Sandberg California TM5 Blueburst MN 5-String Bass

General

With the California TM5, Sandberg proves that you don't need to clean out your bank account to get a hand-made, custom bass guitar. This five-string electric bass costs almost half of other boutique bass guitars, yet offers the same high-end features. What's more, Sandberg even invite you to design your own bass and this Blueburst finished example displays only a fraction of the many different features available. This California TM5 sports an ash body, maple fretboard with black block inlays, and black hardware. A rugged gig bag is also included.

Sandberg California TM5: Big, Versatile Sound

The California TM5 treats you to a fat, clear and punchy sound. To create this sound, Sandberg have cut the body from a slab of beautifully grained ash, and used Canadian maple for the 22-fret neck. The neck is attached with six screws, for optimal stability. Additionally, the Sandberg California TM5 is mounted with a J-style single-coil at the middle position and a powerful Stingray-style humbucker at the bridge. The electronics consist of a volume and balance control as well as an active 2-band EQ, which you can disengage by pulling out the volume control. The mini switch allows you to switch the humbucker to single-coil mode.

A modern bass guitar

Sandberg has fitted the TM5 with several noticeable modern features. There's a 0 fret just after the string nut, so that open strings produce the same sound as fretted ones. Particularly practical are the bass guitar's 3-way adjustable bridge saddles, which allow you to accurately tune the bass, determine the action and adjust string spacing. Additionally, the machine heads' resistance can be adjusted, and there's a unique string guide for the A, D and G string, ensuring optimal pressure on the string nut.

Please note: some pictures show the version with chrome-plated hardware.