Schecter CB-4 Charles Berthoud Signature Bass - Unbox, a few mods and overall review

[@daynmitchell7543]

Bro I watched so many bass KZbin videos and the bass always sounds muffled when they play. Your video sounds crystal clear!

[@patroche1266]

Thanks, man!

[@floydlay9189]

Great review,,thank you

[@patroche1266]

Welcome!

[@floydlay9189]

I still prefer he's sound on the Lefay bass,,but that is a lovely bass!

[@mixc8]

The Lefay bass is on my must own list :)

[@AllAboutBasses]

It is a beautiful instrument. I love the neck (24 frets and the inlays look pretty cool). But imho, you shouldn't have to upgrade a $1.500 bass - it should come with a better quality bridge + tuners from factory.

[@jorgerodriguez7478]

Great video and awesome playing, Pat. I'm not a big bass expert and I don't have the chance to go and play this bass... I'm going to make a one time big splash for one bass and I don't know if I should buy this bass or an Ibañez SR1425B (caribbean green)... have you played this Ibañez bass? If you do... would you pick the C4 over the Ibañez? Or maybe I should wait a couple of years and save for an Spector Euro or a Warwick 😅

[@patroche1266]

Hello Jorge, Personally I don't think you can go wrong with either one but consider your style and needs: I too could not play the basses I really wanted to before making this decision. I had an Ibanez I wanted to love but had quality control issues and after sending TWO back for fret issues. I prefer the look and sound of this one from watching videos and was open to try Schecter so I gave it a shot. The bass I'm refering to you can hear in a previous video i did titled "Ibanez Premium SR1605B Unboxing" But notice a big difference! - Looks like the model you are looking at has Big Break Nordstrand single coil PASSIVE pickups which is to say that it is a different beast, tone/performance-wise. I prefer active pickups so do consider this for yourself! To me, the sound of the Berthoud bass with EMG's is is a bit more tamed, more apt to blend into a mix throughout the range of the knobs and this has been a welcomed and appreciated change for me while the active nordstrand pickups I got to try, were VERY aggressive, very punchy and there were quite a few, IMO unusable tones at the far range of the EQ knobs. IT's big and bold but that doens't always fit in... However, the feel of the Ibanez is what I was after, right out of the box and I didn't quite find that with this bass, I had to really customize my set-up on this one to get it to play more similar to the way my old Ibanez sr played. And again, I've now had new strings on it for well over 2 months and it still goes out of tune more often than my other basses. So I guess still at this price point, to me I pretty much always end up spending more to get a bass to fit ME and I dont' know if spending more would really eliminate that issue without a custom build. Best of luck in your search!

[@jorgerodriguez7478]

​@@patroche1266thanks a lot for the comment and sharing your experience. I'll consider what you are saying and try to search for more videos and information regarding these models. I will also search for your video about the Ibañez. Thanks again and keep playing, man. You got groove.

[@mixc8]

You can also look at Hip Shot tuners to Gotoh tuners.

[@GuyVogel]

It disturbs me that the bridge is leaving little paint / metal particles in the pockets of the bridge from changing out strings. It only reveals a low-grade bridge of inexpensive mixed metals. I would not go for that. Would change it out for a stainless high mass bridge. Also, I thought the body was a string through. I prefer that because it takes the stress off the neck and transfers it out onto the body. It's your money that you worked for so one should expect transparency. I'm going to write to the corporate office of Schecter and explain this to them. I am happy that you pointed it out. I'm in the market for a new 4-string and I made up my mind last week after all my studying of reviews to buy this particular bass. I will not do it now even though I love the sound. I love the thinness of the neck. I love the width of the first fret and not much of a difference all the way up to the 12th fret. And I love the fact that it is 24 frets.

[@patroche1266]

There's mixed thoughts on strings through the body so I wouldn't worry about that part honestly. The bridge is a bit disappointing but it's about the only thing that I think let me down about quality. Do realize that it's not changing strings but tightening down the saddles that leaves dust on mine. The rest of it really feels great, the frets are very even, the tone is killer and versatile.. I've been looking for a long time for a bass I think is perfect and sadly, I think that's why picky guys like me spend more like 4-5K on a bass to avoid this kind of crap. However, to me, paying for and paying a tech to replace a bridge for maybe 200 is still cheaper than going the "boutique" route. Honestly, every instrument I've owned I've had to change *something* to make it feel like my own so by all means, let 'em know they cheaped out on the bridge here, but I think they did a fine job on the wood, frets, preamp and tone controls, inlays, intonation, etc. I just think they're all gonna try to sneak something in to save a few bucks and, ya I'm gonna let people know about it. I wonder if Charles' personal one has this same bridge material??? Thanks for watching!

[@GuyVogel]

Good points. Thanks for acknowledging. I will be getting out a letter because I studied many basses and I settled on this one - even though not made in the USA which means low resale value down the road. After watching your set-up I delayed any purchase. But you are right everything looks really nice when new.

[@087666]

@@GuyVogel any news from Schecter?

[@ZachShannon1]

@@patroche1266 A month late, but my go-to bridge is the Babicz, very easy to adjust, can be locked down, and I've had zero issues with any of mine. Plus, if you're playing pick and you rest your hand on the bridge, there's no pointy set screws to poke your hand.

[@mixc8]

Look at a Hip Shot bridge!

[@mixc8]

Hmmm I just looked at Sweet Water I see these bass averages between $1499 to $1200 (Reverb) should be a little better Q&C for that cost.

[@patroche1266]

@@mixc8 Other than the bridge and having “super low action” as advertised, Im happy with it. Mods make it my own custom signature model. Everything i dont like can be changed but its got the right stuff where it counts. I agree about cost though.

[@mixc8]

@@patroche1266 I agree it looks good! I am thinking about it.

[@mixc8]

Hi Pat to you find it hard keeping this bass in tune?

[@patroche1266]

So far the E and A strings go out of tune a lot. Not sure if it's from tuners or a soft bridge. I tried lubing the old and new nut but even with those changes it's still not as stable as my other instruments. Next up is to try locking tuners and finally bridge replacement

[@mixc8]

@@patroche1266 It's a very nice looking bass, I got into Schecter basses a few years back and love them. I have many basses of course the usual suspects. Fender, Alembic, Music Man etc. I got lucky and the got the discontinued Diamond Plus JB & P bass and became an instant fan of there basses. I always had their guitar in my recording studio but never their basses. There are other Schecter basses I would like to add to me collection. This one is a beauty, I am going to see how things turn out for you. Actually I was looking for something to mod and this just might fit the bill. I like the body style I want to throw in some multi-coil pickups and a NFP filer. This may fit the bill instead of going to a custom luthier and paying $4k :) Sub!