I played perfection tonight.

[WinstonNilesRum]

And here it is:

Its a 1960's Maton Ibis which belongs to my Guitarist's Grandfather. I've been wanting to play this Bass ever since I saw it in pieces in my Guitarist's closet three years ago, apparently he broke it when he was about ten years old
Anyway, it was finally fixed yesterday and he brought it to practise this evening.

My God! It sounds like a f***in' BARFIGHT!! I've never heard such beautiful, natural overdrive come out of my amp. It rendered almost my entire pedalboard obsolete, all I used the entire practise was my Phat Phuk B, a chorus and the three position tone knob which seems to go easily from 'warm' to 'punch' to 'bright'. Never was I lost in the mix, never did it sound cold or sterile and on top of that, it just oozes vintage class. My guitarist had to pry it from my hands at the end of practise.

Anyway, I guess I just wanted to share and ask if anyone else has had the privilege to play one of these rare treasures. I did a search and came up with nothing. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, what with it being an Australian bass but surely, I can't be the only one!

 

[WinstonNilesRum]

Oh, and I know that it doesn't show in the photo but that is a mother of pearl bridge cover

 

[snyderz]

So is he going to give it up, or let it sit in the closet for another 50 years?

 

[WinstonNilesRum]

Well he's letting me play it at our next gig on Friday

He might be thinking of selling it but no one has any idea how much its worth. The luthier who did the repair said anywhere between $500 and $5000 which wasn't very helpful.

 

[bassmastan]

Give him $1000 and buy him lunch, the end

 

[bassbully]

So it sounds great thru all those effects, how does it sound without them straight thru an amp?

 

[JonahTheAmazing]

Interesting bass. What kind of pickup is under that cover? The body and headstock are so weirdly shaped. Never heard or seen of one before.

 

[WinstonNilesRum]

So it sounds great thru all those effects, how does it sound without them straight thru an amp?

I hardly used effects. I'm a bit of an effects junkie: I usually use a few overdrives and fuzzes to get the dirt I want but every time I tried one with this bass, it sounded fake so I left them alone. I used the Phat Phuk B at times to boost the signal slightly and overdrive my preamp but other than that, it was just my fingers and the tone knob.

I have no idea about the pickup, it looked a bit like the single coil from a 54 P bass but I'm not sure.

 

[djetz]

Coincidently, I was just reading about Matons and specifically the Ibis bass earlier today.

According to Maton, they were made between 1963 and 1965, and there were a total of 201 made. Rare!

The Invalid Link Removed blog has quite a bit about Matons, and the Ibis is discussed Invalid Link Removed. That's where I was reading about them earlier today.

I'm jealous.

 

[sloppy_phil]

cool, man. never realized that Maton was that old of a company. I saw Josh Homme and Jesse Hughes using their guitars, and assumed it had to be something newer. Apparently not!

Glad you're loving the new find. Hope the gig rocks

 

[mazareth]

That has to be one of the coolest looking basses I've ever seen. I love quirky looking instruments. That it sounds great is a bonus.

I've known about Maton acoustic guitars for several years. I had no idea that they also made electric instruments.

 

[Horny Toad]

I dig that Carvin SB4000-esque upper horn.

 

[dmac1961]

Freaking awesome!!!

 

[MD]

Not to highjack...
It's not mentioned often, but the Maton Bindarra Acoustic Bass preceded EB's Earthwood by several years. Maybe because they made so few or EB had a trade name with Fender at the time.

 

[WinstonNilesRum]

Wow, I had no idea.. I knew that they had been around for awhile but I had never really done much research. As it turns out that Maton was founded in 1946, the same year as Fender. They still do some fantastic electric guitars but as far as I know, no basses

 

[djetz]

...no basses

Except for Invalid Link Removed one.

Which you can see/hear in this video.

 

[bassmastan]

Except for Invalid Link Removed one.

Which you can see/hear in this video.

I love that the body is made from Sassifrass, its so unheard of, I wonder what its tonal qualities are. Has anyone played these basses?

 

[djetz]

I love that the body is made from Sassifrass, its so unheard of, I wonder what its tonal qualities are. Has anyone played these basses?

"Sassafras" is one of those practically meaningless words, like "ash", that are used for all sorts of unrelated trees.

Google Blackheart Sassafras to see the "Sassafras" that Australian guitar builders commonly use.

Though there's also Doryphora sassafras, which I believe is also used in Australian-wood guitars.

It sounds like wood. Wood species has very little impact on the sound of a solid body guitar or bass.

 

[mazareth]

"Sassafras" is one of those practically meaningless words, like "ash", that are used for all sorts of unrelated trees.

It sounds like wood. Wood species has very little impact on the sound of a solid body guitar or bass.

I have a can of worms and can opener for you...

 

[djetz]

I have a can of worms and can opener for you...

I've been a musician since the early 80s and an internet user since the mid 90s. I've been over that ground before. I'm not going to argue it. That's my opinion, and anyone who disagrees can tell it to the Marines.