What's the scoop on Sandberg?

[Brad Easley]

Sandberg basses, I see them popping up online more frequently lately. Never seen one in person. How are they? And maybe more specifically, how do their vintage Fender style basses compare to other vintage Fender style basses?

I'm aware they're made in Germany. Looking more for player experience than just the facts about them.

Thanks!

 

[squish]

I am curious as well. I love the way they look. And if they sound like classic Fenders, even better. It would be nice to have something a little different but with a classic sound. Knowing that they mostly have active circuits has me worried that they do not sound inherently traditional.

 

[gillento]

I had a few of them : Basic (MM style), PM5 (P and MM pickups), TT (4 string J).

I did not like the neck profile (deep but narrow) on any of them, the sound (Glockenklang and/or Delano preamps) were rather plastic, dull sounding.
Their bridge was rather a PITA to adjust as releasing the adjustable/lockable saddles changed their position. So intonation was a bit of a gamble....

 

[Brad Easley]

I had a few of them : Basic (MM style), PM5 (P and MM pickups), TT (4 string J).

I did not like the neck profile (deep but narrow) on any of them, the sound (Glockenklang and/or Delano preamps) were rather plastic, dull sounding.
Their bridge was rather a PITA to adjust as releasing the adjustable/lockable saddles changed their position. So intonation was a bit of a gamble....

Thank you! I came across the TT (jazz bass style pickups) and was curious, but sounds like it wouldn't be my cuppa tea either.

 

[BassmanM]

I believe the bridge issue was resolved. Check the Sandberg Club here on tb.

 

[Iridescentone]

I am curious as well. I love the way they look. And if they sound like classic Fenders, even better. It would be nice to have something a little different but with a classic sound. Knowing that they mostly have active circuits has me worried that they do not sound inherently traditional.

Sandberg can build a traditional sounding passive bass for you. You can choose woods and opt for non-Sandberg pickups. A while ago there was a custom VS-4 for sale here. Passive only, ash body, maple/maple neck. The pickup had been option'd up to a Kloppmann* split P pickup. The bass was essentially a P bass clone, ala Sandberg. That should be about as close as you can get to a classic Fender sound from a brand new bass IMO.

* Kloppmann makes two vintage style splits, a "57" and a "63" version, supposedly copied from the genuine articles, down to the nth degree. (they aren't cheap)

Apart from that, I'm not sure I'd look to Sandberg for "traditional" anything. They have a good thing going over there, I love how mine sound. Color me a "fan".

 

[el murdoque]

I've played two Sandberg Jazz bass models in direct comparison to US made Fenders and the Sandbergs looked, felt and played like they should cost more than the Fenders, but they did not.

 

[tb-player]

Sandberg basses, I see them popping up online more frequently lately. Never seen one in person. How are they? And maybe more specifically, how do their vintage Fender style basses compare to other vintage Fender style basses?

I'm aware they're made in Germany. Looking more for player experience than just the facts about them.

Thanks!

If you're looking for a good sounding passive 4-string jazz bass, the MarloweDK is the Sandberg you'd want to own. I've owned 2 Sandberg (an active TM5 and the passive Marlowe DK) and they're excellent instruments. Well made, low action and great tone. The Marlowe DK sounds really good. That being said, for less money, you could own a Nash, a Bluesman Vintage or a Modern Vintage, all of which do jazz bass better than Fender.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Sandberg basses, I see them popping up online more frequently lately. Never seen one in person. How are they? And maybe more specifically, how do their vintage Fender style basses compare to other vintage Fender style basses?

I'm aware they're made in Germany. Looking more for player experience than just the facts about them.

Thanks!

They're nice

 

[dougness]

I currently own a Sandberg Superlight four-string with two of their own JB pickups. I love this thing. The neck is fast and the action is super low with zero buzzing (no kidding). The volume knob is push/pull, active/passive. Passive mode sounds amazing, actually. It’s a super responsive bass, but some of that may be due to the paulownia body.

I fell in love with Sandbergs years ago at the NAMM show and the one I own does not disappoint. The only complaint I have with my Sandberg is that it’s neck heavy, but it only weighs 6 lbs so I doubt it could be avoided with this particular instrument.

I also own two Fender American Jazz basses (fretted and fretless) that I’ve had for 20 years and a Fernandes Jazz Bass copy that sounds and plays every bit as good as my Fenders. The Sandberg has its own sound, but it’s in the ballpark IMO. No way is the Sandberg neck fatter than than the Jazz basses. It is by far my favorite neck of all the basses I own.

 

[Atonalmodal]

Have a look around in here...

Club Sandberg (part 2)

 

[Chrisk-K]

they're made in Germany.

Doesn’t that explains why Sandbergs are highly rated?

 

[Deleted member 271037]

Some Sandberg basses may share the same pickup configuration as vintage Fender basses but the similarities end there.

The neck is much slimmer, even than the slimmest Fender Js. The tone is a LOT brighter than any Fender I've played. More "modern" if you will. With their active basses this brightness can't be dialled out. At least not without ruining the tone completely. The preamp is very bright/clean and the stock pickups are bright.

You can order get a passive Sandberg where you can at least dial out some brightness with the tone control but even then the pickup will be brighter than a vintage Fender and they use 500k pots on their passive basses which will make them brigher still.

Even if you custom order a Sandberg with vintage-style pickups of your own choice it will STILL be brighter than a Fender as the bass will STILL have 500k pots (unless you clearly specify 250k pots which I personally didn't think would be necessary when I had specified a pickup that was clearly a vintage '63 P-bass "reissue").

If you're looking for something even remotely close to a classic Fender P or J you should NOT buy a Sandberg unless you custom order it witn the pickup of your choice and specify 250k pots. Even then the neck will be very different and more similar to Ibanez SR than any Fender I've played.

Placing a custom order with Sandberg can be a very frustrating experience with extremely poor communication, delays and poor excuses. At least it was in my case. Sandberg refuse to talk to their customers so all communication will have to go through dealer > distributor > Sandberg for each email and then the same way back for the reply. Just placing an order and get a confirmation about the specs took several weeks. And they the bass was delayed for several months because Sandberg apparantly ran out of wood (or at least that's what they told be through the distributor > dealer when the bass didn't show up within the delivery time I was originally given.

Having said that, the quality of their basses is excellent but don't expect anything close to a classic Fender tone/feel.

 

[cnltb]

Good basses. Neck profile is a bit special. Too small for me, but many seem to like it.

 

[Micha84]

I can totally sign off on what SFSorrow wrote. I have played various Sandbergs and like them a lot for their playabality and tone. Like he said, the tone is in the Fender ballpark, especially with the J-Style models, but way more modern. I would not only say brighter, but more "compact" as well. I also found that the necks have some similarities to the Ibanez SR series.
I was on the verge of ordering a custom model and decided against it because of the poor communication.

 

[Fernando Costa]

I have a TM5 and a Nighthawk Plus 4. The tone of these basses (TMs) tend to be modern, punchier, in active ar passive mode, which I prefer, although they have different pre. Both have incredibly fast and comfortable necks, accept quite radical setups, with ultra low action. The bridge is great if you know how to handle it, it's quite complete and, of course, it's not simple. The finish is great, far superior to Fenders. The neck pickup tone is a little closer to the P Bass, especially the Nighthawk, but if you want a Fender tone, buy a Fender, Sandbergs sound like Sandbergs.

 

[Ian774]

I had a few in the past, including a couple of custom orders. Great basses, but they sound or feel nothing like a Fender IMO.
Recently I emailed a dealer to ask for a quote. I never had a reply. Went with G&L instead and I’m very happy with the result.

 

[oomo]

I own a VM4, and really like it.

It's a bit more modern sounding that I'd ideally like, but really well made, and feels more solid/stable than many Fenders I've tried.

Weirdly, it's not a bass I'd say I love, but it's probably my most used bass. I keep coming back to it since it's so comfortable and reliable (was easy to adjust to a nice low action too).

It's a good solid bass that feels like home for me, even though it's maybe not as exciting, unique, or classic compared to other basses.

 

[skyline_01]

I played a couple in 2016 at CME while on vacation in Chicago. I really liked the way they sounded and played, and just about every demo clip I've seen since has been really impressive to me. They remain very high on my GAS list to this day.

I'm also just a fan of German/European stuff. I have a Tecamp M212, EBS Reidmar 750 head, two EBS pedals, and three VW's LOL.

 

[halfwound121]

I own a short-scale Lionel. Compared to a Fender Mustang of any variety:
Pros:
1. Contoured body vs. Fender slab body
2. Slimmer neck profile than the MIM Player or other Fender 1.5” nut versions
3. Great-sounding P pickup
4. Zero-fret
5. Beautiful woods, workmanship, finish options
6. All-way adjustable bridge, including string spacing
Cons:
1. $500 more than American Performer
2. Tone control does not roll off highs as well as any of my 3 Mustangs (considering changing the cap)
3. Fewer tone choices than AM Performer or Player series (no J pickup)
4. Gig bag is full-size, not short scale (but AM Performer is the same)
5. Availability very limited, long lead times for custom orders