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ESP LTD B-205 (SM)

#61
MethodsofDance, there's WIDE variation in the spalted maple grain. No telling what you might end up with unless you buy from a local shop:
JACink said:
My better half sent me a photo of my Christmas present that arrived this morning!! Unfortunately I have to wait until Christmas to be able to play it, and the photo does nothing to alliviate my gas, however... :bassist:
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Man, that's one of the nicest examples of spalted maple I've seen on a B-205SM. My fretted version shows almost no grain and is nearly the same honey color as the swamp ash back (which I like). On the other hand, my fretless shows a lot of grain, but the shapes are kinda small and close together, so the overall impression is a bit darker and 'more brown' compared to the honey-toned fretted. No worries, though. It's wood, it's natural, so I accept what I get (kinda like the way you love your kids...:D).

If your better half is as beautiful as your new bass is...then YEAH, I'll bet you can't wait to get home! :hyper:
Happy Thanksgiving and MERRY CHRISTMAS!
 
#63
JacoNOT said:
GREAT. I think you'll be well pleased, assuming LTD production standards and specs remain equal to what they were when I purchased mine.

I LOVE my fretless B-205SM-FL and can't believe it cost just $350. Just remember that the fretboard is rosewood and the bass comes fitted with roundwound strings. Sure, they'll help you "getcho' Jaco on" but they're gonna eat that board. Consider flatwounds, or semi-flats ala GHS Pressure Wound, or if you're goofy like me, try a set of D'Addario Black Nylon Tape Wound (ETB92-5). They feel GREAT to me, right-hand and left-hand - smooth and just the right amount of tension (the B is FAT at .135", so you'll have to file the sides of that nut slot, but only slightly). And they look kuul, too.

And since you took my advice on buying the fretless B-205SM-FL, let me run this past you, as well. Learning about GHS Pressure Wound strings was a major factor in my finally buying the fretless. They're very versatile--between rounds and flats--and should minimize fretboard wear. I bought a set from Jason at BassStringsOnline.com, but haven't mounted them because a) I'm still overly cautious about fretboard wear, and b) I'm just enjoying those nylon tape wounds so much. :bassist:

WATCH THIS VIDEO and see if 'Uncle Dave' doesn't sell you a set of GHS Pressure Wounds for your new tool. I'll bet he will. :D

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Or in your case, maybe I should say Merry Christmas. :D
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Yeah, we celebrated Thanksgiving up here in the cold north last month, eh? Happy Thanksgiving to you. I took your advice and ordered the D'Addarios. I played them years ago, and from what I remember give more of a double bass sound, which I like. Not near as much as I like not eating up the fretboard, though!
 
#64
bachlover said:
Yeah, we celebrated Thanksgiving up here in the cold north last month, eh? Happy Thanksgiving to you. I took your advice and ordered the D'Addarios. I played them years ago, and from what I remember give more of a double bass sound, which I like. Not near as much as I like not eating up the fretboard, though!
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Thanks. I didn't notice how you're in Canada, eh? I'm located near the center of the continental U.S. and we're freezing our butts off here. Considering your location, maybe you'll just have to sit and stare at that new bass until Spring when your fingers thaw out... :D

So you're getting the tapewounds, too. I'm still pretty bass-noobish, so I hope I'm not steering you in the wrong direction.

I'll eventually mount my GHS Pressure Wounds on my fretted bass because I don't want to risk damaging the fretless wood. But apparently the tapewounds almost never wear out so I don't know when I'll actually make the switch. At some point I'll set the fretted tapewounds aside while I experiment with the GHS. That's another reason I like having a 'matched pair'. The string lengths are exactly the same from one instrument to the other, so experimenting requires fewer string sets.
 
#65
Hi,
I just bought an ESP LTD B-205 SM today!
Actually I was searching for info on it, that's how I came across this forum, so I registered.
So far I setted it up, adjusted everything ( I bought it used for 200 GBP, was a bit out of the optimums) and tried to get out good sounds from it...
So far I am not fully satisfied with the sound. It has good sound definition, fair punch, lows are ok, but I miss harmonics, ans brightness, and output. Even though it is active, with two humbackers, the output is less than my old Peavey International Series 5 string bass. Actually the Peavey has much richer, thiker sound, (but less lows and more mushy sound... still perfect for rock and blues). The ESP is more for funk I guess.
I am thinking on replacing the pickups in the ESP with my Peavey's pickups, maybe I get the marridge of both sounds :)
(If anyone is interested, I can easily record and upload good quality sound samples.)
 
#66
Caspian777 said:
I am thinking on replacing the pickups in the ESP with my Peavey's pickups, maybe I get the marridge of both sounds :) (If anyone is interested, I can easily record and upload good quality sound samples.)
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Please DO upload. :bassist:

I'd like to hear the Peavey as it is now, and the LTD as it is now. And then I'd like to hear the LTD with the Peavey pickups installed.

But first, your STRINGS are a big factor and can cause confusion. What type strings are on the Peavey? What type strings are on the used LTD, and how old are they?

If you don't have the same strings on both basses, you're comparing "apples and oranges". :D
Maybe a new set of round wound strings for the LTD is all you need...
 
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#68
Hi guys, here it is:

Showing the sound of this bass.



This is with the original ESP pickups and with a used unknown string.
I replaced the pickups with the Peavey ones, and will upload sound videos about that later. Sounds much better than this link.

(The hiss in the video sound is produced by the Magix video editor I used. It is not in the guitar and not in the sound recorded by Audition 3.0)
 
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#69
Caspian777 said:
Hi guys, here it is:

Showing the sound of this bass.



This is with the original ESP pickups and with a used unknown string.
I replaced the pickups with the Peavey ones, and will upload sound videos about that later. Sounds much better than this link.

(The hiss in the video sound is produced by the Magix video editor I used. It is not in the guitar and not in the sound recorded by Audition 3.0)
Click to expand...



I'd still love to hear the bass with the peavey pickups installed!

I own a b-206 FM that I got used a couple weeks ago.... after major setup work it's now an excellent instrument.

The preamp does eat batteries though so I might replace it with a bartolini ntbt I have kicking around (sadly only a 2 band though). But I really like the sound of the bass already, and I own some pretty NICE basses to compare it with (Ernie Ball USA, Carvin USA, formerly an Alembic Series 1 (USA) and ibanez musician (Japan))...

cheers
Don
 
#72
Haven't compared the two but I have to say I'm very pleased with my LTD fretless..

ltd.jpg
 
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#74
BUMP

I've got a couple questions that hopefully owners of this bass (fretless version) can answer for me.

* Is the scale 34 or 35? I've seen conflicting statements online.

* Is it true that regular long scale bass strings won't fit a string-through body? Can you not just trim them a bit less than you would normally? I also saw a review that stated that it can be strung "normally" at the bridge also. is this true?

* Does the inlay with "B-205" written on it cause problems when sliding?

I'm still curious about one of these as a potential next fretless 5-string (up against a Cort B5FL or the Ibanez Portamento) but I haven't been able to find a single sound demo of the fretless online. I know the fretted version sounds good though.
 
#75
JoZac21 said:
Yesterday I put an initial payment down on an LTD B-205SM... to be quite honest with you, I always had negative preconceived notions concerning ESP/LTD instruments, being that they're primarily marketed to "metal musicians", which, although I do appreciate good metal, I'm certainly not.

I was looking for a back up bass for my Sadowsky, as I play in a Soul-Rock group and we gig and rehearse a lot, sometimes in not the greatest neighborhoods at not the greatest hours.

Strangely enough, Larry Hartke was the one who recommended I check one out... and I was blown away. If I hadn't have seen the price tag, I would have estimated, after playing it a bit, that the instrument was worth at least twice what they were charging.

So here's my question... I can't seem to find many reviews or information from people whom have owned the instrument. Have any of you had some long term gigging experience with LTD B-20x instruments? I feel like with this bass I was really looking for the holy grail combination of inexpencive but seriously high quility... did I actually find it?

Any input on these basses would be appreciated.

Thanks a bunch.
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Everything you said about being surprised at how nice and the level of quality of the bass is the reason why I love them so much. I own two ESP LTD basses and they'll go with me to my grave......seriously.

I don't have the one you have but they're all good, and you shouldn't have any issues with it. The two that I have are rock solid, the necks never move, and they stay in tune forever.

I love them so much that I'm looking at two more but it's highly unlikely that I'll get them because the two LTD's that I have just do everything.

I keep asking myself and others where this so-called negativity for these instruments ever came from because to your point - you get twice or three times the bass you think your getting for the price you pay, and they sound amazing.

Any bass that ESP sells in the $500.00 to $700.00 range is equivalent to anybody else's $1,500 dollar bass. (in my humble opinion)

Metal only my ass...........and I think the company needs to do a better job at dismaying this urban legend because it's simply not true.

Glad you joined the ESP family, good luck with your bass.
 
#76
MethodsofDance said:
BUMP
* Is the scale 34 or 35? I've seen conflicting statements online.
Click to expand...
34" scale

MethodsofDance said:
* Is it true that regular long scale bass strings won't fit a string-through body? Can you not just trim them a bit less than you would normally? I also saw a review that stated that it can be strung "normally" at the bridge also. is this true?
Click to expand...
I'm not able to string it through-body with standard long-scale strings. Mine are strung through the holes in the back of the bridge. It's been strung for a long time now, so I don't remember exactly what the problem was. I think there wasn't enough string to wrap the A-string tuning post sufficiently (it's in the center of the headstock, furthest from the nut).

MethodsofDance said:
* Does the inlay with "B-205" written on it cause problems when sliding?
Click to expand...
No.

MethodsofDance said:
I'm still curious about one of these as a potential next fretless 5-string (up against a Cort B5FL or the Ibanez Portamento) but I haven't been able to find a single sound demo of the fretless online. I know the fretted version sounds good though.
Click to expand...
It depends so much on your choice of strings, amp, effects, fingernail length, your playing technique, what you had for lunch, the phase of the moon, etc. It's a VERY GOOD fretless bass with good passive pickups and good active 3-band EQ. At this price point, nothing else compares. Buy it from a source that offers a return policy (local is best, but Zzounds.com has it in stock now with a 30-day return).

Caveat (maybe): Round-wound strings will eat that nice rosewood fingerboard. I use black tapewound strings on mine, D'Addario ETB92-5. I think any metal string will wear that fingerboard. So far, I like what I hear from the tapewounds and have sustained no damage to the fingerboard.
 
#77
Well I now own this fretless 5er and I'm overall quite pleased with it. There's a dead spot on the G string between frets 5-7 I wasn't expecting but it doesn't cause much trouble. I've got Rotosound Jazz Flats on it. I'm not the biggest fan of the pre-amp to be honest. May replace it with a Bartolini 3-band or something. It's not BAD by any means. It looks and plays very good. For now, she'll do!
 
#78
MethodsofDance said:
Well I now own this fretless 5er [...] There's a dead spot on the G string between frets 5-7 I wasn't expecting but it doesn't cause much trouble. [...] I'm not the biggest fan of the pre-amp [...] May replace it with a Bartolini 3-band [...] It's not BAD. [...] It looks and plays very good. For now, she'll do!
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Good for you, MoD. A review of the posts in this thread suggests you've been mulling this decision over for a long time. That's my natural approach, as well. I live with a guitar or bass for at least a decade, have no spare cash and own just a few instruments. So these are important decisions.

Being only "a guitarist who now loves bass" I'm not aware of dead spots because I always assume any inability to achieve "mwah" is due to shortcomings in my bass technique (haha). I'm certainly not suggesting that's the case for you and your playing - I'm just making excuses for any inaccuracies in my prior advice to you.

BTW, it's possible to purchase online a passive EQ circuit board to replace the LTD active EQ, if that's of any interest to you.

It sounds like you're comfortable with your purchase, so you don't need further convincing or moral support. Just keep in mind that spending more time with that bass may reveal subtle nuances in the EQ and the fingerboard that increase your satisfaction in those areas.

Mwah(hahahaha)
 
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#79
Follow-up question for MethodsofDance ==
As I understand it, you're in the UK. If you don't mind saying, I'd like to know:
1) Did you purchase new or used?
2) From what source did you buy? What shop stocks this model?
3) What did you pay for it?

FWIW, only a few online dealers in the US stock the fretless 5-string, and the price is up 25% since I purchased mine.
 
#80
No problem answering that. I'm in the UK and paid around £450 from a place called Andertons. Most big music stores have this model available here, it's prob the most common fretless 5 I've seen in the UK.

Correct, I've been wanting one of these for a few years! Then I saw the Ibby SRF705 and my jaw hit the floor. That's a lil more expensive though. I was looking at all kinds of 5 string fretless basses from Rockbass and the like. The Cort B5FL very nearly made the grade. I do just love the Bartolini MK1s, I know they aren't for everyone but that's a pickup system that I know works for me. FWIW I prefer the active pre-amp, especially when I'm dealing with flats. Definitely glad I went with this over the passive Rockbass Streamer FL as I wasn't impressed with the sound of it. I was much more impressed with the Corvette with active J-style pickups but it seems impossible to find. You're right that I will probably get more accustomed to the onboard electronics with time. I did think they sounded totally fine with the stock roundwounds, but roundwounds and rosewood = a no for me even if I do love the sound. Could always change the board!
 

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