Ever had a bass that was so hard to set up that you wanted to sell it?

[rockinrayduke]

That's the way I've been with this Sadowsky UV40 I got a couple of years back. Strings buzzed no matter what I adjusted, tried several brands of strings including flats, nothing worked. Action too high, decided to have my local repair guy shim the neck, that didn't do it. Very frustrating after all I'd heard from players that owned one, bass just sat in the case for months. Was thinking about putting it on ebay this week but decided to give a last ditch attempt to make it play like I wanted.

It has Prosteels 105-45 on it which it seems to like so I went back to bass 101. Removed the shim, reattached the neck and started working on lowering the saddles to a normal height. I got the action a lot lower but still had the fret buzz. After adjusting the truss rod along with the saddles I was finally able to minimize the fret buzz so it was at least playable. Been tweaking it very slightly every couple of days to further minimize the fret buzz and I'm proud to say I have low action and an almost buzz-free neck. I would have regretted selling it for sure.

G-string is maybe a teensy bit higher than I want but still comfortable. Fun to play now and I will be keeping it. Loving that Sadowsky preamp and sorry I missed time playing it.

My old '91 Les Paul bass was like this, just never felt quite right after my efforts or a shop's efforts so I never played it. Then one day all the planets aligned and I found the magic setup formula and that bass was a monster after that.

I will admit my setup skills are average at best. Ever had a bass that frustrated you to the point of selling it?

[Dave W]

Sold a Hagström guitar with tremolo that I never could get right. I know a lot more about setting up now, maybe things would be different today.

[dadagoboi]

IMHO, the better the bass the more exact your setup has to be to get the most out of it.  High end basses like your Sadowsky usually have a nut that is almost a 'zero fret'.  Neck relief is critical to getting low action/minimal fret buzz with a properly cut nut like that.  Glad it worked out for you.

Cheaper basses generally come with high cut nuts that don't buzz but have bad intonation on the first few frets because the strings are so high off the neck.

[Freuds_Cat]

IMHO, the better the bass the more exact your setup has to be to get the most out of it.  High end basses like your Sadowsky usually have a nut that is almost a 'zero fret'.  Neck relief is critical to getting low action/minimal fret buzz with a properly cut nut like that.  Glad it worked out for you.

Cheaper basses generally come with high cut nuts that don't buzz but have bad intonation on the first few frets because the strings are so high off the neck.

well said

[exiledarchangel]

I hope that repair guy checked the frets of your bass, even new basses need a little bit of fretjob sometimes.

[Denis]

My Dano '63 RI just wouldn't cooperate until we realized the frets were really poorly put in (it's a Chinese one). Problem solved when I found a new neck on eBay for $70.

[rahock]

In another thread we were talking about Schecters and although I wouldn't consider them a cheapo,they are very reasonable, and every one I've picked up seems pretty damn nice.
Rick

[Denis]

In another thread we were talking about Schecters and although I wouldn't consider them a cheapo,they are very reasonable, and every one I've picked up seems pretty damn nice.
Rick

When I bought that Jaguar bass of Craigslist I stupidly turned down the Schecter he offered me for $100 because I didn't know anything about them at the time and thought they were all cheap. Little did I know that a) it was a custom shop model built in Cali and cost $4000 new and b) BOTH basses were stolen. I was able to return the Jag to the rightful owner but the Schecter hasn't resurfaced although the thief tried to sell it a bunch of times later.

[gearHed289]

Yeah, they're called Fenders. 

Finally got one I like. A Geddy Lee JB.

[gweimer]

The Holy Crap bass was pretty bad when I first got it.  They didn't really consider neck relief when the bass was designed.  I finally had a friend rout out the bridge cavity, and dropped the original bridge down into the body a little.  Then, I put TI Jazz Rounds on it.  The action is still a little high, but it's a pretty playable bass.

[TBird1958]

Yeah, they're called Fenders. 

Finally got one I like. A Geddy Lee JB.

Pretty much my experience with them too..........
The worst was a 1973 Precision Swamp Ash body with a Maple neck. I bought it in '78 or so and I know my line of thinking at the time was "I should have one of these, everybody uses them they must be good". I tried for over a year to really like that bass, going thru various strings and getting it set up, frankly it was beyond disappointing. My main bass at the time was a Rick 4001 and there just was no comparison for me, the Rick had character and clank, the P was lifeless, dull and unremarkable, probably the most lovelessly assembled bunch of parts I've ever owned- I traded it away happily after a year or so with no regrets and I can say that I never bothered to pick one up ever since.
To each their own, I know not all feel that way about them       

[Freuds_Cat]

Each bass is different IMO. Even 78 P's. Mark, you could probably pick up another one of the same year and be amazed to find that it feels and sounds OK, or even supurb. Gibson are no different either, There is a Thunderbird here in Allans music that has been in that shop for over a year. The only reason it hasn't sold is that its a dog. I've played plenty of very sweet T-birds, this one just stinks. I've watched it slowly get better setups and a decent set of strings. Its hard to put my finger on it exactly. Its just hard work to play.

[dadagoboi]

Well said.

[rockinrayduke]

Some basses just don't get the right setup but some as you said are just dogs. I had an Alembic medium scale bass I got right before a tour of Finland and Sweden that did not respond to any setup or string change, just felt and sounded shitty. I tried to trade it off in Helsinki for a P-Bass but the store would have to pay VAT so they passed on it. I hated going to the gig with that POS. Playing through a Trace Elliot backline didn't help at all. Miserable.

As soon as I got back to Dallas I traded straight across for a teal '62 P-Bass RI. Put a big smile on my face. It was everything the boutique bass was not. Finally traded that P-Bass for a Dodge Omni but I digress.

[TBird1958]

Each bass is different IMO. Even 78 P's. Mark, you could probably pick up another one of the same year and be amazed to find that it feels and sounds OK, or even supurb. Gibson are no different either, There is a Thunderbird here in Allans music that has been in that shop for over a year. The only reason it hasn't sold is that its a dog. I've played plenty of very sweet T-birds, this one just stinks. I've watched it slowly get better setups and a decent set of strings. Its hard to put my finger on it exactly. Its just hard work to play.

I think you're right Bret, my comments aren't meant as anything more than my experience with one specific bass. That said, P bass necks are too big for my hands and even tho I have a couple better rigs now I'm not looking for one.......Fenders and me really aren't meant for each other, I later had a '78 Jazz and also an Aerodyne, they were far better quality and fit for me, and the tone the could produce was better too.... By then tho it was far too late, I had my White '89 'Bird and it replaced everything (including the Rick eventually!) and eventually all the basses I owned were Thunderbirds, nothing else feels or look right for me.........