Review by Chance Walte

This striking bass cuts a bold path through the current field of single-cutaway boutique instruments. The beautiful Pink Ivorywood top is set off from the Ash back with a thin, contrasting laminate and sports an elegant F hole. The neck is a five-piece construction of Maple and Pink Ivorywood. The fingerboard rounds out the drool-worthy wood list, with a gorgeous slab of Macassar Ebony. The transition from the extended, non-cutaway upper horn to the body is achieved with an elegant scoop, which gives easy access to the top frets and doesn't require altering left-hand position (except for not being able to hang your thumb over the top). Final luxury appointments include matching wooden covers for the battery box and electronics cavity, Pink Ivorywood headstock facing, Ebony knobs, and Hipshot hardware. The electronics are truly a custom package from Bartolini: three (count them, three) Jazz-style pickups that feed a proprietary circuit, three individual volume controls, a passive tone control, and three bands of EQ with a three-position mid-frequency select. The frequency points of the EQ are specific to Kot basses. The addition of a middle (or second bridge) pickup and the ability to blend in whatever amount is desired of each pickup makes for distinctive, new combinations.  Other circuit highlights are an active/passive switch, a bypass switch, and a special presence control, which everyone at the shop felt should be left on all the time. The preamp is voiced for a muscular low-mid push to get out on top of the kick drum, and the presence switch adds a different sort of top-end impact than the usual Bartolini transparency (which is still available when the presence switch is not engaged). The Signature Single Cut was one of the lightest, best balanced 5-strings we have had in the shop. The tone struck a fine balance between warm-and-woody and modern clarity. Playability and physicality were a delight to all.

Available online at www.kotbasses.com