Super J

The Super J is a reinvention of the classic J-style bass.

The look and feel lean towards the traditional, however the tone and quality are everything you’d expect from a Dingwall. For ideal clarity on the B and E-strings, alongside a big and warm quality to the D and G-strings, the scale length has been shortened by 2″ from our standard length.

Available in: 4 or 5-strings, 2 or 3-pickups, active or passive electronics, and take your pick from a range of available finishes

BODY

Alder provides a traditional warm tone. We build the body slightly thinner than standard to reduce weight and provide a bit more resonance. Swamp ash is also an option for those who would like a little less mid-presence in their tone.

headstock

Following in the spirit of the original American Hot Rods, the headstock has been stripped down and reimagined to open a whole new world of tonal possibilities. Designed and manufactured with our custom string tree, milled from phenolic and featuring smooth and rounded string paths for snag-free tuning.

BRIDGE

Designed to be “set & forget” simple and featuring a slotted string anchor system for fast and straightforward string changes.

The Super P bridge borrows the simple yet great-sounding stainless steel riser screw system used in our high-end bridges.

We reduced the complexity of the saddles to a minimum and then designed a unique base plate system to hold them rigidly in place. Using stainless steel riser screws and a tough Teflon coating on the bridge ensures long-term corrosion-free performance

NECK

The double expanding truss-rod style is one of the industry standards. However, our installation method – taught to us by Glenn McDougall of Fury Guitars, involves gluing the truss rod into the neck under almost 1000-LB of pressure. This creates a coupling of steel to wood, increasing both sustain and harmonic content.

“While repairing guitars, I found that many guitars had either stripped or missing truss rod cover plate screws. I found it frustrating that it usually took longer to remove and replace the cover plate than it did to make the actual adjustment.”
The truss rod is the most commonly adjusted component on most guitars, so access to the truss rod adjustment should be as easy as possible.

All Dingwall basses feature easy-to-access truss-rod adjustments.

Electronics

The standard passive system includes volume, tone and the versatility of our four position Quad-tone pickup selector

We offer series/parallel toggle switches for each pickup to further expand tone-shaping options. 

If you want even more tone shaping at your fingertips, we have two options of 3 band pre-amps.

Darkglass Tone Capsule

The Tone Capsule is a new, unusual take on onboard preamplifiers. It’s designed to respect your instrument’s natural character while expanding exponentially the tonal possibilities. The Tone Capsule is unique in the way that it doesn’t have a Treble control. The idea was Sheldon Dingwall’s: he thought that making a Bass-Mid-Treble was too normal for his liking because everyone does it that way, so he suggested including a second mid control instead. We loved the idea! Specially because the second control could be configured to operate at the higher end of the spectrum, offering all the benefits a standard Treble control (increased clarity and definition when boosting) but with a more natural, less-harsh and noiseless operation. 

Glockenklang 3-band:

What we like about the Glockenklang pre-amps is the smooth and subtle tone shaping and the Active/Passive treble control. Our focus of perfecting the natural tone of our basses so that they don’t need a lot of tone adjustment is why we feel the Glockenklang fits so well with this philosophy. The Active treble boosts and cuts as expected in active mode, but when the pre-amp is switched to passive mode, the control acts as a passive cut control.

Knobs

We looked for years to find a control knob we were happy with. We eventually decided to design and manufacture our control knobs in-house. These knobs are exclusive to Dingwall guitars and feature a sleek design that blends perfectly with the overall design language of our basses and matches the pickup shells perfectly. They feature a soft-touch formula for extra comfort and grip.

Strings

Dingwall strings have been meticulously tested to maximize performance and deliver a tone that blends effortlessly with any style of music. We were the first company to design strings specifically for multi-scale instruments. Available in both nickel and stainless steel, our strings provide an even tension for optimal balance, letting you experience the warmest highs and the tightest lows possible.

 

Note: basses are shipped with Dingwall Nickel Strings

BODY

The standard body wood for the Super J is Alder. 2-piece is standard for transparent finishes and 2 or 3 piece is standard for solid finishes
Body Core
Alder provides a traditional warm tone. We build the body slightly thinner than standard to reduce weight and provide a bit more resonance. Optional upgrade – Swamp Ash Swamp Ash is a great option for those who would like a little less mid presence in their tone. It has a very distinctive grain pattern.
Standard Top
N/A
Tone Chambers
N/A
Top Options
Yes
Exotic wood contrasting layer option
Yes
Matching Wood Cover Plates
N/A
Finish
We use a special polyester that’s been formulated for electric guitars. It not only looks great, but it sounds great too. The bodies almost look like they’ve been dipped in glass, yet the finish is extremely thin allowing it to be acoustically transparent
Colors
We have a huge range of available colors. Please refer to our photo galleries and price list for available colors and styles.
Pickguard Options
Matte Black is the standard pickguard. The following pickguard options are available: White/Black/ White, Black/White/ Black, Tortoiseshell, White Pearloid, Black Pearl

Neck

1 piece maple standard, optional 5-piece laminated maple or Wenge .
Neck Carve
Medium thin C shape
Neck Reinforcement
double expanding truss-rod
Headstock
Flat, counter bored, scalloped
Headstock options
Flat, scalloped
Standard Fingerboard
Wenge
Fingerboard Options
Maple, Pau Ferro, Macassar Ebony
Fretless Option
Macassar Ebony with edge lines
Fret Options
Vintage small size 18% hard nickel silver fretwire
Position Markers and Inlays
White or Black Pearloid side and face dots. Optional Pearloid or Black blocks. Speedo Bars.

ELECTRONICS

Pickups
Handmade FDV
Pickup Options
Any of our FD size pickups can be fitted or retro-fitted into the current spec (non-Super-Fatty I) Super J models. The available options include the P-tone, which gets you as close to the traditional P sound as possible, the FD3, for a slightly more hi-fi tone and greater sensitivity to dynamics or the Super-Fatty II, for a huge, fat bottom-end with a little bit of sparkle on top. The Super J comes standard with 2 pickups in traditional spacing. The 3x option adds a middle pickup for even more tone options.
Exotic wood shells, matching wood shells
N/A
Standard Electronics
All Dingwall basses feature a 4 position Quad-tone pickup selector. This system does two things. It reduces the load on the pickups compared to a standard blend control, and it offers four distinct bass tones that are all very musically useful and versatile. Pre-amp The standard passive system is amazingly versatile. Even more with the addition of series/parallel toggle switches. If you want even more tone shaping at your fingertips, we have two options of 3-band pre-amps: the Darkglass Tone Capsule and the Glockenklang 3-band.
Pre-amp Option
Darkglass Tone Capsule | Glockenklang 3-band
Pickup Switching
4 position Quad-tone pickup selector. Optional individual series/parallel toggle switches for each pickup
Knobs
Dingwall Knobs
Jack
We chose to use a traditional jack on the Super P to fit with the more traditional vibe of the design. We use only the Switchcraft brand, which has been the industry standard since the 1950s.

SCALE LENGTHS

On our Canadian made basses we do the more complicated compound radius. We like it for a few reasons: - We can have a very vintage feeling 7-1/2” radius at the nut for comfortable play in the lower frets. - We can also have a much flatter radius at the bridge to make play easier for the plucking hand. - The flatter radius at the bridge keeps the strings a more consistent distance from the pickups for more even response.
Fingerboard radius – compound
7-1/2” (at the nut) to 25” (at the bridge)
Scale Lenghts
B 35″
E 34.25″
A 33.5
D 32.75″
G 32″

Dimensions

Bridge Spacing 4
19 mm – .748″
Bridge spacing 5
19 mm – .748″
Nut width 4
42 mm – 1.65″
Nut width 5
45.5 mm – 1.8″
Heel width 4
60 mm – 2.36″
Heel width 5
77mm – 3″
Neck thickness @ 1st fret
21 mm – .787″
Neck thickness @ 12th fret
24 mm – .906″

Hardware

Hardware color
Black, Chrome option
Tuners
Hipshot Ultra-lite ( Chrome optional )
Bridge
Dingwall Super Bridge
Strap Pins
Dunlop locking