andreuthegiant wrote:

I am very happy with mine! I got the sunburst one. Two issues:

• The tortoise pickguard does not look nice... I'm looking forward to replace the it.

• It does not intonate (low E, 12th fret). I've just ordered a staytrem bridge:

You need heavier strings to get it to intonate.

Los Fantasticos

Last edited: Oct 27, 2013 05:45:53

A few pics of the modded VI (and a demo) which may or may not increase your GAS. The nut in the 3rd pic is a TUSQ that I replaced the plastic one with, and the 4th is the stock next to the unmodified TUSQ. (The stock one was a wee bit tricky to get off of mine, but YMMV.)

image

So for a demo, I just attempted a backing track by removing as much of James Wilsey's playing as possible in his song "Untamed" (which I know is a real travesty to do to this brilliant song, and I apologize...). Other than me not being James Wilsey, the differences in sound may be the lipsticks on his Danelectro, and possibly some brighter roundwounds (I'm really not sure about that second one, though). Maybe even a bigger speaker? Different amp settings? I'm just using the 8" in my MP200, which is probably not conducive to deep bass.

Mike
http://www.youtube.com/morphballio

What kenposurf said Mike!

He who dies with the most tubes... wins

Surf Daddies

Finally...a nice demo and the perfect choice to really convey this being a different beast than just a 6 string bass.

THE KBK ... This is the last known signal. We offer Sanctuary.

www.thekbk.com
http://www.deepeddy.net/artists/thekbk/
www.reverbnation.com/thekbk
www.facebook.com/thekbkal

Now that I've finally submitted my other Top-Ten Surf Favorites ballot, I can comment on a gear post.

What Mike hears with his Quilter MP is what I hear. I think there may just be a limit to how much that 8-inch speaker can do. When my Bass VI came in, we played it through a bunch of tube and solid state amps in the guitar store. By far, the best sound it made came through my former Fender Stage 112SE, that hadn't sold since I traded it in on the Music Man. (Paul said something about figuring I'd want it back.) It allows the Bass VI to sound very Jaguar-like, except lower. I leave mine on the bridge pickup with the strangle-switch on. That amp is back home now. Add some tremolo, a little fuzz or reverb, and the sound is terrific. The guitar goes to a whole other place than bass.

This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got.

Last edited: Nov 04, 2013 11:14:37

Cool guys, glad it helped. Now the fun part for some of you will be explaining to your spouse how you "need" this, because it isn't actually another guitar... just tell them it's longer-scale and a full octave lower, they'll completely understand.

After a weekend of constant playing, I gotta say it feels more expensive than it is; the neck feels good, not much worse than the ones on my pricier Fenders, not an overly heavy body, pickups are keepers, no bad pots... the frets may be the weak link, some oxidation already happening, and they're not silky-smooth like I already mentioned, but again, for under $300 I decided not to worry about that. It seems to be a different beast than a 30" scale Danelectro, probably more bass/less guitar, but it should nail the Jet Harris and Jack Nitzsche stuff admirably (I intend to do another demo of that stripe, maybe through the big tube amp for comparison). I'd say if you've ever had the VI bug now's your chance. Expect some delays though, but it's worth it.

Mike
http://www.youtube.com/morphballio

Last edited: Nov 04, 2013 11:38:55

Very cool Morphball!

I recorded this demo last night. No surf content (sorry for my poor skills).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcEseLAjmDA

I wonder if this amp has possibilities for a Bass VI? TC Electronic BG250-115

This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got.

Noel wrote:

I wonder if this amp has possibilities for a Bass VI? TC Electronic BG250-115

I've played bass through the smaller TC bass amp of the same series with the 1-12. A local bass player friend ownes one. It really sounds nice even for a medium outdoor gig and had plenty of "umph" for it's size. Set up right I think it would do well with a VI.

I seviced an older GK bass amp for a customer last week and played it through his light weight 4-10 cab for him when testing his rig. It worked great too.

For me, the amp I play the VI with on stage must do double duty with a standard 6-string (JM, Jag, Strat, Tele) so a higher powered guitar amp with plenty of headroom is what I prefer. From my stable the '67 Showman wins hands down.

Keep it Drippy Brothers and Sisters!