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This bass is one of those true sleeping giants. I've been playing bass for over 25 years and never tried a ESP LTD until a bandmate noticed I had multiple basses at rehearsals and gigs, he said "greg you should try out a LTD B205SM I have one its a Tone Monster" I laughed at him. I was at a music store with him and he gave me the bass and said "please try it for me please" I tried it and couldn't beleive the tones coming outta this bass. My friend smiled at me and said ah huh I new you'd like it. Came home ordered it from zZounds and had it in 2 days before Xmas. I wanna know how could ESP make a bass of this quality for such a reasonable price. I was worried about the pups and preamp, but they are quality with no downside you know (pups bad,preamp good, bridge needs updating-nope not with this bass. good quality all the way. I feel like I owe ESP more $$, but I'm glad I tried this bass. Its a definate keeper

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I ordered this bass from another company last week and I was greatly disappointed in what I got. Made in China. The neck joint was sloppy and cut wrong and the bridge which is a string thru body type didn't match-up at all. There were several dead note on the neck and the neck was bowed. Needless to say I sent it back. The bass that I ordered from zZounds was 10 times better and was made in Indonesia. There is a difference I can tell you that. The overall construction is better and the fit and finish is well above par. I really like this bass and intend to make it my main ax. For the money you can't go wrong with this bass just as long as you get one made in Indonesia. You can dial in just about any tone you want and the sustain is right up-there with the big boys. I would highly recommend this bass to anyone who wants a good first five string. The people at zZounds were great and understood what I went thru with the made in China bass. Thanks zZounds for a fine product. The only reason that I gave the manufacturer support a 1 rating is that I haven't had to use them yet. Only time will tell. Overall rating is a high 5 for this bass. I will agree with one comment, it is a heavy weight.

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Let me start by saying "Thanks to zZounds" for an awesome program for buying instruments. I've been playing bass for many years now. I know quality when l see and hear it. The Esp B205sm is an awesome bass! zZounds has the best on time delivery in the world. litterally the next day l got my Ltd five string w/case. l open the box and sat back to just look at this bass. The craftmanship is spot on with the attractive maple and ash body. its a thing of beauty for the price. What l usually do when I pick up a bass is listen to the bass wood tone and the neck action before plugging into an amp. listen how the bass resonate, the sustain of the wood and the bridge adjustments. My bass was spot on right out of the box. I didn't have to make any adjustments. "Perfect" I want to give a shout to the engineer that set up my bass. The active three band EQ is just right, but not to much that it sounds thingy. I'm very much pleased with the spalting wood top, the curves, this is a sexy bass. My buddy that plays for various professional bands couldn't put my bass down. He said "the neck action and the string position feels really good". He will purchase one for his up coming tour. when I plugged the bass in "Wow" I personally recommend this bass!!!

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This bass guitar is underrated a diamond in the rough is the understatement. First off the tone is perfect in every format and every aspect of the word. I just purchase the b-205sm (simply gorgeous spalted maple with brass highlights and beauty marks) in translucent or (see through Black) and was truly amazed at the craftsmanship as well as the design and the fact that I am a funk and jazz player yet this rock & roll oriented heavy metal stigmatized bass guitar gave me a broad spectrum a 17 mm bridge string spacing that funky cluck & Clang burp and Bello like a Ken Smith with a touch of music Man but to my amazement I did not expect anything other than maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard as stated yet to my surprise the see through black 205 SM came with a ("Roasted Jatoba") fretboard which was truly amazing to gaze upon as my wife even stated "Wow!"... "That's totally different than your other 30 guitars" as I was also impressed with how slippery the finish caused the neck to feel and faster than any of my other guitars. To make a long story short I got more than I anticipated and more than my moneys worth and zZounds made it happen in only 2 days... "Above-average quality and 120% prompt service in one package again zZounds has done it for me".

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Definitely worth what it cost. The tone is far above the $600 range and the neck has a $2000 feel to it! Tone for s fairly diverse but a little more lows would be nice

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First off, I'm later on this review. I've been playing bass for quite some time. Let me say this is an excellent Bass first of all!. I was a little skeptical about the price at first. A bass with this sound and quality made in Indonesia? are you kidding me? I've paid thousands for quality and sound in a bass. The Spalding body and headstock? I'm blown away with the neck action, pups, and pre-amp. MAN!!! right out the box, I can't put this bass down. this is my go-to bass no doubt.

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This was my first purchase of a bass in over 30 years. I had to have it setup by a local music store because the action was too high. Also I needed the neck bolt adjusted as well. It was ready in just over 48 hours. Picked up now the action is great! i do have one observation/complaint. I bought a set of flat wound Chromes, which is from D'Addario. The "B" string was 0.132, it was too big for the thru-body holes. I tried everything and I couldn't get past the blue silk wrap on the string. It just wouldn't go through. So the moral of the story Stay away from 0.132 diameter B strings, now ordered for a B string of less diameter.

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I rarely leave feedback for items i've purchased online..but with this bass i had to say how AWESOME it is! The quality everything is just right..i didn't even had to set it up..i do plan on changing the strings though..

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Solid bass. Could spend more for the quality. Unbelievable tones can be achieved. I did compare this bass to many higher end basses. Ash body, maple walnut neck, rosewood fret board. Standard ESP pu, are good, I am a Emg guy. I will be upgrading soon. I have both the 5 and 6 string ESP. Very playable, setup was great out the box. Made some personal adjustment. You should alway set your bass to your liking. Very affordable. This bass sound awesome. I play through GK 410 Neo cab, w/ TC BH500 wt head. Got to have a good rig, to make a good fair evaluation or vice versa.

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I have the fretless version of this bass and can corroborate the excellent tone quality and versatility! Needed very little set up (action was a little low for me out-of-the-box). But I raised the action a little and re-strung with flat-wounds for an ersatz-upright tone. Pretty darn good! The only down side for me is that it weighs-in a little bit on the heavy side.

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I like the tone. Crisp pops are outstanding.Round round strings brings out sound without to muchAdjustment.Bob “Bassman” Williams