Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Discussion of vintage Jazzmasters, Jaguars, Bass VIs, Electric XIIs and any other offset-waist instruments.
User avatar
boss302bass
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 639
Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2009 5:25 am
Location: UK

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by boss302bass » Sun Nov 10, 2019 4:33 pm

I've built a baritone Jazzmaster at 28 5/8" scale as I bought one of the first Japanese built Jaguar Baritones and that was 28 5/8" and feels like a much better, more deep-sounding scale than the 27.5" scale found on some other purpose-built baritones. I also built a Jazzmaster VI Bass - essentially a Bass VI at 30" scale but Jazzmaster body and pickups etc instead. It's by far my favorite build compared to the Bass VI builds I put together before it - probably helped by the 1978 Jazzmaster pickups I found for it. I am not sure how comfortable a 30" baritone would feel like - probably high-tension as one of our previous thread contributors mentioned before me. I think Bass VI's are best left as how Leo intended - 30" basses - but of course, anyone here pulling off the baritone stringing on a Bass VI is winning if its working for them!
Image

User avatar
N0_Camping4U
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1673
Joined: Thu Oct 03, 2013 1:59 pm
Location: Houston Texas

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by N0_Camping4U » Mon Nov 11, 2019 5:25 am

boss302bass wrote:
Sun Nov 10, 2019 4:33 pm
I've built a baritone Jazzmaster at 28 5/8" scale as I bought one of the first Japanese built Jaguar Baritones and that was 28 5/8" and feels like a much better, more deep-sounding scale than the 27.5" scale found on some other purpose-built baritones. I also built a Jazzmaster VI Bass -
How did you go about making the Jazzmaster VI Bass? Give me some deets! Sounds and looks cool!
"I've been waiting for you, Obi-Wan. We meet again, at last. The circle is now complete. When I left you, I was but the learner, now I am the master."

User avatar
boss302bass
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 639
Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2009 5:25 am
Location: UK

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by boss302bass » Mon Nov 11, 2019 7:53 am

How did you go about making the Jazzmaster VI Bass? Give me some deets! Sounds and looks cool!
[/quote]

Well the body is just a stock JM guitar body cut and routed by Matt Landry over in Seattle. He found me some super cool old pieces of Oregon from a barn demolition near his home - the barn was apparently built in the late 1700's according to the workers pulling it down...
The neck pocket from memory I had to enlarge slightly to accommodate the Bass VI size neck (the neck was made by USACG I thiiink - it was seven years ago now, a lot of bourbon has flowed under the bridge since the build) , then I had to do some scale math to drop the bridge in the right position, so I had to move the whole trem position back a couple of inches from where it sits on a JM guitar, and fortunately the bridge ended up nearly perfectly halfway between the trem and the pickguard, which made life easy. The rest was easier - I hit it with some sanding sealer and originally a terrible amber tint that went very wrong very quickly so I soon did a sunburst straight over that to what you see in the above pic. It has by some miracle turned out to be an absolute killer bass - it wears a real 1959 JM pickguard and shield and with the 1978 JM pickups in it is rich and toneful, the oregon works great as a body, the JM pickups work real well with 250k pots and a 0.05 ceramic capacitor, and one of our fellow wiring gurus here on the forum gave me his version of series/parallel so the top vol/tone wheels are redundant, but the top selector switch acts as the series/parallel switch, and the three-way selects the pickups when its in parallel mode. The old trem from some long dead JM works brilliantly too.
I sold it to a friend in Melbourne two years ago as I needed extra cash moving from Australia to England, and when I was back in AU again earlier this year my buddy sold it back to me as he had a big tax bill that wasn't going away, so I now have it back in the family with me over here in the UK. I fronted my own band with it between 2012 and 2014 and it was just fabulous - we were a 3 piece and often after a show people would come up and say things like "I heard such an awesome bass tone and bottom end coming out of your band but could only see two guitarists up there - how were you pulling that off?"
Through a Fender 400PS and two single 15 cabs it had more than enough bottom end to rattle the fuck out of any window within 300 yards range...I sold the 400PS coz it was just too haeavy to be lugging around three nights a week, but I still have a really nice 135 Bassman head with the same 15's, so it's still plenty loud and beefy enough.
I think I need to build a couple more in the near future - I have since learned how to build from scratch, and I want to build one for my buddy back in Melbourne. They're just so much fun - and to me sound and look a lot sexier than the Bass VI - which, don't get me wrong, is a lovely sounding axe in it's own right...but JM pickups are just super dreamy - it's just being able to afford the originals when they pop up!
And they're a niche market too, not many four string bass players are keen to try out a six string short scale, and they do take a little extra time to get used to, but man, when you're comfortable with one of these a whole new world opens up.

User avatar
N0_Camping4U
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1673
Joined: Thu Oct 03, 2013 1:59 pm
Location: Houston Texas

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by N0_Camping4U » Mon Nov 11, 2019 4:44 pm

Man that is so cool. And great information, and story. I would really like to hear it. I am having a bass vi built for me but this interests me.
"I've been waiting for you, Obi-Wan. We meet again, at last. The circle is now complete. When I left you, I was but the learner, now I am the master."

User avatar
Tele295
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 99
Joined: Thu Jul 10, 2014 7:05 am
Location: Ventura, CA
Contact:

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by Tele295 » Tue Apr 21, 2020 2:17 pm

I got some strings to tune my bass VI A-A, but they weren’t long enough. I put them on my Danelectro instead.

Didn’t the Squier Bass VI come stringed for A-A, stock?
Jill Martini & The Shrunken Heads - all aloha, all the time

User avatar
garyptaszek
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 5095
Joined: Thu Oct 09, 2008 1:02 am
Location: Kent UK
Contact:

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by garyptaszek » Sat May 02, 2020 12:03 am

Aren’t danelectro baritones 30” scale? I have mine tuned to Bb-Bb. Playing it in B-b tuning is fine too, tight for sure, but definitely playable, and the snappy tone is great.

User avatar
UlricvonCatalyst
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 7193
Joined: Mon Dec 14, 2009 4:05 am
Location: Glasgow, Scotland

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by UlricvonCatalyst » Sun May 17, 2020 11:48 pm

garyptaszek wrote:
Sat May 02, 2020 12:03 am
Aren’t danelectro baritones 30” scale? I have mine tuned to Bb-Bb. Playing it in B-b tuning is fine too, tight for sure, but definitely playable, and the snappy tone is great.
Good info, thanks. I'd be a bit scared to try that, but if you say it can be done without all the strings snapping or the neck bowing beyond repair then I might try tuning up to A-A next time i'm feeling brave! :D

User avatar
garyptaszek
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 5095
Joined: Thu Oct 09, 2008 1:02 am
Location: Kent UK
Contact:

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by garyptaszek » Mon May 18, 2020 11:18 am

UlricvonCatalyst wrote:
Sun May 17, 2020 11:48 pm
garyptaszek wrote:
Sat May 02, 2020 12:03 am
Aren’t danelectro baritones 30” scale? I have mine tuned to Bb-Bb. Playing it in B-b tuning is fine too, tight for sure, but definitely playable, and the snappy tone is great.
Good info, thanks. I'd be a bit scared to try that, but if you say it can be done without all the strings snapping or the neck bowing beyond repair then I might try tuning up to A-A next time i'm feeling brave! :D
I have mine setup with D’Addario 14-68 for either B-b or A-a usually. But ymmv, they do a lighter gauge baritone set 13-62 if memory serves

User avatar
Mechanical Birds
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 3617
Joined: Sat Aug 22, 2015 1:24 pm

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by Mechanical Birds » Mon May 18, 2020 1:35 pm

I really regret selling my VM VI. I straight up DONT see the rosewood version for sale anymore for one but it also was perfect for me. I’m a big guy (6’3” and 300 pounds) so it fit me perfectly. I never had it set up as an actual VI aside from the week I bought it new before sending the neck away to get the headstocks painted. I don’t remember the gauges but it was set up A-A and was awesome. My whole idea was by the time I would need a string change I would redo it as an actual VI and I hate it that I never got to do that.

User avatar
UlricvonCatalyst
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 7193
Joined: Mon Dec 14, 2009 4:05 am
Location: Glasgow, Scotland

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by UlricvonCatalyst » Mon May 25, 2020 1:04 am

Mechanical Birds wrote:
Mon May 18, 2020 1:35 pm
I really regret selling my VM VI. I straight up DONT see the rosewood version for sale anymore for one but it also was perfect for me. I’m a big guy (6’3” and 300 pounds) so it fit me perfectly. I never had it set up as an actual VI aside from the week I bought it new before sending the neck away to get the headstocks painted. I don’t remember the gauges but it was set up A-A and was awesome. My whole idea was by the time I would need a string change I would redo it as an actual VI and I hate it that I never got to do that.
They're still out there. I just got a VM in black and sold my sunburst VM, so that accounts for two at least in the UK within the past month. A 'saved search' on eBay is your friend. :)

User avatar
UlricvonCatalyst
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 7193
Joined: Mon Dec 14, 2009 4:05 am
Location: Glasgow, Scotland

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by UlricvonCatalyst » Mon May 25, 2020 1:25 am

garyptaszek wrote:
Mon May 18, 2020 11:18 am
I have mine setup with D’Addario 14-68 for either B-b or A-a usually. But ymmv, they do a lighter gauge baritone set 13-62 if memory serves
Right, I thought you'd tuned the standard set up six semi-tones, hence my comment.

Just looked those up and might try them out. On a side note, who knew a baritone Mustang was a thing? ;D
Image

User avatar
invisible man
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 534
Joined: Tue Sep 04, 2012 8:58 pm
Location: Manta Sonica, California

Re: Fender (Bass) VI: Baritone guitar?

Post by invisible man » Thu Jun 04, 2020 7:18 pm

boss302bass wrote:
Mon Nov 11, 2019 7:53 am
How did you go about making the Jazzmaster VI Bass? Give me some deets! Sounds and looks cool!
Well the body is just a stock JM guitar body cut and routed by Matt Landry over in Seattle. He found me some super cool old pieces of Oregon from a barn demolition near his home - the barn was apparently built in the late 1700's according to the workers pulling it down...
The neck pocket from memory I had to enlarge slightly to accommodate the Bass VI size neck (the neck was made by USACG I thiiink - it was seven years ago now, a lot of bourbon has flowed under the bridge since the build) , then I had to do some scale math to drop the bridge in the right position, so I had to move the whole trem position back a couple of inches from where it sits on a JM guitar, and fortunately the bridge ended up nearly perfectly halfway between the trem and the pickguard, which made life easy. The rest was easier - I hit it with some sanding sealer and originally a terrible amber tint that went very wrong very quickly so I soon did a sunburst straight over that to what you see in the above pic. It has by some miracle turned out to be an absolute killer bass - it wears a real 1959 JM pickguard and shield and with the 1978 JM pickups in it is rich and toneful, the oregon works great as a body, the JM pickups work real well with 250k pots and a 0.05 ceramic capacitor, and one of our fellow wiring gurus here on the forum gave me his version of series/parallel so the top vol/tone wheels are redundant, but the top selector switch acts as the series/parallel switch, and the three-way selects the pickups when its in parallel mode. The old trem from some long dead JM works brilliantly too.
I sold it to a friend in Melbourne two years ago as I needed extra cash moving from Australia to England, and when I was back in AU again earlier this year my buddy sold it back to me as he had a big tax bill that wasn't going away, so I now have it back in the family with me over here in the UK. I fronted my own band with it between 2012 and 2014 and it was just fabulous - we were a 3 piece and often after a show people would come up and say things like "I heard such an awesome bass tone and bottom end coming out of your band but could only see two guitarists up there - how were you pulling that off?"
Through a Fender 400PS and two single 15 cabs it had more than enough bottom end to rattle the fuck out of any window within 300 yards range...I sold the 400PS coz it was just too haeavy to be lugging around three nights a week, but I still have a really nice 135 Bassman head with the same 15's, so it's still plenty loud and beefy enough.
I think I need to build a couple more in the near future - I have since learned how to build from scratch, and I want to build one for my buddy back in Melbourne. They're just so much fun - and to me sound and look a lot sexier than the Bass VI - which, don't get me wrong, is a lovely sounding axe in it's own right...but JM pickups are just super dreamy - it's just being able to afford the originals when they pop up!
And they're a niche market too, not many four string bass players are keen to try out a six string short scale, and they do take a little extra time to get used to, but man, when you're comfortable with one of these a whole new world opens up.
[/quote]

That sounds awesome. Any band recording with it?

As for Bass vs Baritone: porque no los dos?

I’d like to hear a duet for Bass VI & Bajo Sexto
https://soundcloud.com/billy-gashade

Post Reply