Kiwi Posted April 2, 2008 Share Posted April 2, 2008 [i]Features:[/i] This 34” scale instrument was originally bought off Talkbass. The previous owner had purchased it from Guitar Den in Florida who have sold a number of Cliff Williams instruments on consignment. The bass is active and features a 2 band baxandale eq plus volume running off a 9v battery. The pickup is an original Musicman twin coil humbucker with fat pole pieces in a position about 4 inches from the bridge. The body is made from ash and the neck is a single molding of graphite composite with 21 frets and a phenolic fingerboard. The bass is finished in black poly which appears to be sprayed over a sanded back white finish. The body shape is a standard stingray with a pre-EB 3 bolt neck joint. The bridge is a substantial affair and made from steel with two dimensions of movement and through body stringing. The tuners are open geared Musicman cloverleaf tuners typically of the design associated with vintage fenders. The neck dimensions are probably best described as a cross between a jazz and a precision bass. The neck is a little fatter than the normal stingray neck and has three bolt neck joint whereas most cutlass basses feature a 4 bolt neck. The three bolt neck also features the microtilt feature which makes fine tuning of the neck angle possible without completely removing the neck, I'm a big fan of this feature and wish many manufacturers still included it on their basses. The neck has a serial number and date in hand written marker that suggests is was manufacturered in 1984 whereas the body has an ink date stamp that reads August 1979. The serial number is also consistent with a 1979 year of manufacture. I’ve speculated that either this bass was made up from NOS parts at the factory or Cliff Williams gave them a bass to fit the neck to. [i]Sound:[/i] Probably the most striking thing about the sound of a Cutlass in comparison to a Stingray is a much harder character to the sound. The highs are crisp rather than coarse, the mids are perhaps centred around a higher frequency and the lows are broader and less barky. The overall effect is like a velvet glove – a very big and solid sounding instrument. The growl is still there but its softer and less prominent. At the moment I use the bass with Gallien Krueger and Trace valve amps through Gallien Krueger and EBS neo 2x12 cabs. I’ve found that the cutlass and stingrays have the same affinity with valve heads. The lower mids are projected nicely all through from the strings to the speaker. [i]Action Fit and Finish:[/i] The action is fairly low but the neck could do with a stoning or, better yet, a bit of a clean up. The fit of the neck isn’t super tight into the neck pocket, theres a 1mm or so lip to the neck pocket where the neck fits inside. The neck has always been a bit of an issue on basses that were made towards the end of the Cutlass era. This one has a slight bow in it and the lack of a truss rod means I can’t get the action below a fairly average string height. OK for most players gigging regularly I suspect but it still pales in comparison to my Alembic and Pedulla. [i] Reliability/Durability:[/i] I’ve not had to replace the battery yet after a couple of years of infrequent use. I’ve not had any other problems with the bass so far. It’s proven to be a very reliable instrument. [i]Customer Support:[/i] None. Ernie Ball don’t stock pre EB parts or have any pre EB information on basses prior to the change in ownership. The only source for preEB parts is secondhand through somewhere like Ebay (sometimes at a price). The necks are no longer manufactured, not even by Modulus. [i]Overall Rating:[/i] I own a range of other bass gear including Smiths, an Alembic, Celinders and a Pedulla, plus more stuff I’ve sold on. I’ve been very satisfied with the bass since owning it, its managed to hit the right spot every time I’ve used it. Generally this bass tends to get treated quite gently but I’m getting used to the idea of possibly gigging with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevbucket Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 beautiful bass and identical to mine , i absolutly love mine it's the cats pyjamas !! i have a few pre eb stingrays , 77, 78, my cutlass 1 , eb stingray 5 string , but my cutlass is my baby i bought it off ebay from a guy in Hudson Florida for £600 , how happy was i !!!!!xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 9, 2008 Author Share Posted April 9, 2008 Damn, thats a pretty good price, but what year is your cutlass? Is it from around 83 when a lot of them were made? Any chance you could pop the neck and take a photo of the heel? I'm really curious to find out what those numbers mean and whether there's any date order to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevbucket Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 [quote name='Crazykiwi' post='172824' date='Apr 9 2008, 08:24 AM']Damn, thats a pretty good price, but what year is your cutlass? Is it from around 83 when a lot of them were made? Any chance you could pop the neck and take a photo of the heel? I'm really curious to find out what those numbers mean and whether there's any date order to them.[/quote] too tell you the truth im sh*t scared to take off the neck as me bass plays amazing and i really dont wanna start messing with it !!! hope ya understand kev ps its identical to the one in the picture all black with a brass nut if that helps ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marcus Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 [quote name='kevbucket' post='173535' date='Apr 9 2008, 11:27 PM']too tell you the truth im sh*t scared to take off the neck as me bass plays amazing and i really dont wanna start messing with it !!! hope ya understand kev ps its identical to the one in the picture all black with a brass nut if that helps ??[/quote] Give it ere Kev - I'll take it off for ya' Ya Wanna see the size of my Screwdriver (I think i've just blown my shot on Kev's Cutlass) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 10, 2008 Author Share Posted April 10, 2008 heheh, ok Kev, so does the logo look like mine or is it lacking the "1"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevbucket Posted April 13, 2008 Share Posted April 13, 2008 [quote name='Crazykiwi' post='173789' date='Apr 10 2008, 11:24 AM']heheh, ok Kev, so does the logo look like mine or is it lacking the "1"?[/quote] it's identical to your's with the 1 , what does that mean ?? what year ? do we have special cutlass's or what !!!! tell me mine's special !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevbucket Posted April 13, 2008 Share Posted April 13, 2008 [quote name='Marcus' post='173692' date='Apr 10 2008, 09:42 AM']Give it ere Kev - I'll take it off for ya' Ya Wanna see the size of my Screwdriver (I think i've just blown my shot on Kev's Cutlass)[/quote] well mark, me rig is complete, 700rb2x10, gk1x15 bi-amp model 400w and me CUTLASS !!!!!!! and you can try it anytime mate , i'll bell ya this week to pop round to yours ok cheers kev Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 13, 2008 Author Share Posted April 13, 2008 [quote name='kevbucket' post='175795' date='Apr 13 2008, 07:19 PM']it's identical to your's with the 1 , what does that mean ?? what year ? do we have special cutlass's or what !!!! tell me mine's special !!! [/quote] Hehe, no mate. The special ones are the early ones that don't have the 1. These models were made before they decided to do Cutlass II's. I remember playing one in NZ a LONG time ago (like 20 odd years), wish I knew where it was. Probably stuck under someone's bed now. I'd love to have find someone who owns one, just to see what state the neck is in. Speaking of which, is the neck on yours dead straight? Press the E string down at the first fret and then at the 21st fret. I'd love to know if there's any gap and how wide it is. BTW, the nut on mine is made from bone, not brass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toasted Posted April 14, 2008 Share Posted April 14, 2008 Sweet bass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matski Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 [quote name='Crazykiwi' post='172824' date='Apr 9 2008, 07:24 AM']Damn, thats a pretty good price, but what year is your cutlass? Is it from around 83 when a lot of them were made? Any chance you could pop the neck and take a photo of the heel? I'm really curious to find out what those numbers mean and whether there's any date order to them.[/quote] Hello fellow Cutlass owners, Just to add some more info: I own a Cutlass I which is dated as Sept 1983 on the heel of the neck - however it is a little different to yours... It is not 'string through body' and has a 4-bolt neck. [quote name='kevbucket' post='175795' date='Apr 13 2008, 06:19 PM']it's identical to your's with the 1 , what does that mean ?? what year ? do we have special cutlass's or what !!!! tell me mine's special !!! [/quote] The I is the 'StingRay' Cutlass, the II is the 'Sabre' Cutlass innit. [quote name='matski' post='411894' date='Feb 17 2009, 12:38 PM']Hello fellow Cutlass owners, Just to add some more info: I own a Cutlass I which is dated as Sept 1983 on the heel of the neck - however it is a little different to yours... It is not 'string through body' and has a 4-bolt neck.[/quote] Oh, and it has a brass nut... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted February 17, 2009 Author Share Posted February 17, 2009 [quote name='matski' post='411894' date='Feb 17 2009, 12:38 PM']Just to add some more info: I own a Cutlass I which is dated as Sept 1983 on the heel of the neck - however it is a little different to yours... It is not 'string through body' and has a 4-bolt neck.[/quote] Most Cutlass basses were made with this neck fixing. Whats the serial number on yours? Is the neck capable of low action? [quote name='matski' post='411894' date='Feb 17 2009, 12:38 PM']The I is the 'StingRay' Cutlass, the II is the 'Sabre' Cutlass innit.[/quote] Yes, thats correct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matski Posted January 6, 2010 Share Posted January 6, 2010 Sorry about the massive delay in replying... What can I say? I'm rubbish The serial number of my '83 Cutlass I is: B022461 The neck does have a small amount of relief up towards the nut end, and currently the action is set to around 3mm from the G string to the top of the 22nd fret on the neck. Is that low enough for ya? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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