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Ken Smith models

johnbkim93

johnbkim93

Jun 24, 2013
122
4
#1
Hi I'm thinking about getting a used ken smith but i see there are so many models such as BSR BT Black Tiger GN Burner etc. and it is very hard for me to find the difference between them. Can you experts simply tell me which are higher models than which, the difference especially in tone, and the price?

Thank you :)
 
#3
Neck throughs will generally be more expensive than bolt on's.

BT- Bass Treble- named for the old preamp which only had controls for bass and treble, not mids. These have the old body shape that is more symmetrical. Better balance when seated but much poorer balance when standing.
BMT- Bass Mid Treble, named for the preamp. Some of these have the old body shape, some of these have the new shape that provide better balance for playing while standing.

BSR- Bass Slight Revision- The beginning three letters of the "new" body shape basses (example, a BSR-TN5 is a 5 string black tiger, a BSR-GN 4 is a 4 string bass with a neck through design) All BSR's have the bass mid treble pre-amp- new body shape (more asymmetric).
---------------------------------------------Aforementioned are only available used------------------------------------------------------------------
These are still being produced by Ken in order of price. All Ken Smith's get a similar but not identical tone. Expect the Smith bite or burp in the high end- it's a very unique sound that only Ken Smith basses have.

MS and MS fusion- Don't know what MS stands for but these are the entry level neck through basses. They are available with fewer numbers of pieces of wood in the neck and body.

BSR-GN- Bass Slight Revision with Graphite in Neck. These basses are the same as above but they have graphite rods to further stabilize the neck. All new BSR basses have the graphite rods. I believe they also all have the series and parallel switches for each pickup.

BSR-TN/WT- Bass Slight Revision "Tigre Negro" and White Tiger. These are the Black and White tiger. Sound the same as other Smith basses but they have specific body woods used. The black tiger uses crotch walnut top and back with tiger maple core. The white tiger uses tiger maple top and back with other core woods.

BSR-EG whenever a neck through model gets finished with a glossy finish instead of a satin finish- the model is labeled an "elite" version of the BSR and has an "E" after the BSR designation.

Fusion 25th anniv. Special most expensive model with a hybrid body shape essentially the same as the BSR-GN's but without the tail of the bass by the bridge jutting out. This mucro is instead contoured to a concave rounded shape
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bolt Ons : generally less expensive than the above list.
Any model that has M-MW-P-PE for instance, a bass might have the model designation BSR-MW. This would mean is has the BSR body shape and a bolt on neck.

CR- Chuck Rainey. All Chuck Rainey models have the old BT body shape and a bolt on neck.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miscellaneous

5x5, 7x7, etc. These are just short hand for the number of pieces of wood used for the neck and body respectively.

You can order any bass with the old body shape and it will have the model designation BSR-BT.

Hope this makes things a bit clearer.
-Alex
 
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#4
basschanges said:
Neck throughs will generally be more expensive than bolt on's.

BT- Bass Treble- named for the old preamp which only had controls for bass and treble, not mids. These have the old body shape that is more symmetrical. Better balance when seated but much poorer balance when standing.
BMT- Bass Mid Treble, named for the preamp. Some of these have the old body shape, some of these have the new shape that provide better balance for playing while standing.
---------------------------------------------Aforementioned are only available used------------------------------------------------------------------
These are still being produced by Ken in order of price. All Ken Smith's get a similar but not identical tone. Expect the Smith bite or burp in the high end- it's a very unique sound that only Ken Smith basses have.

MS and MS fusion- Don't know what MS stands for but these are the entry level neck through basses. They are available with fewer numbers of pieces of wood in the neck and body.

BSR- Bass Slight Revision- The beginning three letters of the "new" body shape basses with neck through design (example, a BSR-TN5 is a 5 string black tiger, a BSR-GN 4 is a 4 string bass with a neck through design) All BSR's have the bass mid treble pre-amp- new body shape (more asymmetric).

BSR-GN- Bass Slight Revision with Graphite in Neck. These basses are the same as above but they have graphite rods to further stabilize the neck.

BSR-TN/WT- Bass Slight Revision "Tigre Negro" and White Tiger. These are the Black and White tiger. Sound the same as other Smith basses but they have specific body woods used. The black tiger uses crotch walnut top and back with tiger maple core. The white tiger uses tiger maple top and back with other core woods.

BSR-EG whenever a neck through model gets finished with a glossy finish instead of a satin finish- the model is labeled an "elite" version of the BSR and has an "E" after the BSR designation.

Fusion 25th anniv. Special most expensive model with a hybrid body shape essentially the same as the BSR-GN's but without the tail of the bass by the bridge jutting out. This mucro is instead contoured to a concave rounded shape

Bolt Ons:
Any model that has M-MW-P-PE for instance, a bass might have the model designation BSR-MW. This would mean is has the BSR body shape and a bolt on neck.

CR- Chuck Rainey. All Chuck Rainey models have the old BT body shape and a bolt on neck.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miscellaneous

5x5, 7x7, etc. These are just short hand for the number of pieces of wood used for the neck and body respectively.

You can order any bass with the old body shape and it will have the model designation BSR-BT.

Hope this makes things a bit clearer.
-Alex
Click to expand...

Wow thanks! That was a very helpful thread.
So I guess there's not that much of a difference in tone between the models?
 
#5
To answer your question, no not really. But there are differences. I'm sure people with pickier ears than I will comment on the differences, but though I hear them too, I can't really tell you what about them is different without venturing into flowery tone language nonsense (rounder high end, mid range growl, low end smooth and taught, crisp high end...etc. all of which don't communicate anything and could be my brain playing tricks on me).

I forgot to mention. The Burner BSR-B series. There are older burner models with the old body shape and Ken Smith's full name on the head stock. These basses, while not actually built by Ken, were built by woods provided by Ken and then given inspection by Ken before they went out for sale. The newer Burner models are much more cheaply made and have a "KSD" interwoven on the headstock. I would stay away from the latter as those are not only the cheapest but the poorest of quality.

I also touched up the info in my first post a little bit to make it as accurate as I can.
 
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