@@NotThatOneThisOne I think i got spoilt on the Jack. After that bass, i could not get use to the flat C profile necks of the 'modern bass'. I had to put layers of tape on the back of the neck to build it up. Not a pretty look but it worked. In the end, I had to get the Jack back. Wa
I'm shocked an entire show on Headless Basses doesn't mention the quintessential Headless Bass, Status Graphite Basses, made in England! Mark King, Guy Pratt, Chris Wholesome (sp) etc etc I EXCLUSIVELY play Status Graphite S2 Classic 5 Strings Headless Basses. Unmatched tone 👌🏿👌🏿 Greetings from Uganda 🇺🇬👊🏿🖤
I saw John Entwistle in 1995 with his solo band, and for Success Story and Trick Of The Light he played a headless Status 8-string! Immensely cool bass. Of course, the Buzzard he was using then was one of his Status-made examples, before Warwick sued them.
I have a 1987 Steinberger XL2-A. I played this bass on the road for a number of years back in the 80's. I'm the original owner and still have this bass in my small fleet of basses. Unlike most people, I instantly fell in love with the look, feel, and ergonomics of the bass. It was impervious to temperature and humidity changes. It was super sleek, shiny and at the forefront of bass tech........no truss rod either! Fast forward many years, I'm now an airline pilot and I drag the XL on the road with me sometimes......it's great for travel. The only thing I didn't like about this bass was the fact that you had to use double ball end strings......until I found out that there was a normal string adapter one could purchase from Steinberger. great channel Scott. cheers, kev ps. the string adapter from steinberger requires no modification to the original machined "metal neck nut" piece.....it just stays in place due to string tension.
I got this adapter too (likely not Steinberger, but other brand), but it didn't work well for me. 8-( When you attach the strings, you have to drill a screw through the string. Like a garotte. and then cut the overstanding strings with a plyer. Once I got all 4 strings attached, I noticed that the very first one did not sit right. One half-tone too low. No chance to loosen / re-tight that string. Glad it works for you, I will not pursue that path anytime soon.
The NS Radius Bass gets past the string problem. It takes standard bass strings but uses them the other way around. Ball at the top of the neck and the other end goes through the body and is caught by the revolutionary new system. Changing strings is super quick and easy. Brilliant.
Ooh, guys, guys… Your video title alone today was pure bait for me! I’ve been a professional bass player for more decades than I care to remember. My main stay apart from my ‘63 Jazz has always been a Status Series 2, followed by a Status S2-Classic. Headless basses have superior balance, superior tuning and often superior sustain (with the graphite through necks, anyway!). I’ve recently picked up a Cort Space Bass 5 with the Mark Bass preamp and again, it is effortless to play and balances perfectly, and has a beautifully clean sound. Headless basses rule!
Bought my first Steinberger in 1984. Sold almost every bass I had to pay for it including a ‘61 Precision and a first run Aria SB1000 which was getting most of my gigs at the time. No regrets. The L2 was my workhorse bass for about 9 years 5 of which I was a full time player. It was used on every gig and every recording no matter who I was working for. Never had a comment other than “that bass sounds amazing” Even did a tour playing for the late, great Ben E King and Ben never batted an eyelid lol. Re strings, with double ball strings you can change the whole set in five minutes and I have changed a broken string while playing on stage ready to go before the next song started. Amongst a load of basses and Chapman Sticks I’ve got 4 Steinbergers now and to this day it’s likely that either my fretted or fretless bass on a gig will be a Steinberger. Ned is a bona fide genius.
I've had a strandberg Boden Prog 5 since they first came out. Fantastic instrument! I rarely play my others live any more. It's so light and so comfortable. I'm older with bursitis in my shoulders, and arthrits in my hands, and I swear that the endurneck is adding years to my playing career. It almost forces you to play with correct hand position. I wasn't a fan of the darkglass, and considered getting the Fishman setup, but I opted to install an Audere Pro Z. What a perfect combination. It tamed the bass enough to play almost any genre, while still being anble to get gnarly. And nobody scoffs at the weirdness. They just comment on how cool it looks and how great it sounds ;-)
I’ve got the same bass and quite like the Darkglass but your comment about the Audere is interesting. Will check it out. I’m mostly a jazz/ folk player so something less aggressive would be nice.
My '82 fretless Steinberger (with flats) sounded like a cross between an acoustic upright bass and a grand piano. A bit tricky to play (no arm rest) which is why I sold it. But it never went out of tune. Someone once said he accidentally backed his truck up over one and it didn't even go out of tune. Also, once while walking down the street with it in its gig bag, I got stopped by police, who thought it was a rifle. And BTW, restringing was a snap (with double-ball end). Hats off to Ned for his amazing engineering.
Do you have flatwound double-ball strings on your Bass? Where can I get those???? I am looking for so long now with no success! Thank you in advance for any hint!
In the past I was looking on websites of music dealers and string producers, never found any flatwounds. Now, after this video and writing my question to you, I did another look in Bing. And now I found flatwounds on the big A. Never expected to find anything like that on their marketplace. Seems I have some luck now.... thx - and you can ignore me now ;-)
This! I mean the restringing part. My Clover Slapper has the same system, if you can pay 15-20% extra for double ball ends it is very easy and rewarding. While i wouldn't drive a vehicle over it, the graphite neck did feel like you could tear down walls with it, while playing in tune.
@@cookieninja9712 Meanwhile I found a set of Double Ball Flatwounds,m they are on their way to me now.... And, which is so hard to believe for me, I found them on A. None of the big whig instrument retailers have them in their catalog. Shame!
I was flying with my Sterinberger (guitar) as a carry on shortly after 9/11 and the x-ray tech kept running it back and forth, back and forth.. I was dreading every second.. finally he looked up at me: "Is this yours, sir?" "Yes it is" "How do you tune it?" "Oh those little knobs at the bridge" "No Truss Rod? "No, it's carbon fiber and epoxy resin" "Have a nice flight" Whew....!
I bought a Steinberger XL2A in 83 because of Geddy Lee..still have it..$1250 bucks then..the EMG's are great..one thing you didn't discuss is the incredible gear ratios of Ned's tuners..not much turning needed and they are incredibly precise..😁
When this vid started I said out loud “ah man I hope they show Arif” and you DID 👏 that arrow shot has been ingrained in my brain since high school, lol
Lookin great today boys! Scott, that denim buttoned up looks super sharp mate, and Ian matching the gloss black steinberger to his hat did not go unnoticed.
Changing strings on a Steinberg is super-fast IF you have the double-ball strings. You could go from rounds to flats in like less than 10 minutes in studio if the need arises. The disorientation on Steinberger is - I believe - a function of both the neck joint and pickup position being different from the traditional designs. The neck joint is at fret 22, combine that with the missing upper horn and it is visually confusing. BUT the Steinberger pivot plate is a great ergonomic design.
While I didn't have an actual Steinberger, I had the Hohner B2A, a copy with active PUs (even a little red light so you knew they were one)! LOL. NGL, wish I still had it; although it would be nigh invisible with my beer gut!!! Good to see you back on the behs, Scott!
My friend found me a Steinberger spirit bass for $8 at goodwill. It was banged up and needed a new bridge for about $50. Last remote recording session I had, we were debating what bass I should use, and I did a triple blind test with the producer; my Warwick, my MusicMan, and my Steinberger. Steinberger won out! It's been my go-to recording bass ever since. The best part is that it's the ultimate travel/couch bass, and if you're recording in cramped spot, no headstock banging. Super solid tuning too! That is all to say, I didn't watch this episode yet, but can't wait to dive in later.
Gibson would sell a lot more of those Steinberger Spirit basses if they came with the strap pivot of the original model. Without the strap pivot, it doesn’t sit or balance like a normal bass.
I played a Steinberger XL2A in the late 80’s/early 90’s and have primarily played headless basses ever since. At one point I sent the bass back to Steinberger and had them install a TransTrem bridge, which was a whammy bar that actually locked the bass into different tunings. By dropping the whammy all the way down my EADG quickly became BEAD so I could cover 5-string parts without changing basses. It was pretty cool, but there were a lot of complicated adjustments to make every time I changed strings. All in all a super dependable bass that was always in tune, with a neck that never needed adjustment in Florida’s heat and humidity.
I love my Status S2 4 string headless and there are only pros. You can lay the bass on the ground and the is no risk of detune, the heasstock can´t broke (as there is no one), a full set of strings can be changed in 5 minutes, you can also use single ball strings if you like, on small stages the missing headstock is an advantage. OK, the look is your personal decision but from technical point it is for me TOPPPPPPPPP
The 1st time I ever saw a Steinberger it was Tony Levin playing a fretless version with Peter Gabriel on the Melt tour 80 he used it on the song Family Snapshot. My own experience with the XL2 goes back to recording our album at Bearsville in Woodstock NY. The first day of basic tracks once under the microscope of the studio my bases clearly needed some work. In order to not lose time the studio staff reached out around the local community for a loaner and I was given the chance to play one and it instantly made the engineer and myself happy. The next morning I reached out to my good friend who worked in a store that carried them and I bought the one they had over the phone. I had my dad drive the 2 hours up to deliver it to me in the studio which was a thrill for him to see us at work. While the design may be dated and is so often ridiculed I could care less because they sound and record fantastic. I still have and love my XL2 but the gig bag is in rough shape.
Not a huge fan of headless basses and never have been BUT, the Kubicki Ex Factor 4 is definitely one of my FAVORITE basses of all-time thanks to Stu Hamm. ;)
Once owned a Status 4 string headless. Awesome bass. But above all, very very practical on stage. Never out of tune and never had to worry about banging against a mic standard or cymbals of the drummer’s kit. 👍🏼
I agree. I would go from gig to gig over several weeks and it was always still in tune. It I did ever need to tune it, then tuning is so much more convenient at the bridge end of the bass than at the headstock end, especially if you have short-ish arms like me.
Ian nailed the Steinberger impression - at first it IS ridiculous - even when you own one - and then it becomes a classic - it just plays and sounds so good its undeniable. I bought a 91 Q series Steinberger and have had it as my only bass for 30 years. Double ball has never caused a problem either
I met Arif when they were in Manchester, UK touring this album, he's such a cool guy. I remember waiting for that section of Sequoia Throne, but this time he improvised a mime of rolling a joint. Great show, great musician!
I had a Steinberger and now the Strandberg Boden Prog and can confirm that only the Steinberger plays 2 frets higher at the ‘normal position’. Thanks for the video guys
I have two Steinbergers (a 4- and a 5-string), and two NS Radius basses, which is Steinberger's more recent instrument, which has a more conventional body wedded to a headless neck. The first time I took my XL-2 to my band rehearsal, my bandmates said, "You need to bring that back again, it sounds great." Regarding your cons, the NS also allows you to use whatever strings you want, without the cumbersome clamp systems that most single-ball headless systems have. It's more elegant than what you showed on the Strandberg. The ball end goes at the top, and the other end of the string goes through the tuner and the body and you just clip them. Easier than stringing a regular bass, and you can actually take the strings off and put them back on again easily. The NS was my main bass for years until I got a Dingwall, which I'm now totally in love with for the amazing tone of the super-long low strings.
A point for tuning issues on a headstock bass, the body is a giant slab of usually pretty dense wood, the neck has a metal truss rod and a super dense and hard fingerboard. The headstock on most instruments has NO reinforcement, and if the wood is pretty young it can a lot more susceptible to moving, and knocking out of tune.
I have an XM3, in other words the composite neck with the alder 'strat style' body. Very similar sound, never goes out of tune, incredible sustain. Feels like a standard 'Fender' style bass with all the pros of the Steinberger headless. You may want to check them out. The double ball in my opinion is a big pro. I can literally change a string in 30 seconds. Great video!
I grew up playing a Hohner copy of the Steinberger and an Ibanez Axstar, so I am totally in camp "futuristic" and have none of the vintage bias against these basses. I think the reduced weight, balance, and compact design are great, and I think my next bass may be a headless... (especially if I win that Strandberg!)
I bought my Sprit by Steinberger (a cheap guitar version of that Steinberger) GT-Pro from Japan back in 2014 I think. It was on sale back then. When I broght it back home, I asked a flight crew nicely and they let me put this on the overhead bin. I don't have to load this, nor have to ask the crew to place it in their closet (unlike my Strat I bought earlier from Canada). I don't know if they would let you put your bass guitar in the bin or not though. So uh if you're travelling by airplane, headless might be a better bet than says a '59 Les Paul. You can keep it with you in the passenger area. The risk of writting another 'United Breaks Guitar' will be way less. As a plus you can take it out and play it while waiting for boarding time (especially if you have amplug device like the Katana GO). PS. That white bass is also Spirit by Steinberger. A cheaper, made in Korea model by Steinberger (when it's already part of the Gibson company then). Spirit guitars are made with wood instead of synthetic material.
30” scale custom headless made by Chris Stambaugh for me about 5-6 years back. Hipshot bridge. EMG P/J set. Spalted top, maple neck thru, black limba wings. 5.5 lbs. Played hundreds of gigs with it and my back has thanked me. Sounds great on stage through my Fractal AX8 direct to the board, no amp.
I had (2) Kramer Duke headless 4-string basses (fretted/fretless) in 1982. They were a super light wood and cost way less than the Steinberger at that time. I think it was the first headless bass to have a cutaway so you could reach every fret comfortably.
I got my Steinberger XL2 in 1983 ... I've always loved the sound and playability. One of the other key things I find great is the ergonomic design that comes from the swivel strap. It means that you can move the bass into any position, depending on where you're playing on the neck etc. as Scott says, balance is amazing! Ned Steinberger is a genius ... long time fan!!
Had a Status for thirty plus years , sounds amazing , never goes out of tune , never had any trouble getting double ball end strings , love the Steinberger , no mention of Status ????
The bass in the Protest the Hero vid is most likely a Steinberger Spirit 5-string. A later, cheaper, all-wood, bolt-on construction. Looks like it has the "Spirit" logo under the neck PU.
I bought my first steinbergerXL2 in 1982. Still have it and still play it regularly. In 1990 got sponsored by steinberger and received another "elite" version. Elite version is not as durable as the original although it sounds a little more lively. 2 tuning claws broke on the new one and had to replace them. They're fantastic for playing long shows. They never go out of tune. Regularly people come up and ask " what's that?"
I have 2 Hohner copies of the Steinberger. One with active humbuckers, one with single coil/split pickup at the treble position. Used it in a CARS tribute band for many years here in California. It also had something called "Emg select" pickups. I found these are awesome! The EMG rep at a NAMM show said these are made in Korea, very similar to the American made EMGs. Fun to play, especially on a crowded club stage! I now have a headless Ibanez 5 string fanned fret bass which is awesome too!
I own (5) Steinbergers, all bolt ons, XP, XQ,XM with maple bodies and composite necks. They have the sustain of a neck thru and the punch of a P-bass. I love them!!! There is a a string adapter that allows you to use any bass string with no modifications. Agree about the disorientation. It reminds me of going from a P-Bass to a Thunderbird or a 21 fret to a 24 fret. It does take some getting used to. Correct about tuning. They really do stay in tune. HeadlessUSA is still getting parts made as well. Headless forever!!!
I love the Factor bass, it's just so beautiful. I had a Cort Steinberger knockoff back in the Eighties that was surprisingly not bad. A friend had his Steinberger stolen many, many years ago, and it was found and returned to him not long ago. It was in rough shape, so he got me to restore it, and I put so much care into doing it because I've always loved that thing. Made it like new again. I believe Leland Sklar used one too way back with Phil Collins in the early days.
I bought a XP2 in the 90's. Went into a music store in Sacramento CA and there was 10+ basses on stands and I plucked the E string on all of them. Out of all the basses' the one with the riches sound and sustain in the store the Steinberger was the absolute best raw sound and feel. Took a bit to get used to the headless part, but out of all the basses i've had before and after this bass, I still have my Steinberger.
I own a black Westone Quantum headless 4-string passive bass made in 1984. It's a Matsumoku product made in Japan. I love it, the sound is great and it's very portable. cheers Jan from Belgium.
I went to a completely headless bass setup. A Kiesel Vader 5 with radial J’s. Also the Ibanez 1005 with a roasted maple as a backup Smaller setup to transport and they play and sound incredible
@@chrisggoodwin777 I owns several different basses, and this is my Swiss Army Knife!! we have several different versions of songs from disco to Billy Joel and beyond. The covers everything during any given night with very little adjustment.
@@RobMLyon the same can be said for the the Zeus. I have the radium humbuckers and make little to no adjustments to cover multiple genres. Playing music is awesome, but so is geeking out on gear lol
As a lover of 80's music, I think of the Steinberger as an iconic part of that era. So many players used a Steinberger bass or guitar at one point or another, enshrined in lots of music videos forever. A bassist you didn't mention: Ross Valory from Journey (Escape/Frontiers era). Then there's Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads, Curt Smith of Tears for Fears, Daryl Stuermer with Genesis and Phil Collins...
First time I saw a Steinberger was on a reggae festival. Wicked Dub Division played after us, and their bassist (King Claudio) carried it onstage. Big man, small bass, but a massive sound. I think my gut still hears it to this day :D
Bought an old Steinberger a while back, and I felt so cool until I gigged with it. I had been sitting down while practicing and didn’t realize that the center of gravity caused the neck to dive. I found it really uncomfortable until someone told me about strap adapter retrofit. Also, recently bought an NS Design Radius CR-5 - really light, sounds great and no neck dive.
I have never had any neck dive with an XL-2 with the "boomerang"-like strap system that Ian showed (which was the factory configuration). Maybe you had a different Steinberger model, or somebody took the strap system off? Definitely agree that the Radius is a great instrument. Beautiful balance, borrows the curved back from Ned's design for the Spector, takes normal strings. All in all a great bass.
In the 80’s and early 90’s Reggae era the Steinberger was the industry standard. Especially in the live Dancehall genre. Search Reggae Sting Festival and you’ll likely see it. The legendary bassist Derrick Barnett rocked one and he made it look so cool to me. I played the Hohner version of the headless Steinberger. 5 string. It has its moments but then I was stung on a couple gigs where the battery died and the bass did not work at all. It didn’t work passive even though there was an active switch.
I think headless basses look cool. I am not bothered about the challenge of restringing, because I do it quite rarely and never break strings. The superior balance is a big pro. The crunch question is whether you like the sound. I like the sound of the Le Fay, but I am not sure if I would use it much.
A very entertaining and interesting video on the pros and cons of the headless bass. Well done guys! So glad you gave Simon Grove some airtime and praise. He is an absolute beast of a bass player, one of my favorite modern bassists and an exceptional sound engineer.
One to mention would have been Status basses, and Mark King at the helm of them.. The white 5 is a Spirit by Steinberger, made of... wood. For the story, i had a Hohner B2A with a Steinberger logo on it, did a session with it hours after another bassist recorded the real thing, and got compliments on how mine sounded better. Then i got a Status series 2000, big step-up.. Also on the pros : when changing a string after an on stage break, it can be in tune faster as less stretching is needed.
As a regular headless player on the local pub/club circuit, I am always getting the 'how do you tune it/where's the headstock' questions but it does mean I'm less likely to knock someone's pint out of their hand if it's busy :)
After my first time trying the Strandberg Boden 5 original, I fell in love. I have 2 custom build headless fanned frets now. Best feeling basses I’ve ever touched
Great to see Scott with his arm round a bass again, instead of in a sling. I hope the recovery has gone smoothly. I tried an Ibanez EHB 5-string a couple of years ago, and it felt really easy to play, but I wasn't too impressed with the tone from the pickups (with the benefit of hindsight, I might have been happier trying one with Nordstrands), so i eventually wound up with a Dingwall instead. Watching the early stages of this, i have Strandberg envy . . .
The query here is less about headless and more really about Graphite necks. As a heads up these necks are not straight graphite, they are a specialist composite to imitate the "sweet spot" on a normal neck, hence the whole neck is "sweet". Megadeths David Ellefson has used a graphite neck on every megadeth recording for a LONG time. I have Graphite neck steinbergers and the bass guitar sounds sooooo similar to him. The later Steinberger Spirit guitars are wooden necks, and these sound nothing like the originals. As far as steinberger goes EVERYONE used one in the 80s, literally. This was THE bass for pop music, because of its better sound. Nowadays bassists in pop are invisible/silent, covered by the keyboardist in all major pop music generally. Contentious opinion maybe... Sad times eh? Any time I take my steinbergers out for gigs (guitar or bass) I always get a tonne of questions from audience, and a shed load from the other bands. I cannot recommend these instruments enough! Restringing an issue?!?!! It's 10x easier, completely disagree with this comment, as you can change a string in all of 20 seconds tuned up. On the guitars the bridge locks too so super easy as well. Acquiring strings yer... a bit awkward eh. D'Addario are our best friend here, and have recently reduced the price of their Steinberger strings as they reached silly costs last year (£90 for a NYXL 4 string bass set... woah! They are now £45) With adding a bass adapter for strings you face the issue raised at 18:40 - the strings sticking out will literally tear someones face off, so forget being hit by a headstock, worry more about your face being ripped off by bass string ends! There is your real con, but not an original design! Con 3 - he's right, its the peripheral vision thing. If you stand up and close your eyes you should be fine. I personally find this same issue on any instrument with different dots or shark fins etc. - depends what you are used to seeing, if you use your eyes to play. In terms of looks the L series is by far the most ugly, and unfortunately the most common seen (it's also the one in this video). The best in my opinion is the P/X series - it's a mini flying V. The G/M (M for Mike Rutherford) style is more normal looking, generally you see it in guitar form. Guitarists like Paul Masvidal, Mike Rutherford, etc use this shape which looks less "stupidy". Interestingly when Ibanez made the IMG X-ING 2010 guitar it was double ball ended but they added a fake blank headstock... People may also remember the Floyd "Speedloader" bridges which also used a similar philosophy. 40:20 - "Spirit by Steinberger" is the make. These were made by Music Yo, and had normal wooden necks apart from a few models which featured graphite necks built by "Moses". The QA from Music Yo was awful, these instruments are NOT to be compared to the true Steinbergers - I've had both and it's like comparing a chinese guitar to a custom shop gibson... On that note there are several eras of steinberger too, the Newburgh original, the Gibson era, Music Yo, NS Design, and also the new Spirits. Moses don't make graphite necks anymore, leaving a huge gap in the market. If you want to understand the design of the steinberger more, look for Ned Steinberger videos on youtube, theres a japanese interview where he explains why it has no head, why the bridge is so huge, and all the benefits of this. Any steinberger questions feel free to ask!
In today's world of online ordering, I can't see how the strings is a negative - I played exclusively Headless basses for years and it's never been an issue with finding double-ball end strings for my Status or Steinberger. I just buy them in bulk. In fact, I see them as a massive positive because of how insanely quick you can restring them, and the mechanism for headless tend to hold their tune a lot longer (as well as having no obvious tuning pegs to knock). I had my G-string snap in the middle of a gig in a smaller venue when playing overseas, so didn't have a backup bass easily to hand. Thankfully however it was my steinberger. I had spare strings behind my rig, and whilst our keyboard player helped cover slightly during a (thankfully more atmospheric) guitar solo i was able to restring and retune in about 60 seconds and hit my re-entry point into the verse by the time the guitarist had finished. There's no way I could have done that with regular strings. I totally get the aesthetic being personal choice and a con for a lot of people, but after 10 years of playing I'm NEVER going back to non-headless basses. My Precision bass has sat almost unplayed for years. The lighter weight, the convenience of restringing, the fact they hold their tune better, the sustain, the fact they're so much easier to transport (knocking 8 inches off the length of a flight case matters a lot!), and the fact I have yet to whack it on a rig or my guitarist's face due to over exuberance when moving around on stage. I'll take the hit as looking like a reject from the 80s using a small spaceship. I love my Status with its graphite weave and cheesy blue LEDs over the neck. It's not like the music I play is fashionable anyway!
Should mention the modern Ned Steinbergers for stringing. Ball end goes at the head and the other end goes over the bridge and into the body. The bridge locks on and allows you to tune with no double ball strings or pointy ends.
I own the exact model Scott is playing here, the Boden Standard 5. Best bass I ever owned in 35 years of playing bass including some much more expensive boutique and handbuilt basses. It literally does all I need a bass to do and it’s easy to play and offers very versatile sound options. I rarely play my vintage basses anymore, and I sold a sizeable part of my collection because they just felt dull, clunky and boring after getting the Strandberg.
I play a headless Status Graphite Kingbass. This bass has a graphite neck that has an endless sustain. No neckdive, extreem low action, easy to swap strings and the unique bendwell system you can bend the notes just as with a headed bass. I think headless basses are awesome!
I play a Maruszczyk Frog headless 5, absolutely luv it ! I dig headless basses, recently i got the Cort Space 5 when it just came out… the look is just killer!!
Tried one on a guitar/bass fair in Germany last month. Nice one! Played it longer than I intended to do, and that speaks volume ... handling was great, balance was great, felt like high quality (never been disappointed with Cort, though) ... just have to get one played "loud", I just had my In-Ears with me. Good choice and continue to have fun playing yours (I'm pretty sure you'll do ...)
A rare headless bass is the Alembic AJ II made on a license in Japan, only 30 odd examples were done. Strings were locked by and allen-key and cut to length, so no bouble-ball ends. Managed to get one such example, the simplified Alembic electronics sound ok and due to its tiny wooden body it is very lightweight. Not matching a real Alembic by any means but looks sort of cool and does the job.
I recently got an Ibanez EHB headless fretless 5 string that I take on fly dates- I've gotten nothing but compliments from other musicians about how cool it looks, the sound, and how it suits my vibe. Chorus and octave are a no-brainer and sound amazing with it. I don't love the stock pickups but I can achieve some great tones from it with some EQ and compression. It's so easy to travel with!
Hi. I am a pro player who plays electrical guitar and bass guitar on various bands. I own (and have owned) many guitars and basses but since I have smaller hands I prefer playing thin neck, lightweight Ibanez instruments on both wherever possible. Retro / headless / acoustic bass comparison: Here is a funny memory of mine: There has been a time where I had to play on a retro show so they have hired 3 basses for me and I had to play them without any previous experience of those instruments. Luckily they arrived with new strings and nice neck setups, but we first saw eachother during the soundcheck in another city. For the first night, all the time I had to hear how they sound was 15 minutes in total before the soundcheck. And I had to play them one after the other on every night for a month: 1- 1970's Fender Jazz Bass, (For 60's & 70's songs) 2- 1980's Steinberger headless bass (For 80's songs) 3- 1990's Gibson acoustic bass (For 90's songs) 4- Again 1970's Fender Jazz Bass, (For 00's songs) Almost all of us know the Fender Jazz or Precision bass feeling and more or less know how to handle them. And yet all the bass amps, cabs, DI boxes, pedals, processors, PA sistems are built according to them. For the first 3 nights as soon as I laid down the Fender Jazz and grabbed the Steinberger I had a total unfamiliar feeling. The neck felt longer, I could hardly control my hand on the first frets and they felt like they were flying out / falling off the neck, hardly balance the bass on my stomach and had to look on my hands while playing. Although it had a beautiful tone it was hard to control while slapping and popping since there were no place to rest the back of my arm. And it was a total nightmare for the first 2 songs when I switched from Steinberger to the big body Washburn acoustic bass. 😆 Same things happened to the guitar player switching from a Gibson LesPaul to Floyd Rose Jackson Flying V to Yamaha Acoustic guitar. (He was a plain old Fender Stratocaster guy) So we both spent first couple days of the tour in a hotel room with practicing with our instruments and effect pedals while every other musician were sightseeking. 😆 About fanfret basses: It nearly takes a couple of weeks in total to get fully used to these instruments. It totally depends on your character and choices. After that point there is no turning back if you like modern sounds and true long B string sustain feeling that doesn't suck. So all the other instruments become a thing of the past. But if you are more of a retrospective player, you go back to classic 34" Fenderish J or P configurations. Yes, since modern fanfret instruments use longer scale strings and different (maybe cheaper obtained) woods there are big tonal differences. But you learn to get the retro sounds as well from your new instrument as you spend time with your new instrument on stage.
Have to agree with you on all the pros and cons. I play an Ibanez 1505. Being a smaller person, I love that they are so light and the lack of headstock makes you feel free to move around on stage. Hate the lack of presence on the G string and the fanned frets can be tricky. The Ibby is no comparison to my P-bass (voice of god) but still my go to bass for lengthy gigs due to comfort and versatility.
I gigged and toured from '08 to '15 using a Gibson Thunderbird. After an extended hiatus my band decided to get back together but instead of 45 minute gigs we now do 3-4 hour cover sets. The first couple of gigs I used the Gibby and my shoulder just killed me. I felt like I was using a boat anchor. Add in the fact that 40 is staring me in the face and I found my self researching light weight basses. Ended up purchasing an Ibanez EHB1500 and absolutely love it. Sounds amazing, weights like 6 pounds which is insane for a 5 string. Plus for as much as I worried what my bandmates and others would think, I have gotten nothing but compliments on how it looks.
I have a 1982 Steinberger L2 that was once own by Pete Fardon of the Pretenders. Also if you look closely at the Nut on your Steinberger you see where it has threads where you can use an Allen screw for regular strings (maybe just on the early ones) . Ned thought of everything. Ive had mine for over 30 years . Normally I play fender basses , so the missing head stock can be a little disorienting. Also they stay in tune for a long time because they have a higher tuning ratio because stings are pull instead wound Steinberger is 40:1 . I also use to own a Philip Kubicki Factor Bass. Which is what John Taylor of Duran Duran played. he may have played Steinberger for a short time. But the Kubicki has an 80:1 tuning ratio because of the huge wheel and ratchet system. I never needed to be tuned. Fenders are 20:1 tuning ratio.
I have an Ibanez EHB1506 6 string multiscale heaadless bass, its crazy for me to be able to have a 6 string bass with a 35" low B that fits in a guitar gig bag and weighs less than any other bass own
Part of your issue with playing chords on multiscale is that you're playing it like a straight scale instrument with your fretting hand fingers oriented to the plane of the neck. Part of the point of multiscale is it allows you to bring your elbow in and orient your fingers to the angled frets. The other point is to more optimize scale length to sound like a piano.
Kubicki basses has a cool bridge that let you use normal strings. Ned Steinberger's latest basses have an amazing bridge that gets away from the allen wrench problem.
Thanks Scott & lan, fun review (as always). Had never tried a Hohner 'Jack' but was always curious. I imagine this video is pre-op Scott, so l hope the recovery is going well. ❤
Loved the show and the info, the camaraderie, a lot of fun. For some reason the first band that comes to mind for this type of bass would be DEVO, it just fits their look. They have a very tight playing sound that was pretty profound. Thanks for a fun show!
Hey Guys - I am the original owner of an XL-2 - purchased in 1984 - still have it and love it. The sound is amazing, very stable tuning, isn't affected by the weather and it's compact as you've mentioned. It can take some getting used to as it is a bit disorienting without a headstock. I just had it re-fretted and cleaned up with a local luthier and it's like brand new. He also "heat treated" the neck to pull it back into alignment as there is no truss rod - and after 40 years of tension, the neck was bowing. Another interesting fact to note is that the fretboard is also graphite - I always though it was ebony. The luthier polished the fretboard and now it shines like a mirror. The action is now 5/64 by 3/64 with NO buzzing. It's not for everyone, and I also have several other basses, but it is a lot of fun to play and really sounds great. Thanks for all you guys do.
Built myself a headless multiscale 5 string P Bass based on an Ibanez EHB neck. The body is designed around it but it looks kinda classic with a black pickguard, single P pickup and all passive Vol/Tone knobs. Really appreciate the ease of traveling with it in a Fusion guitar gigbag and the tuning stability. But I do miss my fave Flats, the Thomastik Jazz flats, which would just unravel and break if I clamped them down at the headstock, I mean at the end of the neck.
I bought my first headless bass last year - a Kiesel Zeus 6 string multiscale. The only con I have is, I have to use a guitar stand with a base for the body. Standard Hercules style headstock stands and wall hangers are out. Other than that, I love it. The Kiesel is super easy to restring. Its well-balanced, and there was no learning curve for the headless or the multiscale. I really enjoy playing higher up rhe neck on the multiscale too. Feels great. I just jumped in to playing it. It's great for gigging and traveling. I'm not going headless exclusively, but I definitely like what I have and would buy another
Another pro is, usually they are flat at the tuning bridge (like the little Steinberger) so you can lean the guitar on anything without them falling over. I love double ball end strings. You can change them really quickly if you break a string during a gig. And I completely agree about the balance. That's the biggest pro.
Most likely a Spirit, a newer, cheaper iteration, no carbon fiber, all wood and bolt-on, About 450€ at Thomann. Not the same as the carbon fiber originals by a long shot, but some people seem to like them, at least for the price.
Yes, Steinberger's headless bass is that old. They'd been a thing for several years, when Kramer made my 1982 "The Duke" Special. An aluminum-necked "copy" of the XL-2, with a Schaller BD-4 roller bridge mounted backwards at the tail; Schaller guitar tuners on the tail (which work great); and a Schaller "Twin-J" pickup. Lot of fun to play, and sounds great, too...
Missed out a huge Pro - no banging your headstock on drum kits, tables, singer's eye sockets, etc. They fit on stage so well.
The exact reason I play one. Plus they are usually lighter.
Although there are singers who could use a P-Bass headstock to the eye socket once in a while.
THIS. I swear I could use the headstock of my Bongo bass to play hockey.
THIS right here! I swear I could use the headstock on my Bongo bass to play hockey if I ever wanted to.
@@Visionism - Agreed
Headless basses are way cooler than people think, the bridges tend to be top notch, and the engineering behind them is just inspiring.
And knowing all of this I still find them horrendous and unfinished.
Brother used to have a Hohner Jack. Most stable tuning ever. Think it's down to the straight pull. Would hope the NS Design bridges are just as good.
Yep. I had a Hohner Jack, humbuckers, active pups, sold it, then bought another just like it. "Never gonna give you up...."
@@NotThatOneThisOne I think i got spoilt on the Jack. After that bass, i could not get use to the flat C profile necks of the 'modern bass'. I had to put layers of tape on the back of the neck to build it up. Not a pretty look but it worked. In the end, I had to get the Jack back. Wa
💯✅
“Guys at the blues jam tease me about having the cricket bat” is funny as hell.
I'm shocked an entire show on Headless Basses doesn't mention the quintessential Headless Bass, Status Graphite Basses, made in England!
Mark King, Guy Pratt, Chris Wholesome (sp) etc etc
I EXCLUSIVELY play Status Graphite S2 Classic 5 Strings Headless Basses. Unmatched tone 👌🏿👌🏿
Greetings from Uganda 🇺🇬👊🏿🖤
To some it's the OG Steinberger, to others it's the Kubicki, or the Status
I saw John Entwistle in 1995 with his solo band, and for Success Story and Trick Of The Light he played a headless Status 8-string! Immensely cool bass. Of course, the Buzzard he was using then was one of his Status-made examples, before Warwick sued them.
Status Streamline is such a bad-ass sci-fi design, would love to get my mitts on one!
sorry but I had to chuckle at "Chris Wholesome" that actually took me a moment
@@fourortwelvestrings 😄😄
I have a 1987 Steinberger XL2-A.
I played this bass on the road for a number of years back in the 80's. I'm the original owner and still have this bass in my small fleet of basses.
Unlike most people, I instantly fell in love with the look, feel, and ergonomics of the bass. It was impervious to temperature and humidity changes. It was super sleek, shiny and at the forefront of bass tech........no truss rod either!
Fast forward many years, I'm now an airline pilot and I drag the XL on the road with me sometimes......it's great for travel.
The only thing I didn't like about this bass was the fact that you had to use double ball end strings......until I found out that there was a normal string adapter one could purchase from Steinberger.
great channel Scott.
cheers,
kev
ps.
the string adapter from steinberger requires no modification to the original machined "metal neck nut" piece.....it just stays in place due to string tension.
I got this adapter too (likely not Steinberger, but other brand), but it didn't work well for me. 8-(
When you attach the strings, you have to drill a screw through the string. Like a garotte. and then cut the overstanding strings with a plyer.
Once I got all 4 strings attached, I noticed that the very first one did not sit right. One half-tone too low. No chance to loosen / re-tight that string. Glad it works for you, I will not pursue that path anytime soon.
@@Kunibert_Knatter mmmmm. Weird……mine works great.
Curt Smith of Tears For Fears used a Steinberger on "Head Over Heels". An absolute genius of a bass line
The NS Radius Bass gets past the string problem. It takes standard bass strings but uses them the other way around. Ball at the top of the neck and the other end goes through the body and is caught by the revolutionary new system. Changing strings is super quick and easy. Brilliant.
No mention of Mark King or Status? Crazy!! 😂
I'm in shock too. I only play Status Graphite Basses 👌🏿
Was looking for this comment. I was like “Mark King, anybody????”
@@Sammybrxby it’s crazy, I think they don’t like the guy. It’s a shame.
Mark gets very little mention on this channel...
Yup. And clover slapper.
Soooooooo glad to hear you shout out Protest the Hero! Some incredibly underrated bass playing!
Ooh, guys, guys… Your video title alone today was pure bait for me! I’ve been a professional bass player for more decades than I care to remember. My main stay apart from my ‘63 Jazz has always been a Status Series 2, followed by a Status S2-Classic. Headless basses have superior balance, superior tuning and often superior sustain (with the graphite through necks, anyway!). I’ve recently picked up a Cort Space Bass 5 with the Mark Bass preamp and again, it is effortless to play and balances perfectly, and has a beautifully clean sound.
Headless basses rule!
Yes. I clicked only to check out the bullshit. UA-camrs...
The only Headless Bass that I always visually really liked are Status. Always loved them.
Kubicki?
Love my Status S2 headless 5 string. Never goes out of tune & the balance of bass is awesome 🤪👍
and it is worth 16000 pound. maybe.
@ What crazy is I got it when they were much cheaper. Now they have stopped making them they got for crazy money 🥴
Bought my first Steinberger in 1984. Sold almost every bass I had to pay for it including a ‘61 Precision and a first run Aria SB1000 which was getting most of my gigs at the time.
No regrets. The L2 was my workhorse bass for about 9 years 5 of which I was a full time player. It was used on every gig and every recording no matter who I was working for. Never had a comment other than “that bass sounds amazing” Even did a tour playing for the late, great Ben E King and Ben never batted an eyelid lol.
Re strings, with double ball strings you can change the whole set in five minutes and I have changed a broken string while playing on stage ready to go before the next song started.
Amongst a load of basses and Chapman Sticks I’ve got 4 Steinbergers now and to this day it’s likely that either my fretted or fretless bass on a gig will be a Steinberger. Ned is a bona fide genius.
I've had a strandberg Boden Prog 5 since they first came out. Fantastic instrument! I rarely play my others live any more. It's so light and so comfortable. I'm older with bursitis in my shoulders, and arthrits in my hands, and I swear that the endurneck is adding years to my playing career. It almost forces you to play with correct hand position. I wasn't a fan of the darkglass, and considered getting the Fishman setup, but I opted to install an Audere Pro Z. What a perfect combination. It tamed the bass enough to play almost any genre, while still being anble to get gnarly. And nobody scoffs at the weirdness. They just comment on how cool it looks and how great it sounds ;-)
I’ve got the same bass and quite like the Darkglass but your comment about the Audere is interesting. Will check it out. I’m mostly a jazz/ folk player so something less aggressive would be nice.
My '82 fretless Steinberger (with flats) sounded like a cross between an acoustic upright bass and a grand piano. A bit tricky to play (no arm rest) which is why I sold it. But it never went out of tune. Someone once said he accidentally backed his truck up over one and it didn't even go out of tune. Also, once while walking down the street with it in its gig bag, I got stopped by police, who thought it was a rifle. And BTW, restringing was a snap (with double-ball end). Hats off to Ned for his amazing engineering.
Do you have flatwound double-ball strings on your Bass?
Where can I get those???? I am looking for so long now with no success!
Thank you in advance for any hint!
In the past I was looking on websites of music dealers and string producers, never found any flatwounds. Now, after this video and writing my question to you, I did another look in Bing. And now I found flatwounds on the big A. Never expected to find anything like that on their marketplace. Seems I have some luck now.... thx - and you can ignore me now ;-)
This! I mean the restringing part. My Clover Slapper has the same system, if you can pay 15-20% extra for double ball ends it is very easy and rewarding. While i wouldn't drive a vehicle over it, the graphite neck did feel like you could tear down walls with it, while playing in tune.
@@cookieninja9712 Meanwhile I found a set of Double Ball Flatwounds,m they are on their way to me now.... And, which is so hard to believe for me, I found them on A. None of the big whig instrument retailers have them in their catalog. Shame!
I was flying with my Sterinberger (guitar) as a carry on shortly after 9/11 and the x-ray tech kept running it back and forth, back and forth.. I was dreading every second.. finally he looked up at me:
"Is this yours, sir?"
"Yes it is"
"How do you tune it?"
"Oh those little knobs at the bridge"
"No Truss Rod?
"No, it's carbon fiber and epoxy resin"
"Have a nice flight"
Whew....!
I bought a Steinberger XL2A in 83 because of Geddy Lee..still have it..$1250 bucks then..the EMG's are great..one thing you didn't discuss is the incredible gear ratios of Ned's tuners..not much turning needed and they are incredibly precise..😁
When this vid started I said out loud “ah man I hope they show Arif” and you DID 👏 that arrow shot has been ingrained in my brain since high school, lol
The COOLEST
ICONIC
Lookin great today boys! Scott, that denim buttoned up looks super sharp mate, and Ian matching the gloss black steinberger to his hat did not go unnoticed.
Changing strings on a Steinberg is super-fast IF you have the double-ball strings. You could go from rounds to flats in like less than 10 minutes in studio if the need arises.
The disorientation on Steinberger is - I believe - a function of both the neck joint and pickup position being different from the traditional designs. The neck joint is at fret 22, combine that with the missing upper horn and it is visually confusing.
BUT the Steinberger pivot plate is a great ergonomic design.
it's nice to see you back, Scott! ❤😊
While I didn't have an actual Steinberger, I had the Hohner B2A, a copy with active PUs (even a little red light so you knew they were one)! LOL. NGL, wish I still had it; although it would be nigh invisible with my beer gut!!! Good to see you back on the behs, Scott!
I have the same B2A and I love it. That bass is my most comfortable instrument. People sometimes says that looks stupid but I DON'T CARE :D
My friend found me a Steinberger spirit bass for $8 at goodwill. It was banged up and needed a new bridge for about $50. Last remote recording session I had, we were debating what bass I should use, and I did a triple blind test with the producer; my Warwick, my MusicMan, and my Steinberger. Steinberger won out! It's been my go-to recording bass ever since. The best part is that it's the ultimate travel/couch bass, and if you're recording in cramped spot, no headstock banging. Super solid tuning too! That is all to say, I didn't watch this episode yet, but can't wait to dive in later.
Gibson would sell a lot more of those Steinberger Spirit basses if they came with the strap pivot of the original model. Without the strap pivot, it doesn’t sit or balance like a normal bass.
I played a Steinberger XL2A in the late 80’s/early 90’s and have primarily played headless basses ever since. At one point I sent the bass back to Steinberger and had them install a TransTrem bridge, which was a whammy bar that actually locked the bass into different tunings. By dropping the whammy all the way down my EADG quickly became BEAD so I could cover 5-string parts without changing basses. It was pretty cool, but there were a lot of complicated adjustments to make every time I changed strings. All in all a super dependable bass that was always in tune, with a neck that never needed adjustment in Florida’s heat and humidity.
I love my Status S2 4 string headless and there are only pros. You can lay the bass on the ground and the is no risk of detune, the heasstock can´t broke (as there is no one), a full set of strings can be changed in 5 minutes, you can also use single ball strings if you like, on small stages the missing headstock is an advantage. OK, the look is your personal decision but from technical point it is for me TOPPPPPPPPP
Thank you so much Status Graphite is incredible. I play S2's exclusively 😎
Exactly! I loved my Status. I would love to get another.
The 1st time I ever saw a Steinberger it was Tony Levin playing a fretless version with Peter Gabriel on the Melt tour 80 he used it on the song Family Snapshot.
My own experience with the XL2 goes back to recording our album at Bearsville in Woodstock NY. The first day of basic tracks once under the microscope of the studio my bases clearly needed some work. In order to not lose time the studio staff reached out around the local community for a loaner and I was given the chance to play one and it instantly made the engineer and myself happy.
The next morning I reached out to my good friend who worked in a store that carried them and I bought the one they had over the phone. I had my dad drive the 2 hours up to deliver it to me in the studio which was a thrill for him to see us at work.
While the design may be dated and is so often ridiculed I could care less because they sound and record fantastic. I still have and love my XL2 but the gig bag is in rough shape.
Not a huge fan of headless basses and never have been BUT, the Kubicki Ex Factor 4 is definitely one of my FAVORITE basses of all-time thanks to Stu Hamm. ;)
Thanks to Mr. kubiki for being determined well experiencd well trained perfectionist .
Once owned a Status 4 string headless. Awesome bass. But above all, very very practical on stage. Never out of tune and never had to worry about banging against a mic standard or cymbals of the drummer’s kit. 👍🏼
I agree. I would go from gig to gig over several weeks and it was always still in tune.
It I did ever need to tune it, then tuning is so much more convenient at the bridge end of the bass than at the headstock end, especially if you have short-ish arms like me.
Ian nailed the Steinberger impression - at first it IS ridiculous - even when you own one - and then it becomes a classic - it just plays and sounds so good its undeniable. I bought a 91 Q series Steinberger and have had it as my only bass for 30 years. Double ball has never caused a problem either
I met Arif when they were in Manchester, UK touring this album, he's such a cool guy. I remember waiting for that section of Sequoia Throne, but this time he improvised a mime of rolling a joint.
Great show, great musician!
Scott! Welcome back!
I had a Steinberger and now the Strandberg Boden Prog and can confirm that only the Steinberger plays 2 frets higher at the ‘normal position’. Thanks for the video guys
I have two Steinbergers (a 4- and a 5-string), and two NS Radius basses, which is Steinberger's more recent instrument, which has a more conventional body wedded to a headless neck. The first time I took my XL-2 to my band rehearsal, my bandmates said, "You need to bring that back again, it sounds great." Regarding your cons, the NS also allows you to use whatever strings you want, without the cumbersome clamp systems that most single-ball headless systems have. It's more elegant than what you showed on the Strandberg. The ball end goes at the top, and the other end of the string goes through the tuner and the body and you just clip them. Easier than stringing a regular bass, and you can actually take the strings off and put them back on again easily. The NS was my main bass for years until I got a Dingwall, which I'm now totally in love with for the amazing tone of the super-long low strings.
what Scott is alluding to is resonance. the longer structure of a headed neck will give a different resonance to the instrument, whether bass or lead.
A point for tuning issues on a headstock bass, the body is a giant slab of usually pretty dense wood, the neck has a metal truss rod and a super dense and hard fingerboard. The headstock on most instruments has NO reinforcement, and if the wood is pretty young it can a lot more susceptible to moving, and knocking out of tune.
I have an XM3, in other words the composite neck with the alder 'strat style' body. Very similar sound, never goes out of tune, incredible sustain. Feels like a standard 'Fender' style bass with all the pros of the Steinberger headless. You may want to check them out. The double ball in my opinion is a big pro. I can literally change a string in 30 seconds. Great video!
My first online purchase was a Spirit by Steinberger XT-25.
I would leave it behind the seat of my truck for months, and it would still be in tune.
I grew up playing a Hohner copy of the Steinberger and an Ibanez Axstar, so I am totally in camp "futuristic" and have none of the vintage bias against these basses. I think the reduced weight, balance, and compact design are great, and I think my next bass may be a headless... (especially if I win that Strandberg!)
Curt Smith from Tears for Fears played some great basses lines on headless basses. He used Steinbergers and Status basses
I LOVE MY STEINBERGER 5 STRING!! It stays tuned better than any headed bass I have played, and the tone is great for it being so small.
I bought my Sprit by Steinberger (a cheap guitar version of that Steinberger) GT-Pro from Japan back in 2014 I think. It was on sale back then. When I broght it back home, I asked a flight crew nicely and they let me put this on the overhead bin. I don't have to load this, nor have to ask the crew to place it in their closet (unlike my Strat I bought earlier from Canada). I don't know if they would let you put your bass guitar in the bin or not though.
So uh if you're travelling by airplane, headless might be a better bet than says a '59 Les Paul. You can keep it with you in the passenger area. The risk of writting another 'United Breaks Guitar' will be way less. As a plus you can take it out and play it while waiting for boarding time (especially if you have amplug device like the Katana GO).
PS. That white bass is also Spirit by Steinberger. A cheaper, made in Korea model by Steinberger (when it's already part of the Gibson company then). Spirit guitars are made with wood instead of synthetic material.
30” scale custom headless made by Chris Stambaugh for me about 5-6 years back. Hipshot bridge. EMG P/J set. Spalted top, maple neck thru, black limba wings. 5.5 lbs. Played hundreds of gigs with it and my back has thanked me. Sounds great on stage through my Fractal AX8 direct to the board, no amp.
I had (2) Kramer Duke headless 4-string basses (fretted/fretless) in 1982. They were a super light wood and cost way less than the Steinberger at that time. I think it was the first headless bass to have a cutaway so you could reach every fret comfortably.
I got my Steinberger XL2 in 1983 ... I've always loved the sound and playability.
One of the other key things I find great is the ergonomic design that comes from the swivel strap. It means that you can move the bass into any position, depending on where you're playing on the neck etc. as Scott says, balance is amazing!
Ned Steinberger is a genius ... long time fan!!
Had a Status for thirty plus years , sounds amazing , never goes out of tune , never had any trouble getting double ball end strings , love the Steinberger , no mention of Status ????
In the late 80's/early 90's the Steinberger was a WANTED guitar! Sounded sweet!
The bass in the Protest the Hero vid is most likely a Steinberger Spirit 5-string. A later, cheaper, all-wood, bolt-on construction. Looks like it has the "Spirit" logo under the neck PU.
I agree that it probably is a Spirit, but they are not bolt on. They are neck through construction.
@@TFEnright5 You're absolutely right The old XPs being bolt-on got mixed with Spirits in my mind.
I bought my first steinbergerXL2 in 1982. Still have it and still play it regularly. In 1990 got sponsored by steinberger and received another "elite" version. Elite version is not as durable as the original although it sounds a little more lively. 2 tuning claws broke on the new one and had to replace them. They're fantastic for playing long shows. They never go out of tune. Regularly people come up and ask " what's that?"
I have 2 Hohner copies of the Steinberger. One with active humbuckers, one with single coil/split pickup at the treble position. Used it in a CARS tribute band for many years here in California. It also had something called "Emg select" pickups. I found these are awesome! The EMG rep at a NAMM show said these are made in Korea, very similar to the American made EMGs. Fun to play, especially on a crowded club stage! I now have a headless Ibanez 5 string fanned fret bass which is awesome too!
I own (5) Steinbergers, all bolt ons, XP, XQ,XM with maple bodies and composite necks. They have the sustain of a neck thru and the punch of a P-bass. I love them!!!
There is a a string adapter that allows you to use any bass string with no modifications.
Agree about the disorientation. It reminds me of going from a P-Bass to a Thunderbird or a 21 fret to a 24 fret. It does take some getting used to.
Correct about tuning. They really do stay in tune. HeadlessUSA is still getting parts made as well. Headless forever!!!
The “bow-guy” is playing a Steinberger Spirit an all wood version of a Steinberger made by Steinberger/Gibson.
I love the Factor bass, it's just so beautiful. I had a Cort Steinberger knockoff back in the Eighties that was surprisingly not bad.
A friend had his Steinberger stolen many, many years ago, and it was found and returned to him not long ago. It was in rough shape, so he got me to restore it, and I put so much care into doing it because I've always loved that thing. Made it like new again. I believe Leland Sklar used one too way back with Phil Collins in the early days.
I also had a Cort way back in the day… pawned it for god knows what reason….😮
I bought a XP2 in the 90's. Went into a music store in Sacramento CA and there was 10+ basses on stands and I plucked the E string on all of them. Out of all the basses' the one with the riches sound and sustain in the store the Steinberger was the absolute best raw sound and feel. Took a bit to get used to the headless part, but out of all the basses i've had before and after this bass, I still have my Steinberger.
Tilt EQ is great- so intuitive. I have it on my Diamond BCP-1 compressor, and a Barber SR LTD overdrive. Both are keepers.
I own a black Westone Quantum headless 4-string passive bass made in 1984. It's a Matsumoku product made in Japan. I love it, the sound is great and it's very portable. cheers Jan from Belgium.
I went to a completely headless bass setup. A Kiesel Vader 5 with radial J’s. Also the Ibanez 1005 with a roasted maple as a backup
Smaller setup to transport and they play and sound incredible
I was looking at a Vader for my next headless 😁 I got a Vader guitar in the Becker run and would like the bass version. GAS is real 😂
@@chrisggoodwin777 I owns several different basses, and this is my Swiss Army Knife!! we have several different versions of songs from disco to Billy Joel and beyond. The covers everything during any given night with very little adjustment.
@@RobMLyon the same can be said for the the Zeus. I have the radium humbuckers and make little to no adjustments to cover multiple genres. Playing music is awesome, but so is geeking out on gear lol
@@chrisggoodwin777 lol very true
As a lover of 80's music, I think of the Steinberger as an iconic part of that era. So many players used a Steinberger bass or guitar at one point or another, enshrined in lots of music videos forever. A bassist you didn't mention: Ross Valory from Journey (Escape/Frontiers era). Then there's Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads, Curt Smith of Tears for Fears, Daryl Stuermer with Genesis and Phil Collins...
I own a red steinberger Q4 v1 from 90. I m really proud of have it. I will never change it.
Nice video, but I can’t believe you never once mentioned Status Graphite - awesome basses and players 👍🏻
I have been a proud owner of a Steinberger XL2 and XP2 for many years now. They are literally the greatest basses I've ever owned and played!
First time I saw a Steinberger was on a reggae festival. Wicked Dub Division played after us, and their bassist (King Claudio) carried it onstage. Big man, small bass, but a massive sound. I think my gut still hears it to this day :D
Mee too, a reggae night, bass amp was svr 8x10 and the sound was massive and super deep and precise tone, really great!
I play a Steinberger 5 string lefty. It's a very good bass actually. The style you either love or hate, I happen to love it.
Bought an old Steinberger a while back, and I felt so cool until I gigged with it. I had been sitting down while practicing and didn’t realize that the center of gravity caused the neck to dive. I found it really uncomfortable until someone told me about strap adapter retrofit. Also, recently bought an NS Design Radius CR-5 - really light, sounds great and no neck dive.
I have never had any neck dive with an XL-2 with the "boomerang"-like strap system that Ian showed (which was the factory configuration). Maybe you had a different Steinberger model, or somebody took the strap system off? Definitely agree that the Radius is a great instrument. Beautiful balance, borrows the curved back from Ned's design for the Spector, takes normal strings. All in all a great bass.
In the 80’s and early 90’s Reggae era the Steinberger was the industry standard. Especially in the live Dancehall genre. Search Reggae Sting Festival and you’ll likely see it. The legendary bassist Derrick Barnett rocked one and he made it look so cool to me. I played the Hohner version of the headless Steinberger. 5 string. It has its moments but then I was stung on a couple gigs where the battery died and the bass did not work at all. It didn’t work passive even though there was an active switch.
I think headless basses look cool. I am not bothered about the challenge of restringing, because I do it quite rarely and never break strings. The superior balance is a big pro. The crunch question is whether you like the sound. I like the sound of the Le Fay, but I am not sure if I would use it much.
A very entertaining and interesting video on the pros and cons of the headless bass. Well done guys! So glad you gave Simon Grove some airtime and praise. He is an absolute beast of a bass player, one of my favorite modern bassists and an exceptional sound engineer.
Simon is a real monster, no question!! and his mixes....🔥🔥🔥
One to mention would have been Status basses, and Mark King at the helm of them..
The white 5 is a Spirit by Steinberger, made of... wood.
For the story, i had a Hohner B2A with a Steinberger logo on it, did a session with it hours after another bassist recorded the real thing, and got compliments on how mine sounded better.
Then i got a Status series 2000, big step-up..
Also on the pros : when changing a string after an on stage break, it can be in tune faster as less stretching is needed.
For sound comparison theres this channel called
Petrek Guitars where he mod a headstock bass to headless, and compare the sound before & after
As a regular headless player on the local pub/club circuit, I am always getting the 'how do you tune it/where's the headstock' questions but it does mean I'm less likely to knock someone's pint out of their hand if it's busy :)
After my first time trying the Strandberg Boden 5 original, I fell in love. I have 2 custom build headless fanned frets now. Best feeling basses I’ve ever touched
👍👍👍
Great to see Scott with his arm round a bass again, instead of in a sling. I hope the recovery has gone smoothly.
I tried an Ibanez EHB 5-string a couple of years ago, and it felt really easy to play, but I wasn't too impressed with the tone from the pickups (with the benefit of hindsight, I might have been happier trying one with Nordstrands), so i eventually wound up with a Dingwall instead. Watching the early stages of this, i have Strandberg envy . . .
The query here is less about headless and more really about Graphite necks. As a heads up these necks are not straight graphite, they are a specialist composite to imitate the "sweet spot" on a normal neck, hence the whole neck is "sweet". Megadeths David Ellefson has used a graphite neck on every megadeth recording for a LONG time. I have Graphite neck steinbergers and the bass guitar sounds sooooo similar to him. The later Steinberger Spirit guitars are wooden necks, and these sound nothing like the originals.
As far as steinberger goes EVERYONE used one in the 80s, literally. This was THE bass for pop music, because of its better sound. Nowadays bassists in pop are invisible/silent, covered by the keyboardist in all major pop music generally. Contentious opinion maybe... Sad times eh?
Any time I take my steinbergers out for gigs (guitar or bass) I always get a tonne of questions from audience, and a shed load from the other bands. I cannot recommend these instruments enough!
Restringing an issue?!?!! It's 10x easier, completely disagree with this comment, as you can change a string in all of 20 seconds tuned up. On the guitars the bridge locks too so super easy as well. Acquiring strings yer... a bit awkward eh. D'Addario are our best friend here, and have recently reduced the price of their Steinberger strings as they reached silly costs last year (£90 for a NYXL 4 string bass set... woah! They are now £45)
With adding a bass adapter for strings you face the issue raised at 18:40 - the strings sticking out will literally tear someones face off, so forget being hit by a headstock, worry more about your face being ripped off by bass string ends! There is your real con, but not an original design!
Con 3 - he's right, its the peripheral vision thing. If you stand up and close your eyes you should be fine. I personally find this same issue on any instrument with different dots or shark fins etc. - depends what you are used to seeing, if you use your eyes to play.
In terms of looks the L series is by far the most ugly, and unfortunately the most common seen (it's also the one in this video). The best in my opinion is the P/X series - it's a mini flying V. The G/M (M for Mike Rutherford) style is more normal looking, generally you see it in guitar form. Guitarists like Paul Masvidal, Mike Rutherford, etc use this shape which looks less "stupidy". Interestingly when Ibanez made the IMG X-ING 2010 guitar it was double ball ended but they added a fake blank headstock... People may also remember the Floyd "Speedloader" bridges which also used a similar philosophy.
40:20 - "Spirit by Steinberger" is the make. These were made by Music Yo, and had normal wooden necks apart from a few models which featured graphite necks built by "Moses". The QA from Music Yo was awful, these instruments are NOT to be compared to the true Steinbergers - I've had both and it's like comparing a chinese guitar to a custom shop gibson... On that note there are several eras of steinberger too, the Newburgh original, the Gibson era, Music Yo, NS Design, and also the new Spirits. Moses don't make graphite necks anymore, leaving a huge gap in the market.
If you want to understand the design of the steinberger more, look for Ned Steinberger videos on youtube, theres a japanese interview where he explains why it has no head, why the bridge is so huge, and all the benefits of this.
Any steinberger questions feel free to ask!
In today's world of online ordering, I can't see how the strings is a negative - I played exclusively Headless basses for years and it's never been an issue with finding double-ball end strings for my Status or Steinberger. I just buy them in bulk. In fact, I see them as a massive positive because of how insanely quick you can restring them, and the mechanism for headless tend to hold their tune a lot longer (as well as having no obvious tuning pegs to knock).
I had my G-string snap in the middle of a gig in a smaller venue when playing overseas, so didn't have a backup bass easily to hand. Thankfully however it was my steinberger. I had spare strings behind my rig, and whilst our keyboard player helped cover slightly during a (thankfully more atmospheric) guitar solo i was able to restring and retune in about 60 seconds and hit my re-entry point into the verse by the time the guitarist had finished. There's no way I could have done that with regular strings.
I totally get the aesthetic being personal choice and a con for a lot of people, but after 10 years of playing I'm NEVER going back to non-headless basses. My Precision bass has sat almost unplayed for years. The lighter weight, the convenience of restringing, the fact they hold their tune better, the sustain, the fact they're so much easier to transport (knocking 8 inches off the length of a flight case matters a lot!), and the fact I have yet to whack it on a rig or my guitarist's face due to over exuberance when moving around on stage.
I'll take the hit as looking like a reject from the 80s using a small spaceship. I love my Status with its graphite weave and cheesy blue LEDs over the neck. It's not like the music I play is fashionable anyway!
Should mention the modern Ned Steinbergers for stringing. Ball end goes at the head and the other end goes over the bridge and into the body. The bridge locks on and allows you to tune with no double ball strings or pointy ends.
Kubicki did this 40 years ago..
I own the exact model Scott is playing here, the Boden Standard 5. Best bass I ever owned in 35 years of playing bass including some much more expensive boutique and handbuilt basses. It literally does all I need a bass to do and it’s easy to play and offers very versatile sound options. I rarely play my vintage basses anymore, and I sold a sizeable part of my collection because they just felt dull, clunky and boring after getting the Strandberg.
I play a headless Status Graphite Kingbass. This bass has a graphite neck that has an endless sustain. No neckdive, extreem low action, easy to swap strings and the unique bendwell system you can bend the notes just as with a headed bass. I think headless basses are awesome!
I play a Maruszczyk Frog headless 5, absolutely luv it ! I dig headless basses, recently i got the Cort Space 5 when it just came out… the look is just killer!!
i love my headless bass. i got a Cort Artisan Space 5 for my birthday and I find myself playing it more than my other basses.
Tried one on a guitar/bass fair in Germany last month. Nice one! Played it longer than I intended to do, and that speaks volume ... handling was great, balance was great, felt like high quality (never been disappointed with Cort, though) ... just have to get one played "loud", I just had my In-Ears with me. Good choice and continue to have fun playing yours (I'm pretty sure you'll do ...)
A rare headless bass is the Alembic AJ II made on a license in Japan, only 30 odd examples were done. Strings were locked by and allen-key and cut to length, so no bouble-ball ends. Managed to get one such example, the simplified Alembic electronics sound ok and due to its tiny wooden body it is very lightweight. Not matching a real Alembic by any means but looks sort of cool and does the job.
Glad to see Nate Navarro get some love. He's a beast.
I recently got an Ibanez EHB headless fretless 5 string that I take on fly dates- I've gotten nothing but compliments from other musicians about how cool it looks, the sound, and how it suits my vibe. Chorus and octave are a no-brainer and sound amazing with it. I don't love the stock pickups but I can achieve some great tones from it with some EQ and compression. It's so easy to travel with!
Hi. I am a pro player who plays electrical guitar and bass guitar on various bands. I own (and have owned) many guitars and basses but since I have smaller hands I prefer playing thin neck, lightweight Ibanez instruments on both wherever possible.
Retro / headless / acoustic bass comparison:
Here is a funny memory of mine: There has been a time where I had to play on a retro show so they have hired 3 basses for me and I had to play them without any previous experience of those instruments. Luckily they arrived with new strings and nice neck setups, but we first saw eachother during the soundcheck in another city.
For the first night, all the time I had to hear how they sound was 15 minutes in total before the soundcheck.
And I had to play them one after the other on every night for a month:
1- 1970's Fender Jazz Bass, (For 60's & 70's songs)
2- 1980's Steinberger headless bass (For 80's songs)
3- 1990's Gibson acoustic bass (For 90's songs)
4- Again 1970's Fender Jazz Bass, (For 00's songs)
Almost all of us know the Fender Jazz or Precision bass feeling and more or less know how to handle them. And yet all the bass amps, cabs, DI boxes, pedals, processors, PA sistems are built according to them.
For the first 3 nights as soon as I laid down the Fender Jazz and grabbed the Steinberger I had a total unfamiliar feeling. The neck felt longer, I could hardly control my hand on the first frets and they felt like they were flying out / falling off the neck, hardly balance the bass on my stomach and had to look on my hands while playing. Although it had a beautiful tone it was hard to control while slapping and popping since there were no place to rest the back of my arm.
And it was a total nightmare for the first 2 songs when I switched from Steinberger to the big body Washburn acoustic bass. 😆
Same things happened to the guitar player switching from a Gibson LesPaul to Floyd Rose Jackson Flying V to Yamaha Acoustic guitar. (He was a plain old Fender Stratocaster guy)
So we both spent first couple days of the tour in a hotel room with practicing with our instruments and effect pedals while every other musician were sightseeking. 😆
About fanfret basses:
It nearly takes a couple of weeks in total to get fully used to these instruments. It totally depends on your character and choices.
After that point there is no turning back if you like modern sounds and true long B string sustain feeling that doesn't suck. So all the other instruments become a thing of the past.
But if you are more of a retrospective player, you go back to classic 34" Fenderish J or P configurations.
Yes, since modern fanfret instruments use longer scale strings and different (maybe cheaper obtained) woods there are big tonal differences. But you learn to get the retro sounds as well from your new instrument as you spend time with your new instrument on stage.
Great video guys! I've always wondered about headless basses (especially the Steinberg!) Thanks so much for this review!!
Have to agree with you on all the pros and cons. I play an Ibanez 1505. Being a smaller person, I love that they are so light and the lack of headstock makes you feel free to move around on stage. Hate the lack of presence on the G string and the fanned frets can be tricky. The Ibby is no comparison to my P-bass (voice of god) but still my go to bass for lengthy gigs due to comfort and versatility.
I gigged and toured from '08 to '15 using a Gibson Thunderbird. After an extended hiatus my band decided to get back together but instead of 45 minute gigs we now do 3-4 hour cover sets. The first couple of gigs I used the Gibby and my shoulder just killed me. I felt like I was using a boat anchor. Add in the fact that 40 is staring me in the face and I found my self researching light weight basses. Ended up purchasing an Ibanez EHB1500 and absolutely love it. Sounds amazing, weights like 6 pounds which is insane for a 5 string. Plus for as much as I worried what my bandmates and others would think, I have gotten nothing but compliments on how it looks.
Another reason headless basses stay in tune better is the gear ratio used in the bridge-side tuners. Much more finely accurate than the usual tuners.
Keep rocking that headless, Mr Allison!!!
I have a 1982 Steinberger L2 that was once own by Pete Fardon of the Pretenders. Also if you look closely at the Nut on your Steinberger you see where it has threads where you can use an Allen screw for regular strings (maybe just on the early ones) . Ned thought of everything. Ive had mine for over 30 years . Normally I play fender basses , so the missing head stock can be a little disorienting. Also they stay in tune for a long time because they have a higher tuning ratio because stings are pull instead wound Steinberger is 40:1 . I also use to own a Philip Kubicki Factor Bass. Which is what John Taylor of Duran Duran played. he may have played Steinberger for a short time. But the Kubicki has an 80:1 tuning ratio because of the huge wheel and ratchet system. I never needed to be tuned. Fenders are 20:1 tuning ratio.
Tears for Fears, all those great tunes on Songs From The Big Chair is on a Steinberger
I have an Ibanez EHB1506 6 string multiscale heaadless bass, its crazy for me to be able to have a 6 string bass with a 35" low B that fits in a guitar gig bag and weighs less than any other bass own
They were originally made in Brooklyn NY and then they moved to my hometown of Newburgh NY..before the company was sold..
Part of your issue with playing chords on multiscale is that you're playing it like a straight scale instrument with your fretting hand fingers oriented to the plane of the neck. Part of the point of multiscale is it allows you to bring your elbow in and orient your fingers to the angled frets. The other point is to more optimize scale length to sound like a piano.
Kubicki basses has a cool bridge that let you use normal strings. Ned Steinberger's latest basses have an amazing bridge that gets away from the allen wrench problem.
Thanks Scott & lan, fun review (as always). Had never tried a Hohner 'Jack' but was always curious. I imagine this video is pre-op Scott, so l hope the recovery is going well. ❤
Loved the show and the info, the camaraderie, a lot of fun. For some reason the first band that comes to mind for this type of bass would be DEVO, it just fits their look. They have a very tight playing sound that was pretty profound. Thanks for a fun show!
Hey Guys - I am the original owner of an XL-2 - purchased in 1984 - still have it and love it. The sound is amazing, very stable tuning, isn't affected by the weather and it's compact as you've mentioned. It can take some getting used to as it is a bit disorienting without a headstock. I just had it re-fretted and cleaned up with a local luthier and it's like brand new. He also "heat treated" the neck to pull it back into alignment as there is no truss rod - and after 40 years of tension, the neck was bowing. Another interesting fact to note is that the fretboard is also graphite - I always though it was ebony. The luthier polished the fretboard and now it shines like a mirror. The action is now 5/64 by 3/64 with NO buzzing. It's not for everyone, and I also have several other basses, but it is a lot of fun to play and really sounds great. Thanks for all you guys do.
Built myself a headless multiscale 5 string P Bass based on an Ibanez EHB neck. The body is designed around it but it looks kinda classic with a black pickguard, single P pickup and all passive Vol/Tone knobs. Really appreciate the ease of traveling with it in a Fusion guitar gigbag and the tuning stability. But I do miss my fave Flats, the Thomastik Jazz flats, which would just unravel and break if I clamped them down at the headstock, I mean at the end of the neck.
I bought my first headless bass last year - a Kiesel Zeus 6 string multiscale. The only con I have is, I have to use a guitar stand with a base for the body. Standard Hercules style headstock stands and wall hangers are out. Other than that, I love it. The Kiesel is super easy to restring. Its well-balanced, and there was no learning curve for the headless or the multiscale. I really enjoy playing higher up rhe neck on the multiscale too. Feels great. I just jumped in to playing it. It's great for gigging and traveling. I'm not going headless exclusively, but I definitely like what I have and would buy another
Another pro is, usually they are flat at the tuning bridge (like the little Steinberger) so you can lean the guitar on anything without them falling over. I love double ball end strings. You can change them really quickly if you break a string during a gig. And I completely agree about the balance. That's the biggest pro.
👍👍👍
I found a Steinberger on Facebook marketplace for 200 dollars. It was a five string and some asshole bought it before I could buy it. I am pissed.
Don’t worry your chance can come again
@@AtomizedSound yeah In the meantime, I’ll just work on my five string 51 styled, hollow body bass… Complete with 51 five string pick up
Damn whoever got that got a top notch instrument for practically free
Most likely a Spirit, a newer, cheaper iteration, no carbon fiber, all wood and bolt-on, About 450€ at Thomann. Not the same as the carbon fiber originals by a long shot, but some people seem to like them, at least for the price.
@@Rootzilla ohhh yeah thats what it was
Yes, Steinberger's headless bass is that old. They'd been a thing for several years, when Kramer made my 1982 "The Duke" Special. An aluminum-necked "copy" of the XL-2, with a Schaller BD-4 roller bridge mounted backwards at the tail; Schaller guitar tuners on the tail (which work great); and a Schaller "Twin-J" pickup. Lot of fun to play, and sounds great, too...