Bass Gear - Page 211

Kiesel Guitars has introduced two new multi-scale versions of their Vanquish bass. The VM49K and VM59K are four- and five-string basses, respectively, that are the Kiesel custom shop’s first multiscale bass instruments. The design includes fanned frets and offers some technical improvements. “The advantage of a multiscale bass over a traditional instrument is that the lower strings have a greater...

The octave pedal specialists at Cog Effects have unleashed a new octave/fuzz called the Rogue One. The flexible pedal combines two of the company’s Grand Tarkin bass fuzz channels with a third parallel sub-octave channel found in their T-70 for a huge sound. “Each fuzz channel is supplemented with additional controls to further refine the sound as well as how...

Providence has expanded their line of utility pedals with the PEC-4V. The programmable effects controller features their Vitalizer circuit with four Provolt9 DC9V outputs. The effects loops break down into three series loops and one separate that can be set up in four combinations to be recalled instantly in program mode. A direct mode allows for directly turning each loop...

Fender has unveiled the American Professional Series, which takes the place of their recently discontinued American Standard line. The new series will, of course, include Precision and Jazz bass models, but each will have new features. Updated specs include a new fret shape, new pickups, new electronics, new hardware, and new colors. Both the American Professional P-Bass and Jazz Bass...

Andy Irvine of The Daily Funk Club shared some pictures of this bass on Facebook and it made me stop scrolling. The Picasso by KD Basses is a colorful, artistic take on the instrument made in Bulgaria. The bass’s body is built with an Elm core, but luthier Kostadin Dimitrov covered it with an irregularly-shaped piece of maple burl in...

Trickfish Amplification has unveiled the SM110 “Perch” cabinet. Originally intended for acoustic bass or guitar, the 1×10? is described as a low profile light-to-medium duty electric bass speaker cab. It’s fitted with a 10-inch Eminence neodymium speaker rated at 300 watts as well as a 100-watt silk dome neodymium tweeter. The 8-ohm cab is built with baltic birch and covered...

Fodera unveiled the third bass in their Masterbuilt line this past week with a special version of their Emperor II 5 Elite. The one-of-a-kind instrument is called “Brooklyn” and pays respect to the New York City borough that the company calls home. “Brooklyn, NY has been a part of the heart and soul of Fodera Guitars since the founding of...

Portland, Maine’s Arkham Sound has introduced the Bullet, a tube bass pre-amplifier housed in a surplus 30 caliber ammo box. The company says the new preamp is designed to survive the rigors to the road “as if Ampeg were given a military contract to arm Motown.” It is fitted with a 12AX7 preamp tube and a Mosfet bufered lo-Z output...

Italian bass amp manufacturer Markbass has unveiled their latest bass cabinet with the Standard 121 HR. Featuring a 1×12″ configuration, the rear tuned ported cab has a sound the company calls “warm, focused, and natural.” The cab is rated at 400 watts and has a wedge design to allow for use as a floor monitor as well as sitting in...

Radial Engineering has announced the 4-Play Direct Box. Aimed at multi-instrumentalists, the DI works well for bass, acoustic guitar, mandolin, fiddle, and more. It has a 1/4-inch input for your instrument with four selectable XLR outputs. You can switch instruments by hitting the mute footswitch, plugging in the right instrument, and then using the second footswitch to toggle to the...

Norway’s OnkartGromt has released the Grombass V2, an overdrive/distortion pedal made for bass. The innovative pedal has an analog circuit with a microcontroller inside that controls the gain stages. The microcontroller is Arduino compatible with open code that can be modified by the user via USB cable. The Grombass V2 has three distortion modes: Germanium, LED, and Silicon. “Germanium diodes...

I love it when luthiers think outside the box with the woods they use for their instruments. A recent trend has been to recycle old skateboards to create instant mojo, and Brazilian bass builder Antonio Cesar Scopel nailed it with his P-Board bass. Inspired by the Fender Precisions from 1951 to 1957, the P-Board’s body is made entirely from used...