Washburn MB-5 Mercury Series Five String

What preamb, tone controle and selectors does it have?

How well was the bass set-up at the factory

Does the hardware seem like it will last?

Ever try and get it repaired? Was it under warranty?

92 year mosel bass
24 jumbo nickel frets
Black gloss finish
Two single coil Eliminator pickups Bridge and neck
Active 9 volt electronics
Adler body maple neck
Washburn sit on top bridge
Nonlocking tuners,very sensitive.
Three knobs,vol,bass and treb with a 3 way switch

I play mostly hard rock and metal with some blues for fun. The sound of this bass is pure clarity with a deep low end. It's very quiet with no hum whatsoever when not being played.Very wide tonal quality with the modulation of the knobs and switch. Has a great live sound and can make almost any sound you'd like in the studio.

From the factory the bass had a medium action which I lowered with very little fret buzz. I raised the bridge pickup to give a little more crispness to the sound. No flaws or problems with this bass. I've owned it since 94. I bought it new from a local dealer can't remember for how much.

Yes it will withstand a beating. I've dropped it on many occasions. The harware is still as good as new.I replaced the strap knobs with straplocks and they seem fine. I have had to have the truss rod adjusted twice since I've owned it. I would definatly depend soley on this bass If I had to.

I've never had to deal with customer support

I've been playing bass since 1992. I own 1 Jackson King v,1 ESP f-250, 1 Ibanez 250 sound gear bass and a 5 piece Tama rockstar set and my own Studio. I would love to get another MB 5 washburn bass.

Model: MB-5 Mercury Series Five String

Features

What year was it made? 1992
Where was is made? God knows and we're not really too sure. We're talking about Washburn right?
How many frets: 24 "jumbo nickel silver" frets.
How many strings? MB-5 is a _FIVE_ string bass. (Go figure ;-)
A "Solid alder body" is under that paint, says Washburn.
Which controls are given? Three knobs ...Volume, bass & treble with a 3-way selector switch: neck J, both, bridge J.
Pickup configuration? Mine has the two J-style, single coil pickups. There are also some of the MB-5 basses that were issued with a P/J configuration.
Make and model of pickups? These are single coil Washburn "Eliminator", 5-string, J-style, pickups.
Active or Passive electronics? Active electronics. (9 volt battery)
Body and neck materials? Alder body, Maple neck
Finish: Quite nice really. White. ...er "Iced Pearl" (...whitish with a tiny sparklish effect.)
Body style: Double cut-away and contoured for the arm and ribs.
Bridge style: A Washburn custom 5-string bridge, ("on top" style, not string-through).
Tuners: Non-locking "polished chrome" Gotoh-look-alike "die cast tuners" with a nice 20:1 ratio to hone in on "just-the-right" frequency :-)
Neck/Scale: Regular 34" scale, fairly thin, natural finish, maple neck with "jumbo nickel silver" frets, Rosewood fingerboard with offset dot fret markers.
Any included accessories? Came (used) with a been-around-the-block a few times hard case, but it's probably better than a gig bag.

Active controls give a range of tone and should be fine for my varied praise and worship repetoire in church.
It'll be run through a DI to the church sound system, which includes a
subwoofer :-)
The two J style pickups seem to cancel hum when both are turned up, ...wired out of phase to buck hum, I'm guessing. The output seems quiet alround, but if I pick up noise from the lights or whatever, using the both pickups seems to cancel it nicely.
I hear some difference between the neck and bridge pickups, but the
effective active tone controls will likely be my main control over sound.
The bass can sound mellowed out, or bright for slapping (which I don't do anyway). I haven't recorded it yet. So far everything seems good.
Rating for this Category: It has a healthy strong output signal with enough mids and highs to bite when I want it. I can also get a tone on the higher notes that sounds like a guitar ready to rock, which could come in handy :-)

The bass was used, and set up fairly high when I bought it. I brought the action down to suit myself. I have no idea what the factory set up was.
The pickups seem fine as-is, although I'd like the bridge pickup a little louder I think.. I might try raising it a little.
The joints and alignment seem great.
The weight is a little more than my former Ibanez RD707 4 string, but it's not too bad I guess.

It's a pretty _solid_ bass.
The knobs and 3-way selector switch seem to turn/move rather easily. I don't know if that means they've loosened up from use or if they've always had little drag. I like that it makes it quick to change settings while playing if needed.
Strap buttons are solid.
The neck/truss rod adjustment brought the action down nicely.
The serial number starts with "92", so I gather it was made then, about 11 years ago (now is 2003), and it's looking very good and well cared for.
The polished chrome hardware and strap buttons seem fine.
I expect it'll be a dependable bass guitar and it'll get used without a backup as is usual with me. Backup? Who needs backup? "I don't chase bad guys, I play music." ;-) Why own a bass that I can't rely on?

Customer Support: It only took two emails before Washburn noticed I was pulling their chain, and after that they responded to my enquiries promptly.
Apparently the original owner of this bass got a replacement pot from
Washburn at some point, so they did give some help when needed. This is my first Washburn guitar, so I have no Washburn customer service history.

Price Paid: I'm not certain what the Mercury Series MB-5 basses sold for new, but I felt I got a good used bass for what I paid. I had the original owner FedEx it over from Oregon. Thanks for sending me a bass that has been well cared for! :-)

I began playing bass on-&-off (mostly on) about 35 years ago. I'm very please with this the purchase of this bass. I tried a few 5ers and this MB-5 Washburn has the controls and sound that I think I'll have a lot of fun with. I'd be happy to get another one if this one evapourated.

I like the sound and the 3-way selector switch. I also like Washburn's attractive "Iced Pearl" paint job. If I could customize this bass to my current fancy, I'd put detente positions on the tone knobs so I could tell when I'm getting a neutral treatment of the pickup sound, I'd put large and fancy fret markers instead of little dots which are not very decorative nor particularly easy to see for those of us who still need to look while we're playing. I'll try to get the bridge pickup a little louder too. It's trebly, so it sounds quieter without the bottom end, you know? If the sound of this MB-5 suits your music I'd definitely recommend it to you.
-Greetings from Canada! :-)