Basses - Page 80

New for 2012 is the Framus Vintage 5/150 Star Bass, a reissued version of their classic model from the ’50s made famous by Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman. The bass oozes retro vibes with a single cutaway body made of laminated maple for the sides and top with a laminated AAA flamed maple back, a set mahogany neck, and a...

In 1982, Warwick opened up shop in Germany as a boutique company and launched their flagship Streamer bass. Thirty years later, the company is celebrating with the Streamer LTD 2012 Warwick 30th Anniversary Bass. Limited to 75 pieces, the bass is said to “represent the soul of Warwick.” Made in Germany, the Anniversary bass’s body utilizes U.S. cherry wood that...

Canadian custom shop Basone Guitars recently unveiled a new 25-fret, 6-string bass guitar. The elegant instrument features a chambered body made of Honduran Mahogany topped with spalted maple as well as walnut and ebony accents. The bolt-on neck is also honduran Mahogany supported with dual truss rods, with a black walnut fingerboard. As an interesting addition to abalone side dot...

Brubaker is expanding their Brute Bass series this year with the addition of the MJXSC line of basses. The new 5-string models sport a single-cut body design while keeping a low price point. Weighing in a 10 pounds, the MJXSC sports an ash body and a bolt-on maple neck with a slim taper contour. The rosewood fingerboard has a compound...

Taking a cue from Fender’s Bass VI from the ’60s, Eastwood has unveiled the Sidejack VI: a 6-string, 30? scale bass guitar. Similar to a guitar, the bass is tuned E to E, but it vastly improves on the guitar concept by taking it down an octave. Available in Vintage Cream and Metallic Blue finishes, the bass is built with...

Ibanez expanded their SR Premium lineup with the inclusion a new 6-string model, the SR1206. Sporting the mahogany body and ovangkol top combination, the new bass shares the rest of the qualities of its siblings, including a 5-piece wenge/bubinga neck, a rosewood fingerboard, and a pair of Nordstrand Big Single pickups. The preamp is Ibanez’s active/passive EQB-IIISC, which is tailored...

Mike Lull Guitars unveiled their newest signature bass at the Winter NAMM show this year, based on the instrument and specs of bassist Bryan Beller. The BBM5 is based on Lull’s M5 bass, modified to suit Beller’s playing style and wishlist. The bass is a 35? scale 5-string bass active jazz bass with a Bartolini NTMB Pre-amp and Seymour Duncan...

Reverend has expanded their Decision and Justice bass lines with the addition of some new finish options. The “PJ” styled Decision (which was profiled as a Bass of the Week in January) now comes in Deep Sea Blue; a color that had been previously reserved for the company’s Rick Vito Signature model. The Reverend is still available in Party Red...

German instrument builder Duesenberg has introduced a fretless version to their D-Bass line of basses. Available in Black and Coral finishes, the D-Bass Fretless carries the same specifications as its predecessors, with the exception of its fretless ebony fingerboard. The D-bass sports an alder body with a hard rock maple neck. Combining vintage-vibe with modern chic, the pickup is Duesenberg’s...

German boutique company Taranaki Basses recently unveiled their Acrobat 32, a medium scale bass featuring their own custom pickups. The passive pickups have individual coils for each string, resulting in 8 coils per humbucker. Taranaki describes it as “the most active sounding pickups ever.” Though the bass is open for customization, standard features include a khaya body, walnut top with...

Dingwall unveiled the 4-string version of their new Super P model at Musikmesse this year as a follow-up to the SP5 from NAMM. Sharing many of the same features, the Super P Standard 4 is built with a carbon fiber reinforced 5-piece maple neck and 2-3 piece alder body with a high gloss finish. Of course, the morado fingerboard is...

Fender has raised the bar for 2012 by upgrading their American Standard series of instruments, including the Precision and Jazz basses. The main change is the inclusion of Fender Custom Shop pickups for each model, while other slight adjustments and a new finish also help to update the line. First up, the American Standard Precision basses now feature Fender Custom...