Rumple Posted November 15, 2008 Share Posted November 15, 2008 Hello, I'm GASing for a another bass and really like the look of Overwater basses especially the Perception 5 string and wondered if anyone had one they would like to share their thoughts on, I'd also love to hear some sound clips to. Cheers R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutToPlayJazz Posted November 16, 2008 Share Posted November 16, 2008 I've always lusted after Overwaters ever since I played one of the angular ones about twenty years ago at a local music shop. I played one of the newer five-strings last week at Electro & I was very disappointed. It was very ordinary with nothing distinctive about the sound at all. Could've been any generic bass. Felt very small-bodied to play as well. Sorry to pee on your fireworks, etc! Rich. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted November 16, 2008 Author Share Posted November 16, 2008 (edited) Hi Rich, No need to apolgise as I'm interested to hear all points of view and I'll have to try one out myself before making a final decision. I kinda like the idea of smaller bodied basses I play a MM Sterling instead of a Stingray for the smaller body and Jazz Bass like profile of the neck. R. Edited November 16, 2008 by Rumple Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBus Posted November 16, 2008 Share Posted November 16, 2008 (edited) I bought an amp from Overwater about three years ago and tried one of their basses through it. All I remember about the bass was how easy it was to play. There was nothing else that really remained in my memory so it's interesting to hear Rich saying he found them a bit dissapointing. I've always liked the look of Overwaters though. Back in 1987 I tried a Status Series 2000 and never forgot the shape of the neck, the sound and the general feel. This year I bought an S2 fretless from them and it has everything I remembered, bar the frets of course. I don't know what the moral is to that... Graham Edited November 16, 2008 by BassBus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gwilym Posted November 16, 2008 Share Posted November 16, 2008 (edited) hi Rumple I played this [url="http://www.thebassgallery.com/overwaterpercp5.html"]Overwater Perception 5[/url] at the Gallery a few weeks ago and really liked it - a really nice sounding bass, and very comfortable to play apart from the neck and string spacing which was a bit wide for my tastes so I didn't play if for long. Really worth a play though if the neck works for you. I tried it out through a Mark Bass F1 into a Schoeder cab. My only other experience of Overwater was hearing one being played in a wedding band about a year ago, and there was nothing not to like about it. cheers G EDIT: ps I just saw you're in South London - not sure if you ever go "north of the river" but you should definitely get up there and give it a whirl. Edited November 16, 2008 by Gwilym Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted November 16, 2008 Author Share Posted November 16, 2008 Cheers Chaps, it's all very helpful info. I might take a trip to the Gallery or maybe to GAK in Brighton who have a couple of Perceptions on their web site so I guess they have them in the shop. I wouldn't want a neck wider then a Stingray 5. The Perception at The Gallery has dot markers and a different bridge to the new ones. Regards R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodster Posted November 17, 2008 Share Posted November 17, 2008 Just for info, I went to GAK a few months back to try the Warwick Hellborg rig that's on their website. The didn't have the rig and told me that they don't stock everything on the website but they can get hold of stuff if you want to try it. Might be worth checking they have the Overwaters before travelling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted November 17, 2008 Author Share Posted November 17, 2008 Good call Chris, I have e-mailed them to see if they have any in stock in the Brighton shop if not I may have to travel to The Bass Merchant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JD1 Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 I've tried a few when I've been over in Carlisle chatting with Chris and co. You really do need to try one as they have their own sound and feel depending on the woods used. Whilst they are all the same design and have the same circuitry and pups, they do have subtle differences. As far as the generic sound goes I agree it is fairly "middle ground" but thats not necessarily a bad thing for sitting in the mix, and no different to many other basses I've tried - e.g. Yamahas. I think the circuit is designed not to be too extreme and enhance the natural tone. Generally I've always found them to have a very clear sound with a sweet top end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted November 19, 2008 Author Share Posted November 19, 2008 Thanks for that JD1, I'm get the impression from this thread that they don't have their own distinctive sound but play really well and in my option look stunning. R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 [quote name='Gwilym' post='330051' date='Nov 16 2008, 12:25 PM']I played this [url="http://www.thebassgallery.com/overwaterpercp5.html"]Overwater Perception 5[/url] at the Gallery a few weeks ago and really liked it - a really nice sounding bass, and very comfortable to play apart from the neck and string spacing which was a bit wide for my tastes so I didn't play if for long. Really worth a play though if the neck works for you. I tried it out through a Mark Bass F1 into a Schoeder cab.[/quote] Hehe, how tastes differ? After having Overwater recommended to me by a number of independent sources, I tried the same bass and put it back in the bag. I wasn't that impressed with the pickups. The black headless Sei 4 they have in is a corker though, incredibly low action, lots of bark and a lovely feel. If it had been a 5, I would have snapped it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted November 20, 2008 Author Share Posted November 20, 2008 Hi Kiwi, can I ask what you didn't like about the pick-ups? I'm not keen on headless basses. An Overwater will have to wait until the new year unless a secondhand one comes up for sale. R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBus Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Rumple, I'm always intregued what it is about headless basses people don't like. Better balance, easier and more stable tuning, easier and quicker string change. What are your reasons for not liking headless? Just interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted November 21, 2008 Author Share Posted November 21, 2008 Hi BasBus, Interesting question, I have thought about it on and off today and the only answer I can come up with is quite a shallow one! I don't particularly like the look of headless basses, it's nothing to do with the tone and your plus points are all very valid. I really hope I didn't offend anyone with my earlier throw away comment. R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBus Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 I don't find that at all shallow. I have a Status S2, headless of course, with a bolt-on neck. I'm not crazy about the look of the neck-through just for that bit of extra carbon graphite between the two pickups so maybe that makes me shallow too. We all have our own tastes and they are valid for each individual, if that doesn't sound too pretentious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted November 22, 2008 Author Share Posted November 22, 2008 Cheers BassBus. R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumple Posted November 26, 2008 Author Share Posted November 26, 2008 [quote name='woodster' post='330438' date='Nov 17 2008, 08:55 AM']Just for info, I went to GAK a few months back to try the Warwick Hellborg rig that's on their website. The didn't have the rig and told me that they don't stock everything on the website but they can get hold of stuff if you want to try it. Might be worth checking they have the Overwaters before travelling.[/quote] You were right Woodster! I popped in there today and not an Overwater in sight, plenty of Warwick, Musicman and Fenders though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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