Status Smart Bass

[Marcus]

Hi Guys,

love Status Basses..... always have, had loads but that double soapbar pup configuration never really cut it in a band for me.....


Considering a Smart bass with MM / J configuration

Any opinions, does it sound like a Stingray with the MM pup solo'd ?

ATB

Mark

[Dr.Dave]

Yes - to a large extent. There are many other small variables though. The construction/materials/hardware etc will all play a part. Pickup position especially.

[martthebass]

Just cut out the middleman Mark and get a (another?) Stingray

Edited September 17, 2008 by martthebass

[OutToPlayJazz]

Great idea. You'll have to be quick, as Rob is discontinuing the SmartBass range. It's down to whatever parts they've got left made up now

I played one with just a precision style pickup & it was quite nice. Your suggested pickup configuration sounds really nice. Would like to see that one.

Rich.

[martthebass]

[quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='286093' date='Sep 17 2008, 05:36 PM']Great idea. You'll have to be quick, as Rob is discontinuing the SmartBass range. It's down to whatever parts they've got left made up now

I played one with just a precision style pickup & it was quite nice. Your suggested pickup configuration sounds really nice. Would like to see that one.

Rich.[/quote]

I tried one of these a few months back Rich - somehow it just didn't feel like a 'real' Status......sorry. Guess I'm picky - if I ever aquire a Status it'll have to be a 'good un'

[Marcus]

Had my fair share of Statti over the years..... love the tone, feel and playability

5 x Kingbasses (incl MK's Black Beauty proto)
4 x 2000's
4 x S2's (including Strata 16 - sold it to Andre)
2 x Empathy (Headed)
1 x Stealth

I like Graphite..... I'm loving the MM / J thing - it has to be THE most versatile PUP set-up

Need a good solid Stingray tone for my little dep gig I do every once in a while....

Guess i'd better call Dawn and see what bits are left !!

Considering a Status Neck for my Ray..... decisions / decisions ?

[martthebass]

[quote name='Marcus' post='286161' date='Sep 17 2008, 07:08 PM']Considering a Status Neck for my Ray..... decisions / decisions ?[/quote]

Now that I'd like - just need the £3-400 to sort it (probably worth more than the Ray in the current climate).

Status wise I'd love a Stealth - the money for that may take a little longer...

[Marcus]

[quote name='martthebass' post='286181' date='Sep 17 2008, 07:47 PM']Now that I'd like - just need the £3-400 to sort it (probably worth more than the Ray in the current climate).[/quote]

Fair Point..... although I did get £750 for my last Ray in about an hour on here.... !

[Kev]

get a status neck for the ray, it just makes the bass crazy good

[Marcus]

[quote name='BassManKev' post='286255' date='Sep 17 2008, 09:45 PM']get a status neck for the ray, it just makes the bass crazy good[/quote]

I'm gonna give it some serious consideration over then next couple of days.....

[martthebass]

[quote name='Marcus' post='286253' date='Sep 17 2008, 09:40 PM']Fair Point..... although I did get £750 for my last Ray in about an hour on here.... ![/quote]
Was it gold plated?

[Marcus]

[quote name='martthebass' post='286273' date='Sep 17 2008, 10:13 PM']Was it gold plated?[/quote]

No mate..... Natural Ash / Maple 2 Band

[zaksnaporaz]

Hi,

I have a Smart Bass from Status since 2005, with ash body and a single MM pickup. I went for that pickup because I like the Stingray kind of tone, but was a bit disappointed after trying it for the first time.

What I liked was that particular bright and grinding overtone sound typical of a graphite neck combined with a body wood such as ash.
What I disliked was the fundamental tone, with a too much lower-mids shifted ground tone (sounds dull, somewhat blurred and unsweet to my ears, but the loads of overtones are masking this so it's not easy to pinpoint) and harmonics not being very similar to the typical Stingray tone I was after. So I asked to Rob Green to please explain, and all he replied was that the Status pickup - unlike the Stingray - features ceramic blade magnets with the 2 coils wired in series. I thought oh well there we go and went to check whether I could wire the pickup coils in parallel like on Stingrays ; but unfortunately there are only 2 wires coming off the totally sealed Status pickup, so I just gave up and went on for a few years while experimenting on other basses also with a MM pickup, actually ending up purchasing a Stingray.

It wasn't until recently that I decided to try and change the pickup on my Status Smart Bass.

So I went for a Seymour Duncan SMB-4A (AlnicoV) replacement pickup that I had mounted on another bass, finally changing it for a softer Bartolini MMC that was better coping with the rather rigid tonal characteristic of that other bass. Once the Seymour pickup installed in the Smart Bass, I tried a few wirings but ended up keeping the parallel: this significantly changed the tone ...for the better !

Now the fundamental is nicely punchy and focused (like on a Stingray) and the overtones - although not essentially different from before - do feature that particular and very addictive "dzing" so typical of Stingrays.

Hah, I must say I'm very happy about my modification and am finally going to keep my Smart Bass instead of try selling it away as I was perhaps finally planning to do: it sure is a very nice alternative to my Stingray, with these graphite neck -like overtones (a bit similar to the Modulus Flea bass). And its construction is really awesome - that's gotta be said about Status !!

cheers
zak

[Wil]

I think the fundamental tone of graphite has always left a little something to be desired to my ears - yes, it gives a nice high mid edge, but I've always found the bottom lacking the definiton of a wood neck. I found this on both my old Status S2 Classic and my current graphite necked P bass - my old wood necked Status S1 though didn't suffer from this.

[Merton]

[quote name='Wil' post='313782' date='Oct 24 2008, 01:40 PM']I think the fundamental tone of graphite has always left a little something to be desired to my ears - yes, it gives a nice high mid edge, but I've always found the bottom lacking the definiton of a wood neck. I found this on both my old Status S2 Classic and my current graphite necked P bass - my old wood necked Status S1 though didn't suffer from this.[/quote]
I have to say the fundamental tone of my Retroactive is perfect - for me. I think it's got the most bottom-end clarity and guts that any of my basses have ever had, except poss my Groove fretless which is just monstrously huge!

[Wil]

[quote name='Merton' post='313928' date='Oct 24 2008, 04:12 PM']I have to say the fundamental tone of my Retroactive is perfect - for me. I think it's got the most bottom-end clarity and guts that any of my basses have ever had, except poss my Groove fretless which is just monstrously huge![/quote]

I think it's probably because the tone in my head is pretty much unobtainable without a Stingray or Warwick I've found graphite basses letting me down in that regard - it's certainly not a bad tone, just not the one I want.

[OutToPlayJazz]

I know what you mean about the fundamental "wooden" sound. The one I like is usually heard on Sadowskys, Foderas & I've more recently heard it on Pedulla Buzz basses.

The graphite neck is hugely resonant, though. I think it sounds different at home to the sound you get out at a gig through your main rig. When I'm out, especially with the rock/pop band, nothing cuts through the mix like a graphite necked Status. I find the bottom end is crystal clear with huge punch.

So whereas I understand where people are coming from & like the "wood" sound myself (especially on high end instruments!), I still love the crystal clear hifi sound of my Status basses

Rich.

[zaksnaporaz]

Yes, I do love the sound of good woods: I am currently experimenting with a p-bass of which I once found a cheap body made of wood layers (is that called plywood ?), it all started from there. But even with a good Fralin pickup the tone was perhaps fairly deep and with decent treble, but lacking the nice resonant throaty mids and tight bass you'd expect from a good ole p-bass. So I'm currently getting a zebrano wood body made, I'm curious to see the result...

But let's get back to graphite necks: I think the high mids grit is just as addictive as good wood tone can be, but in another way. It might be or not be your cup of tea, but I don't think one is inferior to the other - unlike cheap woods that definitely are a trade off to the tone, no matter how good the pickup is.

And talking about pickups, I generally don't think much of the series wound humbuckers - with the exception of the p-bass split coil that sure is series wound but with only one of the pickups giving the tone of a note, the other just acting like a dummy for hum cancellation and mild low pass filter. That is exactly why I really like Stingrays much better than Sterlings that feature a ceramic pickup wound in such way to sound decent when wired in series, but with the result of sounding a bit lame when wired in parallel: actually to my ears it does not sound very good in any of the wiring positions. On the contrary a good old Stingray just sounds fantastic with that typical parallel coils and alnico magnets tone that - fair enough - might not be everybodys cup of tea. No wonder that I wasn't digging the MM Status pickup very much, although it is not too bad. But that AlnicoV SD pickup in parallel wiring that it's in there now just makes that bass shine, I can't stop playing it...it's like I grabbed its sweet spot or G-spot.