The Last Bass Outpost
Main Forums => The Bass Zone => Topic started by: Chris P. on January 10, 2020, 02:33:23 AM
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NAMM 2020. Some news I gathered for the magazine:
Some of it is embargoed so not even on my website yet.
Short scales:
Reverend short scale
Sire short scale (just a small Jazz)
Black Fender JMJ Mustang short scale
New colours for PJ Mustang short scale
Vox short scales with very modern looks
Sandberg short scale
First production models of Carey Nordstrand's short scale
Ashdown short scale (more on that later)
So I gues every brand just has a short scale now....
Headless fanned fret Ibanez series
Music Man Joe Dart production model
Warwick Rockbass Corvette 5 string fanned fret
Warwick models of the year
Sadowsky's made by Warwick Germany
Orange bi-amping pedal and small amp head
Distressed (relic) versions of the cheap Vintage P models (V4). Their cheap distressed Jaco copy is now fretted available too.
Ashdown bass series made by Dan 'Lakland' Lakin: a P, a J, a Fenderbirds and a Jaguar. J is also 5 string 35" and short scale.
Ashdown: 200W tube amp, in a cool retro looking block 19" rack
Rack version of the Ashdown ABM
A very small 200W amp in pedal shape: Ashdown The Ant. Similar to the small Warwick Gnome, Trace Elliot ELF and TC but really for a pedal board
Smaller version of the Way Huge Pork & Pickle
New small Hartke heads
Blackstar heads and cabs
Light Darkglass cabs
GR Bass cabs, not made of wood but a space age material, making it 40% lighter and still sounding like wood.
Aguilar booster pedal, lim ed 25 yrs ann pedals and purple cabs
Very very small Warwick heads: The Gnome: 100, 200 and 300W, similar to Trace Elliot ELF
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Beware of the Warwickster, darn collaborator!
(http://ww2gravestone.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/SFA003000665__1436797566_49254.jpg)
Im Ernst: Bedankt, Chris, but what is this craze about short scales all of the sudden, have I been missing something? ???
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and fanned frets becoming more mainstream, I so want to try one
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More like Fenderbirdman based on the pickups. Kinda fugly with that pickguard but I'm sure it's a nice enough bass if designed by Dan.
https://ashdownmusic.com/collections/basses/products/the-low-rider?variant=31770668859485
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NAMM 2020. Some news I gathered for the magazine:
Headless fanned fret Ibanez series
Orange bi-amping pedal and small amp head
Ashdown bass series made by Dan 'Lakland' Lakin: a Fenderbird
I saw the headless Ibanez fanned frets yesterday. Kinda dig it!
(https://media.sweetwater.com/api/i/f-webp__q-82__ha-4274c4a3c47626d8__hmac-eebfa3a6e4012486fe9f20c83896f943673f3120/images/closeup/750-EHB1505MSPLF_front.jpg.auto.webp)
The Orange pedal sounds interesting.
Ashdown Fenderbird is a disaster. :o
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Short scales... strange everybody wants one nowadays...
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Short scales... strange everybody wants one nowadays...
Interesting indeed. I'm a fan, but I'm near my max on numbers of basses.
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I can see the short scale market getting oversaturated soon.
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Mike Lull posted this (https://www.facebook.com/mikelullcustomguitars/photos/a.194917233922362/2710918072322253/?type=3&theater) on FB a couple of hours ago, from the reactions, it must be new. Another short scale?
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I'm not sure about that Dave.
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Mike's throwing some competition at the ASAT since nobody else is. Throwing some sardine cans in his 54P would have been a better choice perhaps than shoe horning a bass design into a shape better reserved for guitars.
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Lull has offered the TXB (https://www.mikelull.com/bass-txb4-txb5) for quite some time.
I'm guessing this is the same model, but with a Tele pickguard and control plate.
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Short scales... strange everybody wants one nowadays...
I think it's possibly just an overreaction to short scales not quite getting the respect they deserved for so many years. An extreme example would be from a friend in Denmark who said he has been to music stores there where short scales were displayed in the kid's section of a store. A number of years ago I was on a forum in which a guy literally went berserk if anyone said anything positive about short scale basses. Now you might see articles like this one more often.
https://www.guitarworld.com/features/the-best-short-scale-bass-guitars-you-can-buy
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Now that's a trend I never would have predicted. But I'm glad shorties are finally making a comeback as serious pro basses and being appreciated for what they are - basses that enable you to play mid-neck and higher and still sound fat and bassy. Out of 15 basses I have, six are 30" and one is 32".
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Lull has offered the TXB (https://www.mikelull.com/bass-txb4-txb5) for quite some time.
I'm guessing this is the same model, but with a Tele pickguard and control plate.
I forgot about those and on second thought, I shouldn't be the one to criticize the use of guitar shapes for basses either seeing as I'm a big fan of long scale Les Paul basses. The pick guard and control plate is a nice touch compared to the naked looking TXB.
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Hey, all your Rics aren't long scale either, Ilan! :)
I believe there has been a gradual shift in bass sound which has benefited the type of sounds that come natural for/from a short scale: Alt, indie and grungy pop/rock have all de-hifi'ed bass sound in the last few decades. The trend has been away from "the bass plays little, but is crisply mixed with an emphasis on highs and lows" - the height for that was probably the late 80ies - to "the bass plays more, but is less distinct, more organic/warm with an audible midrange". A classic short scale sound slots right in with that trend.
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and fanned frets becoming more mainstream, I so want to try one
They take about 30 seconds to get used to. The only bass I will have left is my fan-fret custom Precision with the Mahogany body. The Bettie Page bass. Outstanding sound.
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Lull has offered the TXB (https://www.mikelull.com/bass-txb4-txb5) for quite some time.
I'm guessing this is the same model, but with a Tele pickguard and control plate.
Not the same pickups, though. I rechecked the FB thread, he hasn't said anything more. We'll know in a few days if he's at NAMM.
Hey, all your Rics aren't long scale either, Ilan! :)
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Not exactly, but most of us consider them long scale.
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I was just being my usual very despicable me.
(https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQsCpghpE3ZIfvm6E0fzWIXAbghzU0-aBOaEX1wlHBTa9hBuDAV&s)
We can agree on "lesser long scale". :-*
Long scale envy is a terrible thing among men.
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Hey, all your Rics aren't long scale either, Ilan! :)
That's just because RIC have always felt compelled to do everything differently. I can't think of any reason other than to spite us.
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That's just because RIC have always felt compelled to do everything differently. I can't think of any reason other than to spite us.
34" scale as "standard" long scale hadn't happened yet when RIC made the first 4000 b/c Fender wasn't dominant in the bass market yet.
RIC is a quirky company and there are a number of reasons some guitarists and bassists dislike them, but I've never heard scale length given as one of the reasons. I think the 33 1/4" scale is great and well balanced tonally.
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34" scale as "standard" long scale hadn't happened yet when RIC made the first 4000 b/c Fender wasn't dominant in the bass market yet.
RIC is a quirky company and there are a number of reasons some guitarists and bassists dislike them, but I've never heard scale length given as one of the reasons. I think the 33 1/4" scale is great and well balanced tonally.
Personally I'm comfortable with all scales 30" to 34.5" as long as the nut is at about the same location in relation to my left hand. That's why I prefer my shorties as hollow bodies with the bridge further up the top, or like the Fender Rascal. For me scale is more about tone in the higher positions than a matter of left hand fingers spread.
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"I think the 33 1/4" scale is great and well balanced tonally."
I think the empty E string note on a Ric is a teeny-weeny bit behind the authority of the same note on an empty E string on a, say, Precision or TBird. But that is just one note (I hear no difference on fretted notes on the E-string), so it's not really material unless all your songs are in E and your bandmates want to hear the low E all the time. :mrgreen:
You could also say that the low E on a Ric is more in balance with the rest of the notes on the bass whereas on true long scales it tends to be on the overpowering side. But when I play an empty E-string I want it to sound overpowering. :mrgreen:
If you play a 5-string Ric though, the difference to a true long scale shows quite a bit. You can't cheat physics, the B string is a flabby affair.
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"For me scale is more about tone in the higher positions than a matter of left hand fingers spread."
Amen, Ilan.
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If you play a 5-string Ric though, the difference to a true long scale shows quite a bit. You can't cheat physics
But you can utilize physics and use a heavier gauge low B string for mass and tension that will give you enough definition. Whether a 5-string Ric neck can handle it or not is a different question.
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A B-string on a regular 34" scale is already a compromise, 35" and more sounds audibly better, but of course the D string suffers then under the overt tautness.
A thicker B string only gets you that far - and it creates issues as you go up the neck. Tension with B strings is not that much an issue, there are worse culprits within a 5-string set-up, first and foremost of course the D string. My 5-string Ric (unlike my 8-string one) has never had neck issues, but is very stable as good Rics tend to be.
Ric of course delivered its 5-stringers back in the day with a meek 115er :o as a B string. Now that was really asking for it. :mrgreen:
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Too thick a string for a given scale length and you get inharmonicity -- the harmonics get further and further off from the fundamental.
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"Inharmonicity", wasn't that one of those unpronounceable Police albums back in the day?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5FPPoLqkCk
(Hard to believe, but I only saw this "Gordon flees the DUNE set and is on his way heavily inspired by Duran Duran's Wild Boys vid" now! :mrgreen: )
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My moment of fame with Jen of Levy's and Souldier :mrgreen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tk7BjUX_VGQ&t=17s
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Pretty nifty. Good price point too. I occasionally raise my bass if I'm playing a cover tune that requires slapping (rare). Hard to explain in print, but - Most straps have an extra hole or two on the one end. I take that and slide it over the "pin" on the Schaller strap lock. Certainly not as slick as the Levy's, but it gets the job done.
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That seems like a pretty nice idea! At that price point, I'll bet sales are good.
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.
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Nice performance, Chris, if a bit verbose/spraakzaam. :-X
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Not content to be a bassist and a journalist, Chris is also now a model!
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He may go into acting next like Sting did for a while.
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Hollywood was watching me. the Chris Dekker Turn is trending. This is only the beginning.
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I know where this is going. He'll soon host his own show on German TV - all Dutch(wo)men eventually do.
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Linda de Mol, Rudi Carrell und Chris Dekker. Sounds okay.
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I can see the short scale market getting oversaturated soon.
I think we're at a place now where the tonal deficiencies of them can be pretty well ironed out. I used to own a Squier Bronco as my first bass, and I had to chop down 34'' strings to fit. Back in the day I gather this was common.
My latest Mustang has the La Bella flats set on it, and the tone is very even across all the strings.
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Linda de Mol, Rudi Carrell und Chris Dekker. Sounds okay.
How the hell could you forget Silvie?! Her export helped the average IQ statistics in Germany and The Netherlands draw closer.
(https://media1.tenor.com/images/bd2428a91aaef5f1c1c03db960e1542c/tenor.gif?itemid=14133964)
Or Jopie Heesters?!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls0ukGcKU44
And adding insult to injury, little Heintje?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDBDtIOxUsI
Lou van Burg?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6DodxnUKhw
Our entertainment industry is infested with you guys! :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
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(http://bassoutpost.com/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=11496.0;attach=4077;image)
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Darn!! I missed post #6666!
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:mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
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"Inharmonicity", wasn't that one of those unpronounceable Police albums back in the day?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5FPPoLqkCk
(Hard to believe, but I only saw this "Gordon flees the DUNE set and is on his way heavily inspired by Duran Duran's Wild Boys vid" now! :mrgreen: )
I'd never seen that either, weren't the 80s so excessive, just thinking about the logistics of that shoot pre-CGI makes my eyes water
I wont go into the uncomfortable use of a snare drum as a seat or mr Summers using a tv aerial as a guitar
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It was an actual guitar! Of sorts.
From https://www.vintageguitar.com/34671/andy-summers-2/
The post-apocalyptic setting of the video for “Synchronicity II” saw Summers atop a pile of wrecked automobiles, brandishing a Gittler guitar made by the late artist/inventor/musician Allen Gittler in New York City (VG, March ’00). Most who saw the video probably thought the skeletal instrument was a prop. “It was an interesting object,” said Summers. “I saw it in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. I met (Gittler); I went to his apartment in the East Village. I bought one, and eventually sold it. I remember being impressed that it actually did work!”
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It was an actual guitar! Of sorts.
It's a Gittler guitar. There were also basses (4 to the best of my knowledge). There's one displayed at the MoMA. Made in New York by Alan Gittler who later moved to Israel in 1982 and made some weird-ass guitars here also. He passed in 2002. A couple of years ago there was an attempt to reissue the guitars and basses in 4 and 5 string models and a very nice looking fretless that I was jonesing for since I saw a pic of the 80s prototype that never went into production.
The Gibson 2020 looks like a very traditional instrument in comparison.
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Gittler_%28electric_guitar%29_%281970-1985%29_-_MIM_PHX.jpg)(https://gittlerinstruments.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/four-string-bass-frettless-blkbkg.jpg)
https://youtu.be/BWYFXheilJM
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Now that is something different!
(https://i.redd.it/vi4ldytkeajy.jpg)
I like the fishbone esthetics of it ...
(https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTyLOJZxOar0FyI_56TENUPQAGCt80jWbBi-JqJxjHz__DJw52I2A&s)
... as if Overend Watts had been very hungry with his fish bass:
(https://rockandrollparadise.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/Pete_Overend_Watts.jpg)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNmC-ZT-Eak
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Can we just go back to my movie career?
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I would be interested in going back to Silvie who I had never even heard of until this thread.
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Can we just go back to my movie career?
That depends on which starlet you choose to adjust your strap.
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:mrgreen:
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That depends on which starlet you choose to adjust your strap.
Guitar, or jock?? ;)
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Why not both
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Can we just go back to my movie career?
With your preference for selected headgear of the finest quality and always immaculately chosen, lieber Chris, a good place to start would perhaps be as an extra in Dutch independent auteur films such as this one? CGI could help with your skin color, not too much text either, you know you are more the strong, silent type.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnYggJwvALo
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I would be interested in going back to Silvie who I had never even heard of until this thread.
Yeah, I'm good at nurturing Völkerfreundschaft.
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Yeah, I'm good at nurturing Völkerfreundschaft.
I was able to look her up. It seems Sylvie's life has had its share of soap opera-type aspects to it.
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Sports TV show anchor woman, footballer's (soccer) wife, divorce (betrayed by best girlfriend), lingerie and bikini model/designer, ballroom dance participant, The Voice-type show jury member ... you name it. She's had a hand in a few things.
(https://bilder.bild.de/fotos/polanc-mit-sylvie-meis-34312111-50794106/Bild/6.bild.jpg)
But just like Chris lekker Dekker,
- she's versatile,
- creative at reinventing herself,
- good at looking smashing doing the most mundane things (leather strap presentation etc). :mrgreen:
All credit to her though for being a cancer survivor (hence the short hair in the above dance pic, it was after her successful therapy, I actually liked that haircut better on her than her usual - yawn - "glamorous blonde long hair"). Tough little cookie, my respects.
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That makes a lot more sense. The article I read, although an honest effort, seems to have left out some pertinent details.
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:mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
What shall I say...