Big Al and 25th Anniversary bass review

[Grand Wazoo]

Here was the full review. But it was soooo bad I've decided to kill the link.

From now own only reviews of EBMM basses by Ed Friedland are worthy.

Nothing to see here, move along please.

 

[five7]

Does this help with the waiting or make it worse?

 

[Grand Wazoo]

Not sure, believe me, that is last month issue not the current issue, and when it came out, I decided not to buy it on purpose when I was still deciding wether to buy the bass or not. But now a month later (having ordered the bass) I thought to get the missing issue on back order to see what the review was all about. I wish they had reviewed the HSS because comparing a single H to a Big Al with 3 pickups in one review was a bit silly imo, they are such different basses, aren't they?

 

[Drmckool]

it's odd that they picked the least versitile of all the 25th and then said it was not versitile

 

[cellkirk74]

It reads like the guy did not really get into both instruments. A lot about looks but too less 'bout the sound(s).

...but that single H 25th looks great!!!

 

[Big Poppa]

You know what I think of reviewers...and magazines.

Ask Michael Rhodes the legendary top shelf nashville cat....He uses the single h due to its versitility Who do you believe....


a guy who writes about it or a giuy who makes history with it?

 

[Drmckool]

i don't understand how the 25th got a score that was that low. I know i'm preaching to not even the converted but the fanatics (and the pope of sorts to stick with the analogy), however; they compare a S/S/S model bass to an H model, instead of a H/S/S. The review was also superficial.

 

[bovinehost]

Of all the "reviewers" of bass gear in the world, there is just about one I pay attention to.

So if it ain't Ed Friedland....

 

[Drmckool]

Of all the "reviewers" of bass gear in the world, there is just about one I pay attention to.

So if it ain't Ed Friedland....

the bass whisperer, yeah. i have never seen a review from him which i didn't at least enjoy.

 

[MK Bass Weed]

In the article...it says "BONGO Aside"

Um....duh...did these basses NOT include the electronics ideas from the BONGO...?

 

[Grand Wazoo]

You know what I think of reviewers...and magazines.

Ask Michael Rhodes the legendary top shelf nashville cat....He uses the single h due to its versitility Who do you believe....


a guy who writes about it or a giuy who makes history with it?

I do not believe the magazine for one minute and I believe the man who is making history with the instrument, its the same all over the spectrum, it is very rare these days that journo's are skilled in the subject that they are writing about.

A very close example I have witnessed was with motorbikes, in 2008 Yamaha reissued the XT660Z Tenere (an off road bike), a bike who in the late 90's won 6 Paris / Dakar in a row. A magazine called MCN in UK got a man to review it and diss it from A to Z, this man who reviewed it, he had never been off road before in his life, he had only previously ridden tarmac pocket rockets such as Kawasaki Ninja and the likes, MCN put him in the middle of the Sahara with that bike and the guy said the bike couldn't handle the dunes terrain because he kept falling off it due to his incapacity to ride them.

Since the bike was issued I have had friends who have been all over the world with that bike, a lady called Jenny Morgan shipped it in a crate to the US and went coast to coast on it through rain, snow, sand and rocks and a Norwegian man, rode from Norway to Timbuk-tu and back. And this year the same Jenny Morgan took place in the Paris Dakar race and finished 11th.

Here she is in 2 different parts of the states last year

Goes to show, it's always a pr|ck that gets to write reviews and never the real professional end user.

*Edit* With the exception of the great Ed Freidland whose reviews are the best in the world.

 

[DTG]

i still buy the mag every month just to see what new gear is out there and for something to read at night.but the reviews read like they are listing the parts
its got a ash body......its got a rw fretboard.....its got 2 pick ups....but they never tell you what its really like.I think they are almost afraid to say anything bad in case a manufactor pulls their ads from the mag.

anyway,i will prob still buy it for the coffee table....and Ed is still the best ever,his review on the 25th was great

Dave

 

[p0werslav3]

of all the "reviewers" of bass gear in the world, there is just about one i pay attention to.

So if it ain't ed friedland....

+1

 

[shakinbacon]

come on guys, most of us "review" instruments when we try them. I know many of us get defensive when an "outsider" says anything about our basses, but gimme a break - not everyone is gonna like these instruments. Someone may say my Bongo looks like a toilet seat... so what? *I* like the instrument and I don't really care that the person doesn't like the looks of it. Is he wrong for having the opinion? Is it wrong to like blue better than green? No, they are opinions. And you know what they say about opinions?... everyone's got one just like another part of their anatomy.

The article is well written imho, just because we don't agree with the writer on some points doesn't mean we have to discount it completely.

 

[laneline]

Of all the "reviewers" of bass gear in the world, there is just about one I pay attention to.

So if it ain't Ed Friedland....

+1, word

 

[DaddyFlip]

This is the second UK review submitted by GW that has drawn criticism from BP and the forum (BP- your predisposition toward mag reviews is duly noted and excused). Superficial is a good word already used to describe these BGM reviews; however, they do a good job of showing off the hardware. Reminds me of what drew me to Playboy in my younger days- great pics, but too many words!!

I have never held a copy of BGM in my hands, but after seeing the two .pdf's I would recommend they work on their layout and copy editing; page 52 was a total mess. Other than that, I don't know how you write a "great" objective review of a "great" subjective product like a guitar. My favorite portion of the review:

View attachment 6811
Brilliant!

 

[Big Poppa]

I can take a review if it has merit...but to call that single h as not a versitile bass is just silly

 

[DaddyFlip]

I can take a review if it has merit...but to call that single h as not a versitile bass is just silly

+1
What they could have said that would have been more appropriate was...

"The 25th we reviewed retains the traditional and ubiquitous single humbucker near the bridge that has defined the MM sound for over 30 years. But don't let the single pickup fool you into thinking this is just another run of the mill Stingray. The addition of the mahogany toneblock, 18v preamp, series and parallel switching for the humbucker coils and the 4-band EQ increase the versatility of this bass far beyond previous offerings. Want even more versatility? Throw in the ability to bypass the active electronics and run in passive mode with volume and tone controls only. Yes, you heard right; a passive MusicMan! While some of this electronic wizardry might scare off some traditionalists and may offer only subtle changes in tone, one cannot deny the art and science that went into providing those with the scratch a bass that will allow them to tweak their tone until the cows come home"

 

[cellkirk74]

+1
What they could have said that would have been more appropriate was...

"The 25th we reviewed retains the traditional and ubiquitous single humbucker near the bridge that has defined the MM sound for over 30 years. But don't let the single pickup fool you into thinking this is just another run of the mill Stingray. The addition of the mahogany toneblock, 18v preamp, series and parallel switching for the humbucker coils and the 4-band EQ increase the versatility of this bass far beyond previous offerings. Want even more versatility? Throw in the ability to bypass the active electronics and run in passive mode with volume and tone controls only. Yes, you heard right; a passive MusicMan! While some of this electronic wizardry might scare off some traditionalists and may offer only subtle changes in tone, one cannot deny the art and science that went into providing those with the scratch a bass that will allow them to tweak their tone until the cows come home"

Go tell 'em!!!

...but I think the guy would have to play it first before he could write something like that which he obviously did not...

 

[DTG]

playboy....mans that funny,i everytime i get a bass mag my wife calls it "great more bass porn"