Ebony vs purpleheart neck stringers on a short scale 4 string

[studiorecluse]

I am starting to consider a custom 4 string Essence at 30” scale, heavily into purpleheart- including the top wood over a mahogany body, and a purpleheart fretboard.  The topic is the neck laminates- I want maple with two stringers.  On one hand purpleheart would complete the look, however I am concerned about the low end tone and am considering ebony.  The purpleheart would look amazing and be much more affordable, but I want the optimum sound and am willing to pay a little more (?!) for it.  Anybody out there have experience with non-ebony stringers in a short scale 4 string?  Or for that matter, anybody have any experience with ebony/maple in a short 4?  My son’s Europa 6 has purpleheart, but a ton of it- 5 ph stringers… and it sounds lovely and balanced.  Actually sounds incredible.  Thanks in advance.

[hammer]

Hello Carey


I have a number of Alembics including two short scale basses with Stanley Clarke bodies (a Series I and a Signature Deluxe) that have the standard maple necks with purple heart stringers, a medium scale "shop night" Series I with a fully purpleheart neck (no stringers at all) and maple body core, and a medium scale Custom Signature Deluxe with a mahogany body core that has two purple heart and one ebony stringer.  The ebony stringer REALLY makes a difference in hearing low fundamentals and I heartedly endorse them. Although I have never played an Alembic with two (or more) ebony stringers in the neck, I have been informed by more knowledgeable ones who frequent this community that more than one is a bit of overkill given that added expernse and weight.     

[mica]

Yes, Brian is right about fundamental frequency response. Nothing makes it sustain like Ebony. In my opinion, one does 75% of the job of 2, so you get the most bang for your buck with the single stripe.

You can still keep 2 Purpleheart stringers with a central one in Ebony. One approach is a little Maple veneer between the Purpleheart and Ebony like this example.

[hammer]

A bonus is that what Mica described also looks very cool.

[BeenDown139]

My $0.02 USD FWIW:

...who frequent this community that more than one is a bit of overkill given that added expernse and weight.     

this might  be an extreme example. 5 string long scale, 3 ebony stringers, 2 purpleheart plus pinstripes. over the years, i've owned a few series I's and series II's plus probably a couple of each model from essence on up.  none of them come close to the fundamental and sustain this bass has.  the downside is the weight (14 lbs.) and the neckdive.  there's always a trade-off.

[hammer]

Hey, you could always do what the former owner of my Series I shopnight (full Purpleheart neck) did to help with the neck dive.  They filled the battery cavity with lead. Of course, theny your bass would weight 16 lbs.

[Spoilers!]

My short scale Series I and 3/4 Spoiler both have purpleheart neck laminates.  Neither of those basses are lacking anything in the way of sustain.  When I'm playing any of my Alembics (regardless of neck recipe) I have to pay attention to ending my notes so they don't sustain longer than I want them to.

I thought about an ebony laminate for my short scale custom Spoiler build, but instead I opted for mahogany with two walnut laminates.  I'm confident that will give me all the sustain I'll ever need, while minimizing weight and neck dive.

Ken

[mica]

Neckdive is mostly about the fulcrum point of the body, the upper strap pin. Beendown, your bass is neck heavy because that body was originally designed as a medium scale 4-string. Even as a medium scale 4-string the balance isn't anywhere near 1:30 or 2:00, more like a 2:30. So yeah, you add a couple of inches of scale length, and a bigger peghead with an extra tuner waaaaaay far away from the fulcrum point, and yeah, you got a real diver there. In fact, I would not take an order today for the bass you have. A

Making the body heavy is a terrible way to try and correct a bass that doesn't balance the way you want it to. The best remedy is to remove weight on the peghead. Use lighter weight tuners to start with. The other option is to extend where the upper strap pin attaches.

Sustain is great with all the woods we use in the neck. The super power of Ebony is fundamental sustain. Most sustain is the second harmonic otherwise.

[BeenDown139]

slight thread hijack...

Beendown, your bass is neck heavy because that body was originally designed as a medium scale 4-string. Even as a medium scale 4-string the balance isn't anywhere near 1

disclaimer: i love this bass to death but... it's freaking HUGE! - sonically and physically.  playing it standing up is not something i do often because it weighs so much.  i have to keep my left hand on the neck elsewise it'll take out a lamp or konk anyone's head of short stature standing on that side of me.  when i let the neck go, it's kind of like watching a railroad crossing gate coming down.   playing it seated is pretty uncomfortable because the body is so large it forces my right arm into an awkward position and i wind up fingering the strings usually over the 22nd fret.  i usually play it for about 3 or 4 days straight then i gotta go back to the MKD for a while because it's just so freaking much.  but the tradeoff is the sound outta this bass is just stupendous.  it's almost too much for some of the music i play.

so in conclusion after having said all that, i give a hearty +1 to the ebony stringers.  go ye forth!