Sadowsky PJ4 Standard

Made in NYC & Brooklyn by Sadowsky Guitars www.sadowsky.com in 2003

34" scale (I think), 21 fret Brazilian rosewood fingerboard on maple neck with P width nut, alder body, unbelievable flamed spalt maple top, P-shaped body, black hardware SEE PICS HERE: http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=65438&highlight=Sadowsky+spalt

Sadowsky PJ pickups, Sadowsky on-board preamp (bass & treble boost), passive tone control (treble roll off) with pull up to bypass preamp, volume control, pickup blend knob

Straplocks, double gig bag (I don't like HSC), gloss natural finish on body, easy access spoke wheel truss rod adjuster

Polishing cloth, instructions for preamp, adjustment tools

Very, very warm sounding, rich moderately dark tone (compared to my swamp ash maple fingeboard Sadowsky jazz bass). The tone can be brightened up depending on how you play: fingerstyle with flesh or your nails, pick, slap. The bass is wondefuly sensitive to the nuances of your playing: slight changes in technique of either hand result in changes in tone. A myriad of tonal possiblities exist with this Sadowsky PJ4.

The solo'd P and J pickups are very nice and I really enjoy the P pickup. The slap tone is tight and funky..for lack of a better term. It seems to have a tight cut in midrange with PJ blend knob in the middle when I slap and pop: a wonderful tone.

It's working out great with my band. Easy to adjust on the fly and cuts through nicely. I haven't recorded with it yet...probably in a few weeks that will happen.

Supremely quiet bass with great s/n and no RF problems.

My style is almost everything--rock, alternative, pop, funk, metal, techno, jazz @ Marcus Miller-- except lite jazz and very little country.

Plays like buttah! Set up pefectly. No criticisms.

While the jazz necks feel more comfortable in my hand, I do find it easier to play the P width neck. Seems contradictory but it's not.

Totally solid. Preamp allows battery to last a looooooong time. If batter goes dead, you can bypass the preamp.

Simply exceptional. Very patient and prompt replies on all matters. Pretty gracious considering they deal with the top bass players on the planet.

I've been playing guitar for over 20 years and bass for 5 years. I have tried almost everything out there. Sadowsky basses aren't cheap but, in my opinion, get the best sound of any bass I have played. There are great sounding basses out there but the Sadowsky's have the sweetest ear candy for me.

I tried Fodera, Lakland, F Bass, Alembic, Status, G&L, Fender, ESP, MTD, Pensa, Ken Smith, Modulus, Musicman, Dingwall, Warwick, Sukop, Sei, and others. Some were very nice and excellent. But the Sadowsky made me the happiest in regard to tone, tonal variance, preamp effectiveness, simplicity (I don't like a lot of controls on the bass), and s/n.

It took me a while to really feel at home with this bass because I have been playing a Sadowsky 4 string jazz bass with a swamp ash body, quilt maple top, and maple fingerboard with Sadowsky jazz pickups for several years. That bass is a lot brighter and a bit tighter sounding than my PJ4 for obvious reasons: woods. The PJ4 seemed dark and prodigous sounding compared to my jazz bass. But that is a contrast of the two basses and not a negative. Kind of like blonde and brunette.) I do love the PJ4 and my arsenal of two Sadowsky basses is a treat!!! It's hard deciding which one to take to a gig. :)

You can spend less on a bass. And you may be happy. But many players seem to buy and sell basses at a loss looking for THE tone. If you instead get a great bass and pay more initially, you won't end up taking a bath in trading up or hunting for the bass you dream of.

IMHO, Sadowsky is THE ONE.

AMPLIFICATION & SPEAKERS: I run the Sadowsky basses into a Kern 777 preamp, Crown K2 power amp, and Euphonic Audio VL-210 cab. (FWIW, I'll probably pick up a Bergantino 322 cab this summer). I sparingly use a pedalboard with a true-bypass loop to 'avoid' the board 99% of thet time. I don't think listing the effects is germain to this review.