Double Bass xtender hipshot with marvin tailpiece?

Florent Ghys

Florent Ghys

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Jun 4, 2008
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#1
Hello, I both love the hipshot xtender for upright bass and the Marvin tailpiece but they don’t seem to be compatible...
Indeed, the hipshot’s 90-degrees hook is angled and too large to fit one of Marvin tailpiece’s strings slots.
Anybody out there ever tried to replace that hip shot hook to fit less conventional tailpieces?
Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!
thanks
Florent
 
#2
It looks pretty simple. You could slide the braided wire cable through the ring, creating a loop. Remove the hook from the Hipshot, and slide the loop into the slot where the hook was, and put a screw back in. This wouldn't work if the cable is thicker than the hook, but I doubt that's the case.

Also, doing this might cause the cable to bend sharply at the ferrule. If so stick a cork or something in there to prevent that:hyper:
 
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#4
One adds mass; the other reduces it.

I found the Hipshot's effect on the voice and volume vary a lot from bass to bass. Sometimes there s no difference and on a couple of basses I had, particularly one old Pfretzschner aluminum bass from 1930, there was a huge loss of volume like a giant mute.

The main thing I learned from the hipshot is that it taught me how much I like the sound of a Spirocore Stark tuned down to D.
 
#5
Weight on the tailpiece is definitely to be considered. I once thought I would be clever and tape my fishman preamp to my TP. It stayed on there for less than five minutes. Still, I think that those who use a Hipshot are doing it because they really need it. Doing shows and stuff, don't have time or money to get an extension, so are forced to not be sound purists.
 
#6
thanks guys for your feedback

that was not that easy as the hoop is pretty small and there is not much room to move the ring around - there is basically one spot where the hoop can reach the last screw of the hipshot

On my 1986 Laborie, I am not noticing any difference in sound with the hipshot on or off. Maybe a tiny bit muted, but it's very subtle.

The main issue is that the hipshot naturally positions itself upside down, which kinds of defeats its purpose since it is not practical to access the handle and change the tuning.
I wonder how one could force the hipshot to stay in the right position.

IMG_4014.jpg


Also, the hanging ring vibrates against the ring on the next string. I guess this could be solved by putting a piece of felt in between the two rings.

IMG_4016.jpg


to be continued...
Florent
 
#7
I find this so cool. Going where no bassist has gone before! I didn't guess that the loop would be big enough to do what you did. I was suggesting passing the wire through the ring to create a bigger loop. Anyway, this looks good. A piece of felt between the rings should solve the rattle, and just de-tensioning the string and rotating the fixture once or twice should solve the orientation problem.
 
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#11
Correct. At the saddle end, it should also have less of dampening effect on the total string movement than if it is in the middle of the string between the bridge and saddle. Clamp a 1" C clamp to the ball anchor without the Hipshot and then remove it and clamp it at the lower end. You'll know the answer instantly....

Anchoring it lower may also reduce the Hipshot twisting.
 
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