Electric Bass Archives - Page 96

The S.D. Curlee bass, made popular in the 1970’s, has been reborn at the hands of Birdsong Guitars’ Scott Beckwith. Once described as the “poor man’s Alembic,” the S.D. Curlee brand went under in 1982 after business decisions that led to key members leaving. The new SD Curlee Classic is a new take on the original Randy Dritz design, featuring...

For Summer NAMM 2011, ESP Guitars has unveiled the LTD J series basses, including the J-204 and J-205 models. Built for quality while “remaining within a budget,” the basses are designed with a classic style. The J-204 and J-205 (4- and 5-string, respectively) feature alder bodies, maple necks, and rosewood fingerboards. The old school look is rounded out with retro...

Fender has incorporated some low end into their Blacktop series with the introduction of the Blacktop Precision and Blacktop Jazz Bass guitars. The line of basses are made for a thick, heavy sound and are what Fender describes as “two of the most distinctive iterations of the instruments.” Built on an alder body, the Blacktop Precision has two humbucking pickups...

Custom bass builder Luthman Basses has announced their latest model, the Mystic First. Mystic First is a passive bass with bolt-on construction. Bodies are made with the bassist’s choice of ash, alder, ovangkol or mahogany woods, and the neck is made with either wenge with maple accents or the reverse, maple with wenge accents. Fingerboard wood choices include either rosewood...

Cort has teamed up with the German bass builders at Sandberg to create the Arona series of bass guitars. Available in 4 or 5-string versions, the Arona marries Sandberg’s engineering and designs with Cort’s production. The Arona is available with a swamp ash or alder body depending on the finish, and has a 3-piece bolt-on maple neck with a rosewood...

Le Fay Basses has unveiled the Herr Schwarz Grant Stinnett D-Tuner Model, a 34” scale bass with a D-Tuner on each string. This allows for alternate tunings on the fly. The bass is handmade at the Le Fay shop in Germany and features an Ash body, 5-piece Maple neck and Rosewood fingerboard. The hardware and electronics are also made by...

Based on popular demand, Ernie Ball is offering a limited test run of the SLO Special 5, a Music Man Stingray 5-string bass with 19-mm string spacing. The company says it must receive 125 pre-orders between now and July 12, 2011 to put the instruments into production. If the orders are met, it will become a regular product. The Stingrays...

Ibanez has released a new Peter Iwers Signature bass, the PIB2. Finished in Pearl White with an inlay, the In Flames bassist’s new axe is a 5-string that comes factory-tuned to the his preference: Eb, Bb, F, C, Bb. The body is a 3D contoured version of the company’s SR body made of Maple. The 5-piece neck is a combination...

Mayones has unveiled the S-Cut Caledonius 5 Classic, a single-cut bass featuring neck-thru construction. The company explains that the single-cut design adds stability and sustain while the neck joint provides better access to the highest frets. More unique to the bass is the “Single Cut Handle,” where a portion of the upper horn is cut out. The bass is available...

Dean Guitars has unveiled the USA Thousand Series, a new line of U.S.-made instruments. While focused primarily on guitars, Dean is issuing a 1000 version of their new Hillsboro bass with several options to suit, including 4 and 5-string models. The USA Hillsboro 1000 is a double cutaway design featuring an alder top and body that comes in finished in...

M Basses has announced their Mp-4 an Mp-5 models, a new set of hand made basses inspired by vintage designs. Standard features for the line include a swamp ash or alder body, a 34” scale maple neck, and an Indian rosewood fingerboard with 20 or 21 frets for the 4- and 5-string versions, respectively. In keeping with the classic vibe,...

Traveler Guitars has introduced the TB-4P Bass, an electric travel bass designed specifically for practice. Featuring a classic double cutaway design, the bass has several unique features to aid silent practice including a built-in headphone amplifier and a 1/8” aux-in jack for connecting an mp3 player. For increased portability, Traveler removed the headstock and reduced the scale to a 32”...