Andyjr1515

Coming along nicely

Another splendid build. Can't wait to see the carve - a proper carve top is one of the few things I've chickened out of even having a bash at. Scary biscuits!

Yes, I agree with that. And I would venture to go further. My personal measure when I'm setting up a bass or a guitar is 'when you tap down on the fret, my ideal is "just perceptible" movement'. But there's a 'but' when it comes to trussrods. And that's mainly about who is doing the adjusting. Because many great bass players are not practical, confident, don't have the right tools or, frankly, don't have any interest in the mechanics of their instrument - and there's nothing wrong with that! So my general advice, for what it's worth, to anyone reading who regards themselves in that category is: - Don't use the truss rod to adjust action height. Its only job is to keep the neck straight under string tension - If your bass plays nicely without buzzes at an action you are happy with, then 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'. - If your bass plays nicely without buzzes at an action you are happy with but you are curious, then by all means, have a look at how much relief (bow-and-arrow curve) you have using the methods described above and: if the relief (measuring the amount of curve) is no more than the thickness of a credit card, then either leave it alone, or learn how to/find someone who already knows how to reduce the relief somewhere between @Baloney Balderdash's business card and my 'perceptible gap'...the bass may well play better at a lower action height. if it is more than the thickness of a credit card, then learn how to/find someone who already knows to reduce the relief. As @Baloney Balderdash rightly says, less than this amount of relief would be better, but above this level then the bass's playability will certainly be being compromised. if there is no relief at all at the centre point and the string is hard against the 8th fret, then it indicates that the neck may have a back bow (a hump in the middle) and, if so, the truss rod will need adjusting. It needs loosening or the strings will tend to buzz, particularly around the lower and middle fret positions. Learning how to/finding someone who already knows how to adjust it will make the bass play better and, usually, allow you to lower the saddles and action. - But if your bass is buzzing in places, or action is too high, then learn how to/find someone who already knows how to check the relief. On a bass, in terms of set up everything affects everything and the set up should always starts with setting the neck relief. Once that is done, you can assess everything else. Hope the above makes sense. By the way, I answered a basschatter's PM query recently about setting the trussrod and how it works/what it does. In it I used some googled diagrams/pictures to illustrate and clarify what some of the terms we use mean. If anyone is interested, more than happy to copy and paste that here.

Yes - I remember seeing that one. Lovely job. Welcome back

On my own bass, I would go 'B' because when I add a bridge pickup I am usually looking for a tangibly different tone that can be mixed or used by itself for different genres and venues. Even here, I would still use a higher output pickup as suggested above because the signal strength really does drop off the closer you get to the bridge. If I didn't want so much the tone differentiation but wanted to primarily add depth of tone, then I would go 'C' with matched pickups.

That is, indeed, a thing of beauty. Lovely lines, great timber choices and impressive building

Well, if the gap isn't massive and the bass plays fine then I wouldn't worry about it. Don't worry about feeler gauges - they tend to push the strings up and give oversize readings in any case. Basically, with the 1st and 16th fret positions held down: - if the string at the mid point is hard against the frets, it needs loosening, - if the relief is up to the thickness of a credit card and it plays OK, then it's fine - if it's over, say 1.5mm, then you have a choice - if it plays fine you can leave it alone; if the action feels high to play in places even with the saddles at the right heights, then tighten the rod a touch.

If you are starting from a situation that the neck is strung up and the trussrod is already there or thereabouts, then it is unlikely that any 'seasonal' adjustment would ever be any more than 45 degrees to change a slightly high relief to a lower relief. When you say that it doesn't turn as far - do you mean that the resistance gets so great you can't turn it any further? With the G held down at fret 1 and fret 16, how much of a gap do you have at, say, the 7th?

You mean like this one? : Sorry for the bling, folks, but - in my defense - it was a pretty dull dinted black Squier when it started...

Lovely job. Top drawer...

OK - here's the main 'Quick and Dirty Method' that I posted a while ago. But first let's start with the warnings/disclaimers/just general common sense stuff: Warning: This is NOT the way a pro-luthier would do it because it doesn't involve re-crowning and re-polishing the frets and other important stuff. The method is merely intended as a quick fix on your own bass and at your own risk. Also, the absence of a full finish-polish means it's not great if you string bend on your bass (most of us don't). And don't do this on someone else's bass or any particularly valuable one!!! 1. Quick and Dirty way of finding and tackling high spots on frets Use the straight part of an old credit card to use as a 'rocker'. Put the straight edge over 3 frets (use both hands...my other hand here is holding the camera) and does it rock? If it does, then it indicates a high spot at that string position for the middle fret of the three. Do this next to each string for that middle-of-the-three fret and repeat all the way up the board. Normally, when I'm not holding a camera, I would be holding the other side of the card with the other hand and just gently applying pressure on either side. Make a note of any high spot on a simple chart: You must be using the straight part of the card edge and not where it starts curving at the corners and also the edge must be covering only three frets at a time. As the frets start closing up, just use the shorter edge to make sure you're still only covering 3 frets: On a bass, for the first few frets, a credit card isn't long enough. Anything straight and thin will do! : Note, by the way, that you can't check the 1st fret (rare that this is an issue if the nut is cut properly) Next - on the frets where there is a high spot, mark the top of the fret with a non-permanent sharpie: Then take an emery board nail file (most supermarkets, Boots, etc): Use your finger to apply pressure and file gently back and forth in the direction of the fret and where the high spot was under that particular string. The sharpie line disappearing will show you if you're filing in the right place which only needs to be under the actual string that you marked an 'X' against on your plan. A bit either side is OK but don't stray to another string's position unless that was also marked as high. Make sure while you do this bit that the emery board is level so you don't scratch the fretboard itself (and if you have the opportunity, protect the wood with a couple of thin strips of masking tape). Check frequently with the credit card until it doesn't rock anymore THEN STOP! If you have a whole fret that appears to be high, first check that it is seated properly on the fretboard. If it isn't, tap it lightly along the fret with a hammer and recheck. If it's still high, then use the emery board, potentially along the whole fret - but check with the credit card at each string position frequently so you don't overdo it. The fret top will be slightly flat where you've levelled it. On a bass, Quick and Dirty says don't worry about that - I would defy anybody who says they can hear an intonation difference (although you can on a 6 string electric). Also the fret top will be slightly scratched. But the scratches will be along the fret direction and shouldn't give a problem. If it worries you, a fingernail buffer will polish those out to a decent extent (what's a fingernail buffer? Ask wife/partner/sister/mother...they will be in the same area as the emery nail boards)

Hi Martin Yes - sounds like a quick and dirty will fix it. I'll post the 'how to' in the morning

When you say, 'just getting a buzz on the D string', is that at multiple fret positions? If it is a few high spots, I did a 'Quick and Dirty' guide not so long ago - I'll try to dig that out...but if it is buzzing at more than two or three specific positions, then there is probably something else afoot and the quick and dirty method may cause more problems than solve them! I'll dig out the 'quick and dirty' in the meantime

Great minds alike

I'm a bit out of date ref today's offerings relating to piezo bridges but, generally, for the piezos themselves I would generally start with Graphtec - their products are generally well made and they have a decent range of most related stuff. Oh - and ordering from them is generally pretty painless. But, personally, I would only use them for the piezo hardware itself - I would generally look elsewhere for pre-amps/etc. Are you planning to continue with magnetic pickups too? If so, you will need a blending pre-amp to cope with the huge difference in impedance and output of piezo vs magnetic. For this, I would generally go John East but. as @kodiakblair says, Artec do have some stuff that is great band-for-the-buck.

Yes - as above The red ones: loosen them to slide the whole block backwards or forwards to set your intonation. Re-tighten when you're happy with the position The green ones: loosen to allow the saddles to move up or down (see blue below) and, again, re-tighten once you are happy with the heights. The blue ones: to raise or lower the saddles once you've loosened the locking stud, circled green above.

The shape of the body is predominately about personal preference, so no, if you are happy with it, then it isn't an issue.

In what way different?

Hi @honza992 Yes - Fiebings Black Leather die is available on the Italian Amazon site (and probably elsewhere). It is very black and pretty much the standard go-to for staining fretboards, etc. No stain penetrates particularly deeply and so the usual method is to apply the stain, let dry, sand a few times to fully raise and flatten the grain, and then apply a couple of coats before adding your final finish. What are you using for that final finish? I use a variation of the Tru-oil slurry and buff method for stained finishes, either as a final finish or as a silky smooth undercoat for compatible gloss finishes (polyurethane varnish covers this very well) but most other finishes will work with the stained wood.

Likewise, I used a velcro cable tie when this started happening in a gig. Around 4 years later, I got round to sorting it properly

A superb video @funkle and a superb result. Top quality stuff all round

Oooooh.... lovely!

Hi, @paulo m I have a block of ebony waiting patiently for @fretmeister 's next bass purchase ( ) but it is certainly a deep enough piece for two or three ramps assuming the overall length and width that you need is no larger. So yes, I could probably make you one. I'm tied up this evening but I'll drop you a PM tomorrow. Andy

Go for it! The J-only and the P-J blended sounds will be tangibly different to the P-only sound. The J will produce a different tone not only because it is closer to the bridge, but also because the sonics of a single-coil J is very different to those of a P design. I would strongly urge you to consider a blend rather than an on-off three way switch, but, either way, you will find that those different tones at your disposal give you options in different venues and genres that can be very useful. Do be aware, of course, that any non-reversible mod to a guitar or bass will reduce its resale value, regardless of how well it's done.

Great to see you on here again, John!! And very pleased that you were able to make the Italy move in spite of all the challenges! Hope all well with you and yours. Your levels of quality always did put mine to shame, but that looks the bees knees. Lovely job