I am not sure anyone heard Devon basses before, but I can tell you that it is really great since I got mine just in a week and can't put it off once start playing.
I am living in Hong Kong and surely got no chance to know about Devon there. However, I did find some nice sold Devon basses in LowEnd and couple reviews here. So I started to think.... well maybe I shall try one then and bring some new thing in the town. I contacted Devon Smullen to know more about the basses. I was surprised that he replied me a extreme detail email to what I preferred on my request. I then discussed with him in detail and finally "deal".
Features:
Swamp Ash body with Burl Redwood Top (incredible top suggested by Devon)
3-pcs Maple neck with Ebony fretboard, matched headstock
Zero-fret design (a new feature to his J5 model)
Tilted angle head (new to his J5 too)
Bartolini Soapbar with Bartolini 3-band EQ preamp
Hipshot ultralite tuners and aluminium bridge
Wood knobs (it makes the bass looks more exotic)
What else.... oh yes... last but not the least, Wood Ramp. This option really takes a long discussion in the process. Since the ordinary ramp design is just stick on the body and he felt there is no room for adjusting the height. So he gave me a flavor that the ramp is adjustable for its height and even lower to bottom where it looks same height of the body wood. So if you don't have to remove the ramp when not using, just screw it down. What a magic from him!!
Sound:
I am surprised to its sound and can't realize how powerful the Bart combination is. Very fat and solid dual coil sound that other musicians in the band/bands said it is just so deep and BIG. Switching to single coil, punchy, clear, Jaco is delivered. Even on the high fret, it really speaks out. As you can see, there is 4 toggle switches. One is 3-way mid frequencies; other two are coil-tap for individual pickup, so you can get as many as combination of sounds you want. The last is bypass volume on/off switch which I personally requested. That saved me some battery $ and I could shut off my bass without alternating my volume knob. I can't say more on its sound, I mean it sounds as good as (or even better) to those exotic brands of basses.
Devon is really a nice luthier which cares every single request from his customers. I guess he has already did a great job on this bass and I am very happy with it. 4-month building process, over hundred email back and forth... I believe... also the price is really NICE too!! The bass weigh around 9lbs, a little heavier than we have had discussed but still good to me. Comes in with MONO M80 gigbag. What can you expect more!!!
For more information, please visit Introduction to Devon Guitars or simply email him. Hope you enjoy this beautiful bass and get you guys more on-stage review later on.
I am living in Hong Kong and surely got no chance to know about Devon there. However, I did find some nice sold Devon basses in LowEnd and couple reviews here. So I started to think.... well maybe I shall try one then and bring some new thing in the town. I contacted Devon Smullen to know more about the basses. I was surprised that he replied me a extreme detail email to what I preferred on my request. I then discussed with him in detail and finally "deal".
Features:
Swamp Ash body with Burl Redwood Top (incredible top suggested by Devon)
3-pcs Maple neck with Ebony fretboard, matched headstock
Zero-fret design (a new feature to his J5 model)
Tilted angle head (new to his J5 too)
Bartolini Soapbar with Bartolini 3-band EQ preamp
Hipshot ultralite tuners and aluminium bridge
Wood knobs (it makes the bass looks more exotic)
What else.... oh yes... last but not the least, Wood Ramp. This option really takes a long discussion in the process. Since the ordinary ramp design is just stick on the body and he felt there is no room for adjusting the height. So he gave me a flavor that the ramp is adjustable for its height and even lower to bottom where it looks same height of the body wood. So if you don't have to remove the ramp when not using, just screw it down. What a magic from him!!
Sound:
I am surprised to its sound and can't realize how powerful the Bart combination is. Very fat and solid dual coil sound that other musicians in the band/bands said it is just so deep and BIG. Switching to single coil, punchy, clear, Jaco is delivered. Even on the high fret, it really speaks out. As you can see, there is 4 toggle switches. One is 3-way mid frequencies; other two are coil-tap for individual pickup, so you can get as many as combination of sounds you want. The last is bypass volume on/off switch which I personally requested. That saved me some battery $ and I could shut off my bass without alternating my volume knob. I can't say more on its sound, I mean it sounds as good as (or even better) to those exotic brands of basses.
Devon is really a nice luthier which cares every single request from his customers. I guess he has already did a great job on this bass and I am very happy with it. 4-month building process, over hundred email back and forth... I believe... also the price is really NICE too!! The bass weigh around 9lbs, a little heavier than we have had discussed but still good to me. Comes in with MONO M80 gigbag. What can you expect more!!!
For more information, please visit Introduction to Devon Guitars or simply email him. Hope you enjoy this beautiful bass and get you guys more on-stage review later on.
