JP's feather tickles my fancy, or 'the Plume has landed!'

This is my preliminary ‘just received it and haven’t had a whole lot of time with it yet’ review.
Audio samples will hopefully come later.

JP Plume 5 fretless
www.jpbasses.com
pics on xush site

Features:
JP specs on site
Body: Black limba
Neck: J-Neck wenge/wenge
Fingerboard: unlined macassar ebony
Pickups: JP by Armstrong
Controls: E-Pro BTB-01, ebony knobs
Bridge: ABM
Tuners: Hipshot ultralite

Construction:
Neck: interesting design! Very flat and smooth, nice and thin. I loves me some wenge, that’s for sure! Headstock doesn’t tilt back because of this construction style, but it doesn’t need to.

Body: Well executed. Very elegant shape. Extremely resonant. Good wood! Tony, the bassist I’m working with (the only other person to play it yet) said he found it much more lively and resonant than his Pedullas. It has a powerful acoustic voice, and this really comes thru in passive mode.

FB: Nice colorful striations in the ebony, looks good. Side dots at every fret position, takes a little getting used to, but no big deal…


Tone:
Passive: Smooth, fat tone. Bridge p’up barks and growls, neck is mellow and woody- very round, downright huge! More on the tone after I’ve gotten to know her better…

Active circuit: Bass control is insane! Way more lows than you could ever need. I’ve pretty much been running it flat, which is turned all the way down (it’s boost only.) It would definitely make up for any weaknesses in an amp. I hear no need for a mid control on this particular bass, so it’s not missed here…I guess the wenge/ebony/limba combo handles the mids just fine.

B string: This one ranks up there with my FBB fretless. Surpasses the F BNF5 and Pentabuzz by a small margin.
This is one of the only B strings I’ve heard that sounds like it fits right in; it doesn’t lack any of the nuances of the other strings. This is critical on a five, and is why I’ve been gravitating back to the 4 lately; I just don’t find many B strings I like. This and my FBB rate at the top of what I’ve found so far.

Weight/balance:
Balance is perfect, no neck dive. Stretch to first position: one of the best yet, as far as ergonomics. JP really thought this one out. There is no ‘stretch’ involved, first position is in a very comfortable zone. The upper horn reaching to the 12th fret is no doubt responsible for that.
Weight: right at 9 lbs. No problems there.

Slappable?
We’ll see…I find it to be, but we’ll let the audio samples speak for themselves.

What I love about it:
Neck profile, now I won’t miss my Pentabuzz at all! This profile is as close as they come, very thin/flat. Quite nice! Tony said it has a Warwick vibe, wood-wise. I guess this would be a Warwick on Adkins then, considering the light weight and svelte neck profile.

Aesthetics: Simple/elegant. FB/knobs/p’up covers follow the ebony theme. Nice wenge control cover on back. Pink ivory nut catches attention, Tony says it gives the bass a nice artistic flair…
I’m not known for pursuing the straightforward/basic design ethic (I likes the crazy stuff!!)… But this bass helps me see its appeal. It’s quite unpretentious, in my opinion. In a way I guess it’s not that elaborate or ornate, but it’s definitely sophisticated. It presents the basics, the modest necessities, in a very natural way.

What I’d spec differently if I customized one:
I’d probably want a truss rod cover
Differentiate marker at 7th fret position.
Side input jack?
Exotic top? There I go again…

Very superficial changes at best. It does what you need it to do perfectly; JP’s recipe is definitely spot-on!

Customer Service:
Very pleasant to deal with JP. I’d been chatting with him from TB for about a year now, before this deal ever came up. I’m pretty committed to FBB’s, but not averse to trying something different. And this is definitely different. JP and Matt have very divergent styles, but the quality level is very high. I’d definitely recommend checking out a JP!
He was willing to work with me on the options I had, and conceded to me on the hardware color, which I appreciate. I’m very happy with it, but I know he’d have preferred chrome. I don’t think he’d compromise on a design feature that he felt was fundamental, but he does leave room for preferences.
He also personalized a little JPG for me explaining the controls, no biggie he claims, but it was a nice extra touch I thought. You get a feeling of personal involvement, and he’s just a great guy to work with. Went the extra mile for sure!

Overall impression of bass:
Sleek. Natural. Well-named; ‘feather.’ Huge tone! Solid. Comfortable.
I am impressed, and quite satisfied. More later, as I get to know her better.

 

jon, friday at the show?
you show me yours, I'll show ya mine!