STATII.COM: For all things Status-Graphite

Posted by gibbs on 13-02-2008 00:25

Hi All - I'm a newbie to this forum and seeking some advice from all your experiences here.. I have finally taken the plunge and decided to order myself a Kingbass (my excuse being mid life crisis purchase...!). I visited Rob & Dawn at the Status workshop this week to try a few things out ... and here is the dilemma. I'm torn between short/long scale and the narrower string spacing. All my basses to date have bee 34" scale and I was pleasantly suprised by the 32/16.5 combination though I'm not sure longer term if I'd find any limitations (on playing style/development etc.) Do any of you seasoned players have any thoughts on pros/cons of the shorter scale and or the narrower string spacing or is it just personal preference. My concerns are really over getting my fat fingers between the strings..!

Posted by Angry-Canuck on 13-02-2008 11:00

My Kingbass is 32", 16.5 mm spacing, I was a little worried about this when I ordered it because I had never tried small spacing like this. To my surprise it just seemed so natural to play immediately. Now when I pick up my other basses I tend to put them back down pretty quick and run back to the Kingbass. Unless you have real sausage fingers, go with the 32', 16.5 combination, you definitely will not regret it. Mark King doesnt seem to have many limitations with it, lol.

Posted by moo on 13-02-2008 11:53

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Mike Prince wrote: Hi gibbs and welcome ot the forum. The string spacing depends on what youre used to - so, if you have used the 19mm for your entire life, then stay that way, as youll only be disappinted once its been made and you cant get on with the string spacing. I am using at the moment a kingbass artist thru neck (with the whole shizzle) with a 32" scale (with bandwell) and 19mm string spacing, and she is a beuty to play. However, I am currently in a deal with another member of this forum which i will HOPEFULLY () be getting another kingbass with 32" scale but the 16.5mm spacing. I have nevr tried it in my life, but, it looks so comfy! All the best, im sure your bass will be amazing whatever spacing and scale length you choose. All the best Mike

Well Mike, I have to say that I disagree with you somewhat. I have used standard 19mm spacing all my life with standard scale length. When I got the chance to have a brand new King Bass I was keen to see what 16.5 was like as I don't have big fat fingers. The second I played it I fell in love and so whenever I have the choice, I will pick 16.5mm. So, really there is no advice as good as 'find someone with a 16.5mm spacing and try it out for a while'. You really wont know until you try. When Max (silentfly) ordered his moo wood King Bass he was pretty certain he wanted 19mm spacing (he has fingers like the arms of the face hugger from Alien) but he cam over to mine and played them all for a while. Just to confirm. I love 16.5mm so much John Diggins is making making my Starchild JD with 16.5. Anyway, you really have to try. If your fingers are really long or double fat, you will PROBABLY want 19mm. If they're smaller, normal size, you may want to try 16.5mm

Edited by moo on 13-02-2008 11:55

Posted by gibbs on 14-02-2008 01:57

#10

Thanks for all the responses guys...pretty much as I expected - there's no right or wrong answer here. while I was at the Status workshop I tried out the 16.5 spacing and indeed it felt really natural - it felt 'better' for solo fingering but not as fluid with certain plucking techniques - it was very marginal. Though there's only so much experimenting you can do in a few hours.. Just to confuse matters, I have always fitted Schaller bridges to my other basses, which have adjustable threaded saddles so I can vary the string spacings between each string ! I generally make the D/G spacing fractionally more - so it's abit of a combination of the two - sounds wierd but works for me. I like the comments re 'sausage fingers' - well not quite but my hands certainly aint dainty....I think I'd just be kicking myself forever if I spend best part of 3 grand on a bass I can;t play as well as I want - and the wife would never speak to me again (now there's a thought)..

Posted by Silent Fly on 14-02-2008 04:06

#11

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themoo wrote:(...) When Max (silentfly) ordered his moo wood King Bass he was pretty certain he wanted 19mm spacing (he has fingers like the arms of the face hugger from Alien)(...)

I have long fingers (see picture below) but I don't find the reduced scale length to be a problem - I actually like it on a king bass. The KB has an unusual balance and the shorter scale helps to mitigate the effect of shorter upper horn. For this reason, personally, I would never buy a 34” KB. Usually, shorter scale basses have a shorter sustain but in the case of SG basses, the graphite balances out the theoretical reduced sustain. Moreover, the bendwell keeps the strings length to 34”. I believe this helps to keep the strings nicely in tension. Regarding the 19mm vs 16.5mm string spacing, I went to SG to try both string spacing and to be honest, I was able to switch between the two without any problem. It took me only 2 minutes every time to get used to the different string spacing. I am happy I have a 19mm KB because my long fingers are slightly more comfortable with wider string spacing especially when I play fast pizzicato phrases. Ideally, I would have liked a string spacing of 18mm but only because it would have been the same of my S2 6 strings.

Posted by gibbs on 14-02-2008 05:02

#13

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Silent Fly wrote:
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themoo wrote:(...) When Max (silentfly) ordered his moo wood King Bass he was pretty certain he wanted 19mm spacing (he has fingers like the arms of the face hugger from Alien)(...)
I have long fingers (see picture below) but I don't find the reduced scale length to be a problem - I actually like it on a king bass. The KB has an unusual balance and the shorter scale helps to mitigate the effect of shorter upper horn. For this reason, personally, I would never buy a 34” KB. Usually, shorter scale basses have a shorter sustain but in the case of SG basses, the graphite balances out the theoretical reduced sustain. Moreover, the bendwell keeps the strings length to 34”. I believe this helps to keep the strings nicely in tension. Regarding the 19mm vs 16.5mm string spacing, I went to SG to try both string spacing and to be honest, I was able to switch between the two without any problem. It took me only 2 minutes every time to get used to the different string spacing. I am happy I have a 19mm KB because my long fingers are slightly more comfortable with wider string spacing especially when I play fast pizzicato phrases. Ideally, I would have liked a string spacing of 18mm but only because it would have been the same of my S2 6 strings.

Silentfly - those look like my hands ! ...I'm thinking 32" scale with 19mm spacing might be a wise choice.. As for your note about bendwell and string tension though...if my physics serves me correct, to get the same note on an open string (e.g an open E at 41.2 Hz?), you would need a lower string tension on a 32" scale than a 34" scale as it's dependent on the distance between the bridge and nut - the bendwell is past the nut so doesn;t affect the tuning of the string. I stand to be corrected of course ..but I didn;t notice the lower string tension on the 32" ...

Posted by Silent Fly on 14-02-2008 06:41

#14

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gibbs wrote:(...) As for your note about bendwell and string tension though...if my physics serves me correct, to get the same note on an open string (e.g an open E at 41.2 Hz?), you would need a lower string tension on a 32" scale than a 34" scale as it's dependent on the distance between the bridge and nut - the bendwell is past the nut so doesn;t affect the tuning of the string. I stand to be corrected of course ..but I didn;t notice the lower string tension on the 32" ...

It doesn't effect the pitch but it effects the string tension. I believe (but I am not sure why) a 32" scale with 32" strings and 32" scale with 34" strings is not the same thing in terms of string tension. Fodera builds some of his 5 strings with an unusual arrangement of the tuners in order to get some extra length on the headstock. If you look the Lincoln Goines Signature Bass (33" scale) you will notice that the B string tuner is after the A tuner (the sequence is E, A, B on one side and D, G on the other side of the headstock). Apparently this changes the tension on the B string compared the the standard tuner location. Another way to see it is this (and this is pure speculation – I may be completely wrong). Imagine two theoretical basses. The fist with 32" scale and 32" strings. The second, 32" scale and 52" strings (20" of extra strings). If you apply the same string tension to both basses they will not sound the same. In order to have the second bass to sound with the same pitch of the first bass, it is necessary to apply more tension to the strings in order to balance the extra 20" of strings that do not produce any sound but that require to accumulate the energy for the entire string to oscillate.

Posted by moo on 14-02-2008 12:01

#18

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gibbs wrote: On a tenuously linked topic - which strings are you guys using.?.this will be my first headless bass and I guess I'll depart from my usual Rotosound 90-30's.. Are SG's "own brand" strings any good? Apologies if there's a seperate thread or vote on this topic elsewhere..

I use Status 30-90's. Buy them in bulk and they're pretty well priced.

Posted by Silent Fly on 14-02-2008 22:56

#20

I used to play with 030 but now I use 040 on my KB. I ordered some Hotwire 040 a while ago when I decided to move back to 040 and I was unimpressed by the quality of the strings I received. They had a strange coat of oxidation and they didn't sound "fresh". Now I use D'Addario EXL220M. They are the medium scale version of the popular EXL220 (Alphonso Johnson, Michael Manring, Victor Wooten use them to name a few). They sound like the EXL220 but the tension is slightly lower. I found this helps with the bendwell. They last cosiderably longer than the Hotwire and I prefer them sound-wise. I have a set of Elixir 040 that I am going to use as soon as the D'Addario EXL220M die. I use them on my Fender Jazz and they are great. If and when I return back to 030 I think I will use Hot Wire though. They are the best 030 I ever tried.