New Bass stuff at NAMM 2026

[Sean]

13 hours ago, Misdee said:

New Sadowsky Special Editions for 2026:

 

 

The Masterbuilt  for 2025 was £8000+ and the Metroline Special Edition about £4300. These are not likely to be any less expensive. 

 

I'm not at all keen on a satin finish on any of the Metroline basses, let alone a Special Edition model. Gloss looks more finished and is much more durable in the long term. The Masterbuilt looks very nice to me. It's an awful lot of money, though.

£8k+ for what it is seems excessive to say the least. It makes Fodera, Spector USA, Valenti and F Bass look like bargains in comparison. If you look at European builders like Sei, Overwater, Brooks, Shuker etc, you're paying a heap of extra money for one of Roger's finest. 

Good work if you can get it and all the best to him but pound for pound, I just don't get it. 

[Killerfridge]

5 minutes ago, Sean said:

£8k+ for what it is seems excessive to say the least. It makes Fodera, Spector USA, Valenti and F Bass look like bargains in comparison. If you look at European builders like Sei, Overwater, Brooks, Shuker etc, you're paying a heap of extra money for one of Roger's finest. 

Good work if you can get it and all the best to him but pound for pound, I just don't get it. 

The Masterbuilt Metroline series is a conundrum for me. It's Warwicks master builders, and they are some of the best in the world so I get the price point. But when the price of the Warwick shop exceeds the price of Rogers NY shop, but you get a "Metroline" stamp on it, as if to say "Well it's not a real NY Sadowsky", it just feels weird. It's almost a disservice having the Sadowsky name attached for all parties involved.

[Killerfridge]

Also, looks like Trickfish are doing pickups

[Sean]

3 minutes ago, Killerfridge said:

The Masterbuilt Metroline series is a conundrum for me. It's Warwicks master builders, and they are some of the best in the world so I get the price point. But when the price of the Warwick shop exceeds the price of Rogers NY shop, but you get a "Metroline" stamp on it, as if to say "Well it's not a real NY Sadowsky", it just feels weird. It's almost a disservice having the Sadowsky name attached for all parties involved.

Wow. I didn't know that. 

It's a bit like custom shop Squier being more expensive than Fender. Sort of. 

Either way, now you've explained it I get it even less.

 

I could go to Woodstock and place my Spector order in person for that money. 

[SumOne]

11 hours ago, AndyTravis said:

 

Then again, I’m skint…so. Meh.

2 hours ago, BassApprentice said:

Basically my situation too.

 

Bae money for any of the shiny new stuff, still nice to look 😂

 

 

There is the NAMM 'Not Available until Mid May' thing, but I tend to think even more long-term when it comes to the expensive basses. If someone here wants to buy the Dingwall Sol in May 2026 then I'll happily take it off their hand in May 2027 for £1k cheaper once a 'NAMM 2027 must have' new paint-job is available. 

[Killerfridge]

13 minutes ago, Sean said:

Wow. I didn't know that. 

It's a bit like custom shop Squier being more expensive than Fender. Sort of. 

Either way, now you've explained it I get it even less.

 

I could go to Woodstock and place my Spector order in person for that money. 

Yeah I guess that's probably a good analogy, although I would say its more like the Squire custom shop costing more than the Fender Custom Shop. I just don't really get what the market positioning of the Sadowsky Metroline is anymore. When they launched it originally, and it was run by one of his protégés in Japan I got it: they were the same as the NY ones, except you couldn't get custom options. That was it, that was how Roger positioned it on his website too ("If you don't want custom colours/woods/chambering, just a 'standard' Sadowsky, buy the metroline". They didn't even say Metronline on the headstock, they just didn't say NYC.). When he moved production to Germany with Warwick, there was a price creep, but they also made improvements (just-a-nut, invisible frets etc.). But now they it's very easy to buy one from Warwick that costs more than the NYC ones, just without the 'prestige' of saying either Warwick Masterbuilt or Sadowsky NYC.

[BigRedX]

IIRC the MiJ Metrolines were made by ESP. I'd rather have a Japanese ESP bass than a German Warwick.

[BassApprentice]

17 hours ago, Misdee said:

I've just found out these are two different shades of gold. The "Donald Trump" bass is Liquid Gold ( on the right), the other bass is Molten Gold, which doesn't look quite as bad to me.

 

It's hard to tell with such scant images. You would think if EBMM wanted to show these basses off they would supply some better pictures, i.e so we could see what these basses actually look like on the cold light of day rather than treating us as if they are doing us a favour letting us look. 

 

[acidbass]

16 hours ago, BassAgent said:

I dig that Aguilar. I have an endorsement elsewhere. But I really dig that Aguilar.

Me too.  I love a front-ported vertical 2x10.  Can't hack the 40hz Bass control on Aggie gear tho.  Way too low a frequency centre to be usable as anything other than a cut IMO.

[Killerfridge]

41 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

IIRC the MiJ Metrolines were made by ESP. I'd rather have a Japanese ESP bass than a German Warwick.

They were made by Yoshi Kikuchi, who originally founded Atelier Z and worked in Rogers shop. You might be thinking of the original MiJ MetroExpress

[chyc]

Ashdown's take on the Trace Elliot Elf? The Ashdown UK-PBM-200.

 

[Killerfridge]

9 minutes ago, chyc said:

Ashdown's take on the Trace Elliot Elf? The Ashdown UK-PBM-200.

 

That's much prettier than their previous version of the Ant

[brickers]

2 hours ago, BassApprentice said:

 

if the frets and strings aren’t gold, why did they even bother?

[SumOne]

50 minutes ago, chyc said:

Ashdown's take on the Trace Elliot Elf? The Ashdown UK-PBM-200.

 

 

Nice. And already seems to be available and on sale! (one of those 'sales' where it's the actual price?!) £279 https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/product/251215451631027--ashdown-pbm-200-200-watt-portable-bass-head

 

Personally, I'd go: Elf (£230)  for backup and ultra-portability. Ant (£279) for a small gigging amp - not as ideal for being pocket sized backup as the Elf but with a few additional useful live features like mute button, Speakon cable connector would seal the deal for me. Or I'd go Gnome v2 (£215) if I wanted to have things like aux in and USB for home use (but isn't as small as the Elf as a backup, and doesn't have the live features of the Ant like the mute).

 

 

Edited 3 hours ago by SumOne

[Homatron]

The PBM looks good. Interestingly the description suggests there's a line input but I can only see an instrument input in the pictures. 

[Misdee]

5 hours ago, Sean said:

£8k+ for what it is seems excessive to say the least. It makes Fodera, Spector USA, Valenti and F Bass look like bargains in comparison. If you look at European builders like Sei, Overwater, Brooks, Shuker etc, you're paying a heap of extra money for one of Roger's finest. 

Good work if you can get it and all the best to him but pound for pound, I just don't get it. 

The German Masterbuilt Sadowsky basses are lush, I'm tempted, but it's just too much money to make good sense. As you rightly point out, you can get a nice Fodera for that. I would also point out that a Fodera will have a better resale value than a German-made Sadowsky, generally speaking. The thing about a Masterbuilt, though, is that you can cash and carry it rather than have to wait a year (Spector)or two (Fodera) to have a custom order built.

 

 Sei, Overwater, Shuker make very good quality instruments, for sure, but none of them have anything like the cache or romantic appeal of a Sadowsky, whether it's made in Germany or NYC.

 

Most people who buy high-end basses are not looking to make a practical purchase. They are looking to fulfil their longing for something they've always wanted. And a lot of bassists want Sadowsky's, even if they've never actually played one. So many builders try to make what is obviously a  Sadowsky-inspired design. The people that buy them would have probably rather had a Sadowsky, given the choice.

 

Roger has created an aspirational brand, and for the kind of basses he offers, no one can get close to him. That's just how it is.

Edited 1 hour ago by Misdee

[Misdee]

5 hours ago, Killerfridge said:

The Masterbuilt Metroline series is a conundrum for me. It's Warwicks master builders, and they are some of the best in the world so I get the price point. But when the price of the Warwick shop exceeds the price of Rogers NY shop, but you get a "Metroline" stamp on it, as if to say "Well it's not a real NY Sadowsky", it just feels weird. It's almost a disservice having the Sadowsky name attached for all parties involved.

I know exactly what you mean. When I first heard about the Warwick/Sadowsky collaboration I was more than sceptical. However, the quality of the basses coming out of the German factory has completely changed my views. I bought a Metroline Will Lee 4 string and it was so impressive I ordered a 5 string version, turned out to be another good one.

 

Paradoxically, it's that terrific build quality that puts me off buying a Masterbuilt German-made Sadowsky. The Masterbuilt basses are more fancy, but the Metrolines I have couldn't really be made any better. I've had a lot of high-quality basses over the years, I know what I'm talking about, and these German Metrolines are on par with the very best in terms of how well they are made. For a Fender-style bass, you couldn't show me a more meticulously crafted instrument. Fancy wood tops and brushed chrome pickup covers ect on the Masterbuilt are very nice, but they don't make a better instrument in terms of actual use. In terms of the execution of things that make a bass play well and sound good, I don't see how Masterbuilt could be that much better than the Metroline.

Edited 1 hour ago by Misdee

[BigRedX]

2 hours ago, chyc said:

Ashdown's take on the Trace Elliot Elf? The Ashdown UK-PBM-200.

 

 

Let's hope it's better designed and built than the Superfly.

[Misdee]

4 hours ago, BigRedX said:

IIRC the MiJ Metrolines were made by ESP. I'd rather have a Japanese ESP bass than a German Warwick.

I think you might be confusing Lakland with Sadowsky. Lakland Shoreline Series ( for the Japanese market) were made by ESP.

[tauzero]

2 hours ago, chyc said:

Ashdown's take on the Trace Elliot Elf? The Ashdown UK-PBM-200.

 

 

They've missed a trick. Speaker output is still jack only, like all the micro amp heads, rather than a speakon/jack combo socket.

[tauzero]

1 hour ago, SumOne said:

 

Nice. And already seems to be available and on sale! (one of those 'sales' where it's the actual price?!) £279 https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/product/251215451631027--ashdown-pbm-200-200-watt-portable-bass-head

 

Personally, I'd go: Elf (£230)  for backup and ultra-portability. Ant (£279) for a small gigging amp - not as ideal for being pocket sized backup as the Elf but with a few additional useful live features like mute button, Speakon cable connector would seal the deal for me. Or I'd go Gnome v2 (£215) if I wanted to have things like aux in and USB for home use (but isn't as small as the Elf as a backup, and doesn't have the live features of the Ant like the mute).

 

Ant - £329. After considering the Elf, Warwick Gnome, and TC BAM-200, I went with the BAM-200. If one of the others had had a speakon combo output, I'd have gone with that in preference.

[SumOne]

7 minutes ago, tauzero said:

 

Ant - £329. After considering the Elf, Warwick Gnome, and TC BAM-200, I went with the BAM-200. If one of the others had had a speakon combo output, I'd have gone with that in preference.

 

£279 here: https://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/product/251215451631027--ashdown-pbm-200-200-watt-portable-bass-head

 

Yeah the Speakon thing is a bit of an issue for me too. I have an RM 500 so have a Speakon cable (and another one as backup). If I were to get the Ant (or Elf or Gnome or BAM 200) as backup I'd need to have an additional cable as backup to work with it. Not a big deal, but it is another cost and another thing to carry. (and Speakon cables are just better)

Edited 1 hour ago by SumOne

[tauzero]

9 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

 

Let's hope it's better designed and built than the Superfly.

 

The front end design of the Superfly (and Superduperfly) was great with the graphic MIDI-controlled EQ section, which could also work as a parametric EQ with a software editor. The power amp section not so good, with twin power amps that couldn't be bridged and some examples with twittery noise - not loud but annoying.

[chyc]

1 hour ago, Homatron said:

The PBM looks good. Interestingly the description suggests there's a line input but I can only see an instrument input in the pictures. 

That must be a mistake surely? Like you I cannot see the socket for such a feature.

[BigRedX]

1 hour ago, Misdee said:

I think you might be confusing Lakland with Sadowsky. Lakland Shoreline Series ( for the Japanese market) were made by ESP.

 

Maybe. One Fender copy is much like another...