Godin A-5 Fretless

- 5 string fretless "acoustic" bass guitar
- maple back
- cedar top
- maple neck with ebony fingerboard
- ribbon undersaddle pickup

Unique voice between electric fretless and upright bass. when mic'd and bridge pickup combined it sounds huge. When setup with lower action it gets the classic "wow" tone. Lots of dynamic range from the electronics. Great for acoustic music, not so sure for other styles, tends to get buried under cymbals.

Problems with the saddle as delivered as it was about half an inch to short in the slot - the g buzzed like mad. It was a special order so the store made good on it and finally got a replacement saddle - took too long though.

Seems well made - good quality materials. As an acoustic instrument it demands kinder handling than an old Fender bass.

Hit or miss. The saddle problem was handled by the store and took too long. Other email communication has disappeared completely or been answered promptly. Doesn't seem to be rhyme or reason.

I really like this instrument - I also have a Godin Multiac Duet - another nice instrument. Check out an A5 if you get a chance.

This is the 5-string version of the Godin A4 acoustic-electric bass. You can see the bass and its feature set at

http://www.godinguitars.com/godina4p.htm

Here are the specs from the site:
Rock Maple neck with an ebony fretboard
16" fingerboard radius; 34 " Scale; 1 13/16" nut width (5-String)
Two-Chamber Silver Leaf Maple body with a Solid Cedar Top
LR Baggs Ribbon Transducer and custom preamp
Volume, Mid, Treble, and Bass controls

I bought it in 2002, but it had been on the shelf for some time--it may have been manufactured in 2001. Anyway, I got it at a great price with an antique sunburst finish (not the plain cedar that Godin currently lists for this bass). The finish was a little dull but it came back to life with a little polish. The workmanship is solid overall--no glaring mistakes and the setup was fine. The only knocks are that the strap pins are on the small side (the strap can slip off if you're not careful), the volume and tone control sliders are small and a little touchy to adjust, and there's no means to adjust the intonation at the bridge.

The A5 has a fantastic sound that can go from a very full, almost upright-sounding mellow tone to a more electric fretless sound. We put it through a Bass POD directly into the mixer, and it sounds far superior to my Washburn 5-string electric fretted bass. You can get the classic fretless 'wow' sound when sliding, making it very satisfying to play in the style of a Karn, Saunders, etc.

You have to be careful with the tone sliders as it's easy to put in too much bass, but once you have a sound you like, the sliders stay in place. My favorite sound is with the bass up around 3/4 and the mid and treble below 1/2--it's very rich and organic with that setting but you have enough definition to make the notes sing like they can on an electric. The only thing that keeps it from a 10 is how easy it is to get boomy if the bass control gets too high.

The A5 sounds great acoustically as well as amplified--plenty loud enough to practice unamplified by yourself or with an unamplified electric guitar. There is some drop off on the low B string when you play unamplified due to the relatively small body, but the B string is a monster when plugged in. I haven't recorded it yet, but I'm confident it will sound as good as it does live.

It's hard to describe just how satisfying it is to play the A5--everything just feels and sounds right. Playing for hours is a pleasure.

As noted above, no major flaws that I've noticed. The controls are quiet, and it stays in tune very well. It's solid.

For an acoustic bass, it's built very solidly. The strap buttons are too small and I've half dropped it a couple times with no averse effects. No wear in the finish yet, although I wouldn't really mind if it did--it has a vintage feel and look and this would only enhance it.

Haven't dealt with Godin directly yet.

I give the A5 a 10 because I only paid $600 for it. I was looking for an A4 or A5 (I have a Godin nylon Multiac guitar that got me turned on to the company), expecting to have to order one for a fair amount of money when I stumbled on this bass hanging in the back of Gelb music at a great price (thanks, Gelb!). It's not easy finding Godin's so I consider my very fortunate to have found exactly the one I wanted. I would be extremely upset if I lost it as I plan on keeping and playing it for a looong time. Guitars and basses are a very personal choice, but would have difficulty finding a player looking for a fretless bass who I wouldn't recommend the A5 to.