Stambaugh bass

I think you'll get a better response a bit farther north. So, off to Basses for you!

 

I live on the north side of Chicago and recently made the trip to the south side to visit the Luthiers Access Group-the main distributor for Chris' basses. Although I'm strictly a 4-string player, and both Stambaugh models that I played were 5ers, I was able to get by OK and think that I can offer some insightful opinions. If I remember correctly, the fretless was his standard design-double cutaway, with an extremely nice cocobolo fretboard. The balance was good, and the weight was more than I was used to, playing vintage fenders, but overall was an extremely solid, handcrafted bass made from select exotic tonewoods. The top was an embuya burl top (spelling?)...was absolutely beautiful, and the fit and finish was great. I can't really comment on sound or playability, since these are fairly personal and subjective measurements, but I did give the bass a thorough check, and everything was in order. The neck pocket was tight with an asymmetrical bold design, the frets were all level and crowned properly, the nut was properly cut, and the hardware was up to par.
The second bass I tried was a single-cut fretted, similer to the Foderas & Elricks that have been showing up lately. I also thought that this bass matched the quality, fit, and finish of the other, and the cocobolo board was cut from the same piece of fantastically swirly stock. It also had the same great burl top. I hope this was of some help, and if you have any more focused questions that you'd like to ask, please feel free to follow up.