MNY

Firstly it’s great to read a post which sums up a lot of where I am in my own playing. I have only played bass as a side line up to last year when I decided to stop playing drums owing to escalating rsi issues in my arm, which I had been battling for six years. As a part time bassist I seemed to develop a reasonable facility on the instrument without really knowing what I was doing. This has continued over the last year but I have improved my fingerboard knowledge a little. I have also wrestled with SBL and whilst there is no doubting the educational content and sheer enormity of what Scott has achieved, the immersive format isn’t right for me as I simply can’t devote enough time to sitting in front of my computer. I work long hours in my own business and find that maybe an hour a day is the most I can manage during the week, (more at the week end although I have to watch my arm!). The point of the post is to really just say hello as I haven’t been on here too long and to say thanks for posting your stories as it’s encouraging to see more seasoned bass players getting ‘stuck’ in the same areas as myself. I sincerely hope you all find your own way of navigating through these issues as I will attempt to do. As a slight digression, to prevent the problem of being hounded by ads why don’t you try the new browser called Brave. It’s great. I use it in conjunction with the search engine ‘Duck,Duck,Go with none of the problems you describe. Plus it’s nice to get away from the big corporations who just seem to want to spy on us and relieve us of as much money as possible, whilst at the same time supporting smaller more ethical businesses. Cheers, Mark.

@spikemac thank you. I’m really chuffed with it.

Thank you very much Andy. Much appreciated. Please stay in touch so when circumstances allow, we can finish off our chat and you can have a play of the Ultra Jazz. All the very best.

Sam Wilkes is on fire here. In fact the rhythm section is pretty fabulous. Louis can certainly throw down a groove. The music won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but the musicians in the band are all top drawer players , and Genevieve Artadi on vocals is not to be underestimated. Personally I like the way the music grooves.

I generally like Nick Campbell’s playing, although Sam Wilkes is possibly my favourite of the new breed of funky players.

I think Cort still use it as an option on some of their 5 strings to achieve a more focused sounding low B string. It certainly seems to work for them on the newer Singlecut range. (the non fanned fret range).

I’m not sure, but I can tell you the sustain which presumably comes from the new style high mass bridge is very impressive indeed. They possibly thought it wasn’t required in the circumstances.

That sounds great, and I believe that’s just the passive tone! Wow. Thanks for posting Trevor.

What a beauty. This is an interesting mini review by the Uber talented Nathan Navarro.

@Lozz196 thank you kindly. It sounds fabulous too.

@TrevorG go for it! I’m sure you will do it having been there before. I was a paid amateur drummer of a good standard or so I was told. Unfortunately I suffer from bad RSI in my right elbow and lower arm which has curtailed my drumming. So bass it is for me going forward. Glad you like your Ultra Bass. I have played lots of boutique jazz basses, some owned by mates and some in shops and frankly my bass widdles on the lot of them. I don’t know what Fender have done with this model but they’ve done something pretty magical in my opinion. Yes they’re expensive, but they’re not relative to boutique jazz basses some of which won’t play or sound as good as the Ultras.

Thanks @TrevorG. My Jazz bass is pretty special. I have been lucky enough over the years to have had some very nice guitars ( Alembic, Zon etc) and the Ultra Jazz is possibly my favourite. Not bad for someone who isn’t actually a bass player, well not a proper one at least. Cheers.

Hello Ozan, welcome.

@Reggaebass thank you.

@TRBboy thank you.

Not the best photos but you will get the idea. Very impressed so far sounds great in passive mode but when you click the active switch it’s otherworldly! I know it looks black, but it’s actually a very dark brown with a tiny gold speckle in it, hence the gold pick guard.

Hello, Thanks for your reply. That’s a serious list of basses you own there. I must say those are almost exactly my thoughts. The sound is really immense, and the variety of sounds is very wide indeed. For perfection it could have been a little lighter but it’s a substantial instrument that feels exceptionally well made. Whilst the Sandberg instruments are undoubtedly popular for good reason and very well made, I am 100% sure I have made the right choice to suit my requirements. Cheers, Mark.

Absolutely no apology necessary. Thank you for a very interesting and insightful post. The video is wonderful by the way. The bass sounds lovely and the playing is rather good too.

@Cuzzie, @ezbass, thank you Gents.

Thanks RB, I have ordered the Ultra Jazz in the Texas Tea colour. I will let you know what I think later in the week. Cheers.

.....which is the reason I asked the question tbh. I have no practical or hands on experience of Sandberg Basses. I appreciate lots of people on here have, and I want to gauge opinion to see what people’s thoughts are in general.I was leaning towards SB at one point based on build quality and then I had a change of heart. For me ( and I suspect possibly for everyone on here) sound is the most important aspect of why we play certain types of bass., whether that be to achieve a funky type of vibe, something middle of the road that suits lots of types of music, something suitable for rock/metal etc etc. In the end I simply preferred the sound of the Ultra Jazz over the Sandbergs.

Thank you.

I have just asked a question. The point was I wanted to understand why people thought the Sandbergs were so good as I wasn’t really getting it myself. If you don’t understand the point you don’t really need to participate in the discussion, it’s fine by me. There is a very good reason that I have to use the online examples, and if that’s the criteria I must use to make my judgement so be it. I have the back up of distance selling regulations anyway. If I end up with the Fender which looks likely I’m sure I will be happy with it if it sounds half as good as the videos I’ve watched.