Blast Cult basses

[tombowlus]

Howdy, folks! I just got back from NAMM, and one the most exciting "discoveries" for me was Blast Cult double basses. I heard Miles Mosley play one at the Bass Bash, and was immediately blown away (by Miles and by the bass). We checked them out down in Hall E, and they ended up winning one of our Best of Show awards. I had not seen much hype about Blast Cult here, so I thought I'd give them some props and maybe kick off a discussion of these great, American-made, highly feedback resistant basses.

Here's a video of Miles playing a little bit after we gave them the award on Sunday:

Miles Mosley plays a Blast Cult bass

[bass_snake]

Awesome!

Richie

[war_n_peace]

Tom,

I had heard that Blast Cult is the company that Jason from King Doublebass started after King folded?

[tombowlus]

Originally Posted by war_n_peace

Tom,

I had heard that Blast Cult is the company that Jason from King Doublebass started after King folded?

I believe that is correct.

[war_n_peace]

Originally Posted by tombowlus

I believe that is correct.

I see that King had a booth at Namm last week with uprights and what looks like Slab basses.


Any idea who is running King DB now?

[tombowlus]

Originally Posted by war_n_peace

Any idea who is running King DB now?

Unfortunately, no. I did not get a chance to stop and talk to them. Even with four full days, I can't seem to cover the whole Show.

Of course, we spend a lot of the Show in per-arranged meetings about advertising and gear reviews, so I guess it's good to be busy at the Show...

[bass_snake]

Originally Posted by war_n_peace

I see that King had a booth at Namm last week with uprights and what looks like Slab basses.


Any idea who is running King DB now?

Do they still build upright basses??? I want that fretless slab!

[CindyB]

Originally Posted by war_n_peace

I see that King had a booth at Namm last week with uprights and what looks like Slab basses.


Any idea who is running King DB now?

This is a very old photo. King is long gone. I have their big trade show logo hanging on my living room wall. Jason's new company is Blast Cult. They're making awesome upright basses and some electric guitars. I don't think they're making electric basses currently, but I'm sure that if money talked, they'd listen.

[greenboy]

Yep. The article [The Rise of Blast Cult] talks about King practically at the top of it.

[shwashwa]

in one of the videos i saw they talk about the pickups. i didnt see a pickup mounted on miles' bass. can someone elaborate on their pickup system that claims to be able to get as loud as your guitarist without feeding back?

[tombowlus]

Originally Posted by shwashwa

in one of the videos i saw they talk about the pickups. i didnt see a pickup mounted on miles' bass. can someone elaborate on their pickup system that claims to be able to get as loud as your guitarist without feeding back?

They have two pickup systems, and I think we may have pics of them, but they are not up yet. I'll try and post them here when we do get them up.

[shwashwa]

Originally Posted by tombowlus

They have two pickup systems, and I think we may have pics of them, but they are not up yet. I'll try and post them here when we do get them up.

that would be great. also, does the feedback resistance come from the pickup system, or is there something different about the construction of this bass that makes it feedback resistant. and, is it really as feedback resistant as they claim?

[tombowlus]

Originally Posted by shwashwa

that would be great. also, does the feedback resistance come from the pickup system, or is there something different about the construction of this bass that makes it feedback resistant. and, is it really as feedback resistant as they claim?

No, it goes well beyond the pickup system. They do a number of things to make it feedback resistant, the most significant of which is that they install a second soundpost (which can be removed, if you don't need the feedback resistance and want more acoustic volume).

Talking to Miles, who has played stages as big and as bad as they come, the One 4 Five has entirely eliminated feedback as a problem for him.

[numpty]

Hi, I have dealt with Jason to buy one of the new Blast Cult pickups and I have found it a very good experience. The Channel Blaster pickup system is a very good. It consists of the usual rockabilly formula of one pickup for the wing bridge + one pickup for the fingerboard. Sonically these pickups are of great quality and are encapsulated in wood, which helps giving a very warm and 'traditional upright' sound. The blending system is stompbox which does a great job of blending plus looks extremely 'retro ' and cool.
Incidentally, I am not keeping this pickup because the loud band I was meant to use it with no longer exists, hence I don't need to be loud or slap that much anymore. I'm back to my acoustic bands and the Channel Blaster is wasted there. But, if I were prevalently a slap player or a in a band with a drum kit, I can't think of anything better.
As a customer, Jason was great to deal with, and always ready to help and answering all queries very efficiently, even if I'm in the UK and not exactly 'round the corner from him.
As for the feedback, I think the pickup helps, but you are totally right, I think the whole Blast Cult bass is built with loud stages in mind and probably the only sure anti feedback fix is to get the whole package!

[dukeorock]

Blast Cult user/endorser here! Just got a new one maybe a month ago (?)

I opted to try not putting the second soundpost in mine, but may at some point if it needs it...the pickups are awesome, esp, for slap bass.

[tombowlus]

That looks sweet!

[dukeorock]

Thanks! I've owned maybe 10 uprights, and this one is by far my favorite live bass...BC has figured out how to make them super loud, but still acoustic sounding...I'm just giddy about this thing