Spector NS Dimension Multi-Scale Bass Review and Demo
Bass players, I was really looking forward to this bass! The @OfficialSpector NS Dimension was going to be my first Spector AND my first multi-scale bass. Unfortunately, this bass was practically unplayable when I received it. It’s not all bad news though, watch the video and let me know if you’ve run into this issue with other Spector basses. Thanks for watching!
@OfficialSpector
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Timecodes
0:00 Intro
0:32 Nut issues
2:03 Cosmetic flaws
2:23 Backplate
2:50 The Positive
3:27 Tone Demos
9:11 Final Thoughts
#justplaybass #spectorbass #bassplayer
#Spector #Dimension #MultiScale #Bass #Review #Demo
Originally posted by UCHwa0ixBPmyiZUsgRHh1dXg at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nSII7lc1b4
My Spector NS dimension is worse than yours.
The nut is also too high, and the frets need to be re-leveled otherwise there will be a lot of buzz.
And the circuit was soldered in a mess. The wires were burnt in many places, and the output jack was even completely rusty.
Because I loved the sound of the bass, I ended up keeping it and spending more money and time setting it up.
To be honest, I am very disappointed with Spector's quality management.
NOPE! Hard pass. Going back immediately, I'm not interested in waiting 5 years to find absolutely everything they swept under the rug. At that price if the bass even smells weird it's going back. They want premium prices while selling a highly-polished turd. Spector had a reputation, and I was considering buying one, but I get the general gist of the industry now and it's enshitification.
Based on YouTube videos only, the Dimension with the Fishman Fluence system sounds substantially better than the EMG/Darkglass combo. There is much more tonal versatility, clarity, definition, and growl. The Fishman Fluence system has bass and treble controls vs the Darkglass' bass, low-mid, and high-mid, which could explain the dullness. My first Spector and first multiscale bass will be the Dimension 5 featuring the Fishman Fluence system.
I had same problem with my NS Pulse 2, nut too high and action around 4mm. Other things were perfect. Much better than more expensive bases.
I have the original Dimension 5 in Super Faded Black Gloss, not the Dimension HP 5. Its setup was, and still is, wonderful. The nut height is good/correct, and the build quality is very high. It remains my main bass. The non-recessed compartment cover is a mystery, but aside from that, it is an extremely playable work of art.
Nice review, unbiased. Thank you
Just received mine from zzounds. It’s not b stock and it wasn’t used because it came in the unopened original box. But yeah, build quality was not great at all. Unfinished paint where the neck and fretboard meet. The nut is also too high and it’s not even placed in correctly, like I can see wood on the back of the nut where it wasn’t filed to correct size. Needless to say the bass does sound great and I was able to adjust the string height just enough so that it’s playable. I’ll take it to a luthier and have them replace it with a Brass Nut that’s actually correctly placed.
The QC problem is not isolated, on Thomann many complain about this. Spector Korean basses aren’t cheap at all, it’s not excusable.
This is how my MTD was. A bummer but how it is. Bad plastics and cracks in the finish. Gouge in one of the frets. I kept it, but for $1500 and added USA Bartolini pickups.
Send that sh## back man!
They sound great to me but the colors are HORRIBLE.
I have an NS dimension 5 which was also a massive disappointment regarding quality. The A string nut slot had been filed too low so the string was pretty much touching the 1st fret and couldn’t be played. The nut also had scuffs along the top and the corners had been over sanded to show flats and uneven edges, poor quality. There was a mark in the finish on the headstock, a slight chip. The edge of the fretboard at a few fret positions also had wood missing, must have been damaged when dressing the fret ends. And the gloss finish on the body was horrific, I’ve seen nothing like it on any bass price point. The clear coat looked like a toilet window, was very frosted and hazy along the back and curves of the body. Thankfully not on the top of the body which is mainly visible. I complained about all issues and got drivel back. I was sent a replacement but but I ended up making my own. To be fair, the bass is killer so I kept it. Once the nut was sorted the issues were only cosmetic, but the existing pros were definitely worth it. The only other unfortunate thing I would add is the lack of string options. In my research, the only set of strings which will fit this bass are the ones that come with the bass, spectors dimension set, and they only do one spec. Not sure if there are more options by now.
Really dissapointed… Spector have a reputation for good QC bass's…for that money i would send it back asking for Spector to set up & dress any fret issues or any other problem…they should be perfect to play, multiscales were around from the '80's, strange how they have caught on now, shame they get lost in any live mix or recording imo…i would like Fender to make a 35" scale Jazz PJ or Precision PJ…hope you got things worked out bud….come on Spector, yous know better…
I bought a Dingwall N2 and thank God. Thanks for the Honest Review Amigo as the Spector was one of the Basses in the running when I wanted to get a Multiscale 5 String. I have no Buyers Remorse with my purchase of the Dingwall after watching your review
They should set it up for you for free or send it back for a refund. 2K is too much money for a poorly setup bass.
Factory flaws aside, that's a nice sounding bass. I am a fan of high action for many reasons, however, having a nut cut that high is not cool.
I have owned an original Spector NS2 from the 70s (lost it in divorce, long story) and currently own the new anniversary 77 reissue of that bass. Both basses (as I recall) have the control cavity cover external to the body. I was considering the bass you have but decided it wasn't necessary as I have 3 5 string basses already.
I dont know if this is a thing but the spectors i held in my hands didnt feel like home either.
But the specs are so interesting to me. So much so that i contemplated getting one and getting a stainless plek refret and setup to my tuning from thomann straight out of the factory.
The super longscale 4 string bass market is just way too small.
I bought and returned a dimension5. It was also a turd. Was not playable with a good action what so ever. barely a $500 guitar.
2nd fret high was high.
B string saddle drilled and mounted crooked.
control cavity filled with saw dust.
still had polish in the pores of the fretboard in places.
nut was cut shorter than the width of the neck.
battery compartment routed too big and had a chip/gap sticking out beyond the plastic(wouldn't have bothered me if it was the only issue) this bass was disclosed as a B stock/demo for this reason at $1625.
got the action as low as I could and was still around 6/32nd, any lower and would dead out on the 2nd fret. Truss rod couldn't have been adjusted for any further without back bow.
Even with the saddles as low as they could go the action was still high, but I had to raise them just a bit to keep 2nd fret from deadening the strings when first fret was played.
Mine also had the original revision 5 string fishman pickups not the new reviison 6 string pickups, and despite that, it still had no guts. It sounded so dead, I should have tried stainless steel strings but I wasn't going to waste my time since I was returning it anyway. Returned and bought a Euro5lx instead.
Junk TL:DR do not buy one unless they have free returns.
That HP sounds loads better than the regular dimension.
MY SPECTOR NS95 5 STRING MY FIRST BASS OWNED IT FOR OVER 30 YEARS STILL PLAYING IT TODAY HAVE NO PROBLEMS WITH IT
I just sent back my second Spector in a row. Poor set up and multiple finish flaws. Loose pots. Bad nut cut. Fret board had same marks. Very disappointed.
Bummer. I have an NS Ethos which I absolutely love…EXCEPT for the fact that it has a terrible grounding issue. Thing hisses like a snake, which isn't that big a deal when playing a show, but gee whiz does it suck when recording. I'm going to bring it to a local shop to fix that issue, and considering that I got a really good deal on the bass, I'm not too bent out of shape about it. But if I'd have paid the full $1800 price and then had to pay additional for repairs, I would be pretty pissed. The Korean factory needs better quality control.
I've had a lot of Korean Spectors over the years, as well as Euros and a couple of Woodstock basses and I currently own 10 of them. First, aside from some of the lower end Spectors, the non-recessed cavity cover is just a Spector thing. In fact, when they released the updated USA NS-2s a year or so ago, one of the big deals was that the cavity cover is now recessed – weird, I know. That said, yours also looked scratched up and the plastic looked cheap. Not acceptable.
Back to the Korean basses – I think the quality control issues have more to do with the fanned fret neck than anything else. Their regular necks are usually fantastic. On the higher end models, the brass nuts are usually pretty good if not 100% brass like the Euros and USAs. The weak point of the Korean basses has traditionally been their pickups and preamp, and to a lesser extent their tuners. (The plastic bushings usually crack around the 20 year mark). But the necks have always been on the slimmer side, well built so that you don't need to perform many truss rod adjustments, and they have always been well set up. Late last year, I bought a Skyler Acord 5, which is built on a Dimension 5 body but with regular frets. It comes from the factory with Gotoh tuners and a USA bridge. As I said before, the electronics were the weak point, so I went in knowing I was going to swap the Barts out to EMGs (40P5/40DC) and an LHZ Haz clone preamp. That completely changed the character of the bass. The QC on this thing was better than some Euros I've played, and the neck is one of the most comfortable I've ever played regardless of which factory it came from. It has become my #1, beating out my USA's not necessarily in build quality or fancy woods used or attention to small details – the Woodstock basses are true boutique quality – but the total package of playability, tone, and good looks at the $2k price point is very hard to beat ($2300 including upgrades, but it rivals and surpasses many $3-$4k basses). I think the QC issues are for the most part unique to the Dimension line because in my experience, their Korean basses, the neck thrus in particular, have been some of the most consistently well constructed imports that I've played.
I had NO problem with my NS Pulse II. ( Korean made) plays great I haven't had to re-set it up like most of the basses I have ever bought
same here, a squier is sold with a better setup from factory…. I kept mine because I really enjoy it, but definitely it had to spent some times at my luthier's shop.
Perhaps Spector expects their dealers to do a full setup, including the nut, before selling the instruments? I'm just thinking out loud here.
As to the rear cover, that's unacceptable since it is all done on CNC machines and looks to be a standard pattern.
I bought a Euro 5lt and love it. And then I bought a Dimension 5….. For this price range, it is garbage. The biggest struggle now is whether or not to burn the damn thing and send the ashes back to Spector. Nut carve is amateur at best. Every part of the bridge feels cheap and the "locking mechanism" on each saddle is a nightmare when trying to tighten it back after making any intonation adjustment. The neck is mostly straight, but the frets are nowhere near being level. Out of the box I had 4mm on the B and 3.5mm on the G………
It is plainly obvious that this entire line from Spector is a money grab. I could understand these issues for a $500 bass. But for $2k??? Get bent. They build a $500 instrument and sell it for a premium because of the multiscale aspect. Not cool whatsoever.
I really hope that anyone trying to decide on a multiscale bass reads this and takes it to heart. Buy a Dingwall, Ibanez or Kiesel. You will be much happier for it.
I feel like this wasn’t a bad review. It seemed to have minor set up issues. Yes I would be disappointed. But, It sounds killer and it sounds like a keeper.
Send it back and get a dingwall. I’m playing my Doug wimpish Spector a whole lot less. Both are great. Just remember buy twice, cry twice. Get good from the start.
Wow that’s really discouraging to see. I plan on getting a new bass in the $800-850 range and I was actually looking at the legend 5 from Spector because they have amazing low end( and it’s $600) but seeing this on their high end stuff has made me consider my other few options