Best of 2010: Top 10 Bass Gear

Today, we continue the Best of 2010 countdown with the top 10 bass gear stories of 2010. As with all our Best Of lists, this one is based on reader views.

Fleabass Street Bass

1. Fleabass Street Bass

The Street Bass is an even more affordable version of the already available Touring Bass, which Flea himself is using to tour and write the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album with.

Ibanez Ashula Fretted/Fretless Hybrid

2. Ibanez Ashula Fretted/Fretless Hybrid

The concept of a hybrid fretted/fretless bass has been attempted before, and Ibanez might just have the best version yet with their Ashula model. The six-string fretted/fretless hybrid bass offers this unique configuration: four fretted bass strings and two fretless. This offers a more fluid approach to playing than other hybrids, where the fretless option…

Fender Roger Waters Precision Bass

3. Fender Roger Waters Precision Bass

Fender has introduced a new Roger Waters Precision to their line of basses, named after the Pink Floyd bassist. The bass features a black-on-black color scheme (black body and black, single-ply pickguard), and is equipped with Seymour Duncan Basslines SPB-3 Quarter-Pound split-coil Precision Bass pickup, knurled black control knobs (master volume, master tone), brass nut,…

Tech 21 SansAmp VT Bass Deluxe

4. Tech 21 SansAmp VT Bass Deluxe

Due to tons of requests, Tech 21 has introduced the VT Bass Deluxe, a 6-channel programmable version of their SansAmp Character Series VT Bass pedal. The pedal brings together the warmth of an all-analog signal path and the convenience of digital recall to allow players to easily dial up their favorite tones. The controls on…

Music Man Reflex

5. Music Man Reflex

Ernie Ball has released the Music Man Reflex, which they were showing off at their booth during this summer’s NAMM show in Nashville. The bass is an evolution of the 25th Anniversary Bass, and features multiple pickup options. Choose from a standard single humbucker, dual humbuckers, or a humbucker plus two single-coils to suit your…

Epiphone Zenith Bass

6. Epiphone Zenith Bass

Epiphone has released the new Zenith bass, an instrument that pays homage to the jazz guitar tradition. Available as fretted or “lined” fretless, the key to this bass is its unique NanoFlex and NanoMag pickup combination. Designed by Shadow Germany, the NanoFlex is fit underneath the saddle to sense the vibrations of the strings as…

Ibanez GSR, SR370 and SRT900 Series Basses

7. Ibanez GSR, SR370 and SRT900 Series Basses

Ibanez introduced a number of new basses at Summer NAMM 2010, including new GSR, SR370 and SRT900 series. GSR Series All three of the GSR series basses are available as 4-string only, and come with a P/J pickup configuration. Two left-handed models are offered, including a short-scale version (28.6″). The new GSR series offers a…

Warwick Thumb SC Single Cutaway

8. Warwick Thumb SC Single Cutaway

Warwick has announced the Thumb SC single cutaway bass. The German made bass, which is their Thumb NT model mixed with a single cutaway design, is tailored towards jazz, funk, and R&B settings. The Thumb SC features a specially designed passive MEC soap-bar humbucker and active MEC 3-band electronics with 2 toggle switches for coil…

MTD Andrew Gouche Signature 635

9. MTD Andrew Gouche Signature 635

Gospel legend Andrew Gouche has shared details of his new Signature MTD bass on his Facebook Page. The Andrew Gouche Signature MTD 635-24 is a 6-string, 35″ scale bass that features an alder body with a maple burl top and a maple neck with a purple heart fingerboard. The neck’s side dots are made from…

SoloEtte Little Thumper Nylon Travel Bass

10. SoloEtte Little Thumper Nylon Travel Bass

SoloEtte has released the Little Thumper Nylon Travel Bass, a new portable sidekick bass that weighs only 3.5 lbs. Featuring thick Nylon strings, the Little Thumper is constructed of a single piece of Hard Rock Maple with an aluminum rod frame that can be disassembled to fit into a compact soft case. Polyurethane tubing covers…

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