Looking at bullet or basic 5 strings. Would just to know about there tone, versatility, playability etc..
Much appreciated.
Much appreciated.
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Consenus On Sandberg Basses
- Thread starter Arpeggiator
- Start date
I'm currently waiting for a California JM4 to arrive.
I have played various Sandberg models, and if you ask me, they were all amazing. Extremely comfortable, sound great, and built very well.
I especially liked the Basic Ken Taylor 5 with the birds' eye maple fretboard, you should check that one out.
I have played various Sandberg models, and if you ask me, they were all amazing. Extremely comfortable, sound great, and built very well.
I especially liked the Basic Ken Taylor 5 with the birds' eye maple fretboard, you should check that one out.
i recently bought a black Sandberg California JM4 - it's a truly great bass IMO. I hate to say it, as I am a big fan of anything with Leo Fender's hand on it; but I believe this Sandberg is better than most Fenders I've ever played. It is probably as good as my '63 P Bass and '79 Stingray, it's better than my '89 G&L Asat and it may actually be better than all of them.
yeah as bassnut62 and Baker69 as well as the rest of the sandberg club on here will say, they are great basses.
have a look on youtube (or look on the sandberg club thread as links are in there also) there is a 3 part tour of the sandberg production site, it seriously opened my eyes and swayed me from getting another status graphite
feel and playability are way above any fender i have played or owned. dont get me wrong i love my jag and P but the cali PM5 i have just feels so right.
the zero fret makes open strings sound as fretted ones do (as they are really).
have a look on youtube (or look on the sandberg club thread as links are in there also) there is a 3 part tour of the sandberg production site, it seriously opened my eyes and swayed me from getting another status graphite
feel and playability are way above any fender i have played or owned. dont get me wrong i love my jag and P but the cali PM5 i have just feels so right.
the zero fret makes open strings sound as fretted ones do (as they are really).
certain styles can be seen as 'copy' basses but pretty much every company has a fender inspired line.
there are major differences though, sanberg bridge is a very nice high mass fully adjustable type, mine has 6 neck bolts and they are countersunk rather than plate mounted, the neck join on the body is also contoured and as i said they have a zero fret. all features that fender don't use construction wise. then there is the custom glokenklang pre amp (which is passive too), pretty much custom pickups (either in house, delano or haussel).
the only gripe i can see people having is that they only come with a gigbag, however this is one hell of a gig bag! id class it as a soft case rather than a gig bag.
there are major differences though, sanberg bridge is a very nice high mass fully adjustable type, mine has 6 neck bolts and they are countersunk rather than plate mounted, the neck join on the body is also contoured and as i said they have a zero fret. all features that fender don't use construction wise. then there is the custom glokenklang pre amp (which is passive too), pretty much custom pickups (either in house, delano or haussel).
the only gripe i can see people having is that they only come with a gigbag, however this is one hell of a gig bag! id class it as a soft case rather than a gig bag.
The Cailfornia is Jazz shaped but the dimensions seem to be different. I tried a Fender Jazz pickguard against my Sandberg JM4 and the Sandberg's pickguard is quite a bit smaller.
I would say the Sandberg gig bag is good but not brilliant, I would say it only has 1/2" padding. Time will tell though, it is made from pretty hard-wearing material and so far it has fully protected my bass. For personal choice I would rather have something like the Warwick gig bag, the deluxe one's of which have 1" thick padding I understand.
I would say the Sandberg gig bag is good but not brilliant, I would say it only has 1/2" padding. Time will tell though, it is made from pretty hard-wearing material and so far it has fully protected my bass. For personal choice I would rather have something like the Warwick gig bag, the deluxe one's of which have 1" thick padding I understand.
I played quite a few of the J and P models (including some with a MM type pickup) when Low Down Sound was around and was a dealer.
The positives: Good price value, nice fit and finish, unique electronics (Delano pickups and Glock preamp), nice neck profile/playability
The negatives: Every one I played was on the 'too heavy for me' end of the continuum. Also, the Delano/Glock combination was very, very 'hi fi modern' sounding to me, so not much 'Fender' tone in the Fender inspired models (which could be a positive or a negative, depending on your tone goal).
In general, nice stuff, and I would put the 'quality' in between a Lakland Skyline and USA Model regarding fit and finish and component quality.
IMO.
The positives: Good price value, nice fit and finish, unique electronics (Delano pickups and Glock preamp), nice neck profile/playability
The negatives: Every one I played was on the 'too heavy for me' end of the continuum. Also, the Delano/Glock combination was very, very 'hi fi modern' sounding to me, so not much 'Fender' tone in the Fender inspired models (which could be a positive or a negative, depending on your tone goal).
In general, nice stuff, and I would put the 'quality' in between a Lakland Skyline and USA Model regarding fit and finish and component quality.
IMO.
I love the Sandberg basses, in fact, I don't think I've played one I didn't like!
The JM configuration on the California is probably the most popular option as it gives you the best of everything, but I prefer the additional meat of the MM setup I have on my Cocobolo Basic Ken Taylor.
The fretless models are great fun as well - especially now they are offering Ebony fingerboards as well...
Real nice people to do business (and party!) with too - Holger is such a gentleman and deserves all the praise he gets on here, and lets not forget Henrik - just don't get into drinking contests with these guys - you will suffer the next day!!!
The JM configuration on the California is probably the most popular option as it gives you the best of everything, but I prefer the additional meat of the MM setup I have on my Cocobolo Basic Ken Taylor.
The fretless models are great fun as well - especially now they are offering Ebony fingerboards as well...
Real nice people to do business (and party!) with too - Holger is such a gentleman and deserves all the praise he gets on here, and lets not forget Henrik - just don't get into drinking contests with these guys - you will suffer the next day!!!
I agree, they are a heavy bass. For me I favor this over a light weight bass, but that is just my own personal preference. It's psychological as well I suppose.
On your other point, was the Sandberg designed to sound like a Jazz bass? I doubt it. Just because it has the same shape as the Jazz Bass or Precision doesn't necessarily mean it was meant to be a an exact copy in the true sense. They are both classic bass shapes which were probably chosen because they are more widely/easier accepted than a producing a completely new body shape from a relatively unknown manufacturer.
Sandberg have merely complimented Fender in their brilliant design and then built and improved upon what Fender has done. As another TB'er commented recently, these are the sort of basses that Leo would have been producing now.
As I have already stated in an earlier posting as well, I didn't buy mine because it sounded like a Fender, I bought it because it sounded better than a Fender.
I agree, they are a heavy bass. For me I favor this over a light weight bass, but that is just my own personal preference. It's psychological as well I suppose.
On your other point, was the Sandberg designed to sound like a Jazz bass? I doubt it. Just because it has the same shape as the Jazz Bass or Precision doesn't necessarily mean it was meant to be a an exact copy in the true sense. They are both classic bass shapes which were probably chosen because they are more widely/easier accepted than a producing a completely new body shape from a relatively unknown manufacturer.
Sandberg have merely complimented Fender in their brilliant design and then built and improved upon what Fender has done. As another TB'er commented recently, these are the sort of basses that Leo would have been producing now.
As I have already stated in an earlier posting as well, I didn't buy mine because it sounded like a Fender, I bought it because it sounded better than a Fender.
+1 Hence my comment that the more modern tone will be a positive or a negative depending on the tone you are after. Since some models are close enough to J Bass looks that many would consider them in the 'Boutique J' category, I wanted to point out that there is very little 'J' in their tone to my ear. Again, not a positive or negative inherently, but something for a potential buyer to consider IMO.
I've played a few Sandbergs in the shops areound my bit.
They're amazing basses, just awkwardly placed into the market. They've not got a J-Bass sound, but thats subjective. They've got a great sound, just not a typical jazz one. Furthermore, they're not en par with boutique brands, but thats again just me. Are they boutique, or just an expensive, mass-produced German brand that in our countries is marketed as being boutique for being such? I don't know.
Great basses, i'd try one through a nice tight rig and savour the sound.
They're amazing basses, just awkwardly placed into the market. They've not got a J-Bass sound, but thats subjective. They've got a great sound, just not a typical jazz one. Furthermore, they're not en par with boutique brands, but thats again just me. Are they boutique, or just an expensive, mass-produced German brand that in our countries is marketed as being boutique for being such? I don't know.
Great basses, i'd try one through a nice tight rig and savour the sound.
i wouldn't say boutique, but damn fine well made basses. made in a flavour of 2 of the most well known and loved basses in history. and for weight, i have not even noticed the weight being heavy or light its just really comfortable to me.
as i said before most companies have a 'vintage' range which is usually inspired by fender, and inspired is what they are, its just a shame that most of the california series we get in the UK have the rock aimed pickups. i have a feeling that the vintage (haussel) ones will give people a more typical jazz tone.
I do agree that they have a more modern sound than most fenders/fenderesque but that could be down to the 90mm poles more than construction. i have to say though the P in passive mode is really nice, hits that P tone right on the head, yet still has that sandberg tone. im not sure if its the clarity of open strings via 0 fret or just the instrument as a whole.
also i've noticed a lot of criticism towards the J rather than the P, could it be that J players are just too used to 'that' sound that any change be good or bad is heresy?
as i said before most companies have a 'vintage' range which is usually inspired by fender, and inspired is what they are, its just a shame that most of the california series we get in the UK have the rock aimed pickups. i have a feeling that the vintage (haussel) ones will give people a more typical jazz tone.
I do agree that they have a more modern sound than most fenders/fenderesque but that could be down to the 90mm poles more than construction. i have to say though the P in passive mode is really nice, hits that P tone right on the head, yet still has that sandberg tone. im not sure if its the clarity of open strings via 0 fret or just the instrument as a whole.
also i've noticed a lot of criticism towards the J rather than the P, could it be that J players are just too used to 'that' sound that any change be good or bad is heresy?
I've got a Sandberg JM5 Supreme (with Delano pup's) that I'm very happy with. It's been my main allround bass for the last year and a half, and sounds and plays great. I use it for everything from seventies style progressive rock to bread'n'butter pop and rock covers.
Yes, it's a bit heavy, and though the craftmanship is excellent it may not be up to par with the top boutique builds. On the other hand the Sandberg only cost half or a third as much, and shure beats the snot out of any non-vintage stock Fender.
Enamoured by the JM5 I also got myself a used Sandberg PM4 (with in-house pup's), but even though the playability and craftmanship was equally good I never became friends with it soundwise. I was thinking about changing the pup's to Heuser, but before that GAS hit me hard and it got traded for (another) Stingray5 ;-)
Yes, it's a bit heavy, and though the craftmanship is excellent it may not be up to par with the top boutique builds. On the other hand the Sandberg only cost half or a third as much, and shure beats the snot out of any non-vintage stock Fender.
Enamoured by the JM5 I also got myself a used Sandberg PM4 (with in-house pup's), but even though the playability and craftmanship was equally good I never became friends with it soundwise. I was thinking about changing the pup's to Heuser, but before that GAS hit me hard and it got traded for (another) Stingray5 ;-)
