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Jerzy Drozd appreciation thread
- Thread starter Freddy-G.
- Start date
I have a Skjold with the full custom preamp... while I generally gravitate towards the simpler stuff, I'm not afraid of bells and whistles.
BTW, especially on a real modern bass like this, a passive tone control would be particularly useful.
Yes sir! And now that you mention your Skjold, I would say the tone of my Skjold and my Jerzy are very much in the same ballpark. Hmmm... think I'll make some comparisons and report back.
Same ballpark? How about same sandbox? 
I'm really surprised how similar in tone the Skjold and the Jerzy are. IMO, the biggest difference is due to the new strings on the Jerzy and the Jerzy's ebony fb. The Jerzy has a livelier, more open/airy tone while the Skjold is more mid scooped and slightly darker. I think a new set of strings on the Skjold would bring it very close to the Jerzy.
I'm really surprised how similar in tone the Skjold and the Jerzy are. IMO, the biggest difference is due to the new strings on the Jerzy and the Jerzy's ebony fb. The Jerzy has a livelier, more open/airy tone while the Skjold is more mid scooped and slightly darker. I think a new set of strings on the Skjold would bring it very close to the Jerzy.
Standard on all Jerzy Drozd basses: wooden knobs, Jerzy's proprietary pickups with uniquely designed wooden covers, and Jerzy's own bridge design. All of which are recessed into the body.
Standard on all Jerzy Drozd basses: wooden knobs, Jerzy's proprietary pickups with uniquely designed wooden covers, and Jerzy's own bridge design. All of which are recessed into the body.
I dig the way the knobs are kind of 'countersunk' into the body. Very cool design. Also, the way he matches the knobs and pickup covers to the neck.... the maple with ebony or whatever the board is. Very cool!
Your bass looks VERY good, and better IMO than most Excellency models. With all the attention to detail and design of these basses, it is a real disconnect to me that the large truss rod cover on the body is not matched to the body (i.e., on most of them, it's a very different looking piece of wood, which IMO really detracts for the look of the instrument). On yours, that cover really matches the body wood very nicely.
For the life of me, I can't figure out why he would not use the cutout from the top veneer to make a matching cover
These also have the most unusual neck profile of any bass I've evern played. HUGE, chunky P type neck, BUT, with the bottom of the 'C' profile totally flattened out. I've never played another neck that felt anything like it... an unusual combination of 'large C' feel but with that large flattened portion on the back of the neck. I ended up digging it quite a bit... again, unique feel of a big handfull, but yet very sleek feeling since your thumb kind of 'rode that flat rail' on the back of the neck. Interesting! Totally non traditional feel.
Ken, looking at Jerzy's website, I found that there are several different models of the Obsession series, one of which is the Excellency. From what I can tell, it is the Basic model that does not have a truss rod cover, and leaves the neck wood exposed.
Because it's typically not a cutout. The neck pocket is usually routed after the body lams have been glued and set. So there is no missing piece... only a bunch of sawdust.For the life of me, I can't figure out why he would not use the cutout from the top veneer to make a matching cover
Yeah, it's actually got a name... the "D" profile.
My Warrior is the same way and both on that bass and the JD's I've played, I've found the neck profile to be surprisingly comfy despite most of my basses being C profiles and my general preference for shallow C's. I surmise from that the comfort of these profiles depends on how much rolling of the thumb you do from dead center of the back of the neck. I do very little, so these neck profiles are very comfy for me as well.
I believe the tonal benefit is significant as well... more mass to the neck, tho it doesn't impede play for most players. I would assume this would tend to counteract the typical dead spot by changing the resonance of the neck significantly. My Warrior is one of my best basses for a "lack" of dead spot type behavior. It's been too long since I played a JD to comment on those, tho.
I've noticed on TB that neck size and shape is a very controversial matter for most bassists. I'm lucky in that I've never met a neck that I didn't like. I DID like some better than others though. The neck on the Jerzy, like many aspects of these basses, are Jerzy's own unique design. The only other bass I've played that is similar is a Warwick. Man, that was a 2x4 compared to this neck. I quickly adjusted to this D profile shape, and now actually think it is a great design.
Because it's typically not a cutout. The neck pocket is usually routed after the body lams have been glued and set. So there is no missing piece... only a bunch of sawdust.
Interesting on the neck. Yeah, it feels way different, but OK to me.
And, your explanation above makes sense (thanks), but still IMO does not 'excuse' the look. IMO, he should change his production method, since that 'different' looking truss rod cover really takes away from the otherwise 'perfect' look for those basses. Pure IMO!
K
+1 The Excellency is basically a 'Basic' with a fancy wooden top. I believe the 'Mastery' is a 'neck through Excellency'. They get REALLY expensive!
I've noticed on TB that neck size and shape is a very controversial matter for most bassists. I'm lucky in that I've never met a neck that I didn't like. I DID like some better than others though. The neck on the Jerzy, like many aspects of these basses, are Jerzy's own unique design. The only other bass I've played that is similar is a Warwick. Man, that was a 2x4 compared to this neck. I quickly adjusted to this D profile shape, and now actually think it is a great design.
+1 I ended up digging that profile quite a bit! And, per Vic's comment, my technique put my thumb right on that 'flat ramp' sort of section of the neck, which really felt good!
Again, your bass is very cool, and even that truss rod cover seems to be almost perfectly matched to the top wood, which is quite different from most that I've seen. Wonderful looking bass!
Dan talked you up quite a bit...
Unfortunately, as with many custom and semi-custom luthiers, there are a ton of factors that may or may not make the perfect bass. Jerzy can just as easily fall into that category.
To my knowledge, and I could be corrected by Jerzy if I heard wrong, but my understanding is the following:
1. The base of the neck, where it meets the body, is not usually a truss-rod cover; the truss-rod cover is generally on the headstock.
2. The base of the neck wasn't covered by a veneer, which Dan asked Jerzy to change for a while. More of the basses produced in the past few years feature this, while older versions did not.
3. The neck profile is certainly unique. If you were to compare mine, which is from 2001 (bought as new in 2003), you'd notice the neck profile is the same, except for the "shoulders" which are much more traditional-feeling. As I understand it, Jerzy added the shoulders to the neck profile to add stability to it. Some people like this profile, others do not. Personally, it took a little while playing them to get used to them. Neck warpage is something my bass definitely suffers from seasonally. I wish this weren't true, but it is. My understanding is that he rarely uses wenge anymore for the same reason.
4. He's getting rid of the Mastery line and adding a neck-through option to the Excellency line. The Mastery really is just a neck-through version of the Excellency.
1. The base of the neck, where it meets the body, is not usually a truss-rod cover; the truss-rod cover is generally on the headstock.
2. The base of the neck wasn't covered by a veneer, which Dan asked Jerzy to change for a while. More of the basses produced in the past few years feature this, while older versions did not.
3. The neck profile is certainly unique. If you were to compare mine, which is from 2001 (bought as new in 2003), you'd notice the neck profile is the same, except for the "shoulders" which are much more traditional-feeling. As I understand it, Jerzy added the shoulders to the neck profile to add stability to it. Some people like this profile, others do not. Personally, it took a little while playing them to get used to them. Neck warpage is something my bass definitely suffers from seasonally. I wish this weren't true, but it is. My understanding is that he rarely uses wenge anymore for the same reason.
4. He's getting rid of the Mastery line and adding a neck-through option to the Excellency line. The Mastery really is just a neck-through version of the Excellency.
Just a clarification -- the truss rod is adjusted at the headstock, not at the base of the neck. This cover is also recessed, or countersunk, into the wood. Notice the ebony nut!
Other features my Jerzy doesn't have is the proprietary pickups: mine has the old Bart soapbars and a Bart 3-band preamp. Jerzy actually made me a pair of pickups designed to drop into my bass, complete with matching wood covers, which were absolutely beautiful! I really prefer his pickups to the Barts, which are dark sounding, and probably don't work as well with the wood selection I've got, since it's a naturally sounding bass. When I took the new pickups to the local luthier Dan uses for minor work, the pickups actually were a hair too big. He offered to rout out the body to make these pickups fit, but I get leery of additional surgery that can't be undone, so I opted out. Also, I might prefer a different preamp. The bart preamp isn't awful, but I haven't pulled the trigger. The rear cavity is pretty tight as it is and only has room for a single 9-volt battery, so I'm unsure of how much of a benefit I'd realize from having a different preamp, especially with the Bart pickups.
I also have the old bridge, rather than the 2-piece Jerzy bridge. I wouldn't even begin to consider a different bridge, since functionally they're the same, but it's all about the cool look of the 2-piece bridge he uses. Another cool feature that his newest designs have is the end of the fingerboard actually is cut to match the curve of the pickups, which is testament to how much extra he puts into the woodworking. Another feature mine has is a wenge toneplate between the zebra wood top and the walnut body. The top is the same thickness as the body, and the wenge is probably 1/4" thick, which is unheard of by most luthiers who have a multi-lam body.
The ebony nut is pretty cool. I don't know how much benefit there would be to having bone or brass, but this is something that's usually only found on fretless basses.
The thickness of the ebony board is astounding! Most luthiers use an 1/8" fingerboard, but I believe Jerzys is a 1/4" fretboard. I do believe this adds more "snap" to the tone, which I really like. A downside, however, is it does make the neck a little heavier than the down-sized body. To me, the neck dive is completely manageable, much more so than some basses I've played, but I use my right forearm to counter neck dive.
All-in-all, it's obvious how well he constructs basses, with great attention to detail. He really is a perfectionist and those little details really impress me!
At the end of the day, my bass, while a bit dark sounding to me, can still produce a bit of sparkle in the treble-end if I bring up the treble a bit, something not needed with many other basses I've played. In fact, my Status Empathy, by comparison, requires the treble to be cut to about 50%. The harmonics on my Jerzy are outstanding, and it's really rich in the fundamental. If I were to ever get rid of it, which crosses my mind occasionally, it would only be to have Jerzy custom make me another one with similar dimensions, but with less-dark woods, such as a maple neck instead of the wenge. The wenge feels amazing, so I don't know if I'd prefer something else or not. I know Mike Tobias has used Ash for the neck and his claim is the ash is similar, but not quite as compressed sounding. To my knowledge, I don't know if Jerzy's used ash for necks. I'd also want another 34" scale. Jerzy primarily uses 35" these days, though his new, as of yet unnamed single-cut is going to be 33". Given how solid the low B is on my 34", even compared to my 35" MTD 535, I'd definitely trust Jerzy with a 34".
This bass, although it's got a 35" scale, is one that really floats my boat! It's among the finest I've seem him make, yet!
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If it weren't for the 35" scale, I'd probably ask Dan to do a straight-up trade for my Mastery.
I also have the old bridge, rather than the 2-piece Jerzy bridge. I wouldn't even begin to consider a different bridge, since functionally they're the same, but it's all about the cool look of the 2-piece bridge he uses. Another cool feature that his newest designs have is the end of the fingerboard actually is cut to match the curve of the pickups, which is testament to how much extra he puts into the woodworking. Another feature mine has is a wenge toneplate between the zebra wood top and the walnut body. The top is the same thickness as the body, and the wenge is probably 1/4" thick, which is unheard of by most luthiers who have a multi-lam body.
The ebony nut is pretty cool. I don't know how much benefit there would be to having bone or brass, but this is something that's usually only found on fretless basses.
The thickness of the ebony board is astounding! Most luthiers use an 1/8" fingerboard, but I believe Jerzys is a 1/4" fretboard. I do believe this adds more "snap" to the tone, which I really like. A downside, however, is it does make the neck a little heavier than the down-sized body. To me, the neck dive is completely manageable, much more so than some basses I've played, but I use my right forearm to counter neck dive.
All-in-all, it's obvious how well he constructs basses, with great attention to detail. He really is a perfectionist and those little details really impress me!
At the end of the day, my bass, while a bit dark sounding to me, can still produce a bit of sparkle in the treble-end if I bring up the treble a bit, something not needed with many other basses I've played. In fact, my Status Empathy, by comparison, requires the treble to be cut to about 50%. The harmonics on my Jerzy are outstanding, and it's really rich in the fundamental. If I were to ever get rid of it, which crosses my mind occasionally, it would only be to have Jerzy custom make me another one with similar dimensions, but with less-dark woods, such as a maple neck instead of the wenge. The wenge feels amazing, so I don't know if I'd prefer something else or not. I know Mike Tobias has used Ash for the neck and his claim is the ash is similar, but not quite as compressed sounding. To my knowledge, I don't know if Jerzy's used ash for necks. I'd also want another 34" scale. Jerzy primarily uses 35" these days, though his new, as of yet unnamed single-cut is going to be 33". Given how solid the low B is on my 34", even compared to my 35" MTD 535, I'd definitely trust Jerzy with a 34".
This bass, although it's got a 35" scale, is one that really floats my boat! It's among the finest I've seem him make, yet!
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If it weren't for the 35" scale, I'd probably ask Dan to do a straight-up trade for my Mastery.
Yeah, I have to agree that the veneer to cover the heel of the neck (since we've established it's not a truss rod cover like on an MTD) should generally match the top as closely as possible, or at least the fingerboard, but I prefer the top. If it just seems to be some random piece of wood, or nothing, showing this plain maple "interruption" in the topwood, it just looks like a big disconnect to me... especially at this price/quality level, and even more especially noting the JD's are as much about attention to minute detail as any other instrument I've seen.
I've seen very few Jerzy Drozd basses on the forum, so I thought I'd write a few comments and post some pics of an Excellency V that I recently acquired. You can learn more about these basses at Jerzy's website: www.jerzydrozdbasses.com/
The craftsmanship is unreal, with so much attention to detail. Like the custom wooden pickup covers and custom bridge that are both recessed into the body. The truss rod cover is also recessed into the headstock. The top is a beautiful example of spalted maple. The body is made of etimoe, a wood from Africa. Weight is around 9 lbs. The fingerboard is a very thick slab of ebony. The D profile neck feels very comfortable in my hand.
The tone is killer. In general, it should be placed in the "modern" sounding catagory, falling somewhere in the ballpark of an MTD/Smith/Warrior bass, except the Jerzy has its own unique voice, which to me is a bit mid- scooped and slightly piano-like in that you really hear the strings. Jerzy says he designed the pickups with the Aggie OBP-3 pre in mind, and the results are impressive -- they make an excellent combo. Along with a strong fundamental, there seems to be a lot of harmonic info being pulled from the strings. I installed a new set of FBass stainless steel exposed core strings and the bass growls nicely. The sound is full-range -- all the bass, mids and highs are there in whatever amounts you dial in. The sustain is like that of a neck-through bass. This is all IMHO, of course.
If you can find one, I highly recommend trying a Jerzy Drozd bass!
I'd like to personally thank Dan Lenard at the Luthiers Access Group for helping me acquire this bass. This was my first dealing with Dan and I hope it is not the last. Thanks, Dan!
I know there aren't many around, so let's see your Jerzy Drozd's!
Sweet, I would love to own a Droyd one day. They are so Beautiful
You know what I like best about my Jerzy? It's not another J bass copy. It is a totally new idea of what a bass guitar can be. I can understand why J bass clones are very popular. I love my Nordy. But, is there room for new ideas?
