Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 Bass Amplifier Review

Howdy!

Well, my latest Genz Benz Shuttle finally crapped out and I have given up on it. Seven year ago I said if I was happy enough with it, but that I though the Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 had a slight edge on tone. So... now I have an amp to match my two Aguilar 1x12 cabinets!

Aguilar has been making extra-nice tube bass amplifiers since 1995, and they have a reputation for high quality as well as a clean and warm vintage tone. The Tone Hammer 500 aimed to recreate this tone, but in a totally solid-state package; there is not even a tube for the pre-amp. By the way, this amplifier is essentially an Aguilar Tone Hammer preamp/direct box with a class D amplifier added on.

This unit is rated at 500watts at 4 ohms and 250 watts at 8 ohms, and it is very small, measuring 10" x 3" x 9". It is very light as well, coming in at around 4 pounds. Despite its light weight and small size it is very solidly built.

There are a few different controls on the front of the Tone Hammer 500, including these knobs: gain, master, bass, mid level, treble, and drive. Drive uses Aguilar’s Adaptive Gain Shaping circuit, which works by using the gain and mid controls to change the tone from warm all the way to overdrive. Also included on the front are the balance XLR out and effects loop jacks, as well as the ground lift, signal pad and a mute switch.

The back is pretty barren with two Speakon outs, the tuner out a voltage selection switch. Oh yes, and the power switch. I hate it when they put the power switch on the back.

I hooked the Tone Hammer 500 up to my pair of Aguilar GS112 cabs, one with a a tweeter and one without, and I am very impressed. I tested it out with my Nash P basses and my ESP 5-string, as well as some miscellaneous crap from around the studio, and I got some very tube-like tones out of it, and it is definitely voiced like the other Aguilar amplifiers I have played before.

With all of the controls set flat, it dis a wonderful job of reproducing the inherent tone of whatever instrument I was using at the time. And as I started to futz with the knobs (especially the drive knob) I was able to get a panoply of tones from it -- everything from an aggressive growl down to a warm and mellow purr. At high volume levels it never got very harsh, and I actually had trouble getting a high-fidelity tone out of it. They really did make this thing sound like a tube amplifier!

As far as volume goes, this thing is just as loud as my Shuttle, which was rated at 600 watts 9now it is rated at zero watts). I guess manufacturers can rate things however they want, but the proof is in the pudding. It is plenty loud for smaller shows or quieter bands, but if you are really going to crank it out and compete with the guys with the Marshall stacks, you will need to bring another amplifier or go through the PA system.

Aguilar’s is in line with the rest of the industry, and the Tone Hammer 500 has a list price of $999, and a street price of $749. I am happy with my choice, and hope that it holds up longer than the Genz!

Mahalo!

Review: 2007 Fender Precision Bass PB70-78US

Hi there!

This is kind of a repeat as I have two almost identical basses in stock right now, and I have been through quite a few of these basses over the years because they are consistently great instruments. The Fender PB70-70US Precision Bass is a very nice recreation of their 1970 model, and it was built with pride in Fender’s Japanese factories.

The PB in the model designation designates this instrument as a Precision Bass, the first 70 shows that this is a 1970 model, and the second 78 indicates that the original price was 70,000 Yen. That was around $590 bucks back then, which was a heck of a deal. Oh yes, and the US at the end of the model name means that this bass shipped with US-made vintage style pickups.

This one is finished in a silky Olympic White, which has yellowed nicely over the years. I have heard that the body is supposed to be made of alder, but who really knows? The body shape has the classic contoured P bass shape, and the neck is attached with a four-bolt joint. As I said, there is a US-sourced pickup, with the expected volume and tone controls. The hardware is the usual Fender stuff, with a three-layer B-W-B pickguard, a chrome four-saddle bridge, and the correct large bass Fender vintage-style tuners. I hate the Japanese basses that come with the lame small-base tuners. Boo.

The neck is not too huge, with a 1 5/8-inch wide nut and a comfortable shallow C profile to the back. The rosewood fretboard has white plastic fret markers, and a nut that might be a replacement. The neck is true and the truss rod works fine. The 20 original frets use vintage size wire, and are still nice and level with very little wear. To top it off, it has the correct big logo on the headstock, so this thing looks just right

It plays right, too. It is very well constructed, and the neck is very playable. I love the sound of it, and I do think the US pickups make a difference. I think that sometimes the Japanese pickups and pots are not quite up to snuff. This one is in line with most of the other one I have owned, coming in right around 9 pounds.

Anyway, it is a great bass, and if you are in the market for a new P Bass, these Japanese reissues cannot be beat for the price.

Mahalo!

Special Offer From Chicago Blues Camp

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There is still time to sign up for the 2018 Chicago Blues Camp, and to save $150 if you use the code “BLUESBLAST”

For more information click here

Review: RapcoHorizon V-Cable Guitar Cable

Howdy!

The new RapcoHorizon volume control cable (V-Cable) is a great concept, as it takes the ordinary guitar cable and adds a knob to control volume and a mute position that allows the player to unplug without sending that earth-shattering pop through the PA system. This is a godsend to acoustic performers who do not have volume controls on their instruments, as well as instrumentalists that want to change instruments during a set without turning their amp off.

The V-Cable is available in 10’, 18’ and 25’ lengths, and they cost quite a bit more than a conventional cable, ranging in price from $46.99 to $51.99. So how do they perform?

I got two of these to try out, and they worked very well. It was really handy to have a volume control for my Martin, and I found that I used the mute setting quite a bit on my electric basses so I did not have to monkey around with my volume setting on the instrument between songs. But…

Unfortunately they both kind of crapped out within a few moths of starting to use them. One started making a popping noise if the cable was moved near the instrument end, and the other one makes a terrible scratching noise whenever the volume knob is turned – this is really obvious on an acoustic guitar. Fortunately there is a limited lifetime warranty, so I guess I will see how they support their product, but otherwise I am going to have to say steer clear of the V-Cable until they get this figured out.

Sorry!

NAMM 2018: Cable Porter Product Preview

Aloha!

I had the opportunity to speak with Carlo from Cable Porter about their innovative cable management system that keeps organizes and prevents your leads from tangling. They provided me with a sample and I am hooked – I will need to purchase some more of these!

Please see the attached video to hear more about the Amp Hook, and for more information, please go to cableporter.com .

Mahalo!

2018 Winter NAMM Show Kick-off

Aloha!

The 2018 Winter NAMM show kicks off today in Anaheim California, and I look forward to bringing you reviews of the latest gear!

Mahalo!

Luna Guitars Tattoo Long Scale Electric Bass Review

Hello!

It is always cool to dip my toes into the entry-level instrument pool and see what the current temperature is, so today we are going to look at the Luna Guitars Tattoo Long Scale electric bass.

Luna Guitars has a cool background story, as this Latina-founded company has done a fantastic job of building instruments that appeal to a wide variety of players, with about a 50/50 mix of female to male buyers. They sell instruments in a variety of sizes to fit people of all statures, which is a market niche that few manufacturers have been able to use to their advantage.

The Tattoo Long Scale Bass has a 34-inch scale, which does not exactly make it long-scale in my book, but it is certainly longer than the 30-inch scale of the Tattoo Short Scale Bass. This instrument has a unique look, with a laser-etched tattoo art on the body. This design comes courtesy of by Alex Morgan, who has written six books on ethnic ornamentation, so she certainly is an expert.

The body is made of 5 or 6 pieces of solid mahogany, which has some sort of satin finish that allows the pores in the wood and the etching to really stand out. The design is mostly traditional P-bass, with differences including: no pickguard, a control cavity routed into the back, and a rather extreme cutaway on the lower horn for access to the frets that bassists rarely use. So, there is no neck plate, and ferrules are used to keep the four neck bolts from digging into the body.

The maple neck has 20 frets and a rosewood fretboard with inlays that represent the different phases of the moon (Luna…). The nut is 1 5/8-inches wide, and my measurements came back with a 14-inch radius, so it is pretty flat. With its C profile, the feel is similar to a P-bass with a B neck, and with the satin finish on the back it is a really smooth player. Hardware includes black sealed tuners that match up with the high-mass bridge and the black-chrome knobs.

The passive electronics package is nothing unusual, with a traditional split-coil precision pickup that is wired through volume and tone knobs. The tone is good, though I was not able to go with my usual P-bass dimed-out knob settings. The sound was a bit nasally with the tone turned all the way up, and I found a happy place about 1/3 of the way up which made for a good rock or blues tone. There was some 60-cycle hum that would not be noticeable in a gig situation, but I would certainly try to do something about it if I actually owned this instrument. Maybe the ground is not so great?

Luna had this Tattoo built in China, and the craftsmanship is very good. There are no flaws on the body and the satin finish is pretty hard to get wrong. The frets are level and the fret ends are not rough, and there was a surprisingly good set-up with no buzz. This was a good dealer, so maybe they set it up before they turned it loose on the public.

So it plays well and sounds ok, which does not exactly make it stand out in the crop of entry level basses from Squier, Dean, Yamaha, and Ibanez. Basses in this price range are surprisingly good, so it all comes down to what Luna offers that the others do not, and that is the solid mahogany construction and the laser-etched graphics. The look is polarizing – either you like it or you don’t, but I am in the “like it” category, so if I were in the market I would serious consider this bass.

If you like the look of the Luna Long Scale Tattoo Bass, $199 is not a lot of cash (though you will have to find a case somewhere), and it does come with a limited lifetime warranty for the original owner. Check one out if you get a chance!

Mahalo!

Vintage 1999 SWR Workingmans 12 Bass Amplifier Review

Howdy!

Today we looking at a solid little bass amp I found on my local social media site, a SWR Workingman’s 12 that was made sometime between 1999 to 2002. This is a well-made combo amplifier that sounds good and is pretty portable, making it a real cool find!

SWR was founded by Steve W. Rabe (a former engineer for Acoustic amplifiers) in 1984, and he set up shop in the San Fernando valley. He designed and built a lot of cool amplifiers and speakers, such as the Goliath and the Super Redhead. He sold the company in 1997 and the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation bought it in 2003 so they could run the business into the ground, like they do with almost everything they acquire.

The Workingman’s 12 was introduced in 1994, and was part of a series of amps that included the Workingman’s 10 and Workingman’s 15. These were SWR’s first “cheaper” amplifiers, and they were very popular with consumers. The one we are looking at today is fairly compact, measuring 16 inches wide, 23 inches tall, and 16 inches deep, and weighing in at a stout 47 pounds. There is a metal grille for the speaker, and the chassis is covered in fuzzy black carpet that attracts pet fur and dust as if this was the purpose that SWR designed it for. By the way, this was made in the USA, which cannot be said about later SWR products.

The amplifier puts out 100 watts RS through the onboard 8-ohm 12-inch driver and separate Piezo tweeter, and output is upped to 120 watts if an 8-ohm extension speaker is added. This seems like a pretty accurate power rating, judging by the amount of sound this thing can push out.

On the front panel you will find an XLR direct out, a ¼-inch tuner out, passive and active input jacks, a Gain knob, an Aural Enhancer knob, 3-band EQ knobs, an Effects Blend knob, the Master Volume control, and the power switch. Around back is an IEC power cable socket, a selector switch that turns off the horn or puts the unit into headphone mode, a ¼-inch headphone jack, and the effects loop jacks. Pretty simple, really.

The knobs do not need much explanation. The Effects Blend knob mixes the signal from the bass with the signal from the effects loop. With the control fully counter-clockwise, no signal from the effect is heard. As you turn this control clockwise, more of the effect can be heard in the overall sound. When the control is fully clockwise (or pulled out), the dry signal is completely out of mix.

The Aural Enhancer knob is kind of a magic turbo boost control that I do not really understand. To quote the Owner’s Manual, “The Aural Enhancer was developed to bring out the fundamental low notes of the bass, reduce certain frequencies that can “mask” fundamentals and enhance the high-end transients. The effect becomes more pronounced as the control is turned up. The result is a more transparent sound. Listening to a passive bass with the control set all the way down, and then turning it all the way up, can be likened to listening to the bass suddenly become “active.”” Whatever.

There are not any surprises when plugging into this combo. I have owner SWR products before, and have always been impressed with their tone and power output, and the Workingman’s 12 is no exception. The EQ and Aural Enhancer controls allowed me to get a nice variety of tones, from a warm character that would be perfect with an upright bass to edgier sounds that would be appropriate for harder rock. In between those extremes I was able to dial in a nice round sound that would be great for blues and soul. The overall volume is pretty good, making this amp appropriate for smaller gigs, and I found that the DI works really well. So, if you are able to go through the PA, this amp would be pretty much all you would need for a bigger gig, as long as the stage is not ungodly noisy. I think it is a winner, and I plan on keeping it around for a while.

When the SWR Workingman’s 12 amplifiers were new, they had a retail price around $700, and a street price around $500. I am seeing used ones online for $150 to $300, which is a reasonable price for a solidly performing American-made combo amp that can pull it together for small gigs. If you ever get the chance to check one out, see what you think and post a comment below!

Mahalo!

Memory Lane: Barcus Berry Hot Dot Box Review

Aloha!

I find products to review all over the place, but today we have a first – a box I picked out of the trash at work – the Barcus Berry Hot-Dot Box. Well, not really the trash, but an electronics recycling bin…

Barcus Berry has been around since 1963, and they introduced innovations such as the electric violin and piezo pickups for lots of different applications. The Hot Dot Box fits well into what they were doing in the early 1970s, as this active DI/preamp/boost box would really help out an acoustic player that needed assistance with getting their signal heard.

There is really not much to the Hot-Dot Box, it is a bent sheet aluminum box with a single ¼-inch input and a single 1/4-inch output, and that is it – no knobs or lights, and no switches to stomp on with your foot. It measures 4.25 x 2.25 x 1.5 inches, and it weighs around a quarter pound.

Sliding the case apart (no screws required), the insides are pretty basic too: a couple of Switchcraft jacks, a 9-volt battery clip, two transistors, a trimmer pot, and a handful of capacitors and resistors. The printed circuit board is dated 1972, which seems about right for this.

Bringing this thing into the context of today, I have tried the Hot-Dot out with my acoustic and electric guitars and it pretty much did exactly what I thought it would – it made everything louder. There was no added hum or anything offensive, just a healthy clean boost that seemed a little bit warmer than the source signal. Where it shined the most was with the humbuckers on my Les Paul, and it provided that little bit of extra front-end oomph for distorting out my tube amp.

The Barcus Barry Hot-Dot Box is cool, and I would like to experiment with putting it in different parts of my signal chain to see how it affects overall tone. I’ll let you all know if something extra-neat comes out of this – not too bad for something that was going to get thrown away!

Mahalo!

Billy Corgan Gear Sale at Reverb: Mark Your Calendar

Aloha!

Love him or hate him, Billy Corgan is an influential musician and his work with the Smashing Pumpkins is certainly important. It also turns out that Billy is quite the gear houn,d and he certainly has collected an amazing collection of equipment over the years. He has arranged a sale of over 150 pieces of really awesome gear through Reverb, and everything is up for grabs on August 16, 2017.

There is a mouth-watering assortment of collectible vintage guitars (pre-CBS Strats and whatnot) for sale, and a lot of gear that was used on stage and in the studio. Here are some favorites that Reverb listed:

- Corgan’s #2 Stratocaster. A modified, star–covered 1988 Fender AVRI Strat that recorded most of Siamese Dream and Mellon Collie, including "Today," the solo of "Cherub Rock," and many more.

- A pair of Marshall JMP-1s that were the main preamps for Mellon Collie album and the tour.

- Two Alesis drum machines, one used for the loops on "1979" and another that was used to record many early Pumpkins' demos before Jimmy Chamberlin joined the band.

- The modified 1990s Les Paul Special used to record much of the Machinaalbum and played regularly on that tour, and the two backup LP Specials from the tours.

- The rackmount ADA MP-1 preamps used to record Gish.

- A Fender Subsonic Stratocaster in Sonic Blue from the Zeitgeist era signed “This is what true freedom looks like. Billy Corgan.” One of the few items in the shop signed by the guitarist, it was originally set to go to auction in 2008 before Corgan decided against it.

- The Fernandes sustainer guitar used in the studio and on tour for most of Adore.

- A 1969 Gibson EB–3 Bass in Walnut dubbed the Mountain Bass used as a “secret weapon” on everything from Mellon Collie to Machina.

- The small Crate combo amps used to get the distortion sounds on Machina.

- The arsenal of Diezel and Bogner amps used to record and tour for Zeitgeist.

- Dozens of collector–grade vintage guitars, including two '58 Strats, a '63 Candy Apple Red Strat, a 1953 Gibson Super 400, and a '66 Rickenbacker 360.

- A vintage 1950s accordion and an autoharp used on the Mellon Collie tune “We Only Come Out at Night.”

If this sale is anything like the Jimmy Chamberlin (also from Smashing Pumpkins) sale that Reverb held earlier this year, the items will sell quickly, even though nothing was very cheap. So, if you are interested in any of this stuff, be ready to pull the trigger when the sale starts.

For more information, go to: https://reverb.com/news/billy-corgan-artist-shop-preview

Mahalo!

Dean Markley Artist Transducer Acoustic Pickup

Aloha!

It can be a daunting task to figure out how to modify your acoustic instrument (guitar, violin, etc.) so that you can plug it into an amp or the mixing board. Many of the options on the market are expensive, and a lot of them require modifications to you axe that might not be easy to undo. On easy way I have found to make this happen is the Dean Markley Artist Transducer acoustic pickup.

Surely you have heard of Dean Markley before, as this company has been selling strings since 1972, and in the years since they have branched out into picks, strings, cables, DI boxes, tuners, and pickups. Markley started making these pickups in 1980, and they have been one of their more popular products.

The Dean Markley artist transducer acoustic pickup has to be the easiest pickups on the market to install. When you take it out of the box, there is a small puck with an integrated cable that has a ¼-inch male connector on the end. There is a gooey adhesive on the puck, which allows you to stick it wherever you need to on the top of the instrument, and it can be easily removed and stuck on something else if you wish. As the adhesive is re-usable, the pickup can be pulled off the top pretty easily, so it is a good idea to route the cable so that your guitar strap supports it so that the adhesive portion does not support the entire weight of the cord. A strip of gaffer’s tape might come in handy here.

The pickup itself is housed in a maple wood housing and through use of a lead differential weight, the piezo reacts through compression rather than just bending like all other Piezo pickups. The sound is passable, but it does not really have the pass the full character of whatever you are plugging it into. It is a good idea to try it in different location on the top to reduce feedback and to try to get the best sound. At some point you will find a passable sound, and you should probably not spend much more time on this, as it will probably not get very much better. As Voltaire said, the better is the enemy of the good.

In practice, I have tried out the Artist Transducer on my Takamine EF341 guitar and on my Kala SMHS soprano ukulele, and the results were mixed. The Tak has an amazing onboard pre-amp that is very transparent, so the crispness of the sound comes through it beautifully. With the Markley, the basic sound comes through, but the sound is similar to most any lower-end acoustic. The uke is a different story, as its nylon strings do not punch through quite as well, so it does not matter that the output with the transducer is a bit muddier. The overall output is adequate, but it is not terribly loud due to the nature of its construction.

Overall, I think the Dean Markley Artist Transducer acoustic pickup is pretty cool, and is a simple and cheap way to electrify your instrument. It installs in seconds and only costs around $25 (with a 5-year warranty), so it is a great way to plug in your guitar, mandolin, violin, or whatever. You would be hard-pressed to find an easier way to get your instrument into the gig, Check one out for yourself and see what you think!

Mahalo!

Product Overview: Ernie Ball MusicMan Caprice Bass

Hello!

I have long been a big fan of the MusicMan instruments and I think they make some of the best bolt-neck production basses on the market. Their most famous instrument has to be the Stingray bass that was designed by Leo Fender and Tom Walker back in the mid 1970s. This was one of the earliest productions basses with an active pre-amplifier, if not the first. This gave it more output and a more aggressive sound than the competition.

Ever since Ernie Ball Strings bought the MusicMan brand in the 1980s, there have been new models introduced: Cutlass, Sabre, Stingray 5, Sterling, Bongo, and the Big Al; oodles of variations of each have been introduced with different string configurations , woods, and electronics packages. One thing they have not had is a bass with passive electronics, until they came out with the new Caprice bass.

The Caprice is a 2-pickup version of the Cutlass, and it has a few of the traditional features that you would expect from a MusicMan bass, including the 3+1 headstock and pickups with large pole pieces. Things vary a bit after that, starting out with a body shape (alder) that is more P-Bass than Stingray. The top-loading bridge looks familiar, but a closer look reveals that the plate is smaller and does not have the large bolts into the body. There are the usual choices of rosewood or maple fretboards, and both necks have Schaller tapered BM tuners and compensated nuts, which is not unusual for their product line-up.

Then there is the pickup configuration, which borders on heresy as it comes with a set of P-J humbucking pickups. The pickups each have their own volume control, which sends the output through a single tone knob for both pickups. I like this set-up as it is very versatile, and avoids the “knob farm” syndrome.

I finally had the chance to see a Caprice bass in person the other day, and it was an impressive instrument with a classic aesthetic and a nice balance on the strap with a sub 9-pound weight. The craftsmanship was amazing, with jewel-like fretwork (21 frets) and a lovely yellow vintage tint to the maple portion of the neck. The neck has more of a jazz bass feel with its 1.5-inch nut width and 7.5-inch fretboard radius. As this was an artist model, it was in a custom color, but normal folks have a respectable number of color choices, including natural, burst, coral, white, diamond blue, and my old favorite, black.

After this I got to experience the bass’ sound in the real world, at an outdoor club gig with 3 guitars and drums. The rig was a Mark Bass amp and 2x10 cabinet, and overall volume levels were pretty reasonable, as it was an outdoor restaurant situation. The bass player also had a Bongo and a Big Al, and there was a surprisingly powerful sound with the Caprice when compared to the active electronics-equipped basses. The mids were crazy good, and it overall it cut through the mix nicely, so it was a winning choice; my general impression was that this would be a good bass for blues, rock, and country gigs. Of course, the bass player had a lot of experience, and a lot of tone comes from the fingertips and touch, but everything is there with this instrument to help make a player successful on stage.

The MusicMan Caprice bass looks cool and sounds good, and if you are looking for a new bass and can pull together $1700 (starting street price), you will not go wrong unless you play leftie or are looking for a fretless bass. For sure, try one out and see what you think, I would be interested to hear what others have to say!

Mahalo!

Review: 1986 Fender PJM-65 Jazz Bass Special

Hi there!

I have long been a fan of the Japanese Fender Jazz Bass Specials, like the ones that Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses made famous back in the day. I have owned many of these over the years, but have run into a few that came with different specifications from the factory, and the subject of todays post is one of these: 1986 model PJM-65 Jazz Bass Special that I found in the secondhand section at the Ishibashi store in Nagoya, Japan.

For starters, there are plenty of obvious physical differences from the regular export model Jazz Bass Special. The alder body is sculpted, and painted in a cool shade of minty green metallic with a matching headstock. There is retinue of gold hardware, including the sealed tuners and a massive bridge. The Lace Sensor pickups do not have exposed pole pieces and there are four knobs instead of three (but the original knobs are still there!), with no select switch. And flipping it over, there is an aggressive cut at the heel for more access to the frets that bass players should never use.

Less obvious are an active electronics pre-amp, and the fact that this is a medium scale (32-inch) instrument. The rest of the good stuff is there, including the rosewood board with 21 frets, an output jack on the edge of the body, and the expected fine Japanese craftsmanship.

This bass is remarkable condition for a 30+ year old instrument (with the exception of the faded gold hardware), and it came with a wonderful set-up and a nice Ritter soft case for a very good price. It sounds killer and plays well, with much better sustain than I have found on other medium-scale Fender basses - maybe that huge bridge has something to do with it. Also, the 2 tone / 2 volume knob set-up is versatile and intuitive, and I think it actually has a bit more punch and warmth than the more traditional Jazz Bass Specials I have played in the past.

I am not sure where this will fit into my collection, but I like this one a lot, so it might not be going anywhere soon. Unless I get an offer I cannot refuse…

Mahalo!

2013 Sadowsky RV4 Bass Review

Aloha!

There are not many boutique bass builders whose basses I crave, and one of the few is Roger Sadowsky. His staff builds incredible basses (and guitars too) out of his New York City shop, and they are the most playable and best-sounding bolt neck instruments you can buy. Unfortunately, the popularity of these custom instruments results in a minimum entry of $4500, and a lengthy waiting to get one made to your specifications.

Fortunately for all of us, there is a more cost effective solution to getting out hands on a new Sadowsky. This would be the Sadowsky Metroline series of basses.

Back in the early 2000s, Mr. Sadowsky decided to have a line of basses built overseas. Not by shoeless starving children in Indonesia, but by the best luthiers in Japan. These were originally called the Tokyo line of basses, but were later renamed the Metro series, and now the Metroline series. The idea was to use the same electronics and hardware, but with less pretty (and light) woods and with lower labor costs.

The bass we are looking at today is a Sadowsky Metro MV4 that was built in 2013. This is essentially a Fender Jazz bass copy with the familiar offset waist body and pickguard shape. It is drop-dead gorgeous with the ’59 Burst finish over the alder body. This is a solid body, not chambered like a NYC bass. The sparkly clean neck is topped with a rosewood (or is that morado?) fretboard that has 21 gorgeous frets sunk into it. The hardware is the same as on a NYC bass, with open-gear tuners and a high-mass bridge.

Sadowsky says that these use the same electronics as the New York City basses, so it has Sadowsky humcancelling pickups, and the much-copied Sadowsky pre-amplifier with Vintage Tone Control. The knobs are: master volume, pickup blend, treble roll-off (Vintage Tone Control) with pre-amp bypass push/pull, and stacked bass boost/treble boost. I have had the opportunity to compare these basses to real NYC basses, and they do not sound quite the same, but are still very good. Maybe it is the wood they use for the bodies that makes them sound differently.

One noticeable thing you do not get with the Metro series is the predictably light weight of a New York City Sadowsky. Generally the Metros will weigh a pound or two more. This one weighs in at more than 9 pounds, instead of the usually 8 pounds for a NYC Jazz Bass. This is still pretty light, and if you are going to save $1800, you are going to have to give something up.

This Metro is a fantastic bass. It sounds great, and plays like a dream. The construction is very good, and the neck and fretwork are perfect. In my opinion, it is better quality than anything Fender or their Custom Shop is producing today.

Metro basses come in a Sadowsky semi-hard case and a new Metroline RV4 sells for $2590 new; Sadowsky does not allow their dealers to discount these at all. Nice used ones seem to run a tad over $2000 at this point in time.

So, if you do not need a fancy top, a custom color, a left-handed or a fretless bass (none of these options are available) this is a viable alternative to a NYC Sadowsky. They are definitely worth the money.

Mahalo!