ESP LTD B-205 (SM)

[JacoNOT]

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed] If you purchased on-site / in-person, were you able choose a spalted maple grain that you really like? I'm not crazy about mine (purchased online), but lucky for me, I don't see it while playing. It's perfectly fine, but I like my B-205sm veneer better.

Hey, we all know you want to post a picture, so have a go!

I think you have more economical fretless-5 options there in the UK than we have here. But then I'm not a good judge of that because I forced myself to stop looking(!) once I purchased mine. No idea what comparable instruments might be available in the U.S. now...

Prior to my purchase I studied the Cort you mention. I own a Cort electric guitar that's GREAT (LesPaul-ish) and cost only about $160 several years ago. The Cort 5-string bass' string spacing at the saddle seemed very narrow/close. It's been a while, so I'm not sure anymore, but I think the Cort was 16mm, the LTD was/is 17mm and Fender was a full 19mm. The LTD spacing, in the middle, feels just right to me..

I don't worry too much about the preamp/EQ. I pass signal through compression, then amp tone controls or virtual effects for recording. By then, nobody has any idea what the unfiltered bass output sounded like. In two weeks you'll have figured out a dozen sounds that work well for you.

Roundwounds: I would love to develop some "JacoMojo" but that begs for roundwound strings. In the course of my pre-purchase research I inspected a thoroughly chewed fretless fingerboard at a local pawnshop. Not pretty and it made me very aware (too aware?) of how soft rosewood is. So when my fretless B-205sm arrived I FORCED myself to remove the stock roundwound SIT strings without playing a single note (crying the whole time). Even so, I found faint worm trails on the board, probably from minimal test playing done during factory setup. I'm keeping tapewounds on mine and modifying tone by way of effects and "pure genius" (ha). One day I'll get a more expensive fretless 5 with an ebony board (or some quasi-indestructible synthetic) and then I'll 'go roundwound on it', or maybe mount my GHS Pressure Wounds. I bought a set but am too chicken to mount them...maybe they'll go on my fretted B-205sm one day.

 

[MethodsofDance]

Here we go hehe. I had to order it in as it was in their warehouse, then go pick it up. The spalting effect is perhaps not as dramatic as I had hoped, but the overall wood grain is nice enough for me not to care too much. I like that subtle flame effect too. Its a nice looking piece of kit.

From what I know the Cort bass is basically their version of an Ibanez SR500/505, which is one of the best basses (for me) that I've ever played. Love the neck on that thing. I would have had to order the B5FL from france as I could find nowhere at all in my country that had one. Plenty of B4s, but it had to be a 5er this time...

I wonder if you could advise me on the truss rod? I hear its a "dual action" truss rod though I see no evidence to support this. In my mind a dual action rod is one that is adjusted at the heel of the neck aswell as the nut. Am I correct there? The out of the box setup was just fine, though I too had to force myself (and not quite succeed I might add) to not play it until the flats I ordered showed up. Even then, I too still have little snail trails that are barely noticeable that were already on there before I touched it. Part and parcel I guess. I feel the pickups are a little low perhaps too, but some genius has practically sheared one of the screws on the neck PUP so I can't raise it properly. Output seems a little bit weak. Then again I may be overcompensating for my SRX500 which is LOUD, much louder than this.

Since I put the Rotos on, the action and setup has changed quite a bit. There was a subtle but noticeable forward curve to the neck after the flats went on. I guess this is to do with the tension, though my knowledge of setup is quite limited. I've made a couple of careful efforts at adjusting the rod to straighten the neck out, and fiddled with the saddles a bit, but I still feel that the action is a bit high. String tension may be uneven too. I'm not even fully sure of the best way to set up a fretless to be honest (I want as much "mwwah" and low action as I can get on these RS77s). I'm tempted to take it in to a shop as I don't want to over-do it myself...

Its also worth noting that this is the first Ash bodied bass I've ever owned or played, so that may be a factor in my still getting used to the sound of it.

 

[JacoNOT]

In order of your remarks:

Yeah, I see by your photo that there's not a lot of "spalting" (the interesting black lines) in that veneer, and though it might just be a photographic illusion, that veneer doesn't look book-matched (left & right mirror images that meet at the mid line of the body). I'm not a big fan of the spalting so a lack of it doesn't bother me, and frankly, I'd prefer to have these basses with no maple veneer on them. I really like the backs of my B205sm basses, and would prefer just a solid honey-colored ash body. And I don't like the brown line where the face veneer meets the ash body, either. It gives the impression of a ragged, narrow binding.

Cort is an OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) for some respected instrument brand names. Buying the Cort version can save you a lot of money, but I think the lower-end Cort models typically skimp on the pickups and other electronics components. Even so, buying Cort can be a wise decision.


Double-acting truss rod: Invalid Link Removed that describes in very simple terms what it is and how to adjust it. Basically it just means the rod can force the neck to bend in two directions. I have "double-acting" truss rods in my instruments but I try not to think about the double-acting aspect (duh) because it doesn't matter unless the rod has been seriously maladjusted, OR if the neck happens to bow backward, which is unusual.

I do my own setups and this is how I deal with truss rods: The rod runs the length of the neck. It's located inside the neck, just below the back surface of the neck, running just beneath where your thumb engages the neck. To keep things simple, I imagine the truss rod as just a long mechanical bolt threaded along its entire length (that's not accurate, but it's a simple concept to grasp).

Due to string tension and other factors, necks typically bow forward,. To use the human body as an analogy, the truss rod is the spine; if you slouch/slump forward, straighten/shorten your spine to pull the front of your torso up and straighten it. The front of your torso is like the neck's fretboard. UDIG?

I find that I need a little bit of forward bow (neck relief) in all my instruments. In a nutshell: The strings vibrate, and the arc of that vibration is largest at the midpoint of the string length. If the fretboard/fingerboard is dead flat, that vibrating string will rattle against the fretboard at the center of the string's length - so you must bow the neck a little to make room for the vibration arc of the string.

Turn the truss rod only 1/8 of a turn and let it sit for 15 minutes, then play it. If it needs more adjustment, follow that procedure until you get the result you want.

Turn clockwise to tighten the rod, which shortens the rod and reduces the amount of forward bow in the neck.
Turn the rod counter-clockwise to loosen/lengthen the rod and thereby allow the neck's forward bow to increase.

Go to YouTube and search "bass setup". You'll need a capo and a set of feeler gauges to do it correctly.


FREE ADVICE (worth what you paid): I'd RETURN that particular bass. A buggered/inoperable pickup adjustment screw on a factory-new bass is a quality control issue and warrants a return - with dealer-paid return delivery. You voice a number of dissatisfactions with this particular instrument, and I'm sorry to say it, but that face veneer is particularly unspectacular. I suggest you think very carefully about whether Fate has done you a favor in providing grounds for a painless return of the instrument. Unless you are absolutely in love with that bass, I would play it for an hour and then decide whether or not to remount the original strings, pack it up and make the phone call to Anderton's. Go with your gut instinct.

As for the ash body, I find it heavy but I kinda like that. My old 1970s Fender Precision Bass had an ash body, and it was GREAT. So no worries about ash tone (sez I).

Let us know what you decide.

 

[MethodsofDance]

Thanks for the diagram! Hmmm, as for the finish, it may be the picture. I can't see anything glaringly wrong with it up close.

You know, you make some good points with your last paragraph. Perhaps I rushed into this purchase. The store is only a half hour train ride away from me, so returning it wouldn't be a huge deal. I would have to say I don't really dislike it in any way, though I am not head over heels with it. I've already lost one of the hex wrenches that came in the box, and I guess removing the plastic pickup covers is no big deal? I have a fretless Hohner Jazz that needs to go also. That, plus returning the LTD, would put me just about on budget for the Ibanez Portamento. That I really AM in love with.

Looks like I have some thinking to do.

 

[SoMDDan]

I usually shop for guitars in the price range of this model. I have used it for practice at home, trying to break it in. The spalted maple finish is beautiful. This bass seems like it is not a fast playing bass, but has some bump and grind to it.

 

[birdpond]

I own an LTD B-204SM. I'm a beginner and a newb, but I really love it so far. It was definitely the standout out of all the ones I tried in that price range.

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Yours is a beauty! I love mine, too - I just pulled the trigger on it yesterday, after trying it out in the used-gear store against others for a couple weeks.

Oh, someone here said the LTD is heavy? Not compared to my 5-string MM Stingray! Sweet Jesus that thing (as much as I love it) will bust my back or cause a hernia one of these days, just lifting it off the stand.

I do wonder why the only demo/review I have been able to find on-line is Max Proud, who was very 'eh' in his assessment? But, no matter. I am not sorry I brought this one home. So far, at least, a day later...(Will update if that changes!)

 

[birdpond]

Well, I was trying mine out to UFOrb (on the TV soundbar w/subwoofer) and - left the amp settings all in the middle as usual. But cranked up the LTD. Uhm - I blew the ampeg BA-108. Dang - hoping it can be repaired
!

Ooooops.



(Pls be kind and don't laugh so loud I can hear you, I am just a newbie...)

 

[bassbenj]

As I indicated in my previous post I own a B-206SM and it looks great and has the nicest feeling neck I ever played (except for maybe a Ric). Only two downsides: One is the weight which is pretty heavy and the other is the pickups which while not especially bad have a kind of standard tone and nothing spectacular which can explain the Max Proud "meh" review.. They make a model which is nearly exactly the same only with a mahogany rather than ASH body that is much lighter. GC got one in so I had a chance to upgrade but it was $200 more USED than I paid for mine NEW! I decided too much money for too little return. I have other 6 string basses I play more because I own a few really decent 6 string basses, but If the B-206SM were fretless I'm sure it would get a LOT more play. Maybe one day I'll do a conversion or find a fretless one and trade up.

 

[Portamenti]

I just scored one of the Fretless 205s off of kijiji up here in Onterrible. The seller bought it to try and dust off chops from his teen years but ‘it didn’t take’.

Right now there are some heinous feeling roundwounds on there (seller has since informed me there were the string he adopted the bass with), but I have some Legends that are out for delivery now.

The nut has been (roughly) cut down so the strings are actually on the fretboard at the nut... but everything sounds good through the amp.

I’m super stoked to get this set up with some flats. And maybe to run a little sandpaper/steel wool to reduce the roundwound scars a little.

For $300 CAD, I don’t know how I could have done better!

 

[ElectricBass72]

Here's my B205 SM-FL fretless with white gold tapewound strings. Sounds great with rounds too. Bought it new from AMS in 2019.

 

[The Curve]

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.