Club Sadowsky!!!

[Saulo Cirilo]

I know this is a Sad thread, but I liked the Fodera Deluxe :: Ash / Maple / Ebony tone - beef with articulation.

I wish they had recorded it with the Genzler Kinetix 800 and a couple of Bass Array cabs.

I think they were using the Epifani Head and cabs which I never quite gelled with - like with the MTD, you had woodiness on top of woodiness on top of woodiness between the head the bass and the Bart pups.
Made it sound kind of constipated, whereas with a more transparent head, it would have sounded better.

Thanks for the comment! Just to clarify, I was using the Epifani and Trickfish cabs only as reference monitors. Neither the amp nor the cabs were connected to the interface, so they weren’t part of the recorded signal at all.

And by the way, my amp is the Epifani Piccolo. I really love how transparent and hi-fi it sounds. In my experience, the Genzler doesn’t quite have that same level of transparency.

 

[John D Harris]

Thanks for the comment! Just to clarify, I was using the Epifani and Trickfish cabs only as reference monitors. Neither the amp nor the cabs were connected to the interface, so they weren’t part of the recorded signal at all.

And by the way, my amp is the Epifani Piccolo. I really love how transparent and hi-fi it sounds. In my experience, the Genzler doesn’t quite have that same level of transparency.

OK, I have not heard the Piccolo, only the original UL901.

If the Piccolo is more transparent than the Kinetix then that's quite a feat.

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 599 SE headphones, not the greatest, but not bad either.

The MTD particularly didn't seem to come across very well (a few others as well).

Not bashing, just giving some feedback, because I appreciate the effort you put into making this video.

And that collection of basses - WOW!

I liked the Sad5-21 Blueburst, 5-21 Standard Mahogany, the Super P/Super J, and the Modern 5 Alder w/Brazilian RW as well.

 

[Saulo Cirilo]

OK, I have not heard the Piccolo, only the original UL901.

If the Piccolo is more transparent than the Kinetix then that's quite a feat.

I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 599 SE headphones, not the greatest, but not bad either.

The MTD particularly didn't seem to come across very well (a few others as well).

Not bashing, just giving some feedback, because I appreciate the effort you put into making this video.

And that collection of basses - WOW!

I liked the Sad5-21 Blueburst, 5-21 Standard Mahogany, the Super P/Super J, and the Modern 5 Alder w/Brazilian RW as well.

I absolutely appreciate your feedback, and I didn’t take your comment negatively at all!


I just wanted to clarify that none of the basses were going through an amp. They were all going straight into the interface, so if the sound of a particular bass didn’t come across as well, we’re really only talking about the bass itself or anything in the signal chain between the bass and the interface.


As for the Piccolo, I can give you my honest opinion based on the amps I own. I have Sisma, Trickfish, Eich, Genzler, Bergantino, an Epifani UL901, GK, and I also have four Epifani Piccolos. I’ve owned dozens of other amps over the years as well, and I can honestly tell you that the Piccolo is easily in my top three amps of all time.

I really like the UL901 as well, but personally, I prefer the Piccolo. To my ears, it has a more transparent, hi-fi and natural sound.

Unfortunately, the Piccolo was discontinued many years ago. Interestingly, Nick Epifani is currently developing a new amp that will be very similar to the Piccolo, and it should be ready sometime later this year.

And once again, I really appreciate you taking the time to comment and give your feedback!

 

[bucephylus]

I know this is a Sad thread, but I liked the Fodera Deluxe :: Ash / Maple / Ebony tone - beef with articulation.

I wish they had recorded it with the Genzler Kinetix 800 and a couple of Bass Array cabs.

I think they were using the Epifani Head and cabs which I never quite gelled with - like with the MTD, you had woodiness on top of woodiness on top of woodiness between the head the bass and the Bart pups.
Made it sound kind of constipated, whereas with a more transparent head, it would have sounded better.

Your ref was to the Japanese Maple topped Deluxe? If so, agreed. For some reason every single clip I have heard with that particular run had that little bit of extra special going on. Fodera really nailed that one.

Otherwise, this clip was, to me, serious demonstration that the player matters WAY more than the instrument. Honestly, were I listening without visuals, the only basses I would have marked as distinctly different were the Sadowsky Modern basses; obviously due to the pickup placement. The rest were awesome instruments in the hands of a very accomplished player; any of which would get the gig done.

But, yes, those Japanese Maple Fodera’s have a certain thing.

 

[John D Harris]

Your ref was to the Japanese Maple topped Deluxe? If so, agreed. For some reason every single clip I have heard with that particular run had that little bit of extra special going on. Fodera really nailed that one.

Otherwise, this clip was, to me, serious demonstration that the player matters WAY more than the instrument. Honestly, were I listening without visuals, the only basses I would have marked as distinctly different were the Sadowsky Modern basses; obviously due to the pickup placement. The rest were awesome instruments in the hands of a very accomplished player; any of which would get the gig done.

But, yes, those Japanese Maple Fodera’s have a certain thing.

Yeah, that's the one that jumped out at me!

Back to Sads, I wonder if you can spec out a Modern 5 with a pair of Super J pickups?
I bet that would rip through any mix!

 

[Fuzzbass]

Yeah, that's the one that jumped out at me!

Back to Sads, I wonder if you can spec out a Modern 5 with a pair of Super J pickups?
I bet that would rip through any mix!

Interesting idea. A Modern 5 with Super J should be doable. However if you wanted those huge buckers placed in the Modern pickup locations, I'm guessing discussion would be necessary as to exactly where.

 

[John D Harris]

Interesting idea. A Modern 5 with Super J should be doable. However if you wanted those huge buckers placed in the Modern pickup locations, I'm guessing discussion would be necessary as to exactly where.

I would think that if you lined the bottom (bridge-side) of the pickups with the originals, they'd be (or almost be) jammed together like the MTD Super's pickups.

[I don't know how big the gap between the regular soapbar pickups or how much bigger the Super J pickups are.]

 

[Dr. Cheese]

This is a nice Sadowsky Modern 5 Metro Express demo. Although my Dingwall is my number one now, my Modern isn’t going anywhere. Lars gets more of a Smith vibe slapping than I do, but dude is a much better player than I am too.

 

[beavis420]

Looking to trade my MIJ RV4 for a fiver!

 

[Bass Viking]

Haha, thanks man! I definitely have a little bit of a bass problem

Ah, I was wondering if you owned all those basses. Thanks for posting the video. I’m going to give it a good listen through headphones.

 

[MikeBass]

STOLEN SADOWSKY!!!!
Posting this for @Tullykennedy

Hey all my Bass playing friends out there .. It seems I’ve had a bass stolen… Please keep an eye out or ears to the ground for me .. It’s an Olympic White NYC Sadowsky PJ5 with a Tort guard, Morado board .. Serial #9576 .. I know it’s a long shot but if anybody sees anything suspicious pop up please let me know .. Thank you all

Tully Kennedy

 

[HeavyJazz]

Hopefully that's not his main white PJ5. It was a mid/late 90s build I think. Hope he gets it back.. Hate thieves and liars.

 

[MOSCOWBASS]

Hopefully that's not his main white PJ5. It was a mid/late 90s build I think. Hope he gets it back.. Hate thieves and liars.

I think the stolen bass will be 2020+. I have sn.84xx and that was 2019

 

[MikeBass]

Update to Tullys stolen bass
It was recovered thanks to the bass world being put on notice about it.

 

[MovingPitchers]

Got to play an ME PJ 21 4 in champagne and wow I'm blown away by it. I am no means a fan of active basses (too many knobs) but even in passive mode it blew me away.

Definitely considering getting one in the future....

 

[Vic]

Got to play an ME PJ 21 4 in champagne and wow I'm blown away by it. I am no means a fan of active basses (too many knobs) but even in passive mode it blew me away.

Definitely considering getting one in the future....

yank the plate and put a standard passive plate on it. i think you just want to make sure to use 500's for the pots, not 250's as i recall. the preamp is not a significant percentage of the value of the instrument, and it's reversible anyway. bottom line, if you love the bass, buy it and play it.

 

[BassicJazzy]

yank the plate and put a standard passive plate on it. i think you just want to make sure to use 500's for the pots, not 250's as i recall. the preamp is not a significant percentage of the value of the instrument, and it's reversible anyway. bottom line, if you love the bass, buy it and play it.

No! Why? The preamp is what makes that bass special. You don't have to use it, but it sounds way better with just the slightest bit of boost on both bass and treble.

 

[Vic]

No! Why? The preamp is what makes that bass special. You don't have to use it, but it sounds way better with just the slightest bit of boost on both bass and treble.

why? because he said he didn't like it, too many knobs. to each their own. personally, i'm a fan of the config as it is, but he is fully entitled to his own preferences.

the other part is, the standard ME doesn't have a passive tone control. i'm betting he'd want that too. it'd just be a thousand times easier for him to hook up a pre-configured plate that's what he wants than try to adapt to something he's not comfortable with.

 

[BassicJazzy]

why? because he said he didn't like it, too many knobs. to each their own. personally, i'm a fan of the config as it is, but he is fully entitled to his own preferences.

the other part is, the standard ME doesn't have a passive tone control. i'm betting he'd want that too. it'd just be a thousand times easier for him to hook up a pre-configured plate that's what he wants than try to adapt to something he's not comfortable with.

Hummm.....let's see. ME Hybrid has 4 knobs, only one of which you actually touch, the volume. P/U stays balanced, the 2 boosts stay at about 20%. VTC really not needed unless you are trying to squeeze more out of the boost and want to take some edge off the top, plus that adds another control. As far as active bases go, cannot be much simpler than that arrangement.

Can't live with that, then it's not the right bass. Just note that most P/J's are active basses, so then stick with a P or a J.

Compare that to my Ibanez SR1350B which has six knobs plus a three way mid-toggle, and a switch to bypass the EQ. You can fiddle with those forever chasing tones, and still not find them, which is why I play it passive. Easy to ignore knobs that I do not use.

 

[Vic]

...Can't live with that, then it's not the right bass...

Those are your preferences, and that's great... for you. Sounds like his are different, and that's also perfectly fine. Also, if an instrument speaks to you the way he said that one to him, I definitely wouldn't trash the idea of ownership over the preamp. To each their own... as always.