issue14.pdf - bass gear magazine

MAS-210 Flex (Big E Loudspeakers)Carvin PB5Demeter HBP1-800D

All gear, all the time. bassgearmag.com Issue 14

$7.50US

SPRING 2014Display until July 1, 2014

www.mesaboogie.com

Fully decked with modern

f

H

1 1 1:20 PM

Mesa/Boogie LTD., 1317 Ross Street, Petaluma, CA 94954 Tel: 707-778-6565 www.mesaboogie.com

BASS PRODIGY™ 250watts (Sounds Like 500!) and...

125watts (Old School Magic!)4 x KT88’s, 3 x 12AX7ABRIGHT/NORMAL/ACTIVE Input

5-Position VOICE FeatureXLR DI w/LEVEL, PRE/POST SILENT RECORD TUNER OUT w/MUTE16” Wide, Only 29 Pounds!

Additional BASS STRATEGY™ Features

8 x KT88’s, 3 x 12AX7A465w/250w/125w Multi-Watt™Power

9-Band Graphic EQNew Ergonomic Handles18” Wide, Only 49 Pounds!

Inspiring musicality that only tubes can provide, with a shocking ability to fill the room (or arena!) MESA/Boogie® introduces the Bass Prodigy™ and its Big Brother: The Bass Strategy™. Fully decked with modernfeatures, these new icons are already resetting the standard for Power, Punch, Portability and Dynamic Dimensionality. Hand-Crafted in Petaluma, California.

COVER

QUICK LOOKS

FULL REVIEWS

810

14

16

28

38

48

60

74

72

SPECIAL FEATURES

bassgear

The Manipulated Vortex Waveguide Loudspeaker AlignmentStephen Regier and Thomas Ewers from Big E Loudspeakers explain The ManipulatedVortex Waveguide technology in their own words.

Fender Cabronita Precision BassPigtronix Bass Fat Drive, Bass Envelope Phaser, and Philosopher BassCompressor PedalsMXR M89 Bass Overdrive Pedal

F bass VF4-P and BN5 Bass GuitarsCanadian luthier George Furlanetto has been making some of the best basses in the worldfor years. We take a look at two F bass models, the new VFP-4 and venerable BN5.

Sonic Farm 2di4 Tube Pentode DITwo musicians from the former Yugoslavia get engineering degrees, start a killerrecording studio, then split up and travel the world, only to reunite years later in Canada.Sounds like a great movie, right?

Elrick Bass Guitars, Ltd. Expat Series, Gold Series and Master Series Bass GuitarsRob Elrick has been building crazy high-end basses out of a cramped shop in Chicago foryears. Vic Serbe finally gets his hands on three of Rob's creations.

Demeter HBP1-800D Bass Pre/Power AmpWhat happens when you add a state of the art power amp to a tried and true tubepreamp design? Alan Loshbaugh checks out the Demeter HBP1-800D.

Michael Arnopol Soundworks MAS-210Flex Bass CabinetEver seen a bass cab that manipulates vortexes, fires across the stage while facing thecrowd and flexing, and comes with a military-grade arming switch? Mike Arnopol has “inhis dreams” and now, the dream is reality.

Carvin PB5 Bass Guitar"Okay, so a 65+ year old US company finally made their first real P-bass. Should I care?"Oh yes, you should. Carvin's PB-series basses are most definitely worth a detailed look.

Cover Shot – George Furlanetto and Marcel Furlanetto from F bass

4 bassgear

COLUMNS

INDUSTRY NEWS

80

9014issue

How I See ItEditor-in-Chief Tom Bowlus talks about the importance of putting things in context.

From the Bench Technical Editor Tom Lees takes a look at burst power, and how different amplifier

topologies handle this task in different ways.

Luthiers’ Round TableOur friend, Dan Lenard, of Luthier Access Group, serves up three questions for the

Round Table.

Great Moments in Rock-n-Roll History – “Rock and Roll” as Term and EventJohn Cipiti explores the first use of “Rock and Roll” as a term and event. I’m proud

to say, it all started in Ohio.

In The Doghouse – Stand Up or Sit Down: Posture IssuesChris Fitzgerald talks about the posture issues which all double bass players must

deal with at one time or another.

Philthy Talk – The Allure of CheapPhil Maneri speaks out against the increasing trend towards more,

and cheaper, stuff.

The Upright Perspective Bass maintenance for non-luthiers, part 1.

Manufacturer’s ResponseYes, that’s right. We give manufactures and luthiers their very own space to tell us

what they really think about our reviews!

Fundamental Support –Fernando Jones' Jazz CampFernando Jones helps keep the blues alive by teaching it to kids - for free.

6

92

98

108

110

112

114

116

118

2014 Winter NAMM Show

2014 Winter NAMM Show Awards

5bassgear

sound overly simplistic whenplayed solo, but it is sheer brilliancein the context of the song, proper.

Each year, the Winter NAMMShow provides another educationalopportunity on the topic of propercontext. Unfortunately, this isprimarily by way of providingexamples of improper contextualinterpretations and choices. I am notsure how many gigging bass playersactually get paid to play non-stopslap/pop riffs, but surely it has to beless than 95%, which is theapproximate percentage of bassplayers picking up a bass andwhacking away, non-stop, atNAMM. Whole notes at NAMMare as rare and elusive as a colddrink in the desert.

The key to managing context-basedchallenges is to stop and think just abit, before you act. How is that textgoing to come across on thereceiving end? Is my messagegetting through? Is posting toFacebook really the best way to geta chuckle out of that picture of yourbuddy mooning the camera? Heck,is that really a picture you want tokeep stored on your smartphone? Ifthese examples do not resonate withyou, then, please, hear me now: thenext time you plug in at the NAMMShow (or in Guitar Center, or yourneighborhood music store), pleaseplay My Girl.

That’s how I see it.

Take care, Tom.

communication is done via akeyboard, cell phone or webcam,the “speaker” does not receive anyfeedback from the audience. In fact,they may not even know whichaudience is receiving themessage(s). Young adults enjoy theinteraction which social mediaprovides, and it allows them to dowhat they have always done: talkamongst themselves and escape theharder realities of life for a bit. Theproblem is, in today’s world, suchseemingly harmless banter cancome back to haunt a young collegeapplicant when the collegeadmissions officer does some basicresearch on the internet. Adults arenot immune from these concerns,either. Remember, when you arethrowing things “out there,” thepotential audience may includefuture employers, future spouses, oreven [gasp!] Grandma!

The importance of understandingproper context is crucial to theunderstanding of the functioning ofeconomic markets, successfulpolitical activism, and even hardersciences, like engineering, biologyand chemistry. But it also directlyapplies to the arts and music. Themusical theory of relative pitch isright on point, as it speaks to theability to determine pitch in anestablished context. When talkingabout articulation from a musictheory perspective (e.g., staccato,staccatissimo, martellato, marcato,tenuto), flexibility is provided to themusician to execute/interpret thisarticulation in the context of piecebeing performed. Looked at anotherway, the bass line to My Girl may

In order to be properly appreciatedand understood, things need to beplaced into the proper context.These “things” can be comments, acog in a greater machine, or evenour own personal identity.Increasingly, though, “things” aregetting seen, shared, and evaluatedout of context, and little good cancome from this. Writtencorrespondence cannot convey the(sometimes very important)subtleties of body language andfacial expressions. E-mailcorrespondence takes an additionalstep back away from the humanconnection. Limited-charactertweets, and impersonal, abbreviatedtexts remove the human elementalmost entirely. Without theappropriate context/cues, theseattempts at communication have aserious chance of conveying the“wrong” message. Throw in thepoor typing which comes fromincreasing reliance on spell check(and the often bizarre results ofspell check), and it’s almost amiracle when the “right” messagegets through.

College professors and humanbehavior scientists talk about the“context collapse” we humansexperience when we aren’t surewhat group we are supposed toplace ourselves in, or how to bebehave relative to the differentgroups we associate with (childhoodfriends, college-days friends,family, co-workers, current friends,etc.). It’s a difficult thing, to put ona different “face” for each distinctaudience with whom you interact.To complicate things, when this

Tom Bowlus, Editor-in-Chief

How I See it

6 bassgear

bassgearEDITOR IN CHIEF Tom Bowlus [email protected]

TECHNICAL EDITORS Tom Lees [email protected]

Phil Maneri [email protected]

STAFF REVIEWERS Vic Serbe [email protected]

Alan Loshbaugh

Lonnie NaVeau

Ted “Blyss” Gould

STAFF CONTRIBUTORS Chris Fitzgerald [email protected]

Anthony Lucas

Arnold Schnitzer [email protected]

Jordan Simmons [email protected]

John Cipiti [email protected]

ART DIRECTOR George Keller [email protected]

ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Vic Serbe [email protected]

Editorial inquiries or review product shipping:

Bass Gear Magazine 207 N. Park Ave. Fremont, OH 43420 USA +1 419-307-2674

Advertising inquiries should be directed to [email protected] +1 708-7400-BGM

Publishing and reprints office:

Bass Gear Magazine 207 N. Park Ave. Fremont, OH 43420 USA +1 419-307-2674

Subscriptions and back issues:

$30 US for 6 issues, US$36 Canada, US$50 International. Back issues are $10 US, US$12

Canada and US $15 International. Please pay via paypal.com to

[email protected]. Or mail a check to Bass Gear Magazine 207 N. Park Ave.,

Fremont, OH 43420. Free on-line only digital subscriptions are available at

bassgearmag.com. Please send us your address corrections at least two months before

moving to [email protected].

All material published in Bass Gear Magazine is copyrighted ©2014 by Bass Gear Magazine,

Ltd. All rights reserved. Published and printed in the USA.

BGM OnlineResources

Online Issues, current & past:

http:// bassgearmag.com/bgm/Magazine

Where to go to subscribe:

http://bassgearmag.com/bgm/subscribe

Photo Galleries:

http:// bassgearmag.com /bgm/Gallery

Gear Giveaways:

http:// bassgearmag.com/bgm/home

BGMWebpage:

http:// bassgearmag.com

YouTube Channel:

www.youtube.com/bassgearmagazin e

Download Free Smartphone & Tablet Apps:

Find us on facebook

Follow us on twitter

7bassgear

MXR M89Bass OverdrivePedal

Quick Look the paint job on the M89 is professional-grade, without being over the top. The layoutis pretty straightforward, with one 1/4” inputjack (1 MOhm impedance) and one 1/4” outputjack (<10 kOhm impedance), and an input jackfor the 9V DC power adapter (not included).The pedal can also be powered via a 9-voltbattery. A very bright white LED indicateswhen the overdrive is engaged.

The four knobs on the box include controls forClean (which blends in a tuned clean signal –comprised mostly of the lower frequencies –with the overdrive signal), Volume (whichcontrols the overall output volume), Tone(which adjusts the color of the overdrivensignal), and Drive (which controls the amountof overdrive). No surprises on those last three,which are fairly common types of controls.But the inclusion of a clean blend is awelcome (and increasingly seen) featurewhich is all about maintaining a solid lowend, while dialing in a satisfying level of drive.

Like the rest of the Bass Innovations pedalline, the construction feels sturdy, and the sizeof the Hammond 1590B style box is familiarand convenient. All connections (input,output, power adapter) are located on thesides of the enclosure.

A Closer LookWith just four, easy to comprehend, knobs,the Bass Overdrive is very plug and playfriendly. It has a very broad “sweet spot,” soyou don’t have to hunt around for those oneor two magical combinations of knob settings.It also exhibits good touch sensitivity, and Icould dial it in to where the drive wasdefinitely in the background, or very muchout in front, depending on how hard I dug in.Although it claims to only adjust the color ofthe overdriven circuit, it seemed to me thatthe Tone affects both the clean and dirtysignals.

By Tom Bowlus

The Company LineWe have had the opportunity to reviewseveral pedals from MXR’s Bass Innovationsline of dedicated bass pedals: the M87 Bass

Compressor and M84 BassFuzz Deluxe back in BGM#9, and the M83 BassChorus Deluxe from BGM#12. As our prior reviewersalready gave you a greatback story on the historyof the MXR brand (and itspurchase by Dunlop in1987), I’ll dive right intothe latest box they sent usfor review.

What we have before ustoday is the MXR BassOverdrive, also referred toas the M89. The BassOverdrive has beenavailable since March,2013, and is part of anincreasingly diverse groupof overdrive/fuzz pedalsin the Bass Innovationsline, including two fuzzpedals (theaforementioned Bass FuzzDeluxe and the El Grande™Bass Fuzz) and a full-featured distortion pedal(the Blow Torch®Distortion). The layout of

the M89 is somewhat similar to the M84 BassFuzz Deluxe, but obviously with a differentslice of the gritty/grindy tone market in mind.

First ImpressionsThe Bass Overdrive sports an attractive greyfinish on the case, with a slightly metallicsheen and a hint of sparkle to the paint. It’snot easy to make grey exciting or showy, but

8 bassgear

Manufacturer: Dunlop Manufacturingwww.jimdunlop.com/products/electronics/mxr

Model: Bass Overdrive (M89)

Made in: USA

Enclosure: Aluminum, Hammond 1590B style

Voltage: 9V DC

Battery Operation: Yes

Inputs: 1/4" mono jack (<1M Ohm)9V DC jack

Outputs: 1/4" mono jack (<10 kOhm)

Controls: Clean, Volume, Tone, Drive

Other Features:True hardware bypass

Dimensions: 2,5”H x 5.5”D x 4.5”W

Weight: About 8 oz, with battery

Warranty: 1 year limited

Price: $219.99/129.99 (MSRP/street)

Rumor has it that the M89 is based on(Dunlop’s own) Way Huge Pork Loin overdrivepedal – specifically, that it is a darker, higher-gain iteration of the Pork Loin. That makessome sense, as the Pork Loin uses a modern,soft-clipping BiFET overdrive gain stage, andthe Bass Overdrive seems to behave like asoft-clipping device. The attack is definitely onthe “softer” side, and it presents a darkish,warm overdrive, with a nice range of useabledrive settings available. In some ways, itsounded/behaved more like a fuzz than anoverdrive (softer attack, warm/fuzzy tone).With my basses and my fingers, it shinedmost brightly when copping a mild overdrive.Perhaps because of the blending of the clean(tuned) lows and the overdrive, the M89 doesnot do “full clean” or “full dirt.” Rather, itdials up variations on the blend of the two.

When playing in one of my bands with justone guitar player, engaging the M89 helpedme to occupy a bigger slice of the sonic realestate. I was very pleased to find that evenwith some of the higher overdrive settings,my bass lines never lost coherence or that“foundational support” in the mix. This makesit a pedal that you can use to your delight,without really pissing off any of yourbandmates.

Lasting ImpressionsWhen it comes to overdrive/fuzz effects,things get to be quite subjective, and oneplayer’s “holy grail” can entirely miss themark for other players. The M89 BassOverdrive is not an extreme pedal, so it’s lesslikely to be as polarizing as some other pedalsI have tried. What the M89 does, however, isoffer a range of very compelling, mildlyoverdrive tones which sound quiteappropriate on bass, while ensuring that yourbass lines still land with authority andarticulation. Every pedal we’ve tried so farfrom the MXR Bass Innovations line hasproven to be a solid performer, and the BassOverdrive is no exception.

9bassgear

By Lonnie NaVeau

The Company Line

Pigtronix is one of the fastest-growing

companies in the effects pedal business. Since

starting in an apartment in New York in 2004,

and now moving in to a new factory in Long

Island, President David Koltai and his team

have made an extraordinary impact on the

pedal market. While keeping the design,

manufacturing and distribution all under one

roof, they are able to control and maintain

production at a very high level, while creating

jobs. The parent company to Pigtronix is also

expanding into the amplifier market with its

acquisition of the legendary guitar amp

brand, Supro.

With the help of one of their first pedals – the

Philosopher’s Tone, which has evolved into a

bass-friendly pedal, the Philosopher Bass

Compressor – the company has built up quite

a reputation. Numerous top-notch artists use

their pedals, including Victor Wooten,

Marcus Miller, Tom Hamilton, Doug

Whimbish, Billy Sheehan … the list goes

on. These pedals are the real deal; they

are compact and laced with just the right

features and controls, and are built to

last. They really cater to the bass player.

With the success of the Disnortion pedal

came the need for a version for bass

players, but with a much wider dynamic

range. The Bass Fat Drive has delivered

that and more. Pigtronix are truly

dedicated to making great pedals for

bass players. Their pedals are easy to

use, affordable and have deep, extended

bass response. This effort has also

inspired guitarist and President David

Koltai to play much more bass than he

used to, as a result.

Philosopher Bass Compressor

Following the success of the

Philosopher’s Tone pedal (selling more

than 10,000 of them), the company went

a few steps further and created the

Philosopher Bass Compressor, which uses

Quick LookPigtronixPhilosopherBassCompressor,Bass EnvelopePhaser andBass Fat DrivePedals

10 bassgear

the Philosopher’s Tone circuit, but in an even

smaller chassis. It has a very sleek look – as

do the rest of their pedals – and also feels

extremely tough; sturdy enough to take the

abuse your boots are going to give it. This

compressor has high-quality analog, optical

circuitry, and the very small footprint of these

pedals makes it easy to put a few of them

together.

This pedal has three simple knobs controlling

Volume, Compression and Sustain, and one

mini-toggle switch labeled “Grit.” And grit is

exactly what you get, yet it doesn’t take all of

the low end out of your signal or muddy up

the low mids to the point that the notes are

undistinguishable. Since there is no knob to

control the level of grit, you get what you get

– which is a very mellow tube-like tone,

similar to an old Jack Bruce tone. I wasn’t sure

if I would like the preset Grit tone, but it’s

different enough from the Bass Fat Drive

pedal, which makes it ideal to have both. It

can also help your bass to cut through the mix

a little better.

The Volume is simply the main output level,

or gain, of the pedal, but what is makes this

pedal stand out is the Compression knob,

which is actually a blend between the clean

attack of your signal and the compressed

signal. It’s great to mix between the two

signals and not change the level of attack in

your playing, or change the level of

compression. I found it useful while slapping

to mix more towards the clean side, but when

digging in with my fingers a little more

aggressively, to go more towards the

compressed signal. The Sustain knob controls

the threshold at which compression begins to

kick in. I found this to be one of the easier to

use compressors that was actually useful in a

live setting.

While developing the Philosopher Bass

Compressor, the Pigtronix team brought in

well-known Long Island bassist Danny

Miranda (from Queen, Meatloaf and Blue

Oyster Cult) to do some testing with a few

different versions of the pedal. During this

shoot-out, there were some minor changes in

each pedal, and with the help of Danny

playing several different basses, they made

some modifications and came up with the

Philosopher Bass Compressor. After using it in

a live situation, I was sold, immediately. With

its simple, yet flexible, controls, the Pigtronix

pedal did everything you need a compressor

to do. Its ease of use, combined with the

option of adding in some grit, makes for a

winning combination.

Bass Envelope Phaser

The first version of this pedal was unveiled at

the 2004 NAMM Show as the Envelope Phase

Shifter, and has since been modified into a

version for bass which is considerably smaller

and includes the optical isolator circuit, as

well. The Bass Envelope Phaser is very

reminiscent of an old Electro-Harmonix

envelope filter, mixed with a bit of phase

shifter. It includes the Pigtronix staccato

envelope circuit, which automatically closes

the envelope between notes. This circuit is, as

you might expect, very helpful when playing

high-speed, staccato finger techniques. The

controls are simple and easy to use. It has two

knobs –Sensitivity and Resonance – along

with a mini-toggle switch to select up sweep

or down sweep for the envelope effect. The

Sensitivity knob allows you to use dial in just

enough (or more than enough) effect,

Manufacturer: Pigtronixwww.pigtronix.com

Model: Philosopher Bass Compressor

Made in: USA

Inputs: 1/4" input 9-18V adapter input (neg. tip)

Outputs: 1/4" output

Controls: Volume, Compression (blend), Sustain,Grit switch

Other Features: True bypass switching

Dimensions: 4.4”L x 2.4”W x 1”H


Price: $209/$169 (MSRP/street)

Model: Bass Envelope Phaser

Made in: USA



Controls: Sensitivity, Resonance, up/downswitch





Model: Bass Fat Drive

Made in: USA



Controls: Volume, Gain, Tone, More switch





11bassgear

depending on the need. The Resonance knob

controls the level of up/down sweep. The

more Resonance, the more exaggerated the

sweeping effect, which is more like a phase

shifter on steroids.

I found that down sweep with the Sensitivity

and Resonance at 10 o’clock worked great to

get a nice, funky phaser sound. In down

sweep mode, the sound seemed to be colored

slightly darker than the sound of the up

sweep, which gives a little more clarity. Both

sweep settings offer a unique sound, but in

down sweep, it gives it that funky, Bootsy

Collins feel and sound. It worked fantastic on

the gig for a couple of songs where I needed

that slightly phased funky wah-wah sound,

and the band thought it sounded

phenomenal. From just out of the box to the

stage, this pedal did not disappoint. The Bass

Envelope Phaser should be a part of every

bass player’s pedal board.

Bass Fat Drive

Following the success of the Disnortion pedal,

the team at Pigtronix had to once again

modify the circuitry to favor the bass player.

While the Disnortion pedal had been used for

years by bass players, including Tony Levin, it

was time to take that technology and put it in

a smaller chassis with a wider dynamic range

to give it plenty of low end for bass. Using

parallel fuzz and overdrive with different

filters, they were able to achieve a great-

sounding distorted low end.

The Bass Fat Drive is an analog, tube-

emulated overdrive, featuring knobs for

Volume, Gain and Tone, along with a mini-

toggle switch that says “More” – which

actually doubles the gain of the distortion.

Volume controls the overall output level, Gain

is the level of distortion, and the Tone control

does more than you’d think. Rolling it fully

clockwise takes the low-pass filter completely

out of the circuit, for a more transparent tone

and robust low end. Moving counter-

clockwise, the Tone control gradually

attenuates the top end.

Using this pedal live, I quickly discovered that

it wasn’t just for distortion. With Gain turned

down and Tone set at 12 o’clock, it produced a

very big Ampeg-style warm tube sound that I

used on several songs to get that old Black

Sabbath bass tone. I wasn’t sure how useful

this pedal could actually be until I used it

onstage. Of course, as you turn up the Gain,

you can get moderate to massive distortion,

but with a flick of the More switch, you’ll have

the guitar player

reaching for his volume

knob. This pedal has

more versatility than the

average distortion pedal,

and it looks like I’ll be

adding this one to my

personal arsenal.

Conclusion

All in all, I was very

impressed with these

new Pigtronix bass

pedals. They look good

and will take a beating,

but more importantly,

they sound incredible,

both individually and

together. The team at

Pigtronix has done an

outstanding job in their

development. All three

pedals will accept 9-18VDC, and are supplied

with a 300mA 18VDC adapter. They do not

have a battery power option. My favorite of

the three is the compressor, which I felt was

the most consistently useful of these pedals; it

could be used all of the time, at every gig. If

you are into bass pedals, you are going to love

these Pigtronix offerings. And if you’re not a

fan of using pedals, you will be after you give

these three a go.

12 bassgear

All you need to do is subscribe toeither the free digital or paid printversion of Bass Gear Magazine at

www.bassgearmag.comIf you are already a subscriber, youcan still enter the giveaway contest

by logging onto your account atwww.bassgearmag.com and follow

the simple instructions.Additional rules and conditions

apply (see web page). Must be atleast 18 years of age. Void whereprohibited. International winners

responsible for shipping and duty.Winner will be announced in next

issue.

13bassgear

tag. The vintage-style reverse tunerswith the larger plates and straight postswork flawlessly, and the (newlydesigned) High Mass bridge is basically aBad Ass II. This is a sexy looking thingthat says, at least to me, “Peg yourjeans, roll up your sleeves and rock theXXXX out!” Right out of the box, I wasimpressed the sleek retro styling andpristine Candy Apple Red paint job. Thechunky feel of the neck is reminiscent ofthe ‘57 reissue. Feel-wise, I thought thatthe bass felt like a classic Precision Basswith a Tele neck and forearm contour.

The biggest and most obvious differencebetween the Cabronita and a traditionalP-bass is the Fender exclusive Fideli’Tronpickup, which is, to my ear, a bit moregritty and aggressive-sounding than astandard split-coil pickup. The feel of thebass is not strikingly different from thatof a standard P-bass; in fact, the scalelength and radius are identical to that ofa standard Precision.

A Closer LookThose who know me well know that I’mkind of a diehard 5-string J-bass kind ofdude. I like low action and flat necks,and anything other than that tends to

FenderCabronitaPrecision Bass

By Ted “Blyss” Gould

The Company LineIn 2013, Fender launched the CabronitaPrecision Bass, which is a sort of hybridbetween the classic P-bass and the styling ofthe Cabronita Telecaster series. The bassfeatures an alder body, which comes in CandyApple Red, 2-Color Sunburst and Black.

Instead of the traditional split-coil P-basspickup, this bass comes with a single Fender

Fideli’Tron™ humbucking pickup, which givesit a gritty, aggressive and rather punchy tone.Two knobs control volume and passive toneroll-off. The “C”-shaped maple neck has agloss urethane finish, a 9.5” radius maple capfingerboard with 20 medium-jumbo frets andblack-dot inlays. There’s a Stratocaster-styleforearm contour that really makes for acomfortable bass.

First ImpressionsThis well-balanced and comfortable bass hasall of the class P-bass traits. When you dig in,it delivers a pretty serious growl. It’s cleansounding, without being thin. Thecomponents are nice for the $799 (list) price

Quick Look

14 bassgear

Manufacturer: Fender

Made in: Mexico

Model: Cabronita

Body: Alder

Neck: Maple

Fingerboard: Maple

Bridge: Fender High Mass

Tuners: Vintage-style, reverse

Pickup: Fideli’ Tron

Preamp: None

Controls: Volume, tone

Finish: Glossy poly

Scale Length: 34”

Number of Frets: 20

Fingerboard Radius: 9.5”

Accessories: Gig bag

Price: $799.99/599.99 (list/street)

get uncomfortable pretty fast. However, thisneck – although big and chunky, as a P-bassneck “should” be – didn’t cause any fatiguein the short time that I had it with me.

My first opportunity to play it was at aWednesday night church rehearsal, wherethere are never amps used and we monitoreverything through an Aviom system. To me,the P-bass – nearly any P-bass with,naturally, a few choice exceptions – is a one-trick pony. Don’t get me wrong, it’s one prettydarn good trick, in the right hands, but one-trick, none the less. This bass is no different.The right P-bass in the right mix soundsamazing. Take the mix away, though, andoften, you’re left with a tone that does notsound as impressive and “flashy” on its own.That is, of course, unless you’re isolatingJamerson, Palladino, League or any othernumber of other-worldly bad-asses.

That’s how it was in my Aviom mix. With thebass and drums, it sounded awesome. Withthe whole band, it didn’t slot into the mix aswell. I blame that more on the band’s setupthan the bass. The worship leader (who didn’tknow that I was reviewing, only that I had adifferent bass) did mention that the sound, tohis ears, wasn’t as “warm and round” as myAmerican JazzBass. I agreed,so I used myregular bass onSundaymorning. In myexperience,some gigs justcall for a J-bass.Fortunately,Fender makesthose, as well.

I used the Cabronita at a different church thatSunday night (which is a 1,500-2,000 seatauditorium), playing through an AguilarTH500 and two GS210’s. The style of music iscontemporary Christian worship music, whichis, if you aren’t familiar, very pop/rockoriented. This bass, of course, fell into thatstyle quite nicely. Again, one trick, but onereally good trick.

Lasting ImpressionsThe simple, unique stylings and tone of thisbass separate it from the rest of the P-basspack. While it wouldn’t be my first choice forsmooth jazz, R & B or funk that requires you tospank the plank, it’s totally money for allkinds of gritty blues, rock, classic rock andcontemporary Christian worship sets. Overall,the Cabronita Precision Bass is a great-sounding bass that sits great in a mix. Thepaint job is awesome on the alder body. Theneck feels chunky and solid, and the mapleTele neck and vintage tuners are a greattouch.

15bassgear

By Tom Bowlus

The Company LineMy first introduction to George Furlanetto and FBass was in the context of another review I did (fora different publication) back in 2007. That bass – aBN5 with a lovely buckeye top – made quite animpression. It struck me as esthetically unique, yetclassy, and capable of delivering “modern” goods,but with undeniable vintage roots. Six and halfyears later, I’ve been privileged to get my hands ona number of George’s basses, and I have to say, thatfirst impression still rings true.

George remains the patriarch of the F Bass family.More recently, his son, Marcel, has taken on a moreinvolved role. Marcel has been hanging around theshop and working at a variety tasks for quite awhile. He explains, “Back in 2004 (at the tender ageof 16), I was jonesing for my first proper guitar andbass, so my dad suggested we build them together. Iwas over the moon, as I had always beenobsessed with the construction of guitars and basses,their history/origin, and the tonal variation betweenwood species, hardware, and strings. It was at thispoint that he allowed me to get my hands dirty withF Basses … God bless him.” After obtaining hisdegree in business administration in 2010, Marcelhas been focusing on sales, marketing, artistrelations and customer support. If you’re conjuringup images of a plucky, two-man father-son teamcranking out basses in the Great White North, I needto stop you right there. Yes, George and Marcelwork closely together, and yes, F Bass, Inc. is, at itsheart, a small company. However, the full F Bassteam is closer to 10-strong (see the staff photo onpage 22). This close-knit team is the key to F Bass’success, as they are able to produce a goodlynumber of instruments each year (over 200),but quality control and customer service arestill held to the highest standards.

F Bass offers five model lines: AC (AlainCaron Signature), ACC (Alain CaronClassic), BN (bolt-neck fretted), BNF(bolt-neck fretless), and VF (Vintageseries). All models are available in 4, 5, or6-string configurations, and numerousoptions are offered. For this review, we askedGeorge and Marcel if we could check out oneof their newest models, the VF4-P. This is a 4-string VF series bass with a single, split-coil(P-bass) pickup. We had talked about possiblyreviewing a second model, and their most popular

model – the BN5 – seemed like a good choice. As itturns out, I happen to own a 2008 BN5 (which I wasinspired to order after that prior review), and it’sstill in great shape (and up to current specs). Let’scheck out these two basses in greater detail.

BN5: The Reference StandardThe funny thing about this bass is that it has alreadybeen involved in dozens of reviews in the pages ofBass Gear Magazine. As one of my “go-to”reference basses, it has provided a baseline forcomparison for many other basses. In addition, it’stypically the first bass I grab when reviewing a newamp or cab, since I know what it can do, it is notoverly colored (it doesn’t cover up what the othergear is bringing to the table), and it is wide-ranging,both in terms of tone and dynamics. But before Igive away any more of the review, let’s take a lookat the standard BN5 specs.

As the name implies, the BN series feature a bolt-onneck, made from 3-piece quarter-sawn maple, with22 frets. The standard scale length is 34.5”. Why34.5”? Marcel explains, “We designed our BN5swith the 34.5” scale, as it producesthat extra bit of tension forclarity – most notably on theB string – making it muchmore useable andmusical.” As a guywho has logged moregigs on a Gibson

17bassgear

volume knobs is push/pull for hum-cancelling/single-coil mode. The “lower” bank ofthree knobs controls the boost-only bass, mid, andtreble controls. F Bass uses African blackwood forall of the knobs on the BN series (regardless offinish or top woods). Why this choice? George likesblackwood because it never splits. “It’s whatclarinets and bassoons are made of. It also has anice feel, and stands up to frequent use.”

F Bass offers their own stainless steel, exposed-corestrings (custom-wound by La Bella). This BN5came equipped with the following gauges: .043”,.063”, .085”, .102” and .128”. These exposed-corestrings are standard fare on the BN’s, which ofcourse begs the question of why exposed-corestrings? Marcel Furlanetto responds, “The steel coreof our custom-gauge string is completely exposedover the bridge saddle for maximum contact. Thisproduces great clarity, clean fundamental, andpiano-like sustain.” George adds, “We developedthese strings at the same time as the basses, so theycomplement the basses very well. We also found thelow B to be one of the best-sounding strings on themarket, with excellent fundamentals high up thefretboard and with the exact tonality as the otherstrings in the set.” One other observation I willmake is that they are exceptionally long-lastingstrings, which seem to keep their “fresh” toneforever.

Pretty much all BN5’s have ash bodies, which atfirst, seems a bit odd. I mean, in the world ofcustom-built basses, aren’t you supposed to be ableto pick your body woods? There are varying schoolsof thought on this topic, many of which have beenexpressed in the Bass Gear Magazine LuthiersRound Table column. George Furlanetto is from thecamp which believes that by sticking to a formula ofdesign and materials, consistency can be maintainedin all the basses produced. Plus, he just likes ash asa body wood. “I prefer the solidity of the bottomend, and the strong fundamental that it offers. Afterall, that’s what bass is all about, isn’t it?” To furtherthis strategy, the predominant fingerboard woodused is maple.

When I placed the order for my BN5, I stuck withthe tried-and-true ash/maple combo, but with acouple of requests. Bucking the trend forincreasingly lightweight swamp ash bodies, I askedfor a nice, solid northern ash body. Not a total boatanchor, mind you, but something a little on the moredense side. In my personal experience, heavier,

Thunderbird than any other bass, I am quite well-acquainted with this scale length, and I noticed it (andloved it) right away the first time I played a BN5. Thefingerboard sports a compound radius (10” to 16”), andthe nut width is a very comfortable 1.75”. If you desireto deviate from these standard specs, F Bass has youcovered. Available options include: 34” scale length; 5-piece neck; 24 frets; Hipshot A-style, B-style or L platesteel bridge; bridge string spacing choices of 16mm,17mm, 18mm, 19mm (standard) and 20mm; neck-through construction; and for you southpaws,left-handed construction.

Electronics are provided via two proprietary stackedhumbucking pickups (with a coil-tap option) and aPEEQ Research 3-band, boost-only EQ. The BN5’spickups are a hand-wound for F Bass by Jason Brown(also from Hamilton, Ontario), who has been windingthese pickups for over twenty years, now. GaryPoplawski, of PEEQ Research, is another long-termfriend and yet another Hamiltonian. According toGeorge, “I asked Gary if he could make a by-passable,natural sounding preamp of the highest quality … andhe pulled it off with flying colours. As a result, we’reboosting the natural tones the bass produces withtotal transparency. The Bass, Mid, and Treble controls

are boost-only and are flatwhen totally rolled off(producing only the passive

tone, no frequencies arebeing cut).”

If you throw sixknobs on your typical

bass, it’s going tolook fairly busy.However, F Basssomehow

manages to make it lookvery natural andunintimidating. Inpractice, those sixknobs actually make a

lot of sense, and are easyand straightforward to use.The three knobs closest toyour fingers are volume,volume, passive tone;basically, a vintage J-basssetup. Volume/blend is alsoan option (for an upcharge).The passive tone control ispush/pull for active/passivemode, and one of the

18 bassgear

more dense ash bodies contribute to tighter lows, abit more sustain, and better dynamics – at leastwhen we are talking about solid-body, non-chambered instruments. My other request was for abirdseye maple fingerboard. Boy, did George deliveron that front!

VF4-P: The New Kid on the BlockSo, after 35+ years of making world-class basses, FBass finally makes its first P-bass. What took solong, and why now? George and Marcel reply,“At F Bass, we’re known for buildinghighly spec’d instruments with manyfeatures, but we wanted to throw backto a simpler time, when selecting thefinish and deciding when to put thebass down for the night were the onlydecisions you had to make. That beingsaid, for those who want to tailor their VF-P, weprovide options including maple or rosewoodfingerboards, alder or ash-cored/alder bodies,varying string spacing, varying scale length, activeor passive electronics, and any finish under thesun.”

If you are thinking, “But, Tom, I know I’ve seenolder F Basses with split-coil pickups.” This is true.In fact, many of George’s early instruments hadsplit-coil pickups, often in pairs and placed in moreor less J-bass locations. When asked about theseearly split-coil pickups, George explains, “In thebeginning, I made and wound them, but asproduction numbers increased, I could no longerkeep up. I had Fralin make some before Jason tookover. These were phased out by the early ‘90s, whenwe evolved into single-coil stacks, which had moreoutput, bigger tone, single-coil/humcancellingcapabilities, more dynamics and better string-to-string balance. I occasionally require somesplit-coils to be made, either for repair, customorder, or the limited run of Alain Caron BN6Replicas.”

This new pickup in the VF-P basses is mostdefinitely a proper P-bass pickup, and it’s made byAguilar. Marcel tells us why: “Our VF4-P is loadedwith Aguilar’s AG 4P pickup. Our F Bass singlecoils produced more of a modern tone, with agreater frequency range and clarity, but we wanted apickup that distanced the VF model from the BNsfor a truly different flavour. Aguilar have createdsome of the best pickups we’ve heard in years, andwe’re blown away by the accurate vintagereproduction of the P pickup – big, round tone,

focused midrange, and grind when you really dig in.We also do our VFs in a Jazz or P/J pickupconfiguration with Aguilar’s AG J-HC.”

The VF seriesbasses alsosport a bolt-onneck, but the detailsdiffer significantly between the VF and BN necks.The VF’s use 1-piece (as opposed to 3-piece) maple,constructed to a 34” scale (as opposed to 34.5”),with a 9” to 14” compound radius (as opposed to10” to 16”), and have 21 frets (as opposed to 22).The nut widths are the same, though. George andMarcel shared some more insight with regard to theneck on the VF-P: “We love that classic P-bass tone,but aren’t always keen onthe original’s playability and super-chunky necks.Our standard neck carve is a slightly rounded Vshape, which eliminates bulky shoulders, while stillretaining neck mass for great tone. However, we canvary the carve to suit players’ preferred style (C, D,V and anything in between).”

VF series basses can be ordered as a straight-up P-bass, a P/J, or a J-bass (with your choice of ‘60s or‘70s spacing for the bridge pickup). Other optionsinclude choice of bridge (Hipshot A-style, B-style,or L-plate steel bridge), multiple ramp options, neckpickup cover, thumbrest, volume/volume orvolume/blend (for 2-pickup models), and fullypassive, versus the same 3-band PEEQ EQ featuredin the BN5. Our test VF4-P was equipped with a

19bassgear

There’s blue, and then there’s blue, and believe me,F Bass knows blue! In addition, they have severaltreatments and finish options which draw out thebeauty of the natural grain of the wood. Theenhanced-grain blue finish just clicks with that killerbirdseye maple board, and the look is completed bythe black hardware and blackwood knobs. The woodpickup covers and the wood control cavity cover arehand-matched to the top and back, respectively.That is an awesome touch.

The BN5 body style has curves and carves all overthe place, with a sculpted, “muscular” look. Thatupper horn, with its organic curves, is perhaps myfavorite in the industry. It’s a tad on the long side,extending past the 11th fret. This moves 1st positionback just a bit towards your body, and helps to makethe 34.5” scale feel more natural. The bottom strapbutton is also moved up from the centerline of thebody, and is placed close to the B string side of thebridge, facilitating a very comfortable position whenplayed on a strap. When playing in the seatedposition, you will appreciate the curve of the lowerhorn, which balances the bass nicely on your leftleg. The VF4-P shares this lower horn curve, thoughthe top horn extends only to just past the 12th fret.The belly cut and forearm contour on both bassesalso greatly enhance playing comfort.

The blue BN5 has a conversion varnish finish, andin fact, it was one of the veryfirst blue F Basses tosport this finish

(previously, George and co. usedpredominantly nitro-based finishes). The

change was made primarily for durability purposes,and considering the age of this bass and the number

lightweight alder body, maple fingerboard, Hipshot bentplate steel bridge (20mm spacing), Gotoh 20:1 tuners, asingle Aguilar AG 4P-60 pickup and no preamp. Sincethe body is alder, our VF4-P shipped with DR NickelLo-Riders (.045 to .105 gauge). Ash-bodied VF’stypically get DR Marcus Miller stainless steel strings. Ifyou choose a 5-string VF, then it will ship with a .120gauge B string (nickel or stainless). F Bass has thesecustom-made by DR “for better fundamentals.”

At first glance, the VF series body bears a familyresemblance to the BN and AC lines, but with a definitevintage twist. George/Marcel explain, “Our VF bodyshape is closer to the Fender body shape, so thoseFender-exclusive-players can feel right at home. Theyhang similarly and are carved similarly. However,we round the edges a touch more for comfort and curvethe treble horn outwards for those who prefer playing inthe seated position.” Relative to the BN5’s body, theVF4-P is more compact, a bit thicker through the upperhorn and has more moderate carves.

Esthetically SpeakingPeople use a variety of terms of endearment whendescribing inanimate objects, and I have to admit thatthe term which always comes to mind when I try anddescribe the F Bass esthetic is “sexy.” Before you judgeme too harshly, hold one in your hands, check it outfrom every angle, play your favorite lick, and tell meI’m wrong. In the world of custom basses, if you staytoo true to vintage cues, you are accused of making“Fender clones.” But if you diverge too far fromthe comfortable, established classics,you risk being pigeon-holed as“modern,” or your designs comeacross as unapproachable, orabstract. Across their variedmodel lines (which I thinkof as variations on atheme), F Bass has struckan amazing balance ofinnovation, art, andthose “comfortable oldshoes.”

At the time that Iordered the BN5, I wasdriving myself nutsdrooling over all thefancy top wood optionsand finishes. But I foundmy eyes really poppingout every time I looked atone of their blue basses.

20 bassgear

and articulation. The lows are tight and deep, with atouch of warmth. The mids are appropriately “Jazz-like,” but the tonal peaks and valleys are not asextreme as I’ve experienced on some J-basses.Highs are pure and smooth, and have a sweet, bell-like clarity when you boost the treble. It is a veryprecise-sounding bass, and it does everything thatyou want it to do, without overshooting the mark. Itwill never sound overly aggressive, unless youreally want it to (set it to passive, single-coil mode,and roll off the neck pickup just a bit, and you canget there). The balance from string to string and upand down the neck is incredible, with no dead spots,whatsoever. The VF4-P is similarly excellent inthese regards, as well.

When my BN5 first arrived, it had a crazy lowaction (the lowest that I can recall having on any ofmy basses), but it didn’t buzz or fret out anywhere(presuming that you employed an appropriateplaying style and touch). To better fit my playingstyle, I raised the action a good bit (I prefermedium-height action). The remarkable thing is thatonce I did get it dialed in, I have not had to tweakthe truss rod or saddle height, ever. And I amtalking about over the course of six years, in Ohio,no less! That is one stable neck!

The VF4-P happened to arrive when I was in themidst of a personal P-bass resurgence. My earliestgigging experiences were on a 4-banger with asingle split-coil pickup, and it served me well foryears (still have that bass). I later migrated to a(34.5” scale) Thunderbird, which was my primarygigging bass for over a decade. Lately, I’ve beenreveling in that simple joy which comes fromplaying a P-bass in a rock-n-roll band, so the P-basses are starting to pile up around here. Takingadvantage of this, I spent some time comparing theVF4-P to a Carvin PB5 (also reviewed in this issue)and a Lakland Skyline 44-64 Custom (the “DuckDunn” model). That Carvin has an exceptionally hotpickup, and it was easily the loudest and most full-sounding of the three. The VF4-P stood out as beingthe most clear-sounding of the group, especiallywhen played with a lighter touch. In light of theclarity of that Aguilar AG 4P-60 pickup and the newstrings, I found that rolling off the tone control a bitwas an effective tweak. The Lakland has a slightlydeeper tone than the other two, and falls somewherebetween the Carvin and the F Bass on the “full andbarky to clear and pure spectrum.”

of hours I have on it, I’d say that the finish has heldup amazingly well. The VF4-P has a very thin,organic-feeling satin finish which really shows offthe beauty of that alder body. The tortoise shellpickguard enhances this warm, earthy look, and theblack plastic knobs and chrome hardware feel rightat home. Once again, I feel like F Bass has knockedit out of the park in regards to designing a body andneck that definitely fit within their established designparadigm, but yet feel very comfortable andappropriate from a vintage perspective. Thisparticular VF4-P has simple, clean lines, and wouldbe at home in any studio or gigging environment.

If you want to trick out your F Bass order, they havea slew of topwood choices available (and you caneven preview and select specific tops online usingtheir bass builder tool), a wide range of transparent,solid or burst color finishes, and your choice ofblack, chrome or gold hardware. In addition to thestandard maple fingerboard, you can also chooserosewood, Macassar ebony, flamed maple orbirdseye maple. A variety of block and dot inlays areavailable. You can also choose white or blackbinding for the body, or for the headstock, or for thefingerboard (or all three!). Like finger ramps? F Basshas you covered, with your choice of ebony,matching wood/finish, or plexiglass. A simplethumbrest is also an option. Prefer straplocks? Noproblem; would you like them inset, or not?

Working in the Real WorldThere are several reasons why I use my BN5 as areference when working on other reviews. Set it topassive mode, and you basically have a Jazz Bass inyour hands (and just about everyone is familiar withhow a J-bass performs/responds). What’s more, youhave the choice of single-coils or hum-cancellingpickups. In general, I prefer the extra bit of “air”from single-coil mode, but this is a subtle difference,and hum-cancelling mode does not suck the life outof the instrument. Hit active mode, and you’ve got anice buffered signal. The PEEQ preamp it issupremely musical, and boosting one or more bandsdoes not throw the overall tone out of whack (whichI sometimes experience with other onboard EQs). Infact, bumping all three bands up about 25% is one ofmy favorite settings (though I often play it in passivemode, as well).

Compared to my vintage Fenders and many moderncompetitors, the BN5 always comes out as sounding“smoother” than the other bass(es). However, thissmoothness does not come at the expense of clarity

21bassgear

While I’ve experienced J-basses which can do afacsimile of a P-bass when soloing the neck pickup,this is the closest that I have come to hearing a P-bass mimic the enhanced clarity of a J-bass.Amazing! Unless you are packing an on-boardpreamp, your right-hand placement and technique isyour most powerful tone-shaping tool, upstream ofyour amp rig. The VF4-P takes full advantage ofthis, and is one of the most responsive basses I haveplayed when it comes to reacting to right-handtechnique. I often favor all-tube amps for their“touch response,” where you can play along cleanlywith a lighter touch, and then dig in a bit and get thisnice grindy edge to the tone. The VF4-P doessomething very similar. You can lay down amazinglyclear, pure lines with a light to medium touch, andthen dig in a bit, and whammo! Classic P-bass barkin spades! This phenomenon is, of course, notlimited to the VF4-P, but it is exceptionally sensitiveand capable in this regard. The more I play this VF4-P, the more it sinks its hooks into me. I think I mayhave another long-term reference on my hands!

F-in AccessoriesMy 2008 BN5 shipped with a hardshell case, but FBass shipped the VF4-P with a Ballistic single gigbag, and also threw in a double gig bag, as well.These are some sturdy, comfortable gig bags, withconfidence-inspiring zippers, nicely sized accessorycompartments, and straps which work well (and

won’t pinch your shoulder). They are also reasonablypriced, at $140 for the single, and $180 for thedouble. F Bass also offers “weight-reducing” leatherstraps, in a variety of shades. And if you dig thatPEEQ Research preamp, but play a passive axe, FBass also offers it in pedal form (we reviewed theBig F Boost pedal back in BGM #7). If you dig thoseblackwood knobs – and who wouldn’t? – you cannow also order them separately, as an accessory. T-shirts are also available.

The Bottom LineGeorge Furlanetto and F Bass have been among theelite group of top luthiers on the planet for years, andfor good reason. These two basses highlight thevision and purpose, as well as the artistry, behind FBass and its creations. In addition, George’s basseshave exhibited exceptional stability and road-worthiness over the years. The expanding range ofbasses offered means that, more than ever, F Basshas something to offer just about any player. If youare interested in picking up your first custom-madebass, or if you are shopping for another horse to addto the stable, F Bass is a mandatory addition to yourshort list.

22 bassgear

23bassgear

TEST RESULTS1-5 (unacceptable to impeccable)

SONIC PROFILE:Lows: Deep, detailed, slightly warm, with a hint of growlMids: Smooth and exceptionally balanced for a J-style bassHighs: Pure and smooth, sweet, "bell-like" clarity

In-handFeatures: 4Tonal Flexibility: 4.5Ease of Use: 4Aesthetics: 5Ergonomics: 4.5Tone: 5Value: 4

On-benchOverall Construction 4Wood Choice 5Materials Choice 5Joinery 5Fretwork 3Fit and Finish of Adornments 5Quality of Finish Work 5Ease of Repair 5Potential Range of Setup 5Balance on Knee 4Balance on Strap 4Overall Electronic Quality 5Solder Joints, Wire Runs 5Clarity 5Noise 5Shielding 5Quality for Price Range 4

Old school roots, with refinement, and modern

capabilities. This BN5 is smooth as silk, but also

defined, dynamic and powerful. A very

versatile instrument.

In-Hand Score4.43average

On-Bench Score4.65 average

bas

sgea

rtest

TONE-O-METER

CONFIGURATION

Strings: 5Style: Double cutawayOverall length: 46.5”Body Dimensions: 20.25” long x 14" wide at lower boutBody Contouring: HeavyWeight: 10.06 lbs

NECK

Scale length: 34.5"Neck width at nut: 1.752"Neck width at 12th fret: 2.599"Neck width at joint: 2.904"Neck thickness at nut: 1.189"Neck thickness at 1st fret: .804"Neck thickness at 12th fret: .928"Neck thickness at joint: .945"String spacing at nut: .32” to .36”String spacing at saddle: .745"Fingerboard Radius/Neckshape: 9-16 deg/ DPeghead break angle: 15 degBridge break angle: 20 degAfterlength at nut: 2.820" to 6.108"Afterlength at saddle: 1.3" to 1.4"Attachment: Bolt-onPocket gap: NoneTruss rod type/access: Double-action / body endFret count: 22Fretwire: 103 x 51

ELECTRONICS

Pickups: F Bass proprietary stacked single-coil/hum-cancellingPickup location(s), from 12th fret: 11 1/8”, 14 5/8"Electronics: PEEQ Research 3-band boost-only EQControls: Volume, volume (push/pull for coil tap),

tone (push/pull for active/passive)Shielding: FoilPreamp Circuit Voltage: 9 volts

CONSTRUCTION

Body woods: Northern ashNeck woods: MapleFretboard: Birdseye mapleBody finish: Conversion varnishNeck finish: Satin

HARDWARE

Strings: F Bass, exposed-core, stainless steel roundsGauge: .043”, .063”, .085”, .102”, .128” Attachment: At bridgeBridge/color: Hipshot B-Style / blackNut: BoneTuners/color: Gotoh / blackKnobs/color: Blackwood / natural finishPickguard: N/AControl cavity cover: Body wood (ash)

GENERAL

Company: F Bass, Inc.16 McKinstry Street, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8L 6C1ph (905) 522.1582www.fbass.com

Country of origin: CanadaWarranty: Limited LifetimeList Price: $4,000, USD (standard), $4,450, USD (as tested)Street Price: $3,500, USD (standard), $3,850, USD (as tested)Test Bass Options: Enhanced grain treatment, birdseye maple fingerboard,

black hardwareOptions: Too numerous to list; see webpageAccessories: Hardshell case, strapAvailable colors: Multiple transparent, burst, and solid color options

Acquired from: F Bass, Inc.Dates: March, 2008 to March, 2014Locales: OhioTest gear: GK MB115, GK MB Fusion 800, Mesa/Boogie Titan V-12,

Ampeg SVT-7Pro, Bergantino NV215, Bergantino 15/6,TecAmp Puma 900, TecAmp S212, '73 Fender Jazz,Celinder J-Update 5

F bassBN5

Phil Maneri’s

BASS LAB

F bass BN5volume, volume, passive tone, thatfeed a PEEQ Research 3-bandpreamp, which is perfectly installedin a foil-shielded cocoon. Thepickups have coil taps on the bridgepickup volume control and apassive/active switch on the passivetone pot. The battery even has afoam compression pad that freezesit in place when the cover isscrewed tight. Nice choice to keepthings in place during transport andplay.

Hipshot bridge, Gotoh keys,oversize strap buttons and cool-looking wooden control knobsround out the hardware, and are allgreat choices. The neck-side strapbutton sits around the 11th fret,which might disturb some who are

I must confess an affinity for darkblue basses. This F Bass is abeautiful transparent dark blueshade where the grain of the ash isfully visible beneath the surface.That motif is carried into the pickuptops, so that it looks like they thrustup from the top in a tectonic plateshift. The bolt-on, 3-piece mapleneck is topped with a very figuredbirdseye cap. I much prefer usingcaps of figured wood over straightgrain billets, rather than fullbirdseye necks, which in myexperience tend to bow and twistway more over time than what isdone here. Smart.

Electronics are two stacked single-coil/hum-cancelling pickups in aclassic Jazz Bass arrangement of

accustomed to the Fender 12th fretspot, but it works well with thesomewhat atypical 34.5” scale.

This instrument is very well built,overall, although I was not asimpressed with the fret ends, whichshowed visible file marks. On thewhole, though, the details are allwell attended to. It sounds great andplays very well. Its design is amodern 5-string J-bass, with somelittle detail twists to make itinteresting. Clearly, F Basses are inthe exclusive club at the top of thebass food chain, and should be oneveryone’s short list in this pricerange.

25bassgear


SONIC PROFILE:Lows: On the warm side, but not too fatMids: Very responsive to right hand technique; smooth and clear to barkyHighs: More extended than the typical P-bass

In-handFeatures: 3.5Tonal Flexibility: 4Ease of Use: 5Aesthetics: 4.5Ergonomics: 4.5Tone: 4.5Value: 4


The VF4-P is undoubtedly a P-bass at heart, but

with enhanced clarity and playability. It goes from

clean and clear to split-coil bark with ease. Smooth

when you want it to be, but aggressive when you

dig in.



bas

sgea

rtest

TONE-O-METER

CONFIGURATION

Strings: 4Style: Double cutawayOverall length: 44.5”Body Dimensions: 20.5” long x 14.75" wide at lower boutBody Contouring: ModerateWeight: 8.10 lbs

NECK

Scale length: 34"Neck width at nut: 1.52"Neck width at 12th fret: 2.226"Neck width at joint: 2.433"Neck thickness at nut: 1.016"Neck thickness at 1st fret: .812"Neck thickness at 12th fret: .949"Neck thickness at joint: 1.036"String spacing at nut: .364”String spacing at saddle: .790"Fingerboard Radius: 10-12 degPeghead break angle: 18 degBridge break angle: 5-10 degAfterlength at nut: 2.22" to 5.275"Afterlength at saddle: 1.1”Attachment: Bolt-onPocket gap: NoneTruss rod type/access: Double-action / body endFret count: 21Fretwire: 106 x 45

ELECTRONICS

Pickups: Aguilar AG 4P-60Pickup location(s), from 12th fret: 11 1/2”Electronics: PassiveControls: Volume, toneShielding: FoilPreamp Circuit Voltage: N/A

CONSTRUCTION

Body woods: AlderNeck woods: MapleFretboard: MapleBody finish: SatinNeck finish: Satin

HARDWARE

Strings: DR Nickel Lo-Riders (roundwound, with hex core)Gauge: .045”, .065”, .085”, .105”Attachment: At bridgeBridge/color: Hipshot L plate steel / chromeNut: BoneTuners/color: Gotoh / chromeKnobs/color: Plastic / blackPickguard: Tortoise shell (4-ply)Control cavity cover: Body wood (ash)

GENERAL

Company: F Bass, Inc.16 McKinstry Street, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8L 6C1ph (905) 522.1582www.fbass.com

Country of origin: CanadaWarranty: Limited LifetimeList Price: $3,500, USD (standard/as tested)Street Price: $3,000, USD (standard/as tested)Test Bass Options: Passive electronicsOptions: Too numerous to list; see webpageAccessories: Ballistic gig bag, strapAvailable colors: Multiple solid, transparent and burst color options

Acquired from: F Bass, Inc.Dates: December, 2013 to March, 2014Locales: OhioTest gear: GK MB115, GK MB Fusion 800, Mesa/Boogie Titan V-12,

Ampeg SVT-7Pro, Bergantino NV215, Bergantino 15/6,TecAmp Puma 900, TecAmp S212, Carvin PB5,Lakland Skyline 44-64 Custom

F bassVF4-P

Phil Maneri’s

BASS LAB

F bass VF4-Pcarve are very well executed; whatyou should expect from a great bassbuilder. The bass, overall, is verylight, yet still balances well. Thefinish is a nice, simple unshadedsatin that feels great and shows offthe wood.

Continuing with the vintagesensibilities, they use a traditionalP-bass pickup (from Aguilar) in itsusual position. The shielding isperfect, and really overkill for apassive P-bass, but quite good.They use the Hipshot version of avintage bridge to retain that originaltone and use F Bass-branded Gotoh720 keys. They depart from the

Sooner or later, every great buildertakes a poke at the Fender Precisiondesign. Why not? It’s probably themost-copied, most-used electricbass in history. For good reason; itworks. F Bass’ shot at it has somegreat choices. First off, the alderbody mated to a maple neck withmaple cap is great hybrid choice.Usually, alder is paired withrosewood and ash with maple, buton occasion, Fender matched alderand maple with great, underratedresults.

The joinery on the neck/fingerboardis particularly good, as is the bodybillet. The bolt-on structure and its

usual P-bass by using a Jazz-sizedneck and spacing. The body is veryF Bass, but with a pickguard. Avery nice, 4-ply tortoise shellpickguard, to be exact. The bassplays great, sounds like it shouldand is built well, as one wouldexpect from F Bass.

bassgear 27

By Tom Bowlus

A great name piques your interestand sometimes hints at things tocome. The name “Sonic Farm”certainly does both. Thought of intheir best light, farms arewholesome; they are natural; theygrow the things we need to survive.Translated into theamplified/recorded (“sonic”) world,preamps and direct boxes arecertainly things we need, and wedefinitely want them to bewholesome and natural. So far, sogood. While something has to beextremely good “to die for,” even inthe non-literal sense, Sonic Farmhas turned this slang phrase into aformal noun. This play on words(well, play on letters and numbers,really) has multiple levels. At theheart of its name, the 2di4 is a DI,so that works. It’s also two DI’s inone (a pentode tube DI, and a triodetube DI). And, without spoiling theending, it is extremely good. I’mstill working on the “4” part,though...

Farmers UniteSonic Farm Pro Audio is thebrainchild of two men whosefriendship spans not only decades,but continents, as well. ZoranTodorovic and Boris Drazic metback in 1966, in the formerYugoslavia, when the two musiciansformed a band and started giggingthe Adriatic coast. Both studiedelectrical engineering, graduated,and got steady jobs. The two startedtheir own recording studio in theearly ‘80s, and experienced a goodbit of success. However, theconflicts in their homeland led themto seek their fates elsewhere in theearly ‘90s. Boris went to Germany,then on to Canada. Zoran ended upin a recording studio in LosAngeles, and stayed there for 15years. In 2009, however, the twojoined forces in Vancouver, BritishColumbia, and formed Sonic FarmPro Audio.

Any field of manufacturing has itscelebrated icons, and the audiorecording world is no exception.Neve and API are hallowed names,

and with good reason. They set thestandard for studio preamps, andhave lead to many boutique buildersoffering clones, or slightly tweakedversions of their circuits. This is aworld which Sonic Farm seeks tosteer clear from. They believe thatfocusing on yesterday’s designslimits tomorrow’s possibilities. Oneof their founding premises is tocome up with pro audio equipmentthat the world market is not alreadysaturated with. Furthermore, theyattach no mythical benefits to anyone type of technology or design.To that end, they don’t care if theirproducts use tubes, transistors, opamps, or IC’s, so long as it gets thetone they are after.

With that background in mind, let’ssee what happened when theydecided to make a DI...

What’s a DI, Anyway?We use them all the time, but doyou really know exactly what a DIdoes? Or what those letters standfor? Well, it’s the box the soundguy makes you plug into when youask him to mic your rig, and he

28 bassgear

says, “No, use this,” right? Sort of,but there’s more to it. Whether youcall it “direct input,” “directinterface,” or “direct injection,” aDI connects a high-impedance, line-level, unbalanced output signal to alow-impedance, mic-level, balancedinput. The most typical scenariowhere we bass players see a DIused is to send the signal comingout of our bass into a mixingconsole, either live, or in therecording studio. Our rigs aredesigned to accept the signal rightout of our instrument, but thosepesky mixing boards are not. Still, itseems like a simple task, right?

Your DI is actually doing more thanyou might think. It is matchinglevels, balancing the signal,eliminating ground loops andminimizing noise and distortion(either through active buffering orpassive impedance matching).Especially in a live setting, you aretypically playing your bass a goodlydistance from the mixing board, sothe DI needs to send your signal along way, without losing anythingalong the way. And it’s doing all ofthis while sitting between YOURbass, and YOUR rig, so it darnedwell better not get in the way orscrew up the mojo you’ve beendialing in for years.

In its most basic form, the typicalDI box has a 1/4” input (from yourbass), a 1/4” output (to be sent on toyour rig), and an XLR mic-leveloutput (to be sent to the mixingconsole). Hopefully, there’s aground lift option, as well. Thesedevices may be found in eitherpassive or active form (hint: if it hasa power cord or takes a battery, it’san active DI).

Features To Die ForThe 2di4 covers all the DI basicfunction, but offers some very nice“value added” features. Let’sfamiliarize ourselves with the front

and back panels a bit. Up front, weof course have the requisite 1/4”input (labeled “In”) and 1/4” output(labeled “Amp”). But check out allthis other stuff! The big white knobcontrols the final output level, andit’s a straightforward affair, but therest deserve a little explaining. Thetwo white push buttons are labeled“Gain” and “T/P.” The Gain buttonprovides a signal boost of either5dB or 9dB, depending on thesetting of the next button. The T/Pbutton allows you to run the EF86tube (which is the heart and soul ofthe 2di4) in either triode mode orpentode mode (the technical aspectsof this are discussed in detail inTom Lees’ Amp Lab portion of thereview). The bottom row of controlsalso features a bi-color LED whichglows green when a signal ispresent, and red when the inputsignal begins to clip (though this ismore of a “rough estimate”indicator of clipping; more on this,below). The LED set between theGain and T/P buttons glows bluewhen the unit is powered up. Thetwo small holes above the Trimlabel are actually level (gain)controls for the Lo and Hi Boostfunctions.

Moving up to the top row ofcontrols on the front panel, we findthree mini-toggle switches. The first

one has settings for 0 (no gainreduction), -12dB and M (whichmutes the signal after the tube stageand before the output buffer). Sincethe 2di4 does make a very audible“pop!” when switching betweentriode and pentode mode, I wouldstrongly suggest that you engage themute before hitting that T/P switch.Note: the -12dB attenuation settingoccurs post tube and preamp outputstages, so instead of being there toknock down the level of a hot input,its intended use is for adjusting theoutput to avoid overloading a low-headroom device, such as acomputer interface/AD converter.Next up, we have the two 3-wayswitches for Lo Boost and HiBoost. In the middle position, noboost is applied. Options 1 and 2provide fixed boosts to the lowerfrequencies or higher frequencies.These are gentle shelving controls,and so they impact a fairly widerange of frequencies. For thespecifics on what frequencies areaffected by each switch, I onceagain refer you to the Amp Labportion of the review.

Turning our gaze to the back panel,we find two XLR outputs; onelabeled “D.I. Out,” the other “LineOut.” The D.I. Out is your moretraditional output, and it delivers abalanced, mic-level output via a

29bassgear

very nice Cinemag transformer(which also protects the device fromaccidentally engaged phantompower). The Line Out is alsobalanced, but this time via op-amps,and it delivers a significantly hotter,line-level signal. Sonic Farm liststhe max gain on the Line Out as+54dB, versus +32dB via thetransformer-balanced D.I. Out.Other back-panel details include aground lift switch, on/off switch,300mA fuse, IEC power cordsocket, and Mains Voltage switchfor 110v or 220v operation. Clearly,Sonic Farm has covered all thebases, and then some.

Harvesting Sonic CropsAs previously indicated, there areseveral ways that you will likely usea DI, and you want your unit toexcel at all of them. What mostpeople will hear (whether it’s at alive performance or via a recording)is what’s coming out of thebalanced outputs. Most soundengineers will likely use the D.I.Out, but in some situations, thehotter signal from the Line Out maybe the ticket. Fortunately, they aresimultaneously available. Bothoutputs deliver a faithfulreproduction of the input signal, butwith a most pleasing blend oforganic warmth and detail.

Listening to the two of them (aftergain matching), the signal from theD.I. Out sounds ever so slightlymore full and “girthy.” Credit likelylies with the sweet Cinemagtransformer. However, the Line Outis no slouch in the fullnessdepartment. It’s just that D.I. Outnudges ever so slightly ahead inback-to-back comparison.

The EQ options available from theLo and Hi Boost switches are notlikely to replace a full tone stack (ifyou need one), but are good atmaking very musical nudges in onedirection or another. Powerful EQcan offer a wide range of tonesculpting, but EQ can do very badthings, as well, and I have alwaysfound too much EQ to be muchharder to deal with (either in a livemix or in the studio) than little orno EQ. The gentle slopes chosen bySonic Farm and the use ofcapacitors and inductors mean thatthe 2di4’s boosts won’t muck upyour tone. I found them to be veryuseful, and a very welcome feature.It is worth noting that the Lo and HiBoost are only available when theGain switch is not engaged. This isa result of the design of the tubegain stages, where you have theoption of either a global frequencyboost (hitting the Gain button) or

more tailored Lo and/or Hi boosts,but not both at the same time. ZoranTodorovic explains, “The unitprovides more than enough gain forany bass guitar on the market. Theidea behind the Gain switch was todrive the tube harder, whendesired.”

The variety of gain control optionsare very nice, and this will allow awide range of instruments toeffectively interface with the 2di4.Since this is a tube-based device, italso means that you have the abilityto dial in varying levels of tubesaturation. Not all tube-based DI’sallow you to intentionally push theinput signal into clipping, but the2di4 happily does so. Personally, Iam not likely to seek a saturatedtube overdrive from a DI box, but ifyou want to put just a bit of “hair”on your signal, Sonic Farm has youcovered. The tube saturation intriode mode is probably a bit morefamiliar-sounding for bass or guitar,but check out what pentode modehas to offer, as it does have asomewhat different character. Ofcourse, if you like to keep thingsclear and pure, have no fear. The2di4 has a very wide range oftones/gain available before you areanywhere near clipping. On thattopic, though, I must point out thatthe front panel indicator LED is notyour best tool for determining whenyou might be hitting tube saturation.As always, use your ears.

“Ah, but Tom, what about this brickgetting in the way of your stage rig;your pride and joy?” Well, the Ampoutput is a direct copy of the input,albeit a buffered copy. At firstblush, it seems completely identicalto the input signal, but after a littleA/Bing, you can notice the effectsof the buffering – which is notnecessarily a bad thing. Using apassive Carvin PB5, the bufferedsignal was just a touch more fulland meaty. Switching to an active

30 bassgear

Skjold Exotic Custom 4, the lowend was identical between the directsignal from the Skjold and the Ampoutput, but the high end coming outof the Amp output had and extralayer of detail that was quite nice.In short, I’ve got no problemrunning the 2di4 in between mybass and rig. In fact, I dig it a lot!

Direct ComparisonsAlthough their “job” seems verysimple and direct (excuse the pun),your DI will, to a greater or lesserextent, impart its on sonic signatureon your bass tone as it gets sent onup to the FOH or recording studioboard. With the 2di4, at the veryfirst listen, it strikes you as an exactcopy of the signal from instrument.However, more careful listeningshows the 2di4 to be organicallywarm, clear and detailed, andsomewhat more harmonically richthan the input signal. That it can doall this without changing the natural

character of the individualinstrument is impressive. In thisregard, it reminds me of anotherfavorite tube DI, the DemeterVTDB-2b Tube Direct. Comparingthe two of them back to back, the2di4 is a tad more warm/round, andthe Demeter is a tad morearticulate/detailed, but the two werevery close – which, again, is animpressive feat, considering theVTDB-2b’s pedigree.

Just for kicks, I also compared the2di4 to a very plain-Jane, pedestrianDI, the passive Groove Tubes DirectBox (model PDI). While the PDI isan entirely competent device, thereis an immediately audible differencewhich is best summarized by theresponses to each: “Eh,” versus,“Wow!” Feature sets aside (theGT’s features start, and end, withthe ground lift switch), the 2di4 hasmore life and dynamics.

The Bottom LineIf you are a gigging bassist or astudio musician, you need a DI. TheDI’s job seems simple, but it’s veryimportant that it doesn’t screw it up.Yes, you can get the job done with afairly inexpensive piece of kit, andto be honest, if you’re just gettingyour feet wet as a bassist, or if youroutinely play to less thandiscerning crowds, perhaps you’rejust as well off with a more modestbox. However, if you really careabout that recording; if you need tonail that live tone; if you want to besure that your Fodera sounds like aFodera, both at your rig and at theboard, then a high quality DI isyour best friend. There are somevery nice options out there, but few– if any – can match the buildquality, feature set, and sonicexcellence embodied in SonicFarm’s 2di4.

31bassgear

In-Hand Score4.17 average


bas

sgea

rtest


SONIC PROFILE:Lows: Full, tight, controlledMids: Clean, pure, slightly warmHighs: Smooth, detailed, inviting

On-BenchInternal Parts 4.5External Parts 4Overall Assembly 4Ease of Repair 4Instructions/Manual 3.5Quality Per Price 3.5Layout/Cooling 4

In-HandFeatures: 4Tonal Flexibility: 4Ease of Use: 4.5Aesthetics: 4Tone: 5Value: 3.5

The 2di4 is faithful to your instrument's voiceand character, but adds a touch of warmth andharmonic excitement, while keeping things clearand controlled. In addition, it offers multipleways to subtly, yet meaningfully, tweak yoursignal (gain and tone).

TONE-O-METER

GENERAL

Company: Sonic Farm Pro AudioVancouver, BC, Canada(310) 402-2390 (US)(778) 863-1613 (Canada)www.sonicfarm.com

Country of origin: CanadaYear of origin: 2013Warranty: 1 year List price: $850 (Canadian)Street price: $850 (Canadian)Options: NoneAccessories: NoneAvailable colors: Red

Acquired from: Sonic FarmDates: November 2013-February 2014Locales: OhioTest gear: Carvin PB5, Skjold Exotic Custom 4, Stewart World 2.1,

Bergantino HT110, Bergantino IP112, GK MB200, Demeter VTDB-2b, Groove Tubes Direct Box

ENCLOSURE

Material: SteelDimensions: 11 3/8”L x 6”W x 5”H(with handle)Weight: 5.4 lbsRackable: No

PREAMP

Inputs: 1 x 1/4" Mode: Tube/Solid StateTubes: 1 x EF86Input Impedance: > 1 Megohm 200 Hz, 200mV SinEQ Type/Features: Lo and Hi shelving boostCompressor/Limiter: N/ADI Output: Transformer BalancedEffects Loop: N/ADedicated Tuner Out: N/AConstruction: PCBAdditional Features: Instrument out, DI out and Line out; Ground Lift

POWER AMP

Mode: N/ATubes: N/AOutputs: N/A Impedance Options: N/APower Supply/Transformer: N/ACooling System: N/ALine Voltage Options: N/A

MEASUREMENTS

Full Bandwidth All Controls At Noon: 20Hz - 20kHz +/- 0.2 dB; 250 mV swept sin input Limited Bandwidth All Controls At Noon: 20Hz - 20kHz +/- 0.2 dB; 250 mV swept sin input Limited Bandwidth (Optimally Flat): 20Hz - 20kHz +/- 0.2 dB; 250 mV swept sin input

POWER4 8

Continuous Power: N/A N/AMeasured Voltage: N/A N/A

Burst Power: N/A N/AMeasured Voltage: N/A N/A

Input Signal: N/A N/AWall Voltage DUT: N/A N/ATHD+N: N/A N/A

Sonic Farm2di4

AMP LABTom Lees’

Sonic Farm 2di4The 2di4 is a bold name to bequeath to a piece ofgear so pedestrian as a direct injection box. Comeon, shouldn’t this name have been saved forsomething much more muscular and glamorous? Ifthis name is to stay, it better deliver the goods. Inmy neck of the woods, I can purchase a budget DIfor under $50. My Radial boxes cost a bit more thanthese budget DIs, but they typically do such anadmirable job that I rarely see a reason to lookfurther. Now, the 2di4 list price is $850 Canadian. Ihave no hesitation paying that price for somethingthat truly is to die for, but I am setting the bar forthis product pretty high before I can say that I amimpressed, given that this is … well … a DI box.

ConstructionRed is my favorite color, and the large, shoeboxhousing really appeals to my stylistic sensibilities.In this regard, the 2di4 scores high on externalappearance. The jacks, switches and buttons feel ofquality. I like the look of the chicken head knob onthe trim control setting off the black and whitelabeling on the front panel. Regardless of opinion of

the front panel, it is really hard to find fault with whatis under the hood. The internal construction drips ofquality. There are two main circuit boards, including anamplifier board and a power supply board. The circuitboards are thick, with gold-plated pads and a doublecopper layer. The power supply board providesregulated power to the tube and analog circuitry of theamplifier board. The amplifier board boasts boutiquesignatures, including a gold-plated tube socket, aCinemag transformer and high quality passivecomponents.

The CircuitThe signal path of the 2di4 is simple and clean. The2di4 boasts a single ¼” input, which is buffered andfolded back to an unbalanced ¼” jack labeled “AMP”on the front panel. This lets the musician connect to anamplifier with a buffered, instrument-level signal. Thisis a really nice touch, and a welcome part of this DI.

The 2di4 offers four independent means to shape thegain structure through the DI circuitry. The four meansinclude a trim switch, a GAIN button, a Triode/Pentode

Fig. 1 Gut shot

bassgear 33

FIG. 2 EQ options

(T/P) button, and an Output knob. The 2di4 offers afirst means controlled by a pad switch that allowsthe user to select one of three options: 0dB, -12dBor Mute. Flip the pad switch to the mute position forquick instrument changes, use the -12dB position toaccommodate low-headroom devices downstream ofthe 2di4, or leave the pad switch in the 0dB settingto effectively bypass attenuation at the pad switchcircuitry. Switching between Triode and Pentodemode (discussed below) can sometimes cause a popbecause of the way that the circuitry is reconfigured.As such, switch the pad switch to the mute positionwhen toggling the T/P switch.

A second means is controlled by a GAIN button onthe front panel. Depressing the GAIN button affectsthe signal level, adding a fixed gain. The 2di4features a single active gain stage, which isimplemented by an EF86 vacuum tube. The gainadded by the GAIN button is created by bypassingthe current setting circuitry designed around thecathode of the EF86.

A third means is also built around an EF86 vacuumtube. The EF86 is normally a pentode vacuum tubethat can be operated in either triode mode orpentode mode, selected based upon aTriode/Pentode (T/P) switch. In short, the T/Pswitch “rewires” the tube to operate in pentodemode or triode mode. The T/P switch alsoreconfigures the bias for proper operation. Thetriode and pentode modes are discussed in greaterdetail below.

A fourth means is the Output control, which isadjusted by the output potentiometer. The EF86 has

a high output impedance. As such, the tubeoutput is buffered before the signal is coupled tothe XLR output jacks on the back panel. TheOutput control is after the gain is applied, sotube gain and tube overload are unaffected bythe Output control. However, the Output controldoes affect the level at which the output buffer,transformer and connected output device aredriven.

The 2di4 also offers a few equalization options,including two low-frequency options, selectablewith a LO switch, and two high-frequencyoptions, selectable with a HI switch. A neat trickhere is that the tonal shaping is performed byproviding frequency dependent elements(capacitors for the HI boost, and inductors forthe LO boost) in the cathode circuitry of theEF86 tube. The benefit here is that the circuitryis clean and the signal path is as short aspossible. The tone-shaping elements are not inthe direct signal path. The disadvantage here isthat because the GAIN, LO and HI all operateon the cathode circuitry around the EF86 tube,the GAIN switch, when engaged, defeats the LOand HI tone-shaping options. As such, you havethe option of no gain/no EQ; gain with no EQ;or EQ.

Referring to Fig. 2, a frequency response plotshows that the LO and HI options each providesubtle shelving boost relative to the flat setting(LO and HI switches in the center position).Although subtle, the EQ is effective in its role asa DI tone control. If you need major

equalization, you need to makeadjustments at the source (or replacethe source). Note that the responseillustrated in Fig. 2 is merelyillustrative of the shape of the EQcurves. The ultimate level of boost isdetermined by a number of factors,including other DI settings. In thisregard, the controls are interactive andwork together. Moreover, there aretwo small trim controls (labeledTRIM – located between the T/Pswitch and Output knob) that you cantweak with a small screwdriver toadjust the overall level, to obtainslightly more, or less, gain.

34 bassgear

FIG. 3 Gain

FIG. 4 Linearity

The output of the EF86 tube gain stage is buffered,and the buffered output is coupled to a Cinemagtransformer-balanced DI output that connects to afirst XLR jack on the back panel. The bufferedoutput of the EF86 also feeds an op-amp balancedline output that is connected to a second XLR jackon the back panel. As such, the 2di4 provides aninstrument level output, a transformer-balancedmicrophone output and a line output, which aresimultaneously available.

A signal indicator designated OL is located betweenthe input jack and the GAIN button. The LED glowsgreen if a signal is detected as being present. If thesignal exceeds a predetermined threshold, then theLED glows red.

To get a sense of the gain of this device at both theline and mic levels, we set the trim switch to its 0dBposition, and set the GAIN and T/Pswitches out. We calibrated the linelevel out to provide 0dB as ourbaseline and ran a frequency sweep.Regardless of switch settings, thefrequency response was similar. Wemeasured approximately 28dBdifference between the mic and linelevels throughout the tests. Underour test conditions, engaging GAINswitch resulted in about 4dB gain.Engaging the T/P switch resulted inabout 7dB gain. However, engagingboth the GAIN and the T/P switchesresulted in just under 18dB gain.

Switching our tests, we measuredabout 35dB gain in pentode modeand approximately 28dB in triodemode, with a THD+N under 1%.The nature of the particular design inthis product allows for measureabledistortion levels well over 1%without any sign of nasty distortion.I would not hesitate to call the signal“clean” at levels over 2% THD+N.In this regard, gain in pentode modecan reach into the 50+dB range.

Triode/Pentode SwitchBefore getting into the function ofthis switch, let’s take a minute and

address this whole pentode/triode thing. Let’s startwith a triode, because that will make the pentodeeasier to understand. A triode has basically threecontrollable electrodes (hence tri-ode), including ananode, cathode and grid. Each electrode is accessedby the designer as a pin on the tube. A triode alsohas heaters that heat the cathode, but let’s notconcern ourselves with them, for this discussion.Basically, the heated cathode releases electrons thatare attracted across the vacuum of the tube to theanode (an electron migration). An input voltageapplied across the grid is injected into this electronmigration, such that a small change in input voltageis converted into a large change in current. Circuitryattached to the anode converts the change in currentto a voltage.

Now, a pentode is basically a triode with twoadditional electrodes (which we see as two

bassgear 35

FIG. 5 THD+N ratio

FIG. 6 Scope trace triode mode 3.15 Vrms input

additional pins on the tube), including a screen gridand a suppressor grid. Without getting too techy, thescreen grid provides two functions. It accelerateselectrons towards the anode, thus providingincreased gain over a conventional triode.Moreover, it reduces capacitance that formsbetween the grid and anode. However, the screengrid adds artifacts that are undesirable. Theseartifacts are corrected for by the suppressor grid.Now, the neat trick is that if the screen grid isconnected to the anode, and the suppressor grid istied to the cathode, the resulting configuration is atriode.

Life does not come without tradeoffs andcompromises. Even though the Pentode positiongives more gain, you have to give something inreturn, and that something is headroom. To seethese tradeoffs, take a look at Figs. 3-5. Under our

test conditions, we set the trim switch to 0dB, weset the GAIN switch to its out position, we dialedthe Output potentiometer to noon and swept ourinput signal level from off to 5 Vrms. Pentodemode is illustrated in the red trace and triode modeis illustrated in the blue trace.

As illustrated in Fig. 3, for low signal levels, thePentode mode has about 7dB more gain comparedto the Triode mode. However, the gain of thePentode mode starts dropping off at about 1.5 Vrms(indicating the onset of clipping), whereas the gainin Triode mode stays clean up to an input signal ofabout 3.5 Vrms.

As illustrated in Fig. 4, for low signal levels, thePentode mode and the Triode mode are extremelylinear, tracking gain as a function of input signalwith precision. Fig. 4 is consistent with Fig. 3 in

that the difference in gain betweenPentode mode and Triode mode isabout 7dB, with Pentode modeproviding more overall gain.However, the Triode modedemonstrates consistently moreheadroom. Note that when reading alinearity graph, distortion begins toonset when the slope of the linebegins to flatten out.

As illustrated in Fig. 5, the tubecharacteristics of this device areclearly apparent. The design of thecircuitry in the 2di4 allows theTHD+N measurements to reach afew percent before you would evenbegin to notice. In our tests, THD+Nas high as 2-3% yielded no signs ofclear, nasty clipping. For low signallevels, both Pentode mode andTriode mode are clean at well under1% THD+N. However, in Pentodemode, under our test conditions, thedistortion quickly increased forinputs above about 1.5 Vrms,whereas the signal remains relativelyclean in Triode mode to over 3 Vrms.To illustrate this, refer to Fig. 6. Weinput a 3.15 Vrms input signal inTriode mode and measured about 2%THD +N. As the scope trace

bassgear36

FIG. 7 1 % THD+N triode mode

FIG. 8 1% THD+N pentode mode

illustrates, whereas a critical eye might suggest thatthere are signs of compression roundingout/fattening up the peaks, there are no signs of hardclipping.

Keep in mind that headroom is not the onlydifference between the Pentode mode and the Triodemode. Each offers its own harmonic signature. Forinstance, compare Fig. 7 to Fig. 8. Fig. 7 shows the1% THD+N in Triode mode, whereas Fig. 8 shows1% THD+N in Pentode mode. Both modes showthat the second harmonic is about 40dB down.However, the Triode mode harmonics show agradual “stair step” response, with the thirdharmonic over 30dB down, compared to the secondharmonic. Comparatively, in Pentode mode, thethird harmonic is about 15dB down from the secondharmonic. Moreover, the higher-order harmonicsexhibit a relatively flatter response.

Due to gain differences, biasing differences andother effects of the tube configuration, theTriode/Pentode switch offers not only theopportunity to trade off input gain forheadroom, but also to alter the harmonicsignature of the device.

ConclusionsOn the bench, the 2di4 appears to be a strongcontender for supreme DI. Yes, I am impressedwith this DI. Is it 2 di 4? Well, as far as DIboxes go, this box should deliver the goods. Ifyou own a studio, this DI should be on the shortlist of additions (assuming that you do notalready own it). If you play bass, the widerange of headroom, the tube character, the subtle EQshaping, the instrument out, DI out and line levelout make this product extremely versatile.

Do you truly need a DI will all of these bells andwhistles? Maybe not. But if you are looking for theultimate DI, I would start, and likely end, my searchright here.

If I had one complaint, it would be that the overloadindicator was not as precise as I had expected. Itseemed to sometimes “latch” onto an overloadindication, even when the input signal clearly fellbelow clipping. Also, under certain conditions, theoverload indicator turns red when the observablescope trace looks clean. As such, I would use the

overload indicator as a “rough approximation,” but Iwould trust my ears over the LED color whendetermining whether an adjustment is necessary.Then again, I think that is good practice, no matterwhat the gear.

37bassgear

By Vic Serbe

The Company LineI have to be honest. I’ve known about RobElrick’s instruments for quite some time, but untilthese review pieces came my way, I’ve not donemore than noodle on them or marvel at thecraftsmanship at a shop, or of course the NAMMshow. Rob is passionate about his work and lovesto chat about the business, which he knows a lotabout … including his respected peers. Soultimately, this review was a double win for me;getting to know Rob, and finally really getting achance to play and enjoy his basses.

Rob’s business, as has been the case with manyother fine luthiers, began out of personalnecessity. In Rob’s case, it started with his lack of

satisfaction with a 6-string instrument he’d beenplaying since 1989. Back in the late ‘80s and early‘90s, the market was limited for high-quality 5-string basses, let alone 6-string basses. So, in 1992,Rob started working on his own solution to theproblem, with the intention of showing a prototypeat the 1993 winter NAMM Show (though it endedup being the summer 1993 NAMM before he wasactually able to do so). Rob attended BerkleeCollege of Music in Boston, but before that, he wasa scholarship student at Detroit’s Center forCreative Studies/College of Art and Design(CCS/CAD), where he was a Crafts Departmentmajor (essentially a materials major). Combiningthe arts and crafts skills along with his musicalknowledge made him a natural candidate forluthierie. His first 6-string design was a neck-through with a 36” scale, but Rob’s business was

The Elrick Master, Gold, and Expat Series Bass Guitars“Three Fives That Fire On All Eight”

38 bassgear

successful and expandedfairly quickly to include4-8 string basses of variousscale lengths and also to includeboth hybrid and bolt-on neck versions.

Today, Rob offers three body shapes, in fourseries of basses. The Classic body shape washis first offering (though, ironically, it wasbased off of the e-volution design), and healso now offers the e-volution and NewJazz Standard (NJS). Both the Classic ande-volution are available in single-cut anddouble-cutaway shapes. The four seriesare: Master, Platinum, Gold, and Expat.The Master, Platinum, and Gold series aremade in the USA, while the Expat modelsare built in the Czech Republic (though theyuse the same USA electronics, and Robsupplies much of the lumber they use). Masterand Platinum series include both the Classic and e-volution body shapes, but not bolt-on necks. Masteris distinguished from Platinum in that it’s the“anything goes – full custom spec from the groundup” model, and as such, there is no base model orprice. Platinum, Gold, and Expat series all have baseprices and option upcharge schedules. Gold seriesbasses can be any body shape or neck configuration.Expat models are bolt-on only, and include e-volution and NJS body shapes. Confused? I was too,initially, but it only took a couple hundred emailsfrom a patient Rob to clear it up. No biggie, right?Anyway, it really just boils down to one simple fact.If Rob offers an aesthetic that’s pleasing to you, he’sprobably got at least a few configuration options foryou to choose from.

DetailsRob sent us three basses in for review, two of whichgot the full live gig test, but the Master series was abit more limited. This was mainly because I was alittle nervous about having a $10,500 bass thatdidn’t belong to me out too much on a gig, but alsobecause, honestly, it shares a lot of tonal heritagewith at least the Gold Series, so it just wasn’t thatnecessary. I should also note that all three modelsfeatured block inlays. This is because block inlaysare a new option for Rob this year, and these basseswere destined for the NAMM show, where Robreally wanted to have multiple examples available.In addition to the “in-hand” review, here, both theGold-series e-volution and the Expat NJS basseswill undergo full technical reviews by TechnicalEditor, Phil Maneri.

Expat Series New Jazz Standard (NJS) 5-string:This bass is a 5-string with a J-bass styled body, 24medium-sized frets (plus a “zero fret”), a 35” scalelength, and what Rob calls his “heel-less” designneck attachment, where the neck joint is scallopedand recessed to improve upper register access. Itsbolt-on neck is 3-piece maple, with what I’d call a“medium C” profile, has a 2-way adjustable truss-rod, and is held on via six bolts. The Indianrosewood fingerboard has the optional mother ofpearl block inlays (a $200 upcharge). The headstockis clearly a J-inspired 4+1 design, with the nicetouch that its face is finished in the same glosstransparent “root beer brown” as the body (nowwould also be a good time to point out that theExpat Series is unique in that they can be orderedwith lacquer finishes, which is especially popularwith some J-style bass fans). This NJS has a one-piece swamp ash body with a black pick guard, butno typically accompanying control plate. The tunersare black Hipshot Ultralites, the bridge is a custom19mm-spaced Elrick design made by Hipshot, andthe strap buttons are the Dunlop Dual Straploks (mypersonal favorites). The pickups are Bartolini CB J-style pickups, coupled with the familiar BartoliniNTMBF 3-band preamp, operating at 9 volts (theNTMBF preamp is designed to run at either 9 or 18volts). The controls are volume, blend, treble, mid,then bass (all EQ is cut/boost). The volume is

bassgear 39

push/pull for passive mode, and the mid control ispush/pull for mid bands (pull for high mids). I willsay that, with any bass that supports a passive modeof operation, I really prefer to also have some kindof tone control in that mode, where this bass doesnot. I would miss that if I were playing in passivemode, so at least for myself, this would relegatepassive mode for emergency/backup operation only(e.g. if the battery power were do run out mid-set,for example). The strings installed are Elrick’s ownstainless steel medium gauge “Fundamentals”strings, in the following gauges: .045”, .065”, .085”,.105”, .130” (tapered B string).

Gold Series e-volution 5-string bolt-on:Though both the Classic and the NJS body styleswere marketed prior to the e-volution, from a designorigins perspective, the e-volution actually preceded(and formed the basis for) the Classic design. Thisbass has a swamp ash body with a burled maple top,finished in natural satin. It has a 3-piece mapleneck, with what I’d call a “medium C” profile, hasa 2-way adjustable truss-rod, and is held on via fivebolts, where the neck joint also employs Rob’s“heel-less” design. It’s a 35” scale instrument with24 medium-sized frets (plus a “zero fret”), abubinga fingerboard (a favorite of Rob’s), andoptional pāua abalone block inlays (a $750upcharge). The pickups are normally Bartolini J-style on this model, but this one came with soapbarsinstalled (a $250 upcharge). It uses the sameBartolini NTMBF preamp as the NJS, alsooperating at 9 volts, but employs a 3-position switchfor the midrange frequencies (adding a third optionover the push/pull of the NJS). It also uses a switchfor passive/active mode switching, so there are nopush/pull controls on this bass at all (I prefer

switches to push/pull, myself). Similar to the NJS, ithas all black hardware with the custom 19mm-spaced Elrick bridge, Dunlop Dual Straploks, andHipshot Ultralite tuners. Again, though, no passivetone control, and the same stainless steel 45-130T

strings as on the NJS (Rob also offers ElrickFundamentals in nickel).

Master Series e-volution 5-stringsingle-cut:This, my friends, is artwork in motion,and carries a price tag to match. Rob

tells us this bass was initially designedwith so many bells and whistles

specifically to showcase as many options in oneinstrument as possible (figuring it would be aroundfor a while at that price). Well, it didn’t even makeit through the NAMM Show, so there went thatplan! This particular Master Series model has asingle-cut design swamp ash body with a one-piecespalted maple burl full-face top, and is finished in anatural satin. It has a 5-piece combination hardmaple and cherry neck, with a “medium C” profile,a curly soft maple heel block, and a birdseye maplefingerboard. The fingerboard has a pāua abalonepurfling inlay and block inlays which are acombination of a pāua abalone border aroundmother of pearl. This bass has a 35” scale with 24medium-sized frets (plus a “zero fret”). It also hasthe optional 6-string sized headstock with face thatmatches the figured top on the body, and a logoinlay that’s also a combination of pāua abalone andmother of pearl. The Bartolini NTMBF preamp isused in this bass, similar to the other models, butthe pickups in this one are Aero dual coils withwood covers to match the figured top on the bass.The hardware is the same Hipshot Ultralite tunersand the same 19mm-spaced Elrick custom bridge,but they’re gold in this case. It also uses Dunlopstraploks, but these are the integral version, asopposed to the external Dual design. The controlsare volume, blend, treble, mid, and bass, where themid is push/pull (pull for high mid). There are twoswitches. One selects passive vs active mode, andthe other is a coil splitter for the dual-coil pickups.This bass was also strung with the same stainlesssteel 45-130T strings as the other review models.Wow; this is some fancy bass guitar, for sure! TheMaster Series also came with a really nice hard-shell teardrop shaped “Vectra” case made by TKL.This is the first one of these I’ve seen in person, andit’s really nice. The other two basses shipped in theElrick “Zero Gravity” rigid cases.

Fit and finishAll three basses have wiring cavities that areextremely cleanly wired. The truss rod access at theheel of the neck is great ... you don’t have to pull abadge off the headstock to adjust the neck. The inlaywork is excellent, the body carving is smooth andattractive, the nut work very clean with nicelyrounded edges, and the fret work is excellent. Thefrets are all nicely dressed, leveled, and crowned. Allthree models have the block inlays, but I find itinteresting that the block sizes vary as much as theydo. For example, the Expat NJS are by far thelargest. In fact, they may be the largest block inlaysI’ve seen on a bass. Rob explained that this bass wasfrom the first run of basses with blocks out of hisshop in the Czech Republic, and that future Expatbasses will have smaller blocks.

The Gold Series inlays are smaller, and more alongthe lines of what I’d typically expect to see, whereasthe Master Series has the smallest, to accommodatethe purfling detail in the inlay pattern. The Gold andMaster Series basses also have a wood cover for theelectronic cavity, which is a Rob Elrick signaturedesign. It’s very nicely done as a cut from the backof the body, so it’s not only a nice wood cover, butthe grain of course matches up beautifully. And ofcourse the neck joint on the Master single-cut issuperb. The transition from the neck to the body uphigh is completely invisible to the hand. I guess if Ihad to nitpick a bit, the NJS had a noticeable gap inthe neck pocket along the top of the neck, though thebass definitely didn’t suffer tonally, so it’s at best anegligible cosmetic matter. On the Gold Series, I’dpersonally prefer to see a full face top covering theneck heel. On the Master series, the neck heelextends just a tiny bit past the fingerboard, whichlooks a little different, but you have to look fairlyclose to see it.

On the gigThese basses all have a non-recessed jack, asopposed to recessed designs and/or designsemploying an Electrosocket jack (whichis recessed by itself). While the recessedjacks look kind of nice, it makes it toughto use 90 degree plugs, which somepeople prefer. The weight varies onthese basses from 8.2 pounds onthe NJS to 7.9 pounds on theGold, to 8.8 pounds on the Master.Basically, all three are nice lightweight basses – especially thefeather-weight Gold Series! The

balance on the strap is excellent on all three basses,and the lower horn design on both the Gold andMaster Series basses are really nicely shaped andlocated for seated playing.

All three basses support passive mode operation,but all three basses also lack a passive tone control.As I mentioned before, I feel pretty strongly thesemust go hand in hand, and I would specify one for amodel I’d purchase. The passive tone on all three ofthese basses were very nice, but I, personally, needa way to tame the high end on fresh roundwoundstrings – especially stainless steel, which is mypersonal favorite type. Of course, Elrick (and othermanufacturers) make nickel strings, as well, so thismay not be an issue for all players. The NJS bodydoesn’t have much of a shoulder cut, but still feelsgreat hanging against your body due to the nicebelly cut. However, the Gold and Master Seriesbasses were noticeably more comfortable both onthe strap and on the lap. The slightly thinner bodyand the shaping are just great.

Tonally, as you can imagine, the NJS does a verygood job of representing a great J-bass tone. It has abright sizzly top end with a nice scoop in the midsfor great slap tone in fully blended mode, wherefavoring the bridge bumps the mid for a great burpytone, and favoring the neck fattens things up for agreat rock tone. And that’s all without eventouching the EQ. Bumping the low mids (andmaybe a bit of bass) while favoring the bridge isjust wonderful, and dropping the treble controlwarms things up very nicely.

The tone on the Gold Series is typical of a soapbarsound, as it’s natively stronger in throughout themidrange with an overall fatter warmer sound. Youcan still get more than enough burp from the bridge,

41bassgear

and the neck pickup is just plain big sounding. Thisbass also has three midrange options, so you canbump low mids for more punch, or you can cut highmids for a more modern scooped sound, and heck,do what you want with the mid-mids. They’re usefulfor both boost and cut options depending on thepickup(s) being used and the tone you’re lookingfor.

The tone on the Master Series is more complex, as ithas a dual personality with the coil splittingavailable. In dual-coil mode, it’s a bit brighter thanthe soaps in the Gold Series, but not quite as sizzlyas the NJS. But at the same time, it’s stronger in thehigh mids natively than both the other basses. Whenyou split the coils, it actually gets a nice injection ofJ-like tone, with a little added brightness, though Istill wouldn’t say it’s the same sound as the NJS.This one has push/pull for mids, so only low andhigh to choose from, but I never really needed to domuch with the mids on this bass, anyway. One thingI did notice on the Master Series, however, is ittended to be a little noisier than the other two basseswhen you didn’t have at least one hand on thestrings. Not a big deal, though. Probably a very

minor grounding matter at best, and during normalplay, it’s not present. The tonal options on this basswith the 3-band EQ and coil splitting are brainsplitting, but it suffices to say this bass can cover ahuge gambit of sounds. It doesn’t sound like aclassic J in single-coil mode, but it’s a great single-coil tone, nonetheless. And dual-coil mode is justplain gutsy and funky.

All three basses have great neck profiles and feltgreat in the hands. I also like to look fordead/dull/live spots in the necks on basses, and Imust say all three of these, including the moretraditionally based NJS, were very even from lowto high. The D and G strings did not tend todisappear on you without digging in harder, and theB strings were just wonderfully focused andpowerful, without being overbearing. In short, Ifound it very hard to resist placing an order for aGold Series for myself. I especially bonded withthat one, and one may yet be in my future.

The Bottom LineThese basses represent a huge tonal map of sounds,and Rob has even more variations available.There’s precious little Rob can’t cover, tonally, withat least one model offered with various options, andhe also serves a broad range of affordability at thesame time, with the Expat Series instrumentsrepresenting an especially great value.

42 bassgear

43bassgear

Elrick Gold Seriese-volution 5

bas

sgea

rtest

CONFIGURATION

Strings: 5Style: Double cutawayOverall length: 44 1/2”Body Dimensions: 20" long x 14" wide at lower boutBody Contouring: ModerateWeight: 7.90 lbs

NECK

Scale length: 35"Neck width at nut: 1.880"Neck width at 12th fret: 2.669"Neck width at joint: 2.933"Neck thickness at nut: .845"Neck thickness at 1st fret: .863"Neck thickness at 12th fret: .901"Neck thickness at joint: .933"String spacing at nut: .386"String spacing at saddle: .742"Fingerboard Radius/Neckshape: 16 deg/ wide flat DPeghead break angle: 11 degBridge break angle: 14 degAfterlength at nut: 2.34 to 5.689"Afterlength at saddle: 1.524”Attachment: Bolt-onPocket gap: NoneTruss rod type/access: Double action / neck-endFret count: 25Fretwire: 79x42

ELECTRONICS

Pickups: Bartolini soapbarPickup location(s), from 12th fret: 11 5/8”, 14 ¾”Electronics: Bartolini NTMBFControls: Volume, blend, treble, mid, bass, active/passive

switch, 3-way switch for mid frequencyShielding: FoilPreamp Circuit Voltage: 9V

CONSTRUCTION

Body woods: Ash/burled mapleNeck woods: MapleFretboard: BubingaBody finish: Natural satinNeck finish: Natural satin

HARDWARE

Strings: Elrick Fundamentals, stainless steel roundwoundsGauge: .045”, .065”, .085”, .105”, .130” (tapered B string)Attachment: At bridgeBridge/color: Elrick / blackNut: CorianTuners/color: Hipshot Ultralight / blackKnobs/color: Rubber/plastic / blackPickguard: N/AControl cavity cover: Body wood (ash)

GENERAL

Company: Elrick Bass Guitars, Ltd.ph (386) 517.6823fax (386) 439.4446www.elrick.com

Country of origin: USAWarranty: Limited LifetimeList Price: $4,100 ($5,100 as tested)Street Price: $3,280 ($4,080 as tested)Options: Pāua abalone block inlays (+$750), soapbar pickups (+$250)Accessories: Case, stringsAvailable colors: NoneOptions: Various body designs, preamps, controls, neck joints

Acquired from: Elrick Bass Guitars Ltd.Dates: Fall/Winter 2013Locales: Illinois, OhioTest gear: Gallien-Krueger Neo112-II, Gallien-Krueger MB 800, Aviom


SONIC PROFILE:Lows: Fat and fullMids: Punchy and warmHighs: Smooth and clear

In-handFeatures: 3Tonal Flexibility: 4Ease of Use: 4Aesthetics: 4Ergonomics: 4Tone: 4Value: 3


This bass is a great example of a modern bass

with the classic soapbar tone. Its feather

weight and ease of use make it a great option

for those with stronger budgets and a broad

range of music to cover.



TONE-O-METER

Phil Maneri’s

BASS LAB

Elrick Gold Series e-volution 5aperture is closer than you’d expect.But this placement works very well andstill sounds reminiscent of a J-bass,albeit a touch darker. Great choices.The (proprietary) Elrick bridge is madeby Hipshot, and it’s very nice. Thetuning keys are also from Hipshot(Ultralight), and the bridge and keysare both in black.

The sides of the control cavity weren’tshielded, but the top and back werenicely treated with foil (with foil“runners” connecting the two). I preferto fully shield the control cavity, but inmy limited time with the bass, I did notnotice any RF or EMI interference ornoise. In repair work, we have foundthat the side-mount barrel jacks don’thold up well and need replacingexponentially sooner than other kindsof jacks. I’d recommend all high-endbuilders use either the classic open-frame Switchcraft, or somethingcomparable, to reduce downtime fromjack failure. Oh, and I’d not

Less and less musicians are putting ontuxes for weddings, or coat and tie forjazz gigs or private parties, comparedto thirty or more years ago. There arestill many who do, though, and if youplay bass for a living in a tux onenight, and on a bar stool the next, butonly want one bass, this one should beon your short list. The top is figuredburl maple laminated to a swamp ashbody. The body has some great joinerywhere Elrick sliced off the controlcover area before joining the body, toget a great grain match on the cover.Nice work. The neck is 3-piece maplebillet bolted on well, with a really cooland solid scarf joint for the peghead,which was also nicely done.

No surprises in the electronics: veryclassy Bartolini humbuckers into aBartolini NTMBF. The neck pickup isalmost exactly in Precision bassterritory for the scale length. Thebridge pickup is slightly closer to theneck than a ‘60s Jazz Bass, and the

recommend leaving the gain trim pot tojust flop around where it wants to inthe control cavity, I’d double-stick itsomewhere, so it doesn’t move around.

As I mentioned, the joinery the carvingof the bass are great, and darn nearperfect. It’s very light for its size andcomponents, which is great for thegigging workhorse. Considering thatit’s not chambered, we are talkingabout exceptionally light lumber. Thefret size is vintage and great, and thefretwork is competent. The finish isvery thin and well applied, drawing noattention to itself via color or otheradditions. It lets the wood be the star.

The balance is great and the instrumentfeels good in playing position. Itsounds great, plays even low B tohighest C like a high-end, well-builtbass should. It’s an expensive bass butprobably worth it, especially if you arelooking for one good workhorse in the$3,500-$4,500 range.

45bassgear

Elrick ExpatNew Jazz Standard 5

bas

sgea

rtest

CONFIGURATION

Strings: 5Style: Double cutawayOverall length: 47 1/4”Body Dimensions: 19 3/8” long x 14” wide at lower boutBody Contouring: ModerateWeight: 8.2 lbs

NECK

Scale length: 35"Neck width at nut: 1.476"Neck width at 12th fret: 2.636"Neck width at joint: 2.853"Neck thickness at nut: .861"Neck thickness at 1st fret: .831"Neck thickness at 12th fret: .866"Neck thickness at joint: .878"String spacing at nut: .343"String spacing at saddle: .762"Fingerboard Radius/Neckshape: 16 deg/ flat DPeghead break angle: 6 degBridge break angle: 15 degAfterlength at nut: 2.290 to 7.24”Afterlength at saddle: 1.54”Attachment: Bolt-onPocket gap: NoneTruss rod type/access: Dual-action / body end accessFret count: 25Fretwire: 94x45

ELECTRONICS

Pickups: Bartolini CB J-stylePickup location(s), from 12th fret: 11 ½”, 14 ¾”Electronics: Bartolini NTMBFControls: Volume (p/p for active/passive), blend, treble,

mid (p/p for low/high mids), bassShielding: FoilPreamp Circuit Voltage: 9V

CONSTRUCTION

Body woods: One-piece swamp ashNeck woods: MapleFretboard: Indian RosewoodBody finish: Gloss polyurethaneNeck finish: Satin

HARDWARE

Strings: Elrick Fundamentals, stainless steel roundwoundsGauge: .045”, .065”, .085”, .105”, .130” (tapered B string)Attachment: At bridgeBridge/color: Elrick / blackNut: CorianTuners/color: Hipshot Ultralight / blackKnobs/color: Metal dome / blackPickguard: Black (1-ply)Control cavity cover: Black plastic

GENERAL

Company: Elrick Bass Guitars, Ltd.ph (386) 517.6823fax (386) 439.4446www.elrick.com

Country of origin: Czech RepublicWarranty: Limited LifetimeList Price: N/AStreet Price: $2,295 ($2,495, as tested)Options: PBlock inlays (+$200)Accessories: Case, stringsAvailable colors: Alder bodies: piano black, antique tobacco sunburst;

Ash bodies: root beer brown, Mary Kay whiteOptions: Various body designs, preamps, controls, neck joints

Acquired from: Elrick Bass Guitars Ltd.Dates: Fall/Winter 2013Locales: Illinois, OhioTest gear: Gallien-Krueger Neo112-II, Gallien-Krueger MB 800, Aviom


SONIC PROFILE:Lows: Big and roundMids: Modest and evenHighs: Crisp, but not brittle

In-handFeatures: 3Tonal Flexibility: 4Ease of Use: 4Aesthetics: 3Ergonomics: 3Tone: 4Value: 4


This bass is another great interpretation of the

venerable J-bass. Any style of music you’d

cover with a J-bass, this one would do well.

And with the Expat pricing, this bass

represents an especially good value.



TONE-O-METER

Phil Maneri’s

BASS LAB

Elrick Expat New Jazz Standard 5with 3-piece laminations and a scarfjoint similar to the USA models.Joinery is good on the neck,although a couple glue lines aremore obvious than in the USA-made counterparts. Fretwork iscompetent, but show lots of filechatter and inconsistency on the endgrooming.

Electronics are great: Bartolini J-bass 5-string pickups into BartoliniNTMBF circuit. The NJS employsthe same “foil sandwich approach”to shielding as the higher-end USAmade model, where the top andback of the control cavity weredone with foil, but the sides weren’tshielded. Again, my preference isfor complete shielding of thecontrol cavity, but in my limitedtime with the bass, I did notexperience any RF or EMIinterference or noise. The HipshotUltralight tuning machines and

It seems like a rite of passage forevery good builder to take a swingat the Fender Bass. Sometimes theJazz, sometimes the Precision,sometimes both. Some never leavethat paradigm and make a decentliving for it; others just visit it foran exercise and move on. This bassis supposed to look like, or at leastbe strongly reminiscent of, a 5-string Jazz Bass. The black plasticpickguard is made from a singleply. The huge inlays are strikingagainst the rosewood board and thedark stained body, but also detractfrom the traditional look. It is myunderstanding that future basses outof this shop will sport smallerblocks (presuming that thecustomer has chosen blocks as anoption).

The lumber is very good for themoney. It sports a super-light, one-piece swamp ash body, maple neck

(Hipshot-made) Elrick bridge aretypical of what you’d expect to findat this level of bass.

At rest, with full string tension andno truss rod counter tension (centerpoint, loose on the dual-action trussrod), there is significant neck bow(it measures 3/64” at the 7th fret).This means that you use up a bigchunk of the truss rod tensionstraightening the neck before youever add string tension. I couldadjust the neck to play decently, butI could not get the neck entirely flatunder string tension.

The finish is some sort of thickerpolyurethane on the body, and anice thin satin on the neck. Thedesign is pretty much a classic J-bass, albeit with some décorchoices that are either to your tasteor not. This bass sounds good andplays fine, but competes in anincreasingly crowded market.

47bassgear

By Alan Loshbaugh

The Psychology of ElectronsThough he his college degree is inpsychology, James Demeter got hisreal career started working withJohn Carruthers’ Los Angeles-basedpro audio repair shop. “John hiredme because he needed an amp tech.Before I was a pro musician, I wasthe service manager for Shelly’sStereo in Westwood, and in college,I passed the FCC First Class RadioTelephone Class. Carruther and Iknew and worked together in theearly ‘70s. We built guitars andpickups together.” Carruthers’ shopserviced and modified everything(guitars, amps, soundreinforcement) for everyone in theLA scene at that time. The RollingStones, The Byrds, The Eagles,Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young;Fleetwood Mac, Jackson Browne;you name them, they had their gearserviced there. James learned a lot –from good people – and met a lot ofgood people who are still customerstoday. James also worked closelywith, and learned a lot from, DeanJensen (of Jensen transformer

fame). “Dean Jensen mentored meon the fine art of audio design. Hewas a giant in the audio industry,and I will be forever grateful for hishelp.”

“I also spent a lot of time readingbooks and just tinkering withthings,” says James. Looking atcircuitry, understanding it, repairingit, and designing it just seems tocome to him naturally. “I seem to beable to see the design and justfollow the electrons. I don’t reallyuse schematics that much.” That isone of the electronics designworld’s biggest understatements. Inthe early 1980’s, James designedthe Tube Direct VTDB-2b DI box,to be used as an interface betweenan instrument and recordingconsoles. Over 5,000 have beenmade, and it’s still in productiontoday.

James is extremely creative, and hasdesigned and built his own tube-powered home stereo, as well as a1,500-watt, tube-powered PA for hiswedding. He has designed and builttube-powered optical compressors

and spring reverb units. He hasdesigned and built 3-channel tubeguitar amps, tube bass amps andspeaker cabinets for all those. Hehas designed and built many award-winning guitar pedals (theTremuator, Compulator,Reverbulator, Overdriveulator, etc),direct boxes, mic preamps, andmore. The Silent Speaker Chamber– a sealed cabinet with a 12” driverand built-in microphone – wasdesigned so that guitar playerscould get “that tone,” which theycan only get at high dB levels,without having to be crazy loud onstage or in the studio. I could go on.As I said, James is a creative andprolific designer. But what concernsus here at Bass Gear Magazine,right now, is the HBP1-800D BassPre/Power Amp. James got started with bass preampsaround 1981, when Leland Sklarbrought in his Alembic F-1Xpreamp for repair. ‘’I opened it upand looked at it, and just thought Icould do better.” The end result ofthat was the VTBP-201 all-tubepreamp, which had a low-impedance output, allowing for

“Powering a Classic”Demeter Amplification HBP1-800D Bass Pre/Power Amp

48 bassgear

longer cable runs, and theinstallation of a Jensen transformerfor the direct output. It featured all-polypropelene caps, metal-filmresistors, and power supplyrefinements. James says, “It wasbasically a Hiwatt-ish EQ,surrounded by the highest qualitycomponents available. I wanted tokeep it clean, clear and quiet, soyou could still hear your fingers andthe strings, and still have some tubewarmth to it. Sklar loved it and hasused that unit for going on 30 yearsnow – as have many of other toptouring and session bass players.’’Though it’s remained essentiallyunchanged since its creation, in2000, the VTBP-201 got a minorfacelift and a few other tweaks,resulting in the VTBP-201s.

In 1998, James created the HBP-1bass preamp by adding the two-band, solid state, fully parametricEQ of his H-class pro audio devicesto the VTBP-201, along with a fullyadjustable active effects loop, tuneroutput, mic and line switching tothe DI. The HBP-1-J adds a Jensentransformer.

For 2013, Demeter added an 800-watt class-D power amp (which heoriginally designed for use with theJule Amps Monique preamp madeby Jule Potter –reviewed in BGM#8) to his own two bass preamps,resulting in the VTBP-201-800Dand HBP1-800D pre/power ampunits. The class-D output section israted at 800 watts into 4 ohms, and520 watts at 8 ohms. TheJule/Demeter connection goes backto when Jule built Silent Speakerenclosures for James. Demeter alsoadded this power section to the

Demeter H-Bass 1600D – two 800-watt (at 4 ohm) power amps in aone-space rack unit; perfect forthose who already have a VTBP-201s or HBP-1 and want a wholetruckload of Demeter power forthem!

A Closer Look at The HBP1-800DOut of the box, the one-rack-spaceHBP1-800 D measures 17” wide by10.5” deep by 1.75” tall, and weighsin at 11 pounds – pretty svelte foran 800-watt powerhouse! The frontpanel, from left to right, consists ofboth active and passive inputs. Theactive input uses a 6dB pad toprevent preamp clipping. Next is theVolume control, which controls thedrive of the preamp, and the finaloutput of the entire unit. “Drive” isa tricky work here though; don’texpect higher levels to result inpreamp tube saturation, grit, grindor overdrive. About that, Jamessays, “That’s not a goal for ourpreamps. But, if that’s somethingyou want, we do make some greatpedals for that.” Treble, Middle,Bass, and Presence are next on thefront panel. The Treble, Bass, andPresence are shelving-type controls,whereas Middle is a peak-type (setat 1kHz). Treble shelving is set at2kHz, Bass at 80Hz, and Presenceat 3kHz, all with 6dB per octavecurves.

The EQ in/out button engages thefully parametric EQ section,consisting of low frequency gain,with stacked Q and frequencyselect, and mid frequency gain andstacked Q and frequency select. TheQ control lets you select how broad,or narrow, a range of frequenciessurrounding your chosen EQ point

are boosted or trimmed. Very handyfor getting rid of specific problempoints, or, boosting specificdeficiencies that the 3-band EQcan’t address with that amount offocus.

Next is the effects loop in/outbutton (which enables the effectssend and return jacks on the rear ofthe unit) and effects send and returnknobs (which control the outputlevel of the amp to your effects,and, the return level from youreffects units back into the amp).The mute button mutes both thepreamp and power amp outputs, andhas an LED to tell you when it’sengaged. Finally, we come to thepower off/on button, which also hasan LED indicator.

The rear panel, from right to left,begins with the DI section. First upis the ground lift button, followedby a balanced XLR preamp output,a mic/line select button, a balanced1/4” preamp output, an unbalanced1/4” preamp output, the effects sendand return 1/4” jacks, 1/4” tuneroutput, 1/4” unbalanced speakeroutput, unbalanced Speakon™speaker output, voltage selector for120/220VAC (internal jumper mustalso be moved) and power cordconnector.

The only downside, for some, maybe the form factor. The one-rackspace (1U) size means that whenracked, it’s bigger than many othercurrent class-D amps with similarfeature sets. If that concerns you,don’t fret: Demeter showed a moreconventionally packed pre/powerunit (the VTBP-M-800D) at theWinter NAMM Show!

bassgear 49

Powered Up!Setting up, powering on, andsounding great may never have beeneasier. I unboxed the unit, slid it intoa two-space rack, connected myKorg DTR tuner, the power cord,instrument cable and speaker cables,and set the HBP1-800D flat. Jamessays “flat” on this unit is Treble atnoon, Bass at noon, Middle all theway up, and Presence off. “Presenceis mostly a leftover from when weinitially built the 201 modelpreamps. Many speakers at the timedidn’t have horns, and it allowedplayers to add a little more clarity.Many players don’t use it now, butwe left it there for those who likeit.”

For my initial “at home time” withthe HBP1-800D, I used my trustySadowsky MV5JJ bass, and a LowDown Sound-built 15/6/1. TheSadowsky is strung with SadowksyBlue Label stainless steel stings, andit’s a pretty aggressive bass, if youwant it to be. The LDS 15/6/1 is an8-ohm cab, and likes big power toopen it up, so I was curious to seehow the 800D portion of theDemeter would deliver.

With the Demeter set flat, and thecontrols on the Sadowsky set whereI normally have them (Vintage Tone

trimmed a bit, Treble boosted a bit),the Demeter delivered more or lesswhat I wanted: crisp, clean,articulate, punchy, and plenty ofpower to open up the 15/6/1. Iwanted a little more midrange,overall, and a little less “pillowybass” from the big Eminence3015LF. This was a snap to dial inwith the fully parametric 2-bandEQ. Set the bass frequency to 80Hzwith a narrow Q and dial a littleout; set the midrange to 800Hz anda slightly broader Q, and add a littlein. Done. What a breeze! TheSadowsky was barking and grindingin no time, flat. You could hear thewindings on the strings when youdig in, and nice, clean supportivefinger style when just playingalong, easy.

Next up for home testing was my‘57 Fender Precision reissue, strungwith DA Chromes – about asdifferent a thing from the Sadowskyas you can get. On this bass, I leaveboth the volume and tone all theway open. I disengaged the H-section para EQ and instantly had areally great Motown P-tone. To getit just where I wanted, I merelyadded a touch of Bass, trimmed atouch of Mids and Treble; easy,done.

On The Road with The Big DThe first few gigs I did with thesetup above: Sadowsky, Fender,15/6/1. That band plays a widerange of everything, from 1920’s tocurrent (country, jazz, rock, andblues) and uses a Bose 2 Stick/2 SubPA, which the bass doesn’t go into;so the Demeter and 15/6/1 had to fillthe club. The Demeter hadabsolutely no problem, and mysettings stayed just as they did ininitial testing, with great results.

For a Monday night blues band gig,I used the Demeter with my Valenti1955 Precision 5, strung with DAXL170 nickel rounds, and a LowDown Sound-built 12/6/1+ 12 sub. Iran everything set flat (with thepassive tone trimmed down just a biton the bass) and had nice, gnarlyearly P-tone driving the band justlike that. Though after the first song,I made a quick adjustment with theparametric EQ to trim a little at the80Hz point.

The next two weeks’ worth of gigswere with different bands. For thefirst weekend, I used my Alleva-Coppollo LG5, strung with DAXL170 nickel rounds, and a pair ofBaer Amplification ML112’s. The

50 bassgear

Demeter/LG/Baer pairing delivereda nice, warm, punchy, articulatevintage J tone. Again, the Demeterdid very well. I ran the EQ flat,though I did use a bit of thePresence control to get the edge Ilike out of the Baer cabs (whichhave no horns). I’m glad Mr.Demeter included that control.That’s all that was required to getthe Alleva/Baer pairing speaking theway I wanted, with full, butcontrolled, lows, a nice midrange,and sweet highs.

For the next weekend’s gigs, Ipaired my Valenti J5 with a GKNeo112-II/Neo212-II stack. Thesetwo gigs were bigger clubs thatsupply FOH. The Valenti is loadedwith Sadowsky single-coil J-stylepickups and a Sadowsky preamp,strung with Sadowsky Blue Labelstainless steels, and its aggressivevoice mates well with the GK Neocabs. For these gigs, I turned thePresence off, added just a touch of

Bass boost, and trimmed the Trebleand Mids just a bit from their flatpositions. Boom! Instant bone-crushing modern-J tone.

For those last two weekends’ worthof jobs, I used the Demeter DI’spost-EQ setting at both venues. Thisis my preference, as long as I’m notdoing anything drastic with the EQon the amplifier to match it to cabs,or account for room variances. Theguys at the mixing console bothcommented how nice the Demetersounded through the board. Last but not least, I took my 1961King hybrid carved-top upright,L.R. Baggs Paracoustic D.I. andLow Down Sound 4x8+horn to a 5-piece jazz band rehearsal. Onceagain, the Demeter worked verywell, and required no tweakingfrom flat. I typically trim deep bassa bit on the Baggs, and engage thephase-reverse function, if requiredto kill any feedback. That’s all I hadto do to sound great for rehearsal.

The Final WordThe “on the road” portion of thereview with the Demeter is fairlyshort. Why? Because the Demeterdid great with all my basses, and,with all my cabs; and, the soundguys loved it. It’s super-easy to use,and it delivered repeatedly greatresults. In all cases, I had morepower than I needed. In all cases,using the EQ to match various bitsof gear was done quickly and easily.In all cases, I had no trouble makingdifferently voiced instruments andspeakers come out sounding theway I wanted. Almost invariablywhen testing amplifiers, I find oneof my basses doesn’t work so wellwith it. Or, it may not pair that wellwith one set of cabs I want to use.Not so with the Demeter; all mygear paired up with it quite nicely. Itreally just doesn’t get much easier,or better, than this.

51bassgear




GENERAL

Company: Demeter Amplification6990 Kingsbury Rd.Templeton, CA 93465Tel: (805) 461-4100www.demeteramps.us

Country of origin: USAYear of origin: 2013Warranty: One-yearList price: $2,179.00Street price: $2,399.00Price as tested: $1,829.99Test Unit Options: Jensen transformer outputAccessories: NoneAvailable colors: BlackAvailable options: Jensen transformer output (+ $170)Acquired from: DemeterDates: October 2013 to February 2014Locales: Missouri, OhioTest gear: Sadowsky MV5, Alleva-Coppolo LG5, Valenti '55 P5,

Valenti hollowbody J5, Fender Precision, 1961 King Double Bass, LDS 12/6/1+12 sub, LDS 15/6/1, Baer ML112, GK Neo112-II, GK Neo212-II

ENCLOSURE

Material: Steel enclosure with aluminum faceplateDimensions: 19" W x 1-3/4" H x 13" DWeight: 11 lb 4 oz.Rackable: Yes

PREAMP

Inputs: 2x1/4" Mode: TubeTubes: 1 x 12 AX7Input Impedance: 940 Kohms 200 Hz, 200mV Sin Passive input;

120 Kohms 200 Hz, 200mV Sin Passive inputEQ Type/Features: Bass, Mid, Treble, Presence,

Low parametric (40 Hz - 400 Hz +/- 12 dB) Hi parametric (440 Hz - 4.4 kHz +/- 12 dB)

Compressor/Limiter: NoDI Output: Balanced XLREffects Loop: Yes, send and return gain controls located on front

panel, switchable from front panelDedicated Tuner Out: YesConstruction: PCBAdditional Features: Mute on front panel; separate balanced and unbalanced

line out on 1/4 jacks switchable between mic andline level

POWER AMP

Mode: Class DTubes: N/AOutputs: 2 x SpeakonImpedance Options: 4, 8, 16Power Supply/Transformer: 270 V regulatedCooling System: Fan user switchableLine Voltage Options: 120/220

MEASUREMENTS

Full Bandwidth All Controls At Noon: 80Hz - 8kHz +/- 6.16 dB; 100 mV swept sin input Limited Bandwidth All Controls At Noon: 80Hz - 8kHz +/- 5.95 dB; 100 mV swept sin input Limited Bandwidth Optimally Flat: 80Hz - 8kHz +/- 0.88 dB; 100 mV swept sin input

POWER

4 ohms 8 ohms

Continuous Power: 786 watts 547 wattsMeasured Voltage: 56.07Vrms 66.15 Vrms

Burst Power: 998 watts 614 wattsMeasured Voltage: 63.18 70.71 Vrms

Input Signal: 240.5 mVrms 233.7 mVrmsWall Voltage DUT: 120.5 Vrms 122 VrmsTHD+N: 2.5% 2.5%

SONIC PROFILE:Lows: Nice and meatyMids: Nicely present without being overbearingHighs: Sweet and clean

On-BenchInternal Parts 4.00External Parts 3.75Overall Assembly 3.00Output Power Rating 4.25Ease of Repair 3.50Instructions/Manual 3.25Quality Per Price 3.00Layout/Cooling 3.00

In-HandFeatures: 5Tonal Flexibility: 4.5Ease of Use: 5Aesthetics: 4Tone: 4.5Value: 3.5

Huge power, easy to use basic EQ, plusfully parametric EQ and nice DI. Verypleasing and easy to shape tone.Everything you need for both studio andlive work; and nothing you don't.

TONE-O-METER

bas

sgea

rtest Demeter

HPB1-800D

Tom Lees’

Fig. 1 Gut shot

White labeling provides contrast against the blackpanel, making the labeling easy to read, despite thenumerous controls and features available from thefront panel. The front panel also sports three silverbuttons (EQ bypass, effects loop bypass and mute),which imparts a cool aesthetic. The only splash ofcolor is provided by the red power button. Overall,the external construction of the front panel appearswell put together, and well thought out.

Likewise, the back panel features the normalsuspects, namely, a voltage selector, IEC connector,Speakon™ connectors, various jacks for a tuneroutput, effects loop and various outputs. Overall,the external construction of the back panel alsoappears well put together, and well thought out,except for one control – the fan switch. The HPB1-800D has a cooling fan that is manually set on oroff using a switch on the back panel. The switch forthe fan appears to be labeled with a stick-on label(such as from a label maker), and is labeled in all

AMP LAB

Demeter HPB1-800DThroughout my gigging days of the ‘80s and ‘90s,all of my gear was in a rack. Rack systems were notonly cool, they represented a convenient way totransport gear safely. Moreover, rack systemsfacilitate extremely quick setup and teardown. Thebig difference between then and now, is that to getclose to a thousand watts of power, a tube preampand parametric equalization back then, I needed ahuge rack with casters and two roadies to carry it …okay, they weren’t really roadies … more likeroommates that I bribed with beer.

ConstructionThe HBP1-800D is a one-rack-space, 800-wattamplifier with a tube-based preamplifier andbypassable two-band fully parametric equalizer. Thefact that I am even saying that speaks volumes tothe constant evolution of bass amplifier technology.

The front panel and chassis are musician-approvedmatte black, with black input jacks and black knobs.

53bassgear

FIG. 2 Internal wiring

FIG. 3 Optimally flat vs all controls at noon

FIG. 4 Optimally flat

FIG. 5 Bass sweep

capital letters, in contrast to the neatly screenedwhite lettering in all lower case for the rest of thefront and back panel controls. Moreover, the switchposition – located off the center line and betweenthe voltage selector and IEC connector – make theinclusion of the fan feel more like an afterthought,or a revision, rather than an integral part of thedesign.

With reference to Fig. 1, taking a peek under thehood, we see that the device includes three maincircuit boards, including a preamp board (seen to thebottom), a power amp board (seen towards themiddle/top) and an output board (seen to the top).The preamp board has a few nice surprises up itssleeve. First, note that the preamp board istransformer-isolated from the power amp board by aJensen transformer (see the white and silvertransformer in the lower left hand corner just abovethe input jacks). This is an interesting idea. Demeterclaims that this transformer improves noiseperformance, regardless of whether the musicianuses the preamp only, power amp only or entireamp. The transformer also imparts a bit of color tothe signal. Cool! Also, note that the preamp includesa tube circuit built around a 12AX7 preamp tube (anElectro-Harmonix 12AX7 was in our test unit). Asan added bonus, another Jensen transformerprovides transformer-balanced DI output.

There were a few things that bugged me about theinternal construction of this amp. As can be seen inthe preamp board, there are a number of contactpads that do not include components soldered inplace. This makes me suspect that the circuit boardis either reused from another design, or is a genericboard that serves multiple products. I think this canbe a great efficiency, and can be perfectly wellexpected. However, with reference to Fig. 2, itappears that some engineering change occurred tothe design that the circuit board could notaccommodate. It looks like some of the contact pinson the mute switch are serving as the connectionpoints to some capacitors, resistors, and at least onediode. I get that this is a normal occurrence in theevolution of designs. I would even look past this ina budget product. But this is a boutique, high-enddesign that carries a boutique, high-end price tag. As

54 bassgear

FIG. 6 Mid sweep

FIG. 7 Treble sweep

FIG. 8 Presence sweep

FIG. 9 Low band parametric sweep

such, I would have liked to seen this circuitrybrought out onto a daughter card or otherwisecleaned up. I personally like things looking as neatand tidy on the inside as they do on the outside.

The Tone StackReferring to Fig. 3, with the parametric EQbypassed and all of the tone controls of the preampsection set to “noon,” the HPB1-800D exhibits amild midrange dip at around 300Hz, and a nicehigh-end boost relative to the low end, as seen bythe black trace. Overall, we measured +/- 6.2dB,20Hz-20kHz in the “all tone controls at noon”setting. The red trace is our “optimally flat” setting.We were able to achieve +/- 1.6dB 20Hz-20kHz,and +/- 0.9dB, 80Hz-80kHz. With reference to Fig.4, a photo illustration demonstrates the positionwhere we recorded our optimally flat setting.

The preamp tone stack includes controls for Treble,Middle, Bass, and Presence. The HBP1-800D alsoincludes a 2-band fully parametric EQ section thatthe user can use or bypass. I really like theflexibility afforded by the design of the tone stacksurrounding the preamplifier, in combination withthe two parametric bands. I also like the way thatthe tone stack in the preamp provides a range ofcontrol that compliments, rather than duplicates,that of the parametric bands.

Referring to Figs. 5-10, sweeps are illustrated foreach of the tone controls. The black trace is the“noon” setting, the blue trace is the control fullycounterclockwise, and the red trace is the controlfully clockwise. With reference to Fig. 5, the Basssweep demonstrates a low shelving filter withample low end control and no relevant high bandinteraction. With reference to Fig. 6, the Midcontrol exhibits the traditional signs of a passivetone stack. Note that at fully counterclockwise, thegreatest mid dip is achieved at about 600Hz. As theMid control is turned up, a mid boost hump is neverreally achieved. This is a great idea, because theHPB1-800D provides two fully parametric bands(discussed below). As such, this design providestwo different ways to treat the ever-importantmidrange frequencies, namely the Mid control andthe mid band of the parametric section.

55bassgear

FIG. 10 Mid band parametric sweep

FIG. 11 Thermal management

FIG. 12 Gain

FIG. 13 Level

With reference to Fig. 7, the Treble sweep showsthat there is quite a bit of opportunity for boostingthe higher frequencies on this amp. Note, however,in contradiction to the Bass sweep of Fig. 5, theTreble control does exhibit low band interaction. TheTreble does not appear to change the shape of thelow end, but there is a change in gain. Withreference to Fig. 8, the Presence control provides anice compliment to the Mid control, adjustingfrequencies over 600Hz, but with minimal bandinteraction with lower frequencies.

With reference to Fig. 9, should you find yourself inneed of low-end adjustment, you should be able toachieve your goal with the low band parametric. Thelow band parametric operates from about 30Hz toabout 300Hz. With reference to Fig. 10, the midband of the parametric section extends from justover 300Hz to a bit over 3kHz.

Output PowerThe HBP1-800D provides a generous amount ofpower on tap. Due to the tube preamp section, thisamp leans more towards the “warm” side, ratherthan the squeaky clean side. After extensive testing,I concluded that running the tests to about 2.5 %THD+N seemed about right. At this level, there wereno signs of hard clipping on the peaks, and thesignal appeared upon visual inspection to preservethe shape of the input signal.

At 8 ohms, I measured 547 watts; 2.5% THD+Nfiltered 20Hz-20kHz; 219 mVrms 1kHz sin Input.However, burst power hit an impressive 614 watts;2.5% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 1kHz CEA2006.

At 4 ohms, I measured 786 watts; 2.5% THD+Nfiltered 20Hz-20kHz; 213 mVrms 1kHz sin Input.Burst power hit 998 watts; 2.5% THD+N filtered20Hz-20kHz; 1kHz CEA 2006. Allowing thedistortion level to creep up to 3.5% THD+N (stillreasonable, given that this distortion was generatedby the tube in the preamp, and was thus notexhibiting significant clipping), I measured about815 watts, with burst close to 1,000 watts, at 4ohms.

56 bassgear

FIG. 14 THD+N ratio vs measured level

FIG. 15 Scope monitor 1% THD+N

FIG. 16 Scope monitor 2.5% THD+N


One issue that occurred during output power testingwas that the HBP1-800D has thermal managementthat shuts the output section off until the circuitrycools down. The onset of thermal can happenrapidly if you hit the amp hard enough. The ampgracefully recovers every time, but as Fig.11 shows,the amp can remain offline for just over 4.5seconds.

As a bass player, I would not be concerned aboutthe thermal management of this amp. The nature ofthe bass guitar is that the spikes in the bass signalare of relatively short duration, compared to a testanalyzer that is capable of cranking out large,continuously running sine waves. Moreover, therecan be about a 20dB difference in a typical bassbetween the peaks and steady state of the sustainednotes. As such, even driving the amp hard, it isunlikely that the thermal management will shutdown, except maybe if the player is using a lot ofcompression. In our testing, we deliberately pushedthe HBP1-800D into shut down several times in arow to monitor its performance and to detect anyissues, and in each instance, the amp gracefullyrecovered.

Referring to Fig. 12, the gain structure of theamplifier is extremely linear over a wide range ofinputs. In Fig. 12, the onset of clipping occurswhere the trace begins dropping off its horizontalpath. Referring to Fig. 13, the linearity of theamplifier is further demonstrated. The angled traceshows that the output power of the amp tracksextremely consistently with the input level.

Referring to Fig. 14, the THD+N levels follow apredictable and stable path as a function of outputpower. Note that the HBP1-800D is capable ofTHD+N well under 1% for small output levels.However, the bulk of the output power comes at aTHD+N level over 1%. For this amp design, that isperfectly fine, because that little bit of distortion ischaracter brought to you courtesy of the preamptube.

To put you all at ease, refer to Fig. 15. This figuredemonstrates a scope trace of the output of theHBP1-800D at 1% THD+N. At 1% distortion, this

57bassgear


FIG. 19 Minnie 800D scope thermal protection

FIG. 20 Minnie 800D gain

FIG. 21 Minnie 800D level

signal shows no signs of hard clipping. Fig. 16shows a scope trace of the output of the HBP1-800Dat 2.5 % THD+N and again, the signal looks clean.Referring to Fig. 17, at 5.7% THD+N, there are nowclear signs that the preamp tube is compressing.Note that the lower lobes appear narrower than theupper lobes. Referring to Fig. 18, at 16.4% THD+N,we see nice signs of asymmetric distortion.However, thanks to the design of the tube preamp,even high levels of distortion result in graceful tubecompression that should sound fat and present.

ConclusionThis amp is likely to fit the requirements for many amusician. There is a flexible EQ section, aparametric section that can be bypassed or tuned inwhen needed, and a host of convenience features,such as an effects loop (controllable from the frontpanel), a dedicated tuner output, a DI output and linelevel outputs. I really like the use of Jensentransformers. I am sure other companies make finetransformers, but for decades, I have known that Ican trust Jensens to bring pro-level performance. Ireally like the tube preamp design and the inclusionof a presence control. I also really like the use ofhigh quality op-amps in the analog section of theamp. My only real downside is the attention to thosefinal little details. The fan switch and labeling, andthe patchwork re-wiring inside the amp make thisfeel “fixed,” compared to organic and complete.

BonusWhile we were digging around with the HBP1-800D, we decided to sneak in a bonus look at theMinnie 800D. If you are looking for a power amp,this may just fit your need. As a power amp, theMinnie 800D is one of the most insanely flexibleamps that I have come across with regard to matingto a preamp or other input source. I threw signals athe Minnie 800D from a few mVrms to over 10Vrms, and with a slight tweak of the single gaincontrol, I was able to pull the input signal in clean asa whistle (well under 1% THD+N). Kudos, here.

Without the tube preamp of the HBP1-800D, I heldthe Minnie 800D to a stricter standard for outputpower. At 8 ohms, I measured 530 watts; 1%THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 930 mVrms 1kHz sin

58 bassgear

hg tucindortnI

-M-800PTBe Vh

n

0D

e pbul tld aeird WnaH

d naler Lot foluiBur y od beirpsnI

enseno a Jd tlepup come-ar p

ogs araer 32 yalkd Spme-ars psat Bsr �r

. D, Mr. w, m nog thedinluiBr eli�pmack ac riassur clOad x11” hex5”n a 12”Iuf Tuts ot800 wat

g oinvier drmrosfonraTr p

t 1n the �rsigl slir wetemee Dp hemw in a mini aund noo s

ly10.5lnhs oiget wed thar ewon Pee Drivbu

li�er pmer Awour 800D p o Jpp

100.

ad hebs5l

r r

FIG. 22 Minnie 800D THD+N ratio vs measured level

Input. Burst power hit 610 watts; 1% THD+Nfiltered 20Hz-20kHz; 1kHz CEA 2006. At 4 ohms, Imeasured 775 watts; 1% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 800 mVrms 1kHz sin Input. Burst power hit970 watts; 1% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 1kHzCEA 2006. Allowing the distortion level to creep upto 2% THD+N, I measured about 810 watts, withburst well over 1,000 watts.

In this regard, the gentle compression of the tubepreamp of the HBP1-800D helps eek out just a tadmore power. Then again, the difference is for allintents and purposes negligible.

As Fig. 19 illustrates, the Minnie 800D alsofeatures thermal protection. However, the time torecovery varies from under 1 second to just over 2seconds. Also, note that the time that the signalremains active can vary from under 0.5 seconds totripping. Again, I want to stress that this test isconducted under extremely stressful benchconditions to see if the amp has thermal shutdownand whether the amp properly recovers. In eachinstance, not only did the amp recover, it was ableto supply burst power in excess of its steady statemaximum output power with no artifacts.

Referring to Figs. 20-22, the Minnie 800D exhibitsstable gain, but note that the drop off is a harderedge, compared to the HBP1-800D. This is due tothe gentle compression of the preamp tube in theHBP1-800D. Fig. 21 demonstrates that the Minnie800D is extremely linear in matching input levelchanges to output level changes. Fig. 22 shows thatthe Minnie 800D is extremely clean, with distortionlevels well under 1% THD+N until reaching thelimits of steady state maximum output power.

59bassgear

By Tom Bowlus

We first discussed Mike Arnopoland Big E Loudspeakers back inBGM #12, when Chris Fitzgeraldtook a look at the MAS-45 in hiscolumn, In the Doghouse. Chris isan exceptional double bass playerand professor at the University ofLouisville, and his column isdedicated to all things related toplaying (and amplifying) the doublebass. As Chris explained, the MAS-45 is an exceptional double bassenclosure, and it should come as nosurprise that the MAS-45 is listedon the Michael ArnopolSoundworks webpage under thecategory, “Double BassLoudspeakers.”

This time around, we journey overto the “Electric Bass Loudspeakers”side of Mike’s catalog and take atlook at the big dog of the line, theMAS-210Flex. But before we diginto the details of this astoundingbox, let’s take a step back and get toknow Mike Arnopol and Big ELoudspeakers a bit better.

The Man Behind the MASMike Arnopol has played uprightand electric bass professionally forthe past 35 years. He has played and

Michael Arnopol SoundworksMAS-210Flex Bass Cab

60 bassgear

recorded with many top jazz artists,but is most known for his work withjazz vocalist Patricia Barber (forover 25 years). Mike is on most ofher CD’s and has traveled the worldwith Patricia, headlining at venueslike Carnegie Hall and the KennedyCenter, as well as many Europeanjazz festivals. Her recordings havebeen mastered for conventionalrelease (Blue Note Records), aswell as for the audiophile market,winning many audiophile awards.

His speaker-building adventurebegan at age 16, when he built hisfirst loudspeaker (Altec LansingVoice of the Theater). He built anElectro-Voice 15” folded-horndesign when he was 17, and thenreverse-engineered an Acoustic 360and built one when he was 18. Hewent on to building audiophiledesigns, including a transmissionline sub and a copy of the BBC’sLS3/5A. Mike has always playedcabinets that he has designed andbuilt himself. In the ‘80s, he had awaiting list of local players whowanted his cabs. Although he hasno formal training, Mike wasbuilding reflex cabinets withremovable plates with differentports for different tuning. Also inthe ‘80s, he used a bi-ampedspeaker with a 15” a reflex box, anda separate small cab with the firstpro audio 6” midrange, made byAudax. In the ‘90s, he was too busytouring to make cabs. About tenyears ago, he entered into anendorsement deal with EuphonicAudio, which lasted for severalyears. Once he retired from touringwith Patricia, he renewed hisinterest in building bass enclosures.

Mike is also an active member ofthe TalkBass.com community. Afterreading on TalkBass about someonewho had built a composite basscabinet, he decided to give it a try.He wanted to replace his 1x10enclosure, but couldn’t find a driver

he liked. Mike explains, “I found awonderful 8” driver that actuallymoved as much air as the 10”, butwith a MUCH better sound. I built acab that weighed 10 pounds andcould compete with any single 10.A friend of mine tried it and made apost on TalkBass about it. All of asudden, I had a dozen guys thatwanted one. I had just retired fromtouring and thought, ‘why not?’Dave Green then approached meregarding a collaboration, and mylittle cab became the ‘Crazy 8.’ Ithen was making composite cabs forboth Dave and Duke LeJeune. I wasgetting very ill from my exposure tothe epoxy and fiberglass dust andwas ramping-down production.”

Leland Crooks (of SpeakerHardware) was actually the manresponsible forintroducing Mike to theBig E guys. Leland wasmaking the trip fromKansas to Mike’s housewith his son to learnabout composite cabinetmaking. Along the way,Leland and his sonstopped by Piper City,Illinois, to visit with theBig E guys, who gavehim one of their 12” substo take with him. Whenhe arrived at the Arnopolhousehold, Leland wasexcited to tell Mikeabout these wild cabs. “Ithought he was nuts,”says Mike. “He showedme the sub. I tapped onthe cone and heard thishuge bass drum soundcoming out. ‘What thehell?’ I said. ‘This cabhas no damping!’ I knewsomething was up andmade a trip down toPiper City, where theyshowed me their 48prototype. I was floored.No matter where I

moved with my 20’ cord, thingssounded essentially the same. Andthese four 8’s were going as loud asan 8x10! I immediately got onboard as their builder of the basscabinet line. Michael ArnopolSpeakerworks was born.”

The Big E GuysOkay, so let’s learn a bit more aboutthese “Big E guys.” Thomas Ewersand Stephen Regier had beencollaborating on technologydevelopment long before Big ELoudspeakers was formed. Theirfirst big challenge came in themedical technology field. A majorinternational medical equipmentmanufacturer was seekingassistance in the development of aPC-based life support system. Ifsuccessful, the platform would be

market, as well. Tom and Steveknew, then, that they were not onlyonto something, their ideas aboutwhat a PA could be were becomingmore mainstream. They then tooktheir creations to a nationallyrecognized musician and concertproducer, Chuck Gomez. Chuckwas quite impressed and addedsuggestions for making theirproducts more commercially viable.

Over the course of the ensuing yearof touring and demos, they met aChicago DJ who wanted a series ofsubwoofer scoops like the EV MTLseries. Instead, they offered todevelop a loudspeaker of equivalentor greater performance. The218SLS cross-fired-in-a-scoopreflex subwoofer was developed forthis client, and installed in a popularChicago-area night club. The clubwas popular, but had a reputation ofloud, offensive sound. Not only didTom and Steve install the new218SLS units, they re-aligned andreprogrammed the entireloudspeaker and signal processingsystem. The debut was to a packedhouse, with a special guest touringDJ. The client was not sure if thenew system was loud enough by hisstandards until he was shown theSPL level to be in the mid-120dB’s,behind the bar, 90 degrees off-axis,at the far side of the club – a sizableincrease from the original system.The new PA was an instant successfor the club, resulting in their onlinereviews becoming enthusiasticallypositive. Steve and Tom’s theoremsof loud, but not harsh, PA werebeginning to prove themselves inthe real world. It was at this timethat the duo was introduced toconcepts that led to development ofMVW technology. Big ELoudspeakers was formed, with itsname derived from Tom’s Navalmoniker – given to him byMM1(SW) Ranada while serving in1AMR aboard USS IndependenceCV62 (Freedom’s

their abilities to the issue at hand:touring on a budget. They landed inthe DIY arena, constructing anentire touring rig of folded-hornloudspeakers in Steve’s garage. As areward to Tom, they built a set ofsmall line array loudspeakers forTom’s home theater. After listeningto the small line array, Steve (a.k.a.“Dr. PsYchoBoom”) remarked,“How do I get that sound in there?”motioning toward his newly createdPA. At that point, it was “game on”for the partners.

The first product of their collectiveefforts was a column line arrayloudspeaker named the 612. Testingof the 612 was quite successful, andlater the same year, JBL releasedthe CBT 70 series column line arrayloudspeaker. Larger column linearrays started to appear in the DIY

adapted for use in dialysismachines, ventilators, patientmonitors, and anesthesia deliveryfor medically fragile patients. Theteam was successful, after some bignames in the industry failed. Today,these machines are preserving andenhancing lives, worldwide.

Several years after the medicalequipment project, Tom and Stevewere collaborating again, this timein the music industry. They teamedup to record, produce, and publishmusic from local artists. As theirartists started receiving attention, itwas time to go on tour, but thebudget was limited. Steve had beeninvolved in sound engineering sincethe mid 1970’s and Tom haddemonstrated his uncanny abilityfor exhaustive research on anysubject presented. The pair turned

62 bassgear

Flagship). DIY plans for the 612and 218SLS are available free atwww.bigeloudspeakers.com.

Setting the StageMy initial face-to-face meeting withMike Arnopol was also the result ofa road trip. Mike had just been toNew York in order to visit with hisdaughter (and provide her withsome hands-on fatherly help,courtesy of his wood-workingskills). His return trip to Chicagotook him straight across Ohio on theTurnpike, which runs right past myhome town of Fremont. Mike justhappened to have a couple of cabswith him: the MAS-85 and theMAS-110Flex. Mike and I spentwhat seemed like a day and a half(but was probably about an hourand a half) playing through thesecabs using a variety of basses (bothelectric and double bass) and avariety of heads. The magicalmidrange presentation of the MAS-85 still haunts me, and it is anamazing cab in its own right. But itwas the 110Flex that occupied mostof our time. The combination oftight, growly lows and smooth, butpresent, mids and highs was verycompelling (particularly with myReeves C225). At the end of theday, I said to Mike, “This 110Flexis really great, but I keep askingmyself what a 210Flex would belike.” After a soft chuckle, Mikebegan his reply with, “It’s funnyyou should mention that ...”

Not too long after, the MAS-210Flex arrived (in a pretty bigbox). After unpacking and standingback a bit to take it all in, the firstvisual impression is that of athinner, wider box with a pair ofmids and a pair of tweets, sitting ontop of a wider, vertically oriented2x10. The MAS-210Flex presentsthis as a combined enclosure, butMike now offers this rig in amodular setup, by pairing themid/tweet section and one 10”

driver in one enclosure, called theMAS-210Mod, with an MAS-110subwoofer. The modular approachwill set you back an additional$325, but does have the advantageof increased portability, as well asthe option of using just the MAS-210Mod, when you don’t need to“bring the boom.”

Product DetailsThe MAS-210Flex comes equippedwith some serious hardware. Thisstarts with the two EminenceKappalite 3010LF drivers. Thesedrivers take full advantage of theirlightweight, super powerfulneodymium-based motors. They golow (38Hz Fs) and can handle a lotof power (450 watts RMS, each).We’ve been raving over enclosuresusing their big brothers, the 3012LFand 3015LF, and it’s a real pleasureto see what these “super 10’s” cando. Moving on to the midrangedrivers, we have two 6.5” Faital ProW6N8-120’s, arranged in a “cross-fire” configuration. We’ve seenthese fantastic drivers in other high-end enclosures, and they are amost-welcome addition. Thetweeters are Ciare 1.26ND TW,another high-quality Italian import.The two Ciare tweets are alignedvertically, and placed in between thetwo Faital mids. Clearly, no cornerswere cut where it comes to driverselection.

Flanking the two 10” drivers, oneither side of the front baffle, wefind what look like wide, verticalslot ports. Similar, smaller ports arealso present to the right and the leftof the cross-firing midrange drivers.Looks can be deceiving, though,and there is more going on herethan simple shelf porting. Big ELoudspeakers and MAS refer to thisdesign as the Manipulated VortexWaveguide™ (MVW) alignment. Atfirst blush, it seems to share somecommon traits with transmissionline designs – which are surrounded

by a fair bit of mystery, myth, andmisconception, themselves. Ratherthan obtaining the necessaryengineering degrees to attempt toadequately describe this technologyto you – and preferring not toblindly guess at what’s going on – Iasked Steve and Tom to describethis technology in their own words.They did this and more, evenproviding us with an exclusive firstlook at a diagram of how the MVWloudspeaker alignment works.Check out the article, The MVWStory, immediately following thisreview.

At the upper left on the front of thecabinet, we find an (initiallyintimidating) arrangement ofswitches, including a big red armingswitch. The four switches (three 2-way switches and one 3-wayswitch) provide 24 differentpotential settings, which can be areal head-scratcher, at first.Fortunately, markings are providedindicating the “default settings,”which make a great starting point.The top (3-way) switch is theTweeter control switch. This switchallows you to select one, two, or notweeters (the default setting is one).At the bottom of the panel, we findthe Voicing control switch. Thiscontrols the signal phase relationbetween the mid/high section andthe woofer section (the defaultsetting is in-phase). The two middleswitches are designed to worktogether. The switch on the right(labeled “SW2”) does most of theheavy lifting, as it engages the“Bright” setting when set to the“up” position, which increases thesensitivity of the mid/high section,relative to the “Neutral” setting(SW2 switch “down”). The switchon the left is labeled “SW1,” and isonly accessed by lifting the redplastic cover. This allows you toselect the “Dark” setting, therebyengaging the “PXB circuit,” whichdecreases the sensitivity of the

63bassgear

response is a touch on the warmside, but very articulate. Word ofwarning, though; all of that low-endenergy can really excite otherobjects in the room. The use of ahigh-pass filter may be necessary ifyou find yourself shaking stuff inthe room a bit too much. ThatVoicing switch is pretty cool. As Imentioned, it places the woofersection either in-phase or out-of-phase, relative to the mid/highsection. The default setting is in-phase, but I spent most of my timeplaying it in the out-of-phasesetting. This setting seems to boostbass response from about 50Hzthrough 600Hz, but also reduced theresponse from 600Hz to about1kHz. The default setting is perhapsa bit more pure/pristine, but when Ipowered the 210Flex with mostheads, I liked the added low midswhen setting the Voicing switch tothe left. With at least one bass head(my Reeves C225), though, Idefinitely preferred the default (in-phase) setting. Once again, it’s niceto have options.

Those Faital Pro W6N8-120 midsare very potent, with a statedfrequency response range of 100Hzto 10kHz, making them greatchoices for bass enclosures. Thecross-firing configuration,combined with the MVW design,allow the MAS-210Flex to fill aroom much more uniformlythroughout the mids (compared to“conventional enclosures”). Ratherthan risk the potentialtone/performance-stealing impactsof a rotary attenuator for the mids,Mike and the Big E guys haveopted for a series of switchingoptions (which rely upon high-performance capacitors, inductors,and other wiring configurationtweaks) to control the midrangeperformance. The right middleswitch, which allows you to selectbetween Bright and Neutral(default) settings, is a very powerful

is a breeze to roll, using its built-incasters.

Put to the TestI’ve been playing this cab for sometime, now. I’ve compared it to manyother cabs, and I’ve used it with avariety of basses and amps. It’sbeen to band practice sessions. It’sbeen to gigs. After all of this, thethoughts which come to mind mostoften when I think of how best todescribe its performance are: 1.) “itdoes pretty much everything youcould ask it to do, and does it well,”and 2.) “there are a few things itdoes really, really well.” All of thethings that I liked about the 110Flex(tight, growly lows and smooth, butpresent, mids and highs) were there,but the depth, breadth, and overall“size” of the low end had beendefinitely kicked up a notch or two.

If you are shooting for a specifictone or response from your bassenclosure, you may seek out andobtain an enclosure (or two) that fitthis specific need or set of needs.However, if you play in multiplebands, play varied styles of music,or play with a variety ofinstruments, you likely need a basscab that is flexible enough to covera lot of ground. To this end, it’s nice

to have an enclosurewhich can handle awide frequency range,with a decent degree ofbalance from top tobottom. The MAS-210Flex definitely hasyou covered, here. Let’stalk about the low end,first. The 210Flex goesvery deep, but unlikesome cabs I have triedwhich produce a lowfundamental, but yetsomehow come acrossas thin in the lows, the210Flex remains veryfull all the way down.The overall low-end

mid/high section (relative to theNeutral setting) and is also designedto add gentle compression andwarmth when the cab is pushedhard (700+ watts).

The back panel is a much moresimple and straightforward affair,with a recessed metal plate housingtwo Speakon™ jacks. The cab isdesigned for tilt-back rolling,facilitated by two built-in cornercasters and a top-mounted straphandle. Removing the rear panelfrom the mid/high section, however,shows that the MAS-210Flex has alot going on beneath the seeminglycalm surface of the back of theenclosure. The cab also has two sidehandles, which enable a singleindividual to effectively lift the cab.However, I wouldn’t recommendtrying to carry it very far, unlessyou have a buddy to grab the otherhandle. Despite its relatively largesize, the weight (just under 80 lbs)is pretty reasonable. Using the sidehandles, it was fairly easy to lift the210Flex and load it into the rear ofmy hatchback. When negotiatingnarrow hallways (or evenstairways), using one side handleand the top strap handle is fairlyeffective. Of course, when thesituation allows, the MAS-210Flex

control. The Bright setting adds alot of upper midrange through lowertreble. I preferred the response inthe Neutral position, but I can seewhere the Bright setting would bevery useful if you were going aftera more aggressive tone, or if youneeded help cutting through a givenmix in a given room. The tonalimpacts of engaging the Brightsetting definitely varied in relationto where the Voicing control is set,so be sure to experiment a bit andsee which combination of switchesworks best for you. The left middleswitch, under the “arming” cover,can engage the Dark setting. This isa very subtle difference, and it takesa small bit off of the middle mids.Once again, I preferred the default(off) setting, but it did help smooththings out a bit when the Brightswitch was also engaged.

The MAS-210Flex is capable ofvery smooth, yet extended highs. Itis truly one of the most beautifulcabs I have heard when it comes tohigh-end presentation. Oftentimes,cabs with a “smooth” top end getthis by being a tad shy in the treblerange. In its default (one tweeter)setting, the 210Flex is not at all shyin this range, but there is no hint ofharshness or brittleness. The 3-wayTweeter switch lets you bring thesecond tweeter into play, or takethem both out of the equation. Withboth tweeters engaged (the far leftsetting), the cab gains a bit moresparkle and presence, and a littlemore edge to the attack of the note.There is still a good bit of high endextension (up to about 6-7kHz) withboth tweeters turned off.

Okay, so we have the frequencyrange piece of the puzzle solved.How about overall output andpower handling? Can it deliver thegoods from an SPL perspective?Boy, howdy, can it! The 900-wattpower handling tempted me to hitthe 210Flex hard, and whenever I

did, it hit back!Not only does itseem more thancapable ofhandling 800 to900-watt (solidstate) heads, butit will pummelyou for beingfoolhardy enoughto stand in thesame room whenyou try it. Notthat it doesn’tsound good atlower volumes (itcertainly does),but this is a cabthat really likes tobe pushed hard.In addition,unlike someventedenclosures, the210Flex really shines when pushedwith tube amps, as well.

Broad frequency range? Check.Ability to dial in a range of tones?Check. Does it get loud enough?Check. Hmm … What else? Oh,yeah; does it fill a stage, or can youonly hear it when you stand in the“sweet spot?” One of the obviousgoals of the Big E Loudspeakerdesigns is excellent off-axisresponse. The Manipulated VortexWaveguide alignment – alsoreferred to (by Big E Loudspeakers)as a “Frequency IndependentVirtual Compression LabyrinthHorn” – claims to produce a “de-correlated reverberant field.” TheBig E Loudspeakers webpage

claims the following specificbenefits over more conventionaldesigns:

Increased loudspeaker•sensitivity

Greater perceived clarity•

Enhanced spacial immersion•and imaging

Enhanced dynamic response•

Reduction of adverse•environmental interactions

though, and kept a hand on thereigns. Clearly, both the amp andthe cab would have loved to havebeen played even louder. But thislevel of control served the mix well.In fact, one of my bass-playingfriends in the audience commentedhow my bass tone is “always bigand full, but still tight.” Missionaccomplished.

The Bottom LineSometimes, it’s easy to get caughtup in “the next great thing,” but theproducts fail to live up to the hype.Sometimes, ideas that look great onpaper, fall on their face in “the realworld.” Sometimes, laying on thetechno-babble too thick leads to aproduct that is all tricks and notreat. Any concerns that my reviewof the MAS-210Flex would falldown one of these rabbit holes werequickly and decidedly put to restonce I was able to spend some“quality time” with this cab. As Iremarked above, it does just abouteverything well, and it does anumber of things exceptionallywell. You can cover a huge range ofgigs with this cab. Yes, it’d be niceto get all that performance in amore easily transported package,but Mike Arnopol has you covered,there, with the MAS-210Mod &MAS-110 modular system. ThomasEwers and Stephen Regier makesome strong claims when describingthe benefits of their Big ELoudspeakers and the ManipulatedVortex Waveguide alignment. Afterhearing this technology in action(and in the context of multiple cabdesigns, no less), they certainlyseem to be onto something good.Whether you play double bass,electric bass or both, Big ELoudspeakers and Michael ArnopolSoundworks have a design for yourapplication. I suggest that you plana little road trip of your own andfind a way to audition these cabs.Trust me, it’ll be worth the gasmoney.

though. A pair of BergantinoAE210’s is about the same size asthe MAS-210Flex (as are many4x10’s). Compared to my 2xAE210stack, the Flex (set to its defaultsettings) seems to go deeper, but theAE210’s are more full in the lowmids. The 210Flex is more smoothand clear in the upper mids andhighs, while the Bergantino cabs aremore present and articulate throughthe meat of the midrange. Overall, Ifelt that the MAS cab was“prettier,” while the Bergs were“punchier.” The other comparisonwas to the Mesa/Boogie 4x10Traditional Powerhouse™ cab. Ihad been using this cab at one ofmy bands’ practice room, and whenI brought the MAS-210Flex topractice, it was a simple thing to trythem out, head to head, in a bandsetting. While the 210Flex is by nomeans a thin-sounding cabinet, theBoogie had a lot more going on themiddle of the low end up throughthe lower-to-middle mids. The Flex,on the other hand, was much morearticulate and present in the uppermidrange.

At my last gig, I paired the MAS-210Flex with a Mesa/BoogieStrategy tube head. I knew goinginto it that this was one of the most“acoustically challenged” venuesthat I play, with a low, flat-ceilingaddition (where the band sets up)opening into a larger, arched-roofQuonset hut-style room. Normally,the lows to low mids are boomy andout of control in the addition, whilethe mix is thin as heck in the mainroom. Out of the gate, the 210Flex’stight, controlled lows and midrangeclarity helped the situation a greatdeal, but it was the Strategy’sgraphic EQ which really saved theday (serious cut at about 80Hzhelped a lot). Even when“hamstringed” by a drastic cut inthe meat of the lows, this rigsounded big and powerful. I wasn’table to let this rig “run free,”

My personal observations – over thecourse of playing the cab inmultiple rooms, with multiplebands, using a range of basses andamps – would seem to jive withthese claims. I definitely noticedthat the bigger the room, the moreobviously these traits stood out.However, even in very small rooms,the excellent off-axis response wasvery apparent. There is absolutelyno need to be concerned aboutstanding in the “sweet spot” withthis cab.

Comparatively SpeakingThe MAS-210Flex certainly seemsto have a lot going for it, but like allbass gear, the best way to evaluateperformance is to actually use it.Much as Mike and I found whenplaying through the MAS-85 andMAS-110Flex, the 210Flex soundedat least competent with pretty mucheverything I used, but it definitelyhad some amp pairings which weremore favorable than others. TheTecAmp Puma 900 is anexceptionally good match, whichcomes as no surprise, as Mike isvery familiar with this particularamp. The smooth, full and solidMarkbass F500 was another favoritecombination. For whatever reason,though, my Glockenklang Bass ArtClassic (normally a favorite ofmine) didn’t make for as impressiveof a pairing. On the tube amp sideof the equation, I previouslymentioned that my Reeves provedto be an excellent match, as did anold Trace Elliot VA400. Since notmany cabs are wide enough to look“right” sitting beneath it, I had totry my old Ampeg V-4B with the210Flex, and it was a nice pairing,with very present, growly mids, andplenty of low-end meat.

I compared the MAS-210Flex to avariety of enclosures, but it’s hardto find an apples to applescomparison. I did find two suchcomparisons worth mentioning,

66 bassgear

67bassgear


SONIC PROFILE:

Lows: Deep, tight, powerful; somewhat warm, but clear

Mids: Able to dial in multiple midrange profiles; clear and articulate

Highs: Extended but smooth; simply beautiful

GENERAL

Company: Michael Arnopol Soundworks311 Laurel AvenueWilmette, IL 60091 USATelephone: 224 628 [email protected] http://masoundworks.com

Country of origin: USAYear of origin: 2013Warranty: 2-year List price: $2,000.00Street price: $1,600.00Test unit options: NoneAccessories: NonePrice as tested: $1,775.00Available colors: Black, standard (custom colors available)Available options: None

Acquired from: Michael Arnopol SoundworksDates: January – March, 201Locales: OhioTest gear: Reeves C225, Mesa/Boogie Strategy, Trace Elliot VA400,

1974 Ampeg V-4B, TecAmp Puma 900, Carvin B1500, Markbass F500, Carvin PB5, F Bass VF4-P, F Bass BN5, Sadowsky WL4, MTD 535

This cab can do it all, from a sonic

perspective. The off-axis (and all around

the room) response is very balanced

and even. It is full and articulate, and

generally smooth, though it can get

more aggressive with certain settings.



bas

sgea

rtest MAS-210 Flex

On-benchPortability 3Road Worthiness 4Components 5Hardware 4.5Cabinet Construction 4.5Wiring 4Cover/Finish 3

In-handFeatures: 5Tonal Flexibility: 5Ease of Use: 3.5Aesthetics: 4Ergonomics: 3.5Tone: 4.5Value: 4

Enclosure

Configuration: 2x10” woofer, 2x6.5" mid, 2x1” tweeterListed Impedance: 4 ohmsRated Power Handling: 900 wattsInputs/Outputs: Two Neutrik® Speakon® jacksDimensions: 26”w x 32”h x 14”d Weight: 79.6 lbsPorts: Unique (MVW)Covering: DuratexBaffle Board: 12mm, 7-ply okume plywoodCabinet: 12mm, 7-ply Italian poplar plywood and 3/8" okume

plywood (for midrange/tweeter enclosure internals)Grill: Perforated steel (16-gauge)Handles: Three (one strap-style on top, two side-mounted

Ampeg-style "dog bones")Feet: TwoCasters: IntegratedCorners: Metal, non-stackingDriver Mounting: 4 Sigma UltraGrip T-nuts

Drivers/Crossover

Woofers: Eminence Kappalite 3010LFCone Material: Treated paper, with cloth accordion surroundVoice Coil: Copper (3” diameter)Magnets: Neodymium (11 oz)Midrange: Faital Pro 6.5” W6N8-120Tweeter: Ciare 1.26ND TWTweeter/Mid Adjustment: Unique switching options (see below)Protection: Bulb typeSpeaker Connections: Screw-down binding postsCrossover: 3-way (crossover slopes and points vary with switching

options)

Measurements

Average Sensitivity (200Hz-900Hz): 93.84 dBSPL (1 watt @ 1 meter)

TONE-O-METER

MAS-210 Flex

CAB LAB

The MAS-210Flex is part of the MichaelArnopol Soundworks “Electric Bass” line ofenclosures. As mentioned in the “in-hand”review, this enclosure – and all Big ELoudspeaker designs – employ(s) theManipulated Vortex Waveguide™ (MVW)alignment, which is explained by ThomasEwers and Stephen Regier in the article, TheMVW Story, immediately following this review.

The 210Flex comes loaded with an impressivearray of drivers: two Eminence Kappalite3010LF woofers, two 6.5” Faital W6N8-120midrange drivers, and two Ciare 1.26ND TWtweeters. The woofers were held in place byfour bolts, secured by the very nice SigmaUltraGrip T-nuts. Wood screws can lose biteover repeated use, and while I did have troublewith two loose T-nuts in Cab Lab reviews fromissue #13, these Sigma UltraGrips are reallynice, and I would not expect them to comeloose in any situation. Great choice. Themidrange drivers appeared to be secured in

similar fashion, but I was not able to removethem (the gaskets may have “glued” the framesto the baffle, and I did not want to damage theFaital drivers or the enclosure, so I let them be).Likewise, Mike had warned me that installing(and, hence, removing) the tweeters is a verycomplicated affair, so I left them in place, aswell. The Eminence woofers have a nice gasketrun around the inside edge of the frame to makefor a tight seal against the front baffle.

There are separate grills for themidrange/tweeter section of the cab and for thewoofer section. Both grills are nicely done. Thesmaller, top grill is cut at an angle to match theslant on the top part of the cab. Foam is adheredto the top and bottom edges of the grill, and theright and left edges are pressed against thinstrips of carpet (velcro?) to fight vibration. Thisgrill is held in place by four long screws. Thelarger grill for the woofer section is held inplace with eight of these same screws, and all ofthem have black, snap-on cap covers for a clean

Tom Bowlus’

69bassgear

Fig. 3 Tweeter settings: both off, one tweeter (default), both on

Fig. 2 Impedance curve

Fig. 1 On and off-axis (15, 30, 45) frequency response

“Philips-head-free” look. The metal for thewoofer grill is bent around (and then screwedinto) two wooden “rails,” which include anangle cut to match the angle on the front bafflewhere the cab “flares out” to form the sideports. Very nice touch. The woofer grill also hasfoam attached to the top and bottom edges tohelp fight unwanted vibration. I also liked thefact that holes had been drilled through thewooden rails, exactly lining up with theperforation holes in the grill, to help align thescrews holding the grill in place.

The exterior surfaces of the cab are coated inwhat appears to be a fairly thin (but completelycovering) layer of Duratex paint. The MAS-210Flex has three handles. The top strap handleis mainly intended to be used while employingthe cab’s “tilt-back and roll” feature. Speakingof this feature, the 210Flex has two built-incasters set in the two rear corners of theenclosure. They are good-sized and sturdy, andseem to work quite well. Two large rubber feet(also attached via T-nuts) are set at the two frontcorners. When stationary, the feet and castersgive the enclosure a solid foundation. There aretwo Ampeg-style “dogbone” handles mountedon the sides. These handles were also held inplace using bolts screwed into threaded inserts.

This enclosure is surely no simple build. Thereare a lot of obtuse angles, slanted surfaces andcomplex joints. The internal construction of theMVW alignment is also no simple affair. Andthat’s before we even get to the wiring of allthose switching options! Certainly, in regards toboth carpentry and wiring/soldering, this is oneof the most complex cabs we have had anopportunity to evaluate. In an effort to keep theweight down, Mike has opted for thinner(12mm, or 1/2”), lightweight wood, and actuallyuses a combination of 1/2” okume plywood forthe outer case and baffle boards, and 1/2” Italianpoplar plywood for the internal construction ofthe woofer section. The internal construction ofthe midrange/tweeter section is made from evenlighter 3/8” okume plywood. Okume is apreferred plywood for marine applications, andit’s far from inexpensive. However, it is verylight and strong for its size. Another greatchoice.

Looking at the interior of the 210Flex, there wasno evidence of acoustic batting, but thecomplexity of the MVW alignment construction

70 bassgear

Fig. 5 SW2 settings: Dark (default) or Bright

Fig. 4 Voicing settings: woofer section in-phase (default), or out-of-phase

was apparent. Internal bracing in the wooferenclosure appeared to be mostly glued in placeand appeared very sturdy. The interior wiringwas extensive, and fairly tidy, using medium-heavy gauge, color-coded wire. Speaker leadswere secured to the Kappalite woofers usingscrew-down binding posts. There are two sets ofautomotive-style light bulbs, made byEminence, to provide protection. The two bulbsprotecting the tweeter circuit are always on. Theother two are positioned at the beginning of themidrange circuit, and are engaged when theDark setting is selected. As these bulbs arepushed, they impart a gentle compression and abit of tube-like warmth. The rear panel is fairlysparse, sporting only a recessed metal platehosting two SpeakonTM connectors. Remove therear panel of the midrange/tweeter section andthings get more complicated, revealing thecrossover and wiring rig to handle all of thoseswitch configurations. I was a little concerned,however, that the (already fairly thin) rear panelhad to be thinned even more to accommodateone very large capacitor. If the enclosure wereto take a solid hit in this area, I would beconcerned about the possibility of internaldamage.

In addition to our typical suite of measurements,we performed several additional tests tohighlight the function of some of the MAS-210Flex’s switches. Fig. 1 is our standardon-and-off-axis chart (performed with allswitches in their default settings), and Fig. 2 isour standard impedance curve chart. Theadditional tests are shown in Fig. 3 (whichillustrates the high frequency response at allthree Tweeter settings), Fig. 4 (which illustratesthe effect of the in-phase and out-of-phasesettings on the Voicing switch), and Fig. 5(which illustrates the Neutral vs Bright settings).As we do in all of our Cab Lab reviews, allmeasurements were taken at 1m, using 1 watt ofamplification. MAS and Big E Loudspeakersclaim that additional performance benefits maybe observed at higher amplification levels, butwe did not run any higher-power tests to eitherconfirm or refute these claims.

71bassgear

By Stephen Regier and Thomas Ewers,Big E Loudspeakers

[Editor’s note: When we began our review ofthe 210Flex bass enclosure, which incorporateswhat Big E Loudspeakers calls “manipulatedvortex waveguide” (MWV) design, the obviousquestion arose: “What is this technology allabout?” Considering the atypical nature of thistechnology, as well as any potentialintellectual property implications, we askedStephen Regier and Thomas Ewers from Big ELoudspeakers to explain this technology intheir own words. What follows is theirresponse. Bass Gear Magazine has notindependently verified any of the claimsbelow – except to the extent that we put theMAS-210Flex through our typical suite of cabtests, plus a few extra measurements todemonstrate what some of the switches do.

These comments are solely attributed toStephen Regier and Thomas Ewers and Big ELoudspeakers, and we thank them for theirwillingness to provide these comments andexplanations.]

We would like to thank the bass communityfor the early adoption of our technology andinterest in our continued development. Inappreciation, we felt it appropriate to give thebass community the first reveal of theworkings of Mike Arnopol Soundworks and allMVW logo cabs.

In order to better understand The ManipulatedVortex WaveguideTM Loudspeaker Alignment(MVW), or Frequency Independent VirtualCompression Labyrinth Horn, we thought alittle history may be enlightening. Theunintentional development of this

loudspeaker alignment beganafter Thomas designed asuccessful ported and cross-fired dual-18” subwoofer thatis still crushing today. Wewere introduced to the ideaof an acoustical labyrinthcoupled to a short horn as amechanism for increasingbass response. Provided onlylimited details to prevent anypreconceived notions, a 5”door speaker from a BMWwas requisitioned and putinto the first test cabinet. Theresults were astonishing. Thelittle 5” transducer producedmore bass output than the 8”loaded folded horn we wereusing for comparison insidethe passenger compartmentof a 15-passenger van. Wethen started experimentingwith the overlap and spacingof the chamber baffles.Proper spacing of the baffles

in relation to the driver forced a rotation ofthe back wave through the labyrinth, whichcreated tremendous bass sensitivity.

After this success, we decided to scale up a bitand build a dual-18” prototype. Go big or gohome! There were some design elements ofour first commercial BigE subs that we wantedto retain. These included the cross-firedalignment. Many possibilities were draftedand built, but all were large and complex. Weknew, based on our prototypes, that we couldlimit the number of labyrinth baffles. Afterseveral attempts at trying to combine thecross-fired driver alignment into a labyrinth,we had found the output level we wanted,but dangerous levels of infra-sound were alsoproduced. Several bruised ribs and three daysof dizziness and disorientation on the sofalater, we had to understand why this washappening. Each chamber was measured andcompared. The result was the discovery of theVirtual Compression Labyrinth, which createdthe desired output. This reduced the size ofthe enclosure, but retained the output wesought.

Steve then wondered aloud if a smallerversion of the same design would work as aPA top. We built a 6” cab, which, to oursurprise, still had support down to driver Fsand up to about 4kHz, as well. We then triedan intermediate size and discovered thateither a set of subwoofers or coaxialtransducers could be employed in the sameenclosure, providing extension to Fs of theinstalled transducers. This confirmed theFrequency Independent nature of the design.We now had the aspects of a FrequencyIndependent Virtual Compression LabyrinthHorn.

After successful construction and testing ofseveral different-sized loudspeakers using 3”to 21” transducers, we set about the task ofresearching and enhancing the alignment. The

The Manipulated Vortex Waveguide Loudspeaker Alignment

72 bassgear

next issue at hand was the enclosure size. Inorder to send the energy from the VirtualCompression Labyrinth, or Vortex Generator(as we call it), to the horns, or Output Flares,at each side of the loudspeaker, a waveguideat the rear of the enclosure was utilized. A testunit was constructed with a common centerhorn fed directly by the Vortex Generators,without the waveguide. An extremecancellation appeared, resulting in the onlydiscernible sound being that of the enclosure,itself, talking. Measurements in the centerhorn were very high, but canceled as thesound exited in front of the drivers. TheWaveguide was confirmed as a criticalcomponent.

After MONTHS of poking, prodding, andpestering, Leland Crooks finally agreed to stopin and listen on his way to visit Mike Arnopol(to learn about composites with his son,Sam). We built two prototypes we named for

him: The LC8’s. He was the first true skeptic ofthe MVW Loudspeaker who became a believerin the technology. We gave him a Lil’E 12subwoofer to take back and test in his shop.This is the first cab Mike Arnopol saw. Afterjust tapping on the cone and listening toLeland, he wanted to be become involvedwith the product. Mike also thought we shouldbring in Duke LeJeune, of AudioKinesis. Basedon a YouTube video of an event for which weprovided sound, Duke identified the de-correlated sound of an MVW cab, unlikeanything he’d heard.

The MVW alignment had the sensitivity,clarity, reflection resistance, imaging andextension we sought, with the placementflexibility we needed. Big E Loudspeakers wasformed. Needing an identity for ourtechnology, we developed an accurate,descriptive, yet misleading name: “TheManipulated Vortex Waveguide.” This

provided technology branding, earlyintellectual property protection, andamusement. After working with some notabledesigners and manufacturers, we filed forutility patent protection in August, 2013.Spurred on by these and other discoveries andverifications, we continue to further study,refine and optimize the MVW alignment.Further enhancements to the alignment weregarnered during research conducted for MikeArnopol. The improvements are unmistakable.These advancements have led to the MA-109Bass Loudspeaker and tweaks throughout allproduct lines. Our research continues, as wellas quantification of our discovery through theuse of Continuum Mechanics.

Further discussion and questions continue athttp://forum.bigeloudspeakers.com. Skepticswelcome.

73bassgear

By Tom Bowlus

Carvin is no stranger to these pages,and likely a well-known brand byour readers. We have featuredreviews of Carvin amps (back inBGM #2), Carvin basses (back inBGM #8), and Carvin combos (backin BGM #10). We covered a goodbit of the “Carvin story” in theseprior reviews, so I will not spendmuch time re-hashing alreadycovered ground. However, it isworth stating once again some ofthe noteworthy facts regardingCarvin. The company has been

around for over 65 years. Itcontinues to be owned by onefamily (the Kiesel family). It hasalways been based in the USA.They make a huge variety ofproducts; they make them well; theysell them for very reasonable prices.Carvin feels like an old friend;someone you can rely upon.

With this background in mind, it’sno surprise that we have come toexpect solid, predictableperformance from Carvin and theirproducts. The specific product weare reviewing, here, is Carvin’s take

on a P-bass: the epitome of a“comfortable, predictable oldfriend” in bass form. The stage wasperfectly set for a nice, if nottypical, review experience. Littledid I know, my expectations wereabout to be blown out of the water.

Setting the StageClassic-inspired, bolt-on basses arenothing new for Carvin. We’ve hadsuch options around since theB40/50 series and other basses. Butthese were, by and large, J-bassinspired instruments. Why no P-bass? Well, first you need thaticonic split pickup, and sinceCarvin makes all their own pickupsand electronics, we had the classic“chicken/egg conundrum.” With theintroduction of Carvin’s new SCPsplit-coil alnico V single-coilpickup, the path was cleared for aproper P-bass in Carvin’s lineup.Jeff Kiesel explains, “Yes, that isCarvin’s first ever split-coil pickup.Not sure why it took so long. It wassomething I was getting asked for

74 bassgear

all the time, and I finally tookmatters into my own hands inNovember of 2012 and started onthis PB bass as my first instrumentdesign. Tonally, we wanted a fullrange of dynamics, while bringingthe thunderous bottom end that hadbeen missing from our lineup.”

The PB basses not only build upona solid foundation, they take it tothe next level. As good as they havebeen (and they have been very goodfor a very long time), Carvin seemsto be continuing to up their gamewith regard to the basses they arecranking out. Each time they rollout a new bass series, such as theB40/50 and the Brian Brombergsignature model, Carvin seemspolish the apple just a bit more.Nothing big jumps out at you, butthey seem to keep doing the littlethings better and better.

Dialing Up a PB5When Carvin offered us the chanceto review one of their new PB-

series basses, they suggested thatwe use their online “Bass Builder”configuration tool and place anorder for the exact instrument forreview. How could I say no?Although Carvin offers the P/Joption (and even the option to addtheir HB humbucker in the bridgepickup position), I felt that the truetest of a great P-bass is right therewith the single split-coil pickup, andresisted the temptation to add abridge pickup. Likewise, a P-bassjust has to sound right in passivemode, without any onboard preamptrickery. So our review bass is astraight-up passive affair. It’s not tosay that the added versatility of abridge pickup and/or an onboardpreamp option might not be a goodthing. Far from it. However, there isa certain beauty to a nice split-coilpickup, run passive.

Carvin offers a staggering numberof options to choose from, and thisstarts with the body and neckwoods. While I was tempted bymahogany, black limba, walnut andkoa, I really love a nice alder-bodyP-bass. I did, however, pull thetrigger on a 4A quilted maple top.For the neck, we kept things

traditional, going with (single piece)maple and the standard rosewoodfingerboard. At the core, we have apretty straightforward, tried-and-true combination: alder/rosewood,passive, single-P layout. However,knowing Carvin’s capabilities forproducing stunningly beautifulinstruments, I felt like I had tochallenge them a bit in regard to theesthetics. To show off that quiltmaple top, I went with the DeepAqua Burst (which includes theirDTS – deep triple stain – finish),and a matching headstock. Tocomplete the look, I opted forabalone block inlays, blackhardware, and a white pearloidpickguard. This potentiallyaudacious combination would havebeen easy to get wrong. However, ifyou get it right, quilt maple,abalone, and a pearloid guard canwork very well together.

75bassgear

Price-wise, our test bass tallied upto about $1,400, but you can order aplain Jane model for about $900,and that is just an amazing bargainfor an instrument that is made in theUSA, with a solid 5-year warranty,from a firmly established company.

The Moment of TruthWhen the big Carvin box wasdelivered this past December, ittook great restraint to wait for it toacclimate to the warmer indoortemperatures. When I was finallyready to open the case, I felt like akid on Christmas morning. Oncethe lid popped up, I knew thatCarvin had nailed it. The quilting inthe maple is big and deep, and theDeep Aqua Burst invites you todive in and take a swim. The rich,deep rosewood board cradles thoseabalone blocks, and the whitepearloid pickguard really pulls it alltogether. I almost always preferblack hardware, and blackdefinitely works on this bass. Okay,we’ve got a looker on our hands.But how does it play and sound?

Picking up the PB5 and grabbingthe neck is immediately rewarding.That is a great neck profile(between a J-style and P-style), andthe oil finish feels just right. The 22medium jumbo frets were nicelyfinished, and felt great underhand.Likewise, the carved-down neckheel makes access to the upperregisters easier and morecomfortable. The slightlyundersized (compared to aPrecision) body feels appropriately“modern/vintage,” and your righthand always feels comfortable inthe presence of a single split-Ppickup. I strongly believe that inorder for an electric bass to soundgreat when amplified, it also has tosound great when playedunplugged. Electronics can certainlyhelp make more out of what you’vegot, but the really great basses allseem to sound really great rightthere in your hands, without anyoutside assistance. This PB5 passedthat particular test with flyingcolors. 30 seconds into my review, Iknew I had a winner on my hands.

Getting back to that bodyshape/size, the PB’s designer, JeffKiesel, explains, “I wanted to havea classic, but yet modern look tothis bass. I spent a lot of timecoming up with this design; I didnot want to make a copy of anotherbrand.” As far as what separates thePB from other P-style basses, Jeffcites the following features:

1. Better neck heel access:other have a huge block thatgets in the way; you havemuch better higher registeraccess.2. Headstock tilt: by tiltingthe headstock back, yougain string tension on thenut.3. No string tree: othercompanies use a string treebecause their headstockdoes not tilt back (thiscauses string bind whentuning).4. Superior bridge: ourbridge is a much more solidconstruction andhas locking saddles andguides on each side toeliminate side load.5. Neck adjustments: youcan easily adjust our neckbuy removing the truss rodcover (to adjust the others,you need to remove thepickguard).6. Lighter weight: theCarvin will come in 1/2 to 1pound lighter in weightthan most others.7. Separate output jack onside of bass: this adds to thecomfort of the bass (mosthave the jack on thepickguard).8. Modern neck profile: we

76 bassgear

are using a modern neckprofile that is between the Pand J-style necks (the Pnecks are very fat and canget uncomfortable).9. Superior pickupdesign: other pickupdesigns use pole pieces thatstick up (when bending thestring, volume changesdramatically); we use acontinuous magnet that hasa consistent volume fromone end to the other.

Putting the PB Through Its PacesMy very first bass featured a P-stylesplit-coil pickup, and I gigged thatbass for years. From there, I movedon to dual humbuckers, and didn’tlook back for a long time.Eventually, I fell to the lure of the J-bass, and worked dual single-coilsinto my lineup. During the last yearor so, however, I have found myselfplaying P-style basses more andmore. You could say that I amfalling back in love with the way aP-bass sits in a mix. What I amfinding, though, is that “a P-bass isnot a P-bass.” Though that singlesplit-coil pickup lends a certain“bark” – which is very distinct froma J-bass style “growl” – the point atwhich each split-coil bass crossesover from a more clean “bump” tothat signature “bark” can be veryunique. Levels of clarity andfullness can vary quite a bit, as well.

Once I plugged in the PB5, thatclarity and pureness of tone I heardwhen playing it unplugged wascertainly there, but I was surprisedby the fullness and volume. This isone hot pickup! If I didn’t knowbetter, I’d think that I was playingan active bass with a decent bit of

preamp gain going on. I foundmyself backing off on the volumeknob a bit to achieve the best resultswith most of the amps I used withthe PB5. But hey, that’s why wehave volume knobs, right? The PB5played nicely with every rig I put itthrough, but it really seemed to lovegrinding through a GK MB Fusion800 and Bergantino NV215. Mybandmates were wowed by both thePB5’s looks, as well as its tone. Italways cut through well in a mix,and really worked great with fuzzand overdrive pedals. In fact, itseemed to lend some coherence andpunch to the affected tone fromthese pedals which is sometimesmissing (or harder to dial in) withother basses.

To see just where the PB5 falls inthe “P-bass continuum,” I comparedit to the F bass VF4-P (alsoreviewed in this issue) and myLakland Skyline 44-64 Custom. TheCarvin was the most full-soundingof the group, the loudest of thegroup, and it could more easilyachieve the signature P-bass bark.This means that you can get somebark even when not digging in too

much. Of course, if you back off onthat volume knob, you can keep itclean, even when digging in.

The Bottom LineThe wide array of options availablefrom Carvin within the PB seriesmake it very difficult to assess theline by focusing on just oneinstrument. For our review bass, wewent “bread and butter” on thebasic specs, choosing an alder body,maple neck and rosewood board,paired with a single split-coilpickup, and no preamp. Thiscombination proved to be verycompetent, with a full tone, andsurprising volume. On the fit andfinish side of things, we pushedthings a bit with our order, and werenot in the least disappointed. Carvincan really dial in some drop-deadgorgeous instruments, and this iscertainly one of them. With adifferent configuration on the BassBuilder, you could dial in adramatically different instrument,but I am confident that the CarvinPB has “good bones.” Whatevercombination you dial in, I amconfident it’ll be a winner.

77bassgear

Carvin PB5b

ass

gea

rtest


SONIC PROFILE:Lows: Very full, nicely balanced to mids/highsMids: Easy to get classic P-bass bark; rich and fullHighs: Slightly rounded off on the high end, but plenty of clarity

In-handFeatures: 3.5Tonal Flexibility: 3.5Ease of Use: 5Aesthetics: 4.5Ergonomics: 4.5Tone: 4.5Value: 5


Everything you could want from a P-bass and more.Very full, very loud. This is a powerful bass!



TONE-O-METER

CONFIGURATION

Strings: 5Style: Double cutawayOverall length: 44 3/4”Body Dimensions: 20" long x 13 1/8" wide at lower boutBody Contouring: ModerateWeight: 8.9 lbs

NECK

Scale length: 34"Neck width at nut: 1.756"Neck width at 12th fret: 2.603"Neck width at joint: 2.850"Neck thickness at nut: .929"Neck thickness at 1st fret: .790"Neck thickness at 12th fret: .973"Neck thickness at joint: 1.121"String spacing at nut: .361"String spacing at saddle: .770"Fingerboard Radius/Neckshape: 14 deg/ wide flat DPeghead break angle: 15 degBridge break angle: 36 deg (through body)Afterlength at nut: 2.833" to 6.391"Afterlength at saddle: 2.279"Attachment: Bolt-onPocket gap: NoneTruss rod type/access: Dual action / peghead accessFret count: 22Fretwire: 100 x 50

ELECTRONICS

Pickups: Carvin SCP split-coil alnico V single-coilPickup location(s), from 12th fret: 11 5/8”Electronics: None (passive)Controls: Volume, passive toneShielding: FoilPreamp Circuit Voltage: N/A

CONSTRUCTION

Body woods: Alder (quilt maple top)Neck woods: MapleFretboard: RosewoodBody finish: Gloss Neck finish: Tung oil

HARDWARE

Strings: Carvin stainless steel roundwoundGauge: .040, .060, .080, .100, .128Attachment: At bridge, or through-bodyBridge/color: Carvin / black Nut: Graphite-teflonTuners/color: Carvin / blackKnobs/color: Metal / blackPickguard: White pearloidControl cavity cover: N/A (under pickguard)

GENERAL

Company: Carvin Corporation12340 World Trade DRiveSan Diego, CA 92128http://www.carvinguitars.com

Country of origin: USAWarranty: 5 years parts and labor – original ownerDirect Price: $1,408Options: Too numerous to listAccessories: Black Ultimate soft case, black tolex wide hardshell caseAvailable colors: Too numerous to list

Acquired from: Carvin Dates: December 2013 to February 2014Locales: OhioTest gear: GK MB115, GK MB Fusion 800, Mesa/Boogie Titan V-12,

Ampeg SVT-7Pro, Bergantino NV215, Bergantino 15/6,TecAmp Puma 900, TecAmp S212,Lakland Skyline 44-64 Custom, F bass VFP-4.

BASS LABPhil Maneri’s

Carvin PB5position. The cavity has a lovely foilshielding job on it, but the pickguardthat seals the top has almost nothing onit. I believe that if you are going to doshielding, it should be complete. Apartial shielding job can be worse thannone at all, in some circumstances.

I also take issue with the exposedfloating ground wire. The ground wirefrom tone knob to volume knob is asingle thick exposed metal that is notanchored anywhere but the pot cases.It’s long enough to bang into the hotleads of the pots, which are alsoexposed. In addition, there is a randomground wire soldered right in themiddle of this, like it’s on a trapeze.While this layout may work fine formany shows, over time, I’d beconcerned about the possibility of thesewires making contact and groundingout.

The Precision Bass has been getting abunch more attention this decade thanin several before. Most buildersfocused their attention on their take ofthe Jazz Bass until recently, as theynoticed more and more attentionreturning to the Precision. Now,everyone is taking a swipe at that elderdesign. This is Carvin’s 5-stringversion of a P-bass. Its overall layoutfeels very familiar, but it’s differentenough to be its own thing. It sports asingle-piece maple neck with arosewood board, bolted up to an alderbody with a figured maple cap. Dressedup in a nice blue burst finish andsporting big bluish abalone inlays, it’s apretty bass.

In keeping with the old school P-bass,the electronics are super simple andpassive; volume and tone with atraditional split pickup set 1/8” closerto the bridge than the usual late ‘50s

The Carvin locking bridge is a larger,boutique-looking thing with lots ofadjustment control. It can be strungthrough the body or as a top loader. The20:1 tuning keys are made by Carvinand seem fine. Carvin has always madegood instruments and the constructionhere is fine. It sounds like a P-bass(with an extra string); that’s good. Itplays well, and has great adjustability,given that the truss rod access is by thenut, rather than at the body (where youhave to remove the neck to access it).The B string was a bit unfocused atfirst, but after tweaking the pickupheight a bit, it dialed in quite nicely.For the price point, it’s a lot of P-bass(with a B string). A few electronicthings aside, it’s built better than mostthings in its price range; worth a look.

79bassgear

by Phil Maneri

NAMM is a mess. It’s over 95,000 people, all crammed into one million squarefeet of exhibitor space, with a constant 100dB+ racket that forces people tospeak too loud to each other within one foot, or less. It’s no wonder thousandsof participants contract the “NAMM flu” every year. Originally, the conventionwas an annual gathering where instrument retailers would meetmanufacturers and distributors to hammer out a year’s worth of purchaseagreements. Of course, over the years, it’s expanded to much more distractionthan that. Rock stars, parties, and demos by famous players all attract scads ofbeautiful people that pack the place with agendas far away from the guys insuits making deals.

Bass players have become as guilty as drummers in creating the raucous din ofthe show. Everywhere there was a bass and an amp, somebody was slappingthe crap out of it at full volume. Seriously, there just aren’t that many gigs thatrequire slapping to only showcase that one skill. Play whole notes atpianissimo if you really want to find out what a bass can do. Regardless of thedin, NAMM is one of the best places on the planet to see what people aredoing with instruments and gear. For a long weekend, that convention centerbecomes the biggest music store ever.

And boy did Bass Gear Magazine go shopping! We saw so much cool stuff, it’sreally incredible. Pedals are everywhere, and a lot of them are really great.Some pedal standouts we liked were from Amptweaker, EarthQuaker Devices,and Darkglass Electronics. Pedals become more and more specialized andsophisticated each year, giving bassists way more choices than ever to sculpt apersonal sound.

Also of note was an amp simulator from Two Notes Torpedo D.A.B. Althoughnot new, it’s got some great newer bass-specific sound models. Radialdemoed a newer Bassbone OD pedal that has similar function at a lower pricepoint. More and more gigs are moving to in-ear monitoring and stage ampsare disappearing. Amp simulators retain that great amp-driven sound outfront of house in a one-pound package and will become gig essentials in thecoming years.

ESP Guitars impressed us with their newly shuffled line of instruments, addingtheir previously unavailable in the US E-II line to the offerings in the States.They are now addressing every price between sub $1,000 to $4,000 withcompetitive offerings. Peavey and Carvin showcased entry level amp/cab rigsfor under $1,000 that knocked us out for the money.

The boutique bass builders in the high end of the market really showed theirprowess. The show was filled with great basses from Marleaux, F Bass,Dingwall, Pedulla, Spector, Zon, Fodera, and Sadowsky. If you can find yourway into that price point, there has been no better selection, ever. Marleaux’sDiva bass stopped me dead in my tracks, and I couldn’t put it down for a halfhour. Although boutique amps and speakers didn’t present near as many newdevelopments, they would have had difficulties topping the newest offeringfrom James Demeter. He mated his legendary original tube preamp with hisnewest class-D 800-watt amp in a small, but potent package.

Of special note was a changing of the guard at Bartolini Electronics. Thecompany has officially changed hands and the Bartolini family is moving into

consulting roles. The new owner, Clyde Clark, hasalready recharged the company and is clearlycharting a path that retains their legendary soundand construction, but makes them even easier toaccess in a 21st century world, both on the web andin stores. Bass Gear Magazine wishes Bill and PatBartolini well and thanks them for their trail-blazingelectronics work over the last 30+ years.

Thankfully, no one at Bass Gear Magazine wasafflicted with NAMM flu, however everyone isprobably going to need new shoes from all thewalking about. Next year’s winter NAMM challengeto all bass players – try going the entire showwithout slapping the bass at all.

Winter NAMM Show Report

80 bassgear

Fodera Monarch 4 Standard Fretless

Baer Amplification Valkyrie

Phil Maneri enjoys an Ibanez SDB3

Yamaha TRBX305

James Brown, Amptweaker, shows Tom and Vicsome new pedals

David Nordschow

81bassgear

1 2

ESP Stream basses in Exhibition form

Carvin Brian Bromberg Signature Series

Carvin B1000 and BX1600

Marcus Miller

Orange OB-1K

D’Angelico basses82 bassgear

Spector bass guitars

Fender Rumble 200/500Phil Jones Bass Big Head

Scott Fernandez

Fernando Jones at the Fender bass booth

Zon Sonus 584 bass

gear

Regenerate Guitar Works

Warwick Bootsy Collins Space Bass

Timothy Chan at the Mike Lull booth

DR Neon strings

Electro-Harmonix

Demeter Amplification

85bassgear

Radial Bassbone OD

Peavey MiniMega

Paul Reed Smith Limited Edition Grainger Bass

3 Leaf Audio

MTD 535

Mike Kinal SK5-B

86 bassgear

87bassgear

Reverend Guitars Meshell Ndegeocello Fellowship bass

Pedulla Rapture NPG

Accugroove cabs and Muckelroy basses

Ampeg V-4B

MoogerFoogers G&L ASAT Tom Hamilton Signature model

88 bassgear

By Tom Bowlus

Each year, we tend to agonize a bit over which products deserve a Best ofShow Award, and the 2014 NAMM Show offered many worthy contenders.Ultimately, the following six products ended up as the unanimous winners ofthe Bass Gear Magazine 2014 Winter NAMM Show Awards:

Marleaux BassGuitars – Diva 5-String Fretless BassWe introduced you to German luthier extraordinaire Gerald Marleaux back inBGM #9, wherein we compared two nearly identical Consat basses (one neck-through, and one bolt-on). His unique Diva fretless model is not new (wefirst pictured a Diva in our 2012 Winter NAMM Show report), and this bass hascertainly had our attention over the last several shows. This year in Anaheim,Gerald brought a particular 5-string Diva which really captivated all whoplayed it. The distinctive lines, three-octave fretboard, and exemplary toneand playability make this Marleaux a real winner.http://www.marleaux-bass.com/

ESP Guitars – Stream Series BassESP Guitars has had their own room on the 2nd floor of the AnaheimConvention Center for as long as I have been attending NAMM Shows. Eachyear, ESP offers up a feast for the eyes, with walls stacked floor to ceilingwith amazing – even audacious – guitars and basses. This year, ESP hasupped their bass game, with a new line designed by Rocco Prestia, and alsowith the Stream line of basses. The flowing – dare I say, sexy – lines of theStream bass are available in LTD, E-II, and ESP form, making this the onlybass model to be carried over to all three lines. The Stream bass plays great,looks great, and should appeal to a broad range of bassists.http://www.espguitars.com/

Darkglass Electronics – Vintage Deluxe Bass Pedal

3Leaf Audio – Wonderlove Evelope Filter and You’re Doom Pedals

Demeter Amplification – VTBP-M-800D Bass Head

90 bassgear

Demeter Amplification – VTBP-M-800D Bass HeadJames Demeter has been making amazing preamps, amps, DI’s, pedals andother goodies for decades, and is an iconic name in the world of bassamplification. Last year, he began offering versions of his 1U rack preampswith built-in 800-watt class-D output sections (we are reviewing one ofthese fine heads in this very issue). At the 2014 NAMM Show, James kicked itup a notch or two, and took the original all-tube VTBP-201 preamp and this800-watt amp and crammed them into this crazy cool, vintage-inspiredcompact head format. It sounds fantastic, kicks like a mule, and the formfactor is just spot-on perfect. http://www.demeteramps.us/

Peavey® – MiniMega™ Bass HeadWe have been “gently nudging” our good friends at Peavey to introduce acompact, lightweight bass head for some time. Instead, they kept crankingout killer tube bass heads and innovative modeling combos, so I guess wereally shouldn’t complain. This year, however, Peavey answered the call withnot one, but two lightweight class-D heads: the 400-watt MiniMax™ and1,000-watt MiniMega. As nice as the MiniMax may be, it was the sub-$500MiniMega which really had our jaws on the floor. Four bands of EQ, aboatload of usable features, and all that power in a compact, sturdy,attractive package seem to set Peavey up for a big hit with the MiniMega.http://www.peavey.com/

Darkglass Electronics – Vintage Deluxe Bass PedalUnless you’ve been hiding out under a rock somewhere, you’ve probably atleast heard of Darkglass Electronics. For a relatively new company, Darkglasshas reached a significant part of the globe in a very short time. TheMicrotubes B3K and B7K have attracted legions of followers (for good cause).Two new pedals (the Duality Dual Fuzz Engine and the Vintage Deluxe) madetheir debut at the 2014 NAMM Show, and after playing through their pedals,we knew we had to give them a Best of Show Award. Ultimately, the VintageDeluxe claimed top honors. It takes the tube-like overdrive of the MicrotubesVintage and adds a 3-band EQ, parallel output and balanced line driver. It’slike an SVT, a vintage overdrive pedal and a DI, all wrapped up in a neat littlepackage sitting on your pedal board.http://www.darkglass.com/

3Leaf Audio – Wonderlove Evelope Filter and You’re Doom PedalsNot only did 3Leaf Audio share a booth with Darkglass Electronics, it alsohappens to be the USA-based manufacturer for Darkglass pedals. 3Leaf’sSpencer Doran has been building amazing pedals for years, and has a specialpenchant for envelope filters (we reviewed the GR2 pedal back in BGM #6).The Wonderlove is the pinnacle of Spencer’s obsession with dynamicenvelope filters, and as the name suggests, it’ll nail Stevie Wonder’s HigherGround. The expression pedal input takes it even “higher,” especially whenpaired up with the You’re Doom “Dynamic Harmonic Device” – a unique fuzzpedal which generates vintage synth-inspired sounds. The two of thesepedals, used in conjunction, create such a swanky, fun vibe, that we had togive this Best of Show Award to both of them.http://www.3leafaudio.com/

ESP Guitars – Stream Series Bass

Marleaux BassGuitars – Diva 5-String Fretless Bass

Peavey® – MiniMega™ Bass Head

91bassgear

Measuring Burst Power

From The BenchBy Tom Lees

In this column, we are going to address the issue ofpower, and more pertinently, the concept of burst power.Let’s kick things off with some definitions. Here at BassGear Magazine, we use the term “burst power” to refer tothe ability of some amplifiers to deliver power for a shortduration at a power output level greater than theamplifier’s ability to output continuous power, withoutincreasing the distortion introduced into the signal.

There are many ways to define burst power, but we usethe CEA 2006/490A standard. The idea behind our burstpower test is to apply a 1kHz sine wave that is modulatedwith a square wave to transition between two main outputlevels. “Huh?” Think of it as a 1kHz sine wave that is atfull output level for 20 cycles, then the signal isattenuated by 20dB for 480 cycles. This pattern repeats asnecessary. Don’t worry if you do not fully understanddecibels; we will touch on that below.

Check this out; a 1kHz sine wave repeats its cycle 1,000times per second. That means that each cycle takes1/1000 or 0.001 seconds. Thus, our burst signal is atmaximum output for 20 ms. The signal then drops 20dBfor 480 ms. This pattern thus takes about ½ second, and itrepeats until our test is complete.

The key to our burst testing is that we establish a targetdistortion level that we are focusing on. For our purposes,we use the same distortion level that is chosen for ourcontinuous power test. This number can vary, dependingupon the amplifier we are testing, and is set to accountfor the intentional character of the overall amp. Forinstance, a tube amplifier may test at 5% THD+N,whereas a precise, clean solid state amplifier may testedat 1% THD+N level.

We then crank up the amplifier, such as by turning up themaster volume or equivalent, and apply our burst signal.The level of our burst signal is varied until we find themaximum output level at the target distortion level. Basically, we record the output power for each of the 20cycles that occur at the maximum signal level. We throwaway the first nine cycles to forgive amps for spuriousresults caused by initial transients, and analyze theremaining 11 cycles. The 480 cycles at 20dB down arethere to allow the amplifier some time to recover fromour burst before the pattern is repeated.

One thing to note right away: if an amplifier cannot burstfor the full 20 ms, it will be penalized by our test,because in our test, the last 11 cycles of the burst are themost important. Also, an amplifier that can sustain a burstlonger than 20 ms is not rewarded by our test.

Are you still hanging with me? Good, let’s move on.

Continuous Power is the maximum output level that anamplifier can sustain for longer than a burst. We say thisbecause some amplifiers can output the maximumcontinuous level for as long as the musician needs it.However, we are starting to see some amplifiers that kickin thermal protection right at, or just before the amplifierhits its maximum – in some cases, the amplifier can onlysustain its continuous level for a few seconds beforethermal shutdown kicks in.

We need to get one thing clear before we continue. Weare in no way trying to draw any correlation betweenburst power and amplifier “quality.” To the contrary, theutilization of burst power is simply one designconsideration that is factored into a particular design.Different amplifier designers take different approaches toaddress the problem of amplifying dynamic signals.

“Problem? I did not know there was a problem.” Well,there is and there isn’t. Let’s put some examples to workto show why we may care about burst power, andexamples why it may not be “all that.”

First, we need to create a fiction. I have a fictionalamplifier that is capable of an absolute maximum outputof 500 watts at 1% THD+N into a 4-ohm load. Using theformula:

P=V2/R (Equation 1)

We know that to squeeze out the maximum amount ofpower, our amplifier must supply a 44.72 Vrms signal at1% THD+N (or less) to the 4-ohm load. In our fictionalamplifier, any voltage over 44.72 Vrms will cause toomuch distortion for our example specification.

Take a look at Fig. 1. This is an oscilloscope capture of aslap line in E performed on our Editor-in-Chief’smodified Lotus bass (a fantastic-sounding instrument,IMHO, with a single split-coil P-bass pickup). Roughingthis out, it looks like the peak voltage is about 1.7 Vpeak, which occurs at about 2.8 seconds. Let’s also say

92 bassgear

Fig. 1 Lotus E slap scope

that most of the signal (excluding the peaks) falls under600 mV peak. It is worth observing here that the outputof the Lotus is asymmetric. For instance, the largestnegative going peak is about -1.5 Vpeak at about 1.15seconds and that peak occurs on a different slapped notethan the 1.7 Vpeak.

Getting back on track, for this discussion, we will convertour peak voltages to rms and say that our largest spike is1.7 Vpeak * 0.707 or about 1.2 Vrms. Now, to amplify1.2 Vrms to the maximum power of our fictionalamplifier, we need a gain of about 31.4dB, so we dial upour fictional amplifier to a gain of 31.4dB.

“Whoa, there! Weren’t we talking about voltages? Wheredid this ‘dB stuff’ come from?”

In amplifiers, it is often convenient to talk about levelchanges in terms of decibels (dB). The equation we usefor this is:

Level Change in dB = 20 log(Vout/Vin)(Equation 3)

If the result is positive, we call that amplification or gain.If the result is negative, we call that attenuation.

In this case, the level change = 20 log(44.72 (maxvoltage out)/1.2 (max voltage in))=31.4dB. Under theseconditions, at about 2.8 seconds into our line, we eekedout the ideal maximum 500 watts of our amplifier. Sweet.But what about the rest of the signal? Now, watch this.We said that the better part of this slap line fallssomewhere under 600 mVrms peak. The average isactually less than this, but the math is purely forillustration, so we pick this value for convenience. That isabout 600 mVpeak * 0.707 or about 424.2 mVrms. Now,the gain of our amplifier has not changed. So, applying again of 31.4dB of gain, we get a voltage of 15.8 Vrms outfrom our fictional amplifier. Hint: to get 15.8, useEquation 3 and solve for Vout.

Going back to Equation 1, we now seethat the output power of our fictionalamplifier at our new level is: outputpower = (15.8 Vrms)2/4 ohms =approximately 62 watts. Crikeys, thatstinks. Keep in mind that for the lowersignals, the output power is even less.

“But hey, we started out with a 500-watt amp. What gives?” I will tell youwhat gives … your bass does notoutput perfect sine waves at a constantoutput level. Now, in the context ofyour particular application, this may beokay. Alternatively, there could beissues of you getting lost in the mix.

Recall that a voltage can be expressed in at least four ways, including

peak to peak, + peak, - peak, and rms. For this simple analysis, assume

that a wave is plotted with amplitude on the Y-axis and time on the X-

axis. Further, assume that the wave is centered at zero amplitude (i.e., no

DC offset).

To find the peak to peak voltage, take one cycle of the wave, find the

highest point and the lowest point, and that difference is the peak to

peak voltage.

To find the +peak voltage, take one cycle of the wave, and find the most

positive peak.

To find the –peak voltage, take one cycle of the wave, and find the most

negative peak.

To find the rms voltage, first note that rms (root mean square) is

essentially the quadratic mean. The rms value represents the energy

under the wave and better represents the ability of the wave to do work

– in our case, provide power. To simplify our quick and dirty math, we

make a first assumption, that our wave is a sinusoid. The equation for

rms for a sinusoid is:

Vrms=1/sqrt(2) * Vpeak (Equation 2)

We simplify this to Vrms=0.707 * Vpeak. Note that this equation is

inaccurate for other waveshapes, such as square waves, pulse trains,

triangles, sawtooth waves, etc. However, for the fictional world of our

article, it’s good enough.

93bassgear

Burst Power to the RescueAssume that we change the design of our fictionalamplifier. Now, for a small interval of time (e.g., under 1second), we can actually exceed our rated 500 watts.After our burst time, we need to drop back down to the500-watt maximum to allow the amplifier time to reset.

“Great. How much ‘burst power’ do I need?”

Go back to our slap line in Fig. 1. Since we are in afictional world, I am going to assume that a user wants torun our average continuous level of 424.2 mVrms at ourfull 500 watts. To do so, the amplifier needs a gain of:

20 log (44.72/0.424.2) = 40.6dB

We can assume this is no problem for our amplifier, sinceour amplifier is fictional. But recall, our peak was 1.2Vrms. Now, to amplify that peak without introducingadditional distortion, we need an output voltage of 128.6V rms. That is over 4,100 watts!

Okay, we can play the same game for the walking bassline of Fig. 2. Since we are in a fictional world, I amgoing to assume that a user wants to run our averagecontinuous level of 247.5 mVrms at our full 500 watts.To do so, the amplifier needs a gain of:

20 log (44.72/0.0.247.5) = 45.1dB

Once again, we can assume this is no problem for ouramplifier. Here, our peak was 460 mVrms. Now, toamplify that peak without introducing additionaldistortion, we need an output voltage of 83.1 Vrms. Thatis over 1,700 watts!

I hope that you can see that the subject of burst power isextremely variable. For instance, the above examples arefor a single bass, a single musician and only twoexamples of different playing style.

Moreover, we have not even addressedhow we go about providing this extraoomph. What I hope readers take away,here, is that this is not a trivial task toask manufacturers to take on. Everyoneis going to have personal preferencesand approaches in how to deal withburst power. Moreover, the topology ofthe particular amplifier is going toprovide opportunity and limitation.

Real World ExamplesNow that the problem is framed, we aregoing to take a look at several realworld amplifiers that we have on handhere at the Amp Lab to see what theycan do. Note, all measurements weretaken with the amplifiers driving a 4-ohm non-inductive dummy load.

Take a look at Fig. 2. Let’s play the same game. We willuse the same fictional amp and the same real Lotus bass.However, this time, instead of playing a slap line in E, wehave a walking blues line in A, with some wide, ringingnotes, and much more finger finesse than thumb-thwacking action.

The peak note looks to be about -650 mVpeak, with mostof our notes around 400mVpeak (or less). Converting torms, we see that our maximum signal is about -460mVrms. To keep things simple, we take the absolutevalue and compute the gain that we need to get to thelimits of our amplifier. We need a gain of about:

Gain = 20 log (44.72/0.460) = 39.8dB

We can assume that the amplifier is capable of this muchgain, and we need to turn our amp up, relative to our firstexample with reference to Fig. 1. So, at about 700 msinto our walking line, we eek out our full 500 watts.Sweet.

Now, taking 350 mVpeak as an approximation of theremaining parts of the line, we end up at about 247.5mVrms. Applying our gain of 39.7dB, we get an outputvoltage of about 24.2 Vrms, or about 146 watts. Hey,that’s not 500 watts, but it sure the heck is better than 62watts.

“So what is it? Do I have a 62-watt amp, a 146-watt amp,a 500-watt amp, or something else?”

Well, the truth is, you have an amplifier that is capable ofproducing 500 W into a 4 ohm load for an input signal ata given amplitude. Thus, any lackluster performance isdue to the dynamics of the instrument and performance.On the other hand, that dynamic range is what contributesto the difference between “music” and sine waves. Assuch, we do not want to require that the musician changeinstruments or style.

Fig. 2 Lotus walk in A scope

94 bassgear

Example 1:Up first is a contender from the class-Dtopology. The character of this amplifierslanted on the squeaky clean side, so wetested the amplifier at about 1% THD+N.We measured:

740 watts; 1% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 680 mVrms 1kHz sin InputContinuous930 watts; 1% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 770 mVrms 1kHz sin Input Burst

The above suggests that with thisamplifier, there are about 200 watts ontap for bursts. However, with reference toFig. 3, it can be seen that the amplifier comes out of thegate swinging with nice, clean burst power. However,about halfway through the 20-cycle burst, the amplifierstarts to run out of energy. The burst drops off inamplitude, and begins to show signs of distortion,especially at the peaks of the last few cycles.

Example 2:Up next is a heavyweight contender from the all-tubetopology. The character of this amplifier slanted on the“tubey,” yet clean side, so we tested the amplifier atabout 2.5% THD+N. We measured:

275 watts; 2.5% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 120mVrms 1kHz sin Input Continuous370 watts; 2.5% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 135mVrms 1kHz sin Input Burst

The above numbers suggest that this tube amplifier iscapable of generating about 100 watts of extra burstpower. With reference to Fig. 4, it can be seen that theamplifier starts off strong, with nice, clean burst powerand maintains a consistent amplitude and distortion levelthroughout the burst signal. The last few cycles arguablyshow a little sign of clipping, but this is minimal. So,with a tube amplifier, we see less available dynamicpower, but the amplifier has the ability to preserve theburst in both level and distortion.

Example 3:Up next is a solid state contender. Thecharacter of this amplifier slanted on thegritty side for solid state due to sometube-like preamp character, so we testedthe amplifier at 1.6 % THD+N. Wemeasured:

400 watts; 1.6% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 120 mVrms 1kHz sin InputContinuous620 watts; 1.6% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 150 mVrms 1kHz sin Input Burst

With reference to Fig. 5, it appears as if our solid statecontender one-ups both the class-D and tube amplifier.Our solid state amplifier bursts at over 200 watts aboveits measured continuous power output. As Fig. 5illustrates, the amplifier maintains the burst signalthroughout its duration, with minimal drop off inamplitude. Moreover, the burst signal appears to remainsubstantially clean.

Example 4:Up next is another class-D amplifier, this time with a tubepreamplifier. The character of this amplifier slanted onthe gritty side, so we tested the amplifier at 6.6 %THD+N. We measured:

306 watts; 6.6% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 240mVrms 1kHz sin Input Continuous.398 watts; 6.6% THD+N filtered 20Hz-20kHz; 247mVrms 1kHz sin Input Burst.

With reference to Fig. 6, it appears that our tubepreamp/class-D amplifier can generate just under 100watts of burst power. The burst signal remains at aboutthe same distortion level, appearing clean and roundedalong the edges through the entire 20 cycles of the burst.However, the amplitude consistently drops off after theinitial burst.

Fig. 4 Example 2 tube amplifier

Fig. 3 Example 1 class-D amplifier

95bassgear

1 2 12:14

In our tiny survey, we looked at fourdifferent amplifiers, each with a differentapproach to burst power. We saw fourcompletely different results andcharacteristics. However, we also note thatindividual playing style, choice ofinstrument, use of effects, etc., can have asignificant impact upon what is required ofthe amplifier.

We have just begun the discussion of burstpower. There is much more to get into,and I hope to do so in future issues. At anyrate, keep on jamming and don’t get toocaught up in this numbers game. This stuffis fun for the academics and, of course, forpractice using that math crap that in schoolyou were convinced had no practical use.

Fig. 6 Sample 4 hybrid tube preamp class-D amplifier

Fig. 5 Sample 3 solid state amplifier

96 bassgear

Welcome to the table,“Luthier’s Roundtable”By Tom Bowlus

For this installation of Bass GearMagazine’s Luthiers’ Round Table, Iturn the reigns over to our goodfriend, Dan Lenard (of LuthiersAccess Group) – whom I would liketo acknowledge and thank onceagain for co-sponsoring our annualLuthiers Round Table GTG at theNAMM Show back in January.Once again, the Round TableLuthiers include (in alphabeticalorder) Sheldon Dingwall, HarryFleishman, Vinny Fodera, RandallWyn Fullmer, George Furlanetto,Mike Kinal, Kenneth Lawrence,Gerald Marleaux, CareyNordstrand, Michael Pedulla, RogerSadowsky, Pete Skjold, MichaelTobias, and Joe Zon. For thisinstallment, Vinny is joined by JoeyLauricella and Jason DeSalvo in thecrafting of the “Fodera response” toDan’s questions.

Here are Dan’s questions for theluthiers:

DL – Take two basses, alike inevery way, with the exception oneis headed and one headless. Willthey sound different? How andwhy?

Sheldon Dingwall – I have atheory, but it’s untested, so willback out of this one.

Michael Tobias – I have not made aheadless bass since 1991. We madetwo at Tobias before the shop was

moved to Nashville. We used theSteinberger hardware. We usedsimilar construction to the regularTobias basses and the same pickupsand electronics. I have not heardthem in many years, so recollectionwill be off some. If I remembercorrectly, the headless had lessdynamic range ... not compressed,but just did not develop as much.The response was quick. The massfrom the Steinberger bridge gavethe bass a good burpy attack. Themass and the lack of peghead wouldhave changed the way the bassworked.

Carey Nordstrand – Since Ihaven’t built basses that areidentical except for the fact one isheadless, I can’t really answer thiswith much insight. But I have somegeneral observations taking thedifferences into account as well as Ican. The headless basses seem to begreatly affected by the necessarymass of the bridge. It’s a lot likeputting a Badass on a bass. The tonegets more modern and wiry, with afirmer fundamental. I recently hadan opportunity to hear a folk popcountry track recorded with aheadless five and then a vP4. Thedifference was striking. The HL hada very modern, muscular, andpunchy sound that was very obviousin the track. I think a lot of bassplayers would probably havethought it was great, and reallywhat we strive for in modern basstone. The vP4, on the other hand, fitlike a glove in the track in a very

traditional manner – exactly whatyou’d expect. It was supportive anddidn’t draw undue attention toitself. Were I a producer, I’d pickthe vP4. The HL would haveworked much better on a jazz orR&B tune – something where thebass is expected to play a biggerrole.

Pete Skjold – I have made oneheadless bass, which was made forHipshot (who made the hardware).It was a 4-string, and it seems toline up pretty close to what MikeTobias has stated with his. I havemade other 4-string basses that werevery similar, in terms of the woods

98 bassgear

used; almost identical. There doesseem to be a bit less resonance incertain frequencies and an emphasisin others, like the upper mids;slightly compressed. Since the basswas a 4-string, it worked quite wellfor rock, and for slapping, too, butit definitely had its own character.Not sure how this would translateto five and six-string basses, orbasses with a different scale length.I have been doing a lot ofexperimenting with string lengthbehind the nut and behind thesaddle on various scale length, andthere is a lot going on, there. One ofthe things that concerned meinitially about a headless was thatyou lose some of that flexibility,because of the hardware. I theorizethat this would have more to dowith the difference in sound, evenmore than the lack of a headstock.Taking away the headstock is goingto remove mass from the neck, andthe whole instrument in general, sothat will have an effect. Whether or

not it can be discernedaudibly would take further testing,which I have not done, so take mycomments for what they are.

Kenneth Lawrence – Well, I havenever built a headless bass and canonly offer conjecture, so likeSheldon, I, too, will have to take apass. I would like to comment onCarey’s comment about thedifference in the recorded soundsbetween the headless bass and hisbass. I wholeheartedly agree thatyou can have a bass’ sound that istoo focused and “fundamentalheavy.” They stick out way toomuch in the mix (whether recordedor live), and to me, it spoils thesound. I remember hearing a 5-string Steinberger at a reggae gig,and even with that style of music,the bass was SO out front, it buriedeverything else.

Gerald Marleaux – I am sure it isnot easy for all of us to answer, asvery few of us would have built oneheaded and one headless bass usingthe same wood construction. Istarted bass building with headlessmodels in the ‘80s, and since then, Ihave created about 170 headlessbasses (4, 5 and 6-strings; bolt-onsand neck-throughs). Generally, Ihave to say that all of my headlessbasses are faster in attack, and I´msure it has to do with the shorterneck. A neck with a headstockneeds more power and energy forresponse. Headless basses have lesspunch in the midrange, are lessfocused, and the bass frequenciesare not as deep as headed ones. Butwith constructions and wood choice,we can compensate for theseattributes.

Randall Fullmer – This one iseasy. I have never made a headlessbass. It would be fun to pretend thatI know something about them, but Ireally don’t.

Harry Fleishman – I startedbuilding what I prefer to call “right-hand-tuning basses” in 1975.

International Musician describedme as a pioneer of headless, but Ithink the idea had been tried in thepast – if not on electric basses,certainly on other stringedinstruments. This humble brag isonly to point out how difficult it isto do something that hasn’t beendone. If you don’t believe me,check out E. Edgren’s patent from1900 that covers mulit-scaleinstruments, radiused fretboards,and gearless micrometer tuners! Oh,and there’s that Orpharian from the17th century with fanned frets!

The early “headless” basses of minewere ultra minimalist, so thedifferences were as much the resultof dramatic reduction in body massas of being head-free. Over theyears, I’ve decided that the originalreason for going this direction – toshift the tuning machine weightfrom the head to allow an overallreduction of weight – is still themain reason for doing it. Once youstart adding strings, even going to afive-string, the weight on the headgets out of balance. Newerlightweight machines help a lot. Thesecondary purpose in shifting thetuners to behind the bridge was toallow tuning while holding a notewith the fretting hand. I found thisreally facilitated tuning whileplaying.

I have converted a couple of bassesfrom headed to headless, but Ididn’t do any real analysis of thechanges. There were so many otherchanges at the same time that therewas no real apples-to-applescomparison. That said, they workedwell both ways, so I don’t feel thatone is superior or inferior. The onlyclear improvement was the way thebass balanced with and without astrap. If I had to guess (which is allit could be), I’d say that the feel ofthe strings in the fretting handmight be a little lighter for headless,because of less string behind thenut, and the sustain might be a bitgreater because of the extra mass atthe body where the string ends – if,

99bassgear

indeed, the tuning mechanism wasmore massive. The other factor thatmight affect tone would be thereduced flex at the headstock,coupled with the lowered mass atthe string anchor point at thehead. Again, only conjecture; butthat is our game, isn’t it? Asdesigners, not only builders, westrive to understand the effects ofuntried, untrue, ideas. However,again, we never have apples-to-apples comparisons.

Roger Sadowsky – Having nevermade a headless bass, I have todecline to answer on the grounds Imight incriminate myself!

Mike Kinal – Around 1982, I wastaken by the headless concept thatNed Steinberger was incorporatingon his basses. So, I thought I woulddo a few instruments, aside frommy regular model basses. Theheadless bass I built included aneck-through construction with ascaled-down body. What I foundwas the headless basses produced aquick response, but lacked theovertones and openness of theheaded bass. The headstock on abass, I feel, tends to act like a“mini” guitar body that gives thestring some overtones as it breaksover the nut.

Joe Zon – We haven’tfound any difference insound between our headedand headless basses. Thestiffness and rigidity of ournecks plays a big role in theconsistency of response andsustain in our instruments. Ican, however, see how thatwould not hold true with awood-neckinstrument. From myexperience in buildingwood-neck instruments,having a headstock, the sizeof that headstock (mass)and whether or not it isangled has adirect relationship to the

sustain and tonal characteristics ofthe bass.

George Furlanetto – Having builtboth, similarly constructed, headlessbasses have a stiffer string feel,have more compression, much morefocus and a thinner tone.

Vinny/Joey/Jason – They willabsolutely sound differently. Firstoff, they are no longer truly “alikein every way.” Any significantchange to the design of aninstrument – especially somethingas major as the difference betweenthe design of a headless and“traditional” design – will impactthe tone. Since we have never donethis kind of experiment before, wecannot speak with true authority onthe subject. That said, we haveexperimented with varying amountsof mass in our pegheads – both byaltering their sizesand by varying themass of the tunersthat we use – andbased on theseexperiments, wewould assume thatthe “traditionallystyled” instrumentwould have moresustain than theheadless version.

DL – Semi-acoustic / chamberedbasses: explain why they sounddifferent than solid bodies – inphysics terms (not bass lingoterms). What is happening?

Sheldon Dingwall – It reallydepends on where the chambers arelocated. I’ve heard chamberedbodies that sound really nasally, andsome of our early prototypes lackedB string performance in a big way.Currently, we chamber on the bothsides, plus as much as we can getaway with in the center. Removingmaterial lowers the mass of thebody and makes it slightly moreflexible. This affects the sustain andresponse, because the body absorbsand then releases vibration from thestrings more than if the body wassolid. Sustain is reduced slightly;the attack feels less immediate,especially when slapping; mids arereduced, but are slightly morecomplex – I interpret this as morepeaks and nodes. A chambered bassmay fill out a sparse mix better, buta solid will cut through a dense mixbetter.

Michael Tobias – I have madequite a few chambered basses,starting back in 1979. I was tryingto change the response andexperimenting quite a bit with thechambers. On the early basses, whatI noticed was that the bass wasmore open and slightly less focused.Sustain was slightly less, too. Thedifference was similar to thatbetween a Les Paul and a 335;rounder tone and less bite in the

100 bassgear

upper end. I think that still stands. Istarted making chambered bassesagain a few years ago. A friend wasplaying in a Brazilian band, and theleader wanted him to play anupright. He did not want to, so webuilt him a semi-hollow bass ofsofter woods, with a very hardfingerboard, strung it with blacknylon strings and added a Ghostpiezo to the Bartolini system. Thatseemed to satisfy everyoneinvolved. The sound was similar toan upright plywood bass; verypunchy and warm, not too muchsustain. If you swap out thetapewound strings for roundwounds, the voicing gets back intoour regular MTD range. It is justwarmer and smoother. The basses Ihave made this way vary in woodcombinations. The response ingeneral can be categorized the sameway. Whatever the wood voice is,the chambers have a similar effect.

Carey Nordstrand – I have notmade many chambered basses. Mygeneral perception is that they havea quality that is more akin to anacoustic guitar. More open in themids, with less definition andpunch.

Pete Skjold – I have to agree withthe basic points both Mike andSheldon are making here. Here iswhat has happened to me with mybasses, taking all that intoconsideration. For a very long time,I purposely stayed away from doingchambering or semi-acousticbodies. I didn’t like what I heardfrom other makers (as a bass player,I like a solid body tone better) andwhat Sheldon and Mike have saidso far confirm what I was hearing. Inow offer a chambered modelcalled the Catacomb. It is a muchdifferent from what most buildersare doing right now. The onlyreason I considered it was that oneof my artists, Damian Erskine, keptrequesting a bigger, fuller, warmertone. That wasn’t too hard to get,but he also wanted to keep all of themidrange intact. That was the main

issue. Hollowing out the bass, asSheldon stated, decreases the massand totally changes the way themids speak. You can end up with avery nasally tone, and that was whatI wanted to avoid. After thinkingabout it for many months, I came upwith a special chambering processthat retains the mid focus andactually increases the sustain quite abit. This is because the resonancegets recycled, due to thechambering method. Icouldn’t make the top and backvibrate like an acoustic instrument,but I could produce a sort ofsoundboard, internally, whichresonates and vibrates with acousticenergy, so it doesn’t lose sustain andactually adds a bit to the attackwhen the note is initially plucked.Along with that, I made the bodythicker, to keep the same mass as asolid body instrument, but make thesound more full. There are also thewoods, pickups and the bridgematerial to take into consideration,as well. I used a very resonant corewood. I have done several of these,so far, and they all have similarresponse – except one I did whereeverything was done the same,except I left the center (soundboard)out. The customer expressly wantedthat more “upright,” open sound inthe midrange. That is what he got.One thing which I really think

impacts the sound and makes iteven more different from achambered bass is a chambered basswith an f-hole in the top. To me,having a sealed top keeps more ofthe resonation going internally,therefore keeping the sustain goinga bit longer. Adding an f-hole seemsto really impact this, and thereforeimpact the midrange more, alongwith the sustain. I wonder if energyis escaping through the f-hole, sincethese are not actually acousticinstruments. I would be curious asto Sheldon and Mike’s thoughts onthis, as I have very limitedexperience with f-holes on mybasses, but I have played bothSheldon’s (with an f-hole) andMike’s (without), so I am curious ifthey can confirm/clarify my thoughton this.

Kenneth Lawrence – I have twomodels that I build that have hollowchambers. One that is primarily afretless, bolt-on neck, double-cutaway with a wooden bridge(w/piezo saddles) and a woodentailpiece. With that design, I’m aftera more “upright” type of sound, sothe common observation/commentsfrom Sheldon, Mike and Pete holdtrue here about the slightly morepronounced mids. The design withthe wooden bridge (ebony) andextended anchor length to the

101bassgear

(again, ebony) tailpiece help bringback the attack and presence of thelower notes. Of course, the woodsin the body/top do play a role, but Ifind these have a pretty consistentsound and a very musical sustain.

My other chambered design is asingle-cut, glue-in that more often isfretted and has a traditional bridge.The length of my upper bout, theshape of the chambers, the bridgematerials, the body and top woodsinvolved, and especially the “heelplate” (a laminate placed betweenthe neck and the body wood in theneck pocket; much like Fodera’stransition piece), all help me tostrengthen the fundamental andbalance the rest of the frequencyrange. One point: both of thesedesigns employ sound holes, andsince I haven’t built the samedesigns without the sound holes forcomparison, I can’t comment onthat (I will give that some seriousthought though, Pete. Cheers!).Overall, though, the generalconsensus of a more “open,”“organic,” “airy,” “wood-y” soundis what I find I get from chamberinga bass, and I find it very appealing.

Gerald Marleaux – To chamber ornot is one parameter to consider

when we create basses. It’s true thatyou will lose sustain and weight. Ican´t say what happens, physically,but for sure the sound of solidbasses comes closer to an acoustictimbre with chambering. Last year, Ibuild a special 7-string bass for afriend. It was neck-through (only onlow-string side; we open the neckon the high-string side), with amaple body and a spruce. The low-string body wing was hollow, like aviolin, and the high-string bodywing was solid. The idea was a mixof acoustic and solid instrument. Iwas really surprised how great thisbass sound was: woody, warm, fastin attack, and amazing sustain – lowstrings sound like a grand piano,maybe of the mass from big neck.It was totally different from all myolder experiences with chamberedor semi-acoustics.

Randall Fullmer – Seems to methat the hollow or chamber is like aspeaker. If your top is arched, therewill be more of a focus, moreprojection, than if it is flat. Thebridge sitting on the wood istransferring the vibrations of thestrings to the top. The chamber,especially with an f hole, is pushingair from the vibration of the top,back and sides and amplifies thesound. What I have found is thatchambering opens the sound a bitand, for me, allows one to hearmore of the wood in the tone. But ifI have thick back, sides and top, theeffect – even with f holes – isn’tgoing to add much volume to theinstrument in fully acoustic mode.When the top is thinner and can actmore like a membrane than a solid,then the volume picks up. I havemade probably a dozen basses withchambers and several hollow-bodyregular guitars. I notice whateveryone else has said. A bit lesslow bass. A bit less sustain. Themids are less solid and theinstrument, overall, is less focused.On the plus side, I have gotten apleasing, rounded, mellow tonewhere I really can hear the wood.As is usually the case, I have never

A/B’d the instruments with acompletely solid bass of the exactsame materials to tell thedifferences in an absolute way.

Harry Fleishman – My experiencewith chambering is really more ofhollowing out under the bridge onultra-light fretless basses to movetheir voice more to the uprighttone. I have little experience withwhat most builders might callchambering. I do, however, reallylove building very lightweightbasses, and chambers are one wayto get there. Early on, I probablycrippled a lot of bassists withmassive instruments, thinking it wasthe way to big tone. Having builta solid ebony 6-string bass withright-hand tuning, I can attest to itshuge sound and frighteningsustain. The only problem was thatits weight precluded most mortalsfrom playing it. I built it for aweight lifter, who had no problemwith the weight. I, on the otherhand, couldn’t even play it sittingdown without my leg losing feeling.

Lightweight basses have a verydifferent kind of sustain: morelively, but less profound. They arevery sensitive to their environment,and can gain sustain from carefulplacement of the amp – more like aguitar getting feedback, but in asimpler, subtler, more controlled

102bassgear

way. I suspect, but have noevidence, that chambered bassesmay act in a similarmanner. Surprisingly, whileguitarists are embracing lightweightguitars for their feel and tone, fewerbassists seem to appreciate thisbenefit. Perhaps bass players are thewide receivers of music, willing tosacrifice themselves for their art,suffering the long-term problemsassociated with heavy basses.

I’m an anti-purist, preferring to getextra depth via EQ, and moresustain via compression, if I needit. That said, as usual, I buildtoward what I believe my customerwants, since I only have one at atime to deal with. When I design forother companies, I design what Ithink they will succeed with.Sometimes that turns out verywrong. Jackson customers wereclearly not accepting a 5-pound bassthat didn’t look “metal,” even if thegoal of hiring me was to expandJackson’s audience.

Roger Sadowsky – I have onlymade chambered basses withoutsound holes. I began to chamber asa means of weight reduction about15 years ago when I had troublefinding suppliers who could supplylighter-weight alder and ash. Since1982, I have been advocating thatthe better a solid body instrumentsounds acoustically, the better itsounds amplified. The feedback Ihave received since I beganchambering confirms that many ofmy players agree with this.Obviously, there are many who stillthink a 10 to 11-pound bass soundsbetter than an 8-pound bass ... andthere are plenty of heavy bassesavailable for them. But it isamazing how one pound can make adifference in playing a 2 to 3-hourgig.

I try to keep my solid body basses(my MetroLine) in the 8.5 to 9.5-pound range. My chambered NYCbasses run from 7.5 to 8.5 pounds. Ido not feel my lightest instruments

suffer tonally compared to myheavier ones. In a nutshell, I feel mychambered instruments sound moreopen and resonant, with morecharacter.

Mike Kinal – The big differencebetween the semi-acoustic andchambered bass are how the air iscontrolled or isolated. Bychambering a solid body, you lockthe air inside the instrument, whichgives the sound of the note a softertone, with less punch and focus. Thesemi-acoustic I’ve found takes thatsound a little further, with more airmovement creating a more uprighttone – again, with less punch,sustain and focus.

Joe Zon – We have built chamberedwood-body basses and semi-acoustic basses where the back andsides are composite, witha “floating” spruce or maple top;both types having compositenecks. Randall gave a verygood explanation as to what isgoing on, so I won’t delve anyfurther. I will say, that despite ourdifferent neck construction and theaforementioned consistency weexperience in our instruments due tothose materials, we have had similardifferences in tone between solid,chambered and semi-acousticbodies, as found with their wood-neck counterparts. Chambering thebass can “open up” the acoustic sideof the instrument a little bit,depending on how muchchambering is done. Likewise, itcan cause the voice to lose a littlefocus, in relation to a solid body,but not enough to be a detriment tothe overall sound. With the semi-acoustic, having the sides and backmade of a thin composite, the bodyacts like more of a speaker cabinet,causing the top vibrate in a way thatprovides greater volume, yetretaining more focus than achambered body.

George Furlanetto – Chamberedbasses have a bigger tone,acoustically louder, less mids, and a

quicker attack. This is due to a“box” vibrating more easily andquickly to string vibrations than asolid block of wood would.

Vinny/Joey/Jason – We areanswering this with the assumptionthat the chambered bass is simply asolid body electric bass guitar thathas had some internal body woodmass removed (i.e. it is chambered,and NOT a true hollow/acousticinstrument). Here at Fodera, we usethis technique more for reducingweight than we do for altering tone.That said, by reducing the mass ofthe body, the resonant frequenciesof the instrument do change. From aphysics perspective, rather thansound waves passing unimpededthrough a constant medium (i.e.wood), they end up being attenuatedas they transfer their energy fromwood to air and then back to woodagain. We have noticed that thisends up making the bass responseof an instrument with chamberingsound ever-so-slightly boomier. Themagnitude of this change in tonewill vary depending on the densityof the wood that was removed.

DL – Why / when should a playerconsider purchasing a custombass vs. a mass-produced bass?

Sheldon Dingwall – When a playercan’t find what they want in a mass-produced bass, it’s time to look intocustom.

Michael Tobias – I agree withSheldon. When you can no longerfind what you want from a mass-produced bass, you should look fora custom instrument.

Carey Nordstrand – I think buyinga custom bass becomes a good ideawhen a player wants to havesomething that personally appeals tothem, not only in terms of tone, butalso mainly in terms of appearanceand feel. Picking out woods andpickups and dimensional specsreally gives a player the opportunityto tailor the bass specifically to their

103bassgear

desires. Hopefully they really knowwhat they want, because it can beexpensive to not get it right.

Pete Skjold – I agree with Sheldonand Mike on this one, too. I will addthough that it is important to findthe right custom builder for you.Some builders have spent a careerhoning and refining a set designwhich may or may not be right foryou. This is a very personal thing. Iwould start with these builders first,as the variables have probably beenworked through and the buildersbeliefs and concepts have beenrealized in a final, tested product. Ifyou feel you need something evenmore custom, then there are thosebuilders who can do anything yourheart desires, but if it is somethingthey have never done before, youare both entering into unknown

results. Main thing is to take yourtime and research potential builders.More so to find out what it is YOUneed from a custom bass before youtalk to a builder. Know what kind ofmusic you will be playing with it.Know what type of technique youwill be using on it. Know howmuch you’ll have to spend on it. Tryas many as you can. Finally, trustyour luthier to guide you throughthe process. This is how we makeour livings, and one builder may gettotally different results from similarmaterials because of the way we do

other things. When you havedetermined all this, and productionbasses aren’t giving you all youwant, then it is time for a custombass.

Kenneth Lawrence – This is onethat we will most likely all agreeon. I feel it’s important for a playerto be somewhat developed beforeconsidering a custom instrument, sothat the builder and the player canintelligently arrive at the bestinstrument for that player. Anexception to that would beencountering a custom builder’sinstrument that is already built andmaking a connection to that. Earlyon, I turned away brand newplayers because I didn’t feelconfident to make all of thedecisions for them. I didn’t think itwas ethical then, and I still don’t.

I also have that “old school” ideathat you should have a fairly“funky” bass early on, so when youdo get on a better instrument, thatrevelation is that much moreprofound. That was my experience,and when I did play on a betterbass, the growth (and pure joy ofplaying) was pretty special.

Gerald Marleaux – What we all dois to think about what we do. Wethink about different constructions,wood combinations, pickups andelectronics, better playability, better

ergonomics, etc, to get experiencefor building the best basses and tooffer the best for our customers.What we all do is not only aproduct! When a customer holds acustom-made bass in his hand, I amsure he feels the differencecompared to mass production.

And the best is: if Michael Tobiasbuilds a bass: swamp ash / maple,bolt-on, ebony fingerboard ... andMichael Pedulla builds the samething ... both basses will sound andfeel different. It’s the WAY we eachdo it. So, we all can do the samething, but the result will be alwaysdifferent. If the customer is ready toget a unique bass, he has to gocustom!

Randall Fullmer – A custom bassis absolutely going to cost moremoney – and often a lot moremoney – than a production bass, sothere should be a good reason ortwo or three to take the plunge. Firstoff, is fit. I find a lot of players whohave small hands, or short arms, orfor whatever reason just have a hardtime finding a bass that they feelergonomically comfortable with. Imake five scale lengths and quite anumber of string spacings to do mybest to accommodate. Secondly, if aplayer wants a truly unique bass, aone-of-a-kind shape or woodcombination. Thirdly, if they findelements that they like, such as thetone from this bass, the neck on thatbass, this one for the weight of it,and that one purely for looks. If youcan truly articulate what you’regoing for, there’s a chance to put itall together in one custom bass. Akey to this, of course, is to come tothe luthier with a well thought-outgoal and examples of basses thataccomplish aspects of what you’relooking for. And the final reason isthat you’ve wanted a “customsomething” your entire life, your401K is burning a hole in yourpocket, and your wife won’t let youbuy a boat!!

104bassgear

Harry Fleishman – I agree withSheldon’s answer to this, but wouldadd that there are so many goodbasses available off the shelf –including basses from many on thispanel – that very few players need acustom bass. That doesn’t meanthey don’t want them. Lucky forthose of us who design custombasses, they do want them.

A custom bass can inspire in manyways, from its aesthetics, feel, tone,vibe, to the potential for numerousstrings, string spacings, scalelengths, pickup choices, weight orlack thereof, finishes, woods,bragging rights (oh yeah, braggingrights), and the incalculable valueof working with a luthier to create adream brought real. All that said,I’m always amazed and gratefulwhen a musician takes the leap andtrusts me to build their dream.

For many bassists, a custom bassmeans a greater attention to detailthan an off-the-shelf bass cangive. The article about theFodera/Jackson bass was a greatexample of the best reasons for acustom bass. Fodera providedsomething unique, with a level ofdetail unimaginable to mostmusicians. Working so closely withAnthony Jackson, including hisdirect input, would only be possibleon such a custom level.

When I started designing andbuilding basses, I only made 5-string fretless, longer-scaleinstruments, though each wasunique. There just weren’t many ofthose type instruments available, soif a bassist wanted that, they had togo custom. My start as a buildercame because what I wanted was anelectric upright, fretless, that I couldwear and bow and move aroundwith. If I hadn’t built it, I wouldhave had to find a custombuilder. Good luck with that in1969!

Michael Pedulla – I would suggestthat a player try good quality high-

end basses when they are ready toexplore their art with the ability andtechnique to see, feel and hear thedifferences.

Roger Sadowsky – One thing I donot do is make “custom basses.” Ihave always found that process toostressful for both me and thecustomer. There is the potential fora lot of unfulfilled expectations onboth sides. What I do is have a lineof models that I have designed andrefined over the years and a menuof options, including wood choices.My clients come to me when theyhave reached the limits of what theycan get from large companies,especially in regard toworkmanship. I also stronglybelieve that a builder should have a“point of view.” I do not understandbuilders who offer any wood,pickup or preamp a customer wants.The builder should have a voice,feel and look that is an expressionof who they are. I would say thateveryone in this group has theirown “point of view.”

Mike Kinal – A player wouldconsider a custom bass over a mass-produced bass when he is searchingfor that special instrument that isright for his hands, ears andpocketbook.

Joe Zon – I don’t subscribe to theidea that a “custom bass” should becustom, in the sense that the playergets to choose all the materials andcomponents for the bass desired. Ifeel that is a recipe for disaster,which with some players, can leadto endless tail chasing and result ina bass not sounding anywhere nearwhat the player wants. To me,basses can be much like wine. Asthere are many different basses,there are many different wines.Let’s take a cabernet for example.When you open that bottle, you areenjoying the experience and craft ofa vintner who knows the nuances ofthe terroir, the fruit and how toblend them in a way that the winewill exhibit the best characteristics

of those elements. That same ideaapplies to the boutique basses we allin this article build.

What the bassist is paying for in ahand-crafted bass is our experienceand talent of “blending” the variousmaterials together in way thatmakes each of our instrumentsunique to the specific builder, justas each bottle of cabernet is uniqueto the vintner who blends it. Thatsaid, there isn’t a “better,” just “different,” which provides theplayers, like the wine consumer, awonderful array of quality choices.

You can’t get those same qualitiesand personal passion from a “cookiecutter” builder, and that is why aplayer should consider a hand-crafted bass. As to when theyshould purchase a hand-craftedbass, it depends on the player. Amore discerning player is usuallyone of experience who can readilynotice the difference straight away.However, the benefits to purchasinga hand-crafted or custom bass earlyin one’s playing career are that youget a life-long investment in a bassthat you can “grow” into as yourplaying style matures and theexperience of a builder who willcraft an instrument that will becomeyour personal sonic fingerprint.

George Furlanetto – When aplayer decides they need somethingspecific that a commercially madebass cannot provide, that would bethe time to seek out a custominstrument. This could be cosmetic,special construction toaccommodate any physicallimitations (size, weight or scalelengths) or specific tone. At thispoint, some “homework” will berequired by the player to find aluthier whose instruments (andvalues) appeal to them. Playing alot of instruments from differentbuilders will determine what is andisn’t desired. The final step wouldbe direct discussions with theluthier to help determine thedirection of the build. The player

105bassgear

can refer to basses that were tried inthe past to describe the preferredtones. An experienced luthier canguide the player in design, woodselection and electronic choicesfrom the verbal descriptions theyhave given.

Vinny/Joey/Jason – Our answer tothis question would be completelydifferent for different kinds ofplayers – there is no “one size fitsall” way of answering this. Considerthe question from the point of viewof a thirteen-year-old playercontemplating their first basspurchase, compared to that of aseasoned veteran who is a composerof his/her own music and/or aprofessional performer – the answerwill be very, very different. On itsmost general level, however, thedegree to which someone requiresan instrument, or a relationship witha company, that varies from what istypically available in the mass-produced space should be thedetermining factor. That said, someof the less immediately apparentreasons for working with a custombuilder that we would like tohighlight are:

1. When purchasing aninstrument from a well-managed custom builder,you are, first and foremost,entering into a long-termrelationship with someonethat is going to work tounderstand your needs andaspirations as a player anddevelop an instrument that is(hopefully) perfect for you.At Fodera, we spend just asmuch time, money andeffort building the humanrelationships with ourplayers as we do buildinginstruments. You simplycannot get that when buyinga mass-produced bass.

2. Oftentimes, purchasing aninstrument made by a topcustom builder can actuallybe less expensive in thelong-run than cycling

though multiple, successive mass-produced instruments in the searchfor “the one.” As custom builders,we offer virtually limitlesscombinations of options (woods,scale length, string spacing, bodyshape, neck shape, pickups,electronics, set-up, etc.) that help toensure that the first bass we end upbuilding for a customer has a veryhigh probability of being “the one.”In the very rare case where wedon’t get it right the first time,because of our focus on building

long-term relationships, we willeither modify or replace the custominstrument at no additional cost tothe customer.

3. It’s a lot of fun. Working throughthe process of building aninstrument designed completelyaround your needs and wants (asopposed to trying to conform to aset of one-size fits all specs) can beincredibly rewarding an exciting inand of itself. It requires that weunderstand ourselves as players andpeople. It requires us to start to askwhy we play the way we do, whatwe like and what we don’t like. Itrequires that we make choices, andthen, we get to watch those choicesget turned into an instrument thathelps us to better express ourselves,literally before we even play thefirst note. And, from an artisticstandpoint, a properly built custominstrument will become a lifelongcompanion that inspires ourcontinued growth as artists bygetting out of the way and allowingus to express ourselves more freely.A custom instrument – properlyexecuted and developed as part of arelationship with the right builder –is not merely an object. It is part ofour own journey as artists andpeople and, usually, a veryrewarding one at that.

106 bassgear

107bassgear

By John Cipiti

“Rock and Roll”as Term and Event

Where did the term “Rock andRoll” really come from? A betterquestion might be who invented theterm. “Rock and Roll,” as we havecome to define it, was coined byAlan Freed, a disc jockey on radiostation WJW in Cleveland, Ohio.Freed is given sole credit forbringing it to the collectiveconscious of an eager generation ofyouths who were in the beginningthroes of being swept away by theintense and raucous rhythm andblues music that was sweeping thecountry in the 1950s. Freed mayhave coined the term “Rock andRoll,” but roots of the “Rock” andthe “Roll” go back much further.

The word “rocking” was first usedby black gospel singers as early as1916 and was akin to the effect ofdescribing the sensation of catharsisor spiritual rapture. A gospel group,The Camp Meeting Jubilee,recorded a song that included thelyrics, “We’ve been rocking androlling in your arms … In the armsof Moses.” Clearly, the use ofrocking and rolling with regard toMoses had a spiritual connotation,and we can readily assume the ideacame first out of the gospel churchbefore the eventual secularizedconnotations we know today.

It was in the 1920s that “Rock” andthe “Roll” began to take on an overtsexual meaning. The decade saw thetwo words used separately or

together and be defined to meandisplays of rowdiness, partying, andsex; not necessarily in that order. In1922, Trixie Smith recorded MyDaddy Rocks Me (With One SteadyRoll) on Black Swan Records(Black Swan was the first recordingstudio and production companycreated solely for the productionand dissemination of AfricanAmerican music in 1921). A sampleof the lyrics are telling as to theevolution the term would take:“There’s no Slippin’ when he wantstake hold … Daddy, ain’t we gotgood / Oh, he was rockin me, withone steady roll.” Maybe it’s me, butsomehow I doubt Trixie waslooking for someone to rock her tosleep after the gig. The song wenton to inspire other songwriters tofollow her lead with song titles suchas Rock Me Mama by IkeyRobinson, and Rock That Thing byLil Johnson. Similarly, we maycome to the consensus they weren’tsinging about the chairs they weresitting on.

In 1937, Chuck Webb and EllaFitzgerald recorded Rock It For Me,and included the lyric, “So won’tyou satisfy my soul with rock androll.” The 1930s were also a timethat any music with a good steadybeat was considered to be rocking-and-rolling tune. Duke Ellington’sRockin in Rhythm soundedthroughout the nightclubs his bandperformed, Buddy Jones recordedRockin’ Rollin’ Mama and sang witha growling shout, “I love the wayyou rock and roll!” The BoswellSisters did a song titled Rock andRoll for the 1934 Hollywood film

Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round. Butit was not until the end of WorldWar II that the term “Rock andRoll” really began its strongfoothold into the vocabulary. In1948, Wynonie Harris releasedGood Rockin’ Tonight and wouldbecome a number one hit, thussetting the stage for a continuousflood of songs that seemed to makeit a mandate to include “Rock andRoll” in the title or somewhere inthe lyrics.

In 1952, Bill Haley’s Rock-a-Beatin-Boogie with the repetitive“Rock, Rock, Rock, Everybody /Roll, Roll, Roll, Everybody” lyricswould arguably become the mostintense use of the term up to thattime, and seemingly a pivotalmoment, with regards to otherinnovative gestures on the road toestablishing rock music as theclarion call for the exploding youthmovement.

In the same year that Haley’s Rock-a-Beatin-Boogie was released, AlanFreed visited the RecordRendezvous, Cleveland’s largestrecord store, owned by Leo Mintz.Freed, who joined WJW Radio theprevious year, hosted the station’slate night classical music program.Freed visited Mintz because he hadbeen hearing how rhythm and bluesrecords were being bought at afrantic rate by white teenagers – anunprecedented occurrence in theearly 1950s, since most R&Bcatered to African Americans, whilewhite America had remainedsomewhat insulated from this styleof music. Sensing a seismic shift,

108bassgear

Mintz proposed to sponsor threehours of late-night programming onWJW that would feature the hottestR&B music to hit the area in andaround Cleveland. Mintz convincedthe owners of WJW to give theprogram a try and immediatelyinstalled Freed as the program’shost. “The Moondog Show,” withFreed calling himself the“Moondog,” would cultivate a “hip”persona, where Freed began using avocabulary that included therepetitious use of the term “Rockand Roll” to describe the wild andfree sounds of the music hepromoted. Having coined the term“Rock and Roll” over the Clevelandairwaves, word would soon spreadto other radio markets in Americaabout the immensely popular show.Freed would eventually go on andtransform himself into the self-styled, “Father of Rock and Roll.”

As the audience continued to growover the next six months, Freed andMintz would often meet for drinksafter the show and discuss theburgeoning music audience inCleveland and around the country.According to some – I found thisdifficult to verify, but it makes forinteresting mythology, so I amgoing to run with it – Freed, Mintz,and Lew Platt (a local bookingagent and promoter) concocted aplan to do something that was neverdone before. Under the dreary dinof smoky half-light in a rear boothof a desolate downtown wateringhole (I’m stretching it a tad fordramatic effect), they came up withthe idea of holding a live event thatfeatured dancing, along with thehottest and most popular Rhythmand Blues artists that wereappearing in regular rotation on“The Moondog Show.”

Described as “The MoondogCoronation Ball” and featuring PaulWilliams and the Hucklebuckers,Tiny Grimes and the Rocking

Highlanders, The Dominoes, DannyCob, and Varetta Dillard, the eventwould take place on a cold Fridaynight on March 21, 1952. Thetickets for the 10,000-seatCleveland Arena would sell out in asingle day, and the event would godown in history as the first “Rockand Roll concert.”

Thousands of teenagers lined upoutside the arena, but somethingwas wrong with the energy of thefans that night, casting an ominousvibe. The crowd began to swell to afrightful level, and fans standingnear the front of the building wouldbe the first to sense trouble whenthe entrance doors had been locked(after having been opened earlier tolet ticket holders into the building).In the days following the concert,rumors would circulate that theshow was overbooked due to ticketcounterfeiting, with estimates of20,000 to 25,000 fans turning up forthe show. It took until 9:30pm forthe crowd to feel it had enough, andthen the brewing powder keg thatwere the fans waiting to get insideexploded. A mass swell of 6,000people rushed the building in atsunami of frustrated, cold, crankykids. They were said to haveknocked down everything in theirpath, racing past dumbfoundedpoliceman, who were hopelesslyundermanned, expecting the usualhockey-type crowd that normallyfrequented the arena. The crazedhoard of teenagers, pushing forwardlike lemmings over the cliff to thewaters below, ran past ticket takersand horrified ushers, who wasted notime in running for their lives. Thearena soon filled to the maximumcapacity of 10,000 people andcontinued to swell like a waterballoon left unattended on the faucetin a kitchen sink. Bill Lemmon, theexecutive vice-president of WJWRadio was said to be utterly“flabbergasted” by the images thatwere unfolding in front of him.

“People without tickets broke downthe doors, knives flashed … Wewere up in the press box and couldnot leave for three hours.” Thepolice and fire department gave uptrying to restore order one hour intoPaul William’s opening act set, andtwo hours after the initial rush,turned the house lights on, to thedismay of the crowd. The first Rockand Roll concert was called off. Bysome miracle, the crowd dispersedin an orderly fashion. They mayhave been too exhausted to dootherwise.

Alan Freed would offer an apologyto his fans that attended the concertthe following day on his radio show.He went on to explain that ifanyone had told him that 20,000 to25,000 people would attend adance, he and his fans alike wouldhave laughed and said they werecrazy. The Cleveland press wouldgo on to report that the arena crowdwas a “crushing mob of 25,000” ...“Hepcats (a term used to describe aperson who knows the newestthings in music) jamming everyinch of the arena floor.” It goeswithout saying that by today’sstandards, reports of unruly crowdsat rock concerts hardly cause anervous tick of reaction. We aremore apt to continue thumping ourbass strings, shrug, and hardlywaste the energy to say “whatever.”But in 1952 – in conservativeEisenhower-era America – when theestablishment would rather not havewhite teenagers know about rhythmand blues, the Coronation Ball musthave hit the cultural landscape likeone of those early ‘50s atom bombtests in the Nevada desert theydidn’t want us to know about either.Hmmmmm … loud explosions …Rock and Roll? Holy rock meMoses in that heavenly chair, we’vecome a long way!

109bassgear

In The DoghouseBy Chris Fitzgerald

Stand Down or Sit Up:Posture Issues All

Bassists MustDeal With

As part of this series on the “signalchain” of double bass amplification,this column has covered a lot ofvaried ground, from amps andpreamps, to microphones, speakercabinets, strings, and even down tothat part of the signal chain(technique) that comes before thefirst sound comes out of the bass.Today, I’d like to take a step fartherback and talk about an aspect ofdouble bass playing that, in a way,even precedes all of the above inthe signal chain: posture –specifically, as it pertains towhether we choose to sit or standwhile playing, how this affects ourrelation to the instrument, and whydifferent people choose to stand orsit.

One general observation I’ve madeover the years about bassists andposture is that on the whole,classical bassists tend to playseated, while jazz bassists tend tochoose to stand while playing (notcounting notable exceptions, likeEdgar Meyer and Gary Karr on theclassical side and Neils HenningØrsted Pederson on the jazz side, toname but a few). This observationis borne out by a survey of 520bassists conducted by theInternational Society of Basssists

(link at the end of this article),which reports that 86 percent oforchestral bassists prefer to sit,while 90% of jazz bassists prefer tostand while playing.

When I ask players, themselves,why this is so, the most commonanswer from orchestral bassists isthat due to their extensive rehearsalschedules, it is impractical anduncomfortable to stand for thatmany hours, so they developed atechnique around playing seated.The most common answer fromjazz bassists is that they choose toplay standing because they considertheir relation to the bass to besomething akin to a dance involvingthe whole body, and that sittingrestricts their movement, thusimpeding their time feel.

Both answers make perfect sense,and considering how many greatexamples of each there are(including the exceptions), it wouldcertainly be hard to make a case forone clearly being better than theother for everyone. Personally, I ama bit of an anomaly in that I am oneof the few jazz bassists I know whostrongly prefers to play seated.Further, I play from a position(discovered by accident) that tendsto remind people of the way acellist sits, since I sit on a low (24”)stool with the endpin all the way inand with the bass angled into mybody so that my knees are nearlywrapped around it. When peopleask why I sit this way, I think theyexpect there to be some complicatedtheory behind it. In fact, the truth isfar simpler than that. The realanswer is that sitting this way

simply feels right to me, and that ofall the playing positions I’ve tried,this is the one that feels like theway that my body wants to relate tothe bass to get the sound and feel Iwant.

Regardless of whether you chooseto stand or sit, there are severalaspects of relationship of the bodyto the bass that we must all dealwith. Some of these interrelatedaspects include:

Overall physical comfort and•alignment, especially as relatesto the spine, hips, and legs.Whether you as a player prefer•the bass to be able to movefreely, or whether you prefer tomove freely around a fixedbass.How to balance the bass•without putting too muchpressure on the thumb of theleft hand.How to brace the bass against•your body without damping thevibration of the back too much.Ability to reach and exert force•into the strings (right hand) andfingerboard (left hand) in a waythat feels natural both arco andpizz.

All of these issues are not onlyimportant issues to all bass players,but they are also extremelysubjective, and therefore personal,and will necessarily vary fromplayer to player. Clearly, there is awide variety of ways that bothstanding and seated players relate totheir basses, and many examples ofbassists who are obviously quitesuccessful playing from the position

110 bassgear

they choose to adopt. With that said,the list above provides some foodfor thoughts for all bassists toconsider.

There is an excellent blog by JasonHeath (linked at the end of thisarticle) which describes manydifferent standing and seatedplaying positions. So, rather thanrecap that information here, I’d liketo address some of the issues raisedabove, expand on them in a generalway, and describe how I deal withthem in my seated position. Beforeproceeding, I want to reiterate that Ido not feel that my way is the bestway for anyone other than myself.Rather, I just want to illustrate theprocess of dealing with general bassposture issues that led me to thisstyle of playing. Each player mustfind their own way according towhat works for them physically andmusically.

Overall Physical AlignmentWhatever playing position youadopt, realize that you are going tobe maintaining this posture forsignificant amounts of timewhenever you play. Given this, theposition should be as comfortableand aligned as possible. Start withyour hips and legs: are they more orless even, with the weight evenlydistributed, or is one leg extended ata different angle from the other withthe weight shifted more to one side?If the latter, this is likely to affectthe alignment of your lower back.Next, focus on your lower back: isit relatively straight and centeredbut still relaxed, or hunchingforward? Again, slouching forwardcan cause long term health issues.Many players who stand point tothese issues as part of the reasonthey like to stand while playing;they feel that standing allows themto adjust their posture andalignment regularly so that theydon’t have to maintain one shapefor too long at a time. For me, as a

seated player, I cope with this issueby sitting on a stool with a singlecurved rung around the bottom, sothat both feet can rest at the samelevel. This aligns my hips andallows me to keep my lower back ina comfortable position.

Fixed or Moving BassProponents of a bass that is free toturn cite the ability to turn andangle the bass to an optimal playingposition, depending on the demandsof the music. While this makesperfect sense to me, and I availmyself of it when I do playstanding, I prefer to fix the bass tomy body in a single position so thatit feels like a part of my body,because when playing this way, Ican always feel where everything is,without having to look. In this fixedposition, I can also find the perfectangle for the bass where I can reacheverything with both hands, withoutcontorting my body to do it.

Balancing the Bass/Bracingagainst the bodyEach player has their own way ofdoing this, and this is perhaps themost personal aspect of bass posture(refer to the excellent Heath bloglinked at the end for details andexamples). How a player chooses todo this will directly affect howmuch force can be applied to thefingerboard (LH) and strings (RH)of the bass without causing it tomove away from the source of theforce.

DampingThe closer to the middle of the backof the bass the body is touching, themore the body dampens the soundof the bass. For this reason, it isbest to keep the body contact closerto the edges of the back to minimizethe effect. In my posture, my bodytouches only the edges and theinside of the E side bout, whichdoesn’t seem to dampen thevibration of the back at all, that I

can tell. Before I found thisposition, I often had my left kneeagainst the back of the bass, whichmuted the back quite a bit anddulled the overall sound.

Limiting the use of the Left HandThumbPerhaps one of the most commontechnical issues I see in players ofall postures is the overuse of the lefthand thumb to either generate theforce to press down the string, or tobalance the bass. When the lefthand thumb is used to squeeze thestring, it builds up tension in the leftforearm; when it is used to balancethe bass, it tends to do the same,and also can put stress on themuscle between the thumb and thehand, and limit mobility andfacility. Freeing up the left handthumb and drawing playing forcefrom the torso is probably thebiggest reason I sit; when I don’thave to rely on the thumb to holdthe bass steady, I can exert as muchforce into the bass as I want fromthe larger muscle groups withoutworrying about it moving.

Whatever posture you choose toadopt, it can’t hurt to reexamine itfrom time to time in light of theissues discussed above. Keeping anopen mind about improvements,and practicing in front of a mirrorcan help each player spot tension inthe mechanism that we all rely on tomake music before too muchdamage is done. Be observant,listen to your body, and stayhealthy!

ISB Survey on Bassist Health:http://www.isbworldoffice.com/body-bass.asp

Posture blog by Jason Heath:http://doublebassblog.org/2008/05/standing-versus-sitting-for-the-double-bassist.html )

111bassgear

The Allureof Cheap

Philthy TalkBy Phil Maneri

American culture is obsessed withcheap stuff. I suppose economichardship drives part of this. Add theeasy availability of bargain-basement labor in other countries(exploited by huge importers) to thepost-WWII mentality of “I wantmore,” “I want new,” and you get apopulous driven to acquire lots ofcheap stuff. Somehow, the priorityof “quality” got tossed in the backseat to “acquisition.”

The musical instrument industry,from manufacturing to retail sales,has deduced this, and much of it hasmorphed from a marketplace ofexcellence to a marketplace ofcheap. Instrument makers haveresponded to this demand byimporting the most expensiveportions of instrument buildingfrom where the work and materialsaren’t as good, but are significantlycheaper. This way, they can selltheir wares for almost half what youwould expect to pay for their home-shop-made boutique instruments.Instead of rebranding these imports– like Gibson did with the Epiphoneline, decades ago – they lend theirhigh-quality name to the lesser work

in an attempt to tie these products totheir established offerings and gainmore sales from the association.

I think this is short sighted. It onlyserves to dilute the high-qualitybrand and rarely helps the sales ofthe imported instrument line.Perhaps in the beginning, peoplepay more attention to the instrumentbecause of the branding, butconsumers aren’t stupid; theyeventually understand thedifference. If they do so afterspending the money on the lesserproduct associated with your name,good luck getting them to everconsider your high-end productwith the same lofty esteem asbefore you diluted your brand.

I understand the “allure of thecheap” in the marketplace. Thereare more consumers and more salesavailable, and you have to feed thepeople who rely on you. As there isless and less pie to divide, the needto expand business into placeswhere you can gobble up a bit moreis crucial to long-term survival. Justtry not to cash in your establishedbrand to do it.

As a consumer, well, just stop it!Really, you don’t need all that stuff.How about we reorganize ourpriority around something other

than greed and gluttony? How aboutwe prioritize an appreciation of finethings? Instead of buying ten crappyguitars, that you can only play oneat a time, how about you just getone or two really good ones? Saveup for them. Suffer for them. Find away to support the guy who sweatsbullets to create them. He makessomething really special for YOU,not mass production of thousands ofthings for money. In the end, yourart will speak to that. If the toolsyou use are disposable, then the artyou create with it be, as well.Conversely, if you develop arelationship over time with aninstrument created by loving hands– with craftsmanship as its highestpriority – you WILL, in turn, creatework with loving hands that hasvitality and that lasts.

112bassgear

Upright PerspectiveBy Arnold Schnitzer

In my shop, I see many, manybroken basses. A lot of the problemswith these instruments could havebeen prevented by some simplemaintenance – and by being awareof subtle and not-so-subtle changesin one’s bass. There are severalthings a bass owner can do toprolong the useful life of his/herinstrument and to keep it soundingand playing its best. Here’s a partiallist, along with suggestions on howto do your best as your instrument’ssteward.

HumidityEarly in the 20th century, King Tut’stomb was opened after about 3,500years. The wooden objects found inthe tomb were in remarkablecondition, and their glue joints wereintact. That’s because thetemperature and humidity in theunderground vault never changed. Ibelieve I read that the conditions inthe tomb were about 60 degrees(Fahrenheit) and about 40% relativehumidity. If a bass (or other stringedinstrument) were kept in a non-variable climate like that, seamswould never open, necks would notcome loose, and weather-relatedcracks would be non-existent. Ofcourse, basses are damaged by otherthings, such as string pressure andaccidents, but for now let’sconcentrate on the issue ofhumidity.

In a temperate, changeable climate,your instrument will go throughnoticeable changes in bridge height,neck angle and soundpost tension. Itis impossible to prevent thesechanges, but by mitigating them,your bass will stay healthier andsound better. The biggest culprit is arapid change of relative humidity,especially from dampness towarddryness. For example, transportingyour bass from New Orleans(damp) to Phoenix (desert) willshock it and possibly cause somenew open seams, cracks, and a tightsoundpost, as well as dropping thestring height. Going in the oppositedirection will swell the bass, loosenthe soundpost, and raise the stringheight. This is of course an extremeexample, but spread out overmonths, this is what happens toyour bass in many parts of theworld that have distinct seasons.Exacerbating the situation is the factthat central heating systems,especially those that heat andcirculate the air in a building,remove a lot of moisture as well.

There are three tools every bassistshould have to help prevent majordamage in the dry months: 1) agood reliable humidifier; 2) a goodreliable hygrometer (a gauge thatmeasures relative humidity); 3) awell-padded and insulated cover,such as a Mooradian or Bobelock.Try to gradually wean your bassfrom high humidity to moderate asthe winter or dry seasonapproaches. In most areas, Irecommend a relative humiditylevel in the 35 to 40% range during

the dry times. Using a good paddedbag during transport and storagehelps, too. Sometimes, you musttravel during dry times, or play in avenue with very low relativehumidity. Fortunately, it usuallytakes a day or two for the wood ofthe bass to dehydrate, so as long asyou have been keeping theinstrument at 35 to 40%, it shouldbe okay. Providing your bass’ toptable was properly attached withweak hide glue, an occasional seamopening should be the worstdamage that occurs. Keep in mindthat the seams of a string instrumentare its “safety valves;” breathe asigh of relief when a seam opens,because this means you haveavoided a crack.

For those times when you just can’tget your bass into a humidifiedenvironment, you can help a littleby making a moisture diffuser.You’ll need two small zip-lockbags, a piece of string, two sponges,and a hole puncher. Punch a bunchof holes in the bags, then tie themtogether with a length of string. Wetthe sponges, squeeze out excesswater, place in the bags, zip themclosed, and drop them in the f-holesof the bass. Adjust the string lengthso they hang freely. This will help alittle, but will do nothing forhumidifying the neck andfingerboard. One last thing aboutwinter (dry season) humidifying;don’t overdo it! If you keep yourbass in a humid environment (say,50-60%), then take it to a rehearsalor performance where the venue hasforced air heating, the instrument

Bass Maintenance forNon-Luthiers

Part 1

114 bassgear

will be shocked and will possiblysuffer some damage.

Do plywood (laminated) bassesneed humidification? Yes, but it’snot as crucial, because the largestparts (the top and back plates) arenot prone to cracking. However,older plywood basses werelaminated with hide glue, and aresusceptible to delamination whengoing through extreme weatherchanges and dryness, as well asextreme dampness, which canreactivate and loosen the glue whichbinds the layers together.

Bridge PositionThree bad things occur when yourbridge slips out of position: 1) yourintonation will suffer; 2) the soundmay change, and; 3) the bridge isprone to warping. In an extremecase, where the bridge feet havemoved significantly in relation tothe soundpost, your bass couldsuffer a bulge or crack in the top atthe soundpost. In an extreme case,the bridge can topple; this usuallymakes the soundpost drop, as well.

It’s pretty simple to keep yourbridge in the right place. Start bymarking the feet of the bridge witha very soft pencil or china marker.Check the position of the feet often,making sure that they are straight inrelation to each other, and centeredbetween the f-holes on the bass’ top.If you need to move or rotate thefeet, loosen the string tensionsomewhat and position themcorrectly. Write down the exactdistance between the nut andbridge, measuring in the center ofboth, and check this length often. Ifyou keep graphite in the bridgegrooves, you will be able to easilyadjust the position of the bridge topwith a firm push or pull, usingseveral fingers on the bridge. Youcan also make, or have made for

you, a special indicator that fitsbetween the end of the fingerboardand the bridge top to check theposition.

Rosin on the VarnishWhen you play your bass with abow, rosin sloughs off the hair andfalls all over the bass, congregatingmainly on the top, bridge, and in thec-bout ribs. Rosin is a stickysubstance, and is made partiallyfrom tree-based materials similar tovarnish components. If left on theinstrument for a long time, the rosinactually digs into and degrades thevarnish film. The result is an uglymess of discoloration androughness. When it settles on thebridge, it adds significant masswhich can adversely affect thesound and response of your bass. Itis best removed right after playingby wiping the instrument down witha soft cotton or micro-fiber cloth. Ifyour bass has a significant rosinbuild-up, the task of removal andre-polishing should be given to aprofessional luthier, who may useboth physical and chemical removalmethods.

Nut and Bridge GroovesWhenever you change strings(which are best changed one at atime), it is a good idea to rub somegraphite from a soft pencil into thebridge and nut grooves. This willhelp with accurate tuning and willalso help to prevent stringsunraveling or breaking at thoseimportant spots. If you change thetype of strings you are using, payattention to the relative diameters ofthe old vs. new ones. If you installstrings that are thicker, the groovesmay be too tight, and this candamage the strings and affecttuning. If you have a questionwhether your new strings will workokay in the existing grooves, andyou don’t have sophisticated

measuring equipment, lay eachstring in its groove, pull it tight withboth hands, and work the stringback and forth, feeling for a pinch.If the grooves need to be widened,special round-bottomed files shouldbe used, and the grooves shouldangle slightly downward (towardthe string ends) at both the bridgeand nut, or a buzz may develop.When transitioning from thicker tothinner strings, you may need tohave the nut and bridge adjusted toavoid sloppiness or buzzing in thegrooves. Often times, it will workjust fine.

In my next installment I willdiscuss strings, fingerboard, seamsand cracks, edges and endpins. I’llalso take at crack at the dreadedemergency soundpost re-installation. Keep it Deep!

115bassgear

“Congratulations to the winnersof the Xsonics giveaway,

Steve and Mary Lovellette!”

James Demeter, Demeter AmplificationWith regard to Tom Lees’ comments in his AmpLab review about the “add on” wiring/solder, weuse a universal PC board and chassis, so the boardwill evolve in its next generation to have theseparts on it. Having built point-to-point for thirtyplus years, I see nothing wrong with doing itpoint-to-point wiring. It is just as reliable as anyboard wiring and gives you the ability to improveon a design at any time. The circuit shown wasthe /Amp mute time delay circuit – something thestock preamp does not need. I don’t mind seeinga bit of hand wiring. It shows that the builder istaking the time to improve his product at anytime and not wait unit there is a new productionrun of boards. As a small company, we do this allthe time. Many of our products start out as allhand-wired, and the boards are made when wehave great confidence in the layout. The VTBP-M-800D has a wired power supply board, andbecause of that, we were able to redesign it aboutten times to perfect it. We have also slightlychanged the HBP1-800D since the review unit wasdelivered. We now use aluminum covers, insteadof steel, which greatly improve heat dissipation.This makes the fan almost unnecessary. Wealways strive to make our products better.

Rob Elrick, Elrick Bass Guitars, Ltd.Passive mode on my basses is intended more asan emergency failsafe and as a bypass forrecording, which is why no passive tone control ispresent. I prefer toggle switches, too. Push/pullswere chosen for the Expat NJS as an aestheticchoice; also to further differentiate it from its UScounterpart, which does feature two minitoggles. As of 2014, all US basses now comestandard with the Vectra case; only Expat Seriesbasses now come with the Zero Gravity cases.

On Gold Series basses, a full-face top is notphysically possible as an option to cover the neckheel. For those who do not prefer that look, amatching truss rod cover can be made (for anadditional cost). Interestingly, it seems that mostpeople prefer the look of dollars in their wallet tothe look of a truss rod cover – which also makestruss rod adjustments more difficult to perform onthe fly. I do not recommend them for that reason;access is power!

Regarding the Bass Lab technical reviews, I’ve had

no significant failure issues with Switchcraft barreljacks. Perhaps this is a more common problemwith cheap Chinese jacks.

Shielding a control cavity in its thinnest areas,particularly underneath the controls (which is thesurface most likely to face potential RF signals), isthe most important. 90% of RF energy will enteran instrument from the front. The back of theinstrument and the edges of the cavity are lesssusceptible to interference because the thicknessof the cavity walls and their direction forabsorbing RF signals (while the instrument is inplaying position) are significantly reduced. Thereare also foil bridges between top and bottomplates for continuity. The proof that this systemworks is a quiet signal without interference. Thissystem of shielding is recommended by Bartoliniand endorsed by Aero Instrument, and has notpresented any complaints, comments or issue forme in over 20 years. Additional foil would offer noadded benefit to impeding RF interference.

Regarding the Expat New Jazz Standard, a varietyof pickguards are available. The single-ply blackpickguard is not the only choice available; simplythe one that came on the test instrument. Lumberfor bodies on all Expat Series bases is selected andsupplied by Elrick in the USA. Swamp ash bodieson 2nd generation Expat NJS basses (as tested)are one-piece swamp ash – a $500+ option frommany builders.

I did not experience any of the issues you remarkabout regarding adjustability of this bass. Thisbass was chosen at random from my inventory,and when it arrived back and was inspected priorto being shipped for exhibition at NAMM, the trussrod adjustment had left the neck with a severeback bow. When the additional tension wasrelieved from the neck, it was fine. I have had noissues with limit of adjustability with any ExpatSeries basses.

Michael Arnopol, Michael Arnopol SoundworksThanks so much for reviewing the MAS-210 Flex!As far as the thinning of the back panel, this isspeaker #2 of the 210’s. A bit of brain flatulence;the capacitors we need to use are huge. Theprototype cab had a capacitor that was 1/2”smaller in diameter. I opted for a bit pricier cap,but was unaware that it was bigger! I think thatthe small amount removed on this cab doesn’tpropose any durability issues, but all subsequentcabs have multiple smaller caps, so as not to havespace issues. One other thing worth mentioning,we are able to cross over to the mids at a lower-than-typical point, largely due to the use oftoroidal inductor coils. These are much more

expensive, but necessary to maintain the qualityof low end.

There are three layers of Duratex. It’s actuallypretty thick, as far as Duratex goes. I just try tonot have too deep of a texture. In my experience,the deeply textured Duratex traps a lot of dirt andcan look a bit funky. We’re looking into alternatefinishes. The best durability is the truck bed liner,but it’s very costly and adds a LOT of weight. Stilllooking and experimenting.

One thing that Tom alluded to, the measurementsare 1 watt at 1 meter. This is very typical, and I dounderstand that BGM has to maintain the samestandards of measurement for all manufacturers.Keep a level playing field. With the MVWspeakers, efficiency increases as more power isapplied. One watt brings very little of the rearwave into effect. Anyone that plays them noticesthat when comparing to other speakers at a lowvolume the MVW is less loud than, let’s say, a97dB efficient conventional speaker. As volumeincreases, they even out, and at highest volumes,the MVW will be louder at the same volumesetting. Frequency response and dispersion alsochanges as the rear wave is more greatlyenergized. There is a smoothing in the frequencyresponse and off-axis performance improves.

On the mid drivers, I’m using a standard speakergasket. Sometimes you have to just pry the driverup just a bit; it would have been fine.

Again, thanks for taking the time to review the210Flex. I’m happy to see that you’re enjoying it!

O Nedding / Shotgun W

A N D Y C I C H O Nwain Billy Joel / Shania T Twain / Shotgun W

NEW! -4BV

VNEW! V-212AAVSVT-

L L T O M Eon Ampegwho counts player is a bass g songs

, Andy conquers any genre and ck or country

-4B is the only amp he age. And the Ampeg V

arena-rattlinge and value-loaded combos to

eeling alright.”

I T ’ S S T I L L R O C K A N D R O L and history’s most enduring artist virtually every great Behind

to deliver the very best tone possible. Whether it’s pop, roc

delivers flawless tone no matter with whom he shares the sta

portable amazingly time. From to for perfection every turns

ou’ve got us fe SVT rigs, Ampeg will have your fans saying, “Y

Photo by Sandri

T H E R O U N D S O U N Da m p e g . c o m

echnologies Inc. All Rights Reserved.Copyright © 2014 LOUD T

ine Lee

1 2

FUNDAMENTAL

SUPPORTBy Tom Bowlus

Like all great countries, the UnitedStates has its national heritagetreasures. In the field of music and thearts, few such treasures can match thenational and global significance of theblues. The blues originated during the19th century in the African-Americancommunities of the “Deep South,” andwhile the immediate connotation is oneof melancholy and sadness, it is alsoone of the most empowering of musicalexpressions. But in a world full ofshortening attention spans andincreasingly processed and spoon-fedauditory “entertainment,” will the bluescontinue to hold significance among theyouth of today and tomorrow? Not ifFernando Jones has anything to sayabout it.

Fernando Jones is a world-class bluesaxeman from the Southside of Chicago,as well as a Columbia College Chicagofaculty member and Blues Ensembledirector. He taught himself how to playguitar at the age of four, but I first methim playing a J-bass at the Fender roomthis past NAMM Show, in Anaheim(check out the shot of Fernando in our

2014 NAMM Show Report story).Though he writes and performs originalcompositions across the world, and hasan amazing personal resume, Fernandowas most eager to tell me about a truepassion of his, the Blues KidsFoundation. The Blues Kids Foundationis a 501(c)(3) non-profit charitableorganization, established (by Fernando)to “preserve, perform, and promote theblues among America’s youth, parentsand educators under the tutelage ofhighly qualified instructors.”

This mission is accomplished in largepart through providing tuition waiversfor all student musicians who attend theweek-long Fernando Jones’ BluesCamp(s). These camps are designed forkids ages 12-18 who want to performand experience the priceless, culturalenrichment opportunity of the blues ina nurturing environment with like-minded others. Much more than just abig, prolonged “jam session,” Fernandohas developed a classroom culturewhich provides background informationon the music to be performed andfacilitates a hands-on, friendly,educational and entertainingenvironment. Individual student needs

are identified, addressed and supportedusing Gardner’s Multiple Intelligencestheory.

Fernando expresses his teachingphilosophy thusly, “As an educator, Ibelieve that goals set for and byLearners should be attainable. One’semotional and academic needs shouldbe catered to. In order for a Learner tosucceed, they must feel safe, valued,cared about, respected and protected.Most of all, they must feel that they cantrust their instructor/mentor. Learnershave to know that you want to‘understand’ them. My mama used toalways say, ‘Understanding is thegreatest thing in the world.’ She wasright. Those words of wisdom go withme into every teaching situation.”

The Blues Kids Foundation providestuition waiver scholarships to over 250music, dance and audio/visual studentsevery year. Participants must auditionto attend, and entry is competitive(though some openings for entry-levelmusicians may also be available).Audition dates and host cities are listedon the webpage, located atwww.blueskids.com. The Foundation issupported by fundraising efforts, aswell as by the philanthropic support ofFernando Jones, himself, as well as ateam of proud supporters. If you areinspired to support this noble cause,you can get involved by donating yourfunds, your time and/or your talents.Heck, if you’ve got the drive to do so,you may be able to bring a Blues Campto your home town! Head on over towww.blueskids.com to find out how.

118bassgear

issue14.pdf - bass gear magazine

Documents