I've always liked bands such as Cheap Trick and King's X, two bands who derive a lot of thunder from the 12-string bass. Tom Petersson of Cheap Trick invented the 12-string bass over 25 years ago, but its rarity and high cost made the 12-string bass something of a curiosity and excluded less-than-wealthy people like myself. Recently a host of well-made and reasonably-priced 12-string basses have hit the market, including the Carlo Robelli/Galveston USB-12B model. After being drafted into the Midwest's premier Cheap Trick tribute band ("El Cheapo Tricko") in 2005, I first used a Boss PS-2 pitch shifter with a 4-string bass in a futile attempt to cop the sound of a real 12-string bass. Fortunately, I was able to sell some gear that I was no longer using and afford to buy a real (albeit cheap) 12vr in Fall 2005.
Personally, I'd have much preferred a short-scale Hamer B12S (think Jon Brandt-era Cheap Trick), but at $250 used my Galveston 12-string bass was a bargain. This bass features a brass nut and 24 frets (as if I'll ever use anything past the 15th fret), and is fairly well-made for a budget import model. It sounds HUGE!!! The electronics cavity is very well-shielded, and appears to have a "dummy" coil (apparently 1/2 of P-bass pickup housing?) for noise reduction, plus a separate battery compartment. Since these photos were taken, I've also obtained a teardrop hard case from Galveston dealer V.J. Rendano Music, but was underwhelmed by the fit/finish of said case given its cost ($101 delivered).
My biggest complaint with this bass has more to do with ergonomics and my preference for skinny necks than any fault of the bass. It's been a challenge to get used to the seriously wide neck; playing this bass just chews up my hands, but either my left hand will get used to its size and stop hurting, or it won't. In addition, the onboard "active" EQ makes a loud "pop" sound when activated, seriously limiting its utility. Finally, it's been a challenge to adjust the action of this bass: two truss rods mean it's easy to introduce a corkscrew twist to the neck, and while action/intonation is an iterative process, I still have a ways to go. A 12-string guitar or bass requires a more of a compromise between playability and string buzz.
[ back view | headstock ]
[ body, front and back ]
Vital statistics:
- Serial number: none (made in Korea)
- Body: probably mahogany (natural finish)
- Neck/fingerboard: 2-piece maple with rosewood fingerboard, plus two truss rods
Scale length: 34"
Neck width:
- at nut: 2 1/8"
- at 12th fret: 2 5/8"
Neck radius: ???, but very flat
- String gauges (standard 12-string bass tuning, eeE aaA ddD ggG):
S.I.T. PSR12-1895 (only $26 from JustStrings.com):
- fundamentals (low to high) .095 .075 .060 .040;
- octaves (low to high) .045, .035, .025 .018 unwound
(all stainless steel except for the .018 unwound strings)
- Electronics:
2 "soapbar" pickups (DC resistance):
- Neck (13.87 kOhms)
- Bridge (14.24 kOhms)
(both pickups: 7.34 kOhms)
Controls: master volume (pull-active EQ boost -- hi, mid, lo with center detents); blend pot between 2 pickups (with center detent)