im starting to seriously think about going to a short scale bass. unfortunately because of lower back problems and fretting hand finger/knuckle arthritic issues. the 1st fret to 4th fret spread is getting painful..and my lower back is shit.
i hate getting older..fuck..
anyone got any advice..
im looking at the fender mustang bass..but all options are open.
If you got the cash, a lot of those Gibsons like their EB (SG bass) or Ripper have short scales, the Rickenbacker is a little shorter than a standard '34 but only by an inch.
yeah except, if im not mistaken the ripper is one heavy ass bass....im looking to drop a few lbs for the lower back..
Stay away from the epi sg, it's a neckdive monster, won't help your back.
rondomusic have a fair number of short scales. jaguar style, viola basses are short scale too.
The Original Ripper is a boat anchor.
(http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/34812_1774429158742_1179704967_2136004_7805724_n.jpg)
This is one I refinished for a good buddy, it's all maple, and sounds so good acoustically I almost didn't want to plug it in. Good basses. Weight: 14 pounds.
i think 14 is just barely heavier than what i am currently playing..the mustang comes in at like 7.5 or something..
Quote from: mortlock on April 05, 2011, 11:10:49 PM
i think 14 is just barely heavier than what i am currently playing..the mustang comes in at like 7.5 or something..
(http://www.rondomusic.net/photos/bass/ursa4jrrncar1.jpg)
I mean, once you bandsaw that fucking headstock, and put a big silver tele pickup in it, you might be happy with something like that...
aren't the ripper and grabber both 34" anyways?
Quote from: SunnO))) on April 05, 2011, 11:24:25 PM
Quote from: mortlock on April 05, 2011, 11:10:49 PM
i think 14 is just barely heavier than what i am currently playing..the mustang comes in at like 7.5 or something..
(http://www.rondomusic.net/photos/bass/ursa4jrrncar1.jpg)
I mean, once you bandsaw that fucking headstock, and put a big silver tele pickup in it, you might be happy with something like that...
i think i added 2 lbs with the tele bass pup..seriously. i pushed it over the edge..
I guess so, I thought they made some short scale Reissue ones... the fuck?
There was an ugly epi reissue with pj pickups. dont know the scale.
The Rippers and Grabbers (and reissues) were all 34.5" scale. Honestly, the Squier Bronco is a very fun bass if you do a good setup on it. Plus, they're cheap as hell.
Mustangs are punchy and don't really have the thunderous lows of a Jazz bass. I'm going to guess the same is true of the Bronco. It's not bad, but it will sound different than what you're used to. It might not matter at all - you're not playing rock style on it.
What about a violin style bass (they weigh like 4 pounds) or a SG body style. Both of those can be surprisingly deep.
The Ibanez shortys are real nice but the tone is a little blah. The Hagstroms are the best these days, IMO. Awesome basses with cool electronic configs. I played a newer 12 string last year about this time that was so much damn fun... Didn't want to put it down.
The 70s Guild JSB is my current want to play short scale though. They look awesome and probably are.
The Hamer Slammer basses are short scale. I remember the last one I played feeling pretty light too. Can't remember the actual weight. They're loaded with two Music Man type humbuckers. It sounded pretty righteous and a price that wasn't bank breaking.
I'd say a Mustang is really the first place to look. That's where I'd go but I'm a Fender freak. I just don't have one b/c I own 2 Precisions and a Jazz already.
I have an Ampeg Plexi-Bass Reissue and I think its really great for a short scale. Gets deep almost like a P-Bass and when you turn the tone knob up theres some sweet Jazz & MM tones in there. It sounds great played with a pick or with fingers, with flats or rounds on it...plus it's see-through. haha.
The only downside to the plexis is the weight, which is I think the main issue. Have you considered Daisy Rock's fine assortment of short scale basses?
http://bass-guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/Daisy-Rock-Daisy-Bass?sku=513071
I would gig with the with the white one.
That would totally work for a psych band.
Quote from: LogicalFrank on April 06, 2011, 11:06:17 AM
That would totally work for a psych band.
That's exactly what I was thinking.
Quote from: Discö Rice on April 06, 2011, 10:57:41 AM
The only downside to the plexis is the weight, which is I think the main issue. Have you considered Daisy Rock's fine assortment of short scale basses?
http://bass-guitars.musiciansfriend.com/product/Daisy-Rock-Daisy-Bass?sku=513071
I would gig with the with the white one.
True, that thing is damn near the weight of one of my regular scale Fenders.
I'd be looking at a Mustang for sure.
Gibson EB-0s or EB-3s? If you can find one that doesn't neck nice like a motherfucker they are awfully nice.
2 questions kind of pertaining to this:
Are the Epiphone EB-0's or EB- 3's worth checking out or are they junk?
&
Did Epi make a Ripper model?
Quote from: hayseed on April 06, 2011, 01:41:28 PM
2 questions kind of pertaining to this:
Are the Epiphone EB-0's or EB- 3's worth checking out or are they junk?
&
Did Epi make a Ripper model?
EB-3s are normal (34") scale and they neck dive like crazy. They're also pretty low output. Mine's for sale.
Since he wants to switch for 'ergonomic' reasons, he needs to try some basses out in person, to see how they fit. Also, a new string spacing to contend with (for the bow). Bummer, dude, you gotta go bass shopping.
I have a Musicmaster from the 70's. It is a really nice bass. very lightweight and easy to play. great neck.
plus they are super cheap even vintage ones. Mine was $250 a few years ago. okay, more like ten years ago i guess.
i have a grabber and its long scale and weighs a ton , great bass also.
Ive tried the sg shaped gibson basses that are short scale and thought they were wonderful with big fat necks I liked alot.
Ive tried a reissue and a vintage one and they compatred very favorably to each other. i beleive they are more expensive than their fender cunterparts tho.
Id go MUstang or Musicmaster.
My musicmaster looks like this one.
(http://www.may-studio-music-lessons.com/images/1964-fender-musicmaster-bass-641282-21271708.jpg)
I thinkn WYman maybe used a mustang?
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3248/2900625611_de5e11d510.jpg)
I like lumpys idea of the beatle bass. you cant get much lghter than that.
How bout a steinberger? are they klong or short scale?
(http://images.miretail.com/products/optionLarge/Steinberger/566292.jpg)
I love the tones of the two-pickup version of the SG basses (EB-3?). If the balance is off with a strap you can move strap holes. If they made a fretless version for the same price I'd be all on it despite not playing bass in any band.
I have a couple short scale basses, and have sold a couple along the way. I give a thumbs down to the epi EB-0, neck dive and it sounded like mud, cheap hardware. I have a Hamer ss and it's a nice little bass, it holds and plays like a guitar, super fun to play, really light also. I put a Music Man pup in the bridge, sounds good. The best ss bass I have is from Rondo actually. It's a Brice, they don't even have Brice anymore, but it's a renamed Agile, Les Paul and it's probably one of the nicer playing instruments. active pups (which I could do without) and nice binding. For three hundy, I give it a thumbs up.
If I were to do it over, I would look for a old bronco.
I'd sell my Brice LP (sunburst) for cheap btw. I don't play much bass these days and I still have my hamer.
As a rule, I hate short scale basses. I chalk that up to being bigger than the average guy. 6'2", 230 or so. There are two exceptions I've had over the years, though.
One was an old Epiphone hollowbody, es-335 style, double cutaway. I got that as my first bass, when I was 14 or so. Played great, sounded great to me. I honestly don't remember what ever happened to it.
The other was an Ibanez Gio, double cutaway, almost SG type styling. That was a cheapie, but IMO, a real sleeper.
I always hankered after a Gibson, or even Epiphone EB-3 . Never laid a hand on one, though. And, I'm pretty sure they're 34" scale.
J-j-j-Jon, I remember a year or two ago you found a Model T (was it you?) that wasn't working in a pawn shop there... What happened to it? I remember you got it working, then nothing else ever came up about it...
Yes, that was me.
Sadly, the deal that seemed too good to be true turned out to be too good. Bought for cheap, fixed for cheap, then stopped entirely. Transformers apparently fried completely. Likely would cost much more than I am willing to invest to get it running again. It's currently a (non-working) conversation piece in the back of my tech's shop.
Our second-guessing is that whoever had it before it was pawned was running it at completely inappropriate resistances and or volumes, and just fried the thing. I replaced the fuse and cap ,had the bias checked, etc, but it just fried out.
Ah, well. If I ever get rich and famous, maybe I'll search for parts and re-fix it, in the meantime, I'm not out even $200, and I'm a drummer, so it was just a fun project, anyway.
But what might have been....
There's a ton of short scale win on this page...
http://www.hagstrom.org.uk/hagstrom_bass.htm
http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/Bass/Epiphone/Allen-Woody-Rumblekat.aspx (http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/Bass/Epiphone/Allen-Woody-Rumblekat.aspx)
Quote from: zachoff on April 07, 2011, 11:21:27 AM
There's a ton of short scale win on this page...
http://www.hagstrom.org.uk/hagstrom_bass.htm
Those Hagstrom basses are cool looking. Any idea how they sound?
Quote from: justJon on April 07, 2011, 10:36:58 AM
Yes, that was me.
Sadly, the deal that seemed too good to be true turned out to be too good. Bought for cheap, fixed for cheap, then stopped entirely. Transformers apparently fried completely. Likely would cost much more than I am willing to invest to get it running again. It's currently a (non-working) conversation piece in the back of my tech's shop.
Our second-guessing is that whoever had it before it was pawned was running it at completely inappropriate resistances and or volumes, and just fried the thing. I replaced the fuse and cap ,had the bias checked, etc, but it just fried out.
Ah, well. If I ever get rich and famous, maybe I'll search for parts and re-fix it, in the meantime, I'm not out even $200, and I'm a drummer, so it was just a fun project, anyway.
But what might have been....
If you ever want to get rid of it, I want to rebuild it... I know it'll be about a grand to get it running again, so, if you want your money back, I'll pay the shipping...
Sell him the Model T, get that baby up and running!
I can do it, shit, I'd most likely put the transformers on my credit card and eat ramen for a couple months... I know I can do it. Herbie can walk me through... :D
Quote from: Discö Rice on April 07, 2011, 02:22:45 PM
Quote from: zachoff on April 07, 2011, 11:21:27 AM
There's a ton of short scale win on this page...
http://www.hagstrom.org.uk/hagstrom_bass.htm
Those Hagstrom basses are cool looking. Any idea how they sound?
Not really... I've only ever played a Hagstrom 12 string and it sounded awesome, but was fairly difficult to play/fret (I'm sure I'd get used to it, but only played it for 15-20 minutes). It sounded especially awesome chorded w/ distortion.
Quote from: SunnO))) on April 07, 2011, 05:40:10 PM
I can do it, shit, I'd most likely put the transformers on my credit card and eat ramen for a couple months... I know I can do it. Herbie can walk me through... :D
Wouldn't it be easier to just ship it here then?
Good point... but I wanted to do it... ;D. Gotts learn sometime! What better to learn on than my dream amp?
Quote from: SunnO))) on April 07, 2011, 08:28:00 PM
Good point... but I wanted to do it... ;D. Gotts learn sometime! What better to learn on than my dream amp?
Cause the xfmrs cost a fortune, if you don't need 'em, or worse if you do, and burn up a replacement accidentally :)
Sigh... you've sold me. Let's see what Jon says! :D
OK, to break the suspense, I currently have no plans to sell it. If I do, You, Sunn0))) and Hemi, collectively will be the first to know.
Part of me says, yeah, it should be fixed and played, but part of me says, if it's ever played again, it'll be by me, or at least in a band I'm part of. For now, I'll occasionally stare wistfully off into space dreaming about it.
Long as I/we have dibs on making it live again, unless you do!
Seriously though, it's doing you no good as a paper weight... FIX IT. :D
Quote from: SunnO))) on April 07, 2011, 11:20:15 PM
Long as I/we have dibs on making it live again, unless you do!
Seriously though, it's doing you no good as a paper weight... FIX IT. :D
Hey, you're still sitting on that suicide amp afaik :D
Yeah, well, it's a shitty paper weight. It only weighs a few pounds. haha. Give me your address, if you want this death trap.
Quote from: SunnO))) on April 08, 2011, 12:25:59 AM
Yeah, well, it's a shitty paper weight. It only weighs a few pounds. haha. Give me your address, if you want this death trap.Quote from: SunnO))) on March 19, 2011, 10:18:56 AM
We're all buddies here, it's not like I'm going to show up on your doorstep with a box of wine, an Ewiz vinyl and a hard-on.
Oh yeah, so now you want to show up on my doorstep?
Sure do, but this time, I'll only bring the hard-on. hahahaha
and here's me without an electron microscope ::)
Bump.
Squier is selling a short scale Jaguar bass. I've heard nothing but praise for the new vintage and modified vintage style Squiers (I played a 50s CV Squier at the store, it was a winner). If I needed a bass I would consider a Squier for sure. This comes in red, and black too. ;)
(http://www.squierguitars.com/products/prod_images/basses/0328800591_xl.jpg)