NS Design CR5

[Lfalex v1.1]

[i][b]Preamble[/b][/i]
Well, where do I start?
Having had a quick browse through the reviews section, I couldn't see [u]any[/u] Electric Upright Bass reviews. Maybe they're in that [i]special[/i] forum.. No?
It is a bass... Of sorts, so here's the review!

[i][b]Background[/b][/i]
Why an EUB?
Having flirted with fretless (an old Columbus S2 Jazz and a Musicman Ray 5) I discovered that, whilst I could play such an instrument, It couldn't reproduce [i]that[/i] DB sound.
Nor can an EUB. But it does get closer.
And it's smaller
And you don't have feedback issues
And they're available with too many strings (five, in this case)
And you can use effects with them
And amplify them straight from the box without modification
And many can be readily set up at home without specialist tools/skills

I'm guessing that the DB purists will have hit the "back" button on their browsers by now, so I'll continue!

In all seriousness, An EUB represents the right compromise for me.
A sort of halfway-house between fretless and DB that's more portable and convenient.

Why the NS?
For me, it had to be a 5. It's now my choice of fretted bass, so to be able to play/re-interpret some material it was entirely necessary to have that fifth string. That limits the number of purchasing options, even in the EUB field.
I'd originally targeted an NS Design NXT 5, but a CR 5 came up second-hand, and at a good price,
So that forced my hand somewhat.

[i][b]Features[/i][/b]
Made in the Czech Republic.
A diminutive Maple body with a flamed Maple cap (about 3mm thick, if you look closely)
A full 42" scale Maple neck, scarf-jointed to the body. This is of [i]much[/i] higher quality than either the body wood or the cap, and is beautifully finished is a gloss lacquer.
The fingerboard is of Macassar Ebony, and has small dot markers at every position from "1" to "24", with double markers at 5,7,12,17,19 and 24 positions. Yup. A double-octave neck that's completely accessible due to that dinky body.

The transducer is a piezo electric bridge fashioned from phenolic resin. It's adjustable for action/side to side tilt from behind with two 3mm Allen keys. It's a doddle.
No Magnetic pick-ups in this model. That's the "M"
String spacing could be changed, too, if you wanted to file a few (more) small slots in the bridge. As it's removable, you could possibly obtain a new phenolic blank from NS (not that I've tried)

The electrics are 18v active, with controls for Volume, continously variable Arco/Pizzicato control with centre detent, treble and bass.

The tuners are Schallers. A regular Bass guitar type, but they're the smoothest, most positive tuners I've ever encountered. Period.
The nut is phenolic, too, by the looks of it.

It all stands atop a tripod. Yes. It stands up all on its own. No leaning it in corners or buying stands.
It's remarkably liberating to be able to just walk away from an instrument and not have it follow you in some way.
That might sound odd, but if you've just swapped from a Bass Guitar, your shoulder won't miss having a lump of wood hanging from it!
End pins and shoulder straps are available as further alternatives.

The package comes in two tubular soft cases with a degree of padding. One for the stand, one for the bass.

[b]Simple, minimalist design, with good quality construction and selective application of excellent quality materials where it really counts, particularly the neck and fingerboard. 10/10 [/b]

[i][b]Sound[/i][/b]
In a word, Massive.
Makes my "biggest" sounding bass guitar sound like toy.
Yes, that's partly a function of the energy transmitted from all that extra string mass, but the Piezo system conveys the player's input with great accuracy, and the 18v electrics give plenty of headroom. Best of all, the EQ controls are not an after-thought. The extremes of adjustment are too much (particularly if you wind the treble up all the way- its uncomfortable through headphones), but used sensibly, they affect exactly the right parts of the sound in just the way I'd want.

[b]Powerful, flexible and intuitive.. Great with (subtle) effects. Noise and feedback free. 10/10[/b]

[i][b]Action, Fit and Finish[/b][/i]
Very good indeed.
Everything feels remarkably solid.
All the joints are tidily constructed and there's no sloppy workmanship to be seen.. The only shortcoming is that the inner faces of the (open) headpiece are not finished to the same standard as the rest of the bass.
The neck has a truss-rod, so it's adjustable, as is the bridge, so you can tailor the action to suit your preference.
I opened the back panel up to have a look (slacken the strings or the tension will fire it across the room!)
It's all tidily wired and very well shielded inside.
The Tripod stand is very stable and adjusts into some weird positions if you want but allows a good degree of flexibility

[b]Solidly made, with only a few compromises visible. Plenty of adjustability. 9/10[/b]

[b][i]Reliability[/i][/b]
I purchased this instrument used, and am at least its third owner.
It has seen plenty of action.
And it all still works exactly as it should.

[b]No issues here, then.. 10/10[/b]

BUT

[b][i]Durablility[/i][/b]
Here's the catch.
All that Maple, particularly on the body, is soft. It can be dented easily. And this has been.
Especially around the bottom edge of the instrument.
The Flamed face has some gouges in it from fingernails when players have overshot the G string.
The headpiece is fine.
The padded bag for the bass is not up to the job.It has insufficient padding in the ends to prevent damage to the instrument.
The manual states that you can get the stand (in its bag) in with the instrument in its bag.
Not a good plan. The stand has the ability to damage the instrument. Bagged or otherwise.
The previous owner had purchased a proper flightcase. That's more like it.

Time to try and steam some of those dents out with a soldering iron/damp cloth.

[b]Inadequate protective gear supplied. Durable if you treat it [u]carefully[/u]. Buy a proper case! 6/10[/b]

[i][b]Overall rating[/i][/b]
Cracking design (if you favour minimalism)
Sounds superb and plays really well- and I've only used it to play Pizzicato.
Great clarity and sustain- really sings in a way that makes a lot of Bass guitars sound a bit thin and weedy!
Excellent neck access. If your intonation is up to it, you can go "Cello-Chasing"
A really good blend of design, features and construction, with materials that can only be described as "premium" used in critical areas (neck and fingerboard)

Let down only by the soft bags and the fact that the body damages easily.
The strings can be kinked against the (square) tail-end of the fingerboard if it suffers a big impact. If the instrument bag was better, it might not happen...

[b]Overall? 8/10 as if bought new. If only it came with a proper case. These are approx £1700 new.
Inadequate protection is a serious flaw at this price point

Otherwise I'd probably bump it up to 9 or even 9.5 out of 10[/b]


Any questions? Fire away?
I'll try to sort some photos in due course...

[andyonbass]

Great review, ( coincidently I have an [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/205603-ns-designs-nxt-5-for-sale-l80000/page__fromsearch__1"]NXT 5[/url] for sale )

[Lfalex v1.1]

Just to briefly re-visit this review, the NS CR5 is still going strong. High points are definitely; Sound, playability, EQ and design. Low points? Battery life. But you sure can tell when they're fading, as the sound follows suit!