Electric Bass Archives - Page 48

Roger Sadowsky and his crew have been making some of the world’s best basses for decades, and bass #7210 is another fine example. The instrument is one of the company’s 21-fret standard style five-stringers with some gorgeous styling. “It’s what we classify as Standard Style, which means no pickguard or control plate,” Sadowsky Shop Manager Lisa Hahn tells us. That...

Ken Smith is now offering a single cut body shape as an option to their neck thru models. The option is a first for the company, which has only offered double cut designs in the past. The first bass to receive the single cut treatment was a BSR5MS featuring a highly figured tiger maple body, a 3-piece laminated aged hardrock...

This week we’re checking out the Godin A4. Available in fretted and fretless versions, the semi-acoustic bass is fitted with a low profile Lace Sensor with side-mounted controls as well as custom Godin Saddle transducers with their own custom preamp. The extensive tonal options can be output via 1/4″ and 13-pin connectors, allowing for computer and synth access. The A4...

Willcox is now shipping a new version of their Saber SL bass called the HexFX Edition. The new model has a 13-pin DIN connector that allows for individual string outputs in addition to the Lightwave Optical Pickup System. “The HexFX Editions bring the individual string outputs, along with a summed mono output, to a 13-pin DIN connector,” Willcox writes. “The...

This week we’re featuring the work of Aaron “Ray” Ross, a Missouri-based builder who began making basses to supplement his own collection. “I make basses by hand in a VERY modest shop,” Ross explains. “This started when I wanted a fretless bass but could not afford one.” Ross builds each bass by hand with an assortment of materials. His five-string...

After relaunching the brand earlier this year, Teye Guitars has unveiled the prototypes for a new bass model called the Super Coyote Bass. The instrument, which feature the company’s signature acid-etched aluminum artwork, was designed with AC/DC bassist Cliff Williams. “When Cliff Williams received his first Teye-bass, a superb Master series ‘La Mora’, his immediate reaction was to order two...

Sire Guitars’ Marcus Miller V7 5-String Bass really caught me off guard, more about that after the details. This instrument is definitely of the Fender-style design. The body and neck feel as you would expect from this approach. The Maple neck had that full rounded profile associated with J basses, and the Ash wood body felt familiar. What catches the...

Extended-range basses have become a huge trend in the last few years with instruments having anywhere from five to twenty-four strings. While Russian custom shop Padalka Guitars has built several seven and nine-string basses, they decided to take a more minimalist approach with the Ennea Hotchkiss, a three-string bass with bold contours. A riff on their flagship Ennea model, the...

Parliament Funkadelic and Maceo Parker bassist Rodney “Skeet” Curtis has teamed up with Brubaker Guitars to create the a signature bass called the JXB-Extreme II Skeet Model. The bass, which was developed over two years, is based on the company’s JXB series and comes in four-, five-, and six-string versions. It features a buckeye burl maple theme for the body’s...

Emre Kayaalp reached out to me with one beauty of a bass – his recently acquired 1969 Gibson Les Paul. According to the Wikipedia artcile on the instrument, the Gibson Les Paul bass “is a bass guitar first manufactured by Gibson in 1969, just after the relaunch of the Les Paul guitar in 1968.” That bass didn’t sell well, and...

This week we’re checking out the Orchid bass by CG Lutherie, a headless bass with some sleek features. The unique body shape includes a forearm contour and an extended upper horn, while the majority of the bass’s top sits flush thanks to recessed volume and tone controls. While the bass is fully customizable, this fretless Orchid features a stunning poplar...

Ibanez has announced two new basses to their SR500 series with the SR500TFF and the SR505TFF. The basses, which are four- and five-string versions of the same model, feature mahogany bodies with a traditional Tri-Fade Burst Flat finish. The neck on each bass is a five-piece laminate of jatoba and bubinga topped with a rosewood fretboard. Ibanez fits the basses...