Rob Allen

[TaronKeim]

Rob Allen is making some incredible looking and sounding basses these days...

Anyone had a chance to play a Deep 4 or 5 model, or even an MB-2?

I'm thinking of picking a fretless and tryin' to get my bass chops back, I love the idea of an upright tone without the upright hassle.

Also, check out these Deep 5 clips I found on the inter-web:

http://www.esnips.com/web/RobAllenDeep5

Thanks ahead fellas.

_TJK*

[landru64]

i had one of the very first mb2's. back then, my fretless chops were good. now, not so much. killer basses. rob's a nice guy. mine had a custom ordered heavy birdseye top. upright tone? not really. more like a bad ass p bass.

[PB+J]

I had a rick turner ren-similar in many ways. Cool bass, distinctive sound, never sounded much like my upright though. To my ears, those clips don't sound like an upright either, but they sound cool. If I had the dough I'd buy a rob allen in a second

[TaronKeim]

Thanks for the info fellas, I didn't think they sounded identical to an upright either, but I thought they caught more of an "acoustic" vibe than other electric fretless basses I've heard, which tend to sound plinky and have little sustain.

A lot of guys who dig the Rick Turner stuff really like Rob's basses, so that is good to hear, I like Rick's work a lot.

I think I'll have to save some scratch and pick a Deep 5 up, I need me a semi-lined board though, just on the edge of the board though, like side dots

_TJK*

[landru64]

i think rob worked for rick. i vaguely remember he told me he was aiming for something specifically different, but i have never played a turner, so i dunno.

[PB+J]

There was so much I loved about the turner ren--the weight, the expressiveness--it was really cool and really responsive to touch.

The thing that killed it for me was the piezos--I just could not get past the horrible crispy sound of the piezo pickup. Some people aren't bugged by it, but I was always fiddling with eq trying to get the sound that bugged me to go away

A better approach, IMHO, is what I ended up with on my upright: A contact mic. I've been using a Schertler Dyn-B, which sticks to the top of the bass with putty. No piezo quack and a much more acoustic sound. I've always wondered what a rob allen or a ren would sound like with a contact mic

[Lex Luthier]

I played one, I'm not really a bass player or a fretless player, but it did seem real nice to me. I have a Rob Allen CD, that guy is a great guitar player.