I’m a two bass guitar guy. One is definitely not enough, but three seems like maybe too much. So I try to cover as much ground as I can between the two I have. Bass number one is a standard scale passive four-string jazz bass. That’s my Sire Marcus Miller V5. It’s a beautiful instrument, well constructed, and sounds like a jazz bass should sound–right down to the single coil hum. I would have felt very comfortable picking this up when I was 15 or 16. It’s my retro rocker. I sound like Geddy when I run it through the SansAmp YYZ.
Bass number two is a 35″ scale active five-string, my Ibanez BTB745. Incredible workmanship went into the playability here. I can get the action so low it’s criminal. The Bartolini BH2’s aren’t too bright, which is weird on a bass like this. But, hey, that’s why it has a treble knob. This is my modern bass. Nothing retro here. And the extra long scale gives me a very tight B string.
Together these can cover a lot of tonal and even visual vibes. But all is not perfect. It’s hard to see how my jazz bass can be improved upon. Maybe I could get noise canceling pickups for it, I guess. But there are some issues with the Ibanez. First, it’s heavy. I can’t remember if I’ve ever weighed it, but the Sire weighs a pretty respectable nine pounds and the Ibanez weighs a bit more. On top of that, the body shape isn’t very ergonomic. It can be downright uncomfortable to play sometimes.
So. If I were to swap out the BTB for another bass, what would I get? It would have to check all the same boxes: five string, extended scale length, active electronics. But I would like it to be lighter and more comfortable to play. Plus, I think it’s clear that the only real upgrade to be had here is to go multi-scale. That’s when every string has its own scale length instead of them all being the same. Having an extended length is very desirable on a five string bass because if your low B string is longer, that means it has to be tensioned more to be tuned to pitch. That makes it tighter, more defined, more “piano-like.” So you may want a 35-37″ scale length for your B string, but you probably don’t want it for all the others. Surely not your D and G strings. So, each string gets its own. the most visible sign of this design is the fanned frets that aren’t perpendicular to the neck.
For a long time, this meant you had to talk to Mr. Dingwall and pony up north of two grand for the privilege. But now others are getting into the game. Spector, Ibanez, and Cort, that I’m aware of. The Spector is almost as pricey as the Dingwall. But the Ibanez models are a little more affordable. You can get a EHB1005 for $1,350 (and I kinda dig the sea foam green). Or if you want better electronics and fancier finishes, you could have the EHB1505 for $1,800. Those are contenders. But what’s really got my attention is Cort.
When I was a kid I thought of Cort as a cheap, beginner quality instrument not worth considering unless you were just starting out. But today I know better. Some of the finest instruments I’ve ever played were manufactured in Cort’s Indonesia factory. My BTB, for one. And when I saw the Cort A5 Beyond with the neck through design, the single cut madness, and the hipshot ultra light tuners, and…I’m super into it. And Thomann has it for $819 plus shipping.
I could probably get $800 or $900 on Reverb for the BTB. But that would mean shipping it, which I am loath to do. If I sell it locally I could probably get $500 or $600 for it. (I paid $600 plus $20 shipping in August of 2020 for it.)
So I have a direction. I have ideas. I may not pull the trigger on this idea this year. But I think eventually I will. Will I go Ibanez or Cort? Or something else? I don’t know. But multi-scale is in my future.