Ok, don't laugh (camera problems)

[CrackedPepper]

Thanks but I was not asking about 2011's waffle that richship cooked, I was asking about the second contest that AprioriMark won.

 

[Graffiti62]

Ensure that your contacts are clean--you may have finger oil on them. The way to fix this is the same way we used to fix our Tyco slot car tracks when we were kids--rub an eraser on the contact points on the card and see if that will help you out.

 

[AprioriMark]

Here are a few cheesy camera phone pics that do NOT do this thing justice.  I'd love to get better quality pics.

So, it's an amazing piece of Ash, with blue/black burst on front and back, a flamed maple neck (I prefer random/less flame so it looks more organic, and the guys at Warmoth did an amazing job giving me exactly what I wanted) with a jet black ebony board... no face dots for pure wood sex appeal.  That's a Doug neckplate and Roadhouse P90s powering this beast.  It's beautiful, understated but still classy, and it gets amazingly useful tones.  I've played it as a bass and as a baritone guitar; through bass and guitar amps.

-Mark

 

[erogenousjones17]

Nice! I still want one, even though I have no idea what I'd do with it. They're just so cool!  :hello2:

 

[Nando Vallart]

Awesome!

 

[hachikid]

a few questions:

what sort of tuners did you use for this? just the regular Gotoh vintage tuners on the Warmoth site? same with the tremolo bridge? what sort of bridge did you go with?

 

[line6man]

Totally off topic- are those the Italian leather shoes we were talking about the other day, in those pictures?
Those are very nice.

 

[Cagey]

I absolutely love that body finish! Did you have to tell them to make it that dark? The examples in the builder never look that good (to me); they're too light.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

I rather like it. The P-90's are a unique appointment, how's it sound?

 

[hachikid]

also, how is the tremolo? does it go out of tune if you give it a nasty look?

 

[AprioriMark]

a few questions:

what sort of tuners did you use for this? just the regular Gotoh vintage tuners on the Warmoth site? same with the tremolo bridge? what sort of bridge did you go with?

Yes, the Gotoh vintage tuners work well, and I did get them from Warmoth.  I had my doubts, but tuning has never been an issue, and I'm a really, really heavy-handed, aggressive player.  The bridge/trem is also from Warmoth, and I did swap out the saddles for some deeply slotted ones off a Fender Jazzmaster.

-Mark

 

[AprioriMark]

Totally off topic- are those the Italian leather shoes we were talking about the other day, in those pictures?
Those are very nice.

Those are some of my fav shoes, but they're plain old American-made shoes that I had made.  Not expensive, but I like what I like.  If I ever can be assed to take more bad camera pics, maybe you can see some other weird shoes.  Actually, let me snap a pic of what I wore to a friend's memorial service yesterday...

-Mark

 

[AprioriMark]

I absolutely love that body finish! Did you have to tell them to make it that dark? The examples in the builder never look that good (to me); they're too light.

I gave Warmoth an example of the finish I wanted (incidentally, one they're previously done), and they matched it perfectly.  I'm really weird about blues, and they nailed it.

-Mark

 

[AprioriMark]

I rather like it. The P-90's are a unique appointment, how's it sound?

It sounds really woody and thick. Not muddy at all; actually still brightish.  It just has that mid-bass punch that the Bass VIs with single coils that I've played have been lacking.  I can still get shimmery tones by using pickup combinations, but the main sound I needed was big, clear and thick.  which Ken's pickups absolutely do.  Yes, they're Roadhouse P90s.

-Mark

 

[AprioriMark]

also, how is the tremolo? does it go out of tune if you give it a nasty look?

The trem is mildly challenging, but a few adjustments and my getting used to how the beast functions have made it a non-issue.  I got used to how to wrangle it so that it resets in a similar manner each time I remember to do it, haha.  That being said, it isn't bad at all... just make sure you give yourself a crash course in how that monstrosity of a trem functions.

-Mark

 

[hachikid]

what sort of string gauges are you running, then? also, is tuning stability a problem? good to hear that you are an aggressive player. same here. is the tremolo so bad that if you had the option to do a hardtail bridge, would you?

 

[AprioriMark]

I use the D'Addario set that goes down to .84.  I wouldn't swap it for a hardtail, because it's a unique beast as it is.  I may build another VI as a hardtail, but I don't have a fully conceptualized plan yet, so I haven't.  I NEEDED this voice in my arsenal. 

I should say that I shimmed the neck to angle it back as a part of my attempts to get enough tension across the saddles.  The bridge P90 is as high as it gets without popping out of the pickguard.

-Mark

 

[hachikid]

ah. I heard that there is a set that is something like .98 or .106, or something...I'd like to use those, but I wonder if they would fit in the string posts...

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Where would one find a case for that?

 

[AprioriMark]

I transport it in a padded leather bass bag. 

-Mark