Five String Basses

As the Hondo II was'nt cool enough for me and I also got my first "real" job, I began thinking about getting another bass guitar.  I didn't really know what I was looking for or exactly why but I decided I would get something 5 string.  Five string basses were beginning to be used more in music and a lot of what I was listening to so I thought I'd try my hand at one.  I stumbled across a Fenix SH 5 String bass .   Fenix guitars and basses were made in Korea by the mainly piano manufacturer Young Chang. Its the yellow bass guitar in the picture and is a solid maple body with gold GOTOH hardware. What I really liked about this bass was its cut away small body design which gave great access to the high 24 frets (not that I really needed it!!) 
Its still nice to play even now the neck is smooth and easy. With light strings and its nice low action its just down on tone qualities on its own.  Its got twin switchable passive P bass style pickups and a simple tone control.  I think the bridge pickup set is'nt working properly.  I think I paid $700 for this bass in 1995.  About 5 years later I decided I wanted an active bass.  So I got to looking at the Ibanez SR and Cort Artisan series of basses.  I went with the Cort C5 because Gene Simmons uses Cort .. well no that wasn't the reason ... and maybe if I had of known one of the workers at the Cort factory was so upset about an industrial dispute he set himself on fire, I might have gone Ibanez?  

The Cort C5 was also made in Korea and is a Basswood body with active Mightymite soapbar pickups.  With 24 frets I really loved the shape of the body and the nice thin neck for a 5 string. Its bit heavier than the Fenix and is a great bass for slapping and modern tones. Its a pretty bass and I've used it ever since up until our first Stellas Kitchen gigs. It now sits basically in storage and still hasn't got a mark on it.


As for the poor Hondo II ... well once I had the other basses I almost therapeutically began to destroy it!  You spend all your life with guitars trying to keep them clean and not ever scratch or god forbid DROP them.  Its like not touching the surface of a CD or DVD!! So when you don't care anymore like if the CD is buggered, its almost liberating to put your dirty fingers all over em.  So,  I thru the Hondo from moving cars, dropped it, stood on it, put dumb arse stickers all over it, drew on it.  It just wouldn't die!  Looking back, much like everything I've done with bass it was and is all ARSE ABOUT!!!  I mean I'd been playing for a few years now and I wouldn't even look at the Fender basses in the music shops!!