34 or 35?

[swarfrat]

So I'm a big P-bass fan. Gimme a P-bass with a pick for rock n roll. Not mud, not piano, just articulate fat punchy THUD. And I want a 5-string P, but with skinny string spacing (die hard pick player) and oh I wouldn't mind an offset waist.

I'm a fan of extended scale on guitar, but I'm kinda torn on the bass. Does it matter? FWIW I'm playing D'Addario Tape wound EBT92-5 (and currently throwing away the 50 on top).  I'm  not even sure it needs to be a Warmoth - I'd grab a squire if it did everything I wanted.  The hardest combination seems to be string spacing and pickups. As soon as you route it for the split coil, they assume you want a separate zip code for each string.

Anyone who's gotten a 35, was it everything you ever dreamed? Is it only for piano bass tones, or does it help with the slightly scooped articulate P sound? Is there anything that really nails the P-sound in another form factor? If I get a Gecko, do I need a narrow neck if I'm getting a narrow bridge? I'm not really wanting a 2nd pickup, but won't throw away an otherwise ideal bass because it has one. Is there something that fits my bill off the rack?

 

[Geekydad]

I got a five string jut recently; the B is fairly floppy. I deal with it. I would have gone with a 35" scale Gecko, but I don't think they make them left-handed.

 

[AndyG]

You'll definitely notice the difference in string tension.  However, my 3 current 5's are all 34 inch scale, and I would hardly describe the low B as being floppy.

2 of my 3 5's have the 1 3/4" nut, and I find the string spacing a little more comfortable than the 1 that has the 1 7/8" nut.

Lastly, one of my 5's is a MIM Fender Jazz which I put a "reversed" P pickup in the neck position (Jazz at the bridge - both Bartolinis).  I would hazard to say that I get a pretty authentic P bass tone out of it.

Final option to think about ... Seymour Duncan makes a soapbar (not sure of the model) where the coils are arranged like a P pickup.  I put one of those in a old Korean Spector 5 string that I once had, and it came pretty close to a P bass tone as well when using just the neck pickup.

 

[swarfrat]

The more I think about it - floppy can be cured far more easily, with a broader selection to chose from - by just calling it "Low C". Duh. I already tune my baritone to C or C# anyway.  The Precision V's are still pretty wide - I think they're 18mm spacing rather than 19. I'm shooting for 17.5 (if I were to build a Gecko it'd be a narrow with a Takeuchi bridge.)

I don't know if split coil pickups just don't work well with narrow spacing or what. It's just not a real common option.