Man, that looks like one bitchin guitar/bass to me. Too bad the reissues are VERY expensive. Anyone here play one? How's it play and sound? How 'bout the more modestly priced Baritone Jag?
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Joined: Apr 21, 2006 Posts: 265 San Antonio, TX |
Man, that looks like one bitchin guitar/bass to me. Too bad the reissues are VERY expensive. Anyone here play one? How's it play and sound? How 'bout the more modestly priced Baritone Jag? —<img src="klzzwxh:0000"></img> |
Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 3546 mojave desert, california |
i have only played the danelectro bass 6:
twangy! |
Joined: Apr 21, 2006 Posts: 265 San Antonio, TX |
Haha, I knew you'd be mentioning your dano! Is it possible to play chords and other guitar-esque maneuvers on it? Was there ever a Longhorn 6-string Bass? I thought I heard about that somewhere... —<img src="klzzwxh:0000"></img> |
Joined: Mar 15, 2006 Posts: 1487 San Francisco |
One thing to be careful about -- six-string basses are NOT the same as baritone guitars. I play a Dano Baritone, but have never laid hands on a Bass VI. The essential difference is string gauge and scale length, along with the fact that Baritones are tuned down to B, while Bass VIs are down a whole octave. That's right, yes? ~B~ |
Joined: Apr 21, 2006 Posts: 852 Connersville, Indiana, USA |
There's a picture of a Danelectro Longhorn 6-string bass in the fold out card/cover of my Lost Legends of Surf Guitar I: Point Panic that I ordered from Amazon. There's also a picture of something called a Fender Marauder next to Fender Jaguars. Call me crazy, but I thought only Mercury had made Marauders? Matt —Fast Cars & Loud Guitars! |
Joined: Mar 15, 2006 Posts: 1487 San Francisco |
Matt, They were intended to be a hybrid of a Strat and a Jaguar. ~B~ |
Joined: Apr 21, 2006 Posts: 265 San Antonio, TX |
Oh, so the Bass VI is really a bass with 2 more strings and not half guitar? Is the Baritone Jaguar the same (I think it has the same string gauges)? Never heard of the Fender Marauder before. What an odd guitar. —<img src="klzzwxh:0000"></img> |
Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 3546 mojave desert, california |
wraydar: yeah, i'm a big fan of the danelectro bass 6! it is possible to play chords and intervals and other guitar-like stuff on the DanoBass6...but, it definately is not a Barritone Guitar... it's tuned just like a guitar, but an octave lower: E A D G B E' chords like first position Em and F sound too murky and ominous...but things like 3rd and 5th position barre chords and open Am or D and higher sounding arppegios and stuff like that sound great. the DanoBass6 is paticularly good for doubling (ghost lead) a cool lead line one octave lower...for example, "Mr Moto" or "Walk Don't Run" both sound great ... I believe that a version of the longhorn bass 6 was around in the olden-days...and they were also reisued in the late 1990s-early 2000s...nice Korean Danos |
Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 25597 Anaheim(So.Cal.)U.S.A. |
I've noodled around with a few Bass Vi's over the years, but never at any length of time. Jeff(bigtikidude) —Jeff(bigtikidude) |
Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 3546 mojave desert, california |
but, i really want to play a Fender Bass VI (with the cool tremolo) someday.... way too much $$$ for my budget...even the re-issue is mega-$$$ |
Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 10331 southern Michigan |
To add to the confusion about this 'bass VI' vs baritone thing: the Jaguar Baritone Custom that Fender has been selling the last few years is NOT really a baritone, as it's supposed to be tuned E to E (low E is an octave below the low E on a normal guitar). in the last year Fender corrected this, and if you go on their website you'll see that this same guitar is now called Jaguar Bass VI. I bought it a couple of months ago. I'm having a ball with it, though it seems of limited use at the moment. Hopefully I'll write some songs using it for lead. But it sounds great, though the pickups are a bit microphonic. The rest of the guitar feels extremely well built, and I love messing around on it. It's got a BIG sound, with those big strings. The only surf(-y?) track I can think of that utilizes a Bass VI is Jack Nitzsche's The Lonely Surfer. Not used very often.... Ivan —Ivan |
Joined: Apr 21, 2006 Posts: 265 San Antonio, TX |
Lemme see if I'm understanding you Ivan. <img src="klzzwxh:0000"></img> |
Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 10331 southern Michigan |
Right, I bought the Jaguar Bass VI in your link (though mine is an older model that still reads "Baritone Custom" on the headstock - but it's the same guitar), not the actual Bass VI. Those things are way too expensive for such a limited use instrument!
Until they start squealing like a pig when you're playing standing in front of the Showman! Ivan —Ivan |
Joined: Apr 21, 2006 Posts: 265 San Antonio, TX |
OK I've got some questions, if you don't mind my asking: How heavy is that bad boy? How's the action/tension? That things got a choke switch doesn't it? I just listened to the Lonely Surfer, pretty cool. I can really see it's limits though, Not quite a bass and not quite a guitar. Hmmm.... —<img src="klzzwxh:0000"></img> |
Joined: Mar 02, 2006 Posts: 11058 Berkeley, CA |
Mel Waldorf uses the new Jaguar Bari to great effect. I can tell you first hand that it's got a rich, powerful sound coming through his showman, very meaty. Mel installed a trem on it too. Mel you out there? —Danny Snyder Playing keys and guitar with Combo Tezeta Formerly a guitarist in The TomorrowMen and Meshugga Beach Party Latest surf project - Now That's What I Call SURF |
Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 10331 southern Michigan |
It's not much heavier than a normal Jag. It has the same body as a normal Jag and the same electronics. The only weight differences comes from a longer neck. But the difference is not a big deal.
I had to jack the action way up to get it to play without buzzing, but b/c the strings are so thick, it still feels very comfortable. The tension is actually a bit lower than on my Strats, since the strings on the thing are equivalent to 10's on a Strat - meaning they are not heavy-gauge bass VI strings, but more a lighter-gauge. I wish the tension was a bit greater, but it's not a big deal again.
A choke switch? You mean, the 'strangle' switch on the pickup switching plate? Well, one way or another, the electronics are exactly the same as on a Jag.
The greatest user of Bass VI was Jet Harris, formerly the bass player for the Shadows. Upon leaving the Shadows he had a couple of singles where he played a Bass VI. I like the way he used it, a lot. Check out that stuff (the best-known songs by him where he uses the Fender Bass VI are, Besame Mucho, Main Title Theme (Man With the Golden Arm), and Man From Nowhere - each one brilliant). I think the Huntington Cads used a Bass VI on some of their songs, too... Ivan —Ivan |
Joined: Mar 03, 2006 Posts: 648 |
I've owned a Bass VI, Dano 6 string bass, and Jaguar Baritone. All are fine instruments. The Bass VI has a 30" scale. I had one of the MIJ models and I tuned it E-E, an octave below guitar. I used it on the Mel-tones "Surf Before Sunrise" CD and sold it when the prices for them got stupidly high. It was very difficult to find flatwound strings for it, though I understand there's a lot more options now. Got a Dano 6 string bass about five years ago, one of the ones with the Hodad body and three pickups. I drilled out the bridge so I could put a .105 on the low string and tune it E-E. Sounds good, nice and twangy and a decent bass sound as well. Horrendously neck heavy. I used this on the Mach IV and Meshugga Beach Party CDs. Earlier this year I got a Jaguar baritone, and installed a tremolo. Unlike the others, this I tune B-B. More of a mind twist to get around the fretboard, but the B-B tuning makes chords more effective, and the shorter scale (approx 28") makes it easier to switch with guitar. For my purposes it's the best of the bunch, and certainly the best bang for the buck. Mel |
Joined: Mar 06, 2006 Posts: 1899 Wear gloves - I'm in the Rockies |
I have a Jaguar Bass VI, and I installed a Jag trem on it too. I really like playing it, although, like Ivan says, its a limited use instrument. Chords are pretty muddy, so it works best as single note melodies and leads.
Chris —"You can't tell where you're going if you don't know where you've been" |
Joined: Apr 21, 2006 Posts: 265 San Antonio, TX |
Hey Mel, how would you compare the Bass VI and the Baritone? Is the Bass VI actually a baritone or a 6-string bass (It is tuned just like a bass right?)? Mel & Chris or Others, How's the jag trem working out for you? Was it worth installing?
Good stuff, hadn't heard any of that before. Diamonds is another good one, but I read that it may have been a down-tuned jaguar he was playing. Sorry for all the questions, but all the Bass/Baritone terminology is a bit confusing for some reason. And I guess this was the whole reason for this thread anyway. —<img src="klzzwxh:0000"></img> |
Joined: Apr 21, 2006 Posts: 265 San Antonio, TX |
There are some pretty good deals on ebay though! <img src="klzzwxh:0000"></img> |