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Anyone tried or own an ACG J Type?


BassApprentice
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I'm your man here!!
I'm a pro user of John East's pre-amps and I'm now having a custom bass built buy Alan. I tried a couple of the new jazz basses at the London bass show with pleasing results.
To start they look.....great.
The playing 'feel' was first rate! Well balanced and not heavy (but not too light for me as I like a bit of weight on a bass...).
Fast necks, nice string spacing, 24 frets with good upper register access (woo hoo!). I'm well at home with the J and U-retro but was genuinely amazed with the new P-retro. Plenty of tone with fewer knobs (GAS attack!). Slap to Motown well covered.
Being more of a 5 string player, I was pleased with the 'B' and I think that they are 34' scale length! (Correct me if I'm wrong). The 4 string had the fat 'E' as well (Marcus Miller time!).
I had my pal Tom with me (a player/sound engineer) as an extra set of ears, and he had good comments about punch, tonal variations (good for my ego), but it's the bass he was talking about :-(
It's hard to re-invent the Jazz bass but this is a great take on a classic. I may have to shift my Jazz style 5 string for one!!

Edited by mcruiz67
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I've always liked the look of Alan's basses, but after trying a few at the Moffat Bass Bash last year, found the asymmetrical neck profile and flat fretboard really uncomfortable and difficult to get on with. Some very nice sounds though.

This, though, I have to say looks like a real beauty. Very, very tempted.

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[quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1332762892' post='1592630']
What is the Asymmetric profile? I guess it has the Hump closer to the bass side, that right ?

But it is major depressing someone putting out some of the nicest original design basses at a decent price has to resort to putting out another Fender "Clone" .
[/quote]

it's for folk like me- I love the look of his other basses, but if I ordered one it would be so so dull... "er actually can I only have one wood in the body please", "fancy top, no thanks" - but the J type.... mmmm yeah I could live with that. Quite cheap too considering

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[quote name='BassApprentice' timestamp='1332804157' post='1593502']
I highly doubt he has to 'resort' to this. I imagine he designed them due to demand rather than necessity. Players love J basses due to their heritage but just want to change some things from the original that you can't do yourself i.e. neck radius or body wood.
[/quote]

I agree entirely, it's not "resorting" to anything, it's simply adding another option for the customer, it's sound business sense...
The original designs might not be for the more traditional bass player, so now there's an ACG for them too.
ACG's are indeed some of the nicest original designs out there, and now they also do one of the nicest Jazz Bass designs.

Eude

Edited by eude
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[quote name='skelf' timestamp='1332754265' post='1592409']
Hi
I should point out that you do not need to have a flat finger board or asymmetric neck profile. I can carve a normal profile and put a radius on the board.
[/quote]

LOL. I thought that might be the case! Temptress.... :D

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I'd seriously recommend trying out a flat board and the asymmetrical profile, I have them on both my basses and it feels very natural.
Even if the flat board isn't for you, the asymmetrical profile is much better for your hand as it allows it to fall into a much more natural shape while playing, great for avoiding things like carpal tunnel syndrome etc.

Eude

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[quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1332762892' post='1592630']
But it is major depressing someone putting out some of the nicest original design basses at a decent price has to resort to putting out another Fender "Clone" .
[/quote]

"Clone" is taking things a bit too far IMO. Clone suggests slavish copying to me, even if you did put it in quotation marks. While some design cues have been taken from the Jazz, this seems like an evolution to me though, not a clone, and certainly not as Fender-like as many custom maker's Jazz-like efforts - which considering the antipathy I have towards Jazz basses is not a bad thing ;)

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[quote name='eude' timestamp='1332840512' post='1593684']
I'd seriously recommend trying out a flat board and the asymmetrical profile, I have them on both my basses and it feels very natural.
Even if the flat board isn't for you, the asymmetrical profile is much better for your hand as it allows it to fall into a much more natural shape while playing, great for avoiding things like carpal tunnel syndrome etc.

Eude
[/quote]

Yeah, but carpal tunnel syndrome is an elegant solution to a neck with a symmetrical profile. ;)

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[quote name='Spoombung' timestamp='1332875277' post='1594368']
Yeah, but carpal tunnel syndrome is an elegant solution to a neck with a symmetrical profile. ;)
[/quote]

Ha ha, I guess some would argue the development of "the claw" is the body evolving to fit the bass... :yarr:

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[quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1332846707' post='1593799']
Okay maybe clone not the best word. But it is another take on the Fender. It's not an original like his other designs .

To me it's a backward step in the design evolution of bass not a forward one if you know what I mean.

Maybe my post has been taken as a bit of a bash on ACG, it wasn't intended I'm just not that diplomatic with words. . Just that his own designs are probably the best non-traditional designs out there ATM and someone like ACG who does make nice original designs being asked to do his basses in a J type form is more a slight on the players than the luither. Think of it like someone going to Rickenbacker and saying build me a les Paul.
[/quote]

I think the ones on his website are priced quite cheaply first.
Secondly if he makes 20 amazing basses a year thats cool. If he makes 20 amazing basses and 20 jazz copies a year- well for him that's even better. It just makes sense to cover other parts of the market.

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[quote name='eude' timestamp='1332921054' post='1594758']
Ha ha, I guess some would argue the development of "the claw" is the body evolving to fit the bass... :yarr:
[/quote]

Well, any evolutionary biologist would agree you can't create a model of evolutionary divergence without first considering the impact of the bass guitar.

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[quote name='Spoombung' timestamp='1332923812' post='1594801']
Well, any evolutionary biologist would agree you can't create a model of evolutionary divergence without first considering the impact of the bass guitar.
[/quote]

Surely we must also consider the socio-cultural anthropological reasons for choosing the bass guitar before we can truly consider the impact on the musicians in question...?

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[quote name='eude' timestamp='1332924358' post='1594810']
Surely we must also consider the socio-cultural anthropological reasons for choosing the bass guitar before we can truly consider the impact on the musicians in question...?
[/quote]

According to the concept of transformational evolution, first clearly articulated by Lamarck, evolution consists of the gradual transformation of one bass guitar state to another.

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[quote name='Spoombung' timestamp='1332924760' post='1594817']
According to the concept of transformational evolution, first clearly articulated by Lamarck, evolution consists of the gradual transformation of one bass guitar state to another.
[/quote]
This is getting too highbrow for me ;), I've gone forwards and backwards through my "evolution", 4 strings, 5 strings, 6 string, 6 string fretless, 4 strings, 5 strings, 6 strings, 4 strings, 5 strings, 6 strings...
No "claw" yet, but there's still time I guess :)

Eude

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[quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1332923557' post='1594798']
If he was selling 40 of his own designs he wouldn't have the time for 20 Jazz copies ;) It's 20 basses going backwards in design at the customers request rather than fostering originality. It's like as a entity bass and to a certain point guitarists too are stuck in a wee bubble of designs designed 60 years ago.

[url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/159368-why-are-there-so-many-copies-of-fender-basses/page__hl__fender"]http://basschat.co.u...age__hl__fender[/url] (Pages two and three)
[/quote]
But to a certain extent music isn't going forward too fast... look at all the rock bands, tight trousers, converse, and a look that hasn't changed too much down the years, or punks who seem stuck in 1978 or whatever. For a lot of these gigs a single cut is going to be just wrong looking- a fender or similar to a fender just looks right.
fostering originality is brilliant, and if you and 19 friends want something original, or how about something mad from Basslab, that's cool- but there will be 40-50 folk who just want a great bass that is better but similar to the fender they have had for the last 20 years- and with the price point and the look that's what it looks like the ACG is going for. Don't forget we are in a recession- I for one don't begrudge Alan wanting to tap into the market wanting fender-a-likes any more than I begrudge overwater for getting tanglewood to make their basses.
The more small british builders are doing well the better for us all

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[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1332942460' post='1595210']
But to a certain extent music isn't going forward too fast... look at all the rock bands, tight trousers, converse, and a look that hasn't changed too much down the years, or punks who seem stuck in 1978 or whatever. For a lot of these gigs a single cut is going to be just wrong looking- a fender or similar to a fender just looks right.
fostering originality is brilliant, and if you and 19 friends want something original, or how about something mad from Basslab, that's cool- but there will be 40-50 folk who just want a great bass that is better but similar to the fender they have had for the last 20 years- and with the price point and the look that's what it looks like the ACG is going for. Don't forget we are in a recession- I for one don't begrudge Alan wanting to tap into the market wanting fender-a-likes any more than I begrudge overwater for getting tanglewood to make their basses.
The more small british builders are doing well the better for us all
[/quote]

Until ACG makes it HUUUUGE anyway... then they'll start a chinese budget line and charge over the moon for their normal line :P

That's the usual pattern isn't it? ;)

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[quote name='Johnston' timestamp='1332944987' post='1595261']
If the Luthiers that do original designs are stuck doing J and P types to keep customers happy then that is fewer guys pushing the envelope.
[/quote]

but then it needs musicians to push the envelope and demand new things to do it with better- envelope pushing design for no reason isn't going to work

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