Hamer Cruise USA

1995 CruiseBass 4-string, Gotoh bridge, Duncan J-bass P/U's, Schaller tuners, V,V,T controls, Rosewood board, maple neck, emerald green finish over alder body. As far as features, probably aren't many, or any. What is featured is the stellar build quality--10 for sure, there.

Sounds like a jazz bass--a really, really good jazz bass. It isn't going to give you anything other than that, though. Guitar Player or Bass Player compared it favorably with a '65 J-bass, only just a touch brighter. Pretty good comparison, I'd say.

Fit, Finnish, Action--Outstanding, best constructed bass I have. Maybe by only a skinch over my Robin and Carvin, and both of those are really well built. That is great company to be in. No complaints about anything on this bass in this category.

No worries with this, built like a Mack truck. No battery to worry about...

Unknown

I have been through a few basses, Ibanezes, Epi's, Fender, Robin, Carvin, and have played others. I have been trying to score a Cruise for a long time, and sort of gave up. I finally got lucky and got this one. I wanted a 2-Tek bridge, but I think I am just as happy with the Gotoh model. It is lighter, and some complain about the more metalic sounding 2-Tek, anyway. Seems like you really need one of each... Beautifully constructed, best jazz bass that has not been made in the US by a major company for a long time some say (I'd agree), looks stunning, balances perfectly, plays easilly and quickly--especially with the really slim neck and tight string spacing (probably not for beginners unless you have small hands), sounds like a jazz bass--what else is there to say? Only neg is that you are not going to get multi-tones out of this, like many of the active modern basses. I knew that going in. I love this bass. Bottom line, if you want a great jazz bass and can actually find one of these, you have to check a Hamer C-Bass out--or take a flyer and just buy one--you won't be disappointed. Why the USA CruiseBass was not a huge sucess for Hamer baffles me.

Bought used, so I'm not sure what year this is. The guy I bought if from couldn't remember--he thought it was a '96. It's the jazz-style, so that could be right. Came with a hardshell case and a truss rod tool.

This is basically a Fender Jazz copy. 4-stringer, 22 frets w/rosewood board. Neck is a bit narrower and "deeper" than my Fender Jazz. I believe the neck is maple and the body is alder--although it seems quite light (lighter than other CruiseBasses I've played). 2 Duncan Vintage PUPs, vol, vol, tone. Everything is passive. Bolt-on neck w/very minimal heel (a great advantage over Fender if you like playing the top frets). Most people talk about the Cruise with the 2TEK bridge. Mine has a Gotoh instead. String-thru OR standard stringing. Finish is a 2-tone vintage sunburst w/white pickguard. Schaller tuners (which I'm not crazy about, by the way.

I give it a 8 because it's definitely above average in features (high-end hardware and pickups, excellent materials in general) but not higher because Passive Jazz Basses are not "feature-rich" basses. A high-end preamp would have would have taken this to a 9 or 10.

Also, I'd prefer a pickup blend, master vol, master tone. But how many Jazz basses come with that? Oh well.

This bass would be appropriate for any style of music. It is VERY punchy and can cut through the mix easily.

Tone is...well, this thing sounds INCREDIBLE. Rich, articulate lows, singing highs. Growls like a really pissed-off Jazz bass with the bridge pup, gives a nice convincing P-bass thump with the neck pickup. For fingerstyle I crank the bridge pup and roll off the neck pup until I get the sound I want for a song. If I need deeper, warmer tone I open them both wide.

I played it side-by-side with a pair of Sadowskys. It didn't quite match up tone-wise, but came surprisingly close (even without a preamp!).

The tone knob is much more effective than the ones on most Fenders I've played. Usually I keep it open, but sometimes will roll off the highs for classic rock or more traditional blues/jazz.

If Sadowsky is a 10, I'll give this one a 9 (and it's a "high" nine!)

Bought used, so I'm not sure how the factory setup was. They guy I bought it from had the pickups a bit high and I was getting to many harmonics. I lowered them a bit and the sound became much cleaner and beefier.

The neck is arrow-straight and plays faster than most basses I've used. Nice fret work. I can set relief flat and the action way low and get virtually no buzz.

The bridge is excellent. However, I'm not sure what material the nut is made from. I think it might be (gasp!) plastic. I'm not crazy about the Schaller pegs--they seem to slip just a bit once in a while.

The finish is excellent. There are two faint lines running along the front of the bass on either side of the strings, but you can't notice them unless you search hard and have the right lighting. So I guess that's nitpicking :). I'm not partial to the white pickguard, but some people might think it has a great "vintage" look to it.

I've only had this bass for about a month, but it's extremely solid. The finish seems very tough. Nice big strap buttons. The neck stays straight. There was a severe weather change and I didn't have to tweak the neck at all. I'd always recommend gigging with a backup, but unless someone ran this thing over with their car I don't think I'd need one.

n/a

I've played for more than 14 years and this is one of the best instruments I've played PERIOD. If it were stolen, I'd buy another in a heartbeat. I selected this bass over a MM Sterling, Peavey Cirrus, Fender Marcus Miller Jazz Bass, Alembic Epic, and G&L ASAT. Not as versitile as many of those, and less "boutique" looking, but taking into consideration sound, playability, and (to some extent) price, this one beat them all.