Between 1987 and 1990, I was making and playing a custom beater bass I called "Kong".
The thing was ridiculous.
I sold Kong in 1990 in Los Angeles to help pay for an Alembic that was being made for me. I was just wondering if any TBers had ever come across The Mighty Kong; I've often wondered what his fate may have been.
Here is a screen-cap from a show in October of 1990:
He was made of a natural finish, one-piece body (ash or alder; I never really knew), with a Fender P neck, that had a rosewood fingerboard and a brass nut. The string-retainer on the headstock was raised with a plastic spacer about 1/4", and there was a HipShot Detuner installed for the E-string. The bridge was a Bad Ass-I, actually routed and sunk into the body wood.
The pick-ups were all DiMarzio. There were two Jazz-types side-by-side at the bridge position, a P-type in the center, and an EB0-type at the neck.
The electronics were passive and active. The passive controls were all on the black panel on front. There were five switches along the top of the panel; from left-to-right, they were:
a three-way switch for the two J pups - selecting front, back, or both;
one on/off switch for each of the "three" pups (the dual J being considered as one pup);
one active/passive switch
The passive control knobs, left-to-right, were:
master tone; master volume (top row)
three individual volumes, one for each pup (bottom row)
Once the active switch was engaged, all of those controls were de-activated, and the three black control knobs under the P and EB0 pups were activated. The active electronics in Kong were from a Warwick Buzzard, and worked in the same way. Left-to-right, the knobs were:
two-tier stack pot for bass (bottom) and treble (top) boost or cut;
a balance control between the P and EB0 pups (I
think the J pups were shut off when the active switch was engaged, but I may be wrong.);
one master volume.
Kong was sold with a black hard-shell case that has stickers and pictures
all over it.
Also, Kong was
very heavy; 15 lbs, or more.
Kong was a great and versatile bass; though, as I said, utterly ridiculous. If anyone here has ever seen him, please let me know... of course, he may have been completely taken apart for someone else's project.
Thanks!
~esa
He was, well... a beast.
