For sale is my incredible sounding DeArmond Starfire with
pickups and "Mellowmodded" (modded by TB'er MellowGerman) with non original hardshell case.
Scale is 30.5" and it weighs around 8.5 lbs according to my bathroom scale.
The bass is in good condition. There are a few light scratches and marks on it but it looks great for bass that is around 15 years old (not sure what the exact age is).
Controls are as follows (all passive): 3-way pickup selector, master volume, bass contour (high pass filter), HAS varitone plus, varitone blend/push-pull pot, neck pickup volume, neck pickup tone, bridge pickup volume, bridge pickup tone, and a mini-toggle phase switch.
The only issues are the tone control for the neck pickup does not seem to work. It turns but does not change the tone. It seems like it is probably at around 5 on the tone knob right now. Some of the controls are scratchy if you are playing the bass and turning the knob at the same time.
Also on the bridge Darkstar pickup the poles aren't quite lined up with the E and G strings but as far as I can tell this is not an issue but just wanted to point it out.
I bought this from MellowGerman back 12-09. Love the sound of this bass and it has lots of tonal options I'm just not using it as it's a bit too large for me. I really really hate to sell it but I just can't use it for a 3 hour gig.
Looking to sell it for $875.00 local pickup only. Not looking for any trades.
I actually had this bass sold to a fellow TB'er in Mexico but because the case is so long (51") shipping just came out to be too much. Plus the fact that I cannot find a box that is long enough. I'm willing to drive a couple of hours (maybe three hours if you want to throw in a little extra for gas) to meet someone (I'm in Central Va.)
Anyway's here's what MellowGerman said about the controls:
Quote:
As for the controls, here is a rough schematic for how they are wired up, complete with labels for each knob/switch
Schematic
The master volume is just that. It controls the volume of the overall signal (both pickups included)
The bass contour is essentially a reverse tone knob, in the sense that it rolls off the bass instead of rolling off the treble (as a traditional tone knob would).
The varitone switch is a mid-notch filter, which lets you select different mid voicings.
The blend push/pull pot allows you to blend the selected varitone mid filtration with the normal signal from the pickups. When it is in the up position, you have 4 voicings and a bypass option via the 5-way switch. When it is in the down position you have a different 4 voicings and a bypass option.
All of these controls effect both pickups equally.
Then the bottom 4 controls are your normal volume and tone for each pickup.
Lastly, the phase switch throws your pickups out of phase when engaged and when both pickups are selected. You won't hear any difference if you're only using one pickup, since in/out of phase is only relative between both pickups.
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Here's a link to MellowGerman playing this bass before the mod's (great playing)
dearmond starfire bass - the other side of this life 
MellowGerman pic's (before he put the phase switch in)
And lastly here is a link to the original for sale ad:
Starfire
