castneter Posted October 2, 2004 Report Share Posted October 2, 2004 in the process of building my 1st bass...what are the different scale lenghts that i may consider on such a project? thanks in front! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wademeister Posted October 3, 2004 Report Share Posted October 3, 2004 (edited) hey castneter, Welcome to the forum! I've heard of bass guitar scales ranging from 30" up to I think 39". The most common scale I have seen is 34" and next after that would be 35" which is fairly common especially on 5 string basses. If you're wanting to go over 34" be aware that some of the strings you buy may be too short. If you go over 35" you will have to shop around a bit for your strings. How do I know? LaBella Deep Talking Tapewounds (almost $50!). Sounded like the greatest thing so I picked up a set for my 5 string fretless 35" scale bass project. THEY NO FIT! I decided to just make it a 34" instead to avoid future surprises with other brands I may want to try. Edited October 3, 2004 by Wademeister Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
castneter Posted October 3, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2004 thanks for the info.. the project is a Flying V body bass (mohagany body w/ flame maple top) that i have been pondering for some time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted October 3, 2004 Report Share Posted October 3, 2004 While -almost- every 4 string on the market is 34", there are quite a few "short scale" basses, like some Danelectros or Rickenbackers, that are 30" or 32", and many 5 string (or 6) basses are 35-38" scale. I personally like the feel of 35", but it feels distinctly bigger. I don't like anything smaller than 34". Just play some basses and figure out what you prefer! Oh, and welcome to tha big PG! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
castneter Posted October 4, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2004 i will probably have to go short scale as the "v" will put the bridge in a pinch. thanks for the information. i really like this forum!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluespresence Posted October 4, 2004 Report Share Posted October 4, 2004 Epi uses the 30.5" scale on their V bass probably for that same reason. The neck would feel awful heavy if you went out to 34 or 35" on a V. Good luck with the project and keep us posted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddgman2001 Posted October 4, 2004 Report Share Posted October 4, 2004 A short scale will work better with the body style you've chosen. As a general rule of thumb, shorter scales sound darker and boomier, longer scales sound brighter and more hi-fi. Try capoing a standard scale bass at the 1st or 2nd fret, re-tune and see if you like the tone of a short scale. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truerussian558 Posted October 4, 2004 Report Share Posted October 4, 2004 there are shorter scale six string basses, adn even one made by fender ( i beleive it was a bass 6) which was basically a long scale guitar (30") tuned down an octave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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