AC Guitars vs Shuker

[BigRedX]

@bassmansam @Dood

 

All the Shuker basses I have tried, felt dead and lifeless in my hands. It wasn't a question of of neck profiles or any single thing I could pin-point, just the overall feel of the instruments (to me) was completely uninspiring. Shuker instruments aren't the only ones that have elicited this reaction, but in all the other cases when I have felt this about an instrument it has been a single isolated case. It is only with Skuker basses that every single one I have tried felt "wrong".

 

I'm sure there are some Shuker basses out there that won't give me that reaction, but I haven't played them yet. That's why I suggested to the OP that they try some examples of the basses by the luthier they are considering for their build. After my Shuker experience I would never commission another custom instrument based on some nice pictures on a web site and a specification alone. I would want to try lots of instruments to ensure I have picked the correct luthier for me.

[eude]

10 minutes ago, bassmansam said:

To be on honest no - I haven't played a Shuker before. That said I'd never played an Overwater either and was extremely happy with my J5 when it arrived. 

 

What was it about Shuker's that didn't appeal to you? 

Basses are very personal, what people like and dislike is often deeply personal and often irrational to others.
@BigRedX is just trying to make sure you are cautious is all, same would apply to buying from any builder really.

I noted before that I moved on my Shukers as they didn't really speak to me like my ACGs do, but again, that's entirely personal and impossible to quantify, there's absolutely nothing wrong with those basses though and I loved them while I had them.

 

I think you just need to be very clear on what you need/want/expect from a builder.

Having been through the process blind with Overwater, I think you're going to find getting what you want a lot easier though, but if things like specific weight, neck profile, balance etcs are important, just be sure that you get all that sorted out up front. As I mentioned before Jon may well go to the next UK Bass Show, in April, but I believe he's extremely accommodating with regards to popping in for a chat, so maybe that would be a good idea if you can make it work, either that or speak to other Shuker owners and see if you can arrange a noodle?

[Guest]

On 24/10/2021 at 21:46, bassmansam said:

I'm in the market for a 2nd custom J type Bass. 

 

Not a huge budget (around £2k-£2.5k) and was looking at AC Guitars and Shuker. I already own an Overwater J5 which is lovely but fancy something different for my 2nd build. 

 

Does anyone have any experience with both of these luthiers and could help detail some differences please? From what I've seen they're quite popular on Basschat. 

 

Thanks 

It depends on what your tastes are, but personally I wouldn’t get two basses with basically the same config, style and sound. You’ll end up favouring one and the other will just gather dust. Maybe consider the ACG for its filter preamp as it will give you a genuinely different palette of sounds compared with the Overwater? If your heart is set on a J style bass, exhaust the off the peg options before going custom as there are plenty of choices out there.

[walshy]

1 hour ago, BigRedX said:

@bassmansam @Dood

 

All the Shuker basses I have tried, felt dead and lifeless in my hands. It wasn't a question of of neck profiles or any single thing I could pin-point, just the overall feel of the instruments (to me) was completely uninspiring. Shuker instruments aren't the only ones that have elicited this reaction, but in all the other cases when I have felt this about an instrument it has been a single isolated case. It is only with Skuker basses that every single one I have tried felt "wrong".

 

I'm sure there are some Shuker basses out there that won't give me that reaction, but I haven't played them yet. That's why I suggested to the OP that they try some examples of the basses by the luthier they are considering for their build. After my Shuker experience I would never commission another custom instrument based on some nice pictures on a web site and a specification alone. I would want to try lots of instruments to ensure I have picked the correct luthier for me.

 

1 hour ago, BigRedX said:

@bassmansam @Dood

 

All the Shuker basses I have tried, felt dead and lifeless in my hands. It wasn't a question of of neck profiles or any single thing I could pin-point, just the overall feel of the instruments (to me) was completely uninspiring. Shuker instruments aren't the only ones that have elicited this reaction, but in all the other cases when I have felt this about an instrument it has been a single isolated case. It is only with Skuker basses that every single one I have tried felt "wrong".

 

I'm sure there are some Shuker basses out there that won't give me that reaction, but I haven't played them yet. That's why I suggested to the OP that they try some examples of the basses by the luthier they are considering for their build. After my Shuker experience I would never commission another custom instrument based on some nice pictures on a web site and a specification alone. I would want to try lots of instruments to ensure I have picked the correct luthier for me.

Hmm quite a sweeping statement about the Shuker basses. Well to put my slant on it, I commissioned a Flea / Modulus Inspired build from Jon without ever playing one of his basses. Communication was amazing, workshop visit was really eye opening and the end result far exceeded what I thought I would get, for a damn good price too. In fact it was so good I had another made exactly the same in a different relic finish. His instruments are absolutely beautiful and dead wouldn’t be a word I’d use to describe them. 
 

Maybe you weren’t the right fit for the basses you tried 😉

[Geek99]

On 25/10/2021 at 12:34, acidbass said:

AC Guitars look like they could be made in a garage by an amateur woodworker, whereas Shuker to me says quality.  I would go Shuker all day long.

I’m not a coffee table fan but I disagree in the strongest terms. I’d choose acg just for the resin work alone 

[bassfan]

11 minutes ago, walshy said:

 

Hmm quite a sweeping statement about the Shuker basses. Well to put my slant on it, I commissioned a Flea / Modulus Inspired build from Jon without ever playing one of his basses. Communication was amazing, workshop visit was really eye opening and the end result far exceeded what I thought I would get, for a damn good price too. In fact it was so good I had another made exactly the same in a different relic finish. His instruments are absolutely beautiful and dead wouldn’t be a word I’d use to describe them. 
 

Maybe you weren’t the right fit for the basses you tried 😉

It’s a fine bass too! Build quailty and sound is amazing. 😃

[BigRedX]

29 minutes ago, walshy said:

 

Hmm quite a sweeping statement about the Shuker basses. Well to put my slant on it, I commissioned a Flea / Modulus Inspired build from Jon without ever playing one of his basses. Communication was amazing, workshop visit was really eye opening and the end result far exceeded what I thought I would get, for a damn good price too. In fact it was so good I had another made exactly the same in a different relic finish. His instruments are absolutely beautiful and dead wouldn’t be a word I’d use to describe them. 
 

Maybe you weren’t the right fit for the basses you tried 😉

 

I tried 5 or 6 Shuker basses over the course of the afternoon. All of them looked great, but none of them were in the slightest inspiring for me to play. As I said they just felt dead in my hands. Also as I said in a previous post right up that moment I had been in conversation with Jon to make me a bass (in part influenced by the build diary for Dood's first Shuker bass), and so I was ready to like them. I felt disappointed, but also slightly relived that I hadn't nearly made an expensive mistake, afterwards.

 

I'm sure it was just a mis-match between the basses and me (as I thought I had implied earlier), but I have never come across a situation where I have been unable to get on with every single one (that I have tried) of a luthier's instruments before.

 

What I was hoping to convey to the OP is that not every luthier will suit every bassist, and from my experience I would want to try serval examples of the work of any luthier I was considering for a build before commissioning anything.

 

I don't think it was guitar show fatigue as I nearly bought a Marleaux Consat Bass later on from one of the music retailers at the same show, but I'd not brought the right credit card to facilitate the purchase.

Edited October 26, 2021 by BigRedX

[bassmansam]

1 hour ago, FDC484950 said:

It depends on what your tastes are, but personally I wouldn’t get two basses with basically the same config, style and sound. You’ll end up favouring one and the other will just gather dust. Maybe consider the ACG for its filter preamp as it will give you a genuinely different palette of sounds compared with the Overwater? If your heart is set on a J style bass, exhaust the off the peg options before going custom as there are plenty of choices out there.

 

That is a good point about favouring one over the other and that has crossed my mind. 🤔

 

 

[eude]

1 minute ago, bassmansam said:

 

That is a good point about favouring one over the other and that has crossed my mind. 🤔

 

 

I've actually ended up with 7 ACGs, and there's actually very little crossover in what they do, by design too so I can't be asked by "the boss" which ones are spare...  

It's certainly worth thinking about this though, it's a very good point.

[4000]

2 hours ago, BigRedX said:

@bassmansam @Dood

 

All the Shuker basses I have tried, felt dead and lifeless in my hands. It wasn't a question of of neck profiles or any single thing I could pin-point, just the overall feel of the instruments (to me) was completely uninspiring. Shuker instruments aren't the only ones that have elicited this reaction, but in all the other cases when I have felt this about an instrument it has been a single isolated case. It is only with Skuker basses that every single one I have tried felt "wrong".

 

I'm sure there are some Shuker basses out there that won't give me that reaction, but I haven't played them yet. 

This has been my experience also.
 

I will however add that the basses I tried were all set up a million miles away from how I prefer, which won’t have helped matters. You could have driven a bus under the action of all of them (this every single bass over the course of 2 separate Bass Days). 

Edited October 26, 2021 by 4000

[BigRedX]

It depends what you want to do with multiple bass guitars. Do you need a back up or are you going to be playing different styles of music that require different basses?

 

I recently trimmed down my rather excessive "collection" of 50+ guitars and basses to just 6: Two Gus G3 5-string basses for one band I play in (one as the main bass and the other a spare). An Eastwood Hooky Pro 6, bass VI for the other band I play in with a Burns Barracuda as a back up (this will most likely be replaced by a second Eastwood or a Gus to the same spec depending on what I can afford). I also have two guitars for recording and if I ever decide to play guitar in a band again.

[eude]

2 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

It depends what you want to do with multiple bass guitars. Do you need a back up or are you going to be playing different styles of music that require different basses?

 

I recently trimmed down my rather excessive "collection" of 50+ guitars and basses to just 6: Two Gus G3 5-string basses for one band I play in (one as the main bass and the other a spare). An Eastwood Hooky Pro 6, bass VI for the other band I play in with a Burns Barracuda as a back up (this will most likely be replaced by a second Eastwood or a Gus to the same spec depending on what I can afford). I also have two guitars for recording and if I ever decide to play guitar in a band again.

Did you sell your Sei?!

[BigRedX]

8 minutes ago, eude said:

Did you sell your Sei?!

Yes and my fretless Gus G3 - both to BassChat members.

 

I would have loved to keep them, but I don't play any fretless bass in either of the two bands I an currently in, and have no plans to join a band where they would get used, so it seemed pointless to keep two instruments of such quality sitting unplayed in their cases for even more years on the off-chance that I would find a need for them at some point in the future.

 

I also sold a lot of other luthier/custom-made instruments including two Overwater Originals, a Pedulla Buzz, Yamaha BJ5B, Born To Rock F4B, Manne Mandobass, Atlansia Solitaire, Andreas Shark and Hallmark WingBat.

 

I've kept just the instruments that get regular use.

[bassmansam]

23 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

It depends what you want to do with multiple bass guitars. Do you need a back up or are you going to be playing different styles of music that require different basses?

 

I recently trimmed down my rather excessive "collection" of 50+ guitars and basses to just 6: Two Gus G3 5-string basses for one band I play in (one as the main bass and the other a spare). An Eastwood Hooky Pro 6, bass VI for the other band I play in with a Burns Barracuda as a back up (this will most likely be replaced by a second Eastwood or a Gus to the same spec depending on what I can afford). I also have two guitars for recording and if I ever decide to play guitar in a band again.

To be fair the AC Retro looks really cool. I just had a set back when Alan confirmed he doesn't do scatchplates anymore, as this is something I wanted. But they do look good without too and not exactly a deal breaker. 

 

I play in a function band so everything from 60s-present, though I never really alter my sound with the Overwater (other than effects) .. Both pickups on bass and tone boosted a bit. I guess I'm more into aesthetics and playability. 😳

Edited October 26, 2021 by bassmansam

[Bigwan]

3 hours ago, BigRedX said:

@bassmansam @Dood

 

All the Shuker basses I have tried, felt dead and lifeless in my hands. It wasn't a question of of neck profiles or any single thing I could pin-point, just the overall feel of the instruments (to me) was completely uninspiring. Shuker instruments aren't the only ones that have elicited this reaction, but in all the other cases when I have felt this about an instrument it has been a single isolated case. It is only with Skuker basses that every single one I have tried felt "wrong".

 

I've felt the same about a number of basses I've played including most Sei and Fodera basses I've tried. Different strokes for different folks!

[eude]

23 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

Yes and my fretless Gus G3 - both to BassChat members.

 

I would have loved to keep them, but I don't play any fretless bass in either of the two bands I an currently in, and have no plans to join a band where they would get used, so it seemed pointless to keep two instruments of such quality sitting unplayed in their cases for even more years on the off-chance that I would find a need for them at some point in the future.

 

I also sold a lot of other luthier/custom-made instruments including two Overwater Originals, a Pedulla Buzz, Yamaha BJ5B, Born To Rock F4B, Manne Mandobass, Atlansia Solitaire, Andreas Shark and Hallmark WingBat.

 

I've kept just the instruments that get regular use.

Makes sense. Shame though, your Sei was the sexiest Sei I'd ever set my eyes on, the colour scheme and wood selection in particular, impeccable taste.

[Woodinblack]

3 hours ago, BigRedX said:

All the Shuker basses I have tried, felt dead and lifeless in my hands.

 

1 hour ago, walshy said:

Hmm quite a sweeping statement about the Shuker basses.

 

Not really, its a factual statement (I assume) about how he found the shuker basses. Some people don't get on with some basses. I have had that feeling with a couple other makes (that are not relevent here)

 

I love my shuker bass, and the one I had before that would have been good except the string spacing was too high (which to be fair, I knew when i got it, but it was a bargain!). In fact, all my basses are there because I love them. I love the looks of the ACGs, Overwaters, dingwalls but never really got on that much with them (although I am sure there is an ACG out there which i would love), which is down to me. I love the looks of the Alphers but not had a chance to try one, and before buying i would want to try one.

 

Which proves we are all different and trying one out is not a bad plan. Harder with custom ones but if you are going to sink a few k into something, its worth seeking an example out that is close to what you were looking for, although be aware that with a custom bass they can differ drastically.  These forums are full of expensive custom basses that someone who thought about it long enough to sink money into didn't get on with in the end.

[4000]

58 minutes ago, Bigwan said:

 

I've felt the same about a number of basses I've played including most Sei and Fodera basses I've tried. Different strokes for different folks!

I’ve certainly felt that about all but 1 Fodera I’ve tried. I realise this may be impossible for some get their heads round, but the rest were some of the least inspiring instruments I’ve ever picked up, at any price point. Same with the F Basses I’ve played. But then my favourite basses are extremely polarising. Everyone has different requirements and preferences, which is why I don’t really understand “which bass should I get” threads, as every one will tell you something different based on their preferences. 😉😂

[Burns-bass]

I find there’s an inverse relationship between how much I think about instruments and how much I play. The more gigs I play the less I care about the guitar.
 

I’ve a lovely collection of basses from vintage to bespoke and settled on a classic modern Fender. 

 

The reason? I know it works…

 

If you can try both and find one that’s a tool that helps you achieve the result you want. 

[Doddy]

I've had a really nice Shuker Singlecut that I've had for a while now. It looks great, plays great, and sounds great both live and on recordings.....yet out of all my high end basses, it's the one I reach for the least. It just doesn't seem to have quite as much character as some of my other basses. 

Don't get me wrong, it's a fantastic quality instrument but I'm constantly wondering if I should swap it for something different  just because I don't use it enough anymore.

[Woodinblack]

1 minute ago, Doddy said:

, it's the one I reach for the least. It just doesn't seem to have quite as much character as some of my other basses.

 

Pickup change?

[LukeFRC]

In the defence of underwealming.... sometimes amazing tone in an instrument jumps out straight away... other times the evenness of the tone, and flat response tonally accross the fretboard sounds underwealming and it lacks colour. 
It does, but that's it's strength. 

[Muzz]

One of my Shukers I bought secondhand on the looks alone (OK, the price made it a pretty much compulsory purchase, too), and although it's got the best neck of anything I've ever played (with the possible exception of an early Warwick Fortress), a neck which I've had Jon subsequently use as a template for three others, it never quite found its place gigging - I'd play it a lot at home unplugged, but then reach for others to put in the gig bag. I've changed the pickup (twice) and the EQ, and been through several sets of different strings, but amplified, it wasn't quite me. There's good reason for this, as it has a single MM pickup (now a Nordy Bigman), and I've had three or four Stingrays, and sold them all on; that pickup/placement just didn't work for me. Recently, tho, because the music I'm playing in a particular band has changed, it's come into its own, and I use it a lot.

 

I think I've grown into the bass, rather than the other way round... 🙂

[Doddy]

19 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

 

Pickup change?

I don't think it's a pickup thing, I like the EMGs that are in it, and it sounds great. It's more like the whole instrument doesn't seem to have as much character as my other basses. I find my other basses more inspiring.

[binky_bass]

On 25/10/2021 at 12:34, acidbass said:

AC Guitars look like they could be made in a garage by an amateur woodworker, whereas Shuker to me says quality.  I would go Shuker all day long.

I don't know what planet you're on @acidbass or if you're mistaking ACG for another builder, but I can without hesitation say that your above comment is factually incorrect. I have owned, and still own, basses made by some of the most revered luthiers on the planet and ACG are right at the VERY top. So much so that I have 3 ACG basses, 1 ACG guitar and another ACG bass currently being built. Alan's work is absolutely exceptional with flawless wood working skills. Shuker made excellent instruments too, I've owned 2 Shukers, but I did end up selling them as for me ACG are a better fit.

 

@bassmansam, it's really a personal choice, I can say ACGs are most definitely not 'amateur made' instruments, they are outstanding basses and exceptional pieces of skilled woodwork. See the below picture for evidence of this.