Meridian basses are complety handmade in Avezzano, Italy, by luthier Davide Cardone.
These are basses that have been designed from scratch following some really artistical lines. Davide studied arts in Italy and you can tell that just by looking at the perfect proportions of his insttruments. We also love the fact that these are original designs and not just another copy of famous "boutique" basses, if you know what we mean.
As you can see there's a certain modern design to these basses but the use of quality tonewoods anchors them within the fine tradition of Italian lutherie. We love this perfect blend of form and function.
We love the fact that all Meridian basses include some information about the year that the wood for the body and/or neck was cut. This averages 35 years and of course the wood has been drying ever since so as you can expect this makes for exceptionally stable instruments. Davide is also a firm believer in thin finish. If the finish is too thick or if it is thin but too many layers are applied, he feels that the wood cannot vibrate freely, resulting in a slightly muffled tone.
The combination of light woods that have been drying for years plus just the right amount of layers of thin coat plus light hardware make for basses that feel strong, are vibrant and of course can be played for hours with no fatigue.
The icing on the cake is the neck which is slim and ultra comfortable.
This model is named Horizon and it is Meridian's take on the Single Cutaway concept. We love the design as it doesn't look as bulky as some other singlecuts. The advantage of this sytems consists of the added sustain that comes from joining the body and the neck in the upper horn. This is especially interesting on a fretless and in this case the luthier has managed to come up with a more delicate and smart shape.
The black walnut body is just 38mm thick. A hard rock maple neck that was cut back in 1986 is safely bolted to the body with 5 bolts. Access up to the end of the fingerboard is surprisingly easy. Using this selection of wood that was cut decades ago ensures stability. Great job!
The fingerboard is made from rosewood and there are only side dots to keep it simple and really beautiful.
Elegant and different.That's all you need for playing in tune while the fingerboard looks nice and clean.
The top is an absolutely incredible Pistacchio top that we personally chose. Simply incredible. As you can see there's a unique two color natural pattern that makes this one of the most beautiful and special basses we've ever had at the shop. Wow.
A pair of Delano Times Square Dual Coil pickup are mounted at the right spot for an incredibly array of top quality sounds.
There's a switch that changes from Dual Coil to Single Coil for each pickup, so depending on the type of sound you need you can just use that. There's a 3 band preamp made by Delano too (Sonar model). All 3 bands are extremely musical: Deep lows and no muddiness at all from the Bass Control, incredible note definition from the Midrange and super versatile control of the high frequencies using the Treble pot. You can add Treble to bring more of the sound of the string in a beautiful way or you can just cut it and actually get a very similar result as if you had a Passive Tone.
Regarding the hardware, the bridge is a Hipshot Style B unit with 19mm spacing. Tuners are Hipshot Ultralite, helping keep the weight of the bass controlled as well as reducing neck diving. We just love the neck and overall playability. The combination of a narrow nut (45mm) with a wide spacing bridge (19mm) is probably one of the best recipies for comfort in both hands. Some 5 string basses feel a bit intimidating but in this case the slim neck and perfect dimensions make playing the J-24 a breeze. The nut, buy the way, is made from carbon fiber, excellent choice and again proof that Meridian basses are all about details.
By the way, scale lenght is the traditional 34" but the low B here is phenomenal. It sounds full, clear and every note sounds the way it should.
To sum up: an incredibly affordable high end handmade bass that sports really stable tonewoods, top notch hardware and electronics and is a pure work of art to look for as well as an instrument that will give you years of service and pleasure. If you are looking for a serious and unique 5 string bass but don't want to spend a fortune, this is your best option.
By the way, the included gigbag matches some costing 300€ and completes a simply gorgeous instrument.