Balance of the bass ? - GIO Series

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Balance of the bass ?

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Pakko

Posted: Saturday, October 31, 2009 1:18:30 PM

Rank: Newbie
Groups: Member

Joined: 9/7/2008
Posts: 25
Location: Belgium

Hi,

I don't know if it's my or my Bass but I've got the problem that during my playing the angle of my bass (GSR200L) changes. It's like the headstock is to heavy compared to the body.

I hope you understand what I'm talking about.

When I first started playing I had my bass more level but I found it was easier to play while it was at a bigger angle (about 24° I guess) and I've been reading that it's advised to play with the bass at a certain angle for better playability.

Also I've read that when shopping for a bass you should look for a good balanced so I guess the Gio is not 100% correctly balanced.

Anyway, is this a known problem with the Gio series and is there a fix for this ? And importantly do the more expensive models like the SR500 have the same issue ?

Patrick

Ibanez Gio SoundGear 200 Lefty bass and Ibanez Sound Wave X 35 Amp.

MaxOfMetal

Posted: Saturday, October 31, 2009 1:45:23 PM

Rank: Advanced Member
Groups: Member

Joined: 1/10/2009
Posts: 3,013
Location: Peoria, AZ

I purchased a GSR200 a few years back for the daughter of a family friend, and it had the same issue with balance as you described. It's most likely due to the standard scale solid Maple neck being attached to a relatively light Agathis body, which has a fairly big electronics cavity, given the stout electronics package. The solid die-cast tuners on the headstock aren't helping anything either. There are a few cheap and easy fixes that will help you solve this problem without doing anything permanent to the instrument.

You can do one of any combined of the following:

1) Roll some coins in electrical tape and put them in the control cavity to act as ballast. Essentially making the body heavier.
2) Use a thicker (width) strap made of leather, it'll have more friction on your body, and thus stop the bass from diving as easily, compared to a thin nylon strap.
3)Play with the strap higher up, it brings the bass closer to you giving you more control.

As for the more expensive SR series basses, such as the SR500 and SR600 there is no balance issue, at least from the examples I have played. That's due to the thinner, lighter necks and the heavier bodies made from woods like Mahogany, and Ash.

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Pakko

Posted: Saturday, October 31, 2009 1:56:14 PM

Rank: Newbie
Groups: Member

Joined: 9/7/2008
Posts: 25
Location: Belgium

Thanks for your quick reply Max,

1 is something I could try, just need to look around for some tape (Electrical tape because it's non conductive I guess).

2 I already have one of those thicker leather straps, when I got the bass I decided to get a good strap from the beginning, but I guess a sweatshirt is easier for the strap to slide on then a T-Shirt which could explain why I didn't really notice it during the summer.

3 I think I've already got the strap on it's shortest position (at least I think so) The middle of the body is about at my belly button (or whatever it's called) which I'm told is the standard hight recommended in the "learn yourself howto play bass).

It's good to read that this problem is not common on the higher-level basses since I guess it's a reason for not going for that specific base because it's a negative influence on playability.

Ibanez Gio SoundGear 200 Lefty bass and Ibanez Sound Wave X 35 Amp.

MaxOfMetal

Posted: Saturday, October 31, 2009 2:06:53 PM

Rank: Advanced Member
Groups: Member

Joined: 1/10/2009
Posts: 3,013
Location: Peoria, AZ

Don't be afraid to position the strap and angle the bass how you feel it works best. As great as a lot of the instructional material out there is, these days, it will never compensate for you just experimenting with what feels best while playing. Every player is different, and thus some things work better for others.

Yeah, the electrical tape is used so it won't conduct, thus mess with the electronics of your bass. Regular Scotch tape will work as well, but I doubt it will hold up as long, as it's not as "stretchy" and has a weaker adhesive.

Ideally, you want you're instrument to be fairly well balanced with a slight lean towards the body of the instrument. Typically, the more expensive and higher quality basses are better balanced through a variety of different methods.

I hope these suggestions work out for you man.

Pakko

Posted: Sunday, November 01, 2009 1:05:54 PM

Rank: Newbie
Groups: Member

Joined: 9/7/2008
Posts: 25
Location: Belgium

Again, thanks for the good advise.

I was able to add some coins to the control cavity and the bass seems to be better in balance now (I think still a slight lean towards the neck but I seem to notice a difference and the bass seems to be easier to keep under control).

Ibanez Gio SoundGear 200 Lefty bass and Ibanez Sound Wave X 35 Amp.

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