well i will be putting my ubass and mikro up for sale. and yes, this is a teaser. stay tuned.
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I think Gretsch has a shortie too?
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Based on my friend’s 5120, if I ever try hollow body, the first one I am going for to try is a Gretsch. His 5120 is just amazing.
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Oh man, this thing is just begging to be rocked hard with a pick. It’s just made for punkabilly.
That’s the full scale but I bet the shortie is just as good.
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i just headed over to the gretsch website, i really was unaware that almost all their basses are short scale 
, including a wild 6 string hollowbody 
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They sound awesome too, really impressed. Want to try one in person.
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Ok yeah, the shortie sounds good.
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All this time I’ve been advocating the long scale neck, and rejected the idea of ever playing a short scale. Now that I have been playing the Hofner for a couple weeks, I’ve grown to really love the short scale. I have found it much more comfortable to play the notes in the first position, whereas with the long scale, the first position was uncomfortable for me, so I always found myself choosing to play in the second position instead.
The Hofner could become my go-to bass.
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welcome to the dark side
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I might even like the 5442 sound better than the 5440. Something about the slightly duller short sound combined with the hollow body resonance maybe? It sounded amazing in that video.
Granted, it’s just a sample size of two and two different amps, players, recordings, etc. Still, sounded great.
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Wow, this is a long thread. I’m curious and the answer might be buried somewhere but save me from having to read 1000 posts (well ok 352). Apart from the obvious size, making a short scale bass more appealing to children and people with smaller hands, are there any other differences/advantaghes that might make a short scale bass a useful addition to someone used to playing full scale basses?
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There’s a few differences. Apples to apples with the same models, due to the shorter strings, a slightly less bright tone with less sustain than their long scale counterparts; kind of a darker tone. It’s not necessarily a bad thing at all and might lend itself to some styles nicely. Additionally there is slightly less tension, which also can be a good or bad thing depending on the individual.
Generally fun and fast to play regardless of hand size. You don’t have to be a kid or have small hands to like them.
Medium scales (32") are fun too.
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really has nothing to do with children or small hands, we’ve all seen videos of kids, girls (and guys) with small hands just killing it on full scale basses. to me, it’s just fun to play. light weight doesn’t hurt either. there is a tonal difference and a tactile one too, but it’s not night and day really. i just like doing things a bit left of center i guess. and i like the historical perspective too. over time people decided that basses were 34" scale, but that wasn’t always the case. in another time, the 3 most famous bass players all played short scale: paul mccartney, bill wyman and jack bruce (and entwistle played one a lot but it wasn’t his main bass). they were extremely commonplace. now people think there’s something wrong with playing one. there isn’t
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Wow, I knew about McCartney on the Hofner, but was not aware of Jack Bruce and Bill Wyman playing short scale. Interesting…
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yep, posted this list of famous short scaler’s above - it’s a really cool thread. wyman has always been exclusively short scale, mostly mustangs. jack bruce played an epiphone eb-o, but later switched to a long scale epiphone.
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That’s an impressive list @itsratso
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Totally agree guys, never suggesting a short scale was somehow inferior and I don’t truly believe the children/small hands thing either but it’s just commonly quoted as a reason for buying short scale basses. I was just curious as to why you might want to play one over a long scale. The fact Jack Bruce played one is almost reason enough for me but and I can see the darker tone could be fun. Might have to try one. I like Stingrays and I know they make a short scale - a slightly darker tone to smooth out a bit of their bite wouldn’t hurt at all!
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yeah, i didn’t think you were. just a commonly held view that’s all . you’re all good.
and btw, most of us short scaler’s also play 34" scale too. i personally have 4 basses and all 4 are a different scale: 20" ukelele, 28" mikro, 30" short scale and 34" full scale. i love them all.
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