James Basses

Guitars

admin — Sun, 24 May 2009 19:59:39 +0000

The Alpha is the first endeavor of James Basses into the world of 6-string electric guitars.

The body style is custom designed by the customer. It has a zebrawood top, wenge accent layer and an alder back. The neck is a 5-piece maple/wenge/zebra laminate with a 24-fret ebony fingerboard and wenge stringers. This baby rocks with a set of EMG ZW Humbuckers. It is very well balanced and comfortable.

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Electric Upright Bass

admin — Sun, 24 May 2009 19:31:24 +0000

The Electric Upright Bass (EUB) was done for a good friend, Mike Lively. He was gracious enough to let me experiment on this new James Bass endeavor for him. In the end, we were both very pleased with how it turned out. Mike is a multi-instrumentalist, and plays a variety of music styles including Gospel, contemporary and some bluegrass. We think this little beauty will handle it all.

eub

The body wood is Pau Rosa, a beautiful species from South America. Usually its grain is much straighter than the nice piece we found for this bass. The neck is maple and bloodwood. It is a full 3/4 bass, using a true upright fingerboard, made from ebony. For electronics, we used individual pole magnetic pickups from EMG, coupled with their bridge-saddle piezo and their 2-band BTS EQ. The two signals can be blended together or soloed, using the blend control. It is an 18v system, giving it plenty of output and headroom. We were really blown away by the sound. Thanks EMG! Hipshot Ultra-lite clover-leaf style tuners were used at the head, and a retractable end-pin at the bottom, adjustable to fit nearly any playing height requirement.

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Custom Creations

admin — Sun, 24 May 2009 02:41:17 +0000

Custom body designs are a great way to personalize your bass. We will be glad to help you in your design, or simply forward your design to James Basses for consideration (some designs may have to be adjusted slightly for proper balance and neck integration). Even within existing models, we can customize a number of aspects of the instrument. Every instrument at James Basses is custom and hand-made, so in reality, the sky is the limit (almost).

We will do our best to fulfull your needs in a special pickup / preamp setup, body shape, scale length, etc.. The main goal, however, is to provide you with an excellent sounding, excellent looking, and comfortable instrument. Usually, this can be accomplished without going too crazy. Remember, everything has an associated cost.

leviathan

The 'Leviathan' is an example of a body that is custom designed by the customer. This 30" scale bass has an aggressive sound, with its EMG DC35 in the neck position, and LJ-5 in the bridge position. It's unique cutaway is very comfortable. It has a lacewood top, purpleheart accent layer and an alder back. The neck is a 5-piece maple / purpleheart / lacewood laminate, with a 24-fret ebony fingerboard.

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customsmbub

This customer requested a 6-string bass, but needed an instrument with a close-in reach. He plays professionally and keeps a very busy schedule, so comfort and functionality are crucial. So, we worked together to provide an instrument to fit his very specific needs. The short-scale neck was moved back through the end of the body, resulting in the "money-notes" being within very comfortable reach. Low-profile frets were also used, to accomodate the customer's playing style. We also used a couple different strap-button locations, and moved the knee-curve forward to maximize comfort in both sitting and standing positions. This one has a bubinga top, black walnut back, and a 3-piece bubinga/wenge neck. It is a 30" scale with 20 frets and a pau-ferro fretboard. It's tuned EADGCF, and incorporates a pair of Bartolini P4 pickups and NTBT 2-band preamp with an Active/Passive option. It sounds and feels great!

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customrp

This beauty is based on the Resurrection body style, but with an extended and scrolled/knob upper horn. The customer also called for a custom headstock, which boldy displays the first letter of his name! This definitely personalizes the bass. It has a flamed black limba top, a bloodwood accent layer and mahogany back. Its neck is a 5-piece maple/limba/bloodwood neck, with a bloodwood faced headstock. It also has a custom designed faux f-hole feature, letting the bloodwood accent layer show through. For electronics, it carries a set of Nordstrand Dual Coils, an Aguilar 3-band EQ (active or passive), and the Acousti-phonic piezo bridge with its own volume and tone controls. This is a great option for getting that acoustic sound - and it is fully blendable with the magnetic pickup signal, giving this bass an extremely wide tonal pallette! This was a fun one.

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customtrad

This is a recent addition... one with a very traditional vibe. It is a short scale custom with a passive Bartolini P/J setup. Simple and effective! This bass has a beautiful mahogany top, a basswood body, and a 5-piece walnut/mahogany neck. Very lightweight and comfortable.

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custombsm

This short-scale lefty incorporates an EB pickup placed in the classic spot - right up to the fretboard - plus, a jazz-style pickup in the bridge position. The electronics in this bass include an Aguilar OBP-3 preamp, with a switchable mid-frequency (400/800 Hz) within a push/pull knob, a stacked bass/treble concentric control, and a push/pull volume control for the front pickup - to route the raw passive signal to a separate output jack. Now, for the woods! The body is a 5-piece - curly bubinga / wenge / basswood construction. The basswood core has been 'honeycombed' to minimize the weight, without compromising sound. The headstock was faced with matching curly bubinga to make this truly a one-of-a-kind instrumet. This little guy really rocks the house! - The perfect blend of old-school and new technology.

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admin — Sun, 03 May 2009 07:03:03 +0000

What impressed us over here… the sustain. The first thing I did when I plugged it in was plucked the open A, and it rung out with any decay for a good 20-30 seconds longer than we’re used to. Wood and bridges are factors, but only expert construction can bring the kind of tone and sustain this baby pumps out!

Like I said before, the tone is great. Absolutely flawless craftsmanship all around! So far, this is the quietest bass I’ve ever used in my studio. When I recorded my cd with the (other) bass, I had some issues with background hum and interference… With the Eden, all those problems are gone, 100%. The sound is a lot sharper and cleaner than the (other), which will make it a lot better for recording my solos. I even have all of my preamps on bypass, this clean tone is what I’ve been trying to get for years… I never thought I would ever have the (other) packed away in my closet, but I might as well now. It’s strictly a backup. I almost feel like I’m “cheating” by using a bass this easy to play…but if other people feel that way, I suppose they’ll just have to invest in one of your basses as well.

Tommy Winter
Indiana

admin — Sun, 03 May 2009 07:02:06 +0000

I’m playing this beautiful, hand-crafted James Bass (5-string Genesis) all the time. It sounds perfect, — a world of rich, foundational sound. The sustain is a clue about eternity. It goes on and on!

A JamesBass is a unique individual. It’s not an investment — it’s a keeper! It plays fast, looks beautiful, sounds great — and this in comparison with my Fender custom Victor Bailey and Carvin LB70 — The JamesBass is beyond them in every category. How can you beat it? With Greg, you get to choose the wood, the color, the kind, the style, the pick-ups, the electronics, the scale, the hardware, the finish, etc. And you get great advice from Greg about each choice.

If I sound like a cheer-leader for JamesBasses, all I do is think about playing my Genesis, and I start cheering! Then I go and play it. Now, my two 4-string basses collect dust.

Michael Markowski
Calvary Chapel Salt Lake

admin — Sun, 03 May 2009 07:00:22 +0000

This bass has a stunning sound. The sustain is almost impossible to believe … I think this is due to the rock solid construction and string thru body option. It is just a gorgeous bass. The sound is crystal clear and precise. Honestly, I’ve has this bass now a few months and I’m just floored by it’s beauty and playability. It’s a dream bass to play… . I just love it.

Thank you.

John Francis
Florida

admin — Sun, 03 May 2009 06:59:35 +0000

My new Eden fretless made it’s premiere tonight at the Brewjam gig here in Kansas City. This instrument is simply outstanding! The clarity of tone and super punchy sound were obvious to everyone from the first song of the night. The bass speaks evenly in all registers, and the feel of the neck is fantastic!

It has been a pleasure to work with you in these past months to make this bass a reality. I would recommend you to any bass player interested in having a first-class instrument built at a very fair price.

My sincere thanks and best wishes,

Andy DeWitt
Kansas City

admin — Sun, 03 May 2009 06:58:37 +0000

“I’m sitting here playing my new five-string fretless that you crafted for me. I am totally thrilled with the tone and with the exquisite workmanship on this bass. You worked so well with me on picking the exact type of wood I wanted, as well as in planning the design of the instrument, the electronics, etc. I highly recommend you as a bass builder to anyone who really cares about the sound and style of what they play. I can’t wait to do some recording with this bass. Thanks again.”

- Bill Power

admin — Sun, 03 May 2009 06:57:56 +0000

“I’ve been playing bass for 30 years and all that time have been searching for an affordable, playable bass that gives me the sound I am looking for. It has finally happened. I am pleased with every aspect of my James bass. The only thing that outshines its looks, sound, and craftsmanship is its playability. I really appreciated having input as to its construction. The quality of Greg’s workmanship shines in this upper class instrument…
man, I’m sold!”

- Mike Lively

Resurrection

admin — Sun, 03 May 2009 05:20:12 +0000

This new model, the ‘Resurrection’ is another example of a body that is custom designed by the customer. It has the string-thru-body option and the “Spirited” descending dove feature as well.

res1

This 35" scale bass was designed to handle a wide variety of musical styles and sounds. It is equipped with an 18v Aguilar OBP-3 preamp along with Nordstrand Fat-Stack pickups. Angling the zebra-wood top gives this particular bass some very special character. The zebra top sits on top of a black walnut back with a wenge accent layer. Gold hardware finishes this instrument off with a very elegant touch, with brass side dot markers to complement as well.

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