Ander87 Posted April 18, 2020 Share Posted April 18, 2020 (edited) Hi gang, Interesting. With this lockdown making me want to move out of my small flat we're renting into our first property, I was somewhat with cabin fever deciding to let go of my bass collection. I wanted to cash them out, get an 'okay' bass and put the rest to the bank. Good twist of fate I ended up sorting a much more than 'okay' new bass, should arrive next week if lucky - after my self inflicted (yet adulting) decision of letting my beloved #1, Alpher Mako, go, I thought I'd never love like that again but I'm excited about this enough to call it a Future New Bass Day. I've had active basses and gotta admit the switch from active to passive (volume drop) gets to me; and likewise, I love love passive basses like the Alpher (superb woods too!) but on stage I like to not touch the amp and change settings on the preamp. This active bass has the same volume when you switch to passive, finally! The new romantic subject is a Merlos Al Andalus, hand made in Alicante, Spain, by Jose Merlos. The singlecut shape is endless mojo and sophistication - specs wise, we're looking at: * 3pc Maple neck with ebony board, 34", maple veneer on the headstock * Neck through, alder body, 'solid semi hollow' design where the holes are not fully shallow - maple top * Active electronics, Volume, Balance, 3 way EQ, switches for mid freq boost, humbucker/single, active/passive * Merlos preamp and pickups - pickup height is regulated from the back so that the fingertips don't get caught by screws nor oxidise them etc. * EBM bridge @ 19mm * 3.6kg / 7.9 lbs weight Until it arrives you'll have to deal with 'just' this gorgeous picture - I'll come back with a full blown review once in my hands. Best, Ander. Edited April 18, 2020 by Ander87 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songofthewind Posted April 18, 2020 Share Posted April 18, 2020 Lovely. Looks like a very well thought out bass, graceful shape which is, I think, not always seen in single cut basses. Colour me jealous. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ander87 Posted April 18, 2020 Author Share Posted April 18, 2020 @songofthewind indeed! rounder gentler shapes - there's something about singlecut basses that ozzes so much elegance to me! I'll edit it in the specs but also, 3.6kg/7.9lbs weight just! Best, Ander. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therealting Posted April 18, 2020 Share Posted April 18, 2020 I like the black and gold hardware / pickup scheme too! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ander87 Posted April 20, 2020 Author Share Posted April 20, 2020 Thank you! I'm quite excited to try the electronics combined with these pickups - more on the warm side than hi-fi. It should ship out tomorrow but god knows when I'll get it considering it's leaving Spain and the current situation... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ander87 Posted May 4, 2020 Author Share Posted May 4, 2020 (edited) Well! It has been a very interesting couple of weeks - the first courier cancelled the shipping so I arranged for UPS to collect it from Spain Thursday 23rd April... I had to change the address and UPS was absolutely horrible in redirecting it to the right depot and trying attempts on my old address etc (believe me it's been a load of back and forth...) in the end the bass arrived last Thursday and I've been having a chance to noodle with it. It is a lovely bass! These are faux f holes if that makes sense, in the sense that they don't go through the whole body and just around the holes. The bass has lots of punch and moves good air and the resonance is ridiculous, you can feel it all over your chest whilst playing. As mentioned, the electronics are very flexible and I love the fact that I can jump from Active to Passive without having to pump up the volume etc. The construction is very intricate, this is what I would consider a very complicated instrument, definitely more difficult than the regular jazz/precision bolt on approach but it's been resolved quite nicely. The neck is incredibly flat, thin and even from fret 1 to 24 which is comfortable and the first bass I try like this - so far loving it! I am playing it through a new rig composed of the Aguilar TH350 + matching SL112 straight in. Fat tones all day, very rich indeed! Attaching a picture for you guys but I'll be doing a more detailed review sometime soon! Edited May 4, 2020 by Ander87 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted September 10, 2020 Share Posted September 10, 2020 I love this bass. I had a very close look at it when it was on sale here and I was very tempted, and the relieved that it sold and saved my wallet! I love Jose Merlos's designs, his Instagram is has a number of beautiful builds on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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