ShergoldSnickers Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 (edited) I've had this a week now so I think I've had time to become objective enough after the first glorious rush of unquestioning luurv. [b]The specs:[/b] Swamp Ash body done to swallowtail Marseer design, with satin poly finish Maple and Wenge bolt-on neck with slotted headstock, Sperzel tuners and Macassar Ebony fingerboard, and nut width of 46mm Two Christoph Dolph dual coil pickups into a Glockenklang 3-band active 9v preamp Finger ramp between pickups. ETS Bridge and saddles with inset anchor piece, and string spacing of 18mm The neck has Luminlay fluorescent side dots that glow after being 'charged' with the supplied mini-torch - see photos below. They really work very well, giving a useful glow for a long time. [b]Playability and adjustments[/b] The ramp and the ability to get a low action make this a lot easier to play than my mainstay bass of 30 years, a fretless Shergold Marathon, which I thought was decent in any case. The satin poly finish on the neck makes it smooth without being slippery, and it doesn't stick or grip at your hands as you slide around. Adjustment of the saddles can be a bit fiddly after being used to a Badass bridge, but I can see where the extra flexibility in the ETS design comes in, with three height adjusting grub screws per saddle and one that locks it in place. Saddle tilt of back to front and side to side is available with this arrangement. The neck just needed a barest amount of relief after dropping the action fractionally - I have a light rather than heavy touch. The truss rod adjustment was very smooth as are the tuners. 8/10 - bridge a bit fiddly. [b]The sound[/b] The first thing that was apparent was the clarity in the low end compared with the Shergold. The low notes are far better defined and not lumpy and coloured. The bridge pickup gives a very defined sound throughout with plenty of clear bottom as well as mid bite. The neck pickup is still defined but is capable of thunderous solid tones. The preamp has just the right amount of adjustment available - no point in having it if it won't be used. Set flat there is no difference in volume in switching from active to passive, and no perceived change in tone. The preamp is very transparent. With a volume with pull-out for switching to passive, a pickup blend, and bass, middle and treble controls, I've got everything I need. It's taken me a week to adjust my playing to get the best out the sound the bass produces - an adjustment in right hand positioning relative to the bridge, and a change to how I pluck the strings - the ramp has helped here - it's slightly more of a caressing pluck than a sudden one. Difficult to describe really. After spending an afternoon at a tame drummers house and doing some recording, I was able to get an articulate range of sounds (for me), and came away chuffed to bits. 9/10 [b]The finish[/b] The quality of Robbie's craftsmanship is exceptional. The fit of the back plate that covers the electronics bay is so perfect, that even with removing the screws, the plate won't fall out. When I did remove it, there was a properly shielded copper lined cavity and some excellently soldered electronics. The accuracy of the woodworking and build is superb - I genuinely can't fault anything. 10/10 [b]General comments[/b] After 30 years playing the same instrument, I knew I was going to have to change a few things about how I approached this new one. The extra string still leads to the odd moment of right hand finger confusion with a succession of strange ghost notes as I pluck the wrong string. Getting there though. The perseverance is paying off as I get to learn how to get the sounds I want - from adjusting both my playing mechanics and the electronics. It took me 30 years to get the Shergold sounding decent, so a week of experimenting is nothing, considering how it's gone past the Shergold and left it standing. Never thought I'd say that. I'll try to get some sound clips up at some stage. I'll also put up any changes to how I view anything I've already said as I live with the bass from now on. Edited March 30, 2015 by Rich Thread title edited for alphabetical indexing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giblett123 Posted December 4, 2011 Share Posted December 4, 2011 Looks fantastic, mines on order and I'm really looking forward to hearing those samples! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted December 4, 2011 Share Posted December 4, 2011 Cool - I imagine it will be a wrench after all those years playing a Shergold fretless 4 stringer! I really like the headstock on RIM basses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShergoldSnickers Posted December 4, 2011 Author Share Posted December 4, 2011 OK first sound sample - found 10 minutes to knock this up. Bridge pickup, fingering on the ramp, with a touch of bass and mid lift on the higher register part. [url="http://www.fear-of-bicycles.co.uk/BC/mp3s/The-Bridge-Pick-up-Song.mp3"]The Bridge Pick-up Song[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShergoldSnickers Posted December 6, 2011 Author Share Posted December 6, 2011 And two more hurried samples. (You can tell by the fluffs ) [url="http://www.fear-of-bicycles.co.uk/BC/mp3s/Neck-pickup.mp3"]Neck pickup only.[/url] [url="http://www.fear-of-bicycles.co.uk//BC/mp3s/Blended-pickups.mp3"]50% blend of each pickup.[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted December 6, 2011 Share Posted December 6, 2011 Very nice! Beautiful bass & lovely sounds. Well done young man! I've liked these ever since seeing Mr Claber's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShergoldSnickers Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 [quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1323206885' post='1460666'] Very nice! Beautiful bass & lovely sounds. Well done young man! I've liked these ever since seeing Mr Claber's. [/quote] It was seeing Alex's bass that sold me the idea of going with Robbie. I wanted a similar plain and almost understated finish that let the lines and curves of the Marseer design speak for themselves. Thanks for the comments on the clips - the bass 'sings' quite nicely and encourages me to try out things I wouldn't have been able to do on the Marathon. Some of them actually work as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4000 Posted December 7, 2011 Share Posted December 7, 2011 Looks and sounds lovely (my fave is the blend I think). Congrats! Mine arrived last Friday but we've got an awful lot on at the mo so I haven't had much chance to let rip, other than briefly through an Ashdown Five Fifteen (?) combo in our rehearsal room last night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShergoldSnickers Posted December 7, 2011 Author Share Posted December 7, 2011 Thanks Shaun. Hope you get some more time to get stuck in soon. It was a cracking bass when I saw it. Talking of which.... I've now got dreams about 72 Rick fireglo's. Always fancied a Rick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4000 Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 Thanks Ian. I've been trying to get some time with it this week, but still haven't got my rig back together yet (a long story involving a dodgy plumbing job and a flooded new house). Shame I couldn't have made it down at the same time as you; I could've brought my Fireglo '72 for you to try. Would have loved to have tried your fretless too, although I'm pretty poor on fretless. It's something I've never had but would love to own. I started playing in 1980 and in the early '80s it seemed everyone was playing fretless so I stupidly shied away from it, but whenever I've tried one recently I've enjoyed it at least as much as fretted, probably more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doctor J Posted December 25, 2011 Share Posted December 25, 2011 Beautiful bass, wow. I had a couple of Dolf pickups before, the man is great at what he does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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