Bass of the Week: Martin Keith Guitars Elfin Hollowbody

Martin Keith took on the singlecut body design with his Elfin model, and this week we take a look at its hollowbody version. The five-string bass is built entirely like an acoustic instrument with functionality for electric players.

The Elfin’s body, which measures 14 inches wide and 3 inches deep, is built with maple sides and back and a braced Sitka spruce top. Maple binding highlights the bass’s dark finish, while an ebony fingerboard and bridge provide further accent for the smoky aesthetic.

The bass includes a pickup system with a magnetic pickup in the neck position mounted in an ebony cover as well as a piezo pickup in the bridge.

Martin Keith Guitars Elfin Hollowbody Bass Specs:

Body:Bent Maple Sides, Braced Maple Back, Braced Sitka Spruce Top
Binding:Maple
Neck:Mahogany
Fingerboard:Ebony
Bridge:Ebony
Pickups:Magnetic Pickup, Piezo Bridge Pickup

For more information, check out the Martin Keith Guitars website.

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Leave a Reply to Doc.Hoc. Cancel reply

  1. Bob DeRosa

    Cool looking bass but whose idea was the black-on-black photography? You can’t see anything because the outline blends into the background. Any idea about price?

  2. Jerry_The_Racecar_Driver

    I kinda think i might want one a little…

    GIMME GIMME GIMME!!!

  3. Doc.Hoc.

    Nice bass , wish everyone a nice day .

  4. Again, I have to wonder about intonation issues with a single saddle bridge. Here’s the link to the builder’s site – http://www.martinkeithguitars.com/listing/models.php?type=EB&model_id=12
    Still no mention of price even there.

    • Hi – thanks everyone for the nice words!

      The bass starts at $4900 for a 4-string model.

      The straight saddle bridge can play very nicely in tune if it’s in the right spot.
      I’ve built upwards of 50 basses with fixed saddles and have refined the placement very carefully to make it work.

      I am developing an intonatable version for fretted instruments, but find that the straight saddle is very effective, especially for fretless instruments such as the pictured bass.