eude Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Well Friday, last week was yet another NACGD (New ACG Day, for those not in the know…) About lunchtime, a lovely UPS delivery bloke dropped off a massive box for me with a truly awesome little bass in it. Here’s the specs… ACG Recurve DC 4 String Custom 31.5” scale Black Limba body with Kingwood top Ash/Wenge/Ash neck with Wenge fingerboard ACG B Series PB (split coil) pickup at the neck/mid position, OSB (overwound single coil) pickup at the bridge Custom ACG/East Preamp with 4 way rotary pickup selector switch and active/passive rotary switch Hipshot Type B bridge (my favourite bridge ever!) Gotoh GB720 tuners DR Sunbeam strings I’ve played 4, 5 and 6 string basses over the years, and I’m now very lucky to be in a situation where I have the luxury of more than one of them, so I fancied a nice little easy playing 4 string. I’ve had a love hate relationship with 4 strings over the years, since developing an addiction to low B strings, I’ve picked them up and moved them on quite quickly, so getting one that would hopefully stick would need to be more than a bass with one less string than my usual 5. Over the past 12 months I’ve been lucky enough to noodle on a fair few 32” 4 string basses, and I’ve noted how much fun they are to play. The shorter scale, even shorter than my usual 33”, and fewer strings made me take more risks and challenge myself a bit more. 5 and 6 strings are likely always going to be my go to set up for most things, however picking up a little shorty can really revive some passion for proper bass playing, doing more with less etc. Alan has made several 31.5” basses, again which I’ve had the pleasure of playing, so I decided that 1/2 an inch shorter should be even easier and without much sacrifice with regards to string tension etc. Strung up with Short Scale DR Sun Beams (which are a perfect fit for the 31.5” scale), the string tension isn’t noticeably softer, even drop D is very useable, so there must be more of that ACG Voodoo used on the low B’s for my 33” 5 strings from Alan. I got set up on Saturday night for a little noodle with my trusty little Ashdown MiBass rig and was amazed at how playable this little bass is, it seems to play itself, which is handy given my lack of practice of late! The bass can’t be more than 8 lbs in weight, so it’s effortless to wear on a strap and balances nicely on the lap too. Plugged in, the bass has a nice weighty sound to it, regardless of the pickup combination, in passive mode. I’ve read that Black Limba and an Ash neck can have more of a mid focus, and to my ear, that’s certainly true of this bass. The shorter scale adds a bit of warmth and depth too, particularly as you make your way towards the dusty end. Kicking in the active ACG/East pre was a sonic revelation though. As nice as the passive tone is, it’s somewhat gentile by comparison. Going active on this bass turns it into a monster! The natural punch of the bass becomes something really hefty, but with sparkling clarity on tap too. The preamp is based on a John East P-Retro, with some additions, switchable bass boost, treble boost and active/passive switching. Lots of subtle tone tweaking available here, or you can engage everything and end up with the proverbial sledgehammer, which I opted for most of the evening OK, here’s some pics too. Garden table based ones as requested by CamdenRob As some of you know, I’ve been playing ACG basses exclusively for some time now. ACG make incredible instruments, sublime craftsmanship, which represent intelligent and considered design and evolution from more “traditional” style instruments. Alan is always a pleasure to work with fantastic communication throughout, and always meets his deadline, more often than not beating it. I can’t recommend ACG basses enough, I really really can’t. Eude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CamdenRob Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 (edited) Phwoor excellent example of a quality garden table there, it's even got a spiny bit in the middle, bet that's great for BBQs... what was the build time on that? Oh and the bass looks pretty good as well Does it have a smaller body to compensate for the much shorter neck? Short scale basses can sometimes look a little unbalanced but that looks like it has everything in perfect proportion. I'm a great admirer of Alan's work at ACG. It is very impressive how he has built a portfolio of original shapes that are starting to make the brand recognisable on stages around the country. That along with pushing the envelope beyond the traditional with his multicoil pickups, art tops and filter based preamps ensures a bright future for ACG. I follow the build thread here on BC with interest, it's full of exciting designs and new ideas. This coupled with meeting build times (a rare occurrence in the bass building world) will ensure he is never short of orders. Enjoy the new bass, I sense it won't be your last ACG Edited July 20, 2015 by CamdenRob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 Thanks mate, I am very very happy with this little bass! Pretty happy with the table too I think the body is the regular Recurve size. All of the ACG designs are a lot more compact than they may appear. I've played several 34" scale Recurves and marveled at how compact the bass felt yet how well it balanced. Obviously the balance with the shorter neck will be even better, but all the 34"s weren't shabby in that department either. You're right about it not being the last, I actually have another underway already Eude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBus Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Utterly, utterly splendid! Lovely bits of wood that Alan has used there. Third picture down just makes me want to reach in and grab it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 [quote name='BassBus' timestamp='1437400381' post='2825637'] Utterly, utterly splendid! Lovely bits of wood that Alan has used there. Third picture down just makes me want to reach in and grab it. [/quote] Thanks mate, Alan is a true craftsman and I'm a very happy bassist! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merton Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 Love it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 21, 2015 Author Share Posted July 21, 2015 [quote name='Merton' timestamp='1437478444' post='2826289'] Love it [/quote] Thanks mate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merton Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 Looking forward to meeting her at our ACG/Barefaced/Ashdown love in haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 21, 2015 Author Share Posted July 21, 2015 [quote name='Merton' timestamp='1437486076' post='2826418'] Looking forward to meeting her at our ACG/Barefaced/Ashdown love in haha [/quote] Patience, Danielsan... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merton Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 I don't do patience well I keep looking at these pics and finding more grain patterns that I missed on the last look, it's so cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBus Posted July 21, 2015 Share Posted July 21, 2015 And while you two get a room I'll just reach in and grab the bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 22, 2015 Author Share Posted July 22, 2015 [quote name='BassBus' timestamp='1437502095' post='2826643'] And while you two get a room I'll just reach in and grab the bass. [/quote] We'd best keep our eyes peeled, there'll be 4 ACG's there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJ Posted July 22, 2015 Share Posted July 22, 2015 I was wondering if that was a customer build or a stock bass. I was secretly hoping for it being a stock one as motivation to gather all my money and buy it Lovely bass Eude, enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 22, 2015 Author Share Posted July 22, 2015 [quote name='TPJ' timestamp='1437559610' post='2826984'] I was wondering if that was a customer build or a stock bass. I was secretly hoping for it being a stock one as motivation to gather all my money and buy it Lovely bass Eude, enjoy. [/quote] Thanks mate, it's a bit of a peach this one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sibob Posted July 22, 2015 Share Posted July 22, 2015 Loving it!! Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 22, 2015 Author Share Posted July 22, 2015 [quote name='Sibob' timestamp='1437565345' post='2827061'] Loving it!! Si [/quote] Me too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zawinul Posted July 22, 2015 Share Posted July 22, 2015 Wow that looks great, almost makes me wish I had not just bought a Warwick fretless but maybe I'll just have to find the funds for an acg bass as well!! I can see a short scale headless fretless in my mind... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 22, 2015 Author Share Posted July 22, 2015 [quote name='zawinul' timestamp='1437568789' post='2827113'] Wow that looks great, almost makes me wish I had not just bought a Warwick fretless but maybe I'll just have to find the funds for an acg bass as well!! I can see a short scale headless fretless in my mind... [/quote] Thanks mate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ead Posted July 23, 2015 Share Posted July 23, 2015 Nice one Mr Eude, finally you have acquired a bass (albeit a bit shrunken with the correct number of strings). Clearly with one more bun in the oven I will need to keep my clear lead of 1 x ACG by ordering another. Now where did I put that blank spec sheet.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cameronj279 Posted July 23, 2015 Share Posted July 23, 2015 Very nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoombung Posted July 23, 2015 Share Posted July 23, 2015 Looks great, Ewan. Congrats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eude Posted July 24, 2015 Author Share Posted July 24, 2015 [quote name='Cameronj279' timestamp='1437665628' post='2828025'] Very nice! [/quote] [quote name='Spoombung' timestamp='1437689633' post='2828336'] Looks great, Ewan. Congrats. [/quote] Thanks guys! Kev, we'll need to arrange to meet up soon so I can show it off Eude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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