Fender/Squier Bass VI - My honest opinion
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- Опубліковано 25 чер 2024
- I bought this Fender/Squier Bass VI offset a couple of weeks ago and in this video I wanted to give it a quick review and show you guys how I intend to use it in my music.
When first I saw it at a local music store I actually thought it was baritone guitar but this is in fact a six string bass. It's a part of the vintage modified Squier Classic Vibe series but Fender originally produced those between 1961 and 1975 and they were used by many legendary musicians including The Beatles and Glen Campbell.
It’s a really cool instrument in my opinion and it can be played like a regular bass or even as a ‘deep’ guitar or something in between.
The short live clip from this video is from a gig I played with Ragnar Olafsson’s solo project. In the clip Ragnar sings and plays the acoustic guitar, I played the Bass VI (through my Kemper Stage Profiler) and Skúli Gíslason played the drums.
Here is a link to Ragnar’s music:
open.spotify.com/artist/0ceRs...
You can support my work by joining me on my Patreon page where I post regular licks, short pieces and exclusive theory tutorials: / kbald
Here are some links to the gear I'm using in this video:
Pitbull Strings Long Life Edition 10-46 : amzn.to/3LkjuLt
Fender Deluxe Cable: amzn.to/3JbAH8b
Kemper Stage Profiler: thmn.to/thoprod/470658?partne...
Mission Engineering Expression Pedal: thmn.to/thoprod/367866?partne...
Canon SL3 DSLR Camera: amzn.to/3LiSYSW
00:00 A guitar or a bass?
01:42 A bit of history
02:25 The specs
04:05 I used it at a gig
05:13 There is problem though
06:07 My signal chain
Awesome! I want one.
Highly recommend it! So much fun to play and sounds fantastic 👌
I want one too!
how much is it
Around $500
@@lemau8458 there are several listed on Ebay
I found one of these in a pawn shop a few years ago. Every once in a while I will think about it and wish I had purchased it. It’s such a unique instrument.
a few months ago i was at a pawnshop and saw a schecter hellraiser c1 and since that was my first guitar i purchased it because of nostalgia so when i picked it up i realized something was off and when i looked it up it turned out it is a schecter hellraiser c1 vi and since it was dirt cheap i took home with me...glad i did since it is very unique
Absolutely man, I was at the music store for something completely different when I saw it. Couldn't really afford it but still went for it and I don't regret it at all 😀
You can still get them new I’m pretty sure!
@@jasosmurray137 Tbh the Squiers being made now might actually be better than the Mexicans they made a few years ago...
how much was it?
I feel it's both.
I've strung my VI with a thicker gauge set then it originally came with, and and that makes a lot of difference!
Playing single bass notes is easy enough (you'll get used to the smaller string spacing), and playing chords is a lot of fun too!
Yeah, any time these are strung up with an 84 on the bottom end, that's just trouble when at Standard E-E tuning. They need a 100 on the bottom end, minimum. Fender's newer set that ends with a 100 is just so much better than the 84 set that my 2013 Bass came with.
I love mine. It’s so versatile with the bass strangle switch, and it sounds different through either a guitar or bass amp. And with effects, the possibilities are limitless.
Absolutely, amazing instruments.
Can you give suggestions on what amps work well with this guitar?
Robert Smith of The Cure is also a frequent Fender Bass VI player
It was often used as a bass guitar by jazz musicians back in the day. One of them was the brilliant bass player Bradley Bobo, who used a Bass VI while on tour with the late Eddie Harris in the early 90s. They even played a show that was was broadcast on german TV where he could be seen playing the VI (finger-style). Great instrument, great player. The Fender VI has been forgotten a bit by many and just recently, it was (kinda) rediscovered.
I'll look him up and see if I can find some videos. And yes, it seems like there is a growing interest in the bass VI now, probably due to its appearance in Get Back.
"It was often used as a bass guitar by jazz musicians back in the day. "
It IS the bass guitar. The 4 stringed instrument people usually refer to as a "bass guitar is technically an electric bass.
Amazing, I played one in the late 70s as a bass on The Reels Albums. (Australian Band)
Cure fan, been desiring one and playing variants for 2 decades now. Never forgotten here as Robert Smith has used one as a melody machine since 81.
I'd recommend Fender Super 250's strings, they're made for the Bass VI and will probably solve your problem. They go from 0.24 to .100 :)
Really cool sounds. Thanks for making this video, a very fascinating Bass
Thanks Simon 🙌 I’m very pleased with it. A really cool instrument 👌
Absolutely beautiful sounding instrument
Thank you for playing clean without distortion!
Great guitar. Love the fresh direction it takes my bass lines when I'm writing.
Totally agree, love this instrument. It's something completely different to the traditional electric bass.
Really good insights into the instrument and what it's like to live with and use in different settings - thank you!
Glad you enjoyed the video, thanks for watching 🙏
Great overview and demo, it’s one of the instruments I think about getting every now and then.
Thanks Paul, glad you enjoyed the video!
Fender updated the gauges of their Bass VI strings & now they're a 24-100 gauge set.
A set of La Bella Bass VI strings really helped a lot. The rounds really accentuate the twang.
Thank you for the wonderful sound
I use this on all my recordings when i need to play the bass its so good and seeing it in get back was super cool and this was a really good video keep it up🤘
Glad you enjoyed the video, thanks for watching 🙏🤟
Cool! Thanks! 😎
I had the Fender Pawn shop version with the Jazzmaster style humbucker in the bridge, and one of the first run of Squiers from a few years back, sadly I no longer have either. I picked up the Fender for $400 at Sam Ash and sold it for $1700 to buy myself a vintage JCM800 . They are super cool and unique instruments though. I just bought a new Squier and can’t wait to get my hands on it
What a badass sounding instrument! :)
It is indeed 🔥😎
Wow this is really cool! I had no idea these existed! Great video, great demo! New subscriber!
Thank you man! Glad you enjoyed the video and welcome to my channel 🙏
I have two bass vi. One fender and one squier. The squire one has thinner bridge. Also the squier came with thinner strings than the fender. Both factors worsen the intonation issues. You can try reversing the bridge so that the intonation screws face up the neck. This will allow a bit more adjustment, since the spring is no longer compressed.
Thanks for the tip, I will give it a go and see if it gets better 👍
I always wanted one, back in the 90's, but it was hard to find here in Brazil. If someone had one, it would never sell it, hahah
Nowadays, we have this vintage re-edition, so, I can buy it someday. The same sound, but, only made now and not at the 60's/70's, and, still rocks!
Great video. Thank you for posting.
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for watching!
Just ordered one of these, I've played bass for years but originally started with guitar and always thought of my bass strings at the top 4 strings of a guitar just played differently, I'm really excited to see how this fits my playing style
I too am primarily a guitarist, but I learned to play bass as a teen. Afterwards, I learned classical guitar technique and shed the pick. I understand why so many that have got this model play it with a pick, but I do believe that people can learn how to play this one traditionally.
It is possible to pluck it more traditionally but the string spacing just makes it very weird. I wouldn't be surprised if it was designed for those who play bass with a pick.
Good luck with that. This guitar is impossible to play traditionally. It was made for a pick hence the string spacing.
The secret is to be persistent, @@noahcristian5814. Like any other instrument, it would be a lot easier if I played it every day.
I've had varieties of these for well over a decade, until Squier came out with theirs I couldn't afford the real deal. My friend had the true real deals back in the day, early 90s. Huge Cure fans, so always loved to play the melodies, etc on them. But they are quite flexible for playing lots of things. They chord really great. I still have my OLP copy of the MM version, and my Schecter Hellcat VI. I had a Gretsch at one point but sold it to get the money to buy the Squier.
I personally use 106's for my VI, and i shimmed the neck a few degrees, and my intonation is PERFECT now.
These can be pretty tricky to set up but they are worth it!
Thanks for the input, might give the heavier strings a go and then look into doing some shimming if needed.
Wow. I’ve only heard of this instrument today, & I am a Bassist - omg 😱
I have one on order now. Should be here in April.
I use the Fender VI for Beatles songs like Hey Jude .Yours Is a very good explanation to how use it.
Very good demo, by the way, your band sounds really cool.
Thank you very much 🙏☺️
Great Vid' Was just wondering about this thing.
Thanks ☺️
Cool instrument!
I like the old-style music you were playing. That [baritone guitar] sounds interesting and that type of music sounds good on it.
Glad you enjoyed it ☺️🙏
Que padre que pudieras tocar con ese bajo yo estoy pensando en conseguir uno, saludos desde México 🤘🇲🇽, gracias por los subtítulos en Español que buena onda Bro.
I am thaving the same issue on the low E string. I removed the saddle spring and pushed it all the way back, and lowered the nut slot a little. That helped, but the intonation is still sharp on the low E. Why Fender didn't make a wider bridge like the Staytrem is beyond me. We should be able to intonate the guitar.
Cool review man, new subscriber 👍🏻 keep it up
Awesome, welcome to my channel. Glad you enjoyed the video!
great video!
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it.
I love my 5 string squire. Doesnt have the bar, but it has great action if you want to play fast.
Aria Guitars in Japan created a 6 String Contrabass Classical Guitar which is actually an Acoustic Bass VI.
Thank you for what you do! Turn the saddle around so the break point makes the string longer. If need be, remove the spring.
Thanks for the tip 👌
Did you find a sollution for the intonation issue? Heavier strings?
Thanks for a great video, loved the live footage
I play guitar and bass myself. Since I've got some classical training on both, I have managed to create a kind of hybrid technique for my Bass Six which permits me to generate traditional bass guitar tones on it without the spacing getting in my way. My issue with it is that the pickups need to be wound for a sharper output.
Wow, @@user-bp3zx7ow1g, thanks.
Rick Danko of The Band played one of these while in the Ronnie Hawkins Band. Believe my friend bought his guitar from a pawn shop. There are photo's of Rick playing it.
This is kind of blowing my mind, I was a little interested in baritone but I am super interested in this!
Awesome man! I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun with it if you end up getting one.
@@Kbald already on the used market checking what I can afford or potentially trade for. Great video got a like and sub from me!
Thanks for the support and welcome to my channel!
This is so cool! I feel like this bass really would benefit from slightly tilted frets to make up for the intonation issues:)
That could solve some problems but then it would lose the vintage feel I guess.
@@Kbald Oh, absolutely! I was just thinking from a practical standpoint😂 haha Regardless, it's such a cool instrument, I would love to try one out sometime🥰
The heavier strings help but for me I had to buy a StayTrem bridge to get the saddle back where it needed to be. I didn’t have to shim the neck, but others say it’s a necessary mod as well.
I have seen quite a few people mentioning the StrayTrem bridges. I will definitely look them up 👍
Thankfully Fender updated the String set for it, it's now a 24-100 Gauge String set.
I have to buy me one. Great video :-)
Thank you! 🙏
That Witchita lineman line you played was Carol on bass, Glenn used a Danelectro 6 string bass for that awesome lead.
You are right. Such an awesome bass line and the solo is amazing as well.
Love this. I was reading about The Beatles use of this guitar quite recently. I think after seeing the Let It Be series. It sounds great, I'm quite jealous! 👍
Such a cool instrument, a very unique sound.
finally
bass guitar
I had one of these for a while, such a fun fucking instrument to play, sounds absolutely incredible with my slash MXR octave fuzz. Playing chords on it is a really unique sound.
They clearly play like a squire, but it sounds awesome. I highly recommend these if you want a new, unique sound, this bass is also incredibly versatile. I played this in a 4 piece punk band and it was fuckin awesome for playing live and recording.
I can imagine it must have sounded really cool in a punk band. It has that edge to it, especially when played with a pick.
Probably confused the hell out of the audience lol
I found a new saddle called a StayTrem from the UK. Makes the Squier bass vi a ton more playable
@@4stringz. I concur absolutely - the Staytrem saddles really lift the Squier as an instrument.
You make this sound better than just about anyone else I've heard demoing them on UA-cam. I'm thinking about getting one, and I'm between this classic vibe model and the Schecter Hellcat. Did the Squier need a lot of setup work to get it playing nicely? In a lot of the demos they sound kind of buzzy.
Thank you, glad you liked the sound of it. The only thing I did really was to replace the low E string and put a 0.95 in there if I remember correctly. The E string still sounds a bit funny so I’m thinking about putting some flatwounds in there and see how it goes.
@@Kbald Nice! Thanks for the reply. I can imagine half the battle is finding the right strings for what you want to do. In the end there's a second hand schecter in my area that I'm going to check out first
As soon as you touched the tremolo, all I get is The Cure. lol
Depending on string gauge (and type and brand), you may be able to fix the low E by shortening or removing the spring, and shortening the saddle screw as well. This is not unusual on some short-scale basses, like Ibanez Micro. I believe that Mastery has a replacement bridge, but it will be spendy…
I play upside down and backwards, (left handed, bass strings at my feet). I wish so badly that Squier would make a Left Handed version of this. Great video!
Hopefully they will make it left handed at some point. These Bass VI are becoming quite popular so there must be a market for it.
Thanks for checking out the video, glad you enjoyed it.
If you're comfortable with some DIY, Warmoth offers a left handed Bass VI body and neck.
I have an Acoustic Bass VI.
I really wish this argument would end. Fender made it to be something between a bass and a guitar that wasn't a baritone guitar. It's both, depending on how you use it, and it and others like it (Schecter Hellcat VI, Ibanez Crossover, etc.) occupy their own space. I don't think there is much better proof that it's both and neither at the same time than The Cure's Disintegration album, where Robert Smith used one almost exclusively, but Simon's bass is still more prominent and cuts through the mix.
Nice sounding bass. I would try short scale bass strings to help with the tuning issues. I have a Hofner club bass that I was having the same problems with tuning and switching to those seemed to help. Subbed!
Thanks for the tip and welcome to my channel 🙂
i dont know if this helps for the fender to, but i have a different bass vi with a tune-o-matic bridge and for me it helped quite a lot to turn the saddle around for the intonation, those extra few millimeters are just the ones i needed! Maybe you could try that
My band bassist left and we couldn't find the right player so i consider to buy one of this
I test it on a store and i fell in love but didn't the budget to buy it so i made my own from old guitar pieces, i put 100-45 bass strings for the lower strings and a 5th and 6th guitar strings for the higher ones and it sounds reaaaally big on bass lines and have a great tone on rythm
Awesome man, glad you could find a way to make it work.
as a bass player for 25 years, i always tell guitar players i've worked with about the Beatles playing the Fender Bass VI... I say yeah if you can find one play it and buy IT! cause it just seems it's easier for guitar players to play the Fender Bass VI then a Normal Bass..(and good Demo Video)
Thank you man! Yes it is very easy to adapt to it as a guitar player, much easier that a normal bass. I'm very happy with it.
This instrument is the key to the radness of The Cure.
It definitely has a unique sound.
And The Church used it a lot too.
Here is one of the Fender VI you can see being used on the big hit "Who Loves You?" by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The bassist using it is doing a phenomenal job on this bass! Great stuff and the Fender looks awesome with several close ups. Sounds outstanding too. ua-cam.com/video/-KtYgOM62fk/v-deo.html
Staytrem make a wider bridge to compensate for the intonation issues. I also bought an American vintage tremolo system for mine but it didn’t quite fit the existing routing. The non-locking unit it came with has the common issue of the bar fitting quite loosely and so rattling significantly when in use.
Thanks for the tip. I've seen many people mentioning the Straytrem bridges here in the comments. I will look those up.
@@Kbald they are made in very small numbers in the UK, so sometimes there is a significant wait to get one. As a result some people will attempt to resell their units for extortionate prices. I would avoid the temptation to buy one on the second hand market so as to not encourage such behaviour! It’s also been mentioned elsewhere, but LaBella make a good bass VI string set in both round and flat wound. They’re a bit pricey at 50 bucks set, but they are very good.
I put a Staytrem bridge and a neck shim in mine. LaBella 105 string set too. No more intonation or tuning problems :) Great guitar
Thanks for the tip, I might give these a go. Are the LaBells’s round wound or flatwound?
@@Kbald I went for the roundwound because they didn't have the flats in the heavier gauge and I was too impatient to wait :)
I tried the LaBella flatwounds but didn't like them so I put the old strings back in. The flatwounds sounded great but I didn't like how the felt when I was plucking with my thumb.
I did the same with my 2014 Squier VI, ordering a Staytrem bridge (before they stopped exporting to the US) and LaBella roundwounds; no intonation issues, and sounds great with the heavier gauge strings.
The main complaint on these is the floppiness of the bass strings and intonation. Usually a .90 for the low E does it. String joy makes a really good set for the bass VI. And as for bridge, the cheapest option would be a $20 mustang big barrel saddle bridge. The barrels are semi hollow to allow the spring to compress within it giving you just enough room for perfect intonation. Might also have to slot the top a little for the string thicknesses. Then theres staytrem and mastery that $200+
Thanks for the tip. I will look up these barrels and see if I can get some.
I finally put the Staytrem on mine and it instantly made it more playable and perfect intonation. I can't put it down now...@@Kbald
Fender makes a Bass VI set with a 100g E string that work excellent and take care of intonation problems.
To fix the intonation, push/strech the string close to the bridge to make it form an proper angle (not an arc). If I'm not clear, watch the 2nd tip of the video "Six Baritone Hacks | BO•021" by "The Bunn" on youtube.
The New ones supposedly come with a new bridge and the intonation is actually close LOL. So they say.
Thanks for the tip, will definitely check it out.
I think I just wet myself, this sounds so cool, i need this
Really...Fantastic thing.Should of come out when leo fender made the first strat.That bass is excellent.
These are like the secret weapon of Robert Smith and The Cure's sound.
Great tutorial. Aloha from Hawaii.
Thanks for watching, greetings from Reykjavik 🇮🇸
Sweet!
SOLI DEO GLORIA
(To The Glory of God Alone)
Father, Son & Holy Spirit
-Ronnie
I have a few VI. Nothing sounds better for cleans…like the left half of a piano.
I knew i wanted one of those
Highly recommend those, so much fun to play and you can get loads of cool sounds out of it 👍
Due to the name, it's a bass. A very cool bass.
Glen used Carol Kaye's Dano Six on Wichita Lineman and Galveston. Bill Pitman "King of the Dano 6" used one a lot including some Jan & Dean stuff. And the theme to the Wild Wild West. Glen can be seen playing a VI on a video from the 60's though.
You are right, Carol played the bass on Wichita Lineman.
@@Kbald Yes FenderPrecision Bass. But Glen did play the Dano 6.
The intonation problem could have something to do with string height, I've heard that it's quite high on this bass/guitar and the pressing down of the string seems to be enough to change the pitch considerably, you could try to file down the saddle a bit
I'm a bass player that wants to start also playing guitar and is heavily considering picking this bass(?) up, at least more for the sake of getting more comfortable with tmstring spacings as well as the fact that it can. (seemingly) function as a guitar if needs be!
@@user-bp3zx7ow1g I should have edited this comment to give a follow up lmao - I ended up buying it like a month after leaving this comment and i love the thing to pieces (though it has a lot of issues, i definitely still need to make some upgrades and modifications to make it play at its best). really is a cool instrument, I mainly use it as a guitar, mostly so I have a reason to use buth my main bass and my bass vi for different reasons!!
I read something where a guy put the bridge on backwards so you would have to adjust the intonation from the pickup side. He claimed it gave him just enough to get the E string right. Just wanted to share this.
Thank you for sharing ☺️🙏
hello! i wanted to know from you one thing: does it have enough low-end for it to be able to fully replace bass in a live and/or studio environment?
I think it depends on the type of music you are playing. The Beatles made it work for them but if you are playing in a very tight and powerful band it might not work so well.
2:02 sounds great!
Such a great song!
Schechter made a VI too, even a signature model for The Cure.
That's cool, haven't seen that one yet.
For the intonation have you tried cutting down the spring or even removing it from the saddle, that may give you the extra amount that you need?
Like deployed 👍
Thanks for the tip! I might give that a go and even make a follow up video about the results. Thanks!
@@Kbald no worries, I hope that it goes well 🙏
So if I understand this correctly, when comparing this to a baritone guitar with the high he actually be the E below the B found on a baritone?
Yes, so the high B string on a Baritone guitar would be a perfect 5th above the high E string on the Bass VI.
Robin Mullarkey is using one of these on tour right now with Jacob Collier!
On my way to collect 2nd hand like yours!
I ended up opting for a Baritone Telecaster. Some of the things I like to do on bass (tapping for example) just doesn't work well on this due to the string spacing, and playing chords is still a bit too muddy. Baritone is a great in between where I can play guitar stuff at a lower frequency. I'll leave bass stuff to a regular bass.
Which baritone Tele did you go for? I had one recently which was made in Mexico, quite fun to play but the pickups sounded a bit dull.
There is a video here on my channel where I’m playing it, a cover of Smells Like Teen Spirit.
@@Kbald the new squire classic vibe one, basically a regular Tele with a Baritone neck. I use it for math Rock and emo and it's great.
Nice 👌
Interesting. But the intonation problem? Did you solve it with a heavier string? Thanks and greetz ✌🏻
Listen to Jet Harris and Hank The Knife. Two great Fender VI guitarists
thanks for the review...so when it comes to changes strings , u suggest to buy the 6 strings for bass? thanks
Hey Lele, I ended up getting a pack of LaBella VI set, cant remember the gauges from the top of my head but think the low E is a 105
Finger pressure is a huge thing. Sometimes a softer touch solves the intonation problem.
I have been eyeing up one of these I think I might take the hurting from pocket for sound like that omg
It's definitely worth it. I wasn't planning to buy a new guitar/bass when I saw it but still decided to take it home, even though I should be saving money for my upcoming holidays 😆
Nice! What chord is played on 0:48 of the video?
Hiya champ, this is a 30-inch scale guitar with an 84 gauge string on the low E. My baritone is 28.5 inch scale with a 72 gauge for the low E (Ernie Ball). This guitar sounds very similar to my baritone and nothing like my p bass. This squire sits somewhere in that gray area between a baritone and a bass.
Interesting, yes it's somewhere in between but can definitely be used as a regular bass in some situations.
@@Kbald Absolutely!
@@Kbald When i used to be the bassist of the Punk Rock band i'm in, i used a Bass IV as guitar is my main instrument, and it felt more natural to use the IV..
mine is quite noisy even in clean sound amp. do you use any noise reduction pedal? I hear your sound is very clean there.
Thanks, the flaw you mentioned near the end stopped an impulse buy
Thank you for this video. I just watched a lot of videos on this guitar and those clowns from across the pond had me convinced I didn't want one. This demo gave me the feeling back that I might want one. Several people have recommended LaBella flat wound strings to improve the intonation and tone qualities. 👍
Thanks for checking out the video. I’m very happy with my Bass VI, it is a lot of fun to play. Doesn’t cover all my bass needs but great for certain things.
I actually tried the flatwounds LaBellas but took them back out as I found a bit hard to play fingerpicking on those. I think I definitely give them another chance.
Intonation free fix , loosen strings , take out bridge and rotate 180 degrees so the screw heads are facing the bridge pick up
i only did bridge reversal and adjusted action and got good results , this is vid : ua-cam.com/video/dAIe4dI3iRw/v-deo.html or if you don't trust links haha (me neither) type ' Squier VI Vintage Modified Bass 6 string intonation' .
Thanks for the tip and for the link. I will definitely check it out.
There's a vid somewhere showing some mods involving the trem plate and bridge to improve the intonation ect and something about the strings, when I have the money I will be doing it to mine
Interesting, will try to look that up.
@@Kbald one site explaining upgrades and strings was "Destorying amp gears demos" titled I have upgraded the squire bass VI this leads on to other chaps videos improving the Bass. VI. You should find something