This week’s feature bass is a fretless offering with very meticulous attention to detail, the Über -M Aphrodite.
A start-to-finish photo album of the build is here, but here are a few highlights:
Above: Making an “M” inlay
Above: The cavity cover is made to match the back
Above: The finished back, sanded to show a more glossy look
Above: Aluminum knurled dome knobs used, matching the rest of the hardware
Above: The front has a very classical instrument appearance to it
Remember, you can see the whole photo set here.
The story and specs about the Über -M Aphrodite
The original idea behind the bass started with the wood. The owner of the bass lives originally hails from Cyprus, and there he came across a piece of solid Mediterranian olivewood and knew right then and there he wanted to have a bass guitar that featured this wood. He contacted luthier Maurizio Caduto, sent that olivewood to him, Maurizio provided the rest of the materials and the end result is what you see above.
Other than the olivewood, the bass also features a core of semangkok (similar to a swamp ash characteristic, tone-wise), a back laminate of macassar ebony, a 3-piece neck of wenge/Asian ebony/wenge, a fretboard made of ziricote and even the pickup casing is Asian ebony.
The lone pickup in the body is a Delano bought from us (thanks!)
The electronics are active via a Bartolini on-board preamp bought from us (thanks again!) that has volume/treble/bass and a push/pull to switch from active to passive.
As for the time spent on this build, it took about 8 months. That’s a long time, but the end result was well worth the wait.
This particular bass is used pretty much everywhere as the owner is a music student residing in the UK. At home, in clubs, in studio, etc. This bass goes everywhere and really gets used, so it’s not just another pretty face.
The Über -M Aphrodite is beautiful, functional, is loaded exotic woods and is a job well done.
Hi there, I’m the guy who built the Über-M Aphrodite. It’s really nice to see one of my basses making the Bass of the Week at BBG. Here is a link for those who would like to hear it sing.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=475131812519694&set=vb.194283290604549&type=3&theater
Thank you! Maurizio
…..and I should have mentioned that the bass is a headless hybrid. That is, it mounts a headless tuning system with string anchors of my design at the headstock. Cheers! Maurizio – Über-Basses
I am in exactly the same poisoitn. I’m completely career driven and always have been, yet I have the most amazing man in my life. Luckily for me, he is willing to travel/move/commute with me, where ever I may need to go for my work as he is aware of how difficult the media/fashion industry is. I’m extremely fortunate in that sense. However, I feel as though I would forever feel guilty dragging the poor man around the country and perhaps even the world with me, just so I can fulfull my dreams and aspirations. It’s tough. And I really feel for the poeple in our poisoitn, possibly even more so for the partners.