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Designed by legendary recording engineer and professional studio equipment designer, professor Malcolm Toft, The BPA-1 places studio quality pre-amplification, tone control and compression at the feet of the bass guitarist. The frequencies chosen in the three band equalizer section have been specifically designed for the bass guitar and offer the same range of control as that found in the very best analog studio consoles. Ever wondered why studio engineers are able to get great sounds from your instrument when recording? Wonder no more- as you will have the same facilities!

Malcolm Toft is best known for the Trident console as well as working with the Beatles, David Bowie and T-Rex. The Bassics BPA-1 is Malcolm Toft’s first product designed for the musician.

Due to new regulations in January 2017 pertaining to the import of rosewood, string instrument manufacturers worldwide are forced to adapt and move away from rosewood fingerboards. Sandberg Guitars has responded with an innovative new Steamed Oak fingerboard option for their basses which will become their standard dark colored fingerboard wood. Oak is a very eco-friendly and sustainable wood with very desirable sonic qualities and dynamic response.

Sandberg has adopted a process which changes the chemistry of the wood’s pigments and oxidizes the naturally occurring tannins in the wood. Oak is loaded with tannins so the final ‘steamed’ result is a permanently deep and warm dark wood with accentuated grain patterns that will look familiar to those who favor rosewood.

Once steamed, it has the warmth of rosewood yet gives the player improved right hand dynamic response similar to maple and a sharper attack like ebony. The final results are permanent and easy to maintain....

(West Haven, CT.) – Rock House, the leader in music instruction is announcing the release of a new bass guitar course by John McCarthy, one of the most prolific music instructors of this generation. This new book course includes:

152 Page Book
Designed by John McCarthy, this Master Edition combines all levels of this award winning series in a complete course! Learn the essential techniques needed to play all genres of music. Start with how to hold the Bass for comfortable playing and fast, effective learning. Next learn rhythm, timing, basic bass lines and how to play along with a drummer. Learn 3rds, 5ths and octaves and how to apply them in a song. Plucking techniques including slap and pop and using a pick are covered in depth. Next learn scales from minor pentatonic to major scales as you play them in patterns across the neck and apply them to form bass lines and write songs. All genres of music are covered from blues to rock and from jazz to metal. Learn walking bass...

The album features his band Think Free, which is comprised of some of New York’s most creative improvising musicians, including Jeremy Pelt (trumpet), Steve Cardenas (guitar), Frank Kimbrough (piano), and Allan Mednard (drums). Ben plays acoustic bass and, for the first time on record, electric bass.

“Layers of the City is a title that has a lot of meaning for me,” said Ben. “The ‘City’ in this case is New York, my home, where my parents were born, and where their parents arrived as immigrants. The people who live here are from everywhere. The layers of the city are reflected in the grime and uneven slope of old tenement buildings, the gleam and perfect angles of modern glass structures, the makeshift and the honed, the worn out and the state of the art, and everything in between. These juxtapositions, coupled with the cultural diversity of NYC, produce a unique kind of energy and vitality. This is why I live here.”...

Raising the bar on instrument design often means incorporating cutting-edge features on a time-proven model. That’s what Cort set out to accomplish with its GB Series of electric bass guitars. Within this series, the GB7 models combine a proven body and bridge design with enhanced electronics, machine heads, and more for the best of the past and future. The newest addition to the GB7 line—the 4-string GB74JJ with double jazz pickups—continues the seamless integration of classic and modern in one stunning instrument.

The GB74JJ’s two VTB-ST pickups were carefully chosen with consideration to this instrument’s swamp ash body, and are voiced to deliver a legendary jazz tone. Crafted with winding materials that maximize high and low frequencies, the refined design of these pickups provides a unique noiseless performance. The electronics are also specially engineered, providing for two bands of tone control as well as master volume and...