Up for grabs is my January 2004 Modulus genesis MT-5 jazz bass. It is a rare bird in the Modulus world. It comes with the original hard case and owner’s manual and warranty card. I am the second owner of this bass and it has been well taken care of. The first owner had 2 of these, and this was his backup. I have done maybe 8 gigs and 10 rehearsals with the bass.
There is light general player wear in the form of light swirls on the front and one 1” long rub on the top edge of the headstock. On the fingerboard under the D string on the 19th fret, there is an area of wear. The frets show no wear. Overall it is in fantastic condition. She plays great and sounds great. It definitely has the modern jazz thing down, as the Bartolinis are single coils. No surprises, just an all around great bass. She is on the heavy side. I have not weighed it but I would guess 10+ lbs.
The original owner replaced the Bartolini preamp with an Aguilar preamp, and I installed an East U-Retro 01. The controls are volume/blend stack, treble/bass stack and mid range/frequency stack. There is a passive/active switch that was installed in a hole originally made for a knob. I put the washer there to take up the space made by the larger diameter knob. The second switch offers more subtle blends of the 2 pickups. In the off position, the difference when you turn the blend knob is more traditional, with this switch engaged, there are more subtle blends available. The washer on this switch conceals a missing piece of clear coat which flaked off when drilling the hole. It is unnoticeable with the washer and matches the other switch.
The tone is undeniably jazz bass and still retains the Bartolini character. The East preamp is extremely powerful and versatile. The P tone is great from the neck pickup, especially with the switch disengaged.
I originally paid $1900 for the bass and then installed the East preamp. I am looking to get $1700 shipped Conus or trades for a five string. Trades plus cash considered as well. I am also in the market for cabs.
Modulus Genesis MT5 5-String Bass Features:
• Soma body with bubinga top
• Carbon fiber/alder neck
• 22-fret maple fingerboard
• Black hardware
• 2 Bartolini J pickups with active bass and treble
• 35" scale
• 1.875" wide at the nut
• 3" wide at the 22nd fret
“When Modulus Guitars and Michael Tobias Design combined their efforts to produce the most responsive and rich-sounding basses possible, the Genesis bass was born. This bass begins with the exclusive Genesis composite technology, which allows resonant, soft tonewoods to be used in the neck for the first time. The result is an instrument that surprises you both with its unique sound as well as its striking visual statement.
Every other detail of the Genesis is just as advanced and well thought out, from the asymmetrical shape of the neck to pickup placement and tone circuits. When you play the Genesis, you experience a musical instrument with unrivaled tone and playability.
This 5-string Genesis features a bubinga top, soma body, and a carbon fiber/alder neck with maple fingerboard.”
U Retro Preamp Description
The U Retro's high quality circuit uses three stacked knobs and includes an active blend circuit plus a 3 band equaliser with bass, variable frequency mid, treble and bright function.
A very gentle built in contour gives immediate colour without detracting from the basic sound of any bass. The active blend circuit prevents the loss associated with many passive basses where, when both pickups are up full, the signal from one pickup feeds into the other and vice versa.
However, a switch is included to allow a passive equal mix of both pickups. A second switch - basic "get-you-out-of-trouble" passive mode is included in case the battery dies in crucial circumstances, but this mode allows lots of useful settings too.
A standard PP3 battery is used to power the U Retro.
Technical
VOLUME & BLEND (Knob stack nearest the neck pickup)
VOLUME
The upper knob is the Volume which has two sections under the same knob. A high impedance for the passive path and a low impedance section is used for the active circuitry. When used active, this knob has active circuitry after it so that the feed to your amplifier is a low impedance drive.
BLEND & PICKUPS SWITCH
The lower outer knob is the Blend balance for the pickups. Turn it fully clockwise for the neck pickup alone and fully anti-clockwise for the bridge pickup. The midway position, which has an indent, gives an equal mix of both pickups. The balance between the pickups is continuously variable with progressive level compensation towards the single pickup settings. Important:- The Pickups switch (by the blend) must be set pointing towards the jack for the Blend to function.
BASS & TREBLE (The middle knob stack)
TREBLE (+12dB @ 3 kHz, -12dB @ 1kHz)
The upper knob is the Treble control with boost and cut. The central 'flat' position is indented. The cut settings work on lower frequencies compared to boost to give a deeper sound when the top is rolled off.
BRIGHT (+8dB @ 7kHz)
Pull the Treble knob for the Bright setting.
BASS (+15dB @ 50Hz)
The lower outer knob is the boost only Bass control. The frequency band of boost gets progressively lower as the boost is increased. An indent midway is included to aid the setting of this control.
MID LEVEL & FREQUENCY (The knob stack nearest the jack)
BOOST/CUT (+/- 12dB)
The upper knob controls the amount of Mid boost or cut at frequencies according to the setting of the Frequency knob. The midway indent is the 'flat' position.
FREQUENCY (150Hz - 3kHz)
The lower outer knob is continuously variable and sets the Mid frequencies for boost or cut.
ACTIVE PASSIVE SWITCH (By the jack)
Towards the jack for active, the opposite for passive.
POWER
The PP3 battery is switched on automatically when a mono jack is plugged into the socket.
too late?
