Vigier basses

[Grant Sharkey]

Ok - some guy is approaching Karl about a Vigier endorsement.

What the hell are their basses like? we've played a few between us and they've all seemed quite nice, punchy, full of promise in the right hands etc etc. But has anyone played one for more than ten minutes at soundchecks at gigs?

Reliable? easy to set up etc?

Thanks

[takeout]

I've heard nothing but good things.

They do some crazy stuff, too - like fretlesses with metal fingerboards, etc. If Karl has any wild custom ideas...

[MBIYF]

All I know: G//Z/R Butler plays one and Jazzy knows ALL about them.

[SpaceGhost]

Jazzy knows ALL about them.
Yup.


I've played one before and it sounded like a meatier Ric. Ugly as sin too!


http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e176/njgtrbass/030F-Vigier.jpg

[The Lurker]

actually, most of the first couple records by Live were done with a Vigier, the cost of which devoured the better part of the recording budget.

Geezer used to use one, but he's moved on to Laklands.

[Rand262]

Doesnt Vigier make a Roger Glover model bass?

[Jazz Ad]

Roger Glover used to play Arpege like Geezer.
Later on he switched to the Excess and then Excess 2.
He still plays customized Excess 2 models, basically stock models with different paints and 3 band eq.
Vigier make very stable instruments with a thick, agressive tone. Due to single coil pickups they can get a bit noisy sometimes
Ric on steroids is a description that comes back very often and it's pretty accurate. You get heard very well whatever happens around.
They're light and comfortable, neck is thin and flat, really fast.
What I don't like is that these instruments never go crazy. You can bang them and play as hard as you want they will still sound the same.
Also I like to bend necks and it's impossible on a Vigier because they're so tight.
As a result, the B string is always clear and impressively tight, on par with brands like Status or Zon.

[hasbeenII]

I was just at the factory last week. I played quite a few of their basses through a brand of amp I know pretty well.

The basses felt wonderful- great setup, nice necks and very punchy. The electronics on them varied quite a bit. Some had Barts and some had....I don't know what.

Touring the factory- I was impressed by all the handwork that is done.

[Jazz Ad]

Most come with Benedetti (http://benedetti-pickups.ifrance.com/) pickups.
It's an important part of their tone.