Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans

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estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans

I made Jason McGuire a fretless bass out of one of my old cutaway flamenco guitar experiments. We nicknamed it La Fea.

It is a regular cypress body / spruce top, but I chopped the headstock and installed bass tuners. Then I "Jaco Pasturized" it by pulling the frets, replacing them with slats of maple veneer to fill the slot and keep the fret positions marked.

The strings are polyurethane called Pahoehoe strings because they resemble the ropey pahoehoe lava found ouzing out of Hawaiian volcanoes. These strings originally converted baritone ukuleles into small basses, we just ordered longer strings and put them on a cutaway guitar.

Rumor has it Funk Daddy J will be playing this bass on some tracks on his forth coming CD~

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 19:44:31

JuanDaBomb

Posts: 189
Joined: May 18 2011

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

Man, I thought you were just kidding when you told me about this! but it actually came out looking pretty legit!!

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 19:56:30

Sr. Martins

Posts: 3079
Joined: Apr. 4 2011

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

That may be fun to play but it sounds like poop

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 20:04:26

Erik van Goch

Posts: 1787
Joined: Jul. 17 2012
From: Netherlands

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

:-)

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 20:14:13

mezzo

Posts: 1409
Joined: Feb. 18 2010
From: .fr

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

sounds great!
2nd vid is really groovy

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 20:50:53

estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to Sr. Martins)

quote:

That may be fun to play but it sounds like poop

That's why we nicknamed it La Fea. Get it? I recorded it on an android phone, it's not the best recording equipment.

It is also good for flamenco players because the polyurethane strings don't tear up your right hand nails like steel round wound electric bass strings do. It will sound even better when it gets its internal mic system.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 20:54:00

Leñador

Posts: 5237
Joined: Jun. 8 2012
From: Los Angeles

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

I've played on those strings before, they are nice on your fingers. They do sound kinda wobbly acoustically but with pickups/mics they sound fine.

Pretty awesome Frankenstein though! Love the name

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 20:58:18

JuanDaBomb

Posts: 189
Joined: May 18 2011

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

was kinda hoping you'd call it the Fender Stratobastard...

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 21:19:11

Leñador

Posts: 5237
Joined: Jun. 8 2012
From: Los Angeles

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

quote:

Fender Stratobastard...

That's brilliant!

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 21:32:47

Jeff Highland

Posts: 401
Joined: Mar. 5 2010
From: Caves Beach Australia

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

Sounds fine to me, typical of the poly strings
I'm just starting my own bass project, but built around a 34" scale with Savarez classical bass guitar strings

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 22:03:02

Pgh_flamenco

Posts: 1506
Joined: Dec. 5 2007
From: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

The theme song to Barney Miller in the first vid--lol.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 22:10:50

estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to JuanDaBomb)

quote:

was kinda hoping you'd call it the Fender Stratobastard...

That's good Juanitosan, that's why we keep you in Banana Co. as Vice Presidente in charge of propaganda.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 22:16:17

estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to Pgh_flamenco)

quote:

The theme song to Barney Miller in the first vid--lol.

I think the second on is a Zed Lepplen bass line.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 22:17:29

rogeliocan

Posts: 811
Joined: Nov. 23 2009
From: Canada

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

I would have thought it would have more (some) resonance being from a regular guitar body but it has none, like if the saddle was on a piece of 2 by 10. Not sure you would want that much sound but how come here is no resonance at all, I guess it's the strings???

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 5 2013 22:32:53

estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

Its funny, because the floor under my feet vibrates as you play but I guess that is some sort of phantom resonance or just my feet's imagination...

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 0:03:31

El Burdo

Posts: 632
Joined: Sep. 8 2011

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to rogeliocan)

C'mon man, Donna Lee!

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 0:04:03

rogeliocan

Posts: 811
Joined: Nov. 23 2009
From: Canada

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to rogeliocan)

maybe that is just it, the body is too small for such low resonance.... that is why basses are so big... I have no clue, I don't even know how it should sound. Just surprised there is so little sound coming out compared to a guitar.... just like a bass is I guess...

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 0:32:27

Ricardo

Posts: 14822
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to rogeliocan)

quote:

ORIGINAL: rogeliocan

I would have thought it would have more (some) resonance being from a regular guitar body but it has none, like if the saddle was on a piece of 2 by 10. Not sure you would want that much sound but how come here is no resonance at all, I guess it's the strings???

Well, it's a flamenco guitar, it is not supposed to have tons of sustain and harmonics. It is being played near the bridge so it is only punch (he could get more tone over the sound hole), and the strings probably too light tension. But honestly stand up bass guitars are not very resonant to me, they just thump and groove.

ricardo

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 1:36:20

rogeliocan

Posts: 811
Joined: Nov. 23 2009
From: Canada

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to Ricardo)

yeah... makes sense, really low frequencies too. Although it makes no sense, I just though it would be different because of how loud normal guitars are, I have not even played an acoustic base guitar... just not what I would have imagined.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 14:56:26

Sr. Martins

Posts: 3079
Joined: Apr. 4 2011

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

Ive played double bass (with fingers) for years and everything that tries to be a bass on a short scale / small body sounds like crap to me, I guess we cant expect an instrument body to be designed for one thing and then be great at something else.

Anyways, the way he is playing it in the videos wouldnt sound good on any bass. In fact, he is just playing guitar with bass strings.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 17:10:53

estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to Sr. Martins)

quote:

Ive played double bass (with fingers) for years and everything that tries to be a bass on a short scale / small body sounds like crap to me, I guess we cant expect an instrument body to be designed for one thing and then be great at something else.

Anyways, the way he is playing it in the videos wouldnt sound good on any bass. In fact, he is just playing guitar with bass strings.

Ok well I'm not here to defend my little bass I made for fun, but you might get cheered up by listening to the theme song from Barney Miller, an old America comedy show about NYPD. You have to realize I made this for fun so he could play without messing up his nails, if you don't like it I'm sorry.

Is no mi yob to mak yu hapy.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 20:50:58

estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to Ricardo)

quote:

Well, it's a flamenco guitar, it is not supposed to have tons of sustain and harmonics. It is being played near the bridge so it is only punch (he could get more tone over the sound hole), and the strings probably too light tension. But honestly stand up bass guitars are not very resonant to me, they just thump and groove.

I think the idea was to make a bass-guitar that is easy to play. Jason and I were sitting on the couch two weeks ago, watching Bugs Bunny cartoons, eating Oreo cookies and milk while chatting idly about the finer points of the story line of the The Hobbit. So inspired was I from this stimulating conversation that it struck me I could reclaim this old junker guitar by putting those honky polyurethane strings on it.

Jason intends on putting an internal mic system in the guitar and then processing the sound to get what he wants. The fact that he can jam on it the same way he jams on guitar was the point of making the thing. A great player from NY will be featured on his next CD, Tim Leferve, a phenomenal bass player. I saw them play together last week at Yoshi's Jazz Club in San Francisco, Tim read the charts Jason wrote, man they really lock the groove together.

So La Fea will get some bit parts on the CD, but not be the featured bass or bass player .....but I bet when it is in the final mix it will sound good.

It's just fun for me to get to be around when these guys jam and to be able to learn more about instruments from such good players. As an instrument maker I stick really close to the best players I can get to hear and ask them what they are doing so my understanding of instruments is always growing and becoming more cultivated. When I take chances or experiment, successful or not, I learn a great deal. When great players see an instrument maker taking chances, risking or trying out a new idea, they take an interest and give feedback. That is how instruments evolve.

I'm even developing a special 'Traffic Cone Tournavoz' and I expect you Ricardo to provide a professional test bed when we take it to on stage trials.

As professional courtesy to you, I'm reserving my best rosette stickers for you.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 21:18:46

Sr. Martins

Posts: 3079
Joined: Apr. 4 2011

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

I was just commenting about my view on basses, you dont have to defend anything.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 6 2013 21:24:36

estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to Sr. Martins)

quote:

I was just commenting about my view on basses, you dont have to defend anything.

I think we all pretty can tell the difference between a large carved double bass and a pretender. But it is good that you are vigilant and don't let any bass fouls slip by.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 7 2013 0:03:19

Pgh_flamenco

Posts: 1506
Joined: Dec. 5 2007
From: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

quote:

I think the second on is a Zed Lepplen bass line.

Led Zeppelin--Trampled Under Foot...

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 7 2013 0:31:48

estebanana

Posts: 9353
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to Pgh_flamenco)

quote:

Led Zeppelin--Trampled Under Foot...

Ding Ding Ding Ding! We have a winner!

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 7 2013 1:06:26

kikkoman

Posts: 108
Joined: Nov. 19 2009

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

where da slappin??

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 7 2013 1:30:53

TANúñez

Posts: 2559
Joined: Jul. 10 2003
From: TEXAS

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to JuanDaBomb)

quote:

was kinda hoping you'd call it the Fender Stratobastard...

LOL I actually have an old Strat that I call the Stratobastard lol

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 7 2013 2:03:44

TANúñez

Posts: 2559
Joined: Jul. 10 2003
From: TEXAS

RE: Fretless flamenco bass shenanigans (in reply to estebanana)

That's pretty off the hook Stephen. I really dig your thinking and creativity.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Mar. 7 2013 2:04:57