Like my Hellcat VI, it's a 30" shortscale 6-string bass tuned E-e, like a Fender VI, with a stoptail adjust-o-matic bridge, three splittable minihumbuckers (Duncan Design FG-101s in this one), mahogany body and set neck. Split/Off/On toggley switches for each pickup and master tone and volume for controls. The neck is bound with an aged white binding that looks pretty nice against the silver burst.
The Ultra VI next to my Hellcat VI (which I have to sell to pay for the Ultra)
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to jam with my band this weekend, and my amps are at my bandmate's place, so I haven't really heard how the sound compares to the Hellcat VI through an amp; I'll get to hear it on Friday.
First impressions otherwise:
- It's light! It's thinner than the Hellcat and weighs a pound or two less, even though the body barely fits in my bass gig bag
- Fit and finish seem spot on; no weird flaws in the paint, the binding on the neck and headstock is nice, the burst looks pretty nice. Hardware is solid, and largely the same as on the Hellcat VI. Sore point - the toggle switches are a bit too rigid, hard to switch between the three positions, and easy to miss the off position as it suddenly shoots from single to humbucker, or vice versa.
- The neck joint is pretty thin, with the body angles in towards the neck to reduce bulk. Pretty comfy higher up the neck where a bolt on gets pretty hefty.
- The neck is wide-ish, about the same width as the Hellcat's, but the profile is a bit narrower and maintains a narrow profile to the neck joint
I will be doing recordings of both the Ultra VI and Hellcat VI playing an excerpt from one of my band's songs to give a sound comparison between them, and uploading to Soundcloud. I'll be recording in Amplitube for iPhone, using consistent amp settings, the same cable, and a fresh set of LaBella HC-6N strings on each... keeping everything exactly the same to limit any outside factors.
