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Bass Of The Week Archives

Bass of the Week: Malinoski Rodeo Bass
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Malinoski Rodeo Bass

Peter Malinoski is a luthier with an artistic vision for his instruments and passion for uniqueness. With several college degrees in the arts, it’s no wonder his designs stand out. “[My instruments] are a step back and beyond the roots of electric guitars that represent what electric guitars could have been and still can be when mass production and mass...

Bass of the Week: Pedulla MVP/Buzz
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Pedulla MVP/Buzz

Fretted and fretless models respectively, the Pedulla MVP and Buzz are the flagship basses based on the design that first brought luthier Michael Pedulla to prominence. The unique body shape and fresh approach to ergonomics set them apart from standard designs. The bass starts with a three-piece laminated maple neck that’s reinforced with a double-acting truss rod and two steel...

Bass of the Week: Bassline Worp
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Bassline Worp

In experimenting with neck designs, German luthier Rüdiger Ziesemann was looking for a way to improve sustain in his Bassline brand designs. He came up with a radical neck profile with extended mass and a groove on the back for your thumb. The concept was first introduced into his electric upright model called the Universal, but bass guitarist wanted in...

Bass of the Week: Schecter Stargazer-4
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Schecter Stargazer-4

Schecter’s Stargazer-4 is a quirky take on basses of years past. The old school-inspired 4-stringer is built for versatility with EMG’s MMHZ humbucking pickup in the bridge position and the EMG SJHZ single-coil pickup in the neck position. For further tonal adjustments, the bass has an EMG active 2-band EQ in addition to a pickup blend knob. The Stargazer-4 features...

Bass of the Week: Nordstrand NX5
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Nordstrand NX5

I’ll admit it – I’m a sucker for boutique top woods. That’s why I had to do a double take when I saw Nordstrand’s first NX5 Bolt-on bass guitar. Its spalted maple top and matching headstock have a gorgeous textural look with striking light and dark contrasts thanks to the spalting, which is naturally created in wood by fungi. Equally...

Bass of the Week: Hofner 500/1 Vintage 1963 Violin Bass
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Hofner 500/1 Vintage 1963 Violin Bass

In 1955, Walter Hofner came up with the idea to make a short scale bass guitar with a violin-shaped hollow body. The idea came to life the next year at the Frankfurt trade show and made its rounds, eventually landing in the hands of Beatles member Paul McCartney, who had to switch from guitar to bass following the departure of...

Bass of the Week: Surine Basses Regency 8-String “Rainbow”
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Surine Basses Regency 8-String “Rainbow”

Surine Basses decided to go all out on their Regency model with this “Rainbow” 8-string bass. The hollow-body bass has a stunning 32-strip laminate top and matching headstock with a variety of exotic woods. Equally impressive is the 7-piece thru neck made of rock maple and purple heart, which is topped by an ebony fingerboard. And if that’s not enough,...

Bass of the Week: GMR Bassforce NT
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: GMR Bassforce NT

While checking out different luthiers’ websites, I came across the GMR Bassforce NT: a neck-through version of their flagship model. Based out of the UK, GMR’s Bassforce is proof of their constant work. “The shape is seen on Bassforce is a case of evolution of early models which started coming out from the workshop nearly 30 years ago,” explains GMR’s...

Bass of the Week: Hot Wire Bass Inlaw 521 BO
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Hot Wire Bass Inlaw 521 BO

German bass company Hot Wire produced a super cool version of their Inlaw 521 BO model with a stunning quilted maple top and matching pickup covers. The “zebra” effect is attained by using a lighter quilted maple and a dark quilted maple to create a sharp contrast. The Inlaw comes in several versions, but the 521 BO is a 5-string,...

Bass of the Week: LeCompte Electric Bass’ Prototype 1.5
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: LeCompte Electric Bass’ Prototype 1.5

Texas-based luthier Bud LeCompte has lots of cool designs on his website, but his Prototype 1.5 (aka PT 1.5) really caught our eye. With one foot rooted in the past and one stepping forward, the cool singlecut body shape has LeCompte’s unique style written all over it. “I like a lot of the traditional instruments, but I don’t want to...

Bass of the Week: Burns Nu-Sonic
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Burns Nu-Sonic

Originally introduced in 1964, the Burns Nu-Sonic was the follow-up to the original Burns bass design. Famously, the Nu-Sonic was used by George Harrison of the Beatles to record the bass line to “Rain”. The company reissued the Nu-Sonic after the brand was reintroduced in 1992. The short-scale bolt-on bass is built with a basswood body with a maple veneer,...

Bass of the Week: Esh Stinger I
Bass of the Week

Bass of the Week: Esh Stinger I

Designed by Jochen Imhof, the Esh Stinger I is described as the company’s “dark side” and was even used by Type O-Negative’s Peter Steele. In addition to several finishes, the German company created a Monstergreen finish with green pickup covers and block inlays as a tribute to the fallen low-ender. Featuring bolt-on construction, the Stinger I is built with a...