Enhanced MP-5EB Lake Blue : No money for a Lakland.... no problem

I've been an activity giging bassist for 20 years, from dive bars, to dance halls, playing every thing from Country and western to ska and reggae. The latter is why I got this bass, as I was filling in for a 2tone ska band who also played some reggae. So while my Stingray was poppy enough, it didn't have the low end I wanted for this mix of music. Enter this bass and its P style and MM style puckups!

I got it thinking worst case I can keep it at rehearsal and leave it at the space and not have to pack a bass around, best case I'd gig with it. Long story short I giged with it!

Lots of reviews on this bass complain about the "hot output" of the pickups. And yes they can be a bit much, however I liked the active pickups for parts of the set I needed to be louder, and I loved the passive sound for the more groove parts of the set. It all depends on the sound you like. But I had no issues with the pick ups being "noisy".

The bass did need a little set up but nothing a beginner couldn't do with a youtube tutorial. And give the features of this bass (active pickups, pull knob to passive, 0-fret, binding, string through body, ect) this bass is worth every penny!

My only gripes on this bass is first of all the weight. I'm a bigger guy, 6'0 230lbs, and I did have some shoulder fatigue after a night of playing. However any bass like this would be similar. It is a little less comfortable than let's say a lakland skyline or similar, but at 1/4 the price you can over look that easily. Also, the neck is a little bit of a "baseball bat" very wide and little thicker then my liking, even for a 5 string. I do wish the neck was a bit more comfortable.

Overall, for what this bass is, and it's price, it's a very good value. I've used it a hand full of times in other bands as well, but wouldn't call it my go to bass. However, I'm very pleased with this bass and would recommend it to anyone In the market for this type of instrument. It is gig worthy and could be the perfect bass in many circumstances.