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Franticsmurf
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New Hollow Body Bass Day.

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I've been after a hollow body bass for the tone and this showed up in the research. A Sire Marcus Miller GB5 - the fretted version. I was impressed in the demo videos I saw/heard - it had the sound I was looking for and it's not bad looking. There was one for sale in Bax at £397 so I jumped in. Ordered on Tuesday, it arrived this afternoon. Shiny black (that won't last after my grubby fingerprints get on it 😀) , great playability straight from the box and almost the sound I was expecting without any dialing in of the amp. My only criticism is that the point on the body where my arm rests is quite sharp - no contour. It means a slight adjustment of the position of my hand to be most comfortable. Not so much of a problem if I'm playing with a pick (which won't be that often on this).

 

 

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7 minutes ago, Grahambythesea said:

Re your comment on the sharp body. You get that with all hollow body basses, I have never heard of or seen one with a contour, it’s the way they are.

Hasn't the Fender PBAC, the MIJ semi acoustic P Bass from the 90s got a bit of a contour? 

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2 hours ago, Grahambythesea said:

Re your comment on the sharp body. You get that with all hollow body basses, I have never heard of or seen one with a contour, it’s the way they are.

Yes, I can see how it would be difficult to contour, but it's actually quite sharp with no attempt at rounding the edge. I think the size of the body makes it more noticeable than the semi-acoustic 6 strings I have. In any case, I've struggled with it and I'm currently arranging with Bax to return it.

Edited by Franticsmurf
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Too late now but I've seen some people fit a banjo arm rest on hollow bodies to alleviate this problem. It doesn't do anything for looks IMO. 

Rickenbacker 4005 (single bound) has a nice comfy contour. A banjo arm rest is cheaper though. 😉

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I should add that while the sharp edge is the main reason it's going back, I'm not so enamoured with the piezo sound as I was when I first played it either. I think the body is chambered rather than fully hollow (judging by the weight and lack of unplugged volume). Having played a Hofner violin bass a while back, its definitely not the same kind of sound, and I was looking for something closer to the fully hollow body tone. I have no complaints about the quality of the bass but over the last 24hrs I've realised its not for me.

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I have put self adhesive rubber cornering (the one I use in strategic furniture parts at home for kids not to get killed) as an "armrest" in my Star Bass. Not terrible looking IMO, not terrible to remove, and it makes a world of difference to my plucking forearm when playing seated. The Star Bass is de facto a solid body really (all center is solid maple, sounds like a fat JB), so it doesn't affect sound. Might not be your case, the GB5 being an ABG with a piezo pickup, a way more acoustic animal. NICE bass BTW 👍

 

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Edited by andruca
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@andruca @neepheid  Thanks both for the suggestions. I had thought of some kind of padding similar to the wrist band. Part of the problem is that I have short arms (I'm only 5'7") and the body is quite big, so getting a comfortable playing position is difficult. Even with the rubber cornering, I could see it being uncomfortable and I know that 6 months down the line I'd be wishing I'd returned it. The more I played it the more I realised it wasn't for me - sound wise (it's not as hollow body/acoustic as I wanted) as well as playing position. It is going back and I'll have a rethink about what I actually want.

 

EDIT: For anyone reading this and considering the GB5, it's a lovely bass but I'd certainly recommend trying one as it's different to anything I've played before.

Edited by Franticsmurf
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Both the Lakland Hollowbody basses (long and short scale) have rounded edges and are pretty comfortable. Also, the latest Reverend Fatfish 32 has a bit of a contour. 

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The Ibanez SRH500F (or Aerium) has a very nicely designed contoured edge. Very specific sound though, being both piezo and fretless. They don't make the fretted version any more but someone was selling one very affordably on here recently. 

 

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