Tailpiece help please

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Sun Dec 14, 2003 6:07 pm

That's a ground wire ...

The new mute pads don't work too well .. but the original mute on my 1968 4001 still works ...

The problem is it takes way too long to crank it into place ... I prefer hand muting ...

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Sun Dec 14, 2003 6:16 pm

Some of you know I do like to put a jazz bass pickup in the mute pad cavity ... a totally reversable mod ...

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 11:37 am

Yes I agree Jeff,
They do take too long to crank into place but you get used to that, I still use it sometimes. I was playing in an all Beatles band a little while ago (and may be again soon). With flatwounds and the mute on just enough to mute the strings without noise you can get an almost exact McCartney sound on the later albums. I used it for "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" and the decay and sound were perfect.
Also as Paul Yan mentioned you can get a great upright string bass sound with it. I played in a rock-a-billy band for a while (a modern type of rock a billy, much faster and louder than the original, Boston still rocks) and it sounded just like an upright, (better I think)
Also you can mute without using a pick.

rickenbrother · Post by **rickenbrother** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 11:43 am

LOL.. Jeff, I see it didn't take you long at all to install that SD in the bridge. How do you keep managing to buy only the neck pickup?

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 11:56 am

It only takes a few minutes to install ... I can get those at the local Guitar Center or online or on ebay for $50+/- ... it's a good reverse wound single coil pickup ... it adds treble bite without cutting the bass and it cancels most of the hum ... actually I've got a bunch of SD jazz and p-bass pickups ... I have a pretty good inventory of spare parts in my workshop ... which reminds me I need to dump some unneeded stuff on ebay ...

I am not a fan of any mechanical mute of any kind ... as you go up and down the neck thee amount of mute changes ...

rickenbrother · Post by **rickenbrother** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 12:24 pm

I should install a SD jazz p/u my 4003S/5 bridge like you have in yours. Mine sounds great but hums quite a bit through most amps except my SWR SM400 where it doesn't hum at all. Hopefully that pickup would eliminate most of the hum for me too.
The Guitar Centers near me only sell the SD jazz p/u's as a set.

rickcrazy · Post by **rickcrazy** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 1:37 pm

'I am not a fan of any mechanical mute of any kind...'.
I think I agree with Jeff. Even though I find that muting thusly the strings on any bass is okay for playing old stuff, the perfect string mute is yet to see the light of day. Any mute, past or present, messes up intonation, which I really can not live with.