Bass Gear - Page 126

This week we’re checking out the Remington Steele from Germany’s Le Fay Basses. The bass is a fretless with a twist: the fingerboard is stainless steel. Although it’s an unusual feature, the steel doesn’t sound metallic at all, the company says. “Remington Steele sounds spacious, phat and rich in overtones,” they write. “Effects come into their own really well and...

Acoustic Amplifiers has introduced the Classic Series of bass combos, which the company says combines “vintage vibe with modern features.” The lineup includes three models: the B25C, the B50C, and the B100C. Common features on the units are a tilt-back cabinet design, a re-engineered EQ section, a blendable overdrive, a 1/8-inch headphone output, and a 1/8-inch aux input. The series...

In addition to previewing the new Cab 27, Phil Jones Bass has unveiled a compact bass amp called the PJB BP-800. The miniature unit weighs just six pounds while pumping out up to 800 watts. It has a Class A preamp and plenty of features including a five-band EQ, a mute/passive/active switch, a headphone output, an auxiliary input, an effects...

France’s Zorg Effects has introduced a simplified version of their flagship Glorious Basstar pedal called the Small Basstar. Designed for bass and guitar, the multi-band overdrive splits your signal into bass and treble bands with a three-way switch to the frequency that separates them. Zorg says on bass it offers “precision, gnarl, huge gain, big sound and superb attack clarity.”...

Boss has announced the WL Series of wireless systems for bass, guitar, and other electronic instruments. The line has three models – the WL-20, WL-20L, and WL-50 – that the company says offer “ultra-low latency and rock-solid stability.” Each unit has a built-in rechargeable battery in the transmitter that allows for up to 12 hours of continuous playing time. The...

This week we’re checking out a gorgeous J5 Classic Fretless from Devon Bass. It features a stunning chambered and scorched swamp ash body that has an almost caramel color in the grain. The warm color is accented with black hardware and an ebony fingerboard. Devon fitted the bass with a pair of Nordstrand Audio Big Blades matched to an Aguilar...

Earlier this year, Ernie Ball Music Man announced they were revamping their flagship Stingray bass. Now the Stingray Special is shipping. The model, which was originally released in 1976, has been reimagined with a host of new features while retaining its identity. The body has been contoured and the neck joint has been sculpted for improved access to the upper...

Maurizio ?ber Basses, aka M?B, has unveiled a new model called the M?B-F, a fretless-only bass they say was designed from the ground up to be “a true fretless bass as opposed to a bass without frets.” “A fretless bass is a different instrument. It is played differently, with more attention to nuances and subtleties, with fewer boundaries and a...

Fender used the Summer NAMM Show to unveil a host of new instruments, including a new signature bass with Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea. It’s his second bass with the company after they released a Jazz model two years ago. “Our artist signature active bass with Flea was designed to complement the Shell Pink Flea Jazz Bass — a...

Westminster Effects has unveiled three new preamp/DI pedals for Summer NAMM, including the bass-specific Wittenberg Bass preamp. The three-knob pedal has a volume control, a Frequency control for setting the center frequency, and an EQ control for setting how steep the EQ’s curvature is. It has a standard 1/4-inch input and output as well as an XLR output. The Westminster...

Squier’s Contemporary Series got a little bigger at the Summer NAMM Show this year with the introduction of three new Jazz Basses: the Contemporary Active Jazz Bass HH, the Contemporary Active Jazz Bass HH V, and the Contemporary Jazz Bass. Notably, the four and five-string active models offer a more modern take on the Jazz Bass with a set of...

We featured two basses by Frederiek de Vette last year, and now she’s shared her third ever build with us. This time she took a bit more straight ahead approach, although it’s no less beautiful. “This build is loosely inspired on the Precision bass,” she explains. “I aimed to capture the simplicity, tonal and aesthetical character of the original, and...