NBD: RMI Quantum Dominic DiPiazza 6 (by Mark Ramsay)

Dear Fellas & Fellazettes, Homies & Homelettes,

Here is my review of the Quantum Dominic DiPiazza signature bass by RMI!


Back story:

So, a few weeks back, i had a collection of 5 lower budget basses & i felt i had made all the wrong choices. i didn’t feel any sort of « connection » with those instruments, & felt i needed to downsize in terms of numbers, but i also wanted instruments that i wouldn’t have to fight all the time (either when trying to get the best possible set-up or when playing them). I wanted to change everything. i sold my Ibanez TMB30 Mint Green early March, my Squier Classic Vibe Precision 50s LPB when Covid allowed it, and my Vintage V74MRJP ten days ago. My Harley Benton BZ-6000 left two days ago.


While all of this was happening, i found two gems on the second hand market. This is a write-up of the RMI Quantum Dominic DiPiazza (made by Mark Ramsay).


Those instruments are designed & styled in England, then crafted in South Korea with CNC machinery, & then set up & quality assured in England again.


Here are the specs (copied from Ramsay Musical Instruments):

• Width at nut: 50mm | String spacing at bridge: 16mm
• Neck-thru-body construction
• Ebonol - mini line-dot markers with offset side dots
• 7-piece maple/swamp ash laminated neck
• Layered body with solid exotic top - chambered
• Active 3-band EQ with volume (pull for passive) and balance
• Dual-coil humbucking pickups - floating ramp enclosure
• Hi-mass brass hardtail bridge

The bass arrived in very poor condition. Previous owner(s) hadn’t been properly taking care of it, i had to play with the truss rod quite a bit, which i don’t really enjoy, and the string saddles… & man what a pleasure it is to play this thing now!

The active pre-amp offers quite a large variety of possibilities, really versatile. i’ve had the bass for a almost a couple of weeks now & i haven’t touched the knobs on my amp since then. Solid, well defined, low end & really clear higher register, ideal for chordal fun! The scale is 34 inches and the body is chambered: much lighter and easier to play than the Harley Benton BZ-6000. Even the passive mode sounds rich & beautiful. Also let me mention: it still has the strings it came with, i don’t know what they are, but apparently they’ve been there a while (thinking about going LaBella Flats on this beauty).

As U’ll see below, the instrument looks gorgeous, elegant! i had always wanted a single-cut design (my dream basses up until i crossed paths with this one were the Ibanez SRSC806 & the Ibanez BTB846SC DTL, out of reach budget-wise, just like the RMI until i found this one…) & i had never played with a ramp before either. Love both features. There is also a 0 fret, not mentioned on the specs on the website. There is an additional part of the ramp that fits between the one U can see in the pics & the neck, but the seller still has to send it over to me.

The ergonomics & balance of the bass are perfect playing both sitting and standing with a strap. The neck felt like home as soon as i was done with the set up & the cleaning. It says on their website that they are musicians/artists, and the craftsmanship & ergonomics of the bass are a clear reflection of that. i have never built a bass myself, but i have been very tempted for the past 5 years or so (when i started playing bass seriously), but every time i start reading about it, researching woods, watching videos of time-lapse bass builds, i just realise i do not have neither the tools nor the money to even get started. But what i mean by that is that it is OBVIOUS that a lot of research, trial & error & hours of thinking & planning must’ve gone into this instrument.

When i found this bass on the second hand market here in Spain, i must admit i didn’t know who RMI were. U might not know either, so i would encourage U to check out their website as this Quantum model is not even the most spectacular design they have! And apparently, all the technical details of Ur dream instrument can be achieved. It’s all explained in the « About Us » section!

http://www.ramsay-bass.co.uk/about.php

Well, this was my first review ever, i think. i hope i haven’t forgotten anything & i hope U will find this review helpful as there is not much to be read about RMI.

Have a brilliant day!

 

Fanks!! It's my first ramp ever & i like it a lot. I've never been one to dig much, but it does feel nice under the fingerz