NBD - Metroline

[Old Fart]

This is my first Sadowsky and I can report two things right off the bat:

1) I knew this bass would be good but I am surprised how very good it is (more on this later) and....

2) I can see what a slippery slope this is. Lots of folks own Sadowskys and some have owned several of them or more and I can see how this might happen. I have a Fender I'll probably never get rid of but otherwise I think I am in great danger of becoming a Bass Snob.

Alright, let's get down to business: I had only held a Sadowsky once and just very briefly and this one gave me an immediate joyful experience I was not expecting. This is one of the slipperiest necks I have experienced. It's a satiny finish that doesn't really feel like it has any finish on it. It feels like an oil finish with perhaps a touch of gun/furniture polish. The slipperiest necks I have seen are old Fenders with the finish simply worn off, good oil finishes and this bass. Not necessarily in that order.

I'm going to have to learn more about the finish on this neck and how to take very good care of it. It practically plays itself. VERY smooth. The opposite of a gloss poly finish. I am very pleased by this surprise.

Tone-wise I have only just started working with it but I can see it will make all the sounds I need. No question about that.

Best fret work I have ever seen. Ends are rounded, frets are shiny and perfect. Super low action, no buzzing.

Hats off to Roger and his extended team for building arguably the best basses in the business.

 

[Old Fart]

Whoa! I got this bass for a dance band that will play more modern stuff, so I needed the fifth string and the modern tone would work better than my beloved P-Bass with La Bella 760FL and Pure Vintage '63 pickups. Today I am practicing for a couple of hard rock shows tomorrow and Saturday and this bass sounds fantastic! I'm pretty sure I can make it do what I want, tone-wise. Also, I am very impressed with the articulation of this bass. Every note everywhere is perfectly balanced and very solid-sounding. I think this thing will do Judas Priest and AC/DC just fine.

 

[Skystalker512]

I'm a lefthanded bassplayer, and whenever I'm shopping for fretless models on Thomann, Sadowsky has like 9 models. I've never tried one personally, but I know Jason Newsted used them for a while while in Metallica!

 

[Nebadon2000]

Beautiful Bass; I have a Stingray Special I am content with but the Sadowsky Modern Metroline was my first choice but being a 4 string player knowing I am uncomfortable with 1.5 nut width and Stingray was even pushing my budget well..... I may see one in the future

 

[Smooth_bass88]

Looks awesome. how does sound? Can it get some vintage-y tones too?

 

[Old Fart]

Thanks for the info and support. Yes I could have saved some money. I had my eye on a nicer used 8.8-lb Lakland for far less money, but I really wanted the least weight possible. I'm 67 and I play 4-hour shows. Plus this bass is gorgeous, it is a Sadowsky, and etc. I'm really liking it. More punch and articulation than I was expecting from round wound strings. I somewhat expected it to be middy given the placement of that neck pickup and this is a reason I chose this over the Will Smith. I'm a P guy and not a J guy. Well, I was right. This bass cops that muscular low mid that stakes out its territory in the mix.

 

[Old Fart]

Looks awesome. how does sound? Can it get some vintage-y tones too?

Ha! I guess I was typing the answer while you were typing the question. Yes I believe it does, but with what I would call a 'cleaner' tone.

I'm in a hard classic rock band and starting a new casino modern music dance band. I think this thing is going to satisfy both roles and it will be fun to learn what it can do. Great natural tone, and flexible tone options. I also use a WD-800 so I can almost make any bass sound like any other bass. But this thing sounds great with all the WD-800 knobs at 12:00.

 

[Z-Bass]

Awesome! Congrats! That blue with the all maple neck and fingerboard is very classy. I think you'll find the bass to meet your needs, especially in a modern dance band. The band at my brother's wedding a few years ago played the most diverse set I've ever heard and excelled at all of it. Rock, dance, modern pop/hip hop, classic rock, Motown......they did it all. They even played a Rush song (my brother's request for me). The bass player had a Sadowsky Modern, I think his may have been an NYC model. It sounded fantastic and fit in every genre they played. He had one of the most basic setups, no pedalboard or anything. Just straight into an amp/cabinet. Enjoy and please give us an update after you've spent some time with it.

 

[Jazzdogg]

This is my first Sadowsky and I can report two things right off the bat:

1) I knew this bass would be good but I am surprised how very good it is (more on this later) and....

2) I can see what a slippery slope this is. Lots of folks own Sadowskys and some have owned several of them or more and I can see how this might happen. I have a Fender I'll probably never get rid of but otherwise I think I am in great danger of becoming a Bass Snob.

Alright, let's get down to business: I had only held a Sadowsky once and just very briefly and this one gave me an immediate joyful experience I was not expecting. This is one of the slipperiest necks I have experienced. It's a satiny finish that doesn't really feel like it has any finish on it. It feels like an oil finish with perhaps a touch of gun/furniture polish. The slipperiest necks I have seen are old Fenders with the finish simply worn off, good oil finishes and this bass. Not necessarily in that order.

I'm going to have to learn more about the finish on this neck and how to take very good care of it. It practically plays itself. VERY smooth. The opposite of a gloss poly finish. I am very pleased by this surprise.

Tone-wise I have only just started working with it but I can see it will make all the sounds I need. No question about that.

Best fret work I have ever seen. Ends are rounded, frets are shiny and perfect. Super low action, no buzzing.

Hats off to Roger and his extended team for building arguably the best basses in the business.

I've never touched one. How much of an adjustment is boost-only EQ?

 

[Old Fart]

... It sounded fantastic and fit in every genre they played.....Just straight into an amp/cabinet.... please give us an update after you've spent some time with it.

There will be periodic reports. No pedalboard for me, just a Shure GLXD6+ wireless system.

I've never touched one. How much of an adjustment is boost-only EQ?

Excellent question. It's the best active system I have played. Volume appears to be roughly the same whether in passive or active mode. Sounds the same or similar also, with the Treble Boost and Bass Boost knobs rolled all the way back (flat). Sounds great flat. The VTC also works in both active and passive modes. That is a surprise. I suspect I will simply use the Bass Boost just slightly sometimes, for a fatter tone. A little goes a long way with this knob.

 

[Old Fart]

Okay here's another happy surprise: This thing works in passive mode with the battery removed. It can finish a gig with a dead battery. I do not love a system that won't work without the battery.

We're like that, we bass players. We prefer gear that is as reliable as a hammer.

 

[friskinator]

Been looking for a MIJ Metro P for a long time, but they seem to be the rarest of rare. There’s currently one on Reverb listed for $3200, which is crazy.

 

[Cleezmo]

That looks awesome! Congrats and enjoy it!

 

[kesslari]

Ah, you were the guy on the fence between this and the Will Lee. Glad to read that you got this one and love it! Play some great music on it and enjoy.

 

[Old Fart]

Yup, that was me on that fence. Perhaps the WL would have done the trick too, but this Modern sure does.

 

[Old Fart]

Gig Update: I never know how a bass will sound in a mix until I hear it, well....in a mix. This bass sounds fantastic in a mix. On my WD-800 I slightly boosted the low mids, which I do routinely for all basses, even including P-basses. But with other basses, I usually have to tweak other knobs also. Not with this bass.

This band plays hard classic rock (Judas Priest, AC/DC, Metallica, etc.) but also plays some funk and even country.

I usually dismiss active circuits. Actually that's not true. I ALWAYS dismiss active circuits in favor of passive tone. Again, not with this bass. It stayed on "active" all night. And why not, since this bass has a quite neutral tone with both the Bass Boost and the Treble Boost rolled all the way back. From there, I rolled the Bass Boost just a little bit forward and I played with this knob during the night but never rolling it past about 40%.

The Vintage Tone Control is basically an old-fashioned passive tone control except that it continues to work even in active mode. These are the two knobs I played with. VTC and Bass Boost. No other adjustments were necessary.

Here is what I noticed: This bass makes very solid and muscular notes. Articulate. Clear and even-sounding. Hard to explain, I guess. Non-flabby. Just good strong, even notes. The tone sits well in the mix, which I sort of expected given the placement of the neck pickup. I was not expecting the killer growl. In another band startup I am going to play Spiderwebs by No Doubt and this bass is going to nail the substantial growl in that song. Plucking a bit more forward toward the neck heel tames the growl if needed, and also plucking with less force.

This bass was mighty fun to play last night and I am looking seriously forward to tonight.

 

[Old Fart]

I have another observation. I'd guess Roger Sadowsky bristles at the notion his basses are 'boutique.' In my view, that's not what they are. Sure, some (arguably all) Sadowskys are beautiful. But their true beauty is in their function. I'd say this Metroline is a working-man's bass. A professional tool that is built and designed largely if not primarily for functional performance and ease of operation. From the case it comes in to the active preamp, this thing reeks of "form follows function." It is the Porsche of bass guitars. I wonder if Roger comes from German descent.