Anyone ever have an 8 string bass?

Matmosphere

Well-known member
Just curious. I have been GAS'in for one forever. I love playing twelve string guitars and I wonder how the octave strings sound on bass. All the videos I see on line are people playing groove/funk stuff which is not my cup of tea. Don't get me wrong, I have loads of respect for people who can play like that well, but my style is more... Dee Dee Ramone. I'd either overdrive it or throw some fuzz on it and see what happens.
 
Cheap Trick. Tom Petersson used 8 and 12 string basses a lot.

Also there's "1983" and "Burning of the Midnight Lamp" from Electric Ladyland.
 
I don't own one but have always wanted one. Been thinking about designing a short scale acoustic version as a way for bassists to be heard at campfire jams.

We had one for a while at the music store I worked at, I want to say it was a dean, it was so poorly made and buzzy... I probably was the only person who ever touched that thing.
rh8bubinga-c2a8a3a12c3596b191900d9ae103c094.jpg
A buddy of mine had an old Kramer like this. It played much better but man... not my aesthetic.
IMG_20170708_173536581-01.jpeg
I want this one kinda bad but I have a thing for this Era of ibanez.
zorrxev9ooioebzzbfzr.jpg

I wouldn't suggest if hand fatigue is a concern. Even the nice ones are a chore and my hands are huge. I am drawn to "difficult to play" instruments (things like a pbass w flats and high action, extra long scale eub, fretless, baritone, 12 string, etc.... ) and I would not want to play an 8 string bass all night, including when i think of dee dee style. Holding one position with the left hand for a long time is taxing in it's own way and the extra string is a lot to hang onto.

That being said, I've adjusted to and now prefer all the "difficult" instruments to the more comfy stuff I have (dreadnought, talman, Tele, etc..)
 
Yeah, I have been kicking around the idea of finding a cheap short scale kit and see if I can modify it to an eight string.

I briefly played one of those Deans. It was okay, but in no way worth the money, maybe if it was $350-400, but certainly not for $800-900.

Not so worried about fatigue. I haven’t played a show in a long time unfortunately. I am also generally drawn to stuff that isn’t the easiest to play, generally use 11’s or 12’s. I mean I can only do so much if the strings are half an inch of the fretboard but most of the time I manage. Or maybe I am just not that good regardless of the guitar :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:

I sort of find stuff like Ibanez’s with thin necks and big radius’s more difficult to play. Especially if the have 9’s on them, then I’m just constantly messing up. Maybe I just lack finesse, but I find it hard to play stuff like that.


And the Dee Dee thing is sort of tongue and check. On a scale of Les Claypool to Dee Dee I’m probably 7/8 of the way towards Dee Dee as far as music I’d be interested in playing.
 
I'm an 8 string bass player. I currently play a Hagstrom H8. I play it mostly through high gain gear for huge crushing sustain.
I have never played one but have been interested in trying one out one of these days. Do they work well with fingerstyle, or do you really need to use a pick?
 
Ooooh, me! Me! Pick me!
I have a Hagstrom H8-ii that I got ‘used’ for an absolute steal (long story). It’s a blast to play.
The pickups are fantastic sounding— the single coil modes are especially inspiring for solo stuff like bass etudes, and the humbucker modes are great for the more classic Tom Petersson and Nick Lowe sounds. Picks work great of course, but fingerstyle stuff can be done too. Any other questions you’ve got, I’ll try to answer!

My H8-ii is used on the track “What’s the Latest Scuttlebutt?” here.
 
That hagstrom is the one I’ve had my eye on but it seems to have gotten a little more expensive lately. Hence the idea of building one from a kit or something.
 
Check out John Paul Jones with Them Crooked Vultures. He plays an 8 and sometimes a 12 string bass on a few tracks. I think it sounds killer personally.


 
I love the sound but have very little hands on experience with them.

I did see a post on instagram of a modded Fender with four banjo tuners added to the headstock to convert it to 8-strings. Pretty cool idea even if they have a lousy turn ratio.

That Ibanez posted above is a holy grail bass for me. I still have the paper catalog from the 80s with that model shown. I'd love to have that one and their fretless 4-string. Too bad people figured out how nicely built these Japanese instruments really are and the prices are pretty steep these days.
 
I love the sound but have very little hands on experience with them.

I did see a post on instagram of a modded Fender with four banjo tuners added to the headstock to convert it to 8-strings. Pretty cool idea even if they have a lousy turn ratio.

That Ibanez posted above is a holy grail bass for me. I still have the paper catalog from the 80s with that model shown. I'd love to have that one and their fretless 4-string. Too bad people figured out how nicely built these Japanese instruments really are and the prices are pretty steep these days.
skli3otyplkiyacxwjiv.jpg
My first electric was one of these only in black and beat to hell. I assumed it was trash but it played so well. I ended up doing a lot of early attempts at repair on that poor thing: full refinish, new pickups, fretwork. Sadly it was stolen. I now want one of the basses really bad. Also want a peavey t40 for some reason.
 
View attachment 19591
My first electric was one of these only in black and beat to hell. I assumed it was trash but it played so well. I ended up doing a lot of early attempts at repair on that poor thing: full refinish, new pickups, fretwork. Sadly it was stolen. I now want one of the basses really bad. Also want a peavey t40 for some reason.
I love T-40's. I've wanted one for ages. They have gotten ridiculously expensive, though. I should have gotten one years ago when they were going for like $300
 
Back
Top