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MTD "Marilyn Club"

#42
Vic said:
That's right... I forgot it was three thicknesses... I THINK he finally settled on 1.75, however, and I'm pretty sure mine is the "standard" body thickness as it is now, so Tom's is slightly thicker.

Thing is, and it may not reflect well on me to say so, but when we A/B'd them, especially after I cranked the preamp on yours :p, they sounded pretty much identical.
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Yes, I also believe that Mike is going with the 'standard' 1.75" thickness now, and I also agree that once we tweaked the preamps, you really couldn't tell these two apart from each other (though you can definitely hear differences when comparing them to a solid body MTD).
 
#43
KJung said:
Do you guys gig out with these, and if so, in what sort of musical settings? Do you consider these more of a 'specialty' instrument, or could you use this bass as your only instrument for a wide variety of gigs? While I've pretty much lost interest in the very modern MTD tone, for some reason, I want one of these!
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I've played mine in all contexts. Everything from Blues, to classic rock, to church ensemble. If I was an absolute stickler for mimicking original bass track tone, that probably wouldn't be true, but I find the sheer size of the sound is just "fun" in any musical environment, so I eq to fit, and just enjoy the ride.

Edit: My guess is these might work in a fretless model very nicely... at least for a big, modern fretless tone.
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Yeah, I think Joel had a fretless six and he said it was so far off the chain it was scary.
 
#44
Vic said:
I've played mine in all contexts. Everything from Blues, to classic rock, to church ensemble. If I was an absolute stickler for mimicking original track bass tone, that probably wouldn't be true, but I find the sheer size of the sound is just "fun" in any musical environment, so I eq to fit, and just enjoy the ride.

Yeah, I think Joel had a fretless six and he said it was so far off the chain it was scary.
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It is a big, big tone. I had trouble sometimes just controlling the low end on my standard MTD in a live setting ,especially when going into a front of house system. I've found some soundmen, especially the pro guys running big front of house systems, are not fans of the wide voicing of those MTD's. It's sometimes hard to get them positioned above the bass drum.

However, I can see that in some situations it would be a LOT of fun to have that huge, wide sound. They are quite unique and beautiful!
 
#45
KJung said:
That's where the name 'Marilyn' comes from. Kind of cheezy but what the heck:D
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Yeah, but keep in mind the original prototype, and its name, were never originally intended for public consumption. :) The reason this model is available, and the reason its nickname became the product name is because of The Groove Shoppe. They saw it sitting in the corner, checked it out, saw the potential, and dogged him until he would start production on them. :D

In short, this was originally just a private research project of Mike's. :)
 
#46
Vic said:
I've played mine in all contexts. Everything from Blues, to classic rock, to church ensemble. If I was an absolute stickler for mimicking original bass track tone, that probably wouldn't be true, but I find the sheer size of the sound is just "fun" in any musical environment, so I eq to fit, and just enjoy the ride.
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+1 I have gigged with my Marilyn on numerous occasions. The low end is, indeed, pretty big, but with a really tight rig, I think it sounds great. That said, I could see how it might be problematic for some rigs.

Tom.
 
#48
Dave Muscato said:
I'm really happy with the MM 'bucker in my MTD (Korean-made Artist). It's definitely a different sound than the American MTDs, but soundmen I've worked with have always loved where it sits in the mix. Do you think that the Marilyn has substantially more low-end than other MTDs, or is just a fatter sound all around?
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Depending on exactly how you define "substantial", yes. I say that because I don't want to give anyone the idea it's anything like over the top or too much. However, it is noticeable... especially at gig levels.
 
#49
I've got this feeling that I own the best bass in the world, and strangely enough, I don't think I'm exaggerating. And I've played a million basses in my 37 years as an electric bass player; $15,000.00 Foderas, $18,000.00 Ritters, $12,000.00 Jerzy Drodz, a $25,000.00 Alembic (and that was just a 5 string) and tons of other boutique basses. All really nice instruments, gorgeous in some cases.

After getting this particular MTD from the master, I'm now not the slightest bit envious. It's kind of like sitting in a Lotus Elise and a Ferrari pulls up beside you, and you just know you can blow him away in every respect, acceleration, handling, braking, gas mileage, all at 1/3 the price, and with a Toyota Tercel engine.

This bass is just spectacular. I can't say enough. The dynamic and tonal range is unbelievable; it just keeps growing. The harder you play, the better it gets, and the more stuff you discover. It sounds like a cross between a 9'6" Bosendorfer, the best punchiest '62 jazz bass you have ever heard in your life (without the deadspots and the electronics are dead silent), a '52 Gibson Super 400 if there is such a thing, and Larry Graham in his heyday (which, if you've heard him lately, is probably right now; the man is a force of nature).

I'm still speechless, 1 week later. Mp3's soon; I'm borrowing a Summit TD1 next week to record with.

IMHO, of course. You're free to differ, you're just wrong, that's all!

:D

Cheers,
Cameron
 
#50
Bassflute said:
The shots are great, man, you're too hard on yourself; you need better carpets!

:D:rollno::D:rollno::D:rollno::D:rollno::D

BTW, this bass officially makes me #2 in the club (or was it #3?), proud owner of Marilyn #30, nicknamed Ms. Munro:

IMGP9609.jpg


Cheers,
Cameron
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:eek: :eek: :eek:

: EEK :
 
#52
Bassflute said:
It's kind of like sitting in a Lotus Elise and a Ferrari pulls up beside you, and you just know you can blow him away in every respect, acceleration, handling, braking, gas mileage, all at 1/3 the price, and with a Toyota Tercel engine.
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LOL! I LOVE the way you think! :D

It sounds like a cross between a 9'6" Bosendorfer, the best punchiest '62 jazz bass you have ever heard in your life
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This is a GREAT way to describe the tone. Tom and I have also used at least the grand piano thing as well. :)

Congrats again... you have a fairly ok bass there... ;) :D
 
#53
Vic said:
LOL! I LOVE the way you think! :D

This is a GREAT way to describe the tone. Tom and I have also used at least the grand piano thing as well. :)

Congrats again... you have a fairly ok bass there... ;) :D
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I'm swamped with dayjob work right now - I desing calendars for a wildlife organization, and every year I do a pet rescue calendar that features all my photography, graphic design, and I even do the text and invented the concept. Turning out to be a great fundraiser for all the rescue groups and NWPS, but it is a TON of work for one person. I've hardly had time to play my new bass, and have not practiced at all for a couple of weeks. By Wednesday I'll be back at it woodshedding, and I've got quite a few gigs this month of all descriptions, so I'll give a full and detailed report soon.

And thanks; sometimes I think I come off as a bit of a jerk, but I really don't mean to. I'm actually a really nice guy (at least my doggy thinks so!).

And Ms. Munro is a trip, man.

Cheers,
Cameron
 
#54
Hello all.

Let me introduce Marylin #19. Chock full of 6 string sweetness with the ability to get down and nasty when it's called for. She has one of the broadest tonal vocabularies I've heard on any bass in quite some time. A pleasure to record and play gigs with. So far She seems to be able to meet and exceed any musical challenge I've pitched to her. From Heavy Metal to World Beat Jazz Fusion. Balls to walls blues to straight ahead Jazz. This little lady can do it all. For gigs I run her thru an Eden WT800 and two Bergantino 15 cabs and for recording I run her dry thru the board. This is one smoking Hot little Lady.

Steve
 

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