skej21

[quote name='AndyTravis' timestamp='1451340388' post='2939750'] The term 'butchers block' was bandied about. But if it sounds good, what does it matter. The American and AV stuff is 2-3 piece. And I've seen plenty of fenders turn up smashed to bits to have a nosey. I've also seen the difference in the guts of Epiphone and Gibson - there's a Gibson employee who walks around with half a les Paul from each factory in a case...legend. Try the bass - if it's good, go for it. [/quote] I agree on the 'if it plays well who cares' thing but I'm not the kind of person who buys an instrument based on 'better woods' sales pitch! We always go told that the AV was two piece as they side-seam them so they look like one piece bodies... Thinking about it, that might just be on 'burst finishes though and 3 piece on solid finishes!

[quote name='AndyTravis' timestamp='1451339708' post='2939744'] Yeah Karl, remember it well - certain 1997 was when I started buying it and one of the p/j's in White was reviewed...(I knew it was bodies from one place to another 😂) I'd take the hand selected woods spiel for the custom shop stuff, but having seen the pallets of wood in the factory - I'm not sure the 'pick of the wood' extends past picking the billets off the top of the pile. Not a bad thing though, if it's graded alder or ash, it's better than other factories. The Mexican fenders are usually 2-5 piece bodies and the sunburst ones are veneered top and back to disguise the joins. Again, no bad thing - built to a price point etc. [/quote] The Fender rep we had told us that "there's no wood wastage in the Mexican factory, so if they have to make a bass out of 8 bits of wood or 78 bits of wood, they'll do it. Just as long as they don't throw any away!' The sales pitch of 'two/three piece on US standards and 2 piece on AV upwards' is there because it's fact. 'Pick of the woods in Mexico' is sales talk to make it sound better than 'we have loads of wood and don't throw anything away so some stuff is made from bigger chunks, which is better than 100+ scraps glued together and cut' IMO. Like you said Andy, take those statements which aren't an obvious fact/are hard to see clearly with your own eyes with a pinch of salt!!

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1451268122' post='2939241'] Then enlighten me, I've only heard him refered to as Barry Gordy. What is his name? Blue [/quote] Berry Gordy. In your defence, they sound VERY similar when you hear them spoken in an American accent so it's understandable it'd get confused somewhere along the lines.

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1450916943' post='2937099'] I don't think it takes an insider to know Barry Gordy President of Motown, while he provided opportunity he was not fair in financial compensation. A lot of those 60s icons were left with nothing. Including Jamerson. Blue [/quote] It doesn't take an expert to know his name wasn't Barry... As for the music, choosing between Motown, Stax and Atlantic is like choosing between three vintage wines. They're all a quality product we can enjoy!

I'm hoping that the Singlecut Finn that Alan is making (that I love the look of!) will not be liked by all my bass-playing friends... That way, none of them will ever ask to play it!

[quote name='FuNkShUi' timestamp='1450684818' post='2934757'] Nice. Enjoyed that. Nice textures. Did it purposely have an element of "walking in the air? [/quote] Thanks a lot! I actually put four little melodic references in there; Carol of the bells, a tiny part of the melody from God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Walking in the Air and We Wish You A Merry Christmas :-)

62mm across the (bottom fret) of the 21st fret :-)

No problem! I have the bass in front of me (Am Deluxe Precision) so if you've got any more questions jut let me know :-)

19mm from left of the three grooves on the E string to the left side of the three grooves on the A string and so on :-) All of the three groove positions are 19mm from the same groove slot on the next saddle.

Here's a little bit of loop-based festive fun I recorded yesterday. Hope you all enjoy the holidays and get some awesome bass stuff! http://youtu.be/EUt9h8toOao

It took about 8 minutes before I actually heard the 'point' Scott was trying to make, so if you have a short attention span you might want to skip through a fair amount at the beginning! As for his 'point', I think he is being rather naive in thinking that the only difference past a certain point is the "handmadeness" (?!) of a bass. I don't remember Fender ever offering me personally ANY custom options, direct customer service, aftercare and consultations when I purchased my Nate Mendel precision. It was shipped to a store, bought off the peg and the set up direct from Fender was poor. My experience commisioning a custom bass so far with Alan at ACG is completely different and has been an amazing experience. For me, I am not paying more for the "handmadeness" (although that is a factor!) but for the expectional level of service, to support true craftsmen (not machines in Mexico!) and to have a bass that is uniquely crafted for me, built with a lot of my input. These are luxuries/principles that would likely not be available if you walk in a store and buy off-the-peg, mass-produced basses and that's before you even start to look at the differences in actual build quality (like hardware, body woods, pickups, finishing, fretwork, wiring and so on). However, the price is irrelevant as you can get all of these options by purchasing from places like Maruszczyk and pay less than the cost of a mass-produced Fender like the one in Scotts video. I think the point he makes about tone coming from the fingers is true but equally, finding an instrument that lets you feel comfortable and free to let your fingers do the talking is important too. Basses with 19mm string spacing and 36" scale with 6 strings might be comfortable for one player and let them express themselves but for me, that would require me to adjust my entire technique to play and would create a level of discomfort in my technique that would affect my ability to let my fingers play naturally (or as I've learnt/practiced!), so I'm not sure I can agree with Scott on the view that it's just attention to detail after a certain price point. Additionally, it's a brave move for someone who has openly supported and marketed himself as an overwater player to basically come out and say he doesn't see a significant enough difference between an Overwater bass and a mass-produced, budget mexican Fender to justify the price!

[quote name='The-Ox' timestamp='1448915235' post='2919193'] What bass you getting? Would love to hear it! [/quote] Getting a Finn R Type Singlecut 5. 33" scale, Indian ebony fingerboard, black walnut body, maple veneer and a wenge top, with a matching wenge ramp/pick enclosure. ACG DFM 4K preamp and two FB pickups. Still in the build stages but I'll be getting stuff uploaded when I get the chance :-)

[quote name='Cosmo Valdemar' timestamp='1448910623' post='2919133'] I'd love to hear some decent demos of these beautiful basses. [/quote] I'm planning on doing an extensive demo when mine arrives. It might be a while but I'll post when it's done :-)

'My same' from 19 is one of my favourite tracks of all time. She's great, down to earth and writes most of her material. Fantastic new album too :-)

I've currently got an ACG in the build stages and here are the reasons I would recommend buying one; Cost - for a custom spec instrument, it's hard to argue with the ACG price sheet!). Quality - based on the ACGs that I've played, I've struggled to find a UK (or other!) luthier that stands above Alan's work. Build Control - I gave Alan quote specific details for my build. Scale length, tuning, wood types, ideal weight, electronics, string spacing and nothing was too much hassle for him (and nothing presented a challenge to the build that he couldn't overcome with first class knowledge!) Communication - Email responses have been incredibly quick, well outside of 'working' hours at times and always great. Even before I gave Alan a penny, he had answered numerous questions and helped me to finalise a definitive idea of how the build would turn out. Progress - Alan is just as quick at regularly sending progress photos and updates as he completes different stages of the build process. For me, it's as much fun waiting to see the latest development as it is to imagine the end product and Alan's updates are great for providing those moments! Wood choices - I didn't choose anything too exotic (like the ART tops) but there's so much choice and when I mentioned the woods i would like, Alan had no trouble getting it and starting work on the bass. Electronics - Unique and versatile filter preamps alongside a bigger range of pickups and preamp options means you will always be able to spec a bass that'll offer you the chance to have a great quality tone that matches your sound! Body shapes - Some really original designs and some original twists on old classic shapes means there's something for everyone. I went for a Finn R Type SC and after LOTS of searching still haven't found any other bass that has a similar shape. For me, it's a fantastic thing to find a new aesthetic among basses these days and Alan has a really innovative (yet ergonomic!) take on how body shapes should be... The moth body shapes are a great example of that! I think the only downside of getting an ACG would be having the confidence/knowledge to be able to spec a bass and know you'd be happy with the outcome. Alan can advise but I imagine because of the commitment it takes to order a bass you've never played, you'd have to happy knowing that what you write on a bit of paper is what you'll be happy with when you first get your hands on the bass.

Great service :-) Id be surprised if it's coming from NY though. Aguilar are distributed by Barnes and Mullins here in the UK, which is where they'll probably be getting the replacement from, hence the quick turnaround. It's still great to know that kind of aftercare still exists and the companies that deserve a chance to have our money though :-)

I do like the idea of these actually. Put some soft material on the top and have tools/cleaning equipment on the top so I could use it as a set-up/restringing station and then put all the basses safely in drawers. Have a few spare drawers at the bottom to store the gig bags and you'd be sorted! *adds to GAS list

Lovely story! This was actually the bass that inspired the wood combination on my own Custom ACG bass build (currently being built!). I knew I wanted darker tone woods and I liked the aesthetics and then I saw this in the 'for sale' section and it just looks stunning. It's great to hear that you've really fallen for it and that its inspired you to play. Enjoy :-)

[quote name='Sibob' timestamp='1444241121' post='2881528'] My soon-to-be Maruszczyk (being built) will probably come in around 7.5lbs, maybe slightly less. My Fodera is about 10.5lbs I think. Thought you'd all be interested in that Si [/quote] If it's only 10.5lbs, I'll give you 20lbs for it! Can't say fairer than that ;-)

[quote name='Geek99' timestamp='1444038333' post='2879577'] Wasn't his original point that you had to buy a us model to get it? Nice looking bass [/quote] "Strange that Fender don't offer burst/tort/maple as a standard option"... That's not how I read it. Just trying to be helpful by linking it, as it does exist in the U.S. standard range and as a burst/maple with white scratchplate (which is easily changed!) in the Mexican standard range too. Thought it'd be worth helping if Painy was trying to find one :-) That bass collection is lovely though. With alternatives such as this, Limelights, Nash, Bravewood and Maruszczyk etc offering such great instruments at more than competitive prices, it makes you wonder how it may have affected Fender!

[quote name='Painy' timestamp='1443971339' post='2879085'] Strange that Fender don't offer burst/tort/maple as a standard option despite the fact that it is clearly the correct colour combo for a p bass. Absolute stunner by the way - congrats! [/quote] Like this? http://intl.fender.com/en-GB/basses/precision-bass/american-standard-precision-bass-maple-fingerboard-3-color-sunburst/ Beautiful bass btw. The relic job is really subtle and great!

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1443612776' post='2876186'] Euphemism? [/quote] Euphoniemism? (I'll get me 'tenuous brass pun' coat!)

All the gigs I've ever done that have been longer than 2 hours have been jazz/background function work or pit work, where it's more than acceptable to sit down... That means the weight isn't much of an issue. The other gigging/playing I've done tends to be shorter sets with breaks and again, weight isn't an issue as I'm not wearing my bass for extended periods of time. It wouldn't be an issue for me. String spacing, scale length and the other things that affect the 'feel' of the instrument when playing it would be my first concern when choosing or spec'ing a bass.

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1443611105' post='2876148'] So Jazz, Blues, Pop, Funk, Big Band and Latin not a wide enough selection, then? [/quote] What about all those Moondance gigs you're missing out on though ;-)

The anticipation is killing me!