NBD SX vtg Jazz swamp ash

[la bam]

Evening all,

 

So I needed a spare/ cheap bass for our -shall we say - more rough gigs. Around £100.

 

I'd been looking around for a few weeks and nothing that really grabbed me turned up, any that did weren't a bargain as they were far away so diesel costs made them not so much of a bargain.

 

Then today I was luckily enough to see a used SX jazz in perfect condition.

 

Picked it up and just got back, and gees these things are a steal at the price I paid (just over £100).

 

These are the handmade custom vtg basses (which I didnt realise until pick up) and the build quality is absolutely great. 

 

The wood is american swamp ash and looks amazing. Real quality. 

 

What surprised me for a so called budget bass is theres absolutely no hum or shielding issues. It's absolutely silent.

 

The pickups are good and have a real range to them which is nice.

 

It's quite bright sounding which i like and feels great to play.

 

£100 for a bass I'd gig without hesitation. In fact i may need a really really cheap bass now as a back up for this for our really ropey gigs!

 

 

Edited March 9, 2022 by la bam

[Lozz196]

Looks great, a real 70s vibe to it 

[Cato]

That would be a good looking chunk of wood on a bass of any price.

[la bam]

I genuinely cant believe it. Looking onto internet these were around £250 new!! That's as crazy as it gets.

[Bassfinger]

Its a purdy thing.

[6feet7]

I bought my youngest a 3/4 size SX P bass brand new for £150 (with gig bag). I couldn't find any fault with it at all and I would happily gig with it over my more expensive stuff.

[Grahambythesea]

That’s got fab grain. How heavy is it? It seems to me that budget often equals boat anchor.

[la bam]

9 minutes ago, Grahambythesea said:

That’s got fab grain. How heavy is it? It seems to me that budget often equals boat anchor.

 

I say it's very similar to a g&l l100 I had in weight. Certainly not lightweight, but not harley benton heavy. But, just like the g&l it balances brilliantly, absolutely no neck dive at all. It does feel a bit more of a precision neck than a jazz, but I'm used to a flea bass skinny neck.

 

By far and away the best 'budget' bass I've come across - much nicer than the sire p7 I had. Even as a mod donor its superb. You could add a babicz bridge, custom pick ups, loom, and tuners and you've got a mint bass for a few hundred.

 

I'm at that crossroads, as a back up bass it couldnt be better - cheap as possible, highly giggable and looks great - but..... for a few hundred quid it could easily be a high end bass. So I'll see what happens.

[Bassfinger]

4 hours ago, la bam said:

 

Certainly not lightweight, but not harley benton heavy. 

??? All of my HB's are on the lighter side of average.  My heaviest by a good margin is a Fender at nearly 20 times the price ofnthe HB's.

Edited March 11, 2022 by Bassfinger

[la bam]

16 minutes ago, Bassfinger said:

??? All of my HB's are on the lighter side of average.  My heaviest by a good margin is a Fender at nearly 20 times the price ofnthe HB's.

The harley benton I had was really heavy. An old pb50.

[la bam]

Took this to practice tonight. Great bass. I'll put some better strings in and I swear down itll be great at any gig, big or small.

[Tjhooker]

SX stuff is great.. got a strat 2nd hand for under a tonn quite a few years back that is now my daughter's guitar... really good instrument

As good as some fenders I have played