MM position
Both feed into the Nordstrand 3B preamp with an active/passive switch. 3 band EQ.

Graphtec piezo with a passive tone feeds into the Bartolini piezo/mag blend buffer.

Not yet determined this part yet, but a Jazz style single coil squished back in the 'Thumb' position. Either switched into the 3B or into a seperate MEC 2-band preamp. I need to play with this and see what all I have to do to 'blend' 2 preamps.

Switching is going to be a PITA since I want split/series/parallel on the MM. The 10-position Freeway 5B5-01 will be evaluated when I get one.

The body cavity is huge, but the easiest thing to do is route the front and install a control plate. Not sure if I want to go this far or not.

This project is on hold right now. I'll have time to mull it over

 

[mb94952]

That's a cool looking bridge. I've never been a huge fan of the gold hardware on the Cirrus, or any bass for that matter. I wonder if the Cirrus bolt-on neck profile is anything like the G or GV series.

If so, perhaps I will start looking for a Cirrus bolt.

I have owned the G bass before, but not the GV (because I don't do 5'ers). I own neck thru Cirrus and a bolt on Cirrus. The bolt on feels WAY better than the Gbass. Definitely the most comfortable bolt on I own, next to my Foundation S. The bolt on Cirrus is 24 fret 34" scale, the G bass is 21 frets, if memory serves, just like the Millennium. The bolt on 5'er is 35" scale.