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Sad NBD: Not all that glitters is gold

tb-player

tb-player

Why so serious?
Mar 6, 2019
6,706
29,952
East Coast, USA
#1
Anyone who has read any of my posts on TB knows that I like to buy basses.

Well, GAS-be-damned, last week was no exception. I picked up a gorgeous Sadowsky. I mean... gorgeous!!

This particular bass is number 005 of the Masterbuilt Sadowsky’s made in Germany at Warwick. It was at NAMM 2020 and is perfection.

It arrived from Fret Nation in CA yesterday. After a few long moments of getting lost in that mesmerizing 5A Koa top, I plugged it in. It took less than 45 minutes of playing to realize that this is not the bass for me.

Noooo... :bawl::bawl::bawl:

It plays fantastic and sounds fantastic, if you like a growly/burpy tone. For a Sadowsky, I’m all about that 60s jazz tone. And this bass is the opposite of that. That being said, this Sadowsky has the Modern pickup configuration and is all balls in tone. Just not the tone I was hoping for.

So I emailed Jason at Fret Nation. What a great guy! He didn’t hesitate to offer me a return/full refund. Because I paid with PayPal and they don’t reimburse their fees on returns, I offered to split the fees. He didn’t require it but was gracious about the whole process.

That’s how it goes buying online. But some sellers are not so buyer-conscious.

I just wanted to share this to say, Fret Nation is the real deal. If you’re shopping for gear, check out Jason at Fret Nation. He’s a really good guy & was great to work with from our initial contact to our most recent.

Look at these photos. You’ll see why I’m heartbroken...

3FFF740A-6335-443F-B9C5-4D74C58DDE52.jpeg C50FDC05-F5FE-4976-9AFD-584A15574C2F.jpeg B356E827-8DF6-4656-A7ED-37839FDE5CB0.jpeg
 
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#4
tb-player said:
Anyone who has read any of my posts on TB knows that I like to buy basses.

Well, GAS-be-damned, last week was no exception. I picked up a gorgeous Sadowsky. I mean... gorgeous!!

This particular bass is number 005 of the Masterbuilt Sadowsky’s made in Germany at Warwick. It was at NAMM 2020 and is perfection.

It arrived from Fret Nation in CA yesterday. After a few long moments of getting lost in that mesmerizing 5A Koa top, I plugged it in. It took less than 45 minutes of playing to realize that this is not the bass for me.

Noooo... :bawl::bawl::bawl:

It plays fantastic and sounds fantastic, if you like a growly/burpy tone. For a Sadowsky, I’m all about that 60s jazz tone. And this bass is the opposite of that. That being said, this Sadowsky has the Modern pickup configuration and is all balls in tone. Just not the tone I was hoping for.

So I emailed Jason at Fret Nation. What a great guy! He didn’t hesitate to offer me a return/full refund. Because I paid with PayPal and they don’t reimburse their fees on returns, I offered to split the fees. He didn’t require it but was gracious about the whole process.

That’s how it goes buying online. But some sellers are not so buyer-conscious.

I just wanted to share this to say, Fret Nation is the real deal. If you’re shopping for gear, check out Jason at Fret Nation. He’s a really good guy & was great to work with from our initial contact to our most recent.

Look at these photos. You’ll see why I’m heartbroken...

View attachment 4009068 View attachment 4009069 View attachment 4009070
Click to expand...

If you follow Sadowsky at all, you should know Moderns are not Jazz Basses at all tonally. For that matter, no bass with two humbuckers near the bridge will sound more like a Ken Smith than a Jazz.
 
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#5
tb-player said:
Anyone who has read any of my posts on TB knows that I like to buy basses.

Well, GAS-be-damned, last week was no exception. I picked up a gorgeous Sadowsky. I mean... gorgeous!!

This particular bass is number 005 of the Masterbuilt Sadowsky’s made in Germany at Warwick. It was at NAMM 2020 and is perfection.

It arrived from Fret Nation in CA yesterday. After a few long moments of getting lost in that mesmerizing 5A Koa top, I plugged it in. It took less than 45 minutes of playing to realize that this is not the bass for me.

Noooo... :bawl::bawl::bawl:

It plays fantastic and sounds fantastic, if you like a growly/burpy tone. For a Sadowsky, I’m all about that 60s jazz tone. And this bass is the opposite of that. That being said, this Sadowsky has the Modern pickup configuration and is all balls in tone. Just not the tone I was hoping for.

So I emailed Jason at Fret Nation. What a great guy! He didn’t hesitate to offer me a return/full refund. Because I paid with PayPal and they don’t reimburse their fees on returns, I offered to split the fees. He didn’t require it but was gracious about the whole process.

That’s how it goes buying online. But some sellers are not so buyer-conscious.

I just wanted to share this to say, Fret Nation is the real deal. If you’re shopping for gear, check out Jason at Fret Nation. He’s a really good guy & was great to work with from our initial contact to our most recent.

Look at these photos. You’ll see why I’m heartbroken...

View attachment 4009068 View attachment 4009069 View attachment 4009070
Click to expand...
Good that you know what you like and want. Some people would have kept it, thinking it had to be good for them, because it’s such a good bass. It’s just not suited to you. It will suit someone .
 
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#6
Sorry it wasn’t for you. I guess when you pay that kind of money, things should be “perfect”. If I was in this situation, I’d probably just trying swapping the electronics if I loved the looks and feel that much. There are just so many options for pickups and electronics these days that I’d have tried that route first.

Any ideas on what you’ll replace it with?
 
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#8
Dr. Cheese said:
If you follow Sadowsky at all, you should know Moderns are not Jazz Basses at all tonally. For that matter, no bass with two humbuckers near the bridge will sound more like a Ken Smith than a Jazz.
Click to expand...
Ken Smith is exactly what it sounded like. It was most pronounced in the slap tone. The seller had a video playing the bass and that tone didn't stand out to me. But in my hands, it had that distinct burpy tone that I dislike. Lesson learned.
 
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#11
Jason has been taking good care of TBer for a long time now.

I once owned a Mike Lull with Duncan pickups and a Sadowsky preamp. Everything about the bass was spectacular. I just couldn't bond with it. I tried for hours. I kept it several weeks. I just couldn't "get there" with that bass.

It happens.

But that Sadowsky. Holy crap. That would hurt.
 
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#13
Yeah, the Moderns produce a very different tone than the Jazzes. I think it’s a great tone but if you’re wanting the sound of a Jazz bass then the Modern is not the place to look. Great looking bass though and I’m sure it will make someone really happy. I’m not surprised Jason stepped up as he did. Always received great service from him. :thumbsup:
 
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#15
tb-player said:
Yeah, I learned that the hard way... lol
Click to expand...
I had a similar experience last time I ordered a Sadowsky. In my case I’d custom ordered a Jazz. After waiting several months for the bass to be completed I received it and, minutes after plugging it in, knew that this particular bass wasn’t for me. Two days later I was at the Sadowsky shop trading in my Jazz for a Modern. :)
 
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#17
beatdatthang said:
Sorry it wasn’t for you. I guess when you pay that kind of money, things should be “perfect”. If I was in this situation, I’d probably just trying swapping the electronics if I loved the looks and feel that much. There are just so many options for pickups and electronics these days that I’d have tried that route first.

Any ideas on what you’ll replace it with?
Click to expand...
If a Jazz sound is what the OP is after then switching out the electronics would not be enough. The pickup placement on the Moderns is a significant part of what makes the bass sound the way it does.
 
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