Official Zon Club Part 3

[kesslari]

You've seen mine, right? I love the feel of the new satin finish, and the looks as well.

[Vic]

Originally Posted by kesslari

You've seen mine, right? I love the feel of the new satin finish, and the looks as well.

I've messed with them in the booth, and the "TJ" 5 fretless we reviewed in the current issue also had it, plus I've experienced it on at least two other brands as well, though both of those might be a slightly different process... still mostly similar tho. It's good stuff.

[ehque]

My VB-6 is bouncing through Guangzhou, the Fedex Asia Pacific transshipment hub, after leaving Alaska. Should be here in 2 days.

[CH Design]

Originally Posted by Vic

Deposit laid down...

Zon Sonus 5
Standard body shape
Standard J style pickupes
34" scale
24 frets
19mm spacing (new)
Bart three band with mid switch

lightweight ash body
koa top (see below)

Still deciding on chrome or black hardware, no matching face on the headstock. On a Zon, I just like the plain black best.

Now the long wait.

I'm looking forward to this one. IF I was in a position where I could order a new Zon, it would have the same specs. Although, I might have asked for a down sized body (4-string Sonus). Congrats. How long did they estimate it will take?

[Vic]

Originally Posted by fretless_guy

I'm looking forward to this one. IF I was in a position where I could order a new Zon, it would have the same specs. Although, I might have asked for a down sized body (4-string Sonus). Congrats. How long did they estimate it will take?

I didn't push for a specific time frame yet, but I'm pretty casual about the process because I've done this kinda' thing a buncha' times, plus I have other basses to keep me happy in the mean time, plus it gives me more time to set aside the balance.

But at this point, I'm more or less planning on early next year sometime since it's more or less just another Sonus 5, which is a model they're pretty much building all the time. We'll see.

[ialma]

take the estimated time, triple it and you'll be close

Originally Posted by fretless_guy

How long did they estimate it will take?

[ehque]

Originally Posted by ialma

take the estimated time, triple it and you'll be close

Hahahaha.

Half true, i believe. Mine's close to that (23 months and i'm taking delievery tomorrow, compared to 8 months quoted). I also know of others at 3-times-quoted marks.

But then again, there are quite a few people who get their stuff within weeks of the deadline.

[CH Design]

Originally Posted by ehque

Hahahaha.

Half true, i believe. Mine's close to that (23 months and i'm taking delievery tomorrow, compared to 8 months quoted). I also know of others at 3-times-quoted marks.

But then again, there are quite a few people who get their stuff within weeks of the deadline.

I think a lot of the delays can be associated with non-standard requests. As Vic said, his is pretty much a straight forward build so I would hope that they deliver close to their original estimate.

[fretless4string]

Michael Manring played a short set at the Canadian Guitar Festival just short of one hour and a longer two hour set at Pinnacle Music Studios where he stopped between pieces to take questions from the audience. The set lists were:

Canadian Guitar Festival

A 30 min. improv. that started with a very beautiful EBow soundscape, visited Not Even the Summer and Monkey Businessman along the way and finished with an Edge-like exploration of harmonics/echo/volume swell. This piece featured all of Michael's tapping/strumming techniques but also some extremely fast slides on one string over very large intervals and also a lot of in-between tones. He also used his Roland stomp box to harmonize harmonics. [ZON Michael Manring Hyperbass]

Selene Beautiful piece, beautifully played. I should add that from where I was sitting in the high-tech tent I could see the stars (but not unfortunately the moon). [ZON Michael Manring Hyperbass]

He finished with a standard that everyone else but me recognized. Sorry! [Earl VB4].

Pinnacle Music Studios

Almost note-for-note the same 30 min sonic exploration of the outer limits of bass space. It was interesting to see this two days later. I did ask him what it was called and he said I could give it a name which I didn't. [ZON MM Hyperbase]

A Saraband from a Bach Cello Suite morphing into (if you can believe it) Excuse me Mr Manring. [Junior - Sonus Hyperbass].

The Enormous Room/ Nice slow/even tempo allowing the harmonics to really sing, gorgeous - show highlight for me. [ZON MM Hyperbass]

You've Got a Friend Great sound from the VB4. Manring's played this piece really well - piano like, no technical displays, very restrained. [Earl VB4]

Helios A request from the audience. Michael explained that the piece allowed him to explore the percussive possibilities of the bass and was inspired by his studies of Indian music. [ZON MM Hyperbass]

That is about it. I hope I got the set list correct. I may have missed a piece from the second set and I clearly need some help with the third song from the first. I got to hear The Enormous Room again and Selene live for the first time, so I was happy. Before playing Selene he did mention that it was the first piece he wrote for the Hyperbass (which I knew) but he also said that he almost totally conceived this piece before the bass arrived. He stated that he had very little work to do after he received the bass. I am sure some of you are going to post about ZON delivery times, but you shouldn't.

I got to see Earl and the ZON MM Hyperbass up close. Earl looks to have a standard ash body and it has a beautifully carved set neck. The back looked to have a gloss finish whereas the front looks satin/flat. The back of the Hyperbass looks very "used". The finish is chipped off around the edge of the body and there are lots of dents, dings and scratches. This instrument has been places. I wish I had a camera with me. Also, Michael played through Markbass equipment at both events and the sound at both events was great. I should say that I frequently find Michael's VB4 to be mixed much too bright, but at Pinnacle they nailed it.

[Angus]

Originally Posted by ehque

Half true, i believe. Mine's close to that (23 months and i'm taking delievery tomorrow, compared to 8 months quoted). I also know of others at 3-times-quoted marks.

You guys can't even begin to compare to me.

[fretless4string]

Originally Posted by ialma

take the estimated time, triple it and you'll be close

Pi?

[ehque]

Originally Posted by Angus

You guys can't even begin to compare to me.

[CH Design]

Originally Posted by ehque

And? You can't go posting pics like that without a review

[Angus]

That looks great! I hope it's been worth the wait!

I like your bass, but what I REALLY like is your couch.

That's the stage of life that I'm at. Sigh.

[onewebfoot]

Congrats again, Ehque. The side-by-side portrait with your Sonus is a very nice visual that I don't know I've seen much of. I never fully realized the Vinny body is so close in size to that of the Sonus. And both finishes look great - gloss or satin.

[Angus]

Well that Vinny is bigger because it's a six string. A four string Vinny would be smaller.

[onewebfoot]

Yes, a 4-string vinny would be slightly narrower, left to right, but the overall length is the same, correct? And that's a 6-string Sonus also. Interesting dynamics, either way, and beautiful eye candy.

[ehque]

Originally Posted by fretless_guy

And? You can't go posting pics like that without a review

All i can say now is that it sounds great. There is a lot of versatility from the electronics package. However this is my first fretless bass and i'm not great at getting the tones i want out of the bass. I know they are there because I can hear some notes ring out fine, but my fretless technique and especially my intonation is currently non-existent. The innate tone without EQ does sound rather manring-ish on the high strings, but remarkably similar to my Sonus on the bass strings (loud, middish, authoritative and punchy). The sustain is ridiculous - the strings can ring out for 20+ seconds usefully.

I didn't find the strings to be more or less springy than the Sonus. We're using the same gauges.

Action is ridiculously low, something like 2mm at the 24th position. Extremely comfortable to play, more than my Sonus. Build quality is excellent, but we already knew that. No neck dive, hangs comfortably.

I'm primarily a church bassist so I'll be taking it out for its first worship rehearsal this week, so I've got my work cut out for me regarding intonation and stuff.

Originally Posted by Angus

That looks great! I hope it's been worth the wait!

I like your bass, but what I REALLY like is your couch.

Thanks, it has been worth the wait indeed.

Couch is nice yes, but not really mine since I live with my parents (as do most single Singaporeans). IIRC the couch (3+1+1) must have cost nearly as much as the Vinny, but we really do take care of it.

Originally Posted by onewebfoot

Congrats again, Ehque. The side-by-side portrait with your Sonus is a very nice visual that I don't know I've seen much of. I never fully realized the Vinny body is so close in size to that of the Sonus. And both finishes look great - gloss or satin.

Yes it appears a lot bigger than I imagined it would be. Somehow I still can't wrap my head around how the bass case is positively tiny, while the bass feels, looks, and weighs like a full sized bass (this one is 9.9 lbs). The bridge, for one, is absolutely massive. The portability has gone way up, however. The headstock (what's left of it) no longer sticks out above my head catching on doorways and public transport, and the 1 lb weight saving over a few hours 3 times a week can really add up.

[fretless4string]

For those interested:

‪QL Michael Manring‬‏ - YouTube

Originally Posted by fretless4string

Michael Manring played a short set at the Canadian Guitar Festival just short of one hour and a longer two hour set at Pinnacle Music Studios where he stopped between pieces to take questions from the audience. The set lists were:

Canadian Guitar Festival

A 30 min. improv. that started with a very beautiful EBow soundscape, visited Not Even the Summer and Monkey Businessman along the way and finished with an Edge-like exploration of harmonics/echo/volume swell. This piece featured all of Michael's tapping/strumming techniques but also some extremely fast slides on one string over very large intervals and also a lot of in-between tones. He also used his Roland stomp box to harmonize harmonics. [ZON Michael Manring Hyperbass]

Selene Beautiful piece, beautifully played. I should add that from where I was sitting in the high-tech tent I could see the stars (but not unfortunately the moon). [ZON Michael Manring Hyperbass]

He finished with a standard that everyone else but me recognized. Sorry! [Earl VB4].

Pinnacle Music Studios

Almost note-for-note the same 30 min sonic exploration of the outer limits of bass space. It was interesting to see this two days later. I did ask him what it was called and he said I could give it a name which I didn't. [ZON MM Hyperbase]

A Saraband from a Bach Cello Suite morphing into (if you can believe it) Excuse me Mr Manring. [Junior - Sonus Hyperbass].

The Enormous Room/ Nice slow/even tempo allowing the harmonics to really sing, gorgeous - show highlight for me. [ZON MM Hyperbass]

You've Got a Friend Great sound from the VB4. Manring's played this piece really well - piano like, no technical displays, very restrained. [Earl VB4]

Helios A request from the audience. Michael explained that the piece allowed him to explore the percussive possibilities of the bass and was inspired by his studies of Indian music. [ZON MM Hyperbass]

That is about it. I hope I got the set list correct. I may have missed a piece from the second set and I clearly need some help with the third song from the first. I got to hear The Enormous Room again and Selene live for the first time, so I was happy. Before playing Selene he did mention that it was the first piece he wrote for the Hyperbass (which I knew) but he also said that he almost totally conceived this piece before the bass arrived. He stated that he had very little work to do after he received the bass. I am sure some of you are going to post about ZON delivery times, but you shouldn't.

I got to see Earl and the ZON MM Hyperbass up close. Earl looks to have a standard ash body and it has a beautifully carved set neck. The back looked to have a gloss finish whereas the front looks satin/flat. The back of the Hyperbass looks very "used". The finish is chipped off around the edge of the body and there are lots of dents, dings and scratches. This instrument has been places. I wish I had a camera with me. Also, Michael played through Markbass equipment at both events and the sound at both events was great. I should say that I frequently find Michael's VB4 to be mixed much too bright, but at Pinnacle they nailed it.

[rulyongo]

thanks!!!