The Short Scale Bass Appreciation Society!

[ped]

On 30/12/2025 at 15:21, Woodinblack said:

 

Not in a standard musicmaster - one tone, one volume, one tone cap, one pickup, one socket, and thats the lot - built the cheapest it could be.

Further research shows that there is indeed a second cap fitted, which some people snip for more treble (I won’t) 

 

You can see them both here - one rectangle (the one some people snip) and a circular one behind it. I guess the rectangular one is the additional one to better voice the pickup for bass 

 

 

[Obrienp]

6 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said:

While a few people have genuine reasons for needing a short scale, the number of kids playing long scale on 'influencer' videos shows that they are not needed by most small folk.

 

Short scales sound and feel very different though, and to me they are a lot of fun to play.

I think it is more than a few people. Try oldies and there are a lot of us. Size, weight and stretch become issues when you have back and joint problems. You might be spared but many of us aren’t. The sweet spot for me at the moment is medium scale but shorties are even more forgiving and may become my standard in the not too distant future as arthritis progresses. At the moment I use a couple in one band because they suit the material we play.

 

I am not always convinced by the kids with full scale basses. They may be able to slap the hell out of a six string for 5 minutes but could they get through a full gig with that beast over their shoulder? I guess Tal Wilkenfeld is the prime example of a small person who can and is a brilliant bassist in multiple styles.

[Lozz196]

Def, short scale much better for me now for both weight and size.

[The fasting showman]

9 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said:

While a few people have genuine reasons for needing a short scale, the number of kids playing long scale on 'influencer' videos shows that they are not needed by most small folk.

 

Short scales sound and feel very different though, and to me they are a lot of fun to play.

Definitely agree re sound; when one of the guitar players in the band I'm in bought a bass IV, switching to a Fallout bass solved a lot of problems. 

I'd been using a very nice P bass up to then but the Fallout sounding so even across the board, ( particularly played high up the dusty end) it really sat in the spectrum below the bass IV without competing for the same space.

 

I marvel sometimes how 2 30 inch scale basses ( admittedly one into a guitar rig, one into a bass amp setup) can separate out so well. The Fallout is capable of being physically an octave above the bass IV yet feeling much deeper. It didn't work like that with the Precision. 

All very subjective and unique to that band situation obviously. 

[Woodinblack]

3 hours ago, ped said:

Further research shows that there is indeed a second cap fitted, which some people snip for more treble (I won’t) 

 

You can see them both here - one rectangle (the one some people snip) and a circular one behind it. I guess the rectangular one is the additional one to better voice the pickup for bass 

 

Interestingly, one of those is wired permanently on, one is added by the tone control

[RichT]

11 hours ago, scrumpymike said:

Interesting to see and hear The Kooks' bass player putting some neat bass-lines down with a Hofner Club on Jools Holland's Hootenanny last night/this morning.

 

Well spotted! Another one to add to my post over on the Hofner thread. Although, as we learnt over there, the rules say it doesn't count unless he's played one for the majority of his career.* 

 

 

(*by which reckoning I also have to stop associating Flea, Tim Commerford and Pino with Stingrays 🙄)

[Obrienp]

Every time I hear mention of the Bass VI I get gas and I was hoping to be a star of the gear abstinence thread this year! 😳 I can’t explain why they appeal. It’s a pretty daft design really with that whammy bar set up and the string spacing is narrow, even for my tiny Trump like digits! Perhaps it is because Jack Bruce played one at some stage and the Beatles had one kicking around. I’ve probably seen other hero’s from my teens using them as well.

[ezbass]

7 hours ago, RichT said:

 

(*by which reckoning I also have to stop associating Flea, Tim Commerford and Pino with Stingrays

You’re OK with Pino, he has used his quite extensively with his recent collaboration with Blake Mills.

[ped]

I reckon Dec 31st is the worst day to have a bass posted! Bank holiday, snowy Friday, weekend… 🙃

[Stub Mandrel]

46 minutes ago, Obrienp said:

Every time I hear mention of the Bass VI I get gas and I was hoping to be a star of the gear abstinence thread this year! 😳 I can’t explain why they appeal. It’s a pretty daft design really with that whammy bar set up and the string spacing is narrow, even for my tiny Trump like digits! Perhaps it is because Jack Bruce played one at some stage and the Beatles had one kicking around. I’ve probably seen other hero’s from my teens using them as well.

 

I tried one (not sure brand) at a bass bash and it didn't suit my style at all. Felt disappointed ... nothing to do with quality or setup,  just felt too 'electric guitary' to my fat fingers.

[Obrienp]

1 hour ago, Stub Mandrel said:

 

I tried one (not sure brand) at a bass bash and it didn't suit my style at all. Felt disappointed ... nothing to do with quality or setup,  just felt too 'electric guitary' to my fat fingers.

GAS abated! 👍

[DF Shortscale]

Has this been mentioned here yet? Seems like it will hit the spot for a lot of people in this thread, Fender Japan Chilli Beans / Maika Mustang (although it's made in Indonesia I think). Almost exactly what I was after a couple of years ago, if I was still searching for a short scale I would 100% grab one of these. 

 

[jezzaboy]

And as if by magic...

 

 

[RichT]

It looks and sounds great, I'd love one... but from Lobster's review it seems that again Fender are specifically prohibiting them from being sold or shipped outside Japan? Absolutely insane decision, I want to spend my money on their product but they've arbitrarily decided they're not going to sell it to me because of where I live. I honestly don't get it. 

[Paul S]

A few years ag my old band shared a night with a band called Jamie Williams and the Root Collective - they were a lot of fun.  Great bass player - I didn't recognise the bass but it sounded amazing so I asked him about it.  He had effectively modded himself one of these from a Squier Bronco - JJ pups, new electrics, scratchplate, bridge and tuners. 

[scrumpymike]

8 hours ago, RichT said:

It looks and sounds great, I'd love one... but from Lobster's review it seems that again Fender are specifically prohibiting them from being sold or shipped outside Japan? Absolutely insane decision, I want to spend my money on their product but they've arbitrarily decided they're not going to sell it to me because of where I live. I honestly don't get it. 

My sentiments exactly!

 

I don't know what the Fender marketing guys have got for brains. They don't seem to understand that they are trading in a global market with a world-wide shop window. Any attempt to segment the market in a way that appears to disadvantage certain countries (in this case the UK, EU and USA!!) will pi$$ many customers off to the point where brand loyalty is eroded - or even turns into 'brand hostility' over time. And that's really bad news for Fender given that their competitors are routinely matching or beating them in terms of quality and value for money nowadays.

[Frank Blank]

2 hours ago, scrumpymike said:

I don't know what the Fender marketing guys have got for brains.

 

Dog toffee.

 

Edited 7 hours ago by Frank Blank

[DF Shortscale]

Could always order one from ebay, or maybe give Danny at Japan Bass Direct a shout. It will mean shipping and taxes but it’s a relatively cheap bass.

 

Fender USA seems to be funny about cross-breeds of iconic basses (based on the hoops we have to jump through to have a US built J neck or J pickups on a P body..), perhaps a Mustang / Jazz combo doesn’t align with their marketing strategy. Or maybe they think it will just sound bad in a live situation, which it easily might. Short scale jazzes definitely do sound different to Mustangs. Who knows. 

[scrumpymike]

5 minutes ago, DF Shortscale said:

Could always order one from ebay...

Had a quick look yesterday and there appear to be half a dozen sellers all giving the location as Japan. What I don't understand is the massive difference in price from £700 to £1k including delivery.

 

Any ideas what's going on anybody?

[scrumpymike]

33 minutes ago, DF Shortscale said:

...or maybe give Danny at Japan Bass Direct a shout.

Just fired a message at Danny 🙂 

[Obrienp]

I think I would be inclined to make one from a Squier Sonic Bronco, or Mustang as suggested a few posts back up the thread. My experience of Japanese made Fenders is you will want to change the pickups anyway. If you are hacking it about, you may as well put some contours on the slab body as well. Fender high mass bridge and some decent machine heads, and it would still come out a lot cheaper than importing. 

Edited 4 hours ago by Obrienp

[ezbass]

1 hour ago, scrumpymike said:

What I don't understand is the massive difference in price from £700 to £1k including delivery.

 Base price + delivery charge + import duty & VAT?