Ordered 3/14/14, arrived 7/17/14. A four-month turnaround is impressive for a high-end a-la-carte custom!
Specs:
Elfin Plus five string singlecut
Alder body (pearl red)
Maple neck and fretboard (light vintage tint)
Luminlay glow-in-the-dark side dots
34.5" scale - default
EVO fretwire - recommended upgrade
Pickups: both Nordstrand. Reverse P (neck), MM-style (bridge)
Aguilar OBP-1 preamp
Rotary controls: Master volume, Pickup blend, Passive tone, Treble, Bass
Push/pull switches: preamp bypass, series/parallel for MM pickup
My other 6 basses are 5-string P-bass variants so this bass is unique to me in a number of ways: singlecut, black hardware, 24 frets, angled headstock. Even though it's a singlecut I didn't want the boutique look so I went with painted body and non-figured maple board.
Q: Why this make and model?
A: I'm not normally a singlecut guy, but the elegant Elfin Plus design caught my eye. I also like the original Elfin (the nonplussed version, so to speak
), but the upsized Plus has Fender-style ergonomics and balance which is important to me. I first asked TalkBasser Marshall Perry about his Elfins, and then discussed options and pricing with Martin himself. It was super-easy to come up with a reasonably-priced build that included all the specs features I wanted, so I decided to pull the trigger as soon as my finances were order. I forgot to spend much time thinking about color, but I liked Marshall's Dakota Red bass so much that I went with red pearl (didn't want to be a complete copycat).
Q: How was the ordering experience?
A: I dealt with Martin directly throughout. Aside from the painting he's an army of one! Martin's a consummate professional: quick to respond to all inquiries. Progress on this order was so fast, I pinged him only once (unnecessarily) for an update. Any time there was news he delivered it promptly. I'm grateful for his attention to detail: he made sure every parameter was approved by me, even a few I'd overlooked. He also added a couple of perks to the order. Best example: the bass was originally supposed to have just one push/pull pot (series/parallel for the MM pickup), however Martin threw in a push/pull preamp bypass control for free because that way both EQ controls would use identical potentiometers, and therefore have the same feel and taper. As I said, details! Also, he was fastidious about shielding the instrument, and put some shaped wood blocks inside the P-bass pickup cover so it wouldn't feel hollow.
Q: Cut to the chase: what about the instrument itself?
A: It's getting late, so as quickly as I can: I'm thrilled. She has amazingly sexy curves, and looks. Pearl red is not CAR: it can look similar in photos (especially w/flash), but in person under ambient light it's muted/iridescent rather than metallic. I was happy to see (I'd forgotten!) that the fretboard and headstock face have a gloss finish, but the back of the neck is incredibly sexy satin... it almost feels like bare wood, which I love! This bass is not chambered, but even so it has a slimmed-down body and headstock, so it only weighs a little bit more than my chambered alder Sadowskys. Ergonomics are excellent.
Tone: reverse P is significantly different than standard P, but I already have some standard P-basses and I was looking for something different/modern. Reverse P gives more growl to the BEA strings, more depth to the DG -- a more modern tone IMO, I can see why many prefer it. The Music Man pickup has fabulous growl and zing, and series mode gives it more output and punch. Love the Aggie preamp (boost only treble/bass). I also added a passive tone. There's a pickup pan, but as expected, phasing effects happen when two adjacent pickups are blended: the result is an ultra-modern tone that's interesting, but I doubt I'll use it much.
Playability: again, love the satin/nearly-bare finish on the back of the neck! Profile is nearly perfect! Fingerboard radius seems flatter than Sadowsky... not saying that's an improvement, but I love it. Fretwork and intonation are as perfect as I've encountered, even way up the neck on the B string, even when playing chords.
The only negative (a slight one) is that action gets a smidge higher than I like above the 12th fret, but I'm sure that can be corrected easily. Oh... a note on Elfin vs. Elfin Plus: the Plus has Fender-style ergonomics, which means you don't have to reach farther out when playing down near the nut as you do with Spectors and some other 24-fretters! However that also means that you have to reach in over your body to access the highest frets. Also, the heel partially restricts access to those highest frets. No big deal to me, I have never cared about 24 frets, it was not on my mind when I chose this bass, and I can reach the highest frets if I have to. Just mentioning it for those who want easier access way up there -- and if you do, the scaled down Elfin is the one to get.
I know I'm overlooking some stuff but it's late and I need to post pics. Further thoughts later... first gig will be Saturday evening, can't wait!
Marshall Perry's quick snap of his Dakota Red Plus (front) next to my Pearl
My own cell phone pics, hurriedly taken (had a dinner date):
Closeup of Luminlays and EVO fretwire. The EVO wire is harder than nickel (not as hard as SS), and has an attractive gold hue throughout (NOT plated)
Charged Luminlays indoors -- moderately lighted room
Zero fret!
Specs:
Elfin Plus five string singlecut
Alder body (pearl red)
Maple neck and fretboard (light vintage tint)
Luminlay glow-in-the-dark side dots
34.5" scale - default
EVO fretwire - recommended upgrade
Pickups: both Nordstrand. Reverse P (neck), MM-style (bridge)
Aguilar OBP-1 preamp
Rotary controls: Master volume, Pickup blend, Passive tone, Treble, Bass
Push/pull switches: preamp bypass, series/parallel for MM pickup
My other 6 basses are 5-string P-bass variants so this bass is unique to me in a number of ways: singlecut, black hardware, 24 frets, angled headstock. Even though it's a singlecut I didn't want the boutique look so I went with painted body and non-figured maple board.
Q: Why this make and model?
A: I'm not normally a singlecut guy, but the elegant Elfin Plus design caught my eye. I also like the original Elfin (the nonplussed version, so to speak
), but the upsized Plus has Fender-style ergonomics and balance which is important to me. I first asked TalkBasser Marshall Perry about his Elfins, and then discussed options and pricing with Martin himself. It was super-easy to come up with a reasonably-priced build that included all the specs features I wanted, so I decided to pull the trigger as soon as my finances were order. I forgot to spend much time thinking about color, but I liked Marshall's Dakota Red bass so much that I went with red pearl (didn't want to be a complete copycat).Q: How was the ordering experience?
A: I dealt with Martin directly throughout. Aside from the painting he's an army of one! Martin's a consummate professional: quick to respond to all inquiries. Progress on this order was so fast, I pinged him only once (unnecessarily) for an update. Any time there was news he delivered it promptly. I'm grateful for his attention to detail: he made sure every parameter was approved by me, even a few I'd overlooked. He also added a couple of perks to the order. Best example: the bass was originally supposed to have just one push/pull pot (series/parallel for the MM pickup), however Martin threw in a push/pull preamp bypass control for free because that way both EQ controls would use identical potentiometers, and therefore have the same feel and taper. As I said, details! Also, he was fastidious about shielding the instrument, and put some shaped wood blocks inside the P-bass pickup cover so it wouldn't feel hollow.
Q: Cut to the chase: what about the instrument itself?
A: It's getting late, so as quickly as I can: I'm thrilled. She has amazingly sexy curves, and looks. Pearl red is not CAR: it can look similar in photos (especially w/flash), but in person under ambient light it's muted/iridescent rather than metallic. I was happy to see (I'd forgotten!) that the fretboard and headstock face have a gloss finish, but the back of the neck is incredibly sexy satin... it almost feels like bare wood, which I love! This bass is not chambered, but even so it has a slimmed-down body and headstock, so it only weighs a little bit more than my chambered alder Sadowskys. Ergonomics are excellent.
Tone: reverse P is significantly different than standard P, but I already have some standard P-basses and I was looking for something different/modern. Reverse P gives more growl to the BEA strings, more depth to the DG -- a more modern tone IMO, I can see why many prefer it. The Music Man pickup has fabulous growl and zing, and series mode gives it more output and punch. Love the Aggie preamp (boost only treble/bass). I also added a passive tone. There's a pickup pan, but as expected, phasing effects happen when two adjacent pickups are blended: the result is an ultra-modern tone that's interesting, but I doubt I'll use it much.
Playability: again, love the satin/nearly-bare finish on the back of the neck! Profile is nearly perfect! Fingerboard radius seems flatter than Sadowsky... not saying that's an improvement, but I love it. Fretwork and intonation are as perfect as I've encountered, even way up the neck on the B string, even when playing chords.
The only negative (a slight one) is that action gets a smidge higher than I like above the 12th fret, but I'm sure that can be corrected easily. Oh... a note on Elfin vs. Elfin Plus: the Plus has Fender-style ergonomics, which means you don't have to reach farther out when playing down near the nut as you do with Spectors and some other 24-fretters! However that also means that you have to reach in over your body to access the highest frets. Also, the heel partially restricts access to those highest frets. No big deal to me, I have never cared about 24 frets, it was not on my mind when I chose this bass, and I can reach the highest frets if I have to. Just mentioning it for those who want easier access way up there -- and if you do, the scaled down Elfin is the one to get.
I know I'm overlooking some stuff but it's late and I need to post pics. Further thoughts later... first gig will be Saturday evening, can't wait!
Marshall Perry's quick snap of his Dakota Red Plus (front) next to my Pearl
My own cell phone pics, hurriedly taken (had a dinner date):
Closeup of Luminlays and EVO fretwire. The EVO wire is harder than nickel (not as hard as SS), and has an attractive gold hue throughout (NOT plated)
Charged Luminlays indoors -- moderately lighted room
Zero fret!
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