Bloodaxe Posted July 5, 2007 Share Posted July 5, 2007 There's some interest in these, and as I have a 'bay search set up I'll post any of interest that surface. I'll stick to the Matsumoku-era (1979-1986ish) unless it's something dead kinky. First up a rather nice [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-TS-650-bass-guitar-1980-Rare-vintage-relic_W0QQitemZ220127535427QQihZ012QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"][b]TS-650[/b][/url]. Don't think its quite 100% original, but looks to be a very nice thing indeed. Next... [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro-II-RS-The-Cat-Bass-Matsumoku_W0QQitemZ330142478982QQihZ014QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"][b]The CAT[/b][/url] This has been knocking about for a couple of weeks now &, oddly, attracting no interest - no PayPal the reason? Anyway £80 seems a steal. There are a couple of overseas listings I'll bung in for good measure... [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro-II-CSB-380-Cardinal-Series-Bass-Gd-Cond-NO-RSV_W0QQitemZ200124947202QQihZ010QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"][b]Cardinal Series CSB-350[/b][/url] in Arizona. Gorgeous colour. [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro-II-Fretless-Bass-25-Jahre-superschoen-erhalten_W0QQitemZ160134627035QQihZ006QQcategoryZ87492QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"][b]SB-900 Fretless conversion[/b][/url] from Germany (NOT our friend in Mittel!) Also from Germany [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/70ger-JAHRE-VINTAGE-JAPAN-ARIA-SHORTSCALE-JAZZ-BASS_W0QQitemZ230148368912QQihZ013QQcategoryZ23300QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"][b]A fine piece of Vintage JapCrap[/b][/url] Pete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musky Posted July 7, 2007 Share Posted July 7, 2007 [quote name='Bloodaxe' post='27656' date='Jul 5 2007, 10:53 PM']Next... [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aria-Pro-II-RS-The-Cat-Bass-Matsumoku_W0QQitemZ330142478982QQihZ014QQcategoryZ4713QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"][b]The CAT[/b][/url] This has been knocking about for a couple of weeks now &, oddly, attracting no interest - no PayPal the reason? Anyway £80 seems a steal.[/quote] £80 is a good price. Though not as good as the £26 odd he paid for it (I did a completed items search when he first listed it). Maybe people were figuring it's comparatively overpriced if such bargains were to be had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted July 7, 2007 Share Posted July 7, 2007 [quote name='Bloodaxe' post='27656' date='Jul 5 2007, 10:53 PM']Also from Germany [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/70ger-JAHRE-VINTAGE-JAPAN-ARIA-SHORTSCALE-JAZZ-BASS_W0QQitemZ230148368912QQihZ013QQcategoryZ23300QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"][b]A fine piece of Vintage JapCrap[/b][/url] Pete.[/quote] Now that is interesting - haven't seen one of these before - and what's particularly interesting about this is that apart from the headstock shape, this looks identical to an Epiphone ET-280 bass. Which was, quite uncoincidentally, made by Matsumoku. The Epis are quite rare & can fetch fairly daft prices when they do turn up. There's one on this catalogue scan: [url="http://www.matsumoku.org/models/epiphone/catalogs/1974/pg5.html"]http://www.matsumoku.org/models/epiphone/c...s/1974/pg5.html[/url] Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodaxe Posted July 13, 2007 Author Share Posted July 13, 2007 An update... The TS-650 ended at a shade over £240 inc postage, which is probably a good price for one of these if only for the quality of the construction. The Cat is still around, had a brief BIN of £80 (which then vanished) & is currently sitting at £75 with one bidder & 2 1/2 days to go - still very much in bargain territory at the moment. The German SB-900 Fretless topped out at E380/£260 which has to be a steal with the hard case - these things sing! The Cardinal fetched a mere US$150. Onto this week's selection... [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=014&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=330146476868&rd=1&rd=1"][b]Cardinal[/b][/url] Laugh? I nearly started. Lawsuit indeed. I'm not saying it's a POS, but the list of mods that the seller owns up to won't have enhanced the value - quite the opposite. Speaking of optimists... [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=018&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=280132596386&rd=1&rd=1"][b]SBR-150 Fretless[/b][/url] Lovely looker, hard case, seems to be original factory fretless too - slight question mark over the electrics though (& if they're anything like the SB-1000 circuitry they'll be weird). I wish them all the best in their quest for half a grand. Finally we have this [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=004&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=140137944007&rd=1&rd=1"][b]"Arialembic" ex-SB-900?[/b][/url] Doesn't say if he'll chuck in a degree in Astrophysics to understand all those knobs, but could well sound staggering, grain looks nice too. Watching this one with interest. [b][u]International Section[/u][/b] This [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110146823661&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:uk"][b]ZZB[/b][/url] has been around before. Methinks the B stands for "Butchered" in this case & it's nice that the seller has treated it to a new set of strings. Still... bargain basement stuff at US$112.50 & feasably restorable. I'm gassing for one of these, but I think I'll let this one pass. Pete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musky Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Hmmm... See what you mean about the Cardinal. Why on earth the guy replaced the bridge is beyond me. The stock bridge is actually a heavier build than a badass, so it's not an improvement at all. And the polepieces on the pickup seem to have disappeared in the rewind as well. He's being extremely optimistic asking for £250, methinks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodaxe Posted July 20, 2007 Author Share Posted July 20, 2007 It's Friday, so... The modded Cardinal didn't sell, no surprise there then. The SBR-150 fretless fetched a nads over £250 which seems a good deal for someone, though a lot less than the original seller was hoping for. The long-suffering white CAT eventually found a new home for the princely sum of £75, whilst another in red went for an even more bargainsome £67, and the ZZB with suicidal tendencies keeled over at $137.50 (£66!) - snip of the week there I feel. This week, there's a gorgeous [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=020&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=300130668666&rd=1&rd=1"][b]SBR-80/SB Elite[/b][/url] which is struggling at £77 whilst people fish around for the reserve. Fabulous colour, deserves to do well. Also worth a look is a very nice [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=006&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=160139258664&rd=1&rd=1"][b]RSB Deluxe[/b][/url] in metallic red. No reserve, hard case & tuner. And for those of a sinister bent, a Lefty [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=014&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=330147959419&rd=1&rd=1"][b]Laser Heritage[/b][/url]. Well mullered in the pickup department, & the bijou scratchplate-ettes worry me. Another with a reserve - we shall but see. The Arialembic is creeping up - currently at £312.50 but still short of the reserve. Possibly an optimist at work here. Pete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 [quote name='Bloodaxe' post='34449' date='Jul 20 2007, 07:22 AM']Also worth a look is a very nice [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=006&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=160139258664&rd=1&rd=1"][b]RSB Deluxe[/b][/url] in metallic red. No reserve, hard case & tuner.[/quote] I'd be seriously interested in this if it wasn't pick up only, and dahn sarf in da Medwaii Tahns, innit. I've actually got the same bass in blue/black sunburst, lovely, had it from new, but retired for the last 10 years or so due to a badly twisted neck. Ironically, I wanted the red finish but was dissuaded by an evil girlfriend. :ph34r: Not a bass, but there's a Mat-era Aria Pro Cardinal g*t*r with a BIN of £95 - which is frankly silly considering the prices Matsumokus are starting to fetch: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VINTAGE-ARIA-PRO-CARDINAL-SERIES-ELECTRIC-GUITAR-JAPAN_W0QQitemZ300131243324QQihZ020QQcategoryZ112668QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/VINTAGE-ARIA-PRO-CAR...oQQcmdZViewItem[/url] The "damage" he talks about looks like fairly typical neck pocket lacquer cracking, unlikely to be structural & easy to patch up with a bit of superglue. Worth a look if anyone fancies a cheap vintage g*it*r or fancies a bit of instant Ebay profiteering! Bloodaxe - d'you want to keep this thread strictly Aria or are you cool about other Matsumoku basses being posted in here? I've seen a few very nice & rather interesting Westones lately... Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MB1 Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 MB1. Bassasin. You just mentioned Aria and W*****E in the same sentence,wash out your mouth sir! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 [quote name='MB1' post='34728' date='Jul 20 2007, 03:24 PM']MB1. Bassasin. You just mentioned Aria and W*****E in the same sentence,wash out your mouth sir![/quote] Hmmm. Is there an issue, perhaps something dark in your past, that prompts this sudden aversive reaction? Seriously, nowt wrong with Westones. If the Thunder III was good enough for King Thumb.... J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MB1 Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 MB1. Henry used to endorse westone, so he wouldnt have had a bad word,he scarpered to G&L as i remember.I always thought ARIA a better product to be honest and due to its endorsees (john taylor-duran duran)Aria gained a higher profile in the market as more of a serious players instrument.Westone however decided to go for the more affordable starter market and most of there stock became available through the catalogue industry ,kays having bought most of the stock.Out of the two im on the Aria side, my first serious bass which i still own(having recently found it 23 years later).Each to there own!. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stewblack Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 [quote name='Bassassin' post='34772' date='Jul 20 2007, 04:15 PM']Hmmm. Is there an issue, perhaps something dark in your past, that prompts this sudden aversive reaction? Seriously, nowt wrong with Westones. If the Thunder III was good enough for King Thumb.... J.[/quote] I do remember a certain rivalry between the Westone and Aria camps back in 84, 85. well in Midsomer Norton there was anyway. Now I think they're both great - although Aria is my first love I find my Thunder 1 a joy to play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barneythedog Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 Aria pro II on ebay France [url="http://cgi.ebay.fr/guitare-ancienne-vintage-bass-basse-ARIA-pro-2-japan-85_W0QQitemZ130135793315QQihZ003QQcategoryZ92204QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZVieItem"]ici[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 The reality is that Arias & Westones were built in the same factory, side-by-side, with the same workmanship & materials, & often the same hardware. This is also true of Washburn (MIJ ones, at least) Westbury, Vantage, Univox, Electra, some Greco models & a whole load of importers' rebrands, all of which came from Matsumoku between about 1975 & 1987. It's definitely true that Aria & Aria Pro II were regarded as "prestige" brands & Westone was aimed at a different market. Sad fact is, though, Westone's dead & gone now & Aria, although there are still some high-end models, is a pretty cheap & tacky brand these days by comparison to the early 80s. And all that old Matsumoku Japcrap's quality & collectable, whatever the brand! J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MB1 Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 MB1. Apparently the factory make furniture these days.A friend has a westone stool.ARIA cheap? have you seen how much they wanted for the John Taylor sb reissue?,could have bought you a sack of westones, or some new kitchen furniture at least! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul, the Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 How much will it cost to keep you quiet if an Aria Pro Jazz come up on Ebay? No. Seriously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 [quote name='MB1' post='34913' date='Jul 20 2007, 08:11 PM']MB1. Apparently the factory make furniture these days.A friend has a westone stool.ARIA cheap? have you seen how much they wanted for the John Taylor sb reissue?,could have bought you a sack of westones, or some new kitchen furniture at least![/quote] Matsumoku's as dead & gone as Westone! After they stopped guitar production, it was sold to Singer - the sewing machine manufacturer. They went bust & the factory building apparently burned down a few years later. I doubt your friend's stool has any connection to the guitar brand. Most Aria & Aria Pro models now are made in Korea, China & other bargain-basement production facilities - the brand's lost all its hard won prestige and really does cater to the bottom end of the market with mostly low-spec copies & derivatives. However, as I said, there are still some high-end Japanese made models - but when was the last time you saw a "name" musician playing one? Like you said yourself, back in the day, SB basses were the pro's choice. Not quite sure what went wrong... J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 [quote name='paul, the' post='34951' date='Jul 20 2007, 09:24 PM']How much will it cost to keep you quiet if an Aria Pro Jazz come up on Ebay? No. Seriously.[/quote] Is this a purely theoretical Aria Pro Jazz or has my JapCrapSense temporarily deserted me? Seriously? I'll be as quiet as a wee church mouse. [i]If [/i]I like the look of it.... J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul, the Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 [quote name='Bassassin' post='34962' date='Jul 20 2007, 09:35 PM']Is this a purely theoretical Aria Pro Jazz or has my JapCrapSense temporarily deserted me? Seriously? I'll be as quiet as a wee church mouse. [i]If [/i]I like the look of it.... J.[/quote] Ahpem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodaxe Posted July 23, 2007 Author Share Posted July 23, 2007 [quote name='Bassassin' post='34548' date='Jul 20 2007, 11:53 AM']Bloodaxe - d'you want to keep this thread strictly Aria or are you cool about other Matsumoku basses being posted in here? I've seen a few very nice & rather interesting Westones lately... Jon.[/quote] Greetings, If you're in the habit of keeping tabs on 'em I've no objections - I think we're all pretty much agreed that Mats are a quality product. I'm pretty much gassed out at the moment, but keep the search running as I'd dearly like a ZZB Deluxe in either Bloody Red or the Schenker black/white option. As a by product, anything else of interest gets posted here on a weekly basis. Pete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodaxe Posted August 14, 2007 Author Share Posted August 14, 2007 I've been on holiday for much of the last two weeks, hence the absence of any updates... The [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=300130668666&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=020"]SBR-80/Elite 2[/url] ended up at £335.71 - a fair price for an absolute stunner, whilst the [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=140137944007&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=004"]AriAlembic[/url] looks to have failed to shift with a top offer of £335 failing to meet the reserve - the difference between Mint & Modified perhaps? The [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160139258664&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=006"]RSB Deluxe[/url] with a hard case & a tuner thrown in that had Bassassin foaming at the trousers topped out at a piffling bargaintastic £67, whilst the somewhat modified [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=330147959419&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=014"]L/H Laser[/url] ended up being snaffled by me for a very reasonable £69 + P&P. I bought it on behalf of a mate of mine who was sick of using a R/H for recording & getting chafed in the process - I still haven't seen it, as it arrived whilst I was on hols, but he seems happy (& more importantly he's paid me for it). Sneaking in under the radar was this very nice [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=260146308029&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=016"]SBR-60[/url] with original hard case & some nice figuring to the ash body - £280 doesn't seem too bad for that. Up for grabs at the moment are... a [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=260149209748&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=016"][b]ZZB-Deluxe[/b][/url] in the stock metallic-blue-sunburst-with-all-gold-bits finish. Looks to be very original, but no mention of the case (they were branded for these & the XX flying V series). £150 for starters [i]might[/i] be being hopeful - especially for a zero-feedbacker. These don't surface very often, so I'm watching with interest (note to self: Watch ONLY! it's not the Schenker model, nor is it in Bloody Red - so you're [i]not[/i] bidding on it o.k?) & an oddball classic to finish - a c1980 "batwing" [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=250154279380&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=015"][b]SB-600[/b][/url] - no reserve & in mint condition so it should do very well. Why "oddball"? well looking at it from the front it looks like the standard "skunk stripe" laminated through neck, but seen from behind the neck is obviously glued on. This design quirk straddles the "batwing" & "open book" headstocks but seems a bit superfluous when you're producing through-neck & bolt-on designs. I'm drawn to one of two conclusions - either the Matsumoku design team were as mad as a box of frogs, or a large through-neck production run went very pear-shaped & the set-neck solution saved chucking the whole lot in a skip. Either solution is viable I suspect. Pete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkfinger Posted August 14, 2007 Share Posted August 14, 2007 [quote name='Bloodaxe' post='45128' date='Aug 14 2007, 07:19 AM'](note to self: Watch ONLY! it's not the Schenker model, nor is it in Bloody Red - so you're [i]not[/i] bidding on it o.k?)[/quote] What, like this one? [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=398&hl=classic+laser"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...l=classic+laser[/url] Seriously, though, I'm on the look out for a medium scale (32") Aria, Cardinal series, right handed. If you come accross one, would be grateful if you let me know. Cheers, Frank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul, the Posted August 14, 2007 Share Posted August 14, 2007 [quote name='Sharkfinger' post='45176' date='Aug 14 2007, 11:01 AM']Seriously, though, I'm on the look out for a medium scale (32") Aria, Cardinal series, right handed. If you come accross one, would be grateful if you let me know. Cheers, Frank[/quote] I'll be able to do that if no one else does. I'm not after one, but they'll turn up in my searches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodaxe Posted August 14, 2007 Author Share Posted August 14, 2007 [quote name='Sharkfinger' post='45176' date='Aug 14 2007, 11:01 AM']What, like this one? [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=398&hl=classic+laser"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...l=classic+laser[/url] Seriously, though, I'm on the look out for a medium scale (32") Aria, Cardinal series, right handed. If you come accross one, would be grateful if you let me know. Cheers, Frank[/quote] Ahh, no... Bloody Red is the factory term for "White with all red paint splattered on it" [url="http://www.matsumoku.org/models/ariaproii/catalogs/1985/85_ap2_cat_pg19.jpg.html"]Like Here[/url] either the B/W or the BLD finish On the 32" side, don't rule out the TSB series - to my eye somewhat more attractive than the CS. Mine... Pete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkfinger Posted August 15, 2007 Share Posted August 15, 2007 [quote name='Bloodaxe' post='45477' date='Aug 14 2007, 10:30 PM']Ahh, no... Bloody Red is the factory term for "White with all red paint splattered on it" [url="http://www.matsumoku.org/models/ariaproii/catalogs/1985/85_ap2_cat_pg19.jpg.html"]Like Here[/url] either the B/W or the BLD finish On the 32" side, don't rule out the TSB series - to my eye somewhat more attractive than the CS.[/quote] Thanks for the tip. Was the whammy bar standard? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodaxe Posted August 15, 2007 Author Share Posted August 15, 2007 [quote name='Sharkfinger' post='45653' date='Aug 15 2007, 10:45 AM']Thanks for the tip. Was the whammy bar standard?[/quote] No. Always wanted one (despite the plaintive cries of guitarists), tried an ex-Entwistle Alembic that had one at the Bass Centre when it used to be in Wapping & was hooked. £250 as I recall in 1988. They're a lot cheaper now. There was a production Aria with a whammy - the [url="http://www.matsumoku.org/temp_pages/nikki_cats/86/whole_enchilada_inside.jpg"]GSB-6000V[/url] a headless 6-string with a graphite neck. Never seen one. Back to the delights of Ebay... One for our American contingent, a 1981 [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=290150416229&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=019"]SB-600[/url] with hard case. 9 days left to run & currently at a paltry $150. Dealer says he'll ship to Europe, but won't be cheap. Pete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.