8 string Bass Guitar, neck through body, New

I HAD TO RETURN it. problems with the frets and tuning. Frets were not filed down along the top and bottom of the neck.

O.K. I am ready to write my review. This is for the Maestro 8 string bass pictured above. I am prone to exploring odd instruments for inspiration and this caught my eye. First...for the price this beast cannot be beat. Try pricing what would normally be a custom creation such as this and you will understand what I mean. This is not your traditional 8 string bass which is equivalent to a 12 string guitar meaning 4 bass strings with a course of 4 higher octave strings. No! This is 8 bass strings. I would say it qualifies as an extended range instrument. Some bass players may not call it a bass at all and I might agree. It is it's own animal. I bought mine to explore Chapman Stick type tapping (can't afford a Stick to just explore but this I can afford!) Now to fit and finish. Half way down the neck they just stopped as far a fret dressing...meaning the fret edges are very sharp and will need filing. Something odd happens with the pick ups as they seem to cancel each other out at certain points making it tricky to get even levels on all strings. May be a reverse wiring or something that I must explore further. Set up over all was good for normal playing though I am trying to get them closer for tapping purposes. Still working on that but over all great string action. Finish is very nice though the one I got has a blemish in the wood near the pickups that looks like a bad wood or a knot which discolors gray. You may be wondering why 4 stars (actually I will call it 4.5 stars)with all my complaints but putting it all into perspective as far a price and availability and shipping was good and fast (though it could have been packaged a bit better...inside packaging was destroyed by the time I got it from way across country though no damage to the guitar was noticed) for me it comes out being well worth the purchase. Bottom line ...if your willing (and able) to do a little work on the frets and electronics by yourself...(or pay to have it done for some extra $$) you can get this beast for at least a 3rd of what it would cost elsewhere to own. note: I never tried to contact the seller so I cannot say how they would have reacted to my above complaints. Seller has some really odd, hard to find and cool looking instruments for sale....check em out! Overall...I love this beast and would buy it again (though the price creeped up slightly from what I paid). I hope this review helps as it seems to be the first for this particular instrument.

Please NOTE: This review is for a Black, 5-String Fretless, Single HumBucker, Maple Neck & Maple Fretboard, brand name is Maestro. I am not sure how the picture appears to have changed nor why I can't add a picture of the actual bass purchased.I took a chance on this purchase as I never buy without trying an instrument. I've played many bass guitars over 36 years. Was pretty happy with my 4-stringers but was also always curious about a 5-string and a fretless. So, I picked this one up because it is both and well priced.Except for the round wound strings (?), the bass was actually fine 'as is' right out of the box - meaning no adjustments needed. Right away, I put a set of DR Flatwounds on it, and after a little adjustment period to the 5-string spacing, the thing played like butter, so smooth. It is hard to stop playing this Maestro.Ok, so after several hours on the thing, I'm not just a convert to the power of the low B on a Fretless 5-Stringer but I'm now a fan of Maestro instruments as well. The Maestro Bass I received is functionally flawless. And, both the front and backside of the maple neck are smoother than my Fender Precision. Without all the laminate of the Fender, the neck is actually a lot faster. Yes, I still like my 4-stringers and it will take some practice to get my speed up on the 5, but I wouldn't hesitate to buy another Maestro. Without taking anything away from all the expensive ($300+) bass guitar makers out there as I'm sure they earned the cache that comes with their name brands, Maestro is easily on Par, if not better, than my Fender Precision. I hoped for the best with the purchase and it worked out perfectly.

This is a five star for my purposes and considering it's price. It probably comes from China like most in this price range, but it functions really well. It sounds very good to me. This is my fifth bass. I didn't have a 5 string or a fretless so I got this one that combines both. It is new but doesn't ship from a big box company. It arrived in the condition that most mail order guitars arrive, needing the neck adjusted and bridge saddles lowered. The strings were really OK but roundwounds. I had flatwounds ready to install. You can get better fit and finish but you will pay for it. I like to pay for function, playability, and sound. I got a good deal. I know the photo setting and description are not the best but I took a chance and it worked out for me.