EssentialTension

[quote name='Fat Rich' timestamp='1363104121' post='2008552'] Exactly, having a replaceable neck is a stupid idea. What bassists really need is a bolt-on body bass. [/quote] Some Gibsons might benefit from a bolt-on headstock.

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1363103651' post='2008541'] You could turn this on its head and I could ask if someone would tell me why my performance would be improved if I were to play a Fender. I'll give you what I believe to be the simple reason - IT DOESN'T MATTER! A bass is a bass and as long as it's of mechanical and electronic integrity then it will make pleasingly rumbly low notes that make people dance and glue the drummer to the rest of the band. You know which "camp" I'm in, but I harbour no hate for any brand. Actually, considering the runaround I've been given recently in my attempts to procure a Grabber 3 70s Tribute bass that is fit for purpose (have given up), I'm not in a terrific mood with Gibson USA at the moment either [/quote] Yes, nobody's any good because of the bass they play.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1363102123' post='2008506'] I'm a little in the dark with this, still. Would a Fender hater care to chip in and let me know in what ways my performance (musical, that is) would be improved if I were to play another brand? Thank you. [/quote] [quote name='Big_Stu' timestamp='1363102960' post='2008525'] Has anyone anywhere, apart from here, used the word "hate"? One thing that is repeatedly frustrating about this forum is users who introduce a loaded word into a thread as though it's already been used & then the discussion goes off on that tangent based on a false assumption. (see under "Beatles" thread) [/quote] Any dispute over the 'hate' word is irrelevant to the content of the question asked. The question is 'How would WoT (or anyone else) improve his or her performance by using a non-Fender bass?'

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1363103178' post='2008528'] TBH I've never seen any instrument with the neck so badly damaged that it couldn't be fixed that didn't also have significant damage to the body. In fact I recall a video posted on here some time back that showed someone (bassist from Guitar Wolf?) trying to smash his Fender bass at the end of a gig. He broke a piece off the body long before doing anything serious to the neck (if at all). IMO the bolt-on neck as an ease to repair is a solution to a problem that doesn't really exist. [/quote] Yes, the stairs probably wouldn't do much damage anyway.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1363102123' post='2008506'] I'm a little in the dark with this, still. Would a Fender hater care to chip in and let me know in what ways my performance (musical, that is) would be improved if I were to play another brand? Thank you. [/quote] What a good question.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1363101851' post='2008499'] What? I'm failing to see any real benefits apart from maybe an ease of construction by people who aren't trained woodworkers/luthiers, and maybe helps to reduce the overall cost of the instrument. Is that what you want? cheapness before functionality? I'm afraid I can't hear any empirical evidence for differences in sound since all the bolt-on neck basses I have are also different in lots of other ways besides the construction at the point where the neck meets the body. If there are basses out there that are completely identical except for this can someone point me in their direction? [/quote] I'm quite happy with bolt-ons but I'd agree with this. The one other (not very important) advantage of bolt-on is that when you drop it down the stairs it's easy to fit a new neck.

[quote name='Bigjas' timestamp='1363094778' post='2008287'] That is so clever I'm sure it won't be 100% accurate all the time with all songs, but it makes working out songs so much easier. This is a long way from when I used to sit at a tape deck, starting and stopping and rewinding songs to work them out Jas [/quote] Tape deck? You were lucky. Lifting the needle back a few grooves that was the old way.

I'd probably say that the La Bellas are my favoured ones but I've used Pyramids regularly too and also Rotosounds which are quite similar to the GHS ones.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1363091779' post='2008200'] OK I'll see if there's something in the Fender back catalogue that could be subtly adapted to suit what I want. I'm warning you, it'll have 5-strings for a start though... [/quote] Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1363091297' post='2008181'] I [i]do [/i]have my own private jar of Marmite - but I use that for smearing on my nipples. [/quote] Well, be careful with the knife even if it's a clean one.

Grain pattern: Knot:

[quote name='gjones' timestamp='1363090965' post='2008173'] I've googled for possible links on warping due to knots in the wood and there seems to be quite a bit of evidence, from experts, to support that over time a weakness can develop at the point of the knot. The OP has also asked for advice from Talkbass and The Fender Forum too and there is some anecdotal stories of similar problems from other bassists and guitarists. I have an open mind about it now. [/quote] Fair enough, but what he has pictures of is not at all a 'knot' according to some of the commentators; it's merely a grain pattern. So there still seems to be some confusion. What he seems to be describing as a 'knot' I have three of on the neck of my Precision and have had on other instruments with no problem.

[quote name='ead' timestamp='1363090775' post='2008166'] Does the fact that by and large these strings are pretty heavy gauge that the tension is correspondingly high or is that just the effect of the wrapping? [/quote] I haven't tried all of them but they certainly do vary. For example the D'Addario black nylons are lighter gauge and lower tension. I've never been too worried or fussed by the gauge differences.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1363090669' post='2008164'] What I really meant was, [i]other people[/i] get bloody butter in the Marmite jar... [/quote] Not if you have your own private jar of Marmite.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1363090418' post='2008158'] [size=4] But then you get butter in the Marmite jar! ... [/quote] Not if you use a clean knife.

[quote name='Dave Vader' timestamp='1363090062' post='2008152'] The squeezy thing is wrong, you just need a jar, with marmite in. And a knife, all the rest is just custom shop madness..... [/quote] I hate that squeezy Marmite. What a mess and it's runnier.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1363089652' post='2008146'] ... Of course if Fender came and offered to make me the bass of my dreams for free, even I'd find that hard to resist and would most likely come up with something equally inappropriate. [/quote] So, go on BRX, what could Fender do for you? I'm thinking maybe a custom shop Coronado with a set neck and your own chosen characteristics?

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1363088659' post='2008127'] Which tosh in particular are your disagreeing with? There's several pages of it. [/quote] As usual.

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1363085125' post='2008018'] This thread has reinforced what I thought all along - Fender can't win. [/quote] ... but we Fender users know they do win, don't we.

[quote name='gjones' timestamp='1363082387' post='2007955'] You know........you may be right? I've been reading this and the guy in question took it to two repair guys and both concluded it was the knot that caused the problem [url="http://forums.fender.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=55505&start=15"]http://forums.fender...=55505&start=15[/url] Good old Fender QC. [/quote] But, if you read the whole of that thread you linked to, it's still in dispute as to whether they actually are knots and whether they are the cause of the problem.

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1363031871' post='2007385'] ... most bass players and bass makers broadly agree nowadays that a bolt on neck is best .... [/quote] Bolt-on neck is not best on a hollow body.

Never say never because there are set-neck Teles: [url="http://www.fender.com/en-GB/series/special-edition/special-edition-custom-telecaster-fmt-hh/"]http://www.fender.com/en-GB/series/special-edition/special-edition-custom-telecaster-fmt-hh/[/url]

[quote name='gjones' timestamp='1363043378' post='2007644'] Those are the ones I knicked from Haimsey and put on my facebook page to show the perils of smoking. [/quote] I thought you might have knicked the whole collection.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1363031012' post='2007361'] Have Fender ever made any basses with though- or set-necks? [/quote] I don't think so. Even the hollow bodies like the Coronado had a bolt-on.

[quote name='ead' timestamp='1363041508' post='2007604'] I thought I might try a set out. Do any of you fine people have good/bad experiences that are noteworthy? The ones that immediately spring to mind are the Rotos, D'Addriao and Picato offerings, but I presume there are others out there. [/quote] La Bella, Fender, Status, Pyramid and GHS too, and probably others. As usual, they are all a bit different and there's no substitute for trying them.