Baloney Balderdash

Or one of use look father out than merely our acquaintances when we judge the general state of the world, and have human interactions that goes beyond the inner circles.

Well, he always appear to me as a really polite but at the same time genuine warm and friendly down to earth insightful human being, who seems to try do his share to make the world a bit better place to live in. That is more what you can say about most other people. Sad, but unfortunately also true. In my book that qualifies him for being called a truly great human being, in contrary to the majority, in my book. Now of course I don't know him personally, but it would surprise me much if he wasn't pretty much as great as guy as he always comes through as to me in just about every interview or speech I've seen/heard with him. Also seems to me that I wasn't wrong calling out people apparently, for some strange reason, feeling an incredible urge to ridicule this topic. I truly don't get it, but suppose that will be another fact for people to have a laugh over at my expense.

That's at least is a fair opinion to have, and even something that would be valid to post, even if you didn't bother to watch the video. At least it is still somewhat on topic. Just making fun of the video thumbnail, which with in all likelihood neither Victor Wooten or the interviewer had any say in, and which has nothing to do with the actual content, without even bothering watching the actual video interview isn't exactly really anything that can create any constructive debate whatsoever. That's just filling the thread up with poop, at least as far as I am concerned. It would very much be the same as a thread filled up with snarky remarks about some spelling error I made in my OP, but no one actually bothering reading it through and replying to it. 1 post like that I guess would be fine and nothing to worry about, but 3 posts from 3 different users in a row as the top replies, evolving around the same lame joke, it's beginning to look like a pattern and a tendency, to me at least. Do I have bad breath or something, anyone?

It was actually G in this context, but yeah as I mentioned it was not really the catchy sensational headline of the video thumbnail I intended this thread to be about, and though he actually does say exact what's put in that headline in the video, it is kind of completely taken out of a context where it actually makes sense and isn't actually some new dogme he claims everyone ought to stick to, his point just basically being that for filling the role of a bass player in a band rhythm and grove is far more important than notes, as in that should be where the focus it and one of the first things to learn. I know it is a long interview, an interview which is actually nice and respectful, and which I think the very young female interviewer actually handles extremely well, so can we please stop discussing the video thumbnail sensational misleading click bait headline that Thomann decided to go with for this video, which I think most would agree comes off as rather silly, and focus on the actual content, which in my opinion is actually great and respectful? It really ought to be obvious that this thread is meant for discussing the actual video interview and not whatever silly title some a bit too smart PR person at Thomann decided to stick on it, if it was I would have just left the tittle, and there would have been no point in me linking to the video. So yes, as I already insinuated in the OP I do think that video thumbnail headline is rather silly too, but can we please not have this whole thread be about that, and instead be about the actual video and the interview that it contains. I bet neither of you would like to have a whole thread you posted with a topic you found valid and saw as potentially being the starting point for an interesting debate turn out to exclusively be about ridiculing your silly username or some such of similar essentially totally irrelevant detail, that had very little to do with the actual content you had posted. I do understand why you would judge the video on that thumbnail headline, but believe me it is actually a good interview, and I don't think it's fair to judge the actual content on a silly label decision likely taken by some PR guy at Thomann that actually otherwise had nothing to do with the actual video. All you do is really trolling and derailing as far as I see it. It would be like going to an amazing concert with some band you loved, but then having the fact that the lead singer was wearing 2 different socks get all your attention.

I don have any personal experience with it. but judging from the demos I wanted the Norstrand Big BladeMan, Music Man style pickup, seems like a truly great pickup. Here's a nice demo featuring it, demonstrating both pick, finger play and slap style, as well as using different tone settings:

Word! (more to the whole interview as such than specifically the very headline like headline of the video thumbnail though)

So I stumbled upon this super cheap pickup that from what I could read up from people on the internet should be extremely aggressive and high output, wasn't able to find any YouTube demos though. So anyone with any first experience with that pickup who can give me at least some idea of what I possibly could expect, output and tone wise, if I swapped out the current DiMarzio Model P P pickup installed in my bass, wired directly to it's output jack socket with an Alan Entwistle PBXN Neodymium P pickup? Also anyone with audio clips that actually demos this pickup would be very welcome as well. Now, I actually really like the tone I get from my DiMarzio Model P, but at the low prize of the Entwistle PBXN it is tempting to at least just try it out and see if I possibly would like that even better. One thing I'd definitely wouldn't want is scooped out mids, and I'd like a fair share of high end frequency content to be reproduced by the pickup too, as you might be able to figure out by me having the DiMarzio Model P wired directly to the jack output socket of my bass.

I actually kind of like how it looks, despite usually thinking most whale hump basses are being despicably ugly, and really never would buy any kind of single cut guitar or bass myself. This one is consequently bulgy baroque and grotesquely bloated though, which I guess does give it a more, relatively speaking, harmonic and wholesome look, compared to most other whale hump bass abominations, and that I for some reason can respect and appreciate. Kind of the complementary exact opposite of the aesthetics of pointy instruments like as an example B.C Rich perfected, being equally extreme, but kind of in the exact opposite end of the spectrum.

I can only agree, as I said in an earlier post, I bought the 1969 model of the B-15S amp, used obviously, about 25 years ago, and for the 10 years forward that I owned it all I did to it, beside ignorantly abusing it brutally, driving it at it's absolute max for 2 times 4 hours weekly at band rehearsals, plus the occasional gigs and jams, was having the tubes changed once, and in all those 10 years it never as much as just once threw any fits, or even just subtle hints, whatsoever, of malfunctioning at me in retaliation to my blatantly ignorant barbaric abuse, also might I add that it would still sound ever so sweet on the occasions where it was handled more gently and respectfully in the company of less furiously berserkering jam partners, and I'll even bet with quite high probability that it still plays on just as flawlessly warm and beautiful, or blistering aggressively grunting, depending on how it's current owner use or abuse it, as ever, somewhere out there. Something in me wishes that it still rages on in some furious avantgarde free jazz trio's company, as it once being responsible for driving the lead bass in an equally furious hard hitting, 2 bassists, 1 drummer, 1 guitarist/screamer, hardcore and noise rock influenced math rock band, now receiving it's final blessings in the form of a perpetual exploding firework of flashbacks from passed sonic wars fought as it's veteran award and recognition, ascended as it now has from punk to fine arts torture.

I am one of those people who actually really like most of the modeled modulation, delay and reverb effects that the Zoom products offers, the distortion and amp modeling not so much, and I own a Zoom G1Xon and a MS CDR70 multi effect myself, and have owned the B3, which I kind of regret letting go of, and I'll probably end up buying the newer B1X Four, with allegedly better and more advanced modeling quality of it's effects, though, a bit disappointing, having much lesser twekability than the old effects, in terms of available adjustable parameters and fine tuning of the effect models. In fact prefer i prefer the Zoom effect to the ones featured in the more expensive similar Boss products. They certainly came an amazingly long way since the awful sounding digital multi effects they made around the 90's, that definitely didn't hold up to Boss quality.. But yeah, if I am getting one of the higher quality modeling units I know for sure it isn't going to be the that spanking new G11 monstrum, quite disappointed in fact. I'd rather pay slightly more and get at least as high modeling quality, but with improved tweakability, at least in terms of number of parameters it'll allow you to adjust to fine tune the effects, and much more advanced and expanded routing capabilities ,and get the Line 6 Helix Effect nit instead, and that without having to really pay that noticeable more. Especially because I plan soon to get a preamp that should handle all my amp modeling and cab IR simulations needs, since I won't ever really be needing to be able to swap between 10 or more amps and cabs on the fly at any point, but just need one basic great tone in a box, and then have the rest of my needs for different tone flavors come from my effects and how I chose to route those. I'd even honestly would prefer the new Line 6 POD GO over the Zoom G11, which as far as I can see is both quite similarly priced and quite similar as far as features goes. If the Zoom G11 had been able to compete with the Line 6 Helix products in functionality, but with a price tag similar to the POD GO I'd definitely still be very interested, but as it is now the POD GO just seems like the better alternative for something with similar functionality and similar price, or by just paying slightly more get the advanced functionality of the Helix line with the Helix Stomp, even if admittedly that would be at the price of less on the fly ability to control the unit, and sadly for Zoom I believe that is what most people in need for something like that is also going to think. I don't foresee the G11 it to have much of a chance on the market honestly. Sadly, cause I liked the idea of Zoom offering similar great quality and functionality, but for less the price than their competitors, as they have pretty much manged up until now, starting from their B/G3/5(X) and B/G1(X)on line of multi effects. The G11 though I just can't see offering anything that makes it an attractive alternative to similar products on the market with a much similar price tag, perhaps even on the contrary, all except perhaps for it's, admittedly seemingly relatively superior (for anything just remotely near it's price tag at least), on the fly knob adjustments/foot controlled features capabilities. If they had made it cross compatible with the effects of their older products, made it possible to, via a software editor, download and store whichever effects from Zoom back catalog of digital multi effect pedals, bass as well as guitar focused (at least from all their multi stomp boxes and the newer B/G(X)3/5n and B/G1(X) Four, mulri effects), plus offering a bunch of constantly updated all new improved effect and amp models, and those being just as tweakability as the effects in their multi stomp box series typically are in terms of adjustable parameters, perhaps then even being able to take a small fee for that service, and it having the same advanced routing options as you get with the Line 6 Helix products, but still had been able to keep it at the same kind of price tag as it got now, then I have no doubt it would had a huge potential to become a huge success, I know at least that I wouldn't had any second thoughts about choosing that over any other multi effect on the market. But what do I know, perhaps that would have made it impossible for Zoom to actually earn anything noteworthy on the units, but on the other hand if that is in fact not the case, then I have no doubt they should have taken the risk involved, maybe earning a bit less on each unit, but on the other hand having a real and, I believe, even big chance to potentially making it the dominating multi effect on the whole market, all for except in the relatively small niche of really high end digital multi effects, instead of, as I see it, now having something with very little to offer as an alternative over similar products, with a similar price, and a similar quality, made by other digital multi effect companies with generally better reputation for quality, and, as I see it, something that has a big potential for becoming a huge gigantic flop. As it is now all I can see it really has to offer over it's competitors is just it's, as I mentioned previously, admittedly seemingly relatively superior (for anything just remotely near it's price tag at least), on the fly knob adjustments/foot controlled features capabilities.

I once owned an Ampeg B15-S, 60W, 1969 model, which unfortunately I was stupid enough to sell about 15 years ago, after it having served me well for about 10 years at that point, originally having bought it stupidly cheap from a 2nd Hand music gear related shop. Mind I am planing to make my bass setup ampless now, and coming next month buying the NUX Melvin Lee Davis Bass Preamp that I count on being able to do the job properly, planing to use it's build in amp modeling of the Aguilar Tone Hammer bass amp head, and then using it's 3rd party cab IR loader function to run a few 3rd party cab IRs that I already got in mind, for that. And even if I still had happened to be interested in carrying heavy amps to future jams, rehearsals and eventual gigs, which I am obviously not, I would rather have got an old solid state Trace Elliot bass amp for that job than the Ampeg B15-S. Though it did in fact still sound absolutely amazing, even if maybe not exactly the way I'd rather prefer now for the music I tend to play, and I do still very much regret haven been stupid enough to let go of it, back when I sold it.

Interesting. Especially your pickup choice, wasn't aware of the existence of these pickups, but just looked them up. Not something I would personally ever have need of, I just need one basic great tone that fits my personal preferences, but I can totally see how the options these pickups gives you could prove very useful and practical for some bass players. Quite cleverly thought out, at least as long as you like the basic tone of those pickups, which I guess will reflect itself through the different modes/wirings they are capable of, but even then, especially with 3 of them, you will be able to cover a tremendous amount of different tonal ground. No doubt going to be a super versatile bass you will get there.

Better wait with commissioning one till nano technology is at the stage where the bass would be able to transmorph completely according to your at any given time current wishes then.

The idea of this thread is to have those dreams gathered in one place. And no offence, but after 27 years of playing and several basses, some of which were 1000$+ instruments, regular 34" scale basses as well as short scales, I would think I know what I want and what I don't want in a bass. As for the 28,6" scale because I found that to be the perfect scale length for a 4 string bass for me, not too cramp, yet not too cumbersom to play, and to me without any negative side effects from the smaller scale, as far as I am concerned, after experience with a bass build out of Warmoth 28 5/8" (28,625") scale baritone parts, and a couple of Ibanez Mikro Basses. Seems to be about the smallest scale length for a 4 string bass before negative side effects will begin to come into play, and at the same time that scale length, for me, offers the absolute most comfortable playability, in my experience. I agree that what you say might be the case for some, but I am pretty certain that I actually know what I want. And even if other people shouldn't feel this way, what is there to loose, as said it was hypothetical question, not a binding contract to a commission work. To me at least it would be interesting to see people's preferences gathered in one thread, instead of having to read through the entire archive of posts on this forum from every member on it if one wanted that sort of information. I for one think the premisses of my thread are perfectly valid, or else I wouldn't have made it. The idea is not to judge people on their wishes but to see the diversity of them.

Hypothetical question, if you had the money needed, or was willing to spend the kind of money it would cost, and you could have a custom bass designed exactly to your dream specs and according to your dream visual design, what would it be then? Mine would be: Something like a 4 string 28,6" scale length bass, with mahogany body, bolt on maple neck, with a modern slim C shaped profile, a 24 medium sized stainless steel frets, about 14" radius, ebony fretboard, 38mm nut width, and 17mm string spacing at the bridge consisting of mono rails, and an accordingly narrow neck that would accommodate that, likely with a Nordstrand, The Power Blade, P style pickup in the neck/sort of middle position, and a Nordstrand Big Blademan, Music Man style pickup, in the bridge position, with coil split, and series/parallel switch, and in matte black finish with all black hardware, with the body/headstock shape somewhat inspired by a fusion between the B.C Rich Zombie Revenge and Beast bass (actually mainly like the Zombie Revenge bass, but with asymmetrical "devil horns" on the head stock and bridge end of the body, and slightly slimmer, more down angled, front horns, like on the Beast bass), and beside the coil/series/parallel switch for the Music Man style bridge pickup, just a pickup blend control, no volume or tone pot, and all passive. The B.C Rich basses that I am referring to looking like this:

The best neck I ever played was a the Jerry Jones Longhorn 4 string bass I once owned, but was stupid enough to sell, and as far as I have been able to research it is supposed to have a neck with a slim C profile, and a fertboard with a pretty flat radius of 14,5", and even though the nut width is 1 5/8" (approcimately 41,3mm) the neck is pretty straight, as in it doesn't expand much in width as you get further down the neck towards the bridge, with it's just 17mm string spacing at the bridge. I also quite like the neck of my current 4 string Ibanez GSRM20 Mikro Bass, which neck is likewise a slim C profile, the fretboard having a 12" radius, and the nut being 38mm wide. but the neck then expanding as you go further down towards the bridge accommodating a standard 4 string string spacing of 19mm at the bridge. But as far as I recall, which is a bit hard since some years has passed between selling the Longhorn and then to me getting the Mikro, I slightly preferred the feel of the Longhorn neck, which seems to suggest that I prefer an even flatter radius than the Mikro's 12", and an even more narrow neck than the Mikro's 19mm string spacing makes for, though the slightly more narrow nut width of the Mikro is nice. Also I prefer the slim C profile of my Mikro Bass over my Epiphone SG guitar's slim D profile. Weather then I might prefer other neck profiles over slim C I can't really tell, as I haven't really tried for example slim V or U shaped necks, but at least I know D isn't where it's at at, and slim does seem to be just the right thickness for me, also 38mm nut width seems to be just right for me, as does a quite narrow neck that accommodates for a 17mm string spacing at the bridge, and an even flatter fretboard radius than 12", closer to around 14", seems just right for me as well. And as for scale length, even if that really has little to do with the topic of this thread, the Mikro's 28,6" seems to be just absolute perfect for a 4 string bass for me. I still rather have the slighter shorter 28,6" scale length of the Mikro, over the Longhorn's 30" scale length, than the benefit of the overall more narrow neck given by the slightly tighter string spacing at the bridge and the slightly flatter fretboard radius the Longhorn would give me, but ideally I'd have a custom bass made at some point with a 28,6" scale length, a slim C shaped narrow neck, as narrow as 17mm string spacing at the bridge would require, with a 38mm nut width and a 14,5" radius fretboard with 24 medium sized frets. So I am actually pretty sure on what I prefer from a neck, even if there theoretically could be a possibility that a slim V or U shape would fit me better than a slim C shape. Otherwise narrow, slim, most likely C and definitely not D shaped, but with a vague possibility for maybe V or U shaped instead, and with a relatively flat fretboard radius, flatter than 12" and likely just around 14,5", seems to be where I feel most at home. All in all I got my preferences in just about everything from neck shape, fretboard radius, fret wire size, scale length, wood preferences, pickup preferences, electronics and control preferences, and overall design/shape preferences down close enough to a perfect fit for me that I would feel totally comfortable with getting a custom bass made exactly to my specs and be quite sure that I actually would end up loving the result, all I need now then is the kind of money that would require. But at least the 4 string Ibanez GSRM20 Mikro Bass that I own close enough for now,, if just it had had a slightly flatter fretboard radius, and slightly tighter string spacing at the bridge with the resulting slightly more narrow neck, had got 2 additional frets, and had had a Music Man style pickup at the bridge instead of a J style pickup, it would have been perfect, close enough to perfect at least that the fretboard wood being rosewood and not ebony, and that it'a visual design not matching my personal vision of my dream bass, probably wouldn't bother me to such a degree that I would still have a dream constantly itching about getting a custom bass made exactly to my preferred specs at some point. My Mikro's 28,6" scale length, mahogany body, bolt on maple neck, medium sized frets, and P style neck/middle position pickup, is spot on at least. I guess technically I could save up for about 15 month or so, not being able to buy any other musical gear or other "luxury" stuff in that time span, beside what I strictly would need to survive, and then probably have just about enough money saved up for getting my dream bass made by one of the cheaper luthiers who will make custom basses exactly to your specs, but unfortunately I don't possess that kind of discipline and patience, so for now I will have to do with what I got and let my dream bass remain nothing but a dream. Sorry for going way off topic, just seemed that it made my thoughts spin beyond that.

Swedish Karin Dreijer Andersson, electronic musician and singer from The Knife and her solo project Fever Ray, is also up there for me : Here as guest vocalist for Norwegian Röyksopp (She doesn't have the lead role in this music video, that's some super model, but is featured as the woman sitting at a dinner table in priest robes eating an apple, later in the video) :

I'd sell it an have me a custom bass made specifically to my specs. For one I've gone exclusively short scale. Something like a 4 string 28,6" scale length bass, with mahogany body, bolt on maple neck, with a modern slim C shaped profile, 24 medium frets, about 14" radius, ebony fretboard, 38mm nut width, and 17mm string spacing, with mono bridge pieces, likely with a Nordstrand, The Power Blade, P pickup in the sort of neck/midle position, and a Nordstrand Big Blademan, Music Man pickup, in the bridge position, with coil split, and series/parallel switch, and in matte black finish with all black hardware, with the body/headstock shape somewhat inspired by a fusion between the B.C Rich Beast and Zombie Revenge bass, and beside the coil/series/parallel switch for the Music Man bridge pickup, just a pickup blend control, no volume or tone pot, and all passive.

And another hit from their masterpiece of an album "Deep Cuts" :

I really love that pedal! So much I got 2 of them. Currently only use one of them in my bass pedal setup though, for a really great slightly grinding medium overdive kind of thing, that I blend with cleans via my Boss LS-2. It is capable of some serious amazingly clanky grinding high gain overdrive to medium distortion though, with the Drive knob cranked up higher, the Voice knob boosted a good bit, boosting the frequency area around 800Hz (but with a pretty wide Q curve, cutting the area around 400Hz bellow the 12 o'clock position. The reason it overdives the pedal when you boost it is that it's a pre gain stage EQ control), and the Tone knob turned slightly above the 12 o'clock position, slightly cutting some low end, especially great that way blended with a bit of clean signal, where it will deliver this really edgy and seriously aggressive grinding medium gain distortion tone that will cut through everything. Cranked the distortion kind of having a character that somewhat reminds me of a mixture between a cranked Boss BD-2, and especially a cranked Boss DS-1, just way more full and not in any possible way thin, perhaps somewhat more amp like, sounding. How I use it currently it is considerably more moderate though, and actually really great as my main overdriven tone, still slightly to the more clanky and grinding side, but nothing too drastic, and still with a good amount of low end included, since I blend it with clean signal via my Boss LS-2 at an almost 50/50 ratio, just adding a slight bit of grind and edge to an otherwise a lovely full sounding medium gain kind of overdrive tone. Would have loved to own the, sadly now discontinued, but also much more expensive, Tech 21 Oxford pedal, from their Character Series, that the Orange Juice is based on, for a much more extensive EQ section. Or Joyo just making it in a bigger version, with the same EQ controls as their Sound series of pedals, like the original Tech 21 Oxford pedal got. It's not bad in this scraped and seriously sized down version though, still an absolutely amazing drive pedal, just sometimes could wish for a bit more control over the EQ.

So, yes, let us see those of your basses with distressed finishes, cracked off polythene coatings, bumps, scratches, scars and other blemishes, or as some might call them battle scars, or even charming character strengthening marks of honor. I wouldn't exactly call the damage done on my 4 string Ibanez GSRM20 Mikro Bass marks of honor, rather cautionary marks of carelessness and plain stupidity, but I do actually think they do kind of add some rough carefree and somewhat unique character to it at least. First of all here's how the bass looks in it's entirety: The first thing you'll properly notice it the kind of crooked star like, roughly sort of engraved, figure between the 2 pickups, beneath the strings, on the body. This was actually done on purpose as an impulsive idea and haphazard attempt to decorate the bass, by hammering the tip of a flat screwdriver into the body of the bass repeatedly to sort of engrave the figure, all through the thick polythene coating and down in the mahogany wood of the bass's body, and it actually turned out pretty much as I pictured it, weather then I should have acted on that spontaneous whim or not, but I actually kind of like it. Special paint that is supposed to give a somewhat marble like effect, and then, at a later point, further more transparent glitter nail polish, was then dabbed down in the cracks that forms the crude star like figure with a small brush. The actual point of the idea originally being to make it look sort of like a crack in a piece of glass. Here's a closeup picture of it: The next thing you'll properly noticed is the relatively big, odd blemish above the P pickup, right at the end of the neck on the body of the bass, that is the aftermath of a haphazard and failed attempt to drill an extra pickup cavity in the far neck position, that I then later, unfortunately also kind of poorly, filled out with filler mass and then painted and varnished over. Kind of really regret that one, as it turned out I even didn't really need that extra neck pickup, and that I really shouldn't have used a drilling machine to do it. The 2 holes on the last fret, that you can also see on the below closeup of the blemish, one partly filled up with a glued in wooden stick, and the other, which I actually pretty nicely managed to fill out, almost perfectly, with another glued in wooden stick (though as you can see made from a light color wood), is something that happened after I, at a later point, removed the neck to shim it, and then as I decided to fill out the holes from the neck screws, for a tight fit back, discovering that I would need to drill some new pilot holes, but ending up drilling too deep, all the way through the fretboard. So the closeup of that: And as you might notice on that closeup there's a chip in the fretboard just after the last fret, low E string side, which was caused by a sliding out of control drill, from that failed drilling an extra pickup cavity attempt, as I unfortunately hadn't even bothered removing the neck first. I manage to glue back one of the chips that was ripped off by the out of control drilling machine, which actually seems to have worked well, and like a pretty sturdy fix, but another chip went missing. Luckily though nothing happened to the fretwire, that stayed firmly in place all the while. On this closeup it is possible to see the missing chip a bit better, as well as the edges of the glue joints where the other piece was put back on: Finally the oldest injury that my bass suffered, not visible on that first front shot of my bass, since it's located on the side of the upper part of the body, which is a relatively big piece of the thick polythene finish, which the bass is coated with, has chipped off, and later then sprayed with a clear coat of varnish, that it suffered back when it was still relatively new, when I dropped the Mikro Bass gigbag, that the bass came with and was in at that point, on the concrete sidewalk on my way to band rehearsal, partly because I didn't pay proper attention, and partly because those gigbags, that the Mikro Basses used to come with as a standard accessory from factory, for some reason only is equipped with one shoulder strap. Kind of a miracle that that was the only damage that the bass suffered from that fall, especially considering the padding of those gigbags were kind of on the crappier and thinner side. Anyway here it is in a closeup shoot: As said I do kind of really regret the damage that the bass suffered from me being stupid enough to on a whim haphazardly trying to drill an extra far neck position pickup cavity, but otherwise I actually don't really mind the other scars at all. All in all I am not all too concerned with the looks of my instruments, as long as it doesn't affects the actual playabillity negatively, and I actually think a battered instrument can have a certain charm, like the scars often kind of adds a somewhat unique character to it.

Sad to break it to you, but that neck is badly warped, and as if that wasn't enough the hack who installed the frets seems to have been cross eyed or perhaps intoxicated, possibly both, in any case they are anything but straight. I would return that bass immediately if I were you. How did a train wreck catastrophe like that ever pass quality control. It's almost like whoever made it did a serious effort to make it turn out all crooked. But no matter who it was, together with whoever was responsible for inspecting it, needs to be fired as quickly as possible before they can do more damage.

I've always loved the matte black finish for basses (Edit!!: on further inspection it looks more like matte dark grey, still really love it though, might also just be the light in those pictures), and the color of that fretboard wood match nicely with it (I assume very dark rosewood from the look of it), not a big fan of tortoise pickguards though, to say the least, but that particular one there is actually not all that bad, I'd definitely chose one looking similar to that if I was forced to use a tortoise pickguard, though in my opinion a black one with a red layer in, making the edge of the pickguard have sort of a red stripe around it, would have looked much sharper. But that is just me. Truly an amazing looking bass in any case. Congratulations!