• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Ordered a custom bass, 15 mo's later...still don't have it.

#304
It's been over a month... still no sign of the OP and still no responses from Halo. At least the OP hasn't been here, we all know Halo saw the questions in the thread.

I'm just bumping this so I can find it again easily, sorry if I got anybody's hopes up for a resolution. I am curious to see how this ends.
 
#305
20161108_181957.jpg

20161108_182116.jpg
20161108_182013.jpg
SRFF805_BKS_1P_01_CU_Body_Top.jpg

This is what I wanted it to look like.

Well everyone, I got the bass some months back and I wanted to take some time to really give it a proper go before I reviewed it. Another member indicated that they have also been waiting for their build, getting similar responses from Halo. So I thought it was time to post my upate.
Let's start with the pros: The build feels very solid, and the fretwork is good. Definitely not haphazardly town together. It's probably the heaviest bass in my collection. Ash body. As for the tone, I wasn't thrilled right away, but that could change. It seemed a bit dark and sort of compressed. Tonight I gave it a good run and thought it sounded better. Great sustain. Definitely not good for funk or soul, but probably good for metal. I can do some sound samples of yall would like.

Now for the cons: The first thing was the paint job. As compensation for having to wait so long, Halo offered me free upgrades. I choose a paint job. Originally I was going to just have natural ash, but I thought I would take advantage of their offer and get a nice trans-gray color. I even sent a pic of what I wanted. See above. The result looks like an amatuer spray painted it. With a light coat of gray over it, it looks tan, and you can just barely make out the wood grain. This actually makes me not want to play it. I should have just left it natural. Next, the neck pickup is a little weak. Kind of washed-out sounding. At least the bridge pickup is loud and clear. This isnt really Halos fault though, since I choose the pickups. The action is ok, there's some buzzing going on, but it hasn't had a professional setup. Other than these things it's not a bad bass by any means.

I conclusion, I will give it some more time and hope I form a connection to it. Who knows, I may eventually start to really like it. I will say one thing, I gave them specific measurements and dimensions, and they did a great job of following my instructions and meeting that criteria.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DiabolusInMusic and Jeff Elkins
#306
Glad to hear that you finally receive your bass. Looks not that great for a 2000$ bass IMO tho.
If I were you I would have returned the bass for them to refinish it. There's nothing similar in the finish you want & what they sent you.
 
#307
hoangduong212 said:
Glad to hear that you finally receive your bass. Looks not that great for a 2000$ bass IMO tho.
If I were you I would have returned the bass for them to refinish it. There's nothing similar in the finish you want & what they sent you.
Click to expand...
But that would start another 15 month countdown...best to take a loss on a sale or maybe refinish locally, I'd say. Good luck, Bob
 
  • Like
Reactions: hoangduong212 and shal1234
#308
bobcruz said:
But that would start another 15 month countdown...best to take a loss on a sale or maybe refinish locally, I'd say. Good luck, Bob
Click to expand...
I never thought of having it refinished locally. If I end up liking the bass then I might do that, depending on how much it is. The paint is so thin I could probably sand it off myself. But getting it smooth and putting a finish on it might be out of my league. Thanks
 
#309
shal1234 said:
The action is ok, there's some buzzing going on, but it hasn't had a professional setup.
Click to expand...

Aaaaah shouldn't it have come already set up? Seems to me that if you spend a couple of thousand on a Bass it should come ready to play.

I got a custom a few months ago and I've already been back for a slight tweak, free of charge, because that's how it should be. That's just good customer service. Something that the guys at Halo don't seem to know much about.

Like @hoangduong212 said send it back, it's not what you ordered. After that long a wait and not getting what I ordered I'd be after a refund.
 
#310
I understand that the finish is not what you wanted and I agree it is nothing like the example you asked them to match... but I like it! I am a fan of the subtle, sort of white-washed effect. I think the bass looks very classy.
 
#311
I hate to be a naysayer, but you could have done a lot better for 2g than that. You could have done better for 1g with an off the shelf bass. The finish work that I could see in the pics looked like crap. Halo should be embarrised to call this a custom bass. If that is a close as they can come to the finish you wanted. Stevie Wonder must be working in their paint shop, I think this thread and picks just killed Halo s chances of a profitable custom shop. Sorry for your bad dealings and bass and hope you can make the best of it. Sell it off and buy the bass that is pictured below it if that is what you like. Looks sharp to me and wouldn t take close to 2 years to get to you.
 
#312
So 2 years wait for a $2000 bolt on 4 string with a grey plastidip paint job?

In your OP photos it shows the bass has a natural finish. It appears they had already put a clear coat on your natural finish, then when you opted for grey they painted the trans grey directly over the clear coat rather than taking it back down to woodgrain so the grey paint is sitting on top giving it that rubber look. What a joke :laugh:

Halo has some cool options on their website but it's obvious there are some major shortcoming once in the shop.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: shal1234
#313
snarebear said:
I hate to be a naysayer, but you could have done a lot better for 2g than that. You could have done better for 1g with an off the shelf bass. The finish work that I could see in the pics looked like crap. Halo should be embarrised to call this a custom bass. If that is a close as they can come to the finish you wanted. Stevie Wonder must be working in their paint shop, I think this thread and picks just killed Halo s chances of a profitable custom shop. Sorry for your bad dealings and bass and hope you can make the best of it. Sell it off and buy the bass that is pictured below it if that is what you like. Looks sharp to me and wouldn t take close to 2 years to get to you.
Click to expand...

Indeed, what a waste of money for the OP...sorry to hear, man...damn! I chose the off-the-shelf route on a few Japanese ESPs, and a Bacchus...all I can say, is WOW.
 
#314
shal1234 said:
View attachment 985288
View attachment 985289 View attachment 985290 View attachment 985291
This is what I wanted it to look like.

Well everyone, I got the bass some months back and I wanted to take some time to really give it a proper go before I reviewed it. Another member indicated that they have also been waiting for their build, getting similar responses from Halo. So I thought it was time to post my upate.
Let's start with the pros: The build feels very solid, and the fretwork is good. Definitely not haphazardly town together. It's probably the heaviest bass in my collection. Ash body. As for the tone, I wasn't thrilled right away, but that could change. It seemed a bit dark and sort of compressed. Tonight I gave it a good run and thought it sounded better. Great sustain. Definitely not good for funk or soul, but probably good for metal. I can do some sound samples of yall would like.

Now for the cons: The first thing was the paint job. As compensation for having to wait so long, Halo offered me free upgrades. I choose a paint job. Originally I was going to just have natural ash, but I thought I would take advantage of their offer and get a nice trans-gray color. I even sent a pic of what I wanted. See above. The result looks like an amatuer spray painted it. With a light coat of gray over it, it looks tan, and you can just barely make out the wood grain. This actually makes me not want to play it. I should have just left it natural. Next, the neck pickup is a little weak. Kind of washed-out sounding. At least the bridge pickup is loud and clear. This isnt really Halos fault though, since I choose the pickups. The action is ok, there's some buzzing going on, but it hasn't had a professional setup. Other than these things it's not a bad bass by any means.

I conclusion, I will give it some more time and hope I form a connection to it. Who knows, I may eventually start to really like it. I will say one thing, I gave them specific measurements and dimensions, and they did a great job of following my instructions and meeting that criteria.
Click to expand...

Thanks for coming back and finally posting an update. It is a shame it had to go so poorly for you but at least others will know not to deal with Halo.
 
  • Like
Reactions: GregC, snarebear and 2cooltoolz
#320
bobcruz said:
But that would start another 15 month countdown...best to take a loss on a sale or maybe refinish locally, I'd say. Good luck, Bob
Click to expand...

+1 on that. You've already exhibited far more patience than I could muster up. I've had probably a dozen custom builds and NEVER experienced anything like you experienced. Mine have been very enjoyable (mostly Roscoe's) and never took more than 5 months.

As for the issues (cons) that stated, I'd get a local tech to check the wiring and the neck pickup. I suspect that issue could be corrected fairly easily. The buzzing that you describe probably does indicate that it needs a good setup and maybe the frets leveled properly. As for a refinish, I'd wait until you love everything else about the bass before I put any more money into the bass (cosmetically).

At least you finally got a bass from them!:)
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back