{"id":9927,"date":"2016-10-19T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-10-19T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/?p=9927"},"modified":"2016-10-18T12:18:44","modified_gmt":"2016-10-18T17:18:44","slug":"bass-of-the-week-may-custom-bass-dcs6f","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bestbassgear.com\/ebass\/bass-of-the-week\/bass-of-the-week-may-custom-bass-dcs6f.html","title":{"rendered":"[Bass of the Week] May Custom Bass DCS6F"},"content":{"rendered":"

Stabilized buckeye can make for a wild looking bass.<\/p>\n

Special note: There is a video below from the owner of this instrument that further explains how this wild look is achieved.<\/p>\n

Owner Micah Terry<\/a> writes:<\/p>\n

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This is my second build with Shawn. Back in 2015, I started researching Luthiers to possibly build me a custom bass as a present for completing my Master’s degree. After talking to a couple, I came across Shawn May in the Talk Bass forums. I went to his website, and immediately fell in love with his work. I contacted him and knew right away that I had made the right decision. He was very easy to work with, and has a true passion for what he does. He is an attentive builder, and it is a collaborative effort. He takes your input on wood choices, electronics, what sound you are going for, etc. to make sure he builds the instrument that will best fit your individual needs. <\/p>\n

Shortly before my first bass was finished, Shawn built himself a bass with a Stabilized Buckeye top. I’ve always thought buckeye was a gorgeous wood, but this just put it over the top. The resin injection makes the wood much more uniform and workable for a builder, and the different color dyes used in the stabilization makes every piece unique. I knew then I had to have one someday. Once I took delivery of my Claro Walnut Burl 6 string, I decided it was time to sell my old fretless and commission one with this top wood. The journey began, again…<\/p>\n

Shawn and I got together and after paying the deposit, we found the top wood piece I wanted. We then agreed on mahogany for its tonal properties for the fretless, and came up with a figured maple neck with Wenge, Purpleheart, and Yellowheart woods that made up the construction as well. The electronics are all Nordstrand<\/a>, with a Nordy 3 band preamp<\/a>, as well as Nordy DC pickups<\/a>. Both pickups have their own 3-way switch, enabling me to select between Series\/Single\/Parallel settings. The third switch is for the blue LED side dots. The matching knobs were made by Devin Cline from D-Cline designs, and the pickup covers themselves were meticulously crafted by Shawn to go over the Nordstrand pickups perfectly. (Nordstrand has an option where pickups are sent ready for wood covers, which is what these were. The covers themselves were built by Shawn). The bass has active\/passive option, as well as the passive tone control built into the preamp. So far, for a modern sounding fretless, I engage the preamp, blend to center, set the neck pickup to single coil, and the bridge pickup to either parallel or series. For a vintage, warm sound with plenty of mwah, I have found that passive mode, blend set to bridge pickup in series mode sounds INCREDIBLE. I didn’t find this until after shooting the video, but it is probably going to be my go to fretless sound. <\/p>\n

Shawn is an incredible builder. Friendly, easy to work with, professional, and shows a genuine interest in making sure you get what you want. In addition to this, his artistry as a luthier speaks for itself. I’m very proud to have both my May Custom Basses as part of my collection.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Video<\/h3>\n

Micah talks about the construction of the instrument and also gives a demo of its sound.<\/p>\n