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Hanewinckel Custom Artist Retro 6, Graphite Neck
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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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* Graphite neck and fingerboard, 26 frets
* Solid poplar body
* Bartolini pickups
* 3-band Bartolini 18v preamp
* Hipshot bridge and tuners, lighweight
* Dunlop straplock system
* Poly finish
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Author
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boogiebass
Registered User
Registered: August 2000
Posts: 3578
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Review Date: Mon May 15, 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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Light weight, clarity of tone
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Cons:
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None
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Filling a void left when I sold my Zon and Modulus sixers, I had Pete make this one to my specs. I wanted a very light sixer with a graphite neck that was comfortable to play and I wanted major clarity. The fingerboard changes colors and shapes depending on the light so it's a real trip to play under stage lights or outdoors...but on to the gig report.
* GIGS
3, four-hour gigs at the same venue. Outdoors with an astro turf stage in front of a brick wall. Band was my regular working trio, classic rock/blues/jam. The venue is a perfect spot to really hear what an instrument or rig sounds like as it's outdoors and rather open.
* RIGS
Epifani T-112 on top of an Epifani T-310 driven by the EA Iamp800. Epifani UL410 driven by the Walter Woods Ultra.
* SOUND
Extreme clarity, especially in the upper register. This bass has 26 frets and the entire range is very usable. The low end is tight and balanced when compared to the top. This is an important point and not always the case with extended range instruments. The B string is not artificially fat but sounds like a natural, lower extension of the higher strings.
The Bart system is well-suited to the graphite neck and resonant body; there's a liveliness and range to the sound that allows you to dial up just about anything you can dream up. No surprise that the 18v Bart preamp and soapbar pickups are so popular.
* PLAYABILITY
Action can be (and is, in this case) set up super low. The body contours are smooth and comfortable and the light poplar body hangs perfectly on a strap, balancing the graphite neck beautifully. This is no accident, of course. Pete H. excells at this kind of detail. The neck profile is quite flat and fast, with plenty of space above the C string--no "fall-off" over the edge of the frets.
* COMPARISONS
- Modulus Quantum 6
The Hanewinckel matches the Q's clarity and offers a major improvement in weight, comfort and a much faster neck. The low-end is better on the Hanewinckel, too. There's really no comparison for me.
- Zon Legacy Elite 6
Sonically, these instruments are in the same ballpark. The Hanewinckel is a bit clearer on top but the low-end is very similar. The Zon had no arm contour, however, and was rather heavy. The neck was wider with wider spacing, too. Again, not even close: Hanewinckel all the way.
* SUMMARY
This is a unique bass and certainly not for everyone. Of course, I had it made for my own unique preferences and needs, further making it unlikely to please a lot of players. However, fans of graphite neck basses such as Zon and Modulus would likely be blown away. It's lighter, more comfortable and has better sonic balance than either of the two makes listed above.
It's unlikely that Pete Hanewinckel will start making a lot of these. He's quite committed to wooden neck basses and working the Moses neck blank into a Hanewinckel is no easy task. Of course, demand will dictate how many more are created but this much is clear to me: he's created the best graphite neck bass I've ever played and/or owned. And that's plenty good enough for me!
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Hanewinckel basses and Thomastik-Infeld strings
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