New Standard Basses

New Standard Bass Review (in two parts)

Part One

In the market of “affordable” basses, there is a great deal of competition among bass-makers to produce basses that sell at or just below certain price points. Those price points appear to be $2,000, $3,500, and $5,000. At each price point, makers are challenged to balance certain cost saving compromises with the need to produce an instrument of suitable quality. The three criteria of quality are: workmanship, playability, and tone. Keep in mind that all compromises are not detrimental to the final product, but may help a maker lower its cost and therefore enable it to offer a bass at the targeted price point. Other compromises however are unacceptable robbing the instrument of tone and playability.

At the $2,000 price point, there are numerous laminated, hybrid, and carved basses available from China, Korea, and Eastern Europe. Many are sold through reputable luthiers who have worked closely with a maker to design or improve on a maker’s design resulting in a decent beginning student bass. While there are new basses available today for as little as $600 or $700, it seems that for a decent instrument, one must approach the $2,000 price point and purchase from a reputable luthier. That said, fierce competition in this range has pushed prices of basses as low as $1,300. As a result, the overall quality at the $2,000 price point has suffered a bit from more unacceptable compromises made by some makers. Often the student walks out of a luthier’s shop saying “well, its better than no bass at all….” But, for most beginning students, this is the price point at which one begins and often, the student is not detrimentally affected by the compromises made until later in his or her playing career. Working with a good luthier is absolutely necessary to get a good bass which will be serviceable for the serious student for a couple of years in this range. A good luthier will not only work closely with the maker but will then properly set-up the bass for the student.

When one is able to afford a bass at the $3,500 price point, there is sometimes not much improvement in the overall quality or sound of a new instrument. Although, in the case of a fully laminated bass, some of the compromises may be less, what this range seems to offer is more carved and hybrid basses over fully laminated basses. When introducing the intense labor necessary for a fully carved bass or even a hybrid bass with its carved top, additional compromises must be made in order to stay within the price point. Most of the basses in these two ranges are the same Chinese, Koprean, and Eastern European basses in the $2,000 range with the upgrade of aa carved top or carved top and back.

In both the $2,000 and $3,500 range, makers compromise on wood quality, workmanship, or combinations thereof. Some bass-makers are using green wood which doesn’t produce good tone and often leads to warping, cracking, splitting, and opening of joints as the wood cures. Other makers employ cheap low-skilled labor resulting in instruments which are difficult to play or sound good or do not hold up well over years of use.

At $5,000, we begin to see a few good new basses. Wilfer (Germany) for example produces a good entry-level bass at this range. Shen (China) is another maker who is producing some good basses at this range. These two makers and a few others are making some intelligent compromises to produce very playable and good-sounding instruments at affordable prices.

Also, starting in the $3,500 and $5,000 price ranges, are many older basses available which can sound good. At around $3,500 (sometimes as low as $2,500 or sometimes as high as $5,000 depending on the condition) one can sometimes find a good Kay bass which may have been made in the ‘50s or ‘60s and is still in good condition. Kays are fully laminated basses and are much adored by bassists, especially jazz bassists. They are well made, durable, and amplify and record well. In addition to the Kays, Kings and Clevelands were popular and well-made during the same time period (and perhaps the same factory) and are also available at this range, as are some older carved basses if one looks hard enough.

Speaking of the Kay bass, there are a couple of guys who are very fond of the old American-made instruments and have taken the time to develop a process to produce new instruments in the style of Kays at a very affordable price. Luthier Arnold Schnitzer and Importer Wil de Sola together created a design reminiscent of these old American-made instruments and then sourced the materials and labor necessary to produce the New Standard Bass. Driven by the need for a good bass at the $3,500 and $5,000 price points and their fondness of the old American-made basses, it seems they got the balance of costs saving and quality just right. The system they developed consists of licensing their design to a German maker then working with the maker to employ good quality woods and skilled craftsmen. White bass bodies and necks are then imported to Arnold’s shop where the basses are assembled and finished then set-up by Arnold’s skilled hand producing a very playable and very good sounding instrument.

New Standard offers two models of two different designs which fit squarely into the $3,500 and $5,000 price ranges. The Cleveland model is modeled after the American Standard bass and features a 42” string length, broad shoulders, and a big sound. It is available in both fully laminated ($3,650) and a hybrid model ($5,150). The La Scala model is an Itlaian design with violin corners and sloping shoulders and a shorter string length (41½”) and has a more focused sound with more definition and growl. The La Scala is also offered in fully laminated and hybrid versions ($3,850 and $5,300 respectively). When I played both basses in laminated and hybrid at the ISB convention in Richmond I was so impressed I purchased a fully laminated flatback La Scala model. At the convention I was also able to play many other basses offered in the $3,500 and $5,000 price ranges and found the New Standard basses to be superior overall.


For more information see

AES Fine Instruments
New Standard Bass

 

Part Two

New Standard Bass Review


In the couple of weeks that I have had the bass, I continue to be very impressed with the overall quality of the bass. The workmanship is very good, the bass is very playable, and the tone is very good indeed. New Standard begins with a good design but in reaching its goal to stay within the price targets, employs a few but intelligent compromises in construction. First, good European wood is used which has been properly cured and laminated. A very pretty spruce veneer is used for the top and a nice maple veneer is used on the back giving the instrument beautiful look reminiscent of a fully carved instrument (no compromises here). Most importantly, the wood resonates well and produces a warm, woody tone. The ribs are true maple ribs not laminated (no compromises here). The neck is carved out of good quality piece of maple and the carving of peg box has some nice character to it. The neck feels good in the hand and is very playable. The fingerboard is ebony and has sufficient thickness to allow proper dressing by the luthier (the only compromise here is a less than perfectly straight-grained piece of ebony which the player will never feel). A boxwood tailpiece is used which is stained black and matches very nicely with the ebony (a good costs saving here which is again unnoticeable to the player).

Second, good European workmanship is employed to laminate the veneers, bend the ribs, carve the neck, and assemble the body. All of the joints on the body are well made and finished and the “f” holes are nicely cut and shaped. The top and back have nicely done inlaid purfling and inside, proper cross members are set and the bass bar is properly fitted and attached to the top (no compromise here).

Third, and perhaps the most important, upon arrival at Arnold’s shop in Brewster NY (AES Fine Insturments), the process continues with one of the best luthiers around. Great attention to detail is paid to attaching the neck, endpin, and fingerboard. Wil then applies a very nice oil-based varnish to the body and pegbox while the neck is finished with an oil finish. Finally, Arnold dresses the fingerboard, sets the tailpiece, tuners, strings, bridge and soundpost and puts his finishing touches on the set-up. This last step by my measure is where the greatest attention to detail is paid and where the most beneficial effect is realized by the musician. Arnold’s set-up is without compromise and near perfect. The rounded fingerboard is well dressed with the right amount of scoop adjusted to my playing style. The action is set to the desired height and is adjustable up or down by the adjustable bridge. The bridge is of good quality maple and is shaped perfectly for bowing and pizzacato playing styles. The spacing between the strings is uniform from string to string and allows easy bowing from string to string. The fit of the bridge to the top is flawless.

A very serviceable endpin is provided which locks and stay in place well. The tuners are set in the French style which reduces the sharp angle of the E string over the nut. Tuners are of good quality and are easy to tune.

My bass is strung with Tomastik Spirocores and has lots of sustain and growl. The sonority of the sound from string to string is even and consistent both when bowing and pizz’ing. Each note rings clearly with a nice woody full sound. The tone on the upper register is clear and pure while the low notes sound warm and full. The bass has a nice tight but loud sound which blossoms to fill the room. The bass amplifies well too.

The fully laminated models compare well to some carved basses I played in the $5,000 range while the hybrid models easily compare to and in many cases sound better than basses in the $5,000 range. The craftsmanship of both the hybrids and the laminated models are in line with basses in the $5,000 range and higher. When compared to basses at the $3,500 price point, the fully laminated models exceed other in the range in quality of craftsmanship and tone. To exceed the quality of the New Standard basses, one must jump up to a bass costing $7,500 and higher.

Arnold and Wil have created a very good bass, made only intelligent compromises and ended up with a very good looking, very playable and very good sounding bass at any price point.

For more information see
www.aesbass.com
www.newstandardbass.com

 

All comments welcome. No pride of authorship here and always interested in what others have to say. Even if you said you hated the New Standard, I'd still love mine.