binky_bass Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 (edited) Hey guys, Right, so it arrived in one piece!!! That's always good news... The major factor in buying something new is always the price, so lets start there. The guys at Bass Mods did a full set up, plec'd the bass, included an excellent Gator hardcase, shipped it to me from the USA and all for £550 total. It's important to include import tax when dealing with the USA, and this cost me £50. (It was shipped at under it's value, which is a risk I took to lower costs, so it's your call... hence the £50 import tax cost) So all in all this bass from door to door, ALL expenses paid and with a brand new Gator hardcase cost £600. Now I consider that a VERY good deal. So that's the cost and shipping etc dealt with, now down to the bass... My first impressions of the bass are WOW. This thing is VERY good. The build quality is probably 8.5 out of 10, only due to a few very very minor (and i do mean VERY minor) issues, one of the 6 bolt holes attaching the neck to the body has the most minimal bit of crazing around it, its so minor its not worth mentioning, but this review is going to be thorough! The binding around the very bottom of the neck is ever so slightly out of line, but again, it's so minor, I almost feel bad even mentioning it! Other than that, it's 100%. The action on this thing is LOW, very very low, and no buzzing! No dead spots I can hear of either, so yeah, I'm definitely happy with the action, and I am a freak about low action, the lower the better and this really makes me happy that is stupidly low! It was my main concern when buying it... The neck is a beauty to play, its maple obviously, and it has a high gloss coating which makes it super fast to play, the neck is also satisfyingly chunky, and the fret board is gloss as well, the inlays are probably not MOP, but you really can't tell and they are set perfectly, the join between the neck and the body is dead tight. Someone mentioned the neck looked like it was attached with not much connection to the body, but as much as this may be the case for a chunky 7 string neck, it is totally secure and I hold no issue with this. The tuners are Grover, and are very well made, they hold perfect tuning and very smooth to operate, they are dead light too so no sign of any kind of neck dive, the bass overall is quite light, I haven't weighed it but it'll be around 9lbs or so. The pickups actually have a real nice array of tones, again this is something I was worried about when buying, but they sound just as good as any other Kent Armstrongs, they really do. The controls are duel volume I think with 2 stacked pots for tone on each pup (again I think!) you can get some really zingy tight tones through to deep and smooth lows. All in all guys, I have to say for a total cost of £600 this bass is definitely worth it. If it was a blind test, and I was given this bass to play for an hour and then asked how much it would cost, my honest guess would be somewhere in the realm of £1500. It was a punt buying this bass, but it came up trumps and I think its my favorite bass at the mo! (excluding Binky the 10 string, aint nowt beating that! but it was 8 times the price!) If you have £600 and want a really nice 5, 6 or 7 string jazz bass, then go and buy this NOW, you wont regret it. If you're local to me (Essex) and you want to try mine before buying one, then please do so, you'll love it! Here's a little video and a few pics of it in the flesh. Please excuse my unshaven, hungover self in the vid, it was a heavy night the night before! Also, PLEASE bare in mind I am playing this bass through a line6 Spider II guitar amp as I keep my MarkBass stack at the studio, so the sound is not what it should be, though it still sounds pretty spot on! That's the wrap guys, any questions the PM or add a bump to this review. Russ. [attachment=143252:20130907_125031.jpg][attachment=143253:20130907_125026.jpg] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-Eh9Z7Zs9w&feature=youtu.be Edited September 7, 2013 by binky_bass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellyfish Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 I'm not sure I could handle all 7 strings but I certainly wouldn't mind hanging it up on my wall. Lovely bass and it certainly doesn't sound too bad at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimBobTTD Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 The bass looks great and sounds good to me. Tasty playing, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellyfish Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 I perhaps should have added this to my original reply but what does it weigh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
binky_bass Posted September 7, 2013 Author Share Posted September 7, 2013 you sir, did nto read the full review!! I mentioned that it weighs around 9lbs, but I think its actually closer to 10.5lbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jellyfish Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghosts Over Japan Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 thanks for posting the review man, that looks and sounds top notch, definitely gonna be seeing those a lot more often, and very nice playing! Happy New Bass Day! Cai Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted September 7, 2013 Share Posted September 7, 2013 Awesome man, looks gorgeous and plays beautifully too from your description! Definitely got GAS for one, just no money or justification for getting one! How you enjoy it man! Now, do I go for blue or sunburst...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valhalalf Posted September 9, 2013 Share Posted September 9, 2013 Awesome playing and what a tasty looking bass. I have been looking at Bass Mods since I first found out they did the original K6 a couple of years ago and have been so tempted by the newer K7. I'm a guitarist of over 20 years and a bassist of 3 years so was thinking of getting a seven and tunning it like a guitar with a low B. I know, I know! Blasphemy! Heretic! I hear you cry lol But the idea of retaining all the chord and scale shapes I've spent years learning on the guitar and applying them to the bass and keeping a low B too just sounds like a great idea to me. And I could re learn them for proper 6/7 string tunning, but honestly I'm a bit lazy I just wish I lived close enough to see how that fat neck feels, god my GAS for one of these has gotten much worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
binky_bass Posted September 9, 2013 Author Share Posted September 9, 2013 Seriously, get one man! I very seriously considering getting another to back up the one I just got, it's almost the best 7 string I've played amd it's a fraction of the price, the neck is so damn comfortable to play. Best risk ever in my opinion! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TolerancEJ Posted September 9, 2013 Share Posted September 9, 2013 Congratulations! Very cool. Thanks for posting this review. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted September 9, 2013 Share Posted September 9, 2013 Wow! Just emailed BassMods with a few questions, and they replied within minutes! I've got GAS bad, need to try and sell some stuff... Still can't choose which colour! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
binky_bass Posted September 10, 2013 Author Share Posted September 10, 2013 Yeah rob is a good guy, again if you're anywhere near local feel free to come try mine out first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodster Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 (edited) Just ordered a K6 on the strength of this post! Edited September 11, 2013 by woodster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
binky_bass Posted September 12, 2013 Author Share Posted September 12, 2013 I hope you get as much fun out of it dude! Rob is a good guy to deal with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
binky_bass Posted September 12, 2013 Author Share Posted September 12, 2013 I hope you get as much fun out of it dude! Rob is a good guy to deal with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horizontalste Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 (edited) It's very cool but forgive me for asking, what does plec'd mean? Nevermind, I googled it. Edited September 12, 2013 by Horizontalste Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
binky_bass Posted September 13, 2013 Author Share Posted September 13, 2013 Yeah I had to google it when I 1st heard the term... it does make quite the difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AttitudeCastle Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 So tempted to get one now! What ever happened to the pac 9 by the way? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassTractor Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 Sorry, but this is laughable. A proper bass has 10 or 13 strings. That and thanks a lot for reviewing and posting! My gas has only gotten worse now, and I'm soooo gonna get this if I can find the dough. Ha! Got an idea! Will put a 70% discount on everything in my shop just to get the revenue to buy this bass! Yup! That's what I'll do. All your fault! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
binky_bass Posted September 13, 2013 Author Share Posted September 13, 2013 Just used this bad boy at a gig tonight, went down a treat! It was actually dead clear in the mix, played a few tappy songs and the clarity was spot on. Oh the pacman went to Oscar in Valencia! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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