My Bolin NS5

[Godfrey]

I didn’t realise quite how rare these seem to be, so thought I would show it here.
I imported it directly from Bolin Guitars in 2004 as a fretless but, as I could never get it to sound exactly as I wanted, I had it fretted about 18 months later by Andy Viccars.
The body is alder with very nice quilted maple top, maple neck, 35” scale ebony fingerboard (no marker dots as it was originally fretless), EMG Dual Coil pickup plus Fishman piezo bridge and Fishman 18v preamp.
The UK list price with the quilted top was £2,218 but by importing it I paid £1,856 including shipping and UK taxes.
Below are the ratings given in the product review by Riaan Vosloo in Bass Guitar Magazine dated June/July 2003, each section rated out of 20.
I would definitely agree with all the comments except the one about good quality control. Mine disappointed as it was delivered wrongly wired making the batteries drain straight down, and with a significant flaw in the finish on the lower edge of the body.

[attachment=99668:2BolinNS5.jpg] Click on pic to enlarge

Build Quality – 19/20
With excellent detailing, everything on this bass feels right. Solid, with very good quality control, it feels like a hand built instrument should. The only gripe was some slightly irregular spacing at the nut. (This obviously only applied to the particular instrument being reviewed.)
Sound – 19/20
Simply the best fingerstyle sound of any bass I have ever played: warm, round, smooth and sensual. Getting a convincing slap sound takes a little more experimentation though.
Playability – 19/20
Again, for fingerstyle, the NS plays like a dream; chordal work is easy, as is tapping.
Value – 19/20
When spending this sort of money, this is the sort of quality you would expect. Good looking with a sound to match and tons of features.
Wow Factor – 20/20
A great looking bass. Whether on a stand at home or performing on stage, this bass will grab people’s attention. It looks more like a traditional acoustic instrument, a beautiful bass.
Total Score – 96/100
Truly one of the nicest instruments I have seen and played for a long time. Poised and beautiful, with a wicked sound

Edited July 14, 2018 by Godfrey