bassace Posted December 1, 2015 Share Posted December 1, 2015 (edited) A lousy pic of a very nice bass, the light's not so good these days. Anyway I went to see George at T&G Martin last week and he had a very nice Martin Solo in the bass room. This is one of their very best basses and he offered to take my 'starter' Martin in PX for the same amount that I paid some seven years ago. So when all was added up it was an offer I couldn't refuse. It was strung with EP mediums and sounded very nice and clear across the strings with a very nice sustain. If it had lights I would have kept them but I had Spiro Mits put on instead. Also George fitted me a Full circle pickup which needed a new bridge, all for the cost of just the pickup. I also had the bridge wing slots taken out to 5mm so I can quickly slot in an Underwood when the FS craps out on a gig. It's happened. Anyway, I took the valuable instrument to a gig on Sunday and it was just superb. Ive never played as low as 5mm before but the fingerboard was nicely set up and none of the strings clacked. The Solo model has a reduction in the width of the upper bout so it's very easy to get into the thumb position. (Remember, thumb for show, nut for dough) So I'm a very happy chappie. [attachment=206375:image1.JPG] Edited December 1, 2015 by bassace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted December 1, 2015 Share Posted December 1, 2015 I'd be wary of leaving those beauties alone so close to each other; you're liable to end up with a violin or two, or even a viola..! A nice bunch. Jealous..? Not a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJ Posted December 1, 2015 Share Posted December 1, 2015 Congtrats, looks like a lovely bass....along with all the others As you run Spiro Mitts on your basses, do the basses all sound very different but still all share the Spiro thing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassace Posted December 1, 2015 Author Share Posted December 1, 2015 Yes, by and large they do. I'm very conservative with my string choices; when I started out I said that if I found strings that I was comfortable with I'd stay with it rather than continually swapping about as some do here - no names of course! That oversimplification has its advantages but who knows, there could be some very nice choices out there that could transform my playing/ sound. Anyway, back to the subject. I've been very happy with Mitts. They seem to suit the jazz work I do and the tension has never been a problem. They need a bit of playing in after initially making the bass sound like a banjo. To date, all the basses I've owned have had the Spiro sound except possibly the Martin Concert that Ive just traded in. Acoustically it was quite dead and initially disappointing but once amped with an Underwood it produced a nice mellow, almost old school sound, that brought me many compliments. Just as an aside, when I first visited Martins they were very orchestral and had very few jazz customers, even none at all perhaps. They had a nice bass that I felt could benefit from some Spiros. This seemed new to them so they put some on, took the bass to the ISB convention and got a commendation for tone. They credited me with that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philparker Posted December 1, 2015 Share Posted December 1, 2015 Looks great and I bet it sounds superb - my DB tutor has a high-end T&G Martin DB (Orchestral) and it is a magnificent instrument. Congratulations! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbassist Posted December 1, 2015 Share Posted December 1, 2015 Congrats. Looks like a beauty! :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Bassman Posted December 1, 2015 Share Posted December 1, 2015 Ya kept that quiet Roger! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassace Posted December 1, 2015 Author Share Posted December 1, 2015 [quote name='Mr Bassman' timestamp='1449001481' post='2920018'] Ya kept that quiet Roger! [/quote] Ah, we were so busy talking amps and speakers yesterday Keith, that we never got round to basses. Sorry bout that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Bassman Posted December 1, 2015 Share Posted December 1, 2015 Or was it that Mrs Bassace was in earshot and she hasn't noticed yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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