I'm going to look at a Conklin Groove Tools seven string bass this weekend, so I'm just wondering if any of you have ever played one and what your thoughts are.

And on that note, in order to get this bass I'm selling my six string (if I decide to get it). Ibanez SR506, only had it for six months, small scuff above one of the pickups from my fingers rubbing against it. I'll take $500 for it.

I have.... and they are they beezneez man. About the best there is.

no but always wanted to.. wait i may have at guitar center once.

four strings is all you need. it works for lemmy and geddy lee.

Yeah but more strings are fun. Don't get me wrong I love my four string and will never part with it, I just don't use it much anymore.

I want one string for every note covering 5 octaves.

Desmond from Dismantle the Cyborg and I are basically never gonna stop getting more stringed basses until we're sick of it. We pretty much are gonna one up each other until we're both playing war basses. This is a joke, but not completely.

The part about me getting that seven string is not a joke. The comp between me and desmond is.

i am jamming on my four string conklin right now. i have had it for about 10 years now and it is still mint. the 7 string neck is super wide.. even for a 7 string, so try before you buy.. but bass itself will probably rule.

Get a chapman stick

4 strings or youre a pussy

i played a conklin 7 string... sound was pretty awesome, the feel was... stressing. the neck is so huge, even for my giant catcher's mitt hands. i'd suggest finding a Tune 6 string bass instead. probably the best "OMG TOO MANY STRING" basses i have come in contact with. i literally almost teared up when i had to put that thing down and leave the store.



BTW don't over look the awesomeness of a 4 string. I'm a strict jazz bass player but i played this Ernie Ball "Big Al" bass and was fucking blown away by the pure tone this bass had. played it through an Eden time traveler head > peavey 4x10 cab and the bass CRUSHED. i didn't even have the bass on active and it was the richest tone i have ever heard. looks like something the guy from Oingo Boingo would have played back in the 80's. i put the bass into active mode and shook the fucking walls and almost made some shitty squier bass fall over. best bass ever.

7 string Conklins are gorgeous pieces of art. I've been holding off on getting one for the longest time. Right now I'm playing an sr506, moved up from the sr505 a while back. Judging by the neck width, it will probably be the same graduating step as 5 to 6 strings, now that you're going from 6 to 7. I've never actually held one.

How bout Modulus or Zon?

I never made the gradual step from 4-5-6. I had a five string for a little while a few years ago but then went back to 4, and then just recently bumped up to a six. I definitely don't underestimate my four string at all, it's just that for what I do in The Summoned, the more strings the better. To Spaldino, I already have a six string so if I decide to stick with a six I'll be keeping the one I have for a while.

I basically wanna work on my playing techniques, especially tapping, and when it comes to tapping I feel that more strings let you do so much more.

bennyhillifier

Like this guy.

in all honesty, if you're used to playing on a 6 then the transition won't be jarring as far as the slighly wider neck. the string spacing is so close on those conklins. there really isn't a more comfortable neck for 7 string basses mass produced(there isn't another... besides galveston, you can get an 8 string for 450 on the bay... cheap shit. not even worth 450) decent sound for metal... not a ton of low end for an active bass. the locking output jack is a nice feature. the neck heal takes getting used to.
if you have a rig that can really make those notes on the c and f strings pop then more power too you. that was always my biggest problem.
the groove tools basses don't stand up to the real conklin stuff, but they're still good.
all in my opinion obviously. i only played them a handful of times... and never for more than 10 or so minutes or with a band.

at this point i'd probably just sack up and take out a loan for something crazy before i bought another bass... either something nuts with 11 or 12 strings or a 60s jbass

I would be upgrading the MK1's to MK4's anyway for a more ballsy tone.

Oh...and what the hell is that? I want it.

One of Jean Baudin's basses. http://jeanbaudin.com/bassgear.html