• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Which 6 string? I can only have one...

#41
I second all the positives about Roscoe, I think he might have cracked the code for 6 and 7s that really bring useable tones finger style and thump wise for most amps I play it through. It's important what your amplification situation always but I have found even more so with ERBs.

Which brings me to my beef with ERBs and their tone-

The warmth of the "bass" factor usually suffers for their hi-range "clarity" in most examples I've tried. I don't know why exactly but the combo of the wood and electronics don't exactly cover all of it. I've tried so many permutations. I used to think weight was a pretty big factor, but my Roscoe 7 weighs 8.6 lbs and is lighter than my favorite Fender jazz 4, and has more balls (and bass) than a lot of my other basses. My Conklin 7 groove tools weighs 12.2 (crazy value tho on the used market and your best bet for dipping a toe into the seven string bass experience-I paid $500 for mine with upgraded Bartolinis and it's a beast!). My Acacia fret less weighs 13.6 lbs, sounds fantastic, but I bet you can guess which 7 is the one I play the most?

I really have a problem with crappy sounding sizzle -toneless highs on ERBs that sound like the bass of your youth- when you're driving out of the reception area on your radio (remember those) and it blends with the valve noise on your 72 air-cooled bug (remember those) and the valve noise has more tone than the bass !
He (Keith Roscoe) has been in the 6 and more game a long time before it became popular enough that industry giants came in and started offering them.

A big consideration for me after trying (6 to 7) 6-strings and (3) 7-strings trying to learn about ERBs is:
How useful are the tones that are in the meat and potato range of a 5? If I can't duplicate or exceed a good 5, I'm paying too high a premium for the extra perks of that higher range, clunkier fingerboard and neck, heavier weight AND an upper range that I should probably use less than I do-(let's be honest)...but... its SO fun!

Also, for me, the roscoe is a slap friendly ergonomic platform (for whatever reason I can swap between the Roscoe 7 string and a 4 string jazz and hit the fewest clams in the process when I try to slap coming out of the gate-(And fwiw , my Conklin, Acacia and Roscoe all have the same string spacing at the bridge and nut ).

I have what I'm told was his first ever 7 string and I hope I never have to part with it, because it's that smart of a useful bass tool and it was apparently his first try at that rodeo! Wanna hit the lotto and order a new roscoe with every bell and whistle someday...

So, yah! Roscoe for value and usefulness. Good luck be enjoy your journey!
 
  • Like
Reactions: nlhatley914 and peterpalmieri
#43
CRich0205 said:
I had a Carvin XB75 and it was a really well built bass but the neck was very thin front to back and I found it a bit uncomfortable. The pickups and preamp didn't sound bland but they weren't very distinct either. I now play a Warwick thumb B0 5 with a baseball bat neck and it's absolutely killer. Warwicks and Spectors are both pretty great for metal.
Click to expand...
And so I've heard. Is the weight of the thumb bass really that significant as people say?
 
#44
tigerlee said:
I second all the positives about Roscoe, I think he might have cracked the code for 6 and 7s that really bring useable tones finger style and thump wise for most amps I play it through. It's important what your amplification situation always but I have found even more so with ERBs.

Which brings me to my beef with ERBs and their tone-

The warmth of the "bass" factor usually suffers for their hi-range "clarity" in most examples I've tried. I don't know why exactly but the combo of the wood and electronics don't exactly cover all of it. I've tried so many permutations. I used to think weight was a pretty big factor, but my Roscoe 7 weighs 8.6 lbs and is lighter than my favorite Fender jazz 4, and has more balls (and bass) than a lot of my other basses. My Conklin 7 groove tools weighs 12.2 (crazy value tho on the used market and your best bet for dipping a toe into the seven string bass experience-I paid $500 for mine with upgraded Bartolinis and it's a beast!). My Acacia fret less weighs 13.6 lbs, sounds fantastic, but I bet you can guess which 7 is the one I play the most?

I really have a problem with crappy sounding sizzle -toneless highs on ERBs that sound like the bass of your youth- when you're driving out of the reception area on your radio (remember those) and it blends with the valve noise on your 72 air-cooled bug (remember those) and the valve noise has more tone than the bass !
He (Keith Roscoe) has been in the 6 and more game a long time before it became popular enough that industry giants came in and started offering them.

A big consideration for me after trying (6 to 7) 6-strings and (3) 7-strings trying to learn about ERBs is:
How useful are the tones that are in the meat and potato range of a 5? If I can't duplicate or exceed a good 5, I'm paying too high a premium for the extra perks of that higher range, clunkier fingerboard and neck, heavier weight AND an upper range that I should probably use less than I do-(let's be honest)...but... its SO fun!

Also, for me, the roscoe is a slap friendly ergonomic platform (for whatever reason I can swap between the Roscoe 7 string and a 4 string jazz and hit the fewest clams in the process when I try to slap coming out of the gate-(And fwiw , my Conklin, Acacia and Roscoe all have the same string spacing at the bridge and nut ).

I have what I'm told was his first ever 7 string and I hope I never have to part with it, because it's that smart of a useful bass tool and it was apparently his first try at that rodeo! Wanna hit the lotto and order a new roscoe with every bell and whistle someday...

So, yah! Roscoe for value and usefulness. Good luck be enjoy your journey!
Click to expand...
I absolutely appreciate the advice! And I will do some research into his work. You've got me enthused!
 
#46
Dogmatic said:
Another maker that's not on your list is Dingwall. My Afterburner-1 6 isn't just my main player, it's the only bass I own at the moment. The B is awesome, and the fanned frets make it very comfortable to play above the 12th fret. New, they're pretty pricey, but used, they're in the same range as most of these others.
Click to expand...
Can confirm. I bought my first Dingwall and promptly sold everything else I had and bought a second Dingwall.
 
  • Like
Reactions: nlhatley914, BuffaloBob4343, Daz JP and 1 other person
#48
When I was shopping for my 6er, I had a $2000 budget. I tried about a bldozen, from various manufacturers.

I ended up buying the ESP LTD SM206B.

It's definitely heavy, but that doesn't bother me because I find an instrument's balance far more critical. But it has tone for days.
 
#49
I love my Warwick, the sound is incredible, but the neck IS chunky and it is heavy. I don't mind the chunky neck, the weight is a bit of an issue though.

If you've played a USA Spector and liked it, the Euro ones are almost as good. I'd go for the bolt-on one myself (I prefer them over NT, and they are lighter).

I've had good experiences with Ibanez, they are comfy and light. The recently-ish released Adam Nitti 6 looks amazing and might be worth a spin.
 
  • Like
Reactions: nlhatley914
#50
Catbuster said:
The Bongo has the widest range of tones, especially in HS config. My next choice would probably be the Warwick, then the Spector but the top two are my two prefered by a long shot.
Click to expand...
I really liked my Bongo, i just couldnt get over the fact that it looks like a toilet seat. It has an awesome eq and a great sound. Mine was a HH, but if this were my choice, i too would go HS. That big humbucker up next to the neck can get in the way sometimes, especially when slapping.
The Warwick would be my 1st choice, and there is a used one on here for a great price. (Classifieds) In my opinion, you just cant beat the sound of a German Warwick, although it has cons. They are heavy, and some people complain about the size of the neck.
Even though i am a big Warwick fan, i am curious about the USA Spectors. I have heard a lot of good things about them.
My advice is this. I would buy used, and I would buy from a TBer with good feedback scores. If you buy a Warwick, be aware that you have German, German Pro series, and Rockbass... buy German. There is a huge difference in German and Rockbass, dont know about Pro series. From what i have read, Spector USA is much better than the ones made overseas .
I know there are a lot of people on here that dont like Carvin, but I do. I just got rid of an awesome LB76A. I replaced the electronics and pups with Barts and had an awesome bass!
Good luck!
 
#51
nlhatley914 said:
And so I've heard. Is the weight of the thumb bass really that significant as people say?
Click to expand...

The biggest problem with the Thumb (and I've had mine for a decade of heavy use) is not so much the weight as the slightly odd positioning. The balance is not perfect and that makes the bass seem heavier than it is, I think. After a few rehearsals with my Marleaux, I'm starting to remember what it's like to play on a well-balanced instrument.
 
  • Like
Reactions: nlhatley914
#52
Funkabilly said:
If you buy a Warwick, be aware that you have German, German Pro series, and Rockbass... buy German. There is a huge difference in German and Rockbass, dont know about Pro series.
Good luck!
Click to expand...

I'd go for the German Pro series. The bodies and necks are rough-made at their plant, then sent to small shops in the area for finishing and assembly before going back to the plant for final touches and QC. Totally German-made and great for the price.

I'd also have a look at Sandberg, another German builder who is doing very well, it seems.
 
  • Like
Reactions: nlhatley914
#54
nlhatley914 said:
I have heard great things about these models as well. I was very temped at one point to purchase one of these, I may have to look back into that. Thanks for the post!
Click to expand...

I love my SRFF806... Doesn't take much getting used to for playing and it sounds wonderful. Highs are piano like without being harsh and the lows are big without being muddy. It's my second 6 string ever and the first one I will keep. I've been lazy and not playing much lately, but it is the only one I play now when I do.

Edit: I've owned three 6 strings now. LB76, B206SM, and the SRFF806..
 
Last edited:
#55
I've personally never owned a 6-string, but if I did,
d37a92c0cdf94187dbca2eb1d25dee2c.jpg
it'd probably be a Yamaha
 
  • Like
Reactions: peterpalmieri and nlhatley914
#56
You have a lot of options.

If it were me...I would probably opt to buy a Bongo from a place like GC. Try it out and if it is not EXACTLY what you want return it for a 100% refund. As the WW and Spector are probably special orders that might not be possible to do at a GC type place. But they might have some used ones that you could demo the same way and not get hurt too bad.
 
  • Like
Reactions: nlhatley914
#57
Are you moving over from 4 string of from 5 string?

I think before choosing you have to ask yourself if you would prefer wide string spacing or tighter spacing.

They Ibby and the Warwick are pretty tight. Not sure about the Bongo but my guess is it is a little wider at 17.5mm.

If you prefer the wider spacing of a 4 srting, Yamaha TRBs I believe are nice and wide as are the old Heartfields if you can find them. There are many others out there with all kinds of variations as well. My advice would be to play a few before you buy because there is more to the overall formula than just the two extra strings.
 
#58
Dogmatic said:
Another maker that's not on your list is Dingwall. My Afterburner-1 6 isn't just my main player, it's the only bass I own at the moment. The B is awesome, and the fanned frets make it very comfortable to play above the 12th fret. New, they're pretty pricey, but used, they're in the same range as most of these others.
Click to expand...
I love the look of the dingwalls. I would definitely love to own but I haven't found too many used around.
 
#60
Funkabilly said:
I really liked my Bongo, i just couldnt get over the fact that it looks like a toilet seat. It has an awesome eq and a great sound. Mine was a HH, but if this were my choice, i too would go HS. That big humbucker up next to the neck can get in the way sometimes, especially when slapping.
The Warwick would be my 1st choice, and there is a used one on here for a great price. (Classifieds) In my opinion, you just cant beat the sound of a German Warwick, although it has cons. They are heavy, and some people complain about the size of the neck.
Even though i am a big Warwick fan, i am curious about the USA Spectors. I have heard a lot of good things about them.
My advice is this. I would buy used, and I would buy from a TBer with good feedback scores. If you buy a Warwick, be aware that you have German, German Pro series, and Rockbass... buy German. There is a huge difference in German and Rockbass, dont know about Pro series. From what i have read, Spector USA is much better than the ones made overseas .
I know there are a lot of people on here that dont like Carvin, but I do. I just got rid of an awesome LB76A. I replaced the electronics and pups with Barts and had an awesome bass!
Good luck!
Click to expand...
Thanks!
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back