NBD! Smith BT4 1984

[BassApprentice]

That was a really interesting read @Mastodon2

After reading all that I don't think I fully appreciated my quick noodle on a Smith at Bass Direct last year, when I'm down that way again I'll be sure to have a better look and see if I can 'get' it. 

 

[ped]

Yes that’s a great summary. There’s so much interesting history behind these early pioneers it’s interesting to read how things developed and who fell out with whom on the way. Although Ken has presented the story as he sees it he doesn’t ever actually state that he doesn’t like Vinnie any more but in my opinion he has a point about customers paying for the strange hold a ‘Made In New York’ stamp attracts. It’s evident from the misinformation out there about the ‘first 200’ basses, people on Talkbass instantly saying the basses were ‘made by vinnie’ as if that’s better than one of Ken’s - Ken has stated time and time again that Vinnie did some of the woodwork on some of the first 200, and even so, I think Ken is the master craftsman anyway - don’t get me wrong, his personality does sound typical New York straight talking but as I’ve stated before I don’t care if he’s a serial murderer because his basses have such a unique sound and feel.

I’ve only played about six Smiths and owned two, but they are so consistent they have all sounded pretty much exactly the same, to me - and it’s an instantly recognisable sound on a record, as is a Jazz or Precision.

Should we try and arrange a Ken + Vinnie peace summit, maybe invite them both to a swanky restaurant at the same time 😆. I can only imagine it would send the internet wild! Maybe in the pizza shop which used to be the original workshop? It’s probably quite instagrammable and I bet Ken’s into that 🤣

[ped]

Ken banned me from his forum because he thought my surname (Hiscocks) ‘sounded like a pornstar’. He was able to see the funny side after I provided proof but still changed my username - I can’t remember what to, so I can’t log in now and I’m too scared to ask 

[Al Krow]

I had a little A/B of my 5'ers last night - I'm really happy with them all, but...the articulation of the KS is something else. I'm guessing it's simply down to a combination of the quality of the strings, pups, electronics and nut but I was finding it hard to deny the evidence of my ears!

Is that something the rest of you KS owners also find when you're playing your KS alongside the rest of your herd?

[Mastodon2]

12 hours ago, Al Krow said:

I had a little A/B of my 5'ers last night - I'm really happy with them all, but...the articulation of the KS is something else. I'm guessing it's simply down to a combination of the quality of the strings, pups, electronics and nut but I was finding it hard to deny the evidence of my ears!

Is that something the rest of you KS owners also find when you're playing your KS alongside the rest of your herd?

I know what you mean Al, I love the funky growl of my Pedulla and the out and out growl of my Thumb, but the Smith has a sound that is just beyond them. It's so clean and sweetly compressed. Ken's ideal for sound was to build a bass that in a live setting, sounded as good as a bass that had been recorded in a studio, with all of the EQ and effects to bring out the best of the instrument. i think he nailed it.

I know for a fact I'll own more Smiths in the future. A 6 string with maple wings will be the next one I think, preferably in the vintage BT shape. They are the dream for me, they're like the Ferrari F40, Lamborghini Countach and McLaren F1 of the bass guitar world, effortlessly and timelessly cool.

I see you've got what appears to be a Yamaha Nathan East, I'd love one of those though I think I'm more likely to get a Yamaha John Patitucci I or II, but please share some pics of your Smith!

[Al Krow]

2 hours ago, Mastodon2 said:

...but please share some pics of your Smith!

I added pics of mine to this earlier thread   

 

Edited July 30, 2019 by Al Krow

[Mastodon2]

16 hours ago, Al Krow said:

I added pics of mine to this earlier thread   

 

Aha, I recognise your Smith now - it was in Scott Devine's "30 bass comparison" video that he did earlier this year at Bass Direct. I did think he did a pretty poor job as the EQ on all the basses is not flat, I thought either he should have set them all flat or just EQ'd them to make each of them sound their best. The Smith was still one of the best in the test I thought, even if he didn't show it in its best light. I bought the Pedulla MVP-5 in that video and a few weeks after I received it, Scott published the video and I saw my bass on in it.

[Al Krow]

1 hour ago, Mastodon2 said:

Aha, I recognise your Smith now - it was in Scott Devine's "30 bass comparison" video that he did earlier this year at Bass Direct. I did think he did a pretty poor job as the EQ on all the basses is not flat, I thought either he should have set them all flat or just EQ'd them to make each of them sound their best. The Smith was still one of the best in the test I thought, even if he didn't show it in its best light. I bought the Pedulla MVP-5 in that video and a few weeks after I received it, Scott published the video and I saw my bass on in it.

You got me all excited that my bass had already been Devinely immortalised!  

The Ken Smith BSR 5TN at 4.40 on Scott's YouTube is indeed close to mine, but not the same. Mine is the slightly smaller bodied BSR 5TNV 'Studio' version (which I suspect may have been a relatively limited release?) Smaller body => has a stacked bass & treble EQ and instead of a side jack socket it has a front jack socket.

PS I like the growl of your Pedulla in Scott's review! And I've always been a fan of the Warwick growl (made worse by the fact that there is 5 string neck through Thumb currently in the FS). I suspect that you could well be very bad news for my bank balance and that I should cease all communication with you forthwith 😂

Edited July 31, 2019 by Al Krow

[Chris2112]

I've tried Mastodon's Smith and it may be the easiest playing bass I've ever held. Effortlessly low action with a super smooth, fast and shallow neck. It is certainly a keeper. Ken's philosophy of knowing what works and building what works has given his basses a tremendous level of consistency. 

What is notable about them is that they have been so accepted and embraced by recording and sound engineers in the US. They are about the only boutique bass around with a reputation for 'plug in and go' ease-of-use to rival that of a Fender and as much as I love boutique basses, I'm aware sound men don't always share my enthusiasm. The Smith sound has it all from the moment the power hits the amp - soft, musical highs, prominent mids and sturdy fundamental with the whole thing being wrapped in a natural buffer of soft compression. 

[Zogworst]

Mastodon, your comments are fantastic. As a native New Yorker I have no problem with Ken or Jeff’s acerbic comments; people who criticize them fail to recognize our culture: two guys who are BENDING OVER BACKWARDS TO HELP WHILE COMPLAINING. This is what we NYCers do, the nice ones at least.

 

I will sing the praises of Ken Smith, Fodera, and Pedulla basses til I cark it because they responded to my mails lightning-fast, even though I hadn’t made a purchase yet! Ken’s mails aren’t flowery; he got to the point, told me what the basses I was looking for were, end of mail. That was fine with me, and I appreciated his time answering each and every mail I sent over two months.

I bought a White Tiger after I failed in trying to buy that beauty Sir Ped copped: gorgeous. The WT 4 I got is the best playing bass (for ME) that I have next to a Pedulla Buzz (I sold one I had purchased used and that was a horrible mistake). The quality of all the top makers’ basses are unquestioned, but Ken’s bass has the feel, sound, and look that works for me. Congrats to all of you and thank ypu for sharing!

[1966powers]

On 18/07/2019 at 08:07, ped said:

Yes that’s a cool one, wonder how it sounds with the pickups further apart like that

The sound is spectacular. I assure. I think this distance, for my taste, is much, but much more precise. It has a depth and a medium / bass that the rest of Smith is missing. And I assure you that I know many models of Smith basses, of different years and made with different woods. The medium sounds like the best Smith. It is a very comfortable bass: it has 36 mm in the nut.

[merello]

Wow!

[lowblow2000]

What a nice bass, does anyone knows how much this last sold for?

[ped]

7 hours ago, lowblow2000 said:

What a nice bass, does anyone knows how much this last sold for?

 

£3200 I think

https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/395906-sold-ken-smith-bt4-1984/#comment-3971857

 

[TheGreek]

There's a 6er on eBay for £2650 currently

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334512432802?hash=item4de27ea6a2:g:8UEAAOSw1E1i3bWo&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAAwEc0%2BK1SlOfnSXLaManjApiN3UszaQ11%2BQtnF1sKZ0bVvWP47OJ7zWSkbenOgyFYb16oS6%2BhzC7ulyezeIhC0V2i1KuT0BBBkwC7%2BVzrvBPJY644uRfgC1cSbxzFDhv0ChTGI5UaOUTQsd4tnM4u785JlSN9l%2FgKAQ%2BREvOVrT0DNZ3LQOvArEcptpvBF0%2BD4%2BA%2FJ6KP%2Fm1Yjck%2BuIgsd%2F%2BzHTEuN7ow2xyBcY0eFYLGALEbQjgjYPnbImqTQyfZfQ%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR-ru3L-jYg

 

[Gwilym]

20 hours ago, TheGreek said:

There's a 6er on eBay for £2650 currently

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334512432802?hash=item4de27ea6a2:g:8UEAAOSw1E1i3bWo&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAAwEc0%2BK1SlOfnSXLaManjApiN3UszaQ11%2BQtnF1sKZ0bVvWP47OJ7zWSkbenOgyFYb16oS6%2BhzC7ulyezeIhC0V2i1KuT0BBBkwC7%2BVzrvBPJY644uRfgC1cSbxzFDhv0ChTGI5UaOUTQsd4tnM4u785JlSN9l%2FgKAQ%2BREvOVrT0DNZ3LQOvArEcptpvBF0%2BD4%2BA%2FJ6KP%2Fm1Yjck%2BuIgsd%2F%2BzHTEuN7ow2xyBcY0eFYLGALEbQjgjYPnbImqTQyfZfQ%3D%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR-ru3L-jYg

 

 

It's also in the classifieds here:

 

[Hemibass]

Yeah my Burner 6 which is listed here is going to a guy in September for £2000 (assuming it doesn't fall through or anything)

 

I would imagine a BT would get at least 1.5x more than my Burner... I've seen 6 string BT's on reverb for upwards of 6k in the past year or so. Admittedly reverb keeps the final sale price quite well hidden so they might not have got that asking price...