iBass | iBass Magazine

Danelectro Hodad

Posted by iBass | Oct 12, 2017 | Gear

The Danelectro brand evolved from humble beginnings back in 1947. Can this wallet-friendly reissue really do the business? Design These proudly budget-built basses are made by covering a plywood frame with slabs of masonite – a type of fibreboard created by William H. Mason way back in 1924. It’s a durable material with a smooth surface that takes a coat of paint very nicely. The stick-on side strips may not be such a great look, but confirm the cheap and cheerful reputation of Dano guitars. The pickups are redesigns of the US company’s famous lipstick single-coils. They’re still basically...

Stu Hamm

Posted by iBass | Oct 3, 2017 | Interviews

Meet Stu Hamm, one of the most influential bass guitarists of his generation, and still a force to be reckoned with. Stu Hamm’s mesmerising fretwork has captivated audiences for more than four decades. He is one of those bass guitarists who push the instrument to its limits, and sometimes beyond. The smile on his face as he rips through another mind-boggling flurry of notes says it all. Stu has enjoyed a lengthy career involving top sideman jobs with guitarists Joe Satriani and Steve Vai, burning trio sessions with GHS, acclaimed instructional videos, and a string of bass-intensive solo albums....

Dunlop Super Bright

Posted by iBass | Sep 28, 2017 | Gear

If slapping is a major part of your playing, these strings could be just the job. Dunlop has been making bass strings for quite some time, and the current catalogue boasts seven different types ranging from the signature Robert Trujillo and Lemmy ‘Icon’ series of strings, to more traditional roundwound sets. These Super Bright strings are available in both nickel and steel, with a range of gauges including light (40-100), light 5 (40-120), medium (45-105), medium 5 (45-125) and medium 6 (30-130). We tried both steel and nickel sets on our test-bench P-Bass and the difference, while not earth-shattering, was...

Mikrojazz | Matt Garrison

Posted by iBass | Sep 22, 2017 | Articles, Best New Music

A microtonal meeting of the minds starring Matt Garrison, Philipp Gerschlauer, David Fiuczynski, Jack DeJohnette and Giorgi Mikadze Matt Garrison has been ahead of the curve for his entire life. The son of Jimmy Garrison – John Coltrane’s last bassist who worked on the iconic A Love Supreme album – Matt was born into a musical dynasty that saw him surrounded by some of then world’s greatest jazz musicians. These included drummer Jack DeJohnette, who also appears on this new release for RareNoiseRecords. Mikrojazz is a joint project led by German saxophonist Philipp Gerschlauer and guitarist David Fiuczynski. Joined by DeJohnette, Garrison and keyboardist Giorgi Mikadze, the group...

First Look | Mesa Boogie Subway D-800

Posted by iBass | Sep 21, 2017 | Articles, Gear

Mesa’s first lightweight, professionally powered class D bass amp Built in California, the D-800 weighs in at 2.5kg (5.5 lbs). The designers set out to produce a portable amp that everybody, from beginners upwards, can enjoy, and in that, it looks as though they have succeeded. In terms of features, there’s a single input for your bass, followed by toggle switches for mute, active/ passive and Mesa’s ‘deep’ function. The remaining controls cater for input gain, variable voicing, 4-band active EQ and master volume. There’s also a balanced XLR DI, line/mic and ground lift, headphone output and aux input,...