AdeOw Posted March 11 Posted March 11 Hi, Does anyone have any information or experience with these bases? It's a Starfire by Eks Technologies. I believe it to be japanese made? Unsure of age I believe it to be late 80s based on the information I can find online. Neck plate states nagoya The Neck profile is a bit wide at the nut for a typical jazz bass. I will be looking to move this on if anyone is interested. Quote
Sean Posted March 11 Posted March 11 @Bassassin Your wiki-like knowledge is needed here, sir. 1 Quote
JJMotown Posted March 11 Posted March 11 Why do you think it's Japanese? What gave you that impression? It's a cheap 90s made in korea. You'll see the same style neck plate on Rockwood (by hohner) guitars and basses from the same time period. Quote
AdeOw Posted March 11 Author Posted March 11 52 minutes ago, JJMotown said: Why do you think it's Japanese? What gave you that impression? It's a cheap 90s made in korea. You'll see the same style neck plate on Rockwood (by hohner) guitars and basses from the same time period. The information I can find online https://www.guitar-list.com/brands/eks-technology Plus the fact it says nagoya on the neckplate Nagoya (名古屋市, Nagoya-shi, [naꜜɡoja] ⓘ) is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. Quote
JJMotown Posted March 11 Posted March 11 30 minutes ago, AdeOw said: The information I can find online https://www.guitar-list.com/brands/eks-technology Plus the fact it says nagoya on the neckplate Nagoya (名古屋市, Nagoya-shi, [naꜜɡoja] ⓘ) is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. I see. I think someone was having a joke. If you take a close look at the P bass for sale on that page, and compare it with a Rockwood (by Hohner) lx90b, the early ones will look identical, same neckplate style as those in your pics, pickguard, bridge, even triangle serial number sticker. Only difference would be the headstock shape and logo. Later lx90b models have a plain neck plate like in the pic for the bass for sale on that webpage. Pretty sure it's a 90s bass. Production in Japan slowed right down around 1986, because production costs rocketed, so buyers to cut margins switched to korean manufacturers because they were significantly cheaper. Quote
AdeOw Posted March 11 Author Posted March 11 It is very similar. In all fairness here's a closer image of the neckplate of the starfire I have. Nagoya on the neckplate. Surely that's the city it was manufactured? Seems odd if not. Quote
Doctor J Posted March 11 Posted March 11 There are lots of Charvels with Fort Worth, Texas on the neckplate which weren't made in Texas. BC Rich did it a lot too. It's not as uncommon as you'd think. 1 1 Quote
crazycloud Posted March 11 Posted March 11 (edited) 1 hour ago, AdeOw said: Surely that's the city it was manufactured? Seems odd if not. Does that mean my neighbour's Austin 7 was actually made in Texas? Nagoya could be a brand name. Edited March 11 by crazycloud 2 1 Quote
prowla Posted March 12 Posted March 12 Googling "Starfire by EKS" suggests that EKS is a guitar company based in Nagoya, Japan. https://www.guitar-list.com/brands/eks-technology However, I see instruments MIJ and MIC, so it's entirely possible they offshored production. Prices seem to be <£100 (eg. https://richtonemusic.co.uk/eks-starfire-performer-j-style-bass-black-2nd-hand/?srsltid=AfmBOopeMAmOgr7sfGvDeYgYiXp4nJvRh2jH9eNtrvzpY05OgnP2AvtA). Quote
lemmywinks Posted March 12 Posted March 12 My Korean Cort built Hohner JJ Pro also came with pretty much that exact style of neckplate, that was a 90s bass IIRC. Quote
Bassassin Posted March 12 Posted March 12 A bit late to the party but I'm confident it's not an MIJ bass. It has the look of a probably early 90s budget instrument, & by that point (in fact beyond the late 70s) that sort of thing was not being made in Japan. I'd assume from 'Nagoya' on the neckplate that the parent company (EKS) was Japanese, but like many Japanese companies, production was outsourced to other countries. This is almost certainly Korean, and the details like the neckplate & headstock shape suggest it was probably from Cort. 1 1 Quote
AdeOw Posted March 14 Author Posted March 14 On 12/03/2025 at 20:53, Bassassin said: A bit late to the party but I'm confident it's not an MIJ bass. It has the look of a probably early 90s budget instrument, & by that point (in fact beyond the late 70s) that sort of thing was not being made in Japan. I'd assume from 'Nagoya' on the neckplate that the parent company (EKS) was Japanese, but like many Japanese companies, production was outsourced to other countries. This is almost certainly Korean, and the details like the neckplate & headstock shape suggest it was probably from Cort. Thanks for the input guys. Guitar people really are the best people It sounds and plays as well as my mim fender jazz if I'm honest. The Neck is great. Albeit a bit wide for my liking. The body is heavy I'd guess its ply. I can see a nice grain where the poly finish is chipped along the side of thr body. The neck pocket and pickup cavities are painted. So hard to tell there I've owned a few cort made a squiers from the 90s. The necks were lovely on those guitars. It does feel of a similar quality. I've listed it for sale £100 locally. I'd expect it to make someone quite happy at that price point. If anyone here is interested drop me a dm. Quote
JJMotown Posted March 14 Posted March 14 Well, seeing as it's cheap 90s jazz with possible heavy ply body, I'd say you've overpriced it. Rockwood basses which are identical and no doubt made in same factory at the same time go for around £50. I saw someone trying to sell one of these on ebay recently, claiming it was Japanese with inflated price to match, that wasn't you was it? Quote
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