This is an early-issue NXT. It has the upgraded stand, but a regular volume control- no Jackpot.
I had to drive a total of 700 miles under threat of snow flurries to pick it up from Sudbury on Saturday, but the low asking price made it too good to pass up!
Busy weekend, so I haven't had a lot of time with it. Still, from my experience so far, this ranks as one of the best used instruments I've ever bought.
Here are my notes:
Input impedance:
The passive piezo system tolerates mismatches surprisingly well. It doesn't sound all that bad plugged into the 25K line inputs on my mixer. With the arco/pizz switch down, the tone control backed off and bass boost on the mixer, it sounds at least as good (and far more authentically Upright), compared to a Kala U-bass.
Still, it likes higher impedance. Through my G-K heads (1Meg input), the low end has a LOT more volume and harmonic content. The treble is smoother as well.
I tried turning the Comp knob all the way down on my Diamond Bass Compressor to use as a buffer (10Meg), and it sounds great good through that, too.
Through my AudioKinesis Thunderchild cab (basically a PA monitor with tighter, better low end), pizz pretty much sounds like an upright, but with more sustain. Standing almost on top of the cab, I can crank it pretty hard before feedback.
Gotta dig out the cheap fiberglass bow I bought for my homemade EUB years ago!
Strings:
Stock NS, 6 years old but with relatively little play time on them.
As a total noob coming over from electric bass, I like the relatively low tension.
Perhaps they've just aged well as they stretched out, but I'm not hearing the treble emphasis that others have complained about.
I'm still wondering how my Spirocores would sound on it, but at the moment, I'm inclined to leave it as-is. The sustain is roughly half-way between my electric basses and an upright. I will experiment with putting foam at the bridge before deciding if a need a thumpier string.
Fingerboard/action/finish:
The former owner says that the bass has never been touched- stock strings and no action adjustments. If so, this one was set up a little on the high side. Mwah is mostly limited to a spot around the octave position on the G string.
Overall, the sunburst matte finish was nicely applied, and the instrument seems like a quality piece. However, the back of the neck felt a little gritty, with a couple of inclusions. Also, northern winters had done their work over the years- the board was dry, and had shrunk just enough that the position markers protruded.
I lightly dressed and polished the fingerboard and the finish on the back of the neck, using 800 through 2000 grit polishing paper.
It turns out that under the stain, the fingerboard was made of nice, even ebony with a slight brownish tint to it. After a light oiling, it looks great. I like the look, and won't bother to re-ink it.
While the neck and FB feel wonderful after a bit of TLC, the buzz is still there on the G string. I tried raising the treble side of the bridge a bit, but it needs more work.
Before I decide on next steps, I'll experiment with the truss rod, and check the fingerboard for flatness in that area.
Tuners:
Takes and holds a tune nicely with the stock tuning machines. Not a lot of play, and the nut is nicely cut.
However, while loosening the strings to clean the fingerboard, I noticed that the E string tuner has a grind in it, as though the gears are nearing end of life. I've put a set of 2 by 2 import Hipshots on my wish list.
Stand:
The retaining bolt is a little sticky when attaching the bass to the stand. Some copper-based anti seize and a washer under the C-clip should take care of that.
There's no noticeable flex in the legs or column. However, the roll pin that normally attaches the tilt head to the top of the column is missing. I replaced it with a cotter pin, but there's still enough play that the bass rocks back and forth.
It's kind of annoying, so I will shim the joint and add another pin (or maybe steel pop rivets) to get it nice and firm.
I had to drive a total of 700 miles under threat of snow flurries to pick it up from Sudbury on Saturday, but the low asking price made it too good to pass up!
Busy weekend, so I haven't had a lot of time with it. Still, from my experience so far, this ranks as one of the best used instruments I've ever bought.
Here are my notes:
Input impedance:
The passive piezo system tolerates mismatches surprisingly well. It doesn't sound all that bad plugged into the 25K line inputs on my mixer. With the arco/pizz switch down, the tone control backed off and bass boost on the mixer, it sounds at least as good (and far more authentically Upright), compared to a Kala U-bass.
Still, it likes higher impedance. Through my G-K heads (1Meg input), the low end has a LOT more volume and harmonic content. The treble is smoother as well.
I tried turning the Comp knob all the way down on my Diamond Bass Compressor to use as a buffer (10Meg), and it sounds great good through that, too.
Through my AudioKinesis Thunderchild cab (basically a PA monitor with tighter, better low end), pizz pretty much sounds like an upright, but with more sustain. Standing almost on top of the cab, I can crank it pretty hard before feedback.
Gotta dig out the cheap fiberglass bow I bought for my homemade EUB years ago!
Strings:
Stock NS, 6 years old but with relatively little play time on them.
As a total noob coming over from electric bass, I like the relatively low tension.
Perhaps they've just aged well as they stretched out, but I'm not hearing the treble emphasis that others have complained about.
I'm still wondering how my Spirocores would sound on it, but at the moment, I'm inclined to leave it as-is. The sustain is roughly half-way between my electric basses and an upright. I will experiment with putting foam at the bridge before deciding if a need a thumpier string.
Fingerboard/action/finish:
The former owner says that the bass has never been touched- stock strings and no action adjustments. If so, this one was set up a little on the high side. Mwah is mostly limited to a spot around the octave position on the G string.
Overall, the sunburst matte finish was nicely applied, and the instrument seems like a quality piece. However, the back of the neck felt a little gritty, with a couple of inclusions. Also, northern winters had done their work over the years- the board was dry, and had shrunk just enough that the position markers protruded.
I lightly dressed and polished the fingerboard and the finish on the back of the neck, using 800 through 2000 grit polishing paper.
It turns out that under the stain, the fingerboard was made of nice, even ebony with a slight brownish tint to it. After a light oiling, it looks great. I like the look, and won't bother to re-ink it.
While the neck and FB feel wonderful after a bit of TLC, the buzz is still there on the G string. I tried raising the treble side of the bridge a bit, but it needs more work.
Before I decide on next steps, I'll experiment with the truss rod, and check the fingerboard for flatness in that area.
Tuners:
Takes and holds a tune nicely with the stock tuning machines. Not a lot of play, and the nut is nicely cut.
However, while loosening the strings to clean the fingerboard, I noticed that the E string tuner has a grind in it, as though the gears are nearing end of life. I've put a set of 2 by 2 import Hipshots on my wish list.
Stand:
The retaining bolt is a little sticky when attaching the bass to the stand. Some copper-based anti seize and a washer under the C-clip should take care of that.
There's no noticeable flex in the legs or column. However, the roll pin that normally attaches the tilt head to the top of the column is missing. I replaced it with a cotter pin, but there's still enough play that the bass rocks back and forth.
It's kind of annoying, so I will shim the joint and add another pin (or maybe steel pop rivets) to get it nice and firm.
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