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Pedulla Pentabuzz owners give me your observations

steve4765630

steve4765630

Feb 27, 2006
661
50
www.myspace.com
#1
I have played many a fretless bass in my career and can honestly say that Pedulla Pentabuzz is the best sounding and playing on the market. I am thinking about trading in a bunch of my basses to get one. For those of you who own them, I'd like to hear what your experiences have been. Good or bad, I want it all. How do the fingerboards hold up? How often do the necks shift? Have you had any electronic problems? Anything would be helpful. I just can't get over the tone! I have to have one, so please burst my G.A.S. bubble if you think I shouldn't. Thanks, Steve
 
#3
I've owned three, and actually like my Fender Jaco a little better. But my biggest issue is subjective, I think a fingerboard with less finnish seems to have more growl. As far as problems Mike builds a GREAT bass. The finnish on the bodies holds up as good as any glossy finnish I've seen. The finnish on the fingerboard will hold up provided you use nickel strings. The electronics are superb (Bartolini) and seem to match the bass well. The fit and finnish is as quality as any on the market. Pedulla still a small company, Mike still answers the phone and stands behind his product.

The only issue to check for is they switched to a double truss rod system sometime in the mid nineties and some of the basses made before that had some neck twist issues. On a used one it should have showed up by now. The other thing I have noticed is they are sensitive to weather change. Because you want the action adjusted low on a frettless to get the maximum growl I found myself adjusting the neck on mine about six times a year. This may not be a problem if you live in a more stable climate area then MI where it can be seventy one day and your shoveling snow the next! Mike does provide excellent service, stands behind his product, and for a nominal fee, would be willing to do a once over on a used instrument.
 
#4
I've owned a Buzz 4 for a couple of years. It's an incredible instrument. It definitely has a unique "singing" voice. I bought mine new, and I've never had any problems. As far as the neck goes, I have only had to adjust it a few times (seasonal changes). There are different pup configurations (p/j, j/j, soapbar), but Mike recommends the p/j. He doesn't update his web site as often as others, but there's a lot of good info on there. I happen to live less than an hour from Mike's shop. I also own a Thunderbolt, and I've been to visit him twice for setups. It's a very small shop, but Mike is really committed to building the best possible instruments and his reputation for customer service is second to none. You can't go wrong with a Pedulla, imho.

Here's a pic of mine...

(AAA/Light gold/black hardware)
 

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#5
This is mine a Pentabuzz from '95 with the old bartolini preamp TC-4. Mine has a really worn fingerboard coating, which you can see that it's almost worn through, and in some spots it is. Still I can't hear it when I play it, the bass sounds fantastic all over the neck. Best fretless I have played :)

Pedulla.gif
 
#6
I have a 93 Pentabuzz and I'd agree with your assessment, however the standard Bart pups don't do the midrange of the bass any justice at all. So I put in Alembic Activators and boy what a difference!!

There's loads more growl and sparkle. Playing with stereo chorus is just gawjus and the bass is so responsive at performance volumes on stage that it starts to feedback slightly resulting in oodles of sustain. Its a magical experience, almost surreal.

I can't fault the construction either - its flawless, especially the neck. I can lower the action to a gnats wing above the fingerboard with no buzz at all.

The only criticisms I'd make of mine still are

1) Because its an all maple bass, the B string can lack authority but it still sounds good on a recording. The Alembic pickups help the B string though.

2) Its a little too bright for mellow music even with the tone Q filter turned back. Thats no reason to dislike it though.

I'm not saying Activators are the only option either, I think EMG's might help in the same way too. The neck doesn't shift a lot because all Pentabuzzes/MVPs have steel reinforcing bars inlaid into the neck. The fingerboard was almost markless when I got the bass and because I use rounds with it, its starting to show a little wear on the fingerboard but I think there's loads of life left in it yet after owning and gigging with it on a casual basis for 2 years
 
#7
The Pedulla fretless bass are indeed awesome. I've owned both 4 and 5 string models. They've certainly earned the term "Buzz" bass!
I will have to say though, the Roscoe 3005 with the Diamondwood fingerboard is equally as nice and IMO is a much better looking instrument. Plus, I really prefer the diamondwood fingerboard over the epoxied FB.
 
#9
I bought a Pedulla Hexa buzz(6 string version of the buzz)new in 92 and it's one of the best fretless Basses I have ever owned,it has two Bart single J's and a Bart pre,it came with the clear coated fb but after about 8 years of playing it I had the clear coating removed(I prefer the growl and feel of round wounds on a natural gaboon ebony fb)Mike Pedulla makes a great Bass and he has some of the best consistency in quality that you can come across.

I have never had any type of issue ever with my Pedulla Hexa Buzz.
 
#11
Actually, you have made a good call. I don't think there IS a better fretless than Pedulla. Fit, finish, reliability, everything is top notch. Yes, you will pay for them, but they are worth their price. I am on my 4th Pedulla right now. The fingerboards hold up well to nickle roundwounds. They will give you so much growl it's obscene!! Your biggest decision is pickups and color. I have had the soapbar, JJ, and PJ setup. Currently I have the PJ, but would have personally preferred the JJ setup. After playing this one I just HAD to have it regardless of what pickups were in it. With the newer Pentabuzz and all buzz basses you can also get them like mine with an unlined fingerboard. They don't get much sweeter!!
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#12
I had a pentabuzz from the early 90's. I did have some issues with the finish. I was on tour and made a drastic climate change going from the cold dry north to the humid warm south and the finish started buckling up. I called Pedulla and they had me send it back and they totally redid the finish for free. I loved that bass and I really miss it. I always have an eye out for a buzz bass since I'm mainly a four string player now. Mine was a P/J version. You can hear a clip of it here >>>>> Invalid Link Removed

The recording is really dated sounding since it's from the early 90's and we were young. The singer is Patrice Pike from this season of RockStar:SuperNova.
 
#14
masmasbasso said:
I had a pentabuzz from the early 90's. I did have some issues with the finish. I was on tour and made a drastic climate change going from the cold dry north to the humid warm south and the finish started buckling up.
Click to expand...

That's a very common issue with lots of basses with thinner finishes. Pedulla were very kind to you.
 
#18
I have a great Pentabuzz with JJ pickups that is superb and my favorite fretless. The neck is comparatively stable, and it seems easier to play in tune than some other fretlesses.

The amount of mwah is just right for me, with the mid boost switch engaged, and the B string is nice and solid.

I prefer it for most fretless work, and I love to play it. My other fretlesses are or have been MTD, Zon, Lakland USA, Hoyt, Roscoe, and Sadowsky.

Aloha,

Jonathan Starr
 
#19
My MVP is fretted, but I just thought I'd comment on it's long term reliability. It was my only bass for a long long time (got it in '94) and took on a heavy gigging schedule. It's also the only bass I kept through the "dark times" (a few years) when I almost never played.
I gig regularly again and it's my main bass.
It had the old TBIBT Bart preamp in it though and it went out, so I had it replaced.
Other than that, no probs at all.
Like friend of mine once said,
"That's one BAAAAD piece of lumber!" :)

In my opinion, you can't go wrong with one.
Oh....and Mike's shop can refinish the fretboard (for a price) if you eventually wear through it.
 
#20
I had a P/J Pentabuzz for a while back in the mid-eighties. It was a nice bass, though I was never crazy about the look of the banjo-with-moose-horns body :smug: or the generic-looking headstock. It had good build quality and decent ergos, but I wasn't too happy with the slightly-wimpy B-string or the overall tone, which I found expressive and clear, but a little antiseptic or hard/glassy sounding; probably due to the poly-coated board and all-maple construction.

I eventually moved on to an early oil-finished neck-through swamp ash F-Bass with a bare gaboon board, which I still have. I prefer the old F for its tighter and more robust-sounding B-string, slimmer neck profile and smoother neck finish, and most of all for its comparatively warm, growly, organic/woody-sounding tone.
 

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