Marleaux basses

I played on at LAG last summer. Fine instrument, but I preferred the Jerzy D's he had in stock.

Jeff

 

Hm, one of my favorite topics

Marleaux have risen quickly to the very top of German bass makers.
They are famous for their fretless basses and a superb low B on all of their 5 and 6-string basses.

The workmanship is state-of-the-art. So is the design.

It's a small two-man operation and they're very nice and decent guys (I met Gerald Marleaux and his partner Tilman several times on the Musikmesse Frankfurt.

Steve Lawson did a review on a Marleaux for Guitarist magazine. He may have some additional impressions to share.

www.marleaux-bass.de

The site is in German. I'm be glad to do some translations for you, if required.

Damn, board performance is weird today, I wanted to post before Jeff, but the board wouldn't let me.

 

I played one at Bass Alone in san Diego and was thoroughly impressed, for the money I like the Kinal they had a bit better. They did a review in Bass Player of a Marleaux, i just don't know which issue...

 

Played a few of them, thought about buying one, a used Consat 5 but changed my mind. A friend has one, another got his stolen recently.

They're nice basses, well built, sound good, look good. The setable onboard EQ is kind of funky. Kind of have a typical refined high end bass kind of sound IMO.

There was a single pickup 6 that a guy was trying to sell forever last year. I think it finally sold for about $1100 on eBay and it looks like it ended up at Bass Alone... and listed for more.


BTW... anyone looking for a German bass?

 

Why, Brad, what you got?

 

Brad, you're selling your Clover?

 

I still have my Clover. Think of it as a cross between a Zon and a Modulus, with Barts, wide spacing and a composite neck.

Something has to give... I just found another Elrick

 

Damn, too bad you're across the atlantic.
I really like that Basstard, I don't like the Elrick design that much, especially the headstock.

 

JMX, the Elrick NJS model has grown on me since I got my fretless. A fretted 5 just turned up... looks like a good opportunity.

I like the Clover, too, it's just not getting much use behind the other basses I have. If I were to keep it and get the Elrick I might have to face... "The Wrath of Wife".

 

I'd buy that Clover in a second, if I only had some money to spend.

 

well, i have a fretted Marleaux JB and all i can (and want to) say is that it's a really great bass. i like the the sound very much, though i hear people say that some of their other models could use a bit more 'aggressiveness', so my bass is not that much of a reference there. i like it.
the playability is great, very fast neck. prefectly suited for every technique you can name, fingerstyle, slap, tapping ... it feels fantastic.
i'd also like to mention that the b-string is indeed one of the best that i've heard, very tight and defined, blending nice with the sound of the other strings.

cool bass.

 

my friend that plays bass,well he's realllllly good.and his bass teacher has a marleaux,and he played and loved it.although the marleaux he wanted was way out of his price range.so he got a deluxe p-bass with j neck.i was wishing he got the marleaux cuz i wanted to try it but o well.

 

Brad, for someone that has TWO basses with graphite necks, some may not ever understand why you would ever buy another bass with a, <<pause>>

... wooden neck!

Jeff

 

Thats is weird statement, but true for me...I cannot like wooden necks anymore. Not that they are bad, but i am now used to the graphite.

 

snicker snicker

 

Spoken like a married man

 

There's one at L.A Bass Exchange, waaah, darn expensive!!!!!! I think I'll get a Sadowsky 5 strings for that price!!!!!!


Here is da link!!!!!

http://www.bassexchange.com/

Pic

Mmm, also nice Haniwinckle though in Zebra wood, oh and how about that Citron NT5, aaaaaggghh!!!!

 

That is a picture of a Hanewinckel, i don't know if you know its misnamed. Either way, nice bass. And IMO, I would get a Marleaux over a Sadowsky ANY day....

 

Fortunately my little "absolutist" buddy isn't around here

I like nice basses... even wooden-necked ones.

I've been around them for a long time and in spite of all the horror stories I've heard the last problem I had with one was a having a neck on a brand new bass separate (Washburn 6) many years ago. Other than that, my years of ownership have been very uneventful. I chalk it up more to common sense on my part than what materials are used. I've seen people leave instruments in a freezing car, bring them into a hot, moist environment and then complain because the neck moved. Duh.

I don't like graphite necked basses, I like graphite necked basses that sound good (sorry, Charlie). I feel the same about wood.

The semihollow fretless Elrick I have is so nice it's scary. I doubt I'd like it any more if it had a graphite neck... the wooden one hasn't budged, it's rock solid.

Go figure