ESP B-305

Not sure where/when it was made tbh, but i wanna say Korea. The 24 frets is really pro. I've been playing bass for around 10 years now, and after moving to a 5 string around 5 years ago I'll never go back, 5 stings and 24 frets are a requirement now for me. Active EMG HZ pickups, which are pretty dope. Neck through body, which is always nice. 34 inch neck.

I play mostly metal, and yes, the E and B strings can get kinda muddy some times, but I blame that mostly on my amp, which is really pretty bad.

I bought it used, and everything was really the way I wanted it to be. One of the clamps that secures the cord in the bass had fallen off, so that was annoying, but the store i bought it from replaced it for free, so that was cool.

I don't really put my bass through much rigorous treatment, but so far after owning it for about 8 months its held up pretty well.

Overall I'd have to say this bass is a pretty good introductory/medium level bass. If it was stolen/lost I might buy another, but maybe not. I may try to upgrade it in a year or so.

Made in korea, 5 string 24 frets jumbo, dark cherry finish, 5 knobs (2 volume, bass, trebble, tone), 2 passive pickups EMG-HZ with active electronics. I bought this nearly new on Ebay, $300.
RECOMMENDED FOR A BEGINNER! (DON'T BUY IF ITS MORE THAN $500)
5th string sounds muddy - clear indication of a low-end bass.
electronics are crap.

This bass is made for metal, black metal, rock, for all other styles it seems to be missing something, not good for slapping. Getting more expensive pickups is a great idea. It has a lot of growl, high notes sound great.

It came with a fairly low action, although adjusting action is a piece of cake (if ur a beginner, DON'T mess with your bridge), and good intonation. The playability of this thing is awesome, sounds great with both fingers and pick, and tapping is easy, but this bass ain't for slapping. This bass is perfect for a beginner bassist, and I think the strings it comes with are extra light. Finish and body shape are pretty cool and they're sure to give you compliments.
Buying better pickups is highly recommended. You won't mudslide through your songs when you're plugged in a good rig, but get new pickups anyway.

This bass will withstand lots of things, but when you open the back panel, go easy with the wires - electronics in this bass are GARBAGE - wires come loose easy, so you should carry around a soldering kit or check the electronics throughly at home before you go anywhere. This is a clear indication of a low-end bass. Make sure you carry a spare battery with you. As you know, when the wire is plugged in the bass, the bass draws power from the battery, so make sure to disconnect it after you play or battery dies in 2 month. I went jamming once, the night before i played for an hour, and battery seemed to be fine. When i plugged in, sound was very low and after a minute it was dead all together. Being without a spare battery sux.

Been learning to play for 2 years and been hanging out with advanced musicians since the end of year 1. I Own a 75 watt peavey, great for practice and small gigs (SMALL gigs). If it was lost or stolen, I'd buy a better bass for more money. I'd rather get a custom with the same exact body shape because this bass is made to play and is way too comfortable than most beginner-intermediate basses I've played. Again, this bass is made for a beginner-intermediate, but don't trust newbies that tell you its a great bass. After all, its made in Korea. Its a whole lot of bang for your buck, but dont buy if its more than 500 bux.

Same as previous owners have said

It's decent. The HZ pickups have either way too much mid-range or not enough treble. The eq helps a lot but if the bass is up the B and E are muddy, if it's down the A, D, and G do not have enough low end. New pickups would help out a lot since it's otherwise an excellent bass.

The best part is that this bass feels great, plays great, and looks great. The set up was perfect and the finish was beautiful. I moved recently out of the house with a/c and into an un-air conditioned apartment and the humidity and temp warped the neck so I had to have it readjusted...not an easy feat for a neck-thru bass.

Keep a spare battery around for those just-in-case circumstances and you'll be fine. Bass strings don't really break if they're installed right and that's about it, nothing else really to go wrong.

10 years experience and still learning. I prefer my Fender Jazz to this bass but that's my baby. I play through a Mesa 400+ into a Mesa 4x10 cab and it sounds pretty good. I can't slap it at all but it sounds great played with fingers or a pick. Overall it's a bass that's great for the money but pretty limited on sounds. I don't see how it's that versatile bc there's not that much difference in tone by switching the pickup positions or changing playing styles.

2003 model! Korean made...flamed maple top mahogony body, neck thru! Passive ESP pickups, active EQ

I am a pro guitarist/engineer and I write metal! Progressive power metal and Black metal too! I needed something to record bass tracks with and this thing rocks! I am not running it through any bass rig...but a Voodu Valve online(Rocktron)guitar preamp to direct record! WOW! Sounds awesome! Rich sounds...the active EQ is cool! I used to play only EMG 81s in guitars, but switched to Dimarzio passives, it is totally subjective, but passive pickups produce less feedback! less noise for direct recording...

I tune to straight D and C, so you have to raise the action a bit from factory settings to not get the fret buzz, the finnish is cool, but my neck looks a bit cheaply assembled? That is the only thing I see which could be a problem in the future? String spacing is awesome! but for what I paid for it....no biggy!

Don't know?

I just started playing bass, but have played guitar for 17 years, if it were stolen I would buy another! For $380 new, nothing to really complain about! I love the color and action! I got the 5 string instead of the 4 because it is nice to have that range for recording, and the string spacing is tighter, so the transition from guitar has not been a factor! I have tried out Ibanez SR & Ergodyne, BC Rich...I don't give 10 reviews for this because it isn't the best out there, but for the money it is by far!!! so I give it a 9 being perfect for it's price range!

2003 ESP LTD B305FM. 5 peice Neck thru body. Maple & walnut. Rosewood fretboard. 24 jumbo frets. Body is mahogany wings with flame maple top. See thru dark cherry finish. Cosmo black hardware with string thru body bridge. 9 volt battery powered preamp Volume, balance, bass mids, treble. Twin ESP LTD stock soapbar pups.They say "ESP" not "EMG" on em. Slim neck for a fiver Back of neck radius is shallower then many fivers, but this gives it a more natural to human hand curve/radius. No workmanship, finish, or fretwork flaws.

Excellent sound. I allready had/have a ESP LTD B204FM, the bolt on neck & 4 string version of it. So I knew it would give me the versatility of goi from excellent regular bass voice to excellent cutting lead bass voice. The 305 replaced a Warwick, which just wouldnt give me the versatility I sometimes want. Great grow, snarl, deep rumble to cuttinglead type voice at will. Works great with heavy overdrive & distortion too. Though I tune mine E to hi C. Insteadof the more opular low B to G.

Small ajustment to bridge & pups for personal preferance. No loose hardware. Minor trussrod adjustment after switching to E-C tuning with 30-100gauge strings. Like allmost every brand out there, the shoulder strap buttons supplied are too small to securely hold a strap. So replaced those with wider ones. Excellent see thru dark cherry finish. Flame maple top is subtle yet very attractive.

Well made. Solid. WIllcontinue to withstand real world play & use without problem. Uses the five string as alternate to my ESP LTD B204FM. But would not be afraid to gig without a backup with either.

Never dealt directly with ESP.

Played bass since early teens. Would replace with anotherone if lost or stolen. At first the wider neck and narrowerstring spacing compared to 4 string was a little awkward for some things But gotover that and abto play it as well or better then the 4 stringer within a couple weeks. Loves everything about it. Shoud have gotten it in the first place, instead of the Warwick it replaced. LOL. Best qaulity, sound versatility & playability I've seen in a neck thru 5 string.

This is a 5-string neck-through bass. It has EMG HZ pickups and a three-band EQ. It does require a battery but as I understand it that's just for the active EQ, I beleive the pickups are passive. It has 24 frets. It didn't come with anything else other than a receipt (no case, straps, etc.,).

I play around at blues jams and often get complimented on the tone of the bass. For funk, blues, rock, even folk I can always get the sound I want. I think the high end is fairly well defined which gives good punch and definition. Playing a little bit up the neck sounds really rich and warm. Complaints : The B string is maybe a little muddy. Also up high, sometimes the bass can sound a little too tinny, but I think that's just due to poor settings on my part. You get a lot of flexibility with the EQ and separate volume controls, so it's possible to get a lot of different tones.

It came with the action amazingly low, which I love and have never really adjusted. Everything is aligned great, it's beautifully finished, no complaints.

I've gigged with this bass and it seems pretty rugged. I *always* bring a backup, but I trust this bass as much as I would any other. I did drop it at some point (oops) and a piece of the finish flaked/cracked off, but luckily that's all that happened, it still plays great. I've had the bass for two years and the finish (other than that one spot) has held up fine. I also don't think I've ever had to have the truss rod adjusted, and it still holds it's tuning extremely well.

I tried to get warranty coverage from ESP when the finish flaked off (read above). They were reasonably friendly and easy to get hold of, but said that that was not covered under warranty since apparently dropping a bass is not considered a defect. Sounds fair in retrospect.

I've been playing 5 years. I use a Gallien Krueger 400RB and 4/10 cabinet, which I also highly endorse. I learned on a cheap 4-string, moved to a Rogue 5-string for a while, then outgrew that bass and moved on to this ESP. I have no real complaints about this bass. It's comfortable and easy to play, has great action and a nice sound, and is comparable to a number of other basses that sell for twice as much. I'm a little curious if active pickups would make a difference. I will definitely never buy a 21-fretted bass again, the extra three really do make a difference. If this bass got stolen would I but another one? Tough to say -- money was a huge factor when I bought this one (it really is a fabulous deal for the money), but if I were buying another bass I might splurge for a warwick or something...

Can't remember when it was made, probably 2001, maybe 2002. The color is Gunmetal Blue, but looks kinda forest green, very nice looking. Has EMG-HZ humbuckers, 3 band active eq, volume control, and pickup blend control. Its made of mahogany, the neck is maple I believe and painted to match the body (headstock and back of neck), has tilt back headstock, 24 frets, exceptionally low action, comfortable even for my small hands. Kind of a titanium/black colored hardware. Neck-thru construction, rosewood fretboard

With the EQ and selection of woods you can go from deep rumble to trebly punch. I play metal, so tend to lean toward a crisper, punchy, kinda bright sound, but with lots of low end at the same time. Narry a hiss comes from the beast, and the sound is very rich and full, beautiful, can be dark, bright, pretty much whatever you like. I like everything about it, even if it is a "lowly" Korean made Ltd

It came with an extremely low action, no buzz, was even in tune, everything was pretty much ready to go. ESP even uses the strings I like, so I literally just plugged in and started jamming.

This thing has served me well for years, and seems to be able to continue to do so, even the clear coat is stillin excellent shape. Haven't even had to have ANYTHING adjusted in a few years, I'd never play w/ out a back up, though. I trust the bass, but not strings =). Onlyproblem I have is the finish on the hardware, especially the tuning keys and knobs, is beginning to fade/come off. This is partially due to me not whiping everything down when I was done playing (oils from your skin can play hell on your instrument, wipe it down!)

Never dealt with ESP, and I don't think they will ever have to hear from me

I love this bass, I play heavy metal and it fills that role nicely, its looks and sound lend itself to any genre, however. It plays better and sounds better than even the Fieldy Soundcrap signature (and any other SoundGear for that matter). Only paid like $650 for it, plus a $100 case

Made in 1999 in Korea 5-string fretted, 24 frets, 34 in scale Two volume and three hi, low, med nobs Two emg pickups Active electronics See-thru black cherry finish Neck thru construction Came with hard case

Very solid tone, seems more geared for heavy metal or rock. Very versatile though and would not look out of place with funk or jazz. I like the separate volumes for the each pickup. Makes for a variety of sounds. I have gotten from a very bright, tinny tone to a rich dark tone. Either way, I thought it had superb tone.

Action was very low when I got this bass. I had to readjust the action so that I could get rid of the buzzing on the lower fretts. No major fixes though. Just adjustments to fit my playing style. All the other hardware came in pristine condition and could not find a flaw anywhere on the body.

I think this is a very solid guitar. I would trust it if I didn't have a back up. Hardware seems pretty durable. I rarely have to do any readjusting once I have adjusted it. The finish on the body seems to be holding up. Nothing regular care can't protect.

I haven't had to deal with the company about this guitar yet. It did come with a life time warranty though. That is one of the reasons I decided on this bass.

I have been playing bass for 9 years. This is my third bass and I think it is a good one. The other bass I own is a charvel 4 string. That guitar has been reliable, but I wanted to upgrade to a 5 string. If this bass was stolen or lossed, I definitaly would buy another one.