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Where do you find the shorties?

#161
Dradder said:
I'm actually more intrigued by that TMB30 than I was by the full-scale Talman.
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Me too. I ordered one already. I've been playing an old Univox Hi-Flyer bass and just recently bought an Ibanez miKro bass. I have to say I love this miKro bass. I don't like the controls much but I know how the change them and I will very soon. The Hi-Flyer is a short scale but the miKro bass is a little short and fits me better. But the Talman has always made me smile every time I see one. I have a Talman electric guitar from 94 and it's a great guitar. I am so happy Ibanez produced a short scale version of the Talman bass. :thumbsup:
 
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#162
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#165
bholder said:
Is that the thread used by the Fender high mass bridge? I have one with stripped intonation screws, trying to find new screws for...
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Just for the record, yes, Fender High Mass bridge intonation screws are M3 x 0.5 - just measured with my new threadfinder.
 
#167
Last night I ordered the creme TMB30 thanks to this thread. I've got a CAR SS Jag so I'm very interested with how the Ibanez stacks up.

Just nice to get away from Fender stuff from time to time. I had a Gretsch JrJet for a while. That one sounded nice and thumpy, but the thing pretty much fell apart in my hands after a couple years. I hope this Talman turns out to be a quality piece. If not, I think I need to save up for a Fender Mustang.
 
#168
Herbie Chesnutt said:
Last night I ordered the creme TMB30 thanks to this thread. I've got a CAR SS Jag so I'm very interested with how the Ibanez stacks up.

Just nice to get away from Fender stuff from time to time. I had a Gretsch JrJet for a while. That one sounded nice and thumpy, but the thing pretty much fell apart in my hands after a couple years. I hope this Talman turns out to be a quality piece. If not, I think I need to save up for a Fender Mustang.
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Could you elaborate on how the Junior Jet pretty much fell apart after a couple of years?

Thank you.....
 
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#169
I just bought a Fender Japan JB62SS smart size short scale jazz bass, which have been applauded around these parts a number of times. I'm looking forward to playing this thing. Once they're discontinued, they will be very hard to come by.

 
#170
Recent short scale finds:

In the last few days I picked up a lightly used recent Danelectro 56 Singlecut Dolphin Nose bass locally off of Craigslist and I found a very light, nearly new Squier Bronco on the used wall at a local shop.

Both were priced too reasonably to pass up. :bassist:
 
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#171
Kahrmine said:
I just bought a Fender Japan JB62SS smart size short scale jazz bass, which have been applauded around these parts a number of times. I'm looking forward to playing this thing. Once they're discontinued, they will be very hard to come by.

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And by the looks of it, they aren't too small, which I was concerned about. They're technically 15% smaller overall in size compared to a standard Jazz bass with a 29.4 inch scale neck.

The picture appears it's a bit bigger than a strat. I was concerned it would be some tiny thing, which is not what I'm after.
 
#172
ZenG said:
Could you elaborate on how the Junior Jet pretty much fell apart after a couple of years?

Thank you.....
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Sure, but let me concede that one man's "fell apart" is another man's "roadworn coolness" so don't ride me too hard if these seem nitpicky. Second, I loved that bass and highly recommend it. I'm talking about the old one with a single pup and the black to grey burst. That little mutha sounded GOOD. So it is easy to look past all this simply because it had a great sound.

Still.

The first time I changed strings the nut fell off. Once I put chromes on it it had a hard time staying in tune. They must dye the fretboard because after a few months it became very blotchy and worn light where I fingered the most. By the time I sold it it was comically blotchy. I could never get the pots and jack to sit firmly. They were always loose. The knobs always moved in a wavy warbled way. The body wood is so soft that it became a ding magnet. And not cool looking dings either. It looked like I used it to swat pebbles down by the river. The neck developed a nasty finish crack. I eventually tried to sand the neck down to the wood, but the neck has this thick plasticky sealer or something under the black that I didn't care enough to try to sand off. One corner of the pup ring fell off. They must have overtightened the screw and cracked it. In the end, the bass felt like it had given up the ghost, like it was held together by bubblegum and duct tape.

The bridge was fine and the pup was stellar. In fact, I'd love to see that pup in a Warmoth shorty p or fender mustang.

In contrast, I had a 3tsb MiM Jazz during the same time that I had about a year longer and I used it a lot more. I sold that at around the same as the Gretsch. The MiM looked brand new when I sold it while the Gretsch was a total beater that I got $50 on CL after posting it for about three weeks.

That was my experience. I may be the only one. But still, I loved playing it and hearing it in a mix so I highly recommend it even if you have to work on it a little more.
 
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#174
ZenG said:
Wow....

I just ordered a Junior Jet II...the one with two pickups.....haven't seen it yet. I hope they addressed some of the issues you speak of.

Weird that the wood on yours was so soft.....the Jet II clocks in on average around 7 1/2 to 8 lbs.....I'm hoping they use a little more robust material nowadays...
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it could be that I didn't maintain it properly coupled with a bad item. I can't emphasize enough how much i loved playing that bass. It is the reason why I'm soooo into shortscales now.
 
#175
Here is a pic of my early 70's Univox Hi-Flyer bass. I have also seen identicle basses with the Aria brand name on the headstock.

For many years, this was the only bass I had. It sounds great but the bridge and machine heads suck. I have considered changing them but never got around to it. Now that I have a miKrobass, I don't really need to bother.

My early 70's Univox Hi-Flyer bass

My early 70's Univox Hi-Flyer bass

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#176
An update!

I haven't purchased anything yet because I want to play some of the suggested basses first. I was near a GC today (normally an hour away, thus my delay), and they had an Epiphone EB-0. I loved it! It was very comfortable to play and had a sound that is distinct from my Jag. It's a contender!

They also had a Hofner and an Epiphone violin/viola bass. I liked the Epiphone better than the Hofner, but they both sounded kind of thin to me (esp. the Hofner). I know people can get great tone out of them, but it just wasn't happening for me. That was pretty much all they had in terms of short scales other than the Mikro, and I'm not interested in anything shorter than my current bass.

I had the most annoying conversation with one of the workers--I was hooked up to one of their Fender amps, and it had a "Vintage" button that I really enjoyed using. As he walked by, I asked what exactly the Vintage button did to change the sound. He said "well, when you press it, it gives you this vintage-sounding tone." "Yes, I can tell. But do you know what is happening in there--I don't have this amp, and I'd like to see if I can tweak the settings on mine to make it sound more like this." "Well, what's happening in there is that when you press it, it turns something on in there that makes it sound like that." No kidding! Asked again in a slightly different way to see if that was better. "Well, it creates this circuit that changes the tone somehow." After several rounds of him obviously not being in the same universe as my question, I said "If you don't know, it's ok. Never mind..."
 
#177
Forty-Thirty said:
I had the most annoying conversation with one of the workers--I was hooked up to one of their Fender amps, and it had a "Vintage" button that I really enjoyed using. As he walked by, I asked what exactly the Vintage button did to change the sound. He said "well, when you press it, it gives you this vintage-sounding tone." "Yes, I can tell. But do you know what is happening in there--I don't have this amp, and I'd like to see if I can tweak the settings on mine to make it sound more like this." "Well, what's happening in there is that when you press it, it turns something on in there that makes it sound like that." No kidding! Asked again in a slightly different way to see if that was better. "Well, it creates this circuit that changes the tone somehow." After several rounds of him obviously not being in the same universe as my question, I said "If you don't know, it's ok. Never mind..."
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What a jackass! You're nicer than I usually am with people like that.

Anyway...

Assuming it's a Rumble you were playing, Fender says it's a "tube emulation" voicing setting. About all Fender will say about it is that it: "Creates a dark tone rich with harmonics and some natural compression." They don't (surprise! surprise!) give any technical details on how it works, but I'm guessing from the block diagram that they cut in a FET or MOSFET-based circuit that emulates some of the characteristics of a 12AX7 preamp tube. That's the most common approach to take. A lot of effects pedals use the same technique. As do many solid-state amps that claim to offer a "tube" sound.
 
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#178
A clerk at GC that knows nothing about his product? Surely you must be making that up.

Have a Hofner Icon and have played the Epiphone. Like the way the Hofner plays but hate the electronics. Like the way the Hofner plays more than the Epiphone, but the Epi has better electronics.
What I think I'm going to do with mine is rip out the electronics and change it to a V/B/T system. Probably a setup from kellingsound as I think it'd give me better tone.
 
#180
Forty-Thirty said:
An update!

I haven't purchased anything yet because I want to play some of the suggested basses first.
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Lately, the Mustangs (including the Squiers) are getting either scarce or way overpriced. Even the Squier Mikey Way is on backorder or listed as "no longer available".

If you find yourself near Austin, TX, you ought to take the time to find the town of Wimberley and [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]. Or call him (anytime, really) and see if someone has a Shortbass near you that you could play.

I love my MIJ Mustang, but the Shortbass balances better, the neck is more comfortable and it has a wider range of available tone.
 

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