This week we’re checking out the Model 1 Bass from the legendary luthier Rick Turner. The instrument is a take on the Alembic co-founder’s Model 1 guitar and features a medium 32-inch scale.
Described as “incredibly acoustic and detailed with a modern full-bodied tonal range,” the deluxe version of the bass is built with a mahogany body, 5-piece laminated maple and purpleheart neck, and a bound rosewood fingerboard. Its body is decorated with either black, ivoroid, or tortoise binding, as well.
The bass’s cool shape and retro archtop-style bridge give tons of vibe, but it centers around what gave Turner his start in the business: its pickup. The Model 1 Bass is fitted with the “Hot Humbucker” with an optional piezo pickup.
“In a word, the Model 1 is all about versatility,” the Rick Turner Guitars website explains. “Whether you’re playing the passive model (“A” electronics package) running straight out with volume and tone control (push-pull coil cut) or the high-headroom 18-volt D-TAR Eclipse preamp with Turner Parametric EQ, both options allow for blending of a piezo or second magnetic pickup.”
