Cort A4

I'm reviewing a Korean-made Cort Artisan A4, purchased second-hand. It has a five-piece through-neck, a rosewood fingerboard, an attractive yellow-red sunburst finish and Korean-made Bartolini MK1 soapbars.

Cool things about this axe are the thin, comfortable neck, the non-confrontational modern body shape, and the unusual 'platinum' finish on all the hardware. The nut is brass. Cort's standard headstock design (2+2 with a bite taken out of one corner) is cool, and always gets positive comments. The finish is eye-catching as well.

On the downside, the bridge is a dicky design with separate anchor-points and saddles a la Warwick. You change the height of the saddles by screwing them in and out, so to adjust the height of a string you pretty well have to remove it first. Also, this axe is WAY heavier than it looks. It's one hefty 4-string!

After buying this bass I put new strings on it, plugged it into my all-Eden rig and let rip. I was rewarded with a tight, growly, modern sound. The through-neck gives amazing sustain.

I have used this bass on recordings, both fool-around solo stuff and actual serious studio stuff, and I'm always impressed by how good it sounds. The onboard EQ lets you dial in all kinds of sounds.

As for slap, it doesn't feel as good to slap as my Fender American Deluxe Jazz Bass, but boy does it sound good recorded! With the right EQ settings you can get a very tight, aggressive, spanky slap sound indeed.

Well I bought it second-hand, but I haven't touched the action, and it's actually really good; nice and low but with no buzzing.

The pickups could use some adjustment seeing as the D and G strings are unusually loud.

The body is really well-constructed; the wenge laminates in the neck look awesome. Unfortunately whoever routed the holes for the pickups and bridge got a bit carried away. There are gaps all round, and the holes are not perfectly straight.

Still, a very solid axe, especially considering it's Korean.

No problems so far.

I usually only use this bass for fooling around on at home, and I've only played one gig with it.

Once again, a solid axe.

No problems; no need to deal with them.

I've been playing on and off for 14 years. I play effects-driven alternative rock, funk, blues and CCM.

I bought this bass just to practise on at home, so I can keep my main axe (Fender American Deluxe Jazz Bass) tucked away in its case unless I'm rehearsing or playing a gig. I actually play the Cort more often than the Fender now; I prefer the Fender's live sound (especially slapped), but the Cort holds its own recorded, and is extremely playable. Not bad considering it cost around a third of the Fender!

I chose the Cort because it's one of the best-made Korean axes out there, and I have no regrets at all. In terms of tone, it is a bit of a 'poor man's Warwick'. If it were stolen I would look for another one, or get another similar Korean axe (Ibanez, for example).

Bought this bass in 2005 (swapped it for my Yamaha TRB6P....read on why!) Full scale neck, 4 strings. The spacing to excellent and the action was good when it came out of the box. Active EQ make for superb sound

Fantastic. I tried a musicman, fender, warwick and none of these instruments comapres to this. Cort are selling a gem. I am a pro player (full-time) and I can honestly say this bass sounds better than the above mentioned instruments. I can hear 'snobby' players saying 'yer, yer' well in the uk we say the 'proof is in the pudding' and this baby is sweet. I play theatres,church, studio's, TV and tours and the A4 covers all styles of music and genres. The variety in the sound is awesome. I get no noise from the pick-ups at all. I use a digital yamaha amp, but run it flat as the bass carrys the sound better

Set-up was ok but i did need to have a fret filed down to stop 'buzzing' but after spending 20 pounds doing this it was excellent. The pickup's create a full sound and is only matched by really expensive instruments (pedulla) etc. The guitar looks excellent and is robust and workman like

Never let me down.

never needed to

I swapped this guitar for my Yamaha TRB6PII and have not regretted it at all. The Cort instrument is much better. If you are looking for a ferrari then buy a Pedulla bass but if you want an insturment that is 3000pounds cheaper and plays the same then this is it.

Dont get suckered into being a 'snobby' bass player and go for 'brands'....USA is not always best. Cort are excellent and i would recommend this bass to any pro player.....i'm off to buy a 5 string next!!!!

2005 Cort Artisan A4. 24-fret, 4 String. Neck-through of maple with four wenge stripes. Flame maple body, satin finish. Active Bartolini MK1 pickups and EQ. Mine did not come with a case or gig bag. Controls: Volume, pickup-blend, bass, mid, treble, active on/off switch. The neck on the A4 is thinner and more shallow than on a Warwick, something I personally was looking for.

The sound on this thing is awesome. Even with the active EQ off, it has a bright sound, really alive. With the Bartolini EQ you can dial in just about whatever bass sound you can imagine. I play straight through an old GK 800RB and a 4x10 cab, usually no effects. I play all types of music: rock, jazz, metal, funk, and I can get any of those sounds with ease through this bass. The slap sound is awesome and it's a simple knob tweak between that and a great mellow jazz tone. The electronics are silent compared to my old Peavey, I can't hear any buzz.

I didn't have the bass set up; factory set-up was a little off, but that's to be expected. The action was set pretty high and the intonation was bad. I fixed that stuff and the action is really nice. Not the best of any bass, but definitely one of the best at this price. All the hardware is in pristine condition. I really like the brass nut. My only complaint, the flamed maple top does not look all that nice. The finish is fine. I did not get to see the actual bass I ordered beforehand, just be aware that they don't all look exactly like the pictures on the website! Overall very nice.

Feels rock-solid. Relatively large body, no parts I imagine could ever break. All the hardware is good heavy metal. I have not gigged with it, but I would think it would be great for live playing, and I would play it without a backup.

No experience with customer support thus far.

I've been playing guitar for 12 years, bass for only 2. I played a LOT of basses because I was on a budget and wanted to make sure I found the right one. I have an electric guitar, steel-string acoustic, classical, and this bass. No room for anything else! This has met my expectations fully. I can use it to get any bass sound I could ever imagine. Features I really like: brass nut, fluted neck-headstock joint, rounded body edges, the way it looks and sounds! Things I don't like: The flame maple body on mine does not look all that great, also the tuners are open-gear but I doubt this will affect anything as long as they're kept clean. If this was stolen, I'd replace it in a second if I could find one for the same price (and I had the money!). For under $700, I couldn't find a better bass.

Artisan A4, made in 2004 with active/passive switch rather than the pull button. It has the usual 3EQ, a volume and pickup pots. Hipshot tunners, Fortress Bridge, Bridge-Bartolini MK-1 pickups. The wood is very nice with a satin finish throughout - satin finish on the neck which makes it smooth and fast. Also has a alloy nut.

I play everything from classic Bach, blues, Rock, Country and a lot of jazz - it copes amazingly with all of this stuff. Using fingers at the neck gives a nice fat sound (not double bass sound, only one of them gives that sound). It can cut though a song with no problems and if you slap it, there will be a smile on your face. When I got it at first I loved it because of the weight (not neck heavy) and the bass is reasonably light. It had great presence and played fantastic. I just got a US Fender Jazz 2002 model before this and sold it again as it was neck heavy. I took a long time over choosing this bass to make sure I got what suited me. I tried Musicman (sterling, stingray), Peavey Cirrus, all the Warwicks', Schecter(I have a fretless Studio-4 and its amazing), Spector and various others. Nothing felt as good as this to play. After 3months in the house, I was fustrated at the fret buzz (due to the Bartolini pickups - checked this with an G&L or Lakeland that used the same pickups in the shop). I tried different round-wound strings and setting it up, but no joy. I was almost ready to sell it and thought that I would take my Thomastik Jazz Bass strings from the Fretless and put them on it.... Whalllllllll, this totally transformed the bass. I then setup the bass (intonation, relief, action) and cannot tell you how good this plays and sounds. The strings removed the fret noise and gives it a fantastic growl and the felling of Flats on this are awsome.... Please try these strings on this bass, you will not be disapointed.

The bass came from the factory with perfect setup and action. However for my style of playing I like a very low action, so it was droped.

This bass will last me forever as it apears to be a solid workhorse. I have giged with it a lot and it resists knocks and bumps. It stays in tune and has never let me down. Nothing ever needs adjusting. Fantastic. Up there with the best.

never needed to use them, and hopefull will never need. so I can't give any opinon on this...

I have been playing for 3 years and had this for about 6months. Everyone I have let use the bass has thought it to be very good, this inlcudes session musisians. Would I buy one again - without a doubt. The whole package with the Thomastik Jazz Bass flats are excellent and with the cost - I would recommend finding and trying one as its a steal.

I bought this bass with a hardcase for 700 aussie dollars used. This bass retails for about 1700 with the hardcase. It was made in 2000 in Japan. It has 24 frets, 4 string. It has volume, bass, treble, pick up selector and mid. The pickups are active Bartolini MK1's. Figured Maple Body and Maple + African Wenge Thru Neck. Natural Finish. Fortress bridge.

This is one of the greatest sounding basses for the price range. With the active bartolini MK1's you can get any sound you want. It suits any style of music. It has a great slap sound.

The bass is very easy to play because of the low fret action. The pickups are adjusted fine. The bass doesnt contain any flaws.

This bass is so solid and strong. It is quite a large bass. It weighs about 4-4.5 kilograms. This bass will last me forever.

The bass is one of the greatest basses for the price range. You could up to $3000 for something like this. I have played a music man stringray and I swear it wasn't that much better than my Cort A4.