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..!
Hi and welcome aboard.
Not a Kingbass owner so I'll leave it to others to answer your query.
i bought my kingbass 32/16.5 a year ago for the same excuse :D
Hi
My KB is the first short scale bass i've owned (32/16.5), and i have to say it felt very natural straight away. To be honest i didn't over analyse when i bought it and it now just feels....erm....normal!
Cheers
Graeme
To be correct; The Kingbass is not a short scale bass.... Short scale is 30....(something)
Many, many, many years ago I switched to medium scaled basses and I will never look back hahahaha (Nice title for a song..)
Only medium scale basses for me since I have touched the Kingbass. I do have small hands.
FENDER Jazz Bass Signature Marcus Miller 5 string USA Z3******
FENDER Jazz Bass Signature Marcus Miller 5 string USA Z6******
FENDER American Deluxe 4 Sunburst 4 string 1997 USA N7******
FENDER Precision Bass Sunburst Basslines PU's 1988 Japan H0******
Genz Benz 1200 GBE Amp
Hevos Powerset 2X10 and 1X15 Cabinets
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.
4 Asians, 2 Brits, 1 French and also some basses
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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 (:DB):D) 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
:)
Strata #05 - Status Series II #94 - Status Series II #147 - Status Series II #230 - Status Series II #487 - Status Series II 5 string #58 - Status Series 2000 #106 - Status Series 2000 #327 (FPPR) - Status Empathy #2009 ’93 - Status Empathy 5 string '95 - Status King Bass '06 moo wood - Status King Bass '07 moo wood fretless - Alembic MK Sig Deluxe '88 - Alembic Inside Out Brown Bass ’11 - JayDee Series I 'Starchild' '08 - JayDee Series I Cherry Red ’19 - Sei Bass Flamboyant - Sei Bass Flamboyant Offset - Ibanez SR2600 ’18 - Ibanez SRMS 805 ’19 - Ibanez SR1405 ’19 - Vigier Passion Series I #623 '88 - Vigier Arpege Series II #249 '84 - Vigier Arpege Series III #088 '86 - Shuker Custom Series 2 ‘08 - Warwick Thumb 4 TN '89
Edited by
moo on 13-02-2008 11:55,
16 years agoThanks 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)..
Quote
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)(...)
:D :D
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.
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Quote
themoo wrote:(...)he has fingers like the arms of the face hugger from Alien)(...)
:D :D I must admit there are some similarities...
picture from http://www.parmaq.com/kitbuilding/Images/Alien1.jpgEdited by
Silent Fly on 14-02-2008 04:13,
16 years ago You do not have access to view attachments
I use my Kingbass 5 and Black Beauty both with 32" scale.... the function band i play in de-tune by half a semitone and the tension is still not a problem...
Quote
Silent Fly wrote:
Quote
themoo wrote:(...)he has fingers like the arms of the face hugger from Alien)(...)
:D :D I must admit there are some similarities...
picture from http://www.parmaq.com/kitbuilding/Images/Alien1.jpg
:D
Priceless
Strata #05 - Status Series II #94 - Status Series II #147 - Status Series II #230 - Status Series II #487 - Status Series II 5 string #58 - Status Series 2000 #106 - Status Series 2000 #327 (FPPR) - Status Empathy #2009 ’93 - Status Empathy 5 string '95 - Status King Bass '06 moo wood - Status King Bass '07 moo wood fretless - Alembic MK Sig Deluxe '88 - Alembic Inside Out Brown Bass ’11 - JayDee Series I 'Starchild' '08 - JayDee Series I Cherry Red ’19 - Sei Bass Flamboyant - Sei Bass Flamboyant Offset - Ibanez SR2600 ’18 - Ibanez SRMS 805 ’19 - Ibanez SR1405 ’19 - Vigier Passion Series I #623 '88 - Vigier Arpege Series II #249 '84 - Vigier Arpege Series III #088 '86 - Shuker Custom Series 2 ‘08 - Warwick Thumb 4 TN '89
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..
Quote
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.
:)
Strata #05 - Status Series II #94 - Status Series II #147 - Status Series II #230 - Status Series II #487 - Status Series II 5 string #58 - Status Series 2000 #106 - Status Series 2000 #327 (FPPR) - Status Empathy #2009 ’93 - Status Empathy 5 string '95 - Status King Bass '06 moo wood - Status King Bass '07 moo wood fretless - Alembic MK Sig Deluxe '88 - Alembic Inside Out Brown Bass ’11 - JayDee Series I 'Starchild' '08 - JayDee Series I Cherry Red ’19 - Sei Bass Flamboyant - Sei Bass Flamboyant Offset - Ibanez SR2600 ’18 - Ibanez SRMS 805 ’19 - Ibanez SR1405 ’19 - Vigier Passion Series I #623 '88 - Vigier Arpege Series II #249 '84 - Vigier Arpege Series III #088 '86 - Shuker Custom Series 2 ‘08 - Warwick Thumb 4 TN '89
I'm now using Status Hotwires on all my basses.... even my jazzerz and they are superb