NBD - Squier Bass vi

[gusman2x]

Nice!

What's the bridge like? As shite as the VM Jag & Jazz and in need of a Staytrem?

Or stable and usable?

So far no issues. Probably had about 2-3 hours of play total though so time will tell. For what it's worth though, after the same period of time with the VM Jag bride, the saddles had dropped, the action was fucked, and the guitar sounded like chitty chitty bang bang. I think the obviously heavier strings are making a big difference here. I have not intonated yet. Find tuning the thing had enough . I did find that the d string was buzzing on the intonation screwm but dropping the saddle have a screw turn resolved that.

So far, fit and function seem a bit better than the vm jag (althougg the jag is perfectly good, and excellent for the coin), but the bass vi feels more solid. Perhaps just becaust it's a far bigger bit of wood, but it feels closer in quality to the jmjm.

[avj]

Great great stuff. I was looking for new Squier Bass VI uploads this morning and saw yours and was excited. I can't wait until we have these in the US, as I already have the funds earmarked. The black is classy and likely my choice as well.

GAK have also done a demo but not nearly expansive as yours. In case any other Squier Bass VI droolers missed it:

[youtube][/youtube]

[Benmurray85]

any updates on what its like to live with after the honeymoon perid?

wish id have bought one in the first rush coz everywheres sold out now

[gusman2x]

any updates on what its like to live with after the honeymoon perid?

wish id have bought one in the first rush coz everywheres sold out now

I'm actually loving it. I kind of expected to get it, not really know what to do with it then let it gather dust, picking it up to bust out some badly played cure from time to time.

But, I'm really enjoying it. From a chordal point of view I've gotten a bit stuck with open G, any other open first position chords are a bit mushy. I will endeavour to expand my open chordal knowledge. From a lead perspective, I've been enjoying making simple lead lines/melodies with the minor scale, and some other notes thrown in when they fit. I've also played aorund a bit with a capo at the 5th and 7th, making it either A-A or B-B. I really enjoyed that for open chords/riffs, and will be revisiting that plenty. It will probably sput me on to try it strung and tuned as a baritone at some point. Trem works great, but there's not much room to use it. It fouls on the bridge, and also the volume knob, so you have a very spcific region to work within. Not really a problem I guess.

Playability wise, the set up seems ok. I'm used to trying to get a really low action on electrics, so this felt a bit weird to begin with. It's about 2.5mm on the low E at the 12th, so it's not exactly cheese grater territory. The tuning isn't amazing to be honest. I'm not sure if that's to do with it being new, the kinda mashed up and soft nut, or my trem use. I also started to get a little bit of buzz from the bridge, so rather than loctite the sadles and posts, I ordered a staytrem. It has arrived today, so I'll put it on tonight. The finish is really really nice (much better than the VM Jag/JMs I've seen). Neck feels lovely, not too chunky. Fret ends are really nice.

I'm thoroughly enjoying the sounds, but I don't know how authentic they are. I'm mainly playing with the bass cut off, but I'm playing it through a fender tube amp with the bright switch on. All positions (and combinations) have very distinctive sounds, and it's been working great with reverb, delay, light drive, and fuzz.

One thing that should be noted, the low E is pretty much useless in the guage that's supplied. It's a 0.085, even though GAK spec sheets say 0.095. It's not, I measured it. It's too rubbery, and is noticeably quieter than the rest. Someone on OSG replaced jsut the low E with a 0.095 from a fender shortscale bass set, ad said there was a significant improvement. The general concensus is that future string changes will incorporate custom setrs from either LaBella or Circle K.

I'd say it's easily worth the money, it's very good quality and allows access to an instrument that I wouldn't have spent more on, but have often thought I'd like to try out.

[George]

very interesting update. love detailed stuff like that.

with the action have you considered a gradual increase from treble to bass? i've borrowed several steps from this and use it on all my guitars: http://fingerlakesguitarrepair.com/diy-strat-set-up/

specifically, a nice tight neck relief (003″ to .006″) at the 6th fret, and action like this at the 12th fret: 1st: 1.15mm, 2nd: 1.3mm, 3rd: 1.6mm, 4th: 2mm, 5th: 2.4mm, 6th: 2.75mm. this is measure by the distance from the fret to the TOP of the string. very nice results with that. with a bass you may need to raise the whole setup by .25-.5 of a mm. i should add that this is with 10 gauge strings and "medium" bass strings, so you need to get at least average tension strings to pull it off.

as for the trem use, I can't really tell from the picture but it looks to be set quite low. without the benefit of a trem lock it's hard to get the intended setup, but the trem bar sleeve(?) should be coming out of the trem plate at almost perfectly perpendicular to the body at 90 degrees. if it's leaning forward toward the neck you could stand to tighten it. this will raise the whole trem action higher and give more movement. if the arm ends up too high you can then bend the arm downwards slightly and gradually, which will have the added effect of forming a a slight parabolic arc over the problem zones of the bridge and volume pot. my bratocaster often gets stuck on the volume pot, but as you say, its a quirk you can get used to.

[gusman2x]

That's a cool site George, thanks. I like the electric guitar saddles bit, but I guess I've gone and blown it by getting a staytrem

However, I now have 3 staytrems, and in each instance, it's allowed me to have lower action with no other adjustments/mods, so fingers crossed.

[Benmurray85]

thanks gunsman thanks george. great info

[George]

That's a cool site George, thanks. I like the electric guitar saddles bit, but I guess I've gone and blown it by getting a staytrem

However, I now have 3 staytrems, and in each instance, it's allowed me to have lower action with no other adjustments/mods, so fingers crossed.

oh yeah, forgot you'd bought one! you could always try and set it up with the high and low Es matching the stats above if you're interested. it'll make a close-ish match I think.

i've never had much success with fixed radius bridges.

[George]

also for what it's worth, these are excellent starting points for pickup heights on 3SC configs. i got it from here: http://www.premierguitar.com/articles/A ... eight_Pt_1

Bridge pickup
• Low-E string: 2.5 mm/0.0984"
• High-E string: 2.0 mm/0.0787"

Middle pickup
• Low-E string: 3.0 mm/0.1181"
• High-E string: 2.5 mm/0.0984"

Neck pickup
• Low-E string: 3.5 mm/0.1378"
• High-E string: 3.0 mm/0.1181"

forget fender's guide, basically. obviously the bass vi is a different animal so the treble pickup would probably need to be raised more

[avj]

How are you finding the Staytrem? I am hoping to receive my Bass VI in a few weeks and was curious how well the fit was with the Squier Bass VI.

And to clarify, it's their Jazz/Jag version, right?

[Noisy Cat]

How are you finding the Staytrem? I am hoping to receive my Bass VI in a few weeks and was curious how well the fit was with the Squier Bass VI.

And to clarify, it's their Jazz/Jag version, right?

Bass VI version?

[avj]

How are you finding the Staytrem? I am hoping to receive my Bass VI in a few weeks and was curious how well the fit was with the Squier Bass VI.

And to clarify, it's their Jazz/Jag version, right?

Bass VI version?

Snap, thanks. Didn't see that on the website and didn't think to check eBay.

[ekwatts]

The various Bass VI specific string sets can be rather expensive. I just bought a set of Ernie Balls to see if they'll fit the Gretsch. The low string is a 90 so it'll be interesting to see how much, if any, an improvement over the D'Addario set it is. I haven't checked the length of the strings yet, either.. find out tomorrow.

This is the set:

http://www.gak.co.uk/en/ernie-ball-6-st ... ings/85534

[avj]

Shit, I didn't even know they made a set.

I grabbed a set of the La Bella flatwound set once Elderly had them back in stock because I panicked and anticipated a shortage, despite not having received my Bass VI yet. Those were $49 USD, but I expect they will last a long-ass time.

http://elderly.com/accessories/items/7676F.htm

[tenderstems]

Make sure you check the necks on these. My local shop have had to send 2 back as the necks had twisted.

[avj]

I received word from my Sweetwater guy earlier that their shipment left from California on Saturday and I should have mine by the middle of next week. This is the first time I've ordered an instrument from Sweetwater, and knowing they do the 55-point inspection with minimal setup is a good feeling.

Based on some discussion on here and those other guys, some are able to intonate decently enough with a standard-width bridge and some need the wider 1" that only Staytrem seem to offer. I wish I could've jumped on a Staytrem early enough, but it seems he only has the 1" bridge in 7.25" radius at the moment so I'll have to wait.

If I can magically end up with proper intonation near the middle of travel, I may have enough room with a JM/Jag-width bridge even with the heavier flatwounds.

[Benmurray85]

Placed an order about 3 weeks ago with a lead date of september(ish)

Enquired this week as to whether I'd be getting it soon and it's now "hopefully gonna be before Xmas"

Doesn't sound promising....

[avj]

John responded to my eBay message this morning to let me know the 9.5" versions were available again and he was heading out for a short vacation next week, so I grabbed one.

If there are any other Squier Bass VI owners/soon-to-be owners, it seems now would be a good time to grab one of the remaining five.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/JM-bridge-fit-F ... 1199364814

[sneakyt]

I am so fucking excited by these that I actually kind of want one in black so I can put a black pickguard on it, Robert Smith style (when i had my long curly hair people would say I looked like him and it got annoying for a while so now i can do this to rub it in their faces)

I have pickguards for these on ebay if you want that Robert Smith look.

[NickS]

Someone tell me what case this needs.

Please.