The "go-to" bass guitar.

I commissioned Laurence Mollerup to build it for me after seeing his work. Laurence is a fabulous bass player and his experiences as a freelance musician positively influence his work as a luthier. He understood the kind of sound that I was looking for and he combined these ideas with his own innovations. The chambers in the instrument add a certain amount of complexity to the tone in the same way that hand hammering a cymbal brings about different overtones. The result is that the bass guitar is extremely responsive and is capable of producing plethora of sounds and tones.

Dimensions
Weight: 8 pounds
Scale Length: 34 inches
Fingerboard Radius: 16 inches
Neck Shape: flat oval

Construction
Neck: 5 piece quartersawn maple/purpleheart bolt on
Neck Stability: double action truss rod/2 graphite spurs
Fingerboard: pau ferro with small pearl dots/28 mandolin frets
Top: highly figured burl maple
Body: acoustic chambered cherrywood
Finish: natural oil based

Hardware
Tuners: HipShot UltraLite black aluminum
Nut: brass 9 mm spacing
Bridge: HipShot A style black brass stringthrough 17 mm spacing
Strap Buttons: Schaller locking
Output Jack: single mono

Electronics
Pickup: single custom passive Aero K Series Type II soapbar
Controls: none
Preamp: none

Strings
DR Strings Stainless Steel Lo Rider: MH6-130-030

The fretless wonder.

I was so happy with the first bass guitar that I immediately commissioned Laurence to build me a fretless version of the fretted bass guitar. The neck and body shapes are essentially the same. I chose a different top, a bone nut, and aluminum bridge. The 'mwah' factor is a result of the epoxyed fingerboard. Generally speaking, I try to think of playing the fretless bass as if it were fretted and vice versa. The experimenting continues.

Dimensions
Weight: 8 pounds
Scale Length: 34 inches
Fingerboard Radius: 16 inches
Neck Shape: flat oval

Construction
Neck: 5 piece quartersawn maple/purpleheart bolt on
Neck Stability: double action truss rod/2 graphite spurs
Fingerboard: epoxyed pau ferro with small pearl dots/28 fret positions
Top: highly figured spalted maple
Body: acoustic chambered cherrywood
Finish: natural oil based

Hardware
Tuners: HipShot UltraLite black aluminum
Nut: bone 9 mm spacing
Bridge: HipShot A style black aluminum stringthrough 17 mm spacing
Strap Buttons: Schaller locking
Output Jack: single mono

Electronics
Pickup: single custom passive Aero K Series Type II soapbar
Controls: none
Preamp: none

Strings
DR Strings Stainless Steel Lo Rider: MH6-130-030

The vintage flatwound sound.

Flatwound strings help to provide a darker and more percussive sound. The bass I used in my first year at Capilano College was a fretless with flatwound strings. I missed having that sound as part of my palette. After getting a few modifications done on the Mollerup Trinidad fretless bass guitar, I had some parts left over and so I commissioned Laurence to build me a third Mollerup bass. I take this bass with me to gigs where a super vintage sound is required. Since moving to the San Francisco Bay Area, this has become my main bass guitar.

Dimensions
Weight: 7 pounds
Scale Length: 34 inches
Fingerboard Radius: 16 inches
Neck Shape: flat oval

Construction
Neck: 5 piece quartersawn maple/purpleheart bolt on
Neck Stability: double action truss rod/2 graphite spurs
Fingerboard: pau ferro with small pearl dots/28 mandolin frets
Top: highly figured curly maple
Body: acoustic chambered cherrywood
Finish: natural oil based

Hardware
Tuners: HipShot UltraLite black aluminum
Nut: bone 9 mm spacing
Bridge: HipShot A style black brass stringthrough 17 mm spacing
Strap Buttons: Schaller locking
Output Jack: single mono

Electronics
Pickup: single custom passive Aero K Series Type II soapbar
Controls: none
Preamp: none

Strings
Thomastik-Infeld Nickel Flatwound Roundcore: JF346

¡The salsa/road machine! :)

I bought this Mexican made beast for a little over $400 cdn and used it on two cruise ship contracts. It generally accompanies me on out-of-town situations. I haven't changed the strings in over 6 years and I think that it gives it a nice 'vintage' quality. It's seen a lot of different weather but surprisingly the finish still looks brand new. I've recorded and gigged many a time with this bass that it's got far too much sentimental value for me to give up.

Dimensions
Weight: as heavy as Fenders can be =]
Scale Length: 34 inches
Fingerboard Radius: 9.5 inches
Neck Shape: modern C type

Construction
Neck: 3 piece maple and mahogany bolt on
Neck Stability: truss rod
Fingerboard: rosewood with large white dots and 20 jumbo frets
Top: none
Body: solid alder
Finish: black

Hardware
Tuners: Gotoh chrome
Nut: mystery wood =]
Bridge: standard Fender chrome
Strap Buttons: standard Fender chrome
Output Jack: single mono
Pickguard: white

Electronics
Pickups: 2 standard 5 String Jazz Bass passive single coil
Controls: 2 volume and 1 tone
Preamp: none

Strings
Rotosound Swing Bass 66 Stainless Steel: RS665LD

The ABG [acoustic bass guitar] of the family.

I acquired this little puppy in a trade and I have yet to take it to a gig. I am experimenting playing this instrument with a pick to take advantage of the volume and its expressive 'guitaristic' phrasing possibilities. It generally stays out of the case and waits patiently beside my desk ready for when my muse strikes.

Dimensions
Weight: quite light, actually
Scale Length: 34 inches
Fingerboard Radius: ?
Neck Shape: modern C type

Construction
Neck: maple
Fingerboard: bound rosewood with large white dots and 21 frets
Top: maple
Body: maple
Finish: sunburst

Hardware
Tuners: Gotoh chrome
Nut: plastic
Bridge: mahogany
Strap Buttons: standard chrome
Output Jack: single mono

Electronics
Pickups: piezo/epiphonic-six
Controls: 1 volume and 5 band eq
Preamp: Shadow P7

Strings
D'Addario XL Nylon Tapesound: ETB92

The [main] Bass Rig.

My brother-in-law introduced me to this Mark Bass combo. I was impressed with the quality, clarity, and transparency of the sound and knew that it would be worthy of replacing my aging and increasingly fragile Eden rig. The combo also had an extra 100 watts of headroom. Finally, I also had a practical reason for acquiring this combo: One less thing to carry from car to gig!

I don't generally use the special VLE or VPF filters since I prefer a flat EQ to truly represent the sound of the bass guitars. I've grown reaccustomed to solid state circuitry and advances in recent years in transformer efficiency have helped companies produce light weight amplifiers.

Mark Bass Mini CMD 121 P Combo:
Weight: 29 pounds
Power and Impedance: 300 watts RMS @ 8 ohms
Frequency Response: 45 hertz to 18 kilohertz
Crossover Frequency: 3.5 kilohertz
Sensitivity: 99 dB SPL

The [backup] Bass Rig.

I bought the WT-400 along with a D-210XLT cabinet from my old bass guitar teacher Chris Tarry after he signed his endorsement deal with Aguilar.

I picked up a pair of CXM-110s because they're so much lighter to cart around on gigs! Louder gigs require two cabinets but for most gigs around town, I can get away with a single cabinet!

I usually leave the EQ settings flat and since my basses have no circuitry, I use an Ernie Ball volume pedal for swell effects and onstage volume control.

These days, this rig resides in my home studio where it enjoys a happy retirement after many years of gigging. The head still gets used on recordings along with an Avalon U5 pre amplifier.

Eden WT-400 World Traveler Plus LE Amplifier Head:
Weight: 15 pounds
Power and Impedance: 400 watts RMS @ 4 ohms

Eden CXM-110 Speaker Cabinets [x2]:
Weight: 26 pounds
Power and Impedance: 200 watts @ 8 ohms
Frequency Response: 36 hertz to 20 kilohertz