F Bass BN5 Olympic White

F Bass BN5 — Olympic White

Three decades of BN5

This is the BN5 from F Bass, out of Hamilton, Ontario, and it weighs 4.24 kg. In fact, George Furlanetto’s workshop there has been building the BN5 for over three decades. In my opinion, it’s still the bass that defines what a modern boutique 5-string should do.

This one came in gloss Olympic White with gold hardware and a rosewood fingerboard. Basically, that’s about as elegant as the model gets, because you get vintage colours on a thoroughly modern instrument.

Its own design

However, the BN5 isn’t a J-bass copy with a fancy price tag. In fact, it’s its own design from the ground up.

The scale, the neck carve, the pickups and the preamp were all drawn to work together. As a result, you hear it the moment you play one, right?

Body, Neck & Woods

Alder and ash body

The body pairs alder and ash. For example, alder brings the even, slightly warm midrange that makes a bass sit naturally in a mix. Meanwhile, ash adds snap and definition on top.

Therefore the stacked single-coils get something articulate to work with at both ends of the range. On this one, it’s all dressed in a deep gloss Olympic White.

Quarter-sawn maple neck

The neck is F Bass’s three-piece quarter-sawn maple construction with a varnish finish. Basically, it’s quarter-sawn for stability, and in three pieces to keep it that way for decades.

The Indian rosewood fingerboard has a 10 to 16 inch compound radius. In other words, it’s rounder near the nut where you play chords and grooves. In contrast, it gets flatter up high, where you want low action for soloing.

Moreover, the carve is asymmetrical, slightly more aggressive on the treble side. As a result, the neck feels faster than its measurements suggest.

34.5 inch scale

For me personally, the 34.5 inch scale is one of the smartest things about the BN5. In fact, that extra half inch over a standard 34 inch scale adds just enough string tension to tighten and focus the low B. At the same time, the bass doesn’t feel any different to play.

In addition, F Bass uses nickel frets in their flattened pyramid profile. Consequently, notes speak quickly and stay in tune under your fingers.

Electronics, Sound & Feel

Stacked single-coils

The two F Bass stacked single-coils give you real single-coil clarity, open, woody and articulate. However, the hum is cancelled by the stacked design, and not by compromising the sound.

Solo the bridge pickup and it barks. In contrast, blend in the neck and the whole bottom end opens up.

All-boost preamp

The F Bass preamp is all-boost, which means that with everything flat you hear the bass itself. In other words, the bass, mid and treble knobs only ever add what you ask for.

I would say it’s an honest design, because there’s no scooped starting point and no EQ guesswork. Furthermore, pull the master tone knob and you’re fully passive. As a result, that’s both a fail-safe and a really great vintage sound.

In addition, the controls sit in two rows. Specifically, it’s neck volume, bridge volume and master tone up top, and the three boosts below.

What’s not to like?

This is the bass for the player who wants one 5-string that does it all with class. For example, you get studio clarity, a strong live sound and a low B you’ll miss on everything else.

In fact, we rarely get to hang a BN5 on the wall for long. Therefore, in this colour combination, we don’t expect this one to be the exception. So, what’s not to like?