Shen Panormo basses

i'd like to hear oppinions on these if anyone has experience. there's one on my local CL, and the situation may work out well since the seller is interested in downgrading, and a trade+cash for my shen 80 is very likely.

i played the instrument yesterday for about 40 minutes. i really like it, and was very pleased with how versatile it actually was. it had a really nice solo voice, wasn't too bad to get around the wide shoulders, and had a very impressive jazz pizz sound. of corse it was excellent for lower register/orchestra stuff as well. very deep low end, for sure.

the bass i saw yesterday also had a soundpost that was halfway under the bridge foot, so i suspect if it was moved to a more conventional placement the bass would sound more "open" and resonant, since that has been my experience with that particular soundpost issue.

anyone else own one, or have experience? what do we think? shens are always well-reviewed, but gennerally they're known for the budget instruments. what does the TB community think of the panormo, which retails a little over $10k?

 

the listed price is $8k, which i told him in my first email just can't happen.

we left it at "around" 5.5K + my shen. he's including a good case, pickup, yada yada. we're planning on meeting with a good luthier and having him look it over, so everyone is on the same page about the state of the instrument, and planned on talking about specific details of the deal after were up to speed on the bass.

i was hoping to get it for as close to $5k + my bass as possible. i think thats fair- am i nuts? the bass will need a little work, but nothing major from what i saw- the nut was a bit too high, theres some rosin buildup on the top, a minor soundpost adjustment.

then, if i'm allowed to ask (?) what would be a fair price on this bass? i know Carlos Henriques sold his for 5.4k, but i think that was a pretty good deal.

 

yeah, i've seen that bass before. the 42.5" string length surprised me- i never see the same string length listed twice on these. have they changed the specs a lot on these over the years..?

i'm not as concerned with the value of my own deal as i am interested in hearing TB opinions on these instruments. they do retail at $10k+, i'd like to hear from owners or people who've played them on how they thought the instrument performs among other fully carved basses.

as far as my particular bass in question, like i said, after i have Jeff Bollbach look it over i'll decide on what i can offer the owner.

 

nobody else with experience regarding these shens?

the plot thickens; i know theres a thread comparing shen to upton, but can anyone compare specifically the shen panormo to a carved upton brescian? new they're similarly priced- i've dealt with upton before and like the idea of one, but i know shen usually kills it when it comes to bang for the buck.

happy to hear any other feedback on shen panormo basses, as well as anything about the upton brescian.

 

i'd immagine any upton at their upper level would compete well among other great basses. it's very true that one can only really decide for themselves at the end of the day.

i cantacted mark leue, about the bass above- listed at 6.3k-considering it has an extention, i think thats pretty fair.. its about 4 hours from me, but i think i'm gonna make plans to go see that one.

 

how about an update-

yesterday a friend and i took a ride to upton, then up to mark leue to see that panormo.

first of all- upton. not directly related to the thread title but worth mentioning- awesome experience there. everyone was really cool, and they left my friend and i alone in their showroom to play everything they had. as far as the brescian models go, i was very impressed with the ones i played. several stood out further than others, which were of corse the competition basses in the $20K+ range. the brescians in the 12-15k range were very nice all around basses, and could probably be someones only bass and suit orchestral or jazz work equally as well, depending on your strings. their removable necks were very impressive, and i really think they make a mean hybrid bass.

then we went to mark leue- he doesn't have a million basses in stock, but had several nice shens. from the first note i played on the Panormo my friend and i looked at each other and grinned. this was an instrument with a voice unlike anything i had heard at upton (under the $30K pricetags, of corse.) it's also significantly bigger and depending on your body style can be difficult to get around. i'm 5'8" and had no problem playing all the way up past the fingerboard. it has a very strong deep low end, but still has great clarity and projects exceptionally well. having played one other shen panormo (which was a round back, this one is flat) this one sounded better to my ears. they were both nice and would share the same breif and admittedly vague sound description. big sound, quite dark, very strong low frequencies. very big and penetrating pizz sound, even with orchestral strings on it. this bass is fitted with a fingered extension, and the low notes rattle every room i've played it in. i see no reason why this cant be a professionals orchestral instrument.

side note- if anyone is ever in the area, do check out mark leues shop. very, very nice guy and a skilled luthier. he stocks used and b-stock shens that are very reasonably priced and well set up. he even satisfied my insane request to notch the nut and bridge so i can convert this instrument to a 3 string dragonetti style bass. he also installed some side dots on the c-extention for me upon my request, and did a very nice job of it as well.

so, at the end of the day i brought home with me this wonderful shen panormo bass. especially after playing a ton of very nice basses at upton, i can't believe the quality for the price that i got with this shen. the only downside is that it really is big, and although it did fit in my toyota camry, it was too big to buckle in for the 4+ hour ride home.

 

i should snap a few photos tomorrow. it's a nice looking bass- the maple is pretty insane.

i'm hoping to borrow a zoom recorder soon to get some sounds. as i said before, the bridge and nut are notched for a 3 string setup, and i'm dying to see if theres a noticable difference between the same instrument with 3 and 4 strings. this is a topic for another thread, but, it does mean that i want to record it as it is right now.

 

this was a bass he's had for a bit of time now, i diddn't even bother to photograph the huge repaired crack in the back.

this and the other panormo i played were both huge sounding basses. absolute monster indeed. these should come stock with a C extension, because a box this size is at home with those frequencies.