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Rob Allen Vs Godin

#22
lyle said:
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ive played the fretless fiver one and it was pretty whicked. ive never touched a rob allen or what ever but i could tell it was pretty nice
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Cool! Thanks for the info. And I thought my only chance to get one was to find a used one on eBay. Now, all I got to do is find a Godin dealer and it'll be mine. I only played a fretless A4 once, but it was love at first jam. I've wanted one ever since, but I think I want it in a five string.

I've heard that the B string isn't that great on these basses, and that many of the A5 owners tune them EADGC. I think fretless basses have a great solo voice, and I think it would be great to have a high C string on a fretless bass.

I'm sure the others are really nice, too, but for the price, I just don't think you can go wrong with one of those Godins.
 
#23
Yes....I will say it again: check out Godin, they are incredible basses!
My fretless A5 is set up with a high C, but only due to the fact I use it mostly for solo work, and in that context it does sing! But I have had this bass, as have tried others ( I am a Godin endorsee) with a low B and did not find them to be floppy at all...in fact rather solid and well balanced. And, while it is true that a longer scale does improve the B string, it can also be a detrement to the G string ( the concept behind the Novax fanned fret system.but that is a whole new thread..). Personally, I prefer a 34, or even 33" scale as the balance, string to string, feels better.

The A5 has a remarkbale and musical tone with flats, rounds and especially TI Acousticore strings.......it will be featured heavily on my upcoming CD........

Both Turner and Rob Allen basses are exceptional (and personally I think Rick Turner is both a design and technolgical wizard...his basses are BRILLIANT), yet there is a certain "je ne se quoi" about the Godins. IMHO they are the best value on the market.....and certainly professional level instruments.

And....no the A series has not been discontinued. The A4 and A5 basses are there on their website....somewhere, I am told I am on their website, too :-)

Max
 
#25
Another Godin user here...I have an older double cutaway Acoustibass.

As far as necks, Godin used to offer either Jazz or P widths (mine is P..1-3/4" nut) I'm not sure if this is still the case. The necks are wonderful, like a vintage Fender so it's easy to feel "at home" on one.

As Max has mentioned the onboard Baggs 3-band EQ means you can coax lots of sound out of a Godin from URB like to Jaco to Jamerson just by tweaking the sliders.

There is no doubt that for the price Godin wins hands down, it is a great bass with no frills. Turner and Allen have fancier woodwork but you pay a LOT more for them. I have played the Turner, very nice, has it's own vibe but it didn't make me want to trade up.

As a URB player I will say that most of making any of these sound like an upright is playing them like one, both how you attack the strings and the lines you play.
 
#26
Congrats on the endorsement deal, Max!

Yeah, the Godin A5 has been a "dream bass" of mine ever since I played the four string version at a Guitar Center a couple of years ago. I was absolutely in paradise for about 20 minutes. Everything about that bass totally worked for me. The neck was nice. The bass was light enough that you could play all night and never get worn out. The tone was absolutely delightful. Even ACOUSTICALLY it sounded awesome.

I got a pretty nice tax check this year. I think I'm just going to have to go get one of those babies. I found a Godin dealer that is not too far away from me. (Living out here in the heartland, I don't have access to many of the basses that I'd like to check out. And the A5's NEVER show up on eBay. Believe me, I've been looking.)

Yep, I'm going to have to have one of those.
 
#27
I have been gassing for an older fretless Acoustibass for years, but only in black. That cream binding and the black control panel look sweet, but the piece de la resistance is the thumb rest that runs above the E string. Brianrost is right about neck widths. I have payed both and they are nice.

I found two black fretless J width Acoustibasses in a music store in Seoul earlier this month. They wanted USD2,000 which was a little over the top. If you hold out, you can find them for under $700.

If the A5 had that thumb rest AND they continued to sell them in black, there would one in my possession. I understand that they were not able to do the thumbrest mod on the A4/A5 for structural soundboard reasons.

Nice basses.

Brianrost...what colour is yours?
 
#31
I'm looking at both, and, admittedly, both the RA and the Godin are awesome looking basses and inspire gas beyond that of any Wendy's chilli. Only thing is, people keep making references to the price of both, but no one said how much they cost! So fellas, how much do they cost?
 
#32
:smug: 2 cents from an old timer.

I have owned a Godin A5 fretless for several years now. I have no complaints about the "B" string at all. My main bass is a Modulus Quantum 6 spi, so I think I would know a solid "b" when I hear one. I play in an acoustic Gospel group, I run both basses through an ART tube v3 straight into the board. The results? I get plenty of compliments on my bass sound, and many folks (not all of them musicians) saying that the Godin "sounds like one of them big basses".

I like everything about the Godin, except the squared top shoulder is very uncomfortable, especially after an extended session.

Thay can be had for around $1000.00 with a case.

deBassMan :hyper:
 

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