Bass Gear - Page 277

Years after the original was discontinued, Digitech is reintroducing the Bass Whammy pedal. The updated pitch-shifting pedal is optimized for bass guitar tones and retains its classic settings while introducing new true bypass and MIDI operation. Digitech says the Bass Whammy is ideal for 4-, 5-, or 6-string basses and has very accurate pitch detection and polyphonic note tracking. It...

Squier has teamed up with Eva Gardner to introduce a new signature Precision bass. Gardner was the original bassist for The Mars Volta and has continued to work with artists ranging from Veruca Salt to Pink. The Squier Eva Gardner Precision Bass is built with a basswood body finished in gloss black, a maple neck, and a rosewood fingerboard sporting...

Meshell Ndegeocello has a new signature bass from Reverend Guitars, aptly named the Meshell Ndegecello Fellowship Bass. Based on the Reverend Thundergun, the bass features set neck construction with a raised center ridge and reverse headstock. The Fellowship bass is fitted with the company’s new P-Blade pickup, which they say extends low end and clarity. Its controls include a single...

DragonForce’s Fred Leclercq has a new bass from ESP’s LTD Signature Series. As opposed to his previous ESP signature, the ESP LTD Signature Series Fred Leclercq FL-204 features bolt-on construction with a maple neck, rosewood fingerboard, and a mahogany body finished in Snow White Satin with graphics. The bass has a 34″ scale and 24 XJ frets. Its neck has...

We first met luthier Pierre Erizias at the 2010 Summer NAMM Show in Nashville. I was so floored by his basses and his story that it led us to create our Custom Shop series of interviews with bass builders. Recently, he sent me a photo of one of his latest single cut basses, and I had to find out more....

EMG Pickups has unveiled the GZR-P and GZR-PJ signature bass pickup sets for Black Sabbath 4-stringer Geezer Butler. Designed with Butler, the pickups are made to reproduce the bassist’s tone during his earlier years in the band. The vintage style sets offer old school vibe with a few modern touches. The P set is all solderless and uses Alnico 5...

Japanese guitar company Caparison has unveiled the 2014 C2 Series of instruments including the DEB-E Bass. Designed and produced in Japan, the bass is built with a solid mahogany body, a slim maple neck, and a 24-fret bound rosewood fingerboard. Its “Devil’s Tail” shaped headstock is also bound. The Caparison DEB-E is fitted with a pair of EMG humbuckers with...

Malekko Heavy Industry has introduced the Justin Meldal-Johnsen Signature Diabolik harmonic analog fuzz pedal. The pedal is based on the Malekko’s B:assmaster circuit but is housed in a more compact chassis. Diabolik features a preset harmonic spectrum setting that the company says gives “crisp octave overtones and a very aggressive tone setting.” Its controls include a Fuzz knob, a Clean...

Guild is reviving the M-85 with two new models this year: the Newark St. Collection M-85 bass and the GSR M-85 II bass. Each of the instruments is a take on the vintage bass, which was the companion to the Guild M-75 Aristocrat guitar. Guild Newark St. Collection M-85 Bass The Newark St. M-85 is a singlecutaway, semi-hollow body bass...

ESP will be unveiling the first batch of products from their new US factory at NAMM this year. The instruments will be part of the new E-II series and will be built in North Hollywood, California. Among the new basses will be the ESP E-II AP-4 and AP-5 models. Each of the four and five-sting versions are built with bolt-on...

The best basses come with great stories. Jimmy Haslip’s six-string bass from Wyn Guitars, called “Gabriela Rose,” is a great example. Wyn Guitars luthier Randy Fullmer recounts the whole process on his website. “It’s a luthier’s dream to make an instrument for an artist with the stature and playing chops of Jimmy Haslip,” Fullmer humbly states. “I of course handled...

Jeff Berlin has teamed up with Cort for a new signature bass for 2014. Dubbed the RITHIMIC, the model features an alder body with a striking padouk and spalted maple top with a matching spalted headstock. Its hard rock maple neck is topped with a rosewood fingerboard. The bass is set up to Berlin’s liking with low action and a...