Pangborn Warlord graphite …history?

[Lord Hautdesert]

I had a Birdsong with KA soap bars and couldn’t get over the magnificent bottom end. 

[Lord Hautdesert]

This Pangborn has the articulation and brightness people call “piano tone” … as a man who became musically aware in the mid-1980s, it has always been the most omnipresent bass tone in my head. Thanks Kiwi!

[Kiwi]

On 22/05/2024 at 23:35, LeftyJ said:

 

Wow, I wouldn't have guessed the Cutlass necks to be made by Modulus. The Alembic and Musicman necks were constructed very differently to Modulus necks, with their woven graphite monocoques rather than the patchwork necks Modulus used on their own basses. Today I learned!

 

Yeah it wasn't Modulus who made the Alembic stuff but Geoff Gould was setting up Modulus around 84-85 and left someone else in charge of the production.  Alembic weren't happy with the results and stopped buying graphite necks altogether in 1984 although there is a custom 5 with an excel shape out there from 1987.  The necks for Musicman were originally Modulus and then they went inhouse to Musicman and they had issues with the phenolic resin recipe because all the necks I've played have been like bananas.  There were no Cutlass basses made after 84 either. There are some out there without this problem but it's a lottery.  

 

On 23/05/2024 at 22:05, Lord Hautdesert said:

I had a Birdsong with KA soap bars and couldn’t get over the magnificent bottom end. 

I have customised Armstrong humbuckers in my Yamahas because they sounds like PAFs after they've eq'd for recording.   Very smooth and rich sounding.  Aaron is great to deal with and his prices are incredibly reasonable compared to other hand made pickup suppliers.  Plus, his father has been involved with so many major brands including Aria (he made the Alembic licensed single coils), Celinder and Ken Smith.  He won't copy those pickups but he'll get you in the ball park if they make a sifference (hint: sometimes they dont)