Name that bass!!

[gtrguy]

Name that bass!!


Kudos to anyone who can name the brand of the bass I am currently working on.
Hint: it's 50 years old, heavy, well made, and a bit modded years ago from original, using factory parts.
Note: I blurred out the embossed brand names on the PUPs in PhotoShop.


Extra points if you can tell me what the wood is!

[edwardofhuncote]

Wild Guess; izzit some kind of Ibanez? I'm trying to think of who else would have the huevos to stick a contraption like that RIC type thing on there for a bridge, and three pickups to boot...

Outside of that, I don't know. That's a good one David.


*wood just looks like mahogany/luan to me.

[Jonny]

Ovation?
Martin?

[jon_jackson]

Hoyer from Germany

[pauldo]

Echo?

[gtrguy]

The bridge bears some resemblance to a Rick 4001 except it's more solid and the saddles are on threaded shafts that allow me to adjust them from side to side for string spacing, which is a nice feature.


After a couple more hours working on it, I now believe it is totally stock except for a missing pickup palm cover.

[edwardofhuncote]

Could there be a Hohner/Bartell connection? Man, I'm gettin' nuthin'. I do seem to remember waaaaay back, a Rickenbacker connection to Bartell, but just by association. Pretty doggone thin.

[keith_h]

It reminds me of what some of the guitars that were in the Sears and Wards catalogs way back when and gives off a Japanese manufacturers vibe but I couldn't tell you which.

[cozmik_cowboy]

I've been thinking since yesterday trying recall where I've seen those pick-ups, and it just hit me - they look like Fender "Wide Frequency" humbuckers.  But they have 2 pole pices too few for that (don't recall that they ever did a bass version).
I remain baffled and confused.

Peter

[gtrguy]

OK, enough of my teasing.


I didn't know what it was till it showed up either. Jon got it right; it's a Hoyer 5042 (made 50 yrs ago in Germany). The Hoyer company was around forever and made a lot of quality instruments back in the day, including many copies (not cheap either) of American brands like Gibson, Rickenbacker, even Alembic, plus their own creations like this one. The tuners look to be Schaller (German of course), the body is carved out of 2 pieces of wood, and the set neck is the most odd blend of zillions of laminates.


I plugged it in when it first showed up and it sounds like an old Rickenbacker 4001 (not a bad thing). It is also the only electric bass I have played that weighs more than a Peavey T40! However, it does balance well.


The cosmetic work is done, now on to checking out the electronic,s and then the set up. I still don't know what the 'Balance' knob does.
There is so little actual info about these on the internet.

[gtrguy]

I am kinda thinking the Balance control takes the split 'P bass" style pickup and accentuates one half of the split PUP over the other half, which is a feature I have never seen and kinda cool. It would give more focus the either the lower 2 strings or the upper two, for more bass or treble.

[cozmik_cowboy]

Or it could shift the weight between body & headstock......

Peter

[gtrguy]

Patent that idea fast!

[adriaan]

Patent that idea fast!

Won't stick, already featured on the back of the headstock of Knobfest.