Warmoth Bass?

Messages
11
hey guys, I'm bobby and I'm new to this forum and whatnot
I ride my bike a lot, but I also play my bass whenever I'm not riding
I've been playing for a year and six months, and still haven't upgraded from my starter bass
you may think that may not be too bad, but it is absolutely terrible!
My strap screw on my upper horn came straight out of the body, stripping the wood with it
it also has terrible tone, as it was a cheap 190$ bass
And I'm playing out of a 12w washburn guitar amp.

As you may be able to tell, I'm stoked on upgrading whenever I get a job.
Which will hopefully be this November.

I plan on getting a new Gallien Krueger amp set-up.
If it's good enough for Flea, it's good enough for me!

but now that the intro's are done, the purpose for this thread is to ask a few questions about possibly ordering my own bass.
I was thinking of a jazz bass, with two musicman pickups.
A Black/blue burst finish and a purpleheart neck.

A few things I'm not sure about are:
Nut Width?
Fingerboard woods?
Body Wood?
And good electronics?

I was thinking of maybe ash for the body, and either ebony for the board or more purpleheart
all I know about the electronics I want is that I want the large battery box for active electronics, and a push/pull for coil splitting
But I need help on the rest, sorry for the huge thread!
Thanks!
 
I don't know much about basses so I'm not gonna weigh in...  :dontknow:  But I have to say I think purpleheart on blue is gonna look nasty. :(  Purpleheart is so... PURPLE... it's hard to match with stuff... how about trans black on the body?  That would actually look really tasty with a purpleheart/ebony neck.

But that's all just aesthetics, figure out the rest first.  :)  Welcome and good luck  :eek:ccasion14:
 
haha I thought that at first, and maybe your right
But I think it would come out fairly well, and I might do a trans burgundy, or a burgundy dye I'm not sure

but I want to know, does warmoth do Neck thru bodies?
Because I think neck through and single string bridge would make an absolutely amazing bass!
 
aww, what the deuce ???
that stinks, oh well

ahahaha you have no idea, my friend was singing that song all last year in school
funny that you said that.

And I'm starting to think that maybe this might be a job for the Fender Custom Shop, even though they start at $2,000 :\
So I might even just get a Fender Aerodyne Jazz bass, play more and then get the bass
Because the list of things I want in this bass is ridiculous.

Like, I want a very hard wood insert where the screw goes for the strap, because I like to jump around and whatnot (I play in a screamo/hardcore band)
And like I said I want the neck through body
maybe a koa wood body, with flamed koa on top (I have no clue)
I might even want a Marcus Miller style pick guard
I think I'm a little across the board to actually buy one of these right now, or maybe I just need a month or so to decide
 
Popular opinion here is that bolt-on necks have just as much sustain as neck throughs (I think)

Koa with Flame Koa is possible, and an insert may not be needed.

(how soft is koa?)

Marcus Miller style guard? No clue what that is.
 
oh really?
well, the only real reason I want a neck through body, is because it would have all the wood touching each other, not necessarily the sustain
and if I had the single string bridge, I think the tone would be great.

and I honestly have no clue, and you're right maybe not
I've seen a lot of my favorite bands with duct taped straps onto their guitars, and I just don't want that so maybe playing it safe would be a good idea.

FenderMarcusMillerJazz.jpg


That's the Fender Marcus Miller Jazz Bass, and I love the pickguard
The thing is, I probably wouldn't want a burst finish on the bass if I had that pick guard on, because It would hide most of the grain
I probably wouldn't get that on my first warmoth bass anyway

Just because I can, here is the Fender Aerodyne Bass
FenderAerodyneJazz.jpg


It has a carved top body that I was wondering if Warmoth had the option of ordering?
I think I remember seeing something about it, not sure
 
Just throwing stuff out, but how about a tobacco burst swamp ash body with a wenge neck?

I'm not positive, but I don't think W does carved top Jazz basses.
 
bobby -

before you get too wrapped into all of the possibilities, take a few days/weeks to put an honest bass budget together. determine how much you can actually spend on this project, and how much you're willing and able to go over that amount. once you have reality addressed and accounted for, it's a whole lot easier to work in the right direction and spec out a custom assembly project


you should also consider you target weight for this build, as this will have a potentially significant impact on what materials you do/don't use


  drop a reply back here when you have things collected ...


all the best,

R

p.s.  :sign13: - I'd also  suggest totally ditching the idea of a Purpleheart (or other obnoxously heavy) neck wood unless you also plan to properly add the cost for Ultralight tuners and a complimentingly heavy body core wood.
 
Bobby, just listen to Rich (SkuttleFunk, that is) and you'll be fine... he's built more basses than I've had hot meals.
 
Ok, a little honest and well-meaning advice from a 13+year bassist, owner of several basses including a Warmoth, which is now my primary gigging bass:

Buy another bass. You haven't been playing long enough to know what you like and disklike. A Warmoth is a great instrument if it's what you want, but if it turns out that it isn't, it is difficult to resell. This can be your ultimate goal, but there are good basses out there for decent  money that will allow you to learn your likes so that in a couple more years the Warmoth is really the dream that it can be. Check out a Lakland 55-02, an MTD Kingston, or any other number of affordable instruments that you can build experience with and easily resell. Experiment with different neck construction, woods, pickup brands, and learn the landscape.

The same goes with amps. GK is a decent rock amp, but you should also learn about Aguilar, Eden, GenzBenz, and Mesa before you go too far in any direction. They all offer something different and you can limit your experience if you plant your flag too soon.

So I hate to be a killjoy, but put several hundred dollars into an intermediate bass for 9 months. Sell it, and get another one to play the field a little. Borrow if you can. Just learn more before you go custom. In the mean time, try to fill that strap button hole with a hardwood dowell or toothpicks and wood glue; drill a new pilot and put the strap button back in. Think of it as training for assembling the Warmoth that will one day be yours.
 
I agree to possibly hold off on the Warmoth. I'd say after get your rig go out and rent for a day (or borrow) a jazz bass, a p bass, a MM bass, a p/j, something with soapbars, a t-bird, a rick...what ever you can get your hands on, play the crap out of it for a day and learn what you like.
This won't be the cheapest thing in the world, but it's cheaper then sinking your money into a build that you end up hating.

You first said you want a bass with two MM pups and a purpleheart neck. Why do you want that? Have you played a bass like that before? What do you think it would sound like?
I am not saying this because I think it would be good or bad, but when I was making my first build I had a whole lot of ideas of what I wanted, but after talking to Warmoth and Lindy Fralin over the phone a lot I realized the sound I had in my head wasn't going to come out of a couple of the ideas I had. So we narrowed it down to three or four different options, then as soon as I saw one of them that I knew I would like the sound of pop up on the showcase I bought it.

And I say don't go for the Fender Customshop. If you are *that* set on neck through then I guess do it, but if not you will get way more bang for your buck with Warmoth.
 
Very good thoughts.  I'd like to echo these by saying it took me 20 years to figure out what I wanted before getting my first Warmoth.  I went through a lot of different guitars before I even figured out I was a telecaster guy - let alone what wood, neck shape, pickups, etc I would like.  Fortunately these other guitars said things like "Gibson" and "Rickenbacker" on the headstock, so I could sell them for good money.

Play the field and play it a lot. Figure out what you like and what you don't like.  Then start thinking about a custom instrument.
 
tfcreative said:
Ok, a little honest and well-meaning advice from a 13+year bassist, owner of several basses including a Warmoth, which is now my primary gigging bass:

Buy another bass. You haven't been playing long enough to know what you like and disklike. A Warmoth is a great instrument if it's what you want, but if it turns out that it isn't, it is difficult to resell. This can be your ultimate goal, but there are good basses out there for decent  money that will allow you to learn your likes so that in a couple more years the Warmoth is really the dream that it can be. Check out a Lakland 55-02, an MTD Kingston, or any other number of affordable instruments that you can build experience with and easily resell. Experiment with different neck construction, woods, pickup brands, and learn the landscape.

The same goes with amps. GK is a decent rock amp, but you should also learn about Aguilar, Eden, GenzBenz, and Mesa before you go too far in any direction. They all offer something different and you can limit your experience if you plant your flag too soon.

So I hate to be a killjoy, but put several hundred dollars into an intermediate bass for 9 months. Sell it, and get another one to play the field a little. Borrow if you can. Just learn more before you go custom. In the mean time, try to fill that strap button hole with a hardwood dowell or toothpicks and wood glue; drill a new pilot and put the strap button back in. Think of it as training for assembling the Warmoth that will one day be yours.

Thanks, and Yes I was looking at the kingston Heir and maybe even the KZ if I can raise the money, they seem great and have the feiten tuning system

And I also looked at GenzBenz, problem is I can only try out certain amps, because my guitar center has greta basses, but their amp selection isn't so great

 
Micahbell said:
I agree to possibly hold off on the Warmoth. I'd say after get your rig go out and rent for a day (or borrow) a jazz bass, a p bass, a MM bass, a p/j, something with soapbars, a t-bird, a rick...what ever you can get your hands on, play the crap out of it for a day and learn what you like.
This won't be the cheapest thing in the world, but it's cheaper then sinking your money into a build that you end up hating.

You first said you want a bass with two MM pups and a purpleheart neck. Why do you want that? Have you played a bass like that before? What do you think it would sound like?
I am not saying this because I think it would be good or bad, but when I was making my first build I had a whole lot of ideas of what I wanted, but after talking to Warmoth and Lindy Fralin over the phone a lot I realized the sound I had in my head wasn't going to come out of a couple of the ideas I had. So we narrowed it down to three or four different options, then as soon as I saw one of them that I knew I would like the sound of pop up on the showcase I bought it.

And I say don't go for the Fender Customshop. If you are *that* set on neck through then I guess do it, but if not you will get way more bang for your buck with Warmoth.

Oh, yes I've played double MM pup basses, just haven't played them in awhile so i need to return to Guitar Center to know for sure if i want that or P/J
I want purple heart because it looks great, and it seems like it would have the right one based on the warm-bright chart
but I'd have to play one to know for sure

I've played soapbars and they're alright, I don't like them too much
The P bass sound is alright, and I like the J too
Pj would be good, but I love the MM sound as well so i'd have to compare directly to know

And I want to make something clear, this thread was more about throwing ideas around, I don't plan on getting this in like the next six months or anything.
Just thinking about it.

And yeah, the custom shop thing was just an idea aswell

I think I'll wait until after I get a pro bass to buy a warmoth, maybe next year after my band gets set off a little I might re-consider
A little too much to think about right now
 
SkuttleFunk said:
bobby -

before you get too wrapped into all of the possibilities, take a few days/weeks to put an honest bass budget together. determine how much you can actually spend on this project, and how much you're willing and able to go over that amount. once you have reality addressed and accounted for, it's a whole lot easier to work in the right direction and spec out a custom assembly project


you should also consider you target weight for this build, as this will have a potentially significant impact on what materials you do/don't use


  drop a reply back here when you have things collected ...


all the best,

R

p.s.  :sign13: - I'd also  suggest totally ditching the idea of a Purpleheart (or other obnoxously heavy) neck wood unless you also plan to properly add the cost for Ultralight tuners and a complimentingly heavy body core wood.

Thanks, good advice
And I actually didn't know purple heart was heavy, but I was planning on ultra-lites and was looking at chambered bodies, or maybe a carved top
so a little neck weight wouldn't set off the balance too much, hopefully

and thanks to everyone else who helped
I think I'll stick to getting a fender aerodyne for now, and think about this as time goes on :)
 
bobbylikesbikes said:
oh, and just out of curiosity, how much did all of your builds cost?
just as a reference

Mine was about a grand, but I it's fairly simple. Alder/Quilt Maple Body, Goncalo/Wenge neck (incredible neck combo, FYI), and I finished myself with a rubbed dye and oil/wax. The only real splurge was the electronics; I got ahold of the guts that would have gone into a Dingwall Afterburner, including their custom rotary switch. Their FD-3 pickups are great, but that stuff accounts for about a third of the cost.

My next build will likely be a Gecko 5 and will cost more as I'll do a little more fancy stuff on that one. There is (or at least was) a flame redwood top in the selections that would really kill with a Ziricote board, but it would make for one pricey bass.
 
Listen to Skuttle Funk! The man know the things...

And just to strenghteh what he said I got a Purpleheart blank to make a bass neck... I'm 6 feet tall and 290lb and I got scarred when I got the blank on hands... Woods characteristcs vary on each blank/tree... perhaps I got a very heavy purpleheart, but this one feels heavier than Mahogany and not a "little more"...

Eric (warmoth employer, bass player) told us it makes a very piano-alike tone... As you're going to play punk/hardcore I don't think this is the tonal quality you would want from a bass...

Welcome to the forum...
A guitar/bass from Warmoth (just woods) can come from $400- to $2000+, plus hardware, pickups, etc... Just depends on what you want and can pay...
 
Hey Bobby,
I just totaled up the cost of the parts for the build you outlined, and it came in at $1200ish give or take a few, and that's for stock options (Seymour Duncans, multi-piece body, regular weight, MOTR hardware, etc.).  You can spend more or less if you scope out the Showcase, or if you want top of the line everything.

FWIW, my Strat build came out at just under $1300 for the parts.  I spend about another $300 in new parts (I fried the electronics the first time) and to have it assembled by a pro (I failed miserably).  On the other hand, I built my VIP for about $650 with used parts, unfinished woods, and it sounds and plays just as good as the strat.  Upcharge in price is all about the eye candy.

-Rose
 
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