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Lecompte Electric Basses VB5 fretless
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Reviews
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Views
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Date of last review
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1
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4319
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Thu January 12, 2006
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Recommended By
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Average Price
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Average Rating
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100% of reviewers
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None indicated
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10.0
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Description:
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LeCompte VB - 5, unlined fretless (left handed,strung righty), 35"scale
Standard features:
Alder body w/ gloss catalyzed lacquer finish
Dual action truss rod
Bartolini 59J1 L/S pickups
Gotoh tuners (chrome)
Standard chrome bridge w/ 17.5mm string spacing
Metal knobs (chrome)
Strap buttons (chrome, large for VB only)
DR Hi-Beam Strings
Thuya burl top,maple accent between the body and the top
Maple burl inlayed faux pickguard
Macassar ebony fingerboard
Bartolini 3.3 a/p 2 band preamp (vol, blend, treb/bass stacked)
Graphite nut
Matching Thuya burl head stock
3 piece maple neck (with satin poly finish)
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Author
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JJBACOOMBA
Registered User
Registered: May 2005
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Posts: 394
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Review Date: Thu January 12, 2006
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 10
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Pros:
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Superb craftsmanship.
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Cons:
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none
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When I picked up the bass for the first time I immediately noticed how smooth the neck felt in my hand.I chose the 3 piece Maple neck with Macassar Ebony fingerboard. 35" scale, bolt on. It has an 18" radius, and has a 1 7/8" wide nut,with a sort of flat oval profile, about 0.80" thick at the first fret position with a total of 21 fret positions. The dot inlays are placed on all 21 fret positions as requested and are flawless.I am so glad that I did not have fretlines put into the fingerboard.Its a beautiful piece of wood.The neck has a satin/poly finish and plays very smoothly.
The top I chose is Thuya Burl. The pics dont do it any justice.There are times that is has a reddish sort of color to it and other times what I would call a rather tempting sweet sort of caramelish color. I know this is a hard type of wood to work with, but Buds experience shows here. The lines and curves are so smooth. I love exotic woods and I am very pleased with my choice.
The VB series basses that Bud offers come with the Inlayed Faux Pickgaurd option. I chose a Maple Burl. Again the craftsmanship in this area is flawless.The 2 Burls go together quite well and the placement is perfect.
The accent wood is a Figured Maple accent piece that Bud suggessted for the bass. I didnt order that option at first but after Buds suggestion and an image goin through my head of all that wood I gladly agreed to have it done. Again, the craftsmanship is flawless. It measures approx 1/4" thick and really makes the Thuya jump.
The Body is Alder and I love the way the grain shows through. The bass wieghs approx.9 lbs( all I had was a bathroom scale).It feels very comfortable on the shoulder, and on my leg while sitting. There is no neck dive whatsoever. I wondered about that, being 35" scale 5string in that body style.
I must say that I love the battery box. Flips up and I just pull the battery. Makes for an easy, quick change, especially in a live situation.No battery wires to fiddle with.
The control cavity is sweet. Sheilding all around. Very neat and clean. The cover is a very hard plastic and is nice and tight in placement.
The finish is absolutely beautiful.Gloss Catalyzed Lacquer.Not one single flaw. I know that the Thuya is hard to work with, and Bud pulled it off with Flying colors.All this work set off with all chrome hardware.
The electronics I chose were simple yet what I know to work well for me. I went with Bartolini 59J pickups and the Bartolini 3.3 active/passive 2 band preamp. Volume, blend,stacked treble/bass. I came home , pluged it in and was blown away at how warm and quiet these pickups are. I started with the blend set for both the bridge and neck pickups, and the bass and treble set at half, run through an SWR SM400,with an SWR 410 Goliath 2 cab.I set the EQ at just above flat and was blown away.The clarity I got was amazing.After a little EQ tweaking I was amazed at how responsive the bass was to my playing.I turned the bass and treb to full and and the boost was very noticeable. I will have a blast playing this bass live in either the half or full positions. When I turned the blend to more of the bridge pickup with a little bass boost I got a very sweet Jaco/jazzy sound.The muahhhhh was talking to me sweetly. I love playing harmonics and I was not disappointed. I got everything I need from these pickups and this bass will do its job beautifully in either rock or jazz.The active/passive option is way cool. My Alembic doesnt have this and I am glad I have it on the VB.Saves on batteries and will come in handy when playing live.
This bass will get alot of show/live time. It plays like butta. The upper notes are easy to get to and the string spacing, 17.5" is perfect for me. The B string is tight and has no flop at all. It is setup perfectly.Intonation is dead on. I have to say that Bud is an excellent craftsman. I have seen a few of his other basses in person and they all look like works of art. I will be ordering another Lecompte soon.Bud is a great guy to wrk with. He listens and he makes suggestions throughout the build.Its an at-ease feeling knowing that he is a bass player who builds quality basses.He is true to his craft and it shows and stands out beautifully in all his works to date. I am sure that anyone who has a Lecompte now isnt disappointed, and for those considering a custom bass, ordering one from Bud will leave you very satisfied.More to come!!!
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