Kramer Pioneer Bass

GREAT BASS 1981 USA PIONEER EXACT FENDER COPY HEADSTOCK
P PICKUPS PASIVE ONE VOLUME ONE TONE
NO PICKGUARD
GREAT FINISH REMIND ME OF THE NEW NITROS FENDER FINISH
MAPLE NECK ONE OF THE BEST NECKS FOR MY OPINION IS CROSS BETWEEN P AN J NECK SATIN FINISH ON NECK..
P BASS STYL BODY
IM GIVING IT A 10 ,, THERE ARE NO FETURES OUTHER THAN IT IS A GREAT BASS......NEW IT COST ME $400 AT SAM ASH NY.. O YEA MAPLE NECK NOT ALUMINUM,,, JUST LIKE FENDER
4 BOLTON NECK SAME AS FENDER

IT CAN PLAY ANY STYL A FENDER P BASS CAN.
QUIET NO HUM AT ALL
STUDIO OR STAGE GREAT BASS

GREAT FIT EN FINISH WELL MADE
POTS COME THRU BODY NO PICKGUARD

PLAYED FOR 10 YEARS WITHOUT A HICKUP
AN I TEND TO ABUSE MY BASSES,,,LOL
botom line if your going to buy a kramer bass get a usa circa 1980s
make sure neck plate says made usa not new jersy i think the nj models were made japan i might be rong,,if anyone knows the origion of these nj neckplates please e me thanks

Mine was definitely made in the USA, but I'm not quite sure what date; most likely late 80's.

People have already described the basics; number of frets and strings and all that.

The controls on mine are two volumes, one for each pickup, one tone control, a switch to select middle/both/bridge pickups, and a three-position select single/dual/humbucking mode on the bridge pickup. I don't know if this is stock, but if it's not then whoever did it did an extremely good job.

I don't know what material it's made of, but it's *heavy* and sturdy and despite its age looks great besides some very small dents and some minimal scratches, so whatever it is, it's tough. And it SUSTAINS. a LOT. Because of the weight i had to put strap locks on it, but that's fine. The weight isn't enough to make it uncomfortable to play, not by a long shot, but you definitely can't forget that you've got it! (I personally like having such a substantial instrument though.. it just seems more ... playable?)

The finish is gloss black, with a nice dark neck and gold hardware.

The hardware is great too; easy to adjust, but boy does it stay in tune!

I wouldn't say it's loaded with features, but as I describe elsewhere you can get a very wide range of sounds out of it, so whatever it's got, it's damn good.

I play various types of rock and hardcore, but also some more experimental and slow stuff, and this gives me all the different sounds I could want.

As I said, the sustain is incredible on this thing, so you have a lot of room to work there!

The middle pickups give an amazing deep bass with nice mids and highs, but mostly a really deep clean and warm bass.

The bridge pickup gets a lot more funky... The mids are definitely boosted, and the overall output level is somewhat higher, and you can get some great tones out of this as well... It doesn't lose the nice deep bass, but the mids are much more prominent, without going overboard. The different coil tap modes don't change the sound too much; mostly just the volume, but single mode it picks up a lot of hum so it's not really worth using. The other modes sound fine.

The variety of sounds you can get out of it is very wide, and any decent bass amp will allow you to extend and tweak it even more.

It handles slapping and popping extremely well too; and you can get a huge range of sounds just by changing your picking or plucking style too. It's responsive as hell!

I had to adjust the intonation when I bought it, it seems like whoever owned it before me had no clue what they were doing, but it's really easy to adjust so it wasn't a problem.

It buzzes a little bit when you're playing, but when you're playing through an actual amplifier the buzzing doesn't seem to bleed through into the actual sound at all, so it's not a problem. I could probably adjust it a bit more to get rid of the buzz, but it's really not a problem.

Considering that the instrument has to be almost 20 years old, it's in extremely good shape... the hardware is worn a bit, the edges of the neck are a little bit worn, there's a few little dents here and there, but nothing more than you'd expect for an instrument that has seen to many years!

Durability? as I sait before, it's in damn good shape.

I'm not worried about it breaking on me, and it still has plenty of life left in it, that's for damn sure! The finish seems to be incredibly durable too.

I never have to adjust the truss rod and the tuning stays fine so you don't have to tweak it around at all.

Chances are that it'd be pretty damn hard to get real customer support now; they stopped making these instruments more than decade ago and the company has since been bought out.

But, that being said, i doubt it's gonna break!

Overall, I LOVE this bass. I don't see myself ever getting rid of this; it looks great, it feels great, it sounds great, it's reliable and has lots of sound potential in it and the neck fits my hand perfectly... And, I got an incredibly good deal on it; $175 used.. it was a steal, definitely!

If it got stolen I'd probably just give up and stop playing bass anymore, hahah ... nah, the chances of ever finding another one are extremely slim, so who knows what else I'd get. Maybe an american-made fender jazz bass... wouldn't be as nice as this one, but at least it'd be in the same ballpark.

I just love how it feels, pretty much.... and isn't that the most important part?

I bought my solid-black Kramer Pioneer bass new in the very early 80's. I must make it clear (to the un-initiated) that this is NOT one of those aluminum neck monstrosities Kramer is infamous for! It has a fabulous maple neck, really what makes this such a superb instrument. Nice and thin, but it's never warped in 20+ years. Great low action, doesn't buzz, and I generally play hard! This bass made me really appreciate how much better a maple neck is than rosewood. Brighter, more bite, balls, you name it... this one has it.
It came with a P-type neck pickup and a nice double jazz bridge pickup with a coil switch.
The gold schaller bridge is also better than what 90% of high end basses come with. And between the bridge, neck and tuners, I basically NEVER have to tune this thing. It just stays in and that's that.
Someone once told me that these instruments were really made by ESP (the neck definitely was) and that the only thing Kramer made was the decal on the headstock. I find this extremely plausible!

I played this bass, with Dean Markley Blue steel roundwounds on it, in bands of every style from punk new-wave to folk, classic rock, even reggae! The stock passive pickups had great highs (from that nice double jazz bridge pickup) that were fantastic for tapping harmonics. I replaced them with active, low impedance Alembic pickups/preamp. That added a world of bottom to the sound. I still miss those super highs though, and I want to buy another stock Pioneer for that reason, if I can find one in the perfect shape mine is in.
It has alot of midrange punch, which makes it great for rock playing. I need to turn down the tone knob almost all the way for reggae and mellow stuff. It's totally different than the standard Bartolini sound everyone uses today.
I've recorded it on lots of albums and played live with it a ton, it's my mainstay for sure. Doesn't produce a million different sounds, just a few really great ones!

I bought this bass because when I played a chord at the top of the neck, it was just so perfectly intonated that it didn't even beat at all. No $3000 bass I've played is this in tune. The neck has the best feel of any bass I've played. It's like the very old Jazz necks people pay thousands for. I had a brass nut added for more sustain. The gold chrome on the bridge and the brass tuners still looks pretty good. The only problem I ever had was with the jack, which I replaced. Oh, and it weighs a ton! Bad for the neck.

After more than 20 years, I play this bass almost exclusively. It's never let me down and it's gone all over the place with me. I have a feeling my grandson will be able to play this thing, if they still use bass guitars then. The solid black finish is very thick and has only chipped in places where it's taken a hard shot over it's long lifetime. The finish on the neck has held up fine, perhaps yellowed over the decades. The frets were crowned once ten years ago, it's never been refretted. Don't know if there's a luthier I'd trust to refret it.

I also have a vintage Les Paul Recording bass, a 5-string Modulus with Lane Poor pickups, a Conklin Groove Tools bass with Bartolini's. None of them see much action, except the Conklin, which I play when I don't want to risk anything happening to my beloved Kramer.
If this bass got stolen or smashed I'd give up playing! It's as irreplaceable as my wife, and I spent alot less on the bass!
If anyone wants to sell one with a straight neck, let me know.

MAde inthe USA. I think this was an 82. I bought it used in 1986 - my first bass guitar . Used to be fretted with maple neck and fretboard and 21 frets. Was definitely better than a Fender precision. - Doesn't have a pickguard. Had tone and volume. Gold plated hardware. Had one Duncan precision pickup.

However in 1990 - the bass was in a car that got hit and that event cracked the neck by the headstock. I decided to make it fretless - not just defret but actually put an ebony fretboard that is the equivalent of 29 frets. Also the luthier sank 2 BP-100 fishman transducers on the neck. Changed the pickups to bartolinis and put an EZ-Q pre-amp. Also had a circuit to have the piezo on or off. In 1996. A car run over the case and sank the pots> The repairman just wired it with the magnetics pickups. Recntly the electronics were worked on again and now it has a passive switch - magnets only - a piezo blend knob and a bass and high boost and it is now 18V - still the origibal bart pickups and the EZ-Q preamp

This bass had basically fed me and I made money gigging with it as a sideman, a band member and studio musician. I use to play upright and the modification with the extended fretboard really reminds me of the upright. The piezos even add body to the already motown tone you get from the barts - they are not scratchy as they are in the neck and body. I heard Michale Manring's Zon bass had 4-6 transucers in the body and neck. I change the strings from DDaDario flats to Roto Sounds 66. I played a lot of jazz but have done top 40's with this - some rock and even slapped on this bass. Obviously good for country and blue grass. When I was living in Europe -- I took it with me. The EZ-Q plus the piezo blend plus the 18V give me a lot of tonal possibilities. I have used this bass in almost the recordings I was in, from jazz to country to even Hindi pop (Indian music ) yes I took it when I was in India as well and recorded with a lot of Indian musicians. At one time I had 5 bass guitars and sometimes only this one. My first and could be my last. I don't know if I could sell it because it has 2 repaired cracks in the neck and in the lower bout. But it has the sound! I have earlier recording before it cracked and was made fretless - it was bad-ass way back then as well. And for that finger funk - this is the bass and will swing with a big band just laying down the groove. And with the piezo full and the bass boost - It will do salsa and merengue. String it with the rotosound round wounds and lower the action - it fits well for fusion jazz. Lay back and you can do country. Many times pro

I have change the action from high to low and at one point tuned this bass like a low cello - in fifths. No problem. I also have marked the bridge the adjustment that will work for intonation when I do flatwounds or the rotosounds. I've only used rotosounds since 1988 and have either use DDario flats or thomastiks. The ebony fretboard is thick and dense and I have not adjusted the neck since it was repaired in 1990. I don't know if the Luthier reinforced it with something else. The neck is like a thick precision neck. Pickups I adjust as per the action. HArdwrae still has 80% platings. The paint they used is still good where it was not gauge by the accident.

A bass that was in a car that was totalled and run over once and still playing after 2 cracks must be reliable. This bass stays in tune. Heck I depend on this. Now I have a job and family and don't need to play music for a living, but I imagine if I was till single, I could make a living just using this bass

N/A

Playing bass for 24 years. If this was stolen, I think I 'l have to buy a musicman fretless with piezo as this was the bass the came close to this bass. If it was stolen, it it irreplaceable. I had 2 pedullas, a music man stingray 5, old ESP, Fender Deluxe 5, Kawai, 70's Fender Precision, Fernandes, BSX and Steinberger - and I always kept this bass. The only thing I want know is a French upright but that's a different story. Between the ATK-305, the Stingray, the Kawai and this bass, I don't need any other bass.

Not sure of the year but the s/n # is A8247 and I purchase it second in the early 80's. 21 frets. solid brass machine heads, nut and tailpiece. semi-transparent blue w/maple neck. active pick ups at the tail in offset position (don't know what you call that)

I have used this bass exclusively for 20+ yrs. The sound and fit delivered from the moment I picked it up and I have never considered ever using another bass in the home studio or live. Pickups in active position deliver a full range phatt sound. Inactive is warm and subtle.

I do my own setup and with this bass you can leave it sit a year or so tighten the hardware through on some strings and it's good to go. And get this! the E stays in tune. WOW!

Great in the studio. Great live. Solid as granite. Never needed to adjust the truss. pickup require leveling and care every two or three years.

Not necessary. Very easy to maintain.

Been playing over 30 years. If lost or stolen I would scour the planet earth to replace it. This bass was highly overlooked in it's day and IMHO is twice the quality and sound of the Fender Precision. Don't get me wrong I love the P bass but if you ever see one of these take a second look, sit down and play it. They still run at @ $200-250 and that's a far cry from what you'll have to put down for a Fender or Gibson bass in the same class.

This is one of those "Made in USA" Kramer basses, it has that on the neckplate, the neck and body are wood, this is not one of the metal ones with the "tuning fork" peghead. Split coil picks ups, this bass is a copy of a Fender P-bass, all gold hardware, original jumbo frets. I like the idea that it has several features improving on the Fender design, like access to the truss rod at the fretboard without having to take the neck off like in some Fender models, access to the electronics without having to take off any pickguard. Pick-up selector switch, the neck is maple with skunkstripe, big frets, not really used much, I bought it in our local pawnshop. This one is white, just now starting to turn the slightest yellow, this is a very solid bass, great tone, came with on of those really heavy tweed "Excelsior" cases. This bass was made back in the early '80's and when these came out, Fender sued them. See the Kramer Krazy homepage for more info on that, I found this after about an hours search on the net. Seems these were made, along with some very close Strat copies and that got Kramer in trouble. Very high quality dependable bass, made here in the USA.

Sounds like a hot P-bass, I'm playing it thru a Fender Bassman 400. Got the growl, most definitely so.

Fine here, no complaints, action was fine when I got it, does not appear to have been adjusted since it was made. Did not need any except a string change.

Very dependable. Much more of a solid instrument than e Mecican Fender. The hardware is top quality, as is the case. No "monkey metal" or "chrome" diecast parts. Finish is very clean, smooth, someone did a fine job of finishing the instrument when it was made. The neck is straight as an arrow, it could probably need a bit of bend put in it unlike most you see that need the exact opposite.

I don't think the company exists anymore. Gibson bought out Kramer at one time, but this was after they stopped making them here in the USA, after the infringement on Fender. The ones out now are made overseas.

I highly recommend this model bass if you can find one. It is much more of a quality instrument than the Mexican Fenders most you see, with features meant for the musician. I don't think they made too many of these, so if it got stolen, I'd just buy an American Fender, because that is what it is a copy of anyway.