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Cort!

E

Elemeninki

Apr 25, 2008
123
0
Canterbury, England
#1
Well, to me they seem to be a much unloved company. Not hated, but never really recognised.

I've tried two 4-string curbows in two different shops and ABSOLUTELY loved them, apart from the fact that playing with a curbow sitting down is comparable to playing standing up without strap.

One of the guys in one of the shops, has said that the also the Artisan is very nice. They had a C5 ( maybe the 4-string, I don't know but definitely a C range) in for just two days before it was sold. He said he tried it and it was very nice, and would go for one of them or a B5 any day.

I'm just wondering just what 5 string curbows are like, and what the Artisan range is like as these seem to be the only basses taking my fancy at the moment. If anyone has anything to say about them, then say it! ( Prices in £, value for money, tone, ease of playing etc.)

Thanks in advance!
 
#2
I played 2 Curbow 5s and a Curbow 4 before settling on my GB94. The Curbows basically played the same, but I didn't like the feel, or balance. The GB94, on the other hand, was exquisite. Great deal for the money.

I've only played one Artisan, and it was very very brief, so I can't really help you on that. Sorry.

All in all, the higher up you go in the Cort range, it seems like the value for the money increases (which doesn't make much sense, but that's my opinion).

Cheers
 
#4
If you'd like to know how I feel about them just check my signature,then look at my profile and see what basses I used to play. I don't think there is a better value for the money ANYWHERE!

My current bass has been just rock solid for me even though I'm replacing the preamp with a Aggie OBP-3. This was totally elective I'm just trying something diffrent. This bass holds a setup well and the fit and finish is pretty much top notch-it's not a Fodera but then again I paid about a tenth of what a Fodera costs.
And if you do run into a problem then you don't feel as bad as running into a problem on a $3k bass.
 
#7
Yes, Cort definitely goes unrecognized - at least by the general public. A lot of big name bass manufacturer's recognize them, though, as quite a few have contracted to have Cort build mid-range basses for them.

I have a Cort Curbow 5. As already mentioned, it's awkward to play sitting down. I really like the bass; it's so light it's one of the most comfortable basses I have ever worn.
 
#8
I have a great fretless Cort Steinberger copy that was defretted un-professionally (Doesn't mean it was bad though, that's how Jaco did it!). It was given to me by one of my dad's friends, who was at the time, selling his unwanted stuff. So basically I have this most likely, a one-of-a-kind bass! :D
 
#9
ha, I love Cort. People look at me funny when I ask if they can order Cort.. the stores still think they're just a p.o.s. manufacturer - "here, why don't you try this ibanez?" - "I would sir but Ibanez decided to taper all their necks too much in the last 5-10 years so I don't like them anymore. Besides, most of them are 38 mm at the nut which is too small for anyone with big hands to play...."

Question - in particular for any owners of the Cort Artisan C4H... what do you think of it? What basses would you compare it's fretboard style to? And neck shape?

Are the pickups a generic brand or was I right in thinking they were seymour duncan for some reason?

Am I totally mistaken or are they passive pickups with an active mixer and a toggle switch on the bass to switch the mixer on and off?

On paper the C4H seems to be the only bass I'm interested in right now but unfortunately I live in Canada and they're not generally shipped to north america so it'll cost me $100 extra to get a store to bring in a C4H - and I'd have to fork that out without ever having tried one.

I definitely need a new bass though... my Ibanez TR series is aging badly.

Thanks for any info.
 
#11
Cort C4H, its a medium weight, to me anyway, but my main bass is about 15 pounds, so weight is not an issue, or very noticable to me.

The fretboard, I really don't know how to answer that, its flatter than a Fender, IIRC. 24 frets btw, and good access to the high notes.

Neck is a flattened D shape, smaller than a P-Bass, mabye a little bigger than a Jazz, very comfortable, its raw Wenge, really, really sweet feeling.

Pickups, are passive Mighty Mites, nice sounding, got plenty of growl, high output(don't set them very close to the strings), I'm really happy with them.

Electronics, Master Volume, with a push/pull for active/passive operation, thats actually pretty handy for when the battry dies. Volume with both pickups on, is cut when running passive. Blend, Bass, Treble, and the toggle switch is a Mids booster(Or "slap switch"). They work fine, and seem to be good quality.

The bridge is a fastloader, which is handy.

This is all "In My Experience" etc. But I really do like mine, very comfy, and great sounding bass, really wort the asking price.
 
#12
Thanks Darkstrike

I wish I could get a hold of a 15 pound bass I really like :) but I'm not into the p bass and jazz masters's or the heavy warwick's... so my choices are limited. But if it's heavier than mine (7.5 lbs) that's at least a step in the right direction.

"The fretboard, I really don't know how to answer that, its flatter than a Fender, IIRC."
Haha, silly question - so much personal preference involved here.

"24 frets btw, and good access to the high notes."
24 is essential :) Good access to high notes? that's what I like to hear.

"Neck is a flattened D shape,"
Hmmm, flattenedd D? or is that what they call it "modern C shape" instead of just C shape on the website?
Invalid Link Removed

"smaller than a P-Bass, mabye a little bigger than a Jazz,
very comfortable, its raw Wenge, really, really sweet feeling."

Nice. Do the paint and finish cover the back of the neck too? What's the neck finish like? (unless it's the painted black satin - then I already know and love the feel)

First gig with my current band we had to play outdoors in 38+ degree celcius.... one minute your hands are drenched and sliding all over the fretboard, the next a breeze cools them off and they're sticking to the strings and to the back of the neck... ever since I've wanted a painted neck with satin finish on my guitar neck :)

"Pickups, are passive Mighty Mites, nice sounding, got plenty of growl, high output(don't set them very close to the strings), I'm really happy with them."

Cool. If I may ask... How clear are they when you're playing power chords and triads? (finger picking, holding 1-2 notes at a time) - can you still distinguish the individual notes or does it get kind of mushed up by that point?

"Electronics, Master Volume, with a push/pull for active/passive operation, thats actually pretty handy for when the battry dies. Volume with both pickups on, is cut when running passive. Blend, Bass, Treble, and the toggle switch is a Mids booster(Or "slap switch"). They work fine, and seem to be good quality."

I'm not fond of excessive eq's on the bass with all the other eq's I have to deal with already but that active/passive switch is awesome.

"The bridge is a fastloader, which is handy."

...... I'm not even sure what that means :)
Is that tremolo stuff?

"This is all "In My Experience" etc. But I really do like mine, very comfy, and great sounding bass, really wort the asking price."

Awesome, that's kind of what I came here to find out.

thanks man,
later
 
#13
I'm gusseing, about 9, mabue 10 pounds, for the weight.

As for the neck profile, I'm not 100% with all the different terms, the shape is like a standard curve thats been flattend down for comfort. Like a P-bass, with the roundness removed.

The back of the neck has no finish whatsoever, Wenge, like Rosewood dosn't ned to be sealed in finish. This gives it a natural, silky smooth feel.

The pickups are fairly clear, the bridge is great, neck is ok, I guess this has alot to do with the setup too. I play powerchords etc. fairly often, along with melodic strumming, and have had no problems with them yet.

A fastloader just means, instead of small holes at the back of the bridge, there is slots, so strings pop on and off really quickly, there no pulling the string through, you just hook the end on.
 
#14
sweet, short of going custom this is probably the bass I'll end up with.

"The back of the neck has no finish whatsoever, Wenge, like Rosewood dosn't ned to be sealed in finish. This gives it a natural, silky smooth feel."

Ah, I'm used to Maple with a glossy finish. Sticky when wet.

"The pickups are fairly clear, the bridge is great, neck is ok, I guess this has alot to do with the setup too. I play powerchords etc. fairly often, along with melodic strumming, and have had no problems with them yet."

Interesting... dangit - wish I could hear it for myself :)

"A fastloader just means, instead of small holes at the back of the bridge, there is slots, so strings pop on and off really quickly, there no pulling the string through, you just hook the end on."

Ah... I'm sure I'll like that when I'm swapping strings.

Again, thanks for the info.
Now to find out if/when I'll be the proud new owner of one anytime in the near future.
 

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