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NBD – Warwick Jonas Hellborg

HeavyJazz

HeavyJazz

Supporting Member
Jan 26, 2013
3,597
6,150
Central Virginia
#1
To mark my 25th year as a bassist I just took ownership of a model whose features I believe ‘might’ best support my preferred technique(s). The combination of acoustic ergonomics, electric fundamentals and absence of onboard colorations really intrigued me – not to mention the signature build grade of Warwick’s Custom Shop. This all-in-the-hands instrument wouldn’t suit most, but it integrates most features I’ve come to appreciate in a great bass. I will be applying a thorough setup and some fresh strings before making a fair assessment, but naturally hopes are high.

Contrary to current specifications, this bass does not have the active/passive feature, nor does it have a serial number which suggests it being one of the very first built (circa 2006). Wilfer has also confirmed this suspicion saying it may have been a prototype and/or a show bass. The original owner having purchased it 'new' in 2007 seems to align with this theory.

Technicals:
- Medium 32” scale
- Archtop set neck bass with double cutaway
- Carved hollow body, arched back and top, made of solid Flamed Maple
- Front and back side of the body bound with white celluloid
- A Tigerstripe Ebony fingerboard is glued to the AA Flamed Maple neck.
- Ultralow impedance (20 Hz - 20 kHz) passive singlecoil humcancelling
- Single volume pot

20160909_094219.jpg
 
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#5
HeavyJazz said:
Hope to have it set up some time this weekend. She needs a truss tigtening, saddle adjustments, fret polishing and fingerboard conditioning. The knob is too close to the body which makes me nervous so that will be the first thing I do. I was a little disappointed to learn this was the 'original' JH Model with various revisions having been made over the last 10 years, but I'm getting over it.

She's heavy too - I dig that!
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From what I've heard Jonas is very particular, so no doubt there have been changes made to the model over the last 10 years, but I doubt there have been a whole lot of these made at all, so you're lucky to find one!
 
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#15
shaft311 said:
My apoligies. I didn't see that.

I wonder how many of those he has. The production Hellborg Signature bass has mandolin frets and a zero-fret nut setup.

Jonas splits hairs when it comes to everything bass, so it's not surprising to see him playing something non-standard.
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Back when the hellborg.com site was running, there was a page (with lots of pictures) about his Wechter acoustic. The Wechter was fretless at that point, but Jonas mentioned on the page that if he ever got it fretted again, he would put in the "wiggly" true temperament frets. That was after the Warwick Hellborg model came out, but probably before the current True Temperament one.
 
#16
Correct, he apparently got into the temperment frets from his pal Mattias Ia Eklundh. Steve Vai is also on record saying he was going to switch to them though I don't know if that ever happened. Today's Hellborg model doesn't include or offer these frets so far as I know. In other 'changes', there are some web pics of his p/u showing exposed pole pieces, but I never saw any variances in the spec listed anywhere. Maybe it was hotter given his preference to passvise (?) - no idea. I will say that as an owner of the original design now for over a month, a hotter signal isn't even a concern with the nature of boost the Effectrode PC-2A offers. Such a dynamic instrument.

And since somebody brought up his famous Wechter model, pictured below are the three stages Abe did for him between the late 80s to probably somewhere in the ballpark of 2005 (from the fan page that's been down for awhile now):

RomanBass.jpg
 
#17
I believe he also said that the original bubinga back was replaced with a maple arched back at some point, as well.

HeavyJazz said:
Correct, he apparently got into the temperment frets from his pal Mattias Ia Eklundh. Steve Vai is also on record saying he was going to switch to them though I don't know if that ever happened. Today's Hellborg model doesn't include or offer these frets so far as I know. In other 'changes', there are some web pics of his p/u showing exposed pole pieces, but I never saw any variances in the spec listed anywhere. Maybe it was hotter given his preference to passvise (?) - no idea. I will say that as an owner of the original design now for over a month, a hotter signal isn't even a concern with the nature of boost the Effectrode PC-2A offers. Such a dynamic instrument.

And since somebody brought up his famous Wechter model, pictured below are the three stages Abe did for him between the late 80s to probably somewhere in the ballpark of 2005 (from the fan page that's been down for awhile now):

View attachment 878524
Click to expand...
 

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