Fender Katana Bass is Back!

[CowHead]

As a signature model for Japanese Bass player Hama Okamoto from Okamoto's.
It seems like that it is sold only for Japan? Street price is 143,550 Yen = $1305.

Invalid Link Removed

Watch the Bass in action.
Okamoto's - Young Japanese

 

[jd56hawk]

And people say Fender never does anything new!

 

[Flaked Beans]

Oh really?
/edit/what a lovely bass/edit]

 

[Hot Rats]

And people say Fender never does anything new!

The pick guard is new.

 

[A9X]

And people say Fender never does anything new!

And overpriced P bass, just pointy. How avant-garde.

 

[cheapbasslovin]

I don't hate it, but it looks like a balance nightmare.

 

[arbiterusa]

I don't hate it, but it looks like a balance nightmare.

It is. I worked for one of the few places in the states that had these back in 1985. You gotta be really determined to play one for even one song. Nightmare standing up, can't be played sitting down. We ended up selling the three guitars and one bass all at cost as I recall.

The originals did NOT have pickguards.

 

[sleddogn]

the pink one!

 

[Hounddog409]

I don't hate it, but it looks like a balance nightmare.

Was just gonna reply the same.

Looks cool, looks horrible to play. Strap button on back near neck pocket? Balance will be bad and bass will want to tip away from your body.

 

[cheapbasslovin]

Was just gonna reply the same.

Looks cool, looks horrible to play. Strap button on back near neck pocket? Balance will be bad and bass will want to tip away from your body.

In the video he rests his right elbow on the rear horn while plucking. I really can't see any other way to play it.

 

[Hounddog409]

In the video he rests his right elbow on the rear horn while plucking. I really can't see any other way to play it.

Well, my right arm doesn't touch any part of the bass when I pluck. Thumb on pickup. Arm off body.

I am willing to guess arm on body to keep it from tilting away.

Looks cool though.

 

[callofcthulhu]

As a signature model for Japanese Bass player Hama Okamoto from Okamoto's.
It seems like that it is sold only for Japan? Street price is 143,550 Yen = $1305.

Invalid Link Removed

View attachment 4334944

Watch the Bass in action.
Okamoto's - Young Japanese

Kind of a cool song

 

[jd56hawk]

Unfinished headstock, weird pickguard, bridge cover...only thing missing is an Antigua or Sunburst finish to make it this year's answer to a question no one was asking.

 

[Real Soon]

Mount a 1lb weight near the tail to make it balance somewhat decently (and/or go Ultralite on the tuners) and you might have a good player. I wouldn't mind the tuners being placed slightly farther out, either.

I also wouldn't mind it coming standard with a detachable mount on the lower horn to create a leg-friendly bout.

But hey, people play Rickenbackers, so we know comfort is secondary to a lot of musicians

 

[Gothic]

Headstock's ghastly. I dig the body but not with that pickguard and bridge cover.

 

[A9X]

looks horrible to play. Strap button on back near neck pocket? Balance will be bad and bass will want to tip away from your body.

Needs a strap pin extension a la the Steinberger Spirits and other Woodbergers, or the NS Stick (pictured). About $10 if you're moderately handy.

 

[Pings Bass]

Cool band, cool bass. Not my style, but I dig it.

 

[Aidenn7]

the whole bass design needs inverted end pin relocated and it'd cooler.. looks easy to make all straight edges

 

[Lenny JG]

The originals did NOT have pickguards.

The pickguard is what keeps the new model balanced

 

[Evilheim]

As a signature model for Japanese Bass player Hama Okamoto from Okamoto's.
It seems like that it is sold only for Japan? Street price is 143,550 Yen = $1305.

Invalid Link Removed

View attachment 4334944

Watch the Bass in action.
Okamoto's - Young Japanese

Not my personal taste but I have to admit that it looks really cool. Another thing have to say is that almost 99% of japanese's artist series guitars and basses are just made for the local japanese market (there are tons of cool ESP japanese artist series sold just in Japan, fo example), I think just because most of the Japanese music is heard mainly just in Japan, while even the biggest bands still mainly unknown outside, like X-Japan, Buck-Tick or even A Man With A Mission (it's generally said that Japanese musical industry is kind of a "parallel world" compared to western musical industry, kind of a local market but with a huge musical industry's infrastructure). I can tell more or less just because I'm those kinds of "gaijin bastards" that hear tons of Japanese bands.