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Fender on steroids? How about Sadowsky on steroids.

JimS

JimS

Jul 18, 2000
3,904
476
63
Incline Village (Lake Tahoe)
#1
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You know how we say a Sadowsky is like a Fender on steroids? This is like a Sadowsky on steroids.

The tone of the Sadowsky soapbar pickups in J bass location with a swamp ash body and maple board is insane! Fat as Oprah at a pie eating contest and just as super sweet. Incredibly corpulent. In fact, it sounds so good that lightening shot out my bottom when I slapped the first few notes.

Compared to my other Sadowsky J bass with nearly similar woods (except for a maple top) and Sadowsky hum cancelling J pups, this #4990 sounds fatter and punchier; prodigious low end. These pups really respond to the bass boost of the Sadowsky OBP. Just a blast to play and very inspiring.

The bass with the standard pups has more growl and is a bit clearer with more defined note separation to my ears.

In fact, I think one could think of Sadowsky pup offerings like this:

--fundamental & raw<-->rich harmonics and complexity
--Nordie big singles<-->Sadowsky humcancelling<-->Sadowsky soapbar

In real life this bass looks black- dark purple...like a concord grape. I'm a slut for figured tops (on basses and women) but this just plays and sounds off the charts.
 
#2
I never really viewed the Sadowsky models as 'J on steroids' really... more a unique take on a J sound... maybe a touch more modern with the humcancelling stock pickups.

I would think putting soapbars in place of J pickups would suck the J right out of the tone, but I guess that's not really such a bad thing if you are looking for a downsized J body with a more 'soapbar' type boutique tone. This is very similar to what I heard in the Nordy that I had for a short time with the Big Singles... a J bass-looking instrument that sounded like a modern, soapbar loaded instrument. Cool if that's what you want!
 
#4
KJung said:
I never really viewed the Sadowsky models as 'J on steroids' really... more a unique take on a J sound... maybe a touch more modern with the humcancelling stock pickups.

I would think putting soapbars in place of J pickups would suck the J right out of the tone, but I guess that's not really such a bad thing if you are looking for a downsized J body with a more 'soapbar' type boutique tone. This is very similar to what I heard in the Nordy that I had for a short time with the Big Singles... a J bass-looking instrument that sounded like a modern, soapbar loaded instrument. Cool if that's what you want!
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ouch.... :eek:

( sometimes it's best just to let em believe what they want to believe ) :hiding:
 
#5
Sorry, but if there were such thing as a Sadowsky on steroids, it would be in the starting pitching rotation for the Yankees! :hiding:

Sharp looking bass, though. Is it a trans black, or a very deep blue?
 
#10
T-MOST said:
Sadowsky on steroids? Thats just redundant. :cool:
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absolutely! :hiding:

ps: its off topic but i saw this other thread where one is looking to buy a strap worth near 200$ and already does own about 10 other straps, nothing against the individual, but my damn bass is worth about 200$ in total and my amp less than 200$ and its taken me ages to afford this gear in this part of the world and i often baffle out on stuff like this how can one ,being a bass player .......a bass player! and not a over hyped rock star really.flush.$200.on.a.strap:bawl:

:hiding::hiding:
 
#11
KJung said:
I never really viewed the Sadowsky models as 'J on steroids' really... more a unique take on a J sound... maybe a touch more modern with the humcancelling stock pickups.

I would think putting soapbars in place of J pickups would suck the J right out of the tone, but I guess that's not really such a bad thing if you are looking for a downsized J body with a more 'soapbar' type boutique tone. This is very similar to what I heard in the Nordy that I had for a short time with the Big Singles... a J bass-looking instrument that sounded like a modern, soapbar loaded instrument. Cool if that's what you want!
Click to expand...

OUCH:crying:
 
#20
KJung said:
I don't get the 'ouch' comments. Since I'm very familiar with the Sadowsky models, and also those pickups, I was just commenting that I wouldn't use the 'on steroids' sort of descriptor, which means a very specific thing to many of us (i.e., a true 'Fender' tone goosed with an aggressive pre... ala Marcus Miller).

Didn't mean it to be nasty at all:) I'm sure it's a killer bass that sounds great.

Sorry Jim... it must have come out sounding different than I intended.
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Yeah, it kind of comes off sounding smug or possibly as if you are raining on his parade. This is the internet, so we aren't supposed to read intentions and emotions into words. In any case, we all know that you are a Sadowsky advocate anyway.

It's all good. In any case, I think us Sadowsky owners can straddle the line on "nuts" sometimes.
 

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