ESP LTD B-205SM Spalted Maple Five-String Bass Guitar, Natural Satin

There’s good ice cream and bad ice cream, regardless of flavor, and the first thing you want to know is is this bad ice cream. No, this is good ice cream, although like most cheap instruments, it needs some set up work, in this case I even went in and cleaned up the neck joint a bit.The second thing you want to know in a review is what flavor is this? If a J bass is classic vanilla, and a P bass is chocolate, this ESP LTD B-205SM is vanilla soft serve. Vanilla because it doesn’t impart too much of its own character on the strings, and soft serve because it doesn’t have the thump and punch of a passive Fender, but instead is full and round and somewhat compressed sounding. A major competitor in active 5’s is the Yamaha TRBX305, which would be chocolate soft serve, having a lot more of the P bass character but not as much punch again.Which flavor is right for what you do? This bass might excel when you want a pure tone that is easy to manage, also a great platform for effects and amps that give their own character. Maybe the idea of a perfectly fine bass that lacks its own punch and character doesn’t appeal to you. I can’t answer that for you. Get them all?But it’s a beautiful instrument if you get one with nice spalting. I am amazed at how some people don’t know what spalting is and think the wood is rotted or something. Yes, but in a good way.

This is the most gorgeous bass I've ever owned. Despite my fear of rejection, I'm seriously considering a marriage proposal.The bass arrived about 10 hours ago and that's about as long as I've been playing it. So far I can say the design is superb and the sound is sweet. I now understand why there are so many unattractive guitars and basses on the market. I normally abuse my instruments ...the day I scratch or dent this bass I'm going to fall into a deep depression.UPDATE: 3/20/16I neglected to mention that while the color of this bass is described as "Black Satin" it (or rather mine) is more of a very dark espresso brown in the front and dark ashen gray (as pictured on Amazon) in the back. I don't know if this is intentional or a manufacturing error but it's not much of an issue for me as it's still a very lovely bass. The knobs and bridge are a dark bronze if that matters to anyone. I should mention that the texture or finish of the bass is indeed silky to the touch. Very well made.Keep in mind, this bass eats 9-volt batteries by the fistful.

Came all banged up and the wood was cracked

I have been playing bass for 30 year, and working on them the entire time as well. If you are comfortable with adjusting the truss rod and setting the intonation, then there will be no issue with this bass. If you are alright with paying someone else to do those things, then no issue. If you do not know what I am referring to, or how to make those adjustments, or can't afford them, then I would look to another bass. After a few adjustments though, this bass really feels and sounds great!Update:: I bought this bass 2 years ago now. It has become the best bass in my collection. I did have to adjust the action slightly when I got it, but it has stayed perfect since then. I put some flat wound strings on it and just fell in love. The price has gone up $100 since I bought it, but still worth every penny. Changed from 4 to 5 stars. Excellent bass!

This bass is amazing, I own many electric guitars and this was my first 5 string. It might be the best guitar I own now, but when I first opened it out of the box I had some major concerns. The biggest being the neck was badly bowed, and the low string was buzzing everywhere. One of the knobs was so loose it was about to fall out and I almost ripped the wires before I realized it needed tightened. These come stock with a 125 gauge on the low string which in my opinion wasn’t thick enough. After a proper set up, trussrod adjustment, I put a 135 set of d’adarrios on it and had to sand the nut down a bit for it to sit right. I play in drop A tuning and now it’s a beast. No need to upgrade anything else but I did have to pitch out another $100 or so to get it playing like it should.

I have a heavy music background mainly in voice - always wanted to learn to play the bass. Started about a year and a half ago using a borrowed Ibanez 4-string from a friend. Shopped around and loved the look of this ESP, went to a few local stores to play one they had in stock and liked the sound (but not the look of that one) so I decided to buy this as my first owned bass. DOES NOT DISSAPOINT. I may not be a bass afficianado, but it plays really well and has a great tone, not to mention the spalted maple grain is absolutely incredible in person. I'll agree with others about it having fret buzz, but it doesn't seem to be a consistent issue, and I've found that with keeping enough pressure on the string it seems to solve the problem. Overall - extremely pleased and a bass well beyond my expectations. I'll look to purchase from ESP again in the future.

I have played a Rickenbacker my whole life, which I love, but I wanted to try a 5 string. I purchased an Ibanez but was very disappointed with it and sent it back. I ordered the ESP and could not be happier. It looks and sounds great, and the craftsmanship is what I would expect to pay for a much more expensive bass. The only thing I need to do is replace the strings and it will be perfect. I highly recommend this beautiful bass for the beginner, or seasoned player. Nice work ESP!

This came smashed, I do not recommend shipping a guitar.