suzi 9mm

Ha! Thanks Frank Blank! Strangely, although i'm quite petite (and female) I also somehow feel that I need a 'large' bass to make me look cool. However even more than this I want to sound good, so if a shorter scale is going to help me then I'm right in there! Also I find the weight of the bass guitar is giving me problems these days - I get tired at practices when playing for a couple of hours or more. And my hands get tired which results in mistakes. Anyway I read that Tina Weymouth has used a short scale, and she is (predictably) my idol! So thanks again for your comments and encouragement!

Thanks very much Marc S, that's really helpful. It wounds like getting the right strings can make a difference. I might try going fretted from now on ... a bit of a change but I'm ready for a change! I'm not sure I'm ready to pay for a Fender Jazz (yet), maybe I need to get a cheap-ish 30" first, just to see how it feels to play. Thanks again!

I read this thread with interest - I'm new to the forum, joined it to get some advice on short scale basses. I've been playing bass for 20 years on and off, but always found the bass guitar a big stretch for my hands, particularly when playing fast riffs or basslines that jump around a lot. Practice helps, but even with practice I can't play as fluidly as I'd like. Also I play fretless - hitting the notes in the right place is essential so that increases the challenge! I'd always assumed that short scale basses wouldn't sound so good - but maybe ta 30" bass is is the answer. Marc S how do you find the 30" jazz, sound wise? And Frank Blank I'd love to hear how you're getting on with the fretless SWB-1?