Warmoth Gecko owner's club

[arcopizz]

This is the current line-up of basses I have been using on recent gigs/projects. Gotta admit, I am digging the mix and the Gecko fits in quite nicely.

I've gone a really simple, basic tonal route over the last 10 years and the modern tonal capabilities this thing is getting with the Nordstrand electronics is really bringing back some great vibes I haven't experienced in quite awhile.

Feelin' right at home with some good, good friends:

Note: I am the original owner of the '79 BC Rich Eagle. It's loaded out with active electronics, but I haven't used the pre on it in years. When I run it on the neck PU it sounds better than any P-Bass I've ever played.

 

[eastcoasteddie]

I am thinking of going th Gecko 5M route to replace my Dean Sledgehammer 5.

I love this bass, but the instability of the neck is driving me crazy. I have to tweak the truss way too often...seems like every 5°F difference in ambient temperature makes the neck move.

All hardware should pretty much just transfer over to the Gecko 5M, though I may need to modify the MM5 pickup routes in the Gecko because my pickups have the "ears" and Warmoth routes for the SD "non-ear" pickup case.

I'm assuming the best way to order is to call them rather than fill out the on-line order form. I would like a different control layout than what they offer. Also, I'd like to know about their pickup placement measurements for a dual MM bass (I have not seen one like that yet). I would also probably like to get a figured maple fretboard (don't see the option on the site...only Bicote choice boards).

I thought about going with a darker wood combo, like Walnut body/Wenge neck...but there's just something about the Natural Ash/Maple combo that I can't live without....almost all my basses are Ash/maple.

But before I take the plunge, I may research what I might be able to do about that Dean neck and see if it can be stabilized somehow...which would most likely require major surgery and may not be worth it....

Any thoughts on my thoughts?

 

[doodahwarrior]

I recently bought a Gecko 6 in pieces. I stashed it in the closet with the rest of my projects.

 

[lowfreqman]

Done! It feels awesome, is comfortable to play, and has a wide variety of useable tones. I used LaBella copper white tapewound strings. They are superb. And I love the Nordstrand 3B-5b preamp. There is so much flexibility built-in to that unit. I am very happy with my Gecko!

 

[tubby.twins]

Done! It feels awesome, is comfortable to play, and has a wide variety of useable tones.

Very nice indeed. Excellent work, thanks for sharing it with us!

 

[gruvit]

Done! It feels awesome, is comfortable to play, and has a wide variety of useable tones. I used LaBella copper white tapewound strings. They are superb. And I love the Nordstrand 3B-5b preamp. There is so much flexibility built-in to that unit. I am very happy with my Gecko!
View attachment 1181068View attachment 1181069View attachment 1181070View attachment 1181071

I was thinking of making a project just like this but with Bartolini electronics to replicate a Thumb NT 6 fretless I had years ago. Looks amazing!

 

[eastcoasteddie]

I am thinking of going th Gecko 5M route to replace my Dean Sledgehammer 5.
View attachment 2616170
I love this bass, but the instability of the neck is driving me crazy. I have to tweak the truss way too often...seems like every 5°F difference in ambient temperature makes the neck move.

All hardware should pretty much just transfer over to the Gecko 5M, though I may need to modify the MM5 pickup routes in the Gecko because my pickups have the "ears" and Warmoth routes for the SD "non-ear" pickup case.

I'm assuming the best way to order is to call them rather than fill out the on-line order form. I would like a different control layout than what they offer. Also, I'd like to know about their pickup placement measurements for a dual MM bass (I have not seen one like that yet). I would also probably like to get a figured maple fretboard (don't see the option on the site...only Bicote choice boards).

I thought about going with a darker wood combo, like Walnut body/Wenge neck...but there's just something about the Natural Ash/Maple combo that I can't live without....almost all my basses are Ash/maple.

But before I take the plunge, I may research what I might be able to do about that Dean neck and see if it can be stabilized somehow...which would most likely require major surgery and may not be worth it....

Any thoughts on my thoughts?

I had an idea of using the Maruszczyk Frog Configurator to see how a Gecko might look with Ash/Walnut top and maple neck, and basically all my electronics and hardware...

I can’t decide...

 

[JOME77]

Done! It feels awesome, is comfortable to play, and has a wide variety of useable tones. I used LaBella copper white tapewound strings. They are superb. And I love the Nordstrand 3B-5b preamp. There is so much flexibility built-in to that unit. I am very happy with my Gecko!
View attachment 1181068View attachment 1181069View attachment 1181070View attachment 1181071

Very nice! I particularly like the "Gecko-less" finger board. When I put mine together many years ago Mr. Warmoth was adamant about not allowing you to order one with his precious Gecko inlay.

Of course for some reason, my wife and daughters just love that big unsightly Gecko inlay.

I suppose that it grows on you ......

 

[Matthardy]

Hey all. Anybody still around? I'm in the process of finishing the body. Narrow 5 swamp Ash with a choice Mahagony top (got one of the few quilted ones, wow)

Looking at Delano HBC5 HE/S quad coils with The Audere pro z (taking other suggestions). Will do series/pllel/split/staggered split switches.

Any input would be appreciated and credited!

Matt


Wenge with Pau Ferro FB
Hipshot A 17.5mm
Gotoh pegs

 

[lowfreqman]

View attachment 2949828 View attachment 2949829 View attachment 2949830 View attachment 2949832 View attachment 2949827 View attachment 2949831 Hey all. Anybody still around? I'm in the process of finishing the body. Narrow 5 swamp Ash with a choice Mahagony top (got one of the few quilted ones, wow)

Looking at Delano HBC5 HE/S quad coils with The Audere pro z (taking other suggestions). Will do series/pllel/split/staggered split switches.

Any input would be appreciated and credited!

Matt


Wenge with Pau Ferro FB
Hipshot A 17.5mm
Gotoh pegs

Looks beautiful. I can’t wait to hear about and see how your project turns out. I still love my Gecko creation.

 

[RNG1]

Wow nice

 

[Bob_Ross]

I'm in the process of finishing the body.

Love how the finish makes that grain pop! Remind me again, what are you using to finish the body?

 

[empanadilla]

*Gecko Wide 5 from 2005*
Well, it took me 13 years to get here, but better late than never!!!!
I've never played a 4 string.. my one and only bass for many years was a Yamaha BX-5 from 1987.. a nice , albeit awkward bass .. didn't know that cause I had never played "normal" basses before without the raised pickup and strings like the BX-5...
So, FForward to 2005.. got a bit a of moolah and decided to get a nice bass, but I wanted a bit of space between the strings and no commercial basses looked like they were delivering at a reasonable price...I had heard of Warmoth through a great friend and Luthier, Eric Cabrer, owner of Cabrer Guitars in San Juan , Puerto Rico, so I ventured into it...
I am not a big believer in having several basses/guitars, etc., just a couple of them will do.
And so, my adventure began...I had a good friend from Kalamazoo, MI and her Dad knew a former Gibson luthier, Aaron Knowles-RIP- (His son still carries on with the shop, "Aaron's Music Service") , who, I had talked to regarding restoring my Les Paul Deluxe, AND BTW, put together the bass, which he did ...but not before going through hell and back...I mean, the Warmoth people were very nice and professional, at least the people I dealt with, but...

Well, it started with them not having the gold colored straploks nor the bridge, only the silver ones (I ordered a GoldTop), .. I said , what the hell, I could always change them later. Then came the body parts..since they were shipped in the hard case, someone who did not know JACK about shipping, had "assembled' it but without PROTECTING the parts.. so they arrived ALL CHIPPED!!!! Talk to the Warmoth people, they order a pickup-no charge- and sent them again, this time as it should be.
Then, since I was living abroad and had my friend's parents take care of all this mess, I finally got the bass, only to find that some idiot, who was in charge of lacquering the neck has painted over EVERYTHING, which , of course, resulted in leaving a nice groove underneath the strings and eventually making the action extremely noisy because of the buzzing....by this time I decided I had had enough of dealing with the Warmoth people...

The thing is that , the bass, if it had been done correctly, although neck heavy, is a great bass. As previously mentioned by other owners, it is too chunky past the 15 fret, but we are all pros here and can adapt to different circumstances...
I have NO idea what the woods are, and the only thing I know is that the pickups are Active Seymour Duncans (or are they??)..which, BTW, I will eventually customize the battery cover so it doesn't need the screws.
As life would have it, I had not played onstage since 2008 until last month and had never played it (I played my Stick only) in public...and promptly won first prize in a show!
It IS a beautiful bass and quite comfy and not as heavy as you'd think .. I know cause I've had back surgery...

 

[tubby.twins]

Very nice. Yes, those are the ASB-5 "Phase 1" Seymour Duncan active soapbars. Very nice pickups indeed, lots of bass response and good midrange/treble clarity. I've enjoyed mine as well.

On a side note - it's good to see a fellow Chapman Stick player here on these forums!

Welcome to our newest members, especially those whom I forgot to welcome earlier; my apologies for the delay!

#35 - JOME77
#36 - Matthardy
#37 - empanadilla

Did I miss anyone?

 

[BruceWane]

.....only to find that some idiot, who was in charge of lacquering the neck has painted over EVERYTHING, which , of course, resulted in leaving a nice groove underneath the strings and eventually making the action extremely noisy because of the buzzing....by this time I decided I had had enough of dealing with the Warmoth people...

To be fair, it should be noted that that it is normal for a maple fretboard to be clearcoated, covering the frets. It's expected that the clearcoat will be sanded off the frets when the instrument gets it's final setup/fret leveling. Perhaps there are some guitar painters out there who will either mask off the frets or clean off the the frets after clearcoating, but it's not the usual thing. I suppose Warmoth should have been more clear with you about this; at least now they do specifically state on their website what I described above.

The caveat is that every Warmoth neck I've seen came out of the shipping box needing practically no fret leveling at all...... not perfect, but still a lot better than most commercially built instruments that are supposedly ready to play. Entirely playable as-is. It's kinda like they almost might serve their customers better overall by not doing such good initial fret work, kinda forcing the builder to do the job proper.

I have NO idea what the woods are

Your neck is maple, of course, the laminates are 99% likely purpleheart. That's their usual combination.

Body, since it's painted, is 99% likely alder or poplar. They have many other options, but you usually don't select korina/zebrawood/exotic stuff to be painted over. And usually not ash because it's a lot of extra work to get the grain filled for a smooth paint finish. So unless you specified something (which, of course, you would know ), it's gonna be alder or poplar. If you can see the bare wood anywhere, like in the control cavity, you should be able to tell; alder is a light brown color, poplar is brown-ish but has a lot of green color to it. You can see them Invalid Link Removed

If you want to help the neck-heavy aspect, you might consider upgrading your tuners to Gotoh Res-O-Lites or Hipshot Ultralights. They make a pretty big difference.

 

[empanadilla]

To be fair, it should be noted that that it is normal for a maple fretboard to be clearcoated, covering the frets. It's expected that the clearcoat will be sanded off the frets when the instrument gets it's final setup/fret leveling. Perhaps there are some guitar painters out there who will either mask off the frets or clean off the the frets after clearcoating, but it's not the usual thing. I suppose Warmoth should have been more clear with you about this; at least now they do specifically state on their website what I described above.

The caveat is that every Warmoth neck I've seen came out of the shipping box needing practically no fret leveling at all...... not perfect, but still a lot better than most commercially built instruments that are supposedly ready to play. Entirely playable as-is. It's kinda like they almost might serve their customers better overall by not doing such good initial fret work, kinda forcing the builder to do the job proper.



Your neck is maple, of course, the laminates are 99% likely purpleheart. That's their usual combination.

Body, since it's painted, is 99% likely alder or poplar. They have many other options, but you usually don't select korina/zebrawood/exotic stuff to be painted over. And usually not ash because it's a lot of extra work to get the grain filled for a smooth paint finish. So unless you specified something (which, of course, you would know ), it's gonna be alder or poplar. If you can see the bare wood anywhere, like in the control cavity, you should be able to tell; alder is a light brown color, poplar is brown-ish but has a lot of green color to it. You can see them Invalid Link Removed

If you want to help the neck-heavy aspect, you might consider upgrading your tuners to Gotoh Res-O-Lites or Hipshot Ultralights. They make a pretty big difference.

man, tubby.twins and BruceWane,you rock, guys!!!. Thank you so much for this extremely helpful and explanation of terms unknown- I have a limited knowledge of the material, but I prefer to keep my trap shut to avoid foot insertion!

It is a lovely instrument and will ook into the tuning pegs option BW mantioned...

I'll report back-I need to return to the "laboral" world and Denver is proving to be a little more difficult than expected...

Cheers!

 

[BruceWane]

It is a lovely instrument and will ook into the tuning pegs option BW mantioned...

If you want to get an idea of what the lightweight tuner upgrade will do for the balance of your bass without spending any $$, remove one of your existing tuners and see how it feels. The lightweight tuners will shave off about the same amount weight. You'll probably be surprised how much of a difference a few ounces makes when removed from the far end of the neck.

 

[Matthardy]

Thanks guys for the compliments, I was astounded how lucky I was to get that top. It was not in their "featured" section and was only 75$ on top of the regular top price.

I'm finishing it with Tru-Oil. That photo was after the first day of finishing, two thin coats well rubbed. I'll likely get to 18 before I do final sanding and buffing to taste, then a few more and a few weeks of curing. Will post final pics of course.

 

[FusionFission]

Purchased my first six string, well part of it anyway: Warmoth Gecko body and neck from the showcase. Hope I made a good purchase. It was between this and another Fender J-Bass. But I’ve been meaning to go 6 for a while now. I’ll post pictures when she comes.

 

[Matthardy]

Purchased my first six string, well part of it anyway: Warmoth Gecko body and neck from the showcase. Hope I made a good purchase. It was between this and another Fender J-Bass. But I’ve been meaning to go 6 for a while now. I’ll post pictures when she comes.

Nice choice. What woods/specs?