New star fire 1 bass

[Drrwphishes]

Due to be delivered tomm! Never owned a guild, wondering where I can find faq as far as setup instructions and such

 

[fronobulax]

Welcome.

Which one - the Bisonic pickup or the split pickup?

Many folks were happy with the instrument as it arrived so you might not need the information immediately.

There are some specs on the Guild website. These are for the Bisonic version.

Starfire Bass Cherry Red(DISCONTINUED) | Guild Guitars

From the jangle of the Byrds to the psychedelia of Jefferson Airplane to countless other acts, many sounds of the '60s were underpinned by the deep and indispensable sound of the Starfire Bass, and players can now enjoy that rich sound and feel once again.

guildguitars.com

Action is not included but that can be adjusted to your preference.

 

[Drrwphishes]

The split coil one. I'm just looking at how to adjust action and intonation basically

 

[fronobulax]

You have an obligation to hang around long enough to give us a report and answer questions because I don't think anyone has posted about the split coil bass after hands on experience.

Looking at pictures the key is the bridge. I see large screws at each end of the bridge and turning them raiser or lowers the strings and hence the action. The saddles move towards or away from the tailpiece for intonation and it looks like there is a screw for each saddle that you could turn.

Having never seen this bass I am looking at pictures and inferring what I would do from looking at similar arrangements on guitars.

 

[mellowgerman]

Mr. Lobster just got his:

 

[Drrwphishes]

well that didnt last long. got the bass I let it sit 24 hours for it to acclimate. opened her up soundz great. pull the vintage switch and no sound from D G strings bummer. I will call sweetwater and get it sorted. the neck is super skinny compared to my 5 strings, so thatll take some getting used too as well

 

[mellowgerman]

Hmm I didn't know that these have a push/pull "vintage" switch. When they first announced them, there was next to no info about them online, besides photos. From their site: "Pull up on the Volume Knob to reveal the push-pull vintage switch—a feature that adds presence with rolled down low frequencies, reminiscent of the parallel pickup configuration on vintage Hollowbody basses."
I'm assuming they were going for something similar to the deep/hard switch circuit on vintage guilds, that cut lows and emphasized the mids... whoever wrote that marketing nonsense about parallel pickups having rolled down low frequencies should probably find a job in a field they know more about. Running a matched pair of pickups in parallel results in a bit of a mid-scoop, not rolled down low frequencies.
Could be that it's a series/parallel function like the S-1 switching that USA Fenders had in the 2000's. A split coil precision pickup like the one on these Starfires is normally wired in series. Going parallel would run the coils independently to the same destination, result in a quieter, mid-scooped sound, so then the marketing statement (at least in relating the function to parallel pickups) would make more sense. Though the bit about a cut in low frequencies on a bass simultaneously running 2 parallel pickups is still nonsense either way.
Being a series/parallel switch would also explain why you'd lose the D/G coil if it was wired poorly or incorrectly.
*** I am not suggesting the function has no purpose, nor am I knocking the bass, just criticizing inaccurate marketing description. There is always a way to put more unusual or complicated wiring in layman's terms without spreading misinformation.

 

[Drrwphishes]

Either way it doesn't work in a new bass and I'm gonna return it rather than mess with the wiring

 

[lungimsam]

Take it from me. If it ain’t right send it back. Keep ‘em honest!! Sweetwater sold me a SF blem at full price then went on to sell SF blems at a big discount later. Harumph!!! Don’t accept it if it ain’t right.

 

[Matt R.]

Hi all. This is my first post here. I have the Starfire 1, but left handed. It’s a killer bass, especially for the price. I’m going to have it routed for a Bisonic pickup though (it’ll probably require me to have a custom bezel made). The Bisonic version isn’t available for us lefties, and I’ve always wanted a Guild with that pickup. But I do highly recommend this bass, for what it’s worth. The bi-coil pickup sounds great.

 

[krysh]

welcome Matt, post well, post often!

 

[mellowgerman]

Hi all. This is my first post here. I have the Starfire 1, but left handed. It’s a killer bass, especially for the price. I’m going to have it routed for a Bisonic pickup though (it’ll probably require me to have a custom bezel made). The Bisonic version isn’t available for us lefties, and I’ve always wanted a Guild with that pickup. But I do highly recommend this bass, for what it’s worth. The bi-coil pickup sounds great.

Welcome, Matt! If you can, we would love to see some photos of the work and sound clips too if possible. We love that kind of stuff here. Also, are you going with Curtis Novak for the pickup? Would be cool. You could still use the push-pull pot for the coil-tap feature he offers.

 

[Matt R.]

Welcome, Matt! If you can, we would love to see some photos of the work and sound clips too if possible. We love that kind of stuff here. Also, are you going with Curtis Novak for the pickup? Would be cool. You could still use the push-pull pot for the coil-tap feature he offers.

Hey, thanks man!
I have a Guild Bisonic on the way actually. I’m gonna just go with volume and tone and do away with the push pull, which is cool, but as with my Rickenbacker, I’ll never use it. I’ll mod a Fender Jazz of mine soon with the Novak ones. It’ll be a while because that’s an expensive upgrade obviously.
Anyway I will definitely post the Guild results here. Any thoughts good or bad on the modern Bisonics?

 

[krysh]

Hey, thanks man!
I have a Guild Bisonic on the way actually. I’m gonna just go with volume and tone and do away with the push pull, which is cool, but as with my Rickenbacker, I’ll never use it. I’ll mod a Fender Jazz of mine soon with the Novak ones. It’ll be a while because that’s an expensive upgrade obviously.
Anyway I will definitely post the Guild results here. Any thoughts good or bad on the modern Bisonics?

I once had a '65 sf1 with 2 original bisonics modded by rick turner himself, obviously it sounded great. Now I have a 2014 M-85 that sounds great, too. I could not compare them side by side, but to me the reissues are more than ok.

 

[Matt R.]

I once had a '65 sf1 with 2 original bisonics modded by rick turner himself, obviously it sounded great. Now I have a 2014 M-85 that sounds great, too. I could not compare them side by side, but to me the reissues are more than ok.

If the new ones sound as good as the bi-coil that’s currently in my bass, I’ll be quite happy!

 

[Matt R.]

Here’s mine by the way.

 

[krysh]

Nice, they should have made a lefty harp though....

 

[Matt R.]

They should have made a lefty harp though....

Preach!

 

[Minnesota Flats]

Welcome to the party, Matt!

And thanks for posting the Lobster review, Mellow: hadn't seen that one before. Will be watching for his "in-depth" follow up.

Still not crazy about the "look" of this bass, but I'm warming to it a bit because it sounds pretty good in that review.

 

[Matt R.]

Welcome to the party, Matt!

And thanks for posting the Lobster review, Mellow: hadn't seen that one before. Will be watching for his "in-depth" follow up.

Still not crazy about the "look" of this bass, but I'm warming to it a bit because it sounds pretty good in that review.

As good as it sounds, I think the split pickup looks silly on this bass