| Author | Message | ||
| smokin_dave
Senior Member Username: smokin_dave Post Number: 428 Registered: 10-2002 |
Well after several years of use my Ultimate guitar stand bit the big one.Fortunatly not while supporting my Rogue. Going over reviews and reading a lot of moaning over the quality of the latest Ultimate and Hercules stands I find myself torn at even getting another stand. The thing I liked about the Ultimate stand was it's ability to fold up nice and compact. Maybe I just won't get another and keep my Rogue in my case on breaks but it sure is convenient at gigs to have a decent stand. If any of the good club members have any suggestions,I'm all ears. | ||
| rustyg61
Senior Member Username: rustyg61 Post Number: 1735 Registered: 2-2011 |
I use one of the suitcase stands & set it on top of my road case to elevate my basses off the ground. This makes it easier to get the bass in & out of the stand & it keeps it off the floor so it is less likely to get kicked & knocked over. I also put a towel around my basses while they are in the stand for extra protection. You can see the neck sticking up out of the stand behind me. The suitcase stand folds flat like a briefcase & is easy to carry.  | ||
| fmm
Senior Member Username: fmm Post Number: 447 Registered: 6-2002 |
I had a Hercules stand, and the grip you squeeze to adjust it broke. There's a spring under that grip that controls the height of the stand. I was able to "fix" it with a hose clamp. I use an Ultimate for my Series I | ||
| murray
Advanced Member Username: murray Post Number: 222 Registered: 7-2007 |
I am still clinging on to the A-Frame stand that I got from The Bass Centre UK a million years ago. I have Hercules stands as back-ups but find that the tall ones with the grab-the-neck mechanism are too lightweight and the stand tends to come away with the bass when you pick it out. I think A-frame would still be the way to go. Glynn | ||
| jimmyj
Senior Member Username: jimmyj Post Number: 603 Registered: 8-2008 |
And I'm still using Hamiltons like below. Not exactly compact, or lightweight, but solid and well balanced, IMO. Jimmy J  | ||
| edwardofhuncote
Junior Username: edwardofhuncote Post Number: 30 Registered: 6-2014 |
The only thing I'll add... some rubber will react with some finshes. Beware of those stands with the rubber tubing. | ||
| ed_zeppelin
Intermediate Member Username: ed_zeppelin Post Number: 108 Registered: 2-2010 |
Musician's Friend's "stupid deal of the day " is the Hercules Stands GS414B Bonus Guitar Stand Pack with Neck Cradle for $25 (50% off, not counting the nifty neck cradle.) http://www.musiciansfriend.com/stupid?src=3TP5DNC&&noPopup=true&src=3TP5DNC I got two. I'm not sure what to do with the extra neck cradle. Maybe I can convince the Foghorn to use it to stop snoring or something. | ||
| 5a_quilt_top
Junior Username: 5a_quilt_top Post Number: 19 Registered: 6-2012 |
+ 1 on Hercules. $25 is a smokin' deal, BTW. FWIW: I prefer the model with the padded legs for my Alembic basses 'cuz that little adjustable "T" support on the other model can be a little dainty for larger / heavier instruments. Works fine for guitars, tho. Also, there's some similar clones out there - not sure of the brand - that have the same gravity-controlled clamping mechanism. | ||
| smokin_dave
Senior Member Username: smokin_dave Post Number: 429 Registered: 10-2002 |
Alright.Thank you all for the suggestions.I'm still up in the air if I'm actually going to replace the defunct stand or not and I missed the stupid deal. Hell.The Hamilton seems to be pretty stout and is currently under consideration.Thanks J.J. | ||
| tomhug
Intermediate Member Username: tomhug Post Number: 193 Registered: 7-2008 |
+ 1 on the Hamilton. | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 6247 Registered: 7-2004 |
I use the Hercules with the gravity locking mechanism in my studio. They are the strongest I've owned. Unfortunately they are quite large when folded up. For gigging and jams outside my studio, I use both types of the Ultimate - the type where the guitar hangs from the neck fork, and the kind with little fold out supports on which the instrument rests. Both of these fold up quite compactly for travel. Bill, tgo | ||
| smokin_dave
Senior Member Username: smokin_dave Post Number: 431 Registered: 10-2002 |
Alrighty then.Well I've decided to go with this.... http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/km-memphis-pro-guitar-stand?src=3TEMORD If any of the good club members use this particular stand feel free to give me your thoughts. If anyone feels like I made a foolish buy go ahead and let me have it. I'm a big boy.I can take it. | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 6248 Registered: 7-2004 |
Dave: Cool looking stand. Locking yolk like the Hercules, and it appears to be even more compact than the Ultimate. I just ordered one from Amazon. Thanks for the research. Bill, tgo | ||
| jalevinemd
Senior Member Username: jalevinemd Post Number: 1053 Registered: 12-2003 |
Just ordered one as well. Best of both the Hercules and Ultimate worlds. Great find, Dave! | ||
| smokin_dave
Senior Member Username: smokin_dave Post Number: 432 Registered: 10-2002 |
Here is a more detailed link from the manufacturer.... http://produkte.k-m.de/en/Stands-and-accessories-for-instruments/Fretted-instruments/17670-Guitar-stand-Memphis-Pro-black A 5 year Guaranty too.Mine should be here next week and I'll post a review if all goes well or not. | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 6249 Registered: 7-2004 |
Mine arrives on Monday. Oh the joys of Amazon Prime! I just looked at the video. I love how the locking yolk sides operate independently so that they work with asymmetrical headstocks, like on a Fender. And also how they fold flat. Big improvement on the Hercules design. Bill, tgo | ||
| ed_zeppelin
Intermediate Member Username: ed_zeppelin Post Number: 122 Registered: 2-2010 |
I'd like to ask my fellow repair artistes (especially Alembic's masters) to weigh in on the topic, because I've spent a lot of time doing "CSI" on mangled instruments, trying to reconstruct the crime scenes. The number one cause is not using a stand, of course, but the few times that I've been able to ask the perps for specifics on "accidents that shouldn't have happened," two themes pop up over and over again. One is so common that we do it fairly frequently without damage, the other is something equally common but nobody would think of it unless it was pointed out. The first is: bumping into an instrument that's in a stand. We've all done it, but as long as you dont move the center of gravity past the tipping point, everything rights itself just dandy. (This is where a yoke that either cradles the neck or that suspends your instrument by the "ears" is much better than ones that cradle the bottom of the instrument only, simply because with those the instrument itself can move within the stand.) If you want to see what I'm talking about for yourself: put your instrument into a stand of any kind and have someone face you on the opposite side, and try to knock it over, in all directions (prepare to be shocked, is all I'll say about that). The other equally common mishap - that you probably haven't considered - is CABLES. The most obvious example would be tripping on a guitar cord that's plugged into the guitar (you haven't known true horror unless you've knocked over a hundred year old German upright bass that way. Ahem.) But even more pernicious are the cables and cords laid out onstage. Until one night when it happened to me and only a lucky catch saved my beloved bass from splintering in a manner that would have impressed Pete Townsend (he preferred Gibsons in the early days because of their iconic "snap-on headstocks")  I used to set up my guitar stands with utterly no thought about whatever cables were lying around. Then one night we hit a break between sets, so I stuck my bass in the stand and was preparing to step down off the stage when the drummer tripped over a speaker cable while stepping off the drum riser. It was only because he barked something that I even turned around to look, just as my bass/stand suddenly veered from the perpendicular and I was able to catch it before it hit the stage. I've never set a guitar stand on anything since. One final part of this topic I'd like to hear from others about (my English more better gets, yes?) is this: the price of convenience. I never found a stand that fits in the guitar or bass case that was secure enough to justify its use. So I've always used an old military duffle bag to carry instrument and speaker stands in. But it's been about two decades since I looked, too. Maybe there's something really terrific that someone invented. Adapt a Segway so that your bass follows you around without ever tipping over? No, that would freak the Foghorn out big time. "I woke up and your Alembic was rolling back and forth by my side of the bed, trying to get to you!" Maybe I shoulda shut up about five paragraphs ago, but with all the "instrument autopsy" mental images flooding my memory, I'm a little freaked out by this topic. There's always this option if you get it wrong, though:  | ||
| ed_zeppelin
Intermediate Member Username: ed_zeppelin Post Number: 123 Registered: 2-2010 |
Pfft. I just received two spanky new Hercules stands yesterday that I bought on stupid. (Not to brag, but I'm pretty sure I'm the one their "stupid deal of the day" was named for. Don't worry, fame won't change me.) Now I want those German ones. Oh well, the only reason I was able to get these past Scottish wife was because they were two-for-one. I haven't told her about using the neck rest doodad as a snoring remedy because I wanted to give it to her While she was actually snoring. And do so from across the room, with one hand on the doorknob for a quick getaway.  | ||
| bigredbass
Senior Member Username: bigredbass Post Number: 2471 Registered: 9-2002 |
I wouldn't recommend these to anyone else but they work for me, amazingly well: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/fender-tubular-mini-a-frame-stand/h87768000002000 My local Sam Ash was blowing these out for 10 bucks a few years ago, and I bought a couple. The strange thing that seems to make this work is that without a neck, all the weight is carried near the floor, and to me they're more stable than the Hamilton 'Hangmans' (as above) that I used for years, and easily fit in the junk bag with the cords, tuner, etc. The BRB sits fine, the green Elan not so much as the body curve along its' rump is assymetrical, so it still goes in the Hamilton. Joey | ||
| cozmik_cowboy
Senior Member Username: cozmik_cowboy Post Number: 1956 Registered: 10-2006 |
"The other equally common mishap - that you probably haven't considered - is CABLES. The most obvious example would be tripping on a guitar cord that's plugged into the guitar (you haven't known true horror unless you've knocked over a hundred year old German upright bass that way. Ahem.)" I may have told this one before, but what the heck; I'm an old codger, so repeating myself is in the job description. Not a 100-y-o doghouse, but years (and years) ago I'm at practice for a band I was humping gear for (free, as the keyboard player was my GF). Rhythm player's late, as he's at Steed Music making the last lay-away payment on his brand new Les Paul Custom, so they have a band meeting while waiting. He comes in, opens up the case, takes out his new love, plugs in, tunes up, then - to be extra safe - sets her in a stand up out of the way on a table. Comes to join the meeting, trips on his cord, pulls her over, and the neck snaps clean through - fretboard & all; I mean 2 pieces - right about the 5th fret. Before he'd ever played a chord on her. We spent the rest of the night on suicide watch. And on the subject of stands: My predecessor as equipment manager with Vanessa Davis Band went to work for the Evil Empire. In a weekly sales meeting, he was assigned to role-play selling a stand (this is the days when there was only one kind; one bow under the body, another cradling the neck). It went thusly: "Um, you need this." "I already have one." "You need more." "Why?" "Because it's not just a stand," (Hooks neck bow behind 'customer's' head & pulls head down), "it's also a skull inducer!" Guess what everyone who ever heard that has ever after called guitar stands? Peter | ||
| rustyg61
Senior Member Username: rustyg61 Post Number: 1738 Registered: 2-2011 |
Peter, that is exactly why I never leave my cable plugged in when my basses are in the stand! | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 6251 Registered: 7-2004 |
For a mini stand that can fit in a guitar case, I use one of these: http://www.zzounds.com/item--COOECCOG?siid=123670&-b2wBRDcrKerwe-S5c4BEiQABprW-Nqw8cdeEmrCk6XOdGeROP3b2c-ZCTI53uUhYjz5vrEaAnFL8P8HAQ= Bill, tgo | ||
| jalevinemd
Senior Member Username: jalevinemd Post Number: 1054 Registered: 12-2003 |
Bill...I wanted to get one of those for gigs. There's a couple songs that I need to put down my guitar to assume other duties. I didn't think that there was enough clearance to accommodate an Alembic guitar with a point. Is there? | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 6252 Registered: 7-2004 |
I don't know. I'll try it with my Series I 12 string (the only Alembic I have with a point) today and let you know. Bill, tgo | ||
| serialnumber12
Senior Member Username: serialnumber12 Post Number: 1112 Registered: 12-2004 |
the best stand is yo hands. | ||
| ed_zeppelin
Intermediate Member Username: ed_zeppelin Post Number: 124 Registered: 2-2010 |
There's that "price of convenience" ratio I was talking about. In this case, an Alembic Series II guitar. I don't mean to give the wrong impression here. No repairman in their right mind would caution anyone about putting a $10,000+ instrument on a piece of plastic origami that fits in the guitar case. | ||
| richbass939
Senior Member Username: richbass939 Post Number: 1235 Registered: 11-2004 |
I had a Fender stand product that looked just about like this foldable stand. An Epic (or some other guitar with an asymmetrical bottom) doesn't fit on it very well without leaning quite a lot. I gave it away. Even though it was really handy to carry around, I never could really trust it. Rich (Message edited by richbass939 on October 04, 2015) | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 6253 Registered: 7-2004 |
Ed: Don't you mean the opposite? Bill, tgo | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 6254 Registered: 7-2004 |
Jonathan: The 12 string point cleared by about 1/4". Of course I can't guarantee that all points are created equal. Some may be bigger than others, but remember, it's not the size of the point, it's what you do with it that counts! hehehehe Bill, tgo | ||
| jalevinemd
Senior Member Username: jalevinemd Post Number: 1055 Registered: 12-2003 |
Thanks, Bill. Words to live by. | ||
| jazzyvee
Senior Member Username: jazzyvee Post Number: 4701 Registered: 6-2002 |
As well as my Hercules grabber type stand I have one of these in my case and it's my option if I forget my regular stand. It works really well. Keeps the bass upright against your cab and less likely to get in the way. Obviously unplug your cable too. http://www.electricroom.com.au/product/Markbass/Bass+Keeper+-+Velcro+Bass+to+Amp+Holder  | ||
| 811952
Senior Member Username: 811952 Post Number: 2396 Registered: 10-2003 |
I use a Hercules like JimmyJ's and a couple of Proline Fretrest stands (http://www.guitarcenter.com/FretRest-by-Proline/Electric-Folding-A-Frame-Guitar-Stand.gc ). Generally I place them where there isn't going to be traffic. John | ||
| lbpesq
Senior Member Username: lbpesq Post Number: 6255 Registered: 7-2004 |
My K&M stand arrived today. Great stand. Joe Bob sez two big thumbs up! Bill, tgo | ||
| smokin_dave
Senior Member Username: smokin_dave Post Number: 433 Registered: 10-2002 |
My K&M stand arrived today.I'm impressed.Sturdy.Much more than the old Ultimate stand and my Rogue 5 seems to be right at home.The stand cradles her very nicely. I second the two big thumbs up for the time being. Now,let's see how long it survives. |
