ESP LTD F-255

Made in 2006 in Indonesia. 24 XJ frets, five strings, a flame maple top, volume, pickup blend, bass, midrange and treble knobs, two soapbar EMG 40HZ passive pickups, active eq, Agathis body, walnut neck (I think), the famous F body shape, a normal ESP bridge, Grover tuners, 35 inch scale. Useful tools included. Got a gig bag as bonus.

I've played metal, hard rock and jazz with it. I always turn my midrange all the way up, so that's what I did with this baby too. It ruled in metal and hard rock. I used a more piano-like sound for jazz, which was somewhat experimental and it sounded really nice. The tonal capabilities of this thing are amazing. The knobs are miraculous. They can make the bass go from a really low, rich roar to a bright chant. Every bass should have an eq like this one. The harmonics are really nice, rich and piercing. No other bass sounds as good within a 500+ buck radius.

For me the action was too high, so I lowered it drastically. No buzz. The pickups were right where they should be. The only problem was the hardware - it was really oxidized. I didn't change it, but it takes away from an otherwise stunning looking bass. The feel of this bass is awesome - soft, smooth, comfy and fast. ESP knows how to make guitars that feel like heaven.

It withstood gigs, rehearsals and loads of garage playing, so I guess it's pretty much fearless. I've never had to complain about anything. The finish hasn't lost any of it's gloss throughout these two years of playing. Strap buttons are good. Never needed to adjust the truss. I always go everywhere with another bass (a fretless one), but I used the ESP alone before that and I had no fears of it going mute at random (unless the battery wasn't charged, I always took care of that before any plaing, because getting to the battery takes some time during a gig or rehearsal and everyone gets pissed)

The warranty is said to be lifetime, but I've never had to use it.

I also own a custom made fretless, which is the only better bass I've experienced in terms of sound. I absolutely love my ESP and if I wouldn't exchange it. If I lost it - I'd get another as soon as possible (but with the EMG pickups, because now they install some crappy ****). It can hold it's head up high among all other budget basses and the most mid-priced ones. My only wish is that there was a six or seven string version.

If you're wondering what bass to buy and are choosing from this and another bass - this is the instrument for you. You'll want to have all your next axes as similar to this one as they can be. And it costs next to nothing. No bass has a better quality to price quotient.

This bass was from Indonesia, not sure what year. Mine has 24 Jumbo frets with 5 strings. It had a solid black top. It includes 5 knobs.(volume, tone, various distortion/tone controls. VERY COOL!) There were 2 40HZ EMG pickups, neck and bridge. VERY GOOD AND THEY PICK UP EVERYTHING. Active EQ but passive pick-ups. Very smart in ESP's part. Rosewood neck, very dark, very cool. Model name (F-255) on the 12th fret. Agathis body, satin finish, very sharp looking. Grover tuners. It's perfect for HEAVY drop tuning. I tune from BEADG to GCFBE, and it sounds really good. It has a 35" scale, not to fat at all. It did not include any accesories, but they are not hard to find.

The sound was amazing. The pick-ups grab every little sound imaginable, so it's very very clear. I use it with an Ampeg SVT 410-HLF cabinet and a B2RE (450w) Ampeg rack head.
Its not noisy, its perfect. It can go from Rich sounding to Bright sounding with the turn of a knob. Very versatile. It can be played for jazz, blues or you can use it for the darkest Black Metal and thje most satanic brutal Death Metal. It can do it all. It alot better if you use it for metal, but can do anything. It has looks that kill. I love everything about it.

The bass needed alot of neck work, and some action work, but that was VERY EASILY taken care of. I changed strings from the factory .125 gauge to Ernie Ball's .130 gauge strings. It made al the difference in the world. Other than the typical adjustments you had to make, this bass was perfectly in tune when i got it. The pick ups did need to be lowered but that took like 5 seconds to do. This is an amazing instrument.

THIS BASS IS VERY RELIABLE. It will definetely last me for quite a while. It will not wear down over time. Of course i also take good care of my instruments. I payed for it with my own money, so i make sure i dont do anything to damage them. The strap buttons are perfect for my strap. I've had it since september, and i've only adjusted the truss rod once. It's very low maintenence when you set it up. I gig with it all the time. I never carry a back-up. I bring my warlock 4 string, but that's only for songs with alternate tunings. It's very reliable.

Haven't had to deal with them.
Not sure how long the warranty is.

I've been playing for a year. No regrets at all. I would buy it again if it was stolen or damaged. I love the look, I LOVE the sound, it a very comfortable fit. I compared it to Warwicks and Schecters. This one was so much more comfortable for me. I wish it had a black neck, but you can stain the wood. It's dark enough as is.
This bass is so amazing. I't reliable and it's dependable.
BUY THIS BASS.

It was built in Indonesia.A 5 string bass with 24 frets.Has an active 3-band equalizer(volume,tone,bass,mid,treble).Coming with 2 EMG-HZ Humbuckers.Agathis Body,neck-thru body,35" scale,5-piece maple and walnut neck ,rosewood fingerboard,dot inlays but has a model name on 12th fret,modern and aggressive look, more suitable for metal music.Grover tuners.Came with quality softcase(a thick one).I can say that it united lot's features that a bassist look for.

I play Death metal.When I first get this I said that is the one I am looking for.It has very good range that you can play all types of music.You can get a very deep and mellow tone and at the same time you can have very crunchy tone with high mids or get a jaco sound.I am using it with Behringer bx1200 amp and used it with tones of different amps(in studios etc.)like Marshall,Hartke...I can say that with this equalizer you won't need to waste your time with amps you can turn all switches to neutre and use your own bass,mid,treble,tone switches for most of the times (unless you don't want a tone way to high)I totally like its sound range

pick ups are well placed,I haven't got any problem with it's action and finish.It has a great look.It is light when I think it is a 5 string bass.Pick-ups are very good they are passive but they are powerfull with crunchy tones you can hear your fingers.

I have been playing this baby for 1 years and it is as same as I first hit it's string.I haven't got any problem with that I played continously 3 hours in the studio and it stayed tuned,I can say that I love this Grover tuners,it stays tune until you change it.

Didn't have to deal with company.

Before that baby I had a one of Fender jazz bass copy.I can't think losing it,if it were stolen,I would definately buy it again.It has great look that you can use whereever you want(stage,studio...)I searched somtehing like that before I find This.It has great features.It is like combination of a great look,active 3-band equalizer,24 frets.I really recommend if you look something really great, it worths

2004, made in Indonesia, 5 strings.
Controls:
Volume, balance, bass boost, mid-range boost, treble boost, EMG B64 active EQ preamp.
Pickups: 2 EMG 40-HZ humbuckers.
Neck: 5-piece maple & walnut, rosewood fingerboard, neck-thru-body construction, 35? scale, 24 extra jumbo frets.
Body: agathis.
Finish: Gunmetal Blue, ESP Forest shape.
Bridge: ESP BB-604, top load.
Tuners: Grover, locking.
Tools and cable included.

Good sound, plenty of output and good variety -you can go from a clear jazz to a tough metal sound(a little bit of distortion when turning up to full mid-range, giving it a cool Billy Sheehan like sound). Some more low tones were missed although, it has more variety of highs, trebles and mid-ranges, quite suitable for a metal bass player. Tested on my a Hartke Systems 2115 bass combo, 2000 bass amplifier.

Easy to adjust pickups and a good finish, but there where some details at the fretboard/body joint, where the finish(polyurethane?) was kind of cracked. All features went to hell after the action settings. After adjusting a really easy to set dual action truss rod and a not so good bridge(some of the Allen screws trend to roll over?fake roll?), fret buzzings on the A and D strings (first 5 frets) came up. I took it to my local dealer for a check and they couldn't make it go away. By setting a high action I could almost make it disappear, but it was always there and the action was so high already, that it totally sacrificed playability. Although, when playing it in low action was really comfortable, good feel, but I would have had to deal with the A & D fret buzzings and to me, at least, a bass with fret buzzing or dead spots -that makes sacrifice a low and comfortable action-, means a bad fretboard work and as playability is what matters the most(again, to me) I returned it.

I can't tell, I returned after a month.

I'm from Chile, Southamerica(sorry if my english sucks) so I have to deal with Audiomusica for the fret buzzings issue. They returned the bass from the technical service a month later in the same condition I left it there!!! they didn't do anything to it and they took a whole month for that!! and of course, the fret buzzings were right there!! They were supposed to call me in 1 week after they do the checking and ask me if I wanted them to change it for a new one, repair it or return it and they didn't, they sent it directly to some luthier and after a whole damm month they bring it back just as it was originally saying "oh sorry, there was a little mess because some of our employees where on vacation"...Dude, I want my money back I said and now I have to wait for the money!!

Awesome look, I fell in love with this bass when I first saw it so, I just bought it after a quick test in the store. Is definitely the only design I've liked so far and even though I love to play bass, I've never liked any shape so I just take a look at the color and finish, but this one, in Gunmetal Blue, totally got me. All features were cool too, specially for the price payed, the neck was solid and tough, the sound kicked, the tuners where soft but, as I sayed, the fret buzzings sent all to hell, after all, it's a low end Indonesian LTD, not an ESP.
I've been playing bass for 10 years and owned a U.S Fender JP-90 (passive) and a Korean Washburn (active). To compare it with one of them(let say the Fender), the LTD wins in look, design and sound, but in fret work, attention to detail, action and playability, the Fender was a lot better. You just have to ask yourself what matters the most, to me, again and again, it's action, playability and comfort.