Artist Bass
The Artist basses were designed to primarily give a sound and tone similar to that of an upright bass, but feel and play like a regular electric bass. The first Artist I made was in 1995, it has changed a bit since then! Depending on what sort of strings are used the bass behaves differently.
ORGANIC & NATURAL TONE
“Truly Expressive and Dynamic”
Nylon tapewound strings give the bass the upright sound, flatwound strings a more acoustic fretless tone and roundwounds a very organic electric fretless. A magnetic pickup can also be added to give more variation in tone.
As standard the bass has a laminated mahogany and wenge or mahogany and black veneer neck with a mahogany headstock scarf joint, wenge accent. There is a choice of fretboard, african ebony, macassar ebony, ziricote, kingwood, to name a few. The Headstock veneer matches the body top and finish, front and back, with a black veneer between.
The body is mahogany, chambered, with a drop top, a large choice of woods available. Black top edge binding. An optional sound hole can be routed into the upper bout. The pickup is a piezo transducer mounted beneath the saddle but there is the option for the body to be routed for a single magnetic pickup. The bridge is rosewood and mounted in a recess.
A volume and tone control as standard but there is the option for a 2 or 3 band eq.
A very versatile instrument.
Recently Built
4 String artist Bass
Laminated Mahogany neck with a mahogany scarf headstock, front and back veneers to match the body top.
Chambered mahogany body with a very rare Andaman Paduak burr drop-top. Black binding and sarin lacquer finish. Headway piezo pickup and preamp, custom wound magnetic pickup, john East uni pre eq. Schaller tuners.
Build Diary
Chambered mahogany body with a figured walnut drop top. Laminated neck with ebony board. Satin lacquer. Headway piezo pickup and preamp, magnetic active pickup and eq by john East.
Specification Options
Bolt-on Neck
Fretless board. Fretted versions available
33″, 34″ or 35″ scale
Options on nut width and string spacings
double octave fretless, can be extended
24 frets on fretted version
Small, medium & jumbo stainless steel fretwire
5, 7 or 9 piece laminated neck – mahogany / wenge, mahogany / black veneer
Ebony, Macassar, composite fingerboards
Partial Edge lines, Position dots / inlay options and Luminlay
Matching headstock facings front and rear
scarf jointed angled back headstock.
Graphite nut
Two way truss rod, carbon fibre reinforcement
Satin neck lacquer
Schaller M4 light or Gotoh GB707 tuners
Wide choice of figured facing woods
Soundhole option
Chambered mahogany body (ash also available)
Top edge binding, rear 1/2″ round-over
rear ribcage carve available
Satin polyurethane topcoats
Tints, burst or clear
Rosewood bridge, composite saddle
Headway Piezo system
Active magnetic pickup can be added, EMG, Fishman, Seymour Duncan
Volume and active VLPF tone control
Dual pickup models, Active eq from East UK
Chrome, black or gold hardware
