Hollow Swamp Ash J-Bass II - Newer FINISHED pics! (page 4)

[tubby.twins]

And, this being my first exotic non-finish neck, it's awesome!  When I picked up the maple one after playing on the Wenge, I literally said to myself, "Ooh gross!"   

Now you know why raw exotic necks are so popular. 

I noticed the same thing on my Gecko necks.  Some of them have thinner fretboards, at least when viewed from the edge.  But it isn't a big deal at all.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

It's not a big deal.  It shows that no two are the same.  I haven't measured to compare the two, but I wonder if it effects the neck contour measurement.  If it has more fretboard, is there less neck for the same contour and vice versa?

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Here we go.  I need to wait for a good sunny day and snap a few outside, cuz it's beautiful!

I wired it V-V-T and 3-way toggle.  There are (2) 9v batteries.  I kept it simple this time and left it just straight up 9v, unlike the other J-Bass which can do both.

The Orange one has the Leo Quan BadASS III string-thru route, and I found a Hipshot bridge for that route.

The twin got a matching bridge.  Both Hipshot A-type, but the Tobacco-burst was originally routed for a Gotoh 206 which has been discontinued, but the only string-thru route offered a year and a half ago.  Anywho the Tobacoo-burst one has the Fender top-load bridge, but I drilled holes to make it string-thru.  I took the bur off and made a slight bevel by hand turning a uni-bit

 

[blue313]

VERY nice!  :headbang:

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

I don't like the thought of cream with Wenge and Ebony, and I'm generally not a Tort shell guy, so a big +1 on the black.
Black would look awesome on this bass.

Since you have a modern vibe going on the headstock, I would suggest the Hipshot 3 string retainer. It will give you a better downward tension on the D string than a regular two-string retainer, and it weighs very very little too, even though I doubt that the weight of a string retainer would have much impact on neck dive.

I just noticed this post. 
+1 on the Hipshot 3 string retainer.  I used that on the other build and love it, so there wasn't a chance it wasn't going on this build too.

 

[NonsenseTele]

Nice couple!

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

The sun came out for a few minutes, so I snapped a few more pics of the mighty orangeness in the sun.

 

[JaySwear]

wow that thing is pretty. i'm definitely not a fan of tortoiseshell pickguards, but this is one of the few times i can really appreciate one! still would have gone with a black pickguard myself  :icon_biggrin:  but that thing is awesome!

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Orange and Black were my HS colors (and Halloween), so pass.  The only reason I was even considering ordering another pickguard was because I forgot to order the Gotoh battery box from W, and I needed to get the order over $25.  Luckily, the place I ordered some of the other hardware from carried the Gotoh battery box.  Even then, there was no guarantee I would've used another non-tortoise pickguard.

 

[chrisg]

Very nice!!

 

[bpmorton777]

great looking bass!!

Im curious to know what motivated you to get 6130 frets on the new one as I see you had 6150 on your TB jazz? What is it? Feel, action? My Guild B301 has super wide short frets and it has a wounderful feel to it. Just woundering if this is why you chose the shorter frets.

Brian

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

I got the 6150s on the T-Burst.  They're fine.  I got 6130s, on my Tele and loved them.  The fret size doesn't effect the action as the nut and saddles and action are adjusted to what the frets are doing anyway, not the fretboard.  The 6150s had an almost scalloped feel and the 6130s were just sleeker, so I got them on the new bass.  I have a medium touch when playing, and with a heavier touch, the 6150s can actually fret sharp as if the neck were scalloped.  It just came down to preference.  My favorites instruments I've played have always had really shallow frets.

 

[bpmorton777]

thanks for the info!

Brian

 

[SlingBass]

FINE looking bass, and interesting take on your reasons for it's build features - I respect that  :glasses10:

 

[solidbody2]

Really beatifull bass !
Congratulations

There are so many ways to build nices basses with Warmoth ^^

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

The verdict is in on the comparisons.  For all of their similarities, the differences between the 2 are definitely noticieable.  For those new to this thread, this is a similar copy to my other Warmoth J-Bass.  Other than the finish, the 2 are identical except for the neck woods, fretboard woods, and fret sizes.  Same harware, pickups, bridge, controls, and layout.

Neck Dive:
On the Orange one, it is slightly neck heavier compared to the T-Burst one, but hardly has neck dive issues.  When I weighed both, they were both 9.5 lbs.  However, this was hardly scientific as I used a bathroom scale with me and each one and subtracted my weight to get each bass's weight.  It's a digital scale and it's increments are in half pounds, and I do not know what it's rounding criteria is.  It may have rounded one up and the other down to the nearest 1/2 pound because the Orange, Wenge necked one feels heavier.  Also, this assumes that the bodies are the same weight.  The T-Burst one may have a heavier body and the Orange one a lighter body which the neck differences compensate for with the total weight.  There could be atleast a 1/2 pound difference in the completed builds and the scale wouldn't recognize this.  A 1/2 pound isn't much, but if it only weighs 9.5 pounds, that's more than 5% difference.

Feel:
No doubt the Wenge feels better to the touch, and at first seemed too slick.  The Maple (with finish) still feels fine, and only when compared to the Wenge would it feel strange.  It's much like an HD TV ruining your enjoyment of a non-HD screen, or even comparing a Warmoth to a non-Warmoth.  Ignorance is bliss.  Both are the Standard thin contour but the Wenge feels thicker than the Maple.  I haven't taken measurements though as I have no way to do so.  I can not feel any discernable difference between the 6130 and 6150 with bass strings.  I have the action set as low as I could on both and am using the same brand and gauge strings.  I have a medium touch, and neither necks allow the strings to touch the fretboards.

Sound:
Neither one is better or worse but they are definitely different.  Maple is supposed to be brighter, and is as far as I can tell, but the lows out of my amp sound fuller on the Maple one.  The Wenge one is right at home in the midrange. 

 

[shagga]

Wow, this bass looks beautiful, love the color scheme!  :icon_thumright:
Very nice build m8!

So, would you say that the wenge bass has a more "rock oriented" mid-heavy sound, whereas the maple one would be better suited for funk / slap style music?

I'd love to play an unfinished neck on a jazz bass too.. Love the feel of my fretless all bubinga bass, the neck of that one is waxed / oiled, and that too feels awesome.
But i won't want my jazz bass to sound too mid-heavy..

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

These little comparisons exist for no other reason then to post them on forums.  Both basses still have volumes for both pickups and a tone knob, not to mention an amp with more EQ than any reasonable person could ever use.  Whether you're going for a scooped mid sound or a boosted mid sound, they're J-Basses.  They can do either, especially if your rig and playing style is tailored towards a certain coloration.  As always, 2 people on the same rig will always sound different.

 

[SlingBass]

These little comparisons exist for no other reason then to post them on forums.  Both basses still have volumes for both pickups and a tone knob, not to mention an amp with more EQ than any reasonable person could ever use.  Whether you're going for a scooped mid sound or a boosted mid sound, they're J-Basses.  They can do either, especially if your rig and playing style is tailored towards a certain coloration.  As always, 2 people on the same rig will always sound different.

+1

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Thanks for the +1.  As I re-read that post, I may have seemed a little blunt or flip.  A more tactful way I could've worded it was, every little subtle detail that may accentuate doesn't necessarily dominate.  A bass that is natuarally mid heavy can have it EQ'd in and vice versa.  Especially in a band setting, subtleties seem to fall out.