Breedlove Atlas Solo Bj350/cme4 Fretless Acoustic Bass Guitar

This bass was an ebay purchase... actually a gift from my lovely wife!

It came to me with bronze round wound strings which I hated. Using any glissando produced quite a nasty noise from the string windings. I immediately set out to change the strings.

I bought LaBella tapes for it but found out quickly that the bridge system on the bass does not accommodate strings with excessive thickness at the ball end like these tape wound strings apparently have, especially since the gauge is typically larger than most metal strings.

So, rather than put the rounds back on, I tried on a set of Thomastik Infeld Jazz Flats, which I love on this bass. Just a very solid, thumpy tone. The acoustic volume is not impressive but fine enough for practicing solo and playing in small acoustic ensembles. A small amp is required for any ABG in most other settings anyway. The side sound hole is nice to assist in hearing this while practicing and in those small group settings.

I love the tone with the flats, I get a nice bloom out of the notes, I won't say it sounds just like an upright but it is very pleasingly similar.

The fit and finish are superb on this instrument. The only exception I take with the build is that the nut was very obviously not cut properly for a good fretless setup. The nut action was way too high, but after having that fixed, the bass really shines from a playability standpoint.

The LR Baggs pickup and pre are pretty good at reproducing the acoustic tone of this instrument and is very easy to dial in.

Back to the bridge... this instrument does not use the typical peg-style string retention, it is drilled to have the strings thread right through the bridge. I happen to like this feature, it is more streamlined without the big honking pegs you find on other ABG's.

The bass comes from the factory with very good under-bridge bracing to prevent the top from rising due to string tension. This is very similar to an aftermarket repair kit available to fix old guitars with this problem. Since basses have high tension, Breedlove installed it on the initial build.



Overall, this is a very nice bass, well worth the going rates that can be found especially on the used market.

I am quite happy to have this in my collection.