[luckylarry]

Hi everyone, apologies for the double post is anyone has already read this...

Anyone happen to know which era mudbucker would fit the new SG reissue bass?

Now that my 1965 EB-0 is here:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... :IT&ih=001

...I'm faced with the dilemma of whether to return the SG reissue which I bought a couple weeks back, and restore the EB-0, maybe adding a bridge pickup in the process, OR keep the SG reissue and switch out some of the electronics to bring it closer tonally to the original (in addition to the mudbucker and maybe the bridge pup as well, the internal electronics seem a little weird...strange bump in the volume pots, etc.).

Any thoughts?

The 1965 EB-0 I now own feels great, but the neck on the new reissue is just perfect, and I'm picky as hell about that. The '65 EB-0 is hard to fret without buzzing between notes when I lift off the string...any thoughts on what causes this? I had the same issue on an old Japanese P-bass copy. Makes playing lines and riffs annoying, since there is always a lot of clanking/fret buzz when I move from note to note. I'm going to try some new, lighter strings tonight and see if that helps.

Also, anyone happen to know what sort of finish they use on the new SG reissue basses? I read somewhere that it was nitrocellulose, but mine seems like it may be polyurethane...hard to tell, but I do love the way the thinner finish wears over time.

Thanks again and again,

--- Joe

[eb2]

That is an interesting dilemma. I guess the first order is to pop off the guard and the later pup off your 65 and see what is under there. If all you have is one or two screw holes where there shouldn't be, and the neck and headstock have never been broken, then I might be inclined to consider a restoration project. With filers, light opaque and good tinted nitro, it is possible to make those dissapear. I haven't mastered it, but know pros who can. Looks like all you need is an old pup, guard and two knobs, so there you go. Not that the old pup and cover are easy as days go by.

Frets clicking and buzzing is a headache of the neck straightness and bridge height/intonation. The neck is easy, but the bar bridge is a matter of getting it as close as you can. You can tweak it a lot more than you would think, but it does have its limitations. I know intonation and fretboard picky players, and it is tough being that way. LPjrs and Specials drive them crazy. EB0s would be a bad trip.

I don't know about switching the newer stuff in. I know Gibson will not sell the SG bass pup or cover as I asked. If your pots are not original, then the world is your oyster: you can do lots of sleeper mods. As usual I refuse to dump on the DiMarzio model one, as it provides a pup that is at least ok and you do not alter your bass to use it. And you can do all sorts of wiring tricks with it. Just say NO to mini-toggles.

I think newer SG basses are not nitro. I could be wrong, but I can't see why they would use a premium finish on a not-premium or custom shop instrument. The two I played "felt" like a poly finish.

[Dave W]

It's nitro. Gibson has never stopped using nitro. But thanks to the EPA, OSHA and probably other bureaucrats, it's not your father's nitro.

[jules]

Originally Posted by luckylarry

The '65 EB-0 is hard to fret without buzzing between notes when I lift off the string...any thoughts on what causes this?

Fret buzz on open strings indicate a new nut is needed. Buzz up the neck is usually due to a too low bridge. Raise the bridge and adjust truss rod if required.

Take it to a guitar tech for a set up if you are unsure - well worth doing

[luckylarry]

Thanks, this gets into a whole other realm than I've discussed on this forum, but the kind of buzz I'm talking about is not buzz while the note is fretted, it's rather buzzing after the note is released. Like the noise that's made if a note isn't fully fretted with enough force, but exaggerated. I don't know mechanically why this happens sometimes, i.e. on certain basses, while others seem to be free of this issue. I can say I've seen it more on older basses, so maybe it has something to do with warping?

Speaking of which, the neck on my new (old) bass! Pretty satisfying shape (slightly curved inward) until the neck joins the body, but then it dips back up to flatten out along the body. Is this normal? The seller said it was straight...but then again I doubt if any 1965 bass guitar would have a truly straight neck. Thoughts/experiences?

[donnervogel]

"it's rather buzzing after the note is released"

And also before you fret the note, i.e. moving around on that bass is altogether noisier than it normally would be? In that case the neck is too straight and what you hear are frets rattling to the left (viewed from above) of your fretting finger, not to the the right where the string swings. That is a symptom of some vintage instruments where age has led to some warpage around the 10th fret. You're then in a situation where an optimal action around the tenth fret will invariably lead to a too flat/convex neck around the third/fifth/seventh frets and the ensueing fret buzz which can be accomodated FOR FRETTED NOTES though via raising the bridge (thereby defeating some of the lower action you've gained at the 10th fret), but raisng the bridge only gets rid of fret buzz while the note is fretted not the "before and after buzz". I have a couple of basses like that. You have to compromise then between fret noise and high action. A fretjob can help and flatwound strings will also be less conspicious in fret noise. Only if things get really bad (they normally don't), will you need someone to hone down your fingerboard which involves a de- and refret.

But you said you wanted a mudbucker sound. In that case fret noise is an abstract concept because the mudbucker will simply not transmit enough of it to the amp for it to be ever heard. :lol:

Uwe

[luckylarry]

Yeah, even playing through a real amp last night for the first time with this bass, the buzz wasn't nearly as much an issue/annoyance as it was played unplugged.

Sounds pretty good through the Ampeg B-50R I have right now, although probably nothing like it should, due to the Ripper pickup (I'm almost certain now that's what it is). Almost exactly like a stand-up bass is in the room, since it came with flatwound strings as well!

Bluegrass, anyone?

Heh heh heh...

[SKATE RAT]

that bass looks cool with that ripper pup and it should sound close to a MUDBUCKER.I would just leave it how it is.