Bass Gear Roundup: The Top Gear Stories in February 2016
February is always a big month for gear news, following the late-January Winter NAMM show. We’ve covered a lot, and we have more coming.
Here are the top 10 reader favorite gear stories on No Treble for the month. Thanks, and sorry for the GAS.
1. Orange Amplification O Bass Guitar
Orange Amplification took to NAMM to launch the O Bass, a vintage-styled bass that comes in Teardrop Sunburst, Off-Black and Orange finishes. The bass first made an appearance at the 2014 Winter NAMM show as a demonstrator piece, but came to production after videos of the instrument spread online…
2. EMG Solderless J System Pickups
Swapping out your Jazz Bass pickups has just gotten a little easier. EMG’s new J System is a completely solderless setup that includes everything you need to drop a new set of their J pickups into your bass…
3. Hartke TX600 Lightweight Bass Amp
Hartke turned some heads when they unveiled the TX600 at this year’s Winter NAMM Show in Anaheim, California. The 600-watt bass amp is the company’s first lightweight Class D amp, weighing in at a mere 7 pounds…
4. Fender American Elite Series Basses
Fender’s new bass offerings at the NAMM Show this year revolved around their new American Elite series of instruments. The lineup includes each of the company’s main models with the American Elite Precision Bass, Jazz Bass, Jazz Bass, and Dimension Bass…
5. Ibanez Artcore Vintage Basses at NAMM 2016
Ibanez gave their Artcore line of basses a rustic turn this year with the Artcore Vintage Series. The semi-hollowbody, short-scale basses come in distressed finishes to give the vibe of an old workhorse instrument, right down to the antiqued pickup covers…
ESP got into the multi-scale game this year with the LTD B-1004SE and B-1005SE basses. Four and five-stringers, respectively, the new models have different scales for each string to optimize tension and ergonomics…
7. Sadowsky Single Cut 24 Fret 5-String Bass
When we interviewed Chip Shearin last year, he let us in on the scoop that he was working with Roger Sadowsky on a special project. That project came to light at the 2016 NAMM Show with the unveiling of the Sadowsky Single Cut 24 Fret 5-String Bass…
8. Cort Jeff Berlin Rithimic V Bass
Jeff Berlin’s signature Rithimic bass now comes in a five-string version. The Cort Rithimic V was displayed at the Winter NAMM show this year with the bassist on hand to talk about it…
9. Schecter Michael Anthony Signature Bass
Ex-Van Halen and current The Circle bassist Michael Anthony has a brand new signature bass from Schecter Guitars. Available in production and custom shop versions, the bass is a take on their Model T with updates to suit Anthony’s playing style…
10. Boss BC-1X Bass Comp Pedal
Following up on last year’s bass driver, Boss introduced the BC-1X Bass Comp at the 2016 Winter NAMM Show. The pedal is a multi-band compressor optimized for bass that the company says offers a wide range of compression without altering a bass’s fundamental tone…
