Just got in this Status (pronounced "Stay-tus") Series 2000 bass and must say I like it very much although it take a bit to get used to playing in first position. I've never dug the looks of any headless basses but it sure does make them balance nice! (doesn't hurt having a chunk o brass on the tail either!). Any other Status owners out there?
I guess I am one of the few that like headless basses so I think that Status looks pretty cool. What kind of wood is the body and how much did that run?
No wood in it...it's all one piece graphite and it came in on a trade deal with another bass..hard to say what it "cost"in the grand scheme of things but I'd say it ate up about $1,200 worth of trade bucks.
Steve... Long time no chat! How are you keeping? I have a custom made (for me!) Status Empathy 2 headless here for some reason (?). It's similar to your 2000, but with fancy bookmatched wood etc. The electronics are a little bit different (5 knobs + switch), as I can't see the switch or control for for +/- sweepable mids on your 2000. I've got their high-end pickups/electronics package. When I ordered this, Guy Pratt was the next in line for an identical model / configuration. Pro: Balance, size (compact), weight (light!), no dead spots, rarely needs tuning, nice tonal variety: from a fabulous piano-like sound (if you dial it in) to a great P-bass thump. Build quality is exceptional. Con: Cost - it was expensive over here 10+ years ago, a tiny bit of pre-amp hiss (did Lucas/Smith build the electronics??!!), kinda geeky looking - where's the headstock??? j/k Edit: you answered my question - the 2000 is one piece.
I don't currently own one but I did have a Status 3000 (wood body/carbon composite neck) for 9 years. Because the centre of gravity is in line with the players body they seem really light. I used to tune mine when I fitted new strings and tune it again when I replaced them. The 2000 originally was black. Status introduced some coloured dies and I think that yours (Dude) is green from the picture. The pups are Kent Armstrong and the four knob circuit designed by Status. The circuit was called Mark 1, 2 etc, but on the 2000 it was called Mark 42 which I think is a reference to Mr King who started using Status basses at this time.
I've owned two headed Status 5's. No probs with headless, just never had one. Great basses. Great construction, superior fretwork. Got that from J. Cobb, didn't ya? I swapped my Status Empathy 5 for a Brubaker with him awhile ago. Cool guy to deal with... Nice bass, btw, Dude. Here's one I owned in weenie format...
I own one similar to paleale's.. Maple neck, RW board, big fat ash body.. I just love the playability of it, the neck is so comfortable... The fretwork isn't super on my bass, but then again, I've never really played a bass with as low action as mine. The sound is pretty good, put my preamp consists of a treble boost/cut, which is set kind of low, making it kind of harsh.. Here's a pic, sorry I don't have any better ones: I saw the movie The Ring a couple of days ago, I'm kind of worried about my violinplayer!
Ya...I traded it plus the Lull P/J5 for the new Benavente Vortex I had in stock. Jim's a cool dude. I'll pop this Status on eBay. I didn't trade it as a keeper, just as a way to get the Benavente sold but as usual I play everything that passes through my hands and this one is nice. Just not sure if it's my cup of tea or not. The only other headless bass I've ever owned was one of those Steinbergers with the body wings on it (forget the model #) but this Status is a far superior instrument than that was.
Steve, For the past couple years my main bass has been an early Status 2000 and I've got another on it's way to me from CA as we speak. I've also got a Status Stealth 5 (new version of the 2000) being built for me as well. Of all the basses I've owned, the 2000 just *fits* me better than any other. It's got a great range of tones, and is built like a tank. It's able to get a nice warm tone, but can also get very agressive sounding. There were only a few made with a solid color finish - most were either natural, blue-green, or red over the graphite weave. I'd better stop now or I'll be carrying on about these basses until you guys throw me off the board...
I used to lust after the Washburn Statuses when I was a kid. Say what you will about Washburn's image now, but those were pretty good instruments.
I have a Trace Elliott T-bass which was actually made by Status; I got it from Bill LaGreca in a trade. It's basically a maple-necked active/passive 4-string Jazz. It has an incredibly aggressive, lively tone and the lowest action I've ever gotten on a non-graphite-neck bass. I have a feeling the graphite reinforcement rods in this thing's neck must be super-thick or something. Anyway, if the T-bass is any indication, Status builds superbly fab stuff.
What's the current market value of one of these? I found one and it's interesting. It's neck-through and I think the bridge says "The Status Bass". Seriously punchy sound.
I picked up a NOS Mark King model last year on ebay and I love it. Mahogany body with a Rosewood cap and a 34" scale bolt-on neck without the bendwell. With the case it was $1200 and very worth it IMO. Right now I have Staus flats on it and the pickups/18v pre combination just kicks. Real throaty and cuts through anything. Top notch construction. And Rob Greene is very responsive to any questions, usually gets back to you within a day. It's a keeper for me.
I LOVE my Empathy 4, but I am selling it on crappy ebay to buy a Spector....I love Spectors also...LOL!!!
my bass teacher has a bass that looks like a status, but this one is made by a local luthier me in the picture
