Sell Stingray for lighter bass?

DefaultM · August 2017

I was getting some buzz on my fretless squier so I intentionally raised the action, but it still doesn't seem as high as the stingray. I find that the fretless is easier to play as well.

Maybe I should take it to be set up before I start rushing in to selling it. It won't make it any lighter, but it might make it easier to play which will make it seem like less of a strain.

guitarfishbay · August 2017

DefaultM said:

I'm going to have a look when I get in. It does seem very high but I checked the saddles and they're down as far as they'll go.

You might need to shim if that's the case.

DefaultM · August 2017

Considering a squier affinity PJ. Any good? It's about £85.

Winny_Pooh · August 2017

Nope, the VM are way better

DefaultM · August 2017

I've got a vm jazz fretless and it is really good, but they're about double the price of that particular affinity.

What is it that isn't as good about the affinity? I'll be changing the pickups to the seymour duncan quarter pounder set so electronics are fine.

DefaultM · August 2017

I weighed it and it came in at around 10.5lbs which isn't even that heavy really. I must just be weak haha.

guitarfishbay · August 2017

Do you have a suitable strap?

10.5lb is moderately heavy, I'd definitely be using a wide strap for an instrument of that weight.

DefaultM · August 2017

I've got a nice leather one on it, but I don't think it's particularly wide. I will try my levys one.

Measured the action as well. It wasn't 1cm, it was about 4mm. Still a lot, but I'd obviously underestimated how big 1cm is.

Bridgehouse · August 2017

I bet something like a wide padded mono strap would make a lot of that weight easier to manage - I have one and it's good for balance

DefaultM · August 2017

Is 4mm action high on a bass? It's just when I bought it the guy included a receipt for a set up that it had just had.

guitarfishbay · August 2017

I'd call 4mm high

Bridgehouse · August 2017

Which fret are you measuring at? 4mm would be high for me.

More importantly, what's the neck relief? I think that has a bigger bearing on whether it feels high

DefaultM · August 2017

Measuring at 12th fret. There's a little bit of a dip in it, but not loads.

Bridgehouse · August 2017

Try to get it as straight as you can. You should be able to halve the action on yours with no significant buzzing at all

fretmeister · August 2017

10,5lb is much too heavy for me. I'd sell it.

DefaultM · August 2017

I asked the weight of the squier PJ and they came back with a very helpful 'medium weight', so I've ordered it and if it's too heavy I'll just send it back.

I hope it's ok for me. It would be pretty good to replace a £1000 bass with an £85 one.
I've got an £80 amazon voucher so I can get myself some new pickups for free as well.

DefaultM · August 2017

Oh and I found myself looking at videos of the rickenbacker 4001. They sound amazing, but they also look very large and heavy?

ICBM · August 2017

DefaultM said:

Oh and I found myself looking at videos of the rickenbacker 4001. They sound amazing, but they also look very large and heavy?

It's deceptive. They're not that big - the scale length is slightly shorter than a Fender - 33.25" vs 34" - not much, but enough to proportionately reduce the size of the whole thing more than you would expect - and not that heavy, because the body is also thinner than a Fender (1.25") even though they're all-maple. Obviously they vary a bit, but mine is 9lb 4oz - including the bridge pickup cover, which a lot of people take off. (Probably doesn't weigh much, but every little counts!)

I'm only 5'6" and skinny, and I find it the most comfortable bass design - more so than most short-scale/thin-body ones like the Fender Mustang.

The problem from your point of view is that they are expensive - you're unlikely to find even a second-hand one in tolerable condition for under a grand - and cheap copies are all junk to some extent or another… although you may be lucky and find a 70s Ibanez or one of the better Shaftesbury-branded ones (which are most likely from the same factory) for around half that or a bit less. There are cheaper versions of both brands with bolt-on necks and generally lower quality though, so be careful.

DefaultM · August 2017

I think I'll wait until I'm a bit better at playing. I don't really want to go from looking for a really cheap bass to buying a £1400 one.

I'm only really playing bass in the covers band. I'm good enough that I can play any pink floyd song, but if I was in an originals band I seriously doubt I could come up with my own interesting parts or know what I'm doing.

ICBM · August 2017

DefaultM said:

I'm only really playing bass in the covers band. I'm good enough that I can play any pink floyd song, but if I was in an originals band I seriously doubt I could come up with my own interesting parts or know what I'm doing.

That's never stopped me

.

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Sell Stingray for lighter bass?

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