Dosi Y'Anarchy

I've recently starting trying to give the VI a real go and got a Squire Classic Vibe about a month ago. I'll try not to repeat whats already been said but thicker gauge strings are a must. Personally, i find the Bass VI slightly thin sounding on its own with a low output compared to a "regular" bass, but decent EQ will help with that. I've currently using a DOD FX10 Bifet Preamp and have just taken delivery of a Mantic Thug, which i am helping will replace the DOD. Having the extra strings is opening up a whole new world for me creatively and has me writing basslines in a totally different way to how i usually would, i'm really enjoying it and am starting to fill out more of the sound that would usually be taken by a second guitarist, allowing me to melodic "second guitar" parts in some places but traditional bass lines in others. Unless i want to downtune, in which case, ill grab a different bass.

My modified Pawnshop Mustang

I think im 5'5 or 5'6 and i've no problems with long scale basses, i did struggle with the 45mm nut width of the Classic 50's P when combined with the longer reach but i still could play fine. I'm almost exclusively on short scale basses now, except where i need to downtune significantly or need the harmonics on the 9th fret (they dont ring out as clear on short scale basses i find). So i have one band that i need both those things so thats where the Sterling SUB comes in. I also regularly use my Gibson DC Tribute bass, which is also 30 inch scale but a totally different tone to the mustang. Currently, however i'm trying to shoehorn my Squier VI into everything i do.

Here are my thoughts, i've owned and played Ps, Js, Mustangs, Musicmasters and Broncos quite a bit and have debated short vs long scales many times. Obviously others experiences may differ. Tone In terms of tone, I notice that full-scale bases tend to have "bottomless" quality to low end, where as short-scale basses are indeed bassy but can (not will) have a warmer and slightly more congested low-mid to my ears and sound less "focused". I find that short-scale basses tend to have a stronger mid-rage compared to their long scale counterparts and because of this, can sound thinner sometimes in the deep lows because the low-mids are pretty warm I tested this out by recording the same line with my MIM Classic 50s P and my Pawnshop Mustang (with Nordstrand NM4), whilst the P has a very present midrange, it also seemed a bit deeper, whereas the mustang sounded "pokier" HOWEVER, this isnt necessarily a night and day difference and YMMV. The Nordstrand NM4 sounds alot more like a p-bass than the stock mustang pickups do (which remind me more of a cross between Jazz and P) Playability I'm a short guy and the mustang is possibly one of the most comfortable basses ive ever played, I've still got it but sold the P. Honestly, I love my mustang and with some careful eq-ing you might be hard pressed to tell the difference between that and a Precision. But the thinner neck and shorter reach make it a breeze to play. An important couple of things to mention is that a short scale bass with the same gauge string as a long scale bass will have lower tension and can feel floppy. I always get heavier gauges on short scales. To add to this, if you downtune, this can be problematic on a shortscale bass as the strings just get floppy as hell, I play in one band that does dropped D but down half a step (so drop c#?), had to give up on the short scales for that and use a Sterling SUB instead.

Oh god, this thread is putting my dreams of a rascal build to shame. I've almost given up on mine.

Awesome. Is that the paddle head one?

Thanks. That's a very good point. Hmm in wondering whether it's worth trying to place the neck further down on the body or just give up on the long scale neck. There was some talk on another thread of Chinese Coronado bass necks that should do the trick.

Well I'm pretty sure the neck is on wonky and she's gonna be a mammoth when she's finally up and running. Look at the size of her compared to my Mustangs

Love this thread. Its especially close to my heart as im making a Rascal out of a Squier VI!

New Bridge and Neck have arrived! I'll get photos up later. I'm using the Rebirth IV as a rough guide and have a similar bridge with a long scale neck with blocks and binding on a rosewood board. I've widened the neck pocket a little, we'll see how well that turned out later I when i get home tonight. I've sprayed the body a slightly off-which looks good but to be honest, looks a little pedestrian. I'm really loving the green and yellow models of the new G&L Fallout Basses so I'm thinking a yellow to make it stand out. My concerns are currently: 1) Grounding Wire: It occurs to me that i cant find a grounding wire, this may have been part of the original bridge assembly and be attached to the little bridge ferrules, which i'm not using (although they are still there but wont have any contact with the strings as the bridge will be placed elsewhere. 2) Placing the bridge: Not totally sure how to do this properly. Both getting it centred and doing the scale properly. I think i have got a good idea from doing some research online but the proof of the pudding will be when i spill it all over the new carpet. 3) getting the neck on, straight, aligned and tight enough to not look totally cr*p.

I think a Squier Starcaster Bass would be fantastic. I really wanted a Fender one, but a few things put me off. As Squier have resurrected the Starcaster model, it wouldn't be impossible to think that they would bring a bass out. It would also give the Squier bass line something they don't have, a hollow body bass!

I've played one a few times. LOVE the neck pickup. Possibly one of the best budget short scale basses on the market

I sent Taka a message but he hasn't got back to me yet but I noticed he uses those big Stingray copy bridges and his bass vi is actually long scale. So with that in mind, I've bought one of those bridges and a long scale neck with blocks and binding. Gonna be a steep learning curve for me as I'm likely going to have to widen the neck pocket and learn to fit the neck straight and then learn how to place a bridge (place it straight AND at the correct distance)

Thanks! I just sent Taka a message to see if he could help me out!

So. Looks like a bass VI neck is 21 frets and the Bronco is 19. Would this theoretically mean I would need to reposition the bridge two frets (approx) further away from the neck? At this stage I'm wondering whether it would be easier to mount my bronco bass bridge onto the existing tremolo plate.