Mayones Patriot 5 Fretless MR Maurizio Rolli 5-String Bass, Ebony Fretboard, Antique Brown Matt

When discussing high-end basses, it's often easy to get carried away with hyperbolic statements about how amazing they are. And it is also true that, at a certain price point, no matter what you get, it'll sound good and it'll play well. However, all that being said, when something is this head-and-shoulders above the rest of the competition, you can't help but take notice - believe us when we say that this Mayones Patriot 5 Fretless MR, Maurizio Rolli's signature bass, is a cut above the rest. This one's in a gorgeous Antique Brown finish, and the sheer cohesion of the look of this instrument is unlike anything we've seen.

Never have we found an electric bass that can so passably emulate the beautiful tone of an upright bass. The piezo tone out of this semi-hollow instrument is simply unreal! The bass is made with a lot of the same lutherie principles as upright basses. A hollow maple back and a spruce top is a very common combination of tonewoods on classical instruments, especially upright basses. The wood-focused construction results in is a truly glorious sound that is round, full, and thumpy.

The plugged-in tone is simply MASSIVE, and yet never sounds muddy. It's big and open in the bottom end, with just enough mid-range to keep it clear and distinct. Isolate the electric bass pickup and you're in that Jaco territory. Growly and barky, to say the least, it sounds like an angry polar bear that's just stepped on a thumbtack in all the best ways. It's fierce! We can best describe it as somewhat of a hybrid of Jaco's famous fretless tone and Pino Palladino's StingRay tone from the 1980s - perfect for modern jazz or fusion applications.

Blending both the magnetic and piezo pickups together provides an almost acoustic guitar-like timbre to the notes. You get the woofy and thumpy tone from the piezo, together with the treble response of the magnetic, for a truly unique sound that covers a huge sonic spectrum. Whether you're trying to lay the foundation for your bandmates to play on top, or you're looking for a cutting tone that will slice through a mix, this bass can do both.

Whether you're a veteran fretless player, or you're looking to delve into the wonderful world of playing bass without any speed bumps (a.k.a. frets), you'll appreciate the marker lines that start at the top of the fretboard and go to under the B-string. They serve as just enough of a guideline for you to see and use as a reference (after all, playing in tune is pretty important) whilst also keeping the fingerboard looking clean and sleek.

Bottom line: This is perhaps the nicest fretless bass we've ever come across. At the very least, it's certainly got to be up there for the top spot. You'll be hard-pressed not to agree with that once you get this one in your hands!

Maurizio Rolli is a graduate in double bass and jazz music studies. He is currently teaching electric bass and double bass as well as jazz harmony studies at the Accademia Musicale Pescarese in Pescara, Italy. Over the years he won several music competitions including Barga Jazz, Biennale del Mediterraneo or Roccella Ionica and worked with such acclaimed artists as Jim Hall, Mike Stern, Bob Mintzer or Hiram Bullock. 

Patriot 5 Fretless MR was designed to add a unique clarity to the warm sound of the fretless bass. The combination of excellent tonewood, connected sound chambers equally distributed all over the body and top notch electronics define the new quality in the universe of low frequency.

Mayones guitars and basses are hand-crafted in Poland using traditional European luthier techniques and the finest components available. Professional musicians worldwide depend on their Mayones to provide stunning sound and consistent playability night after night. Mayones artists include Between The Buried And Me, Korn, Katatonia, Limp Bizkit, Paradise Lost, Keith Merrow, Periphery, Jimmy Haslip and many more. Reserve your Mayones today and see how it inspires your own creativity.

Music Store Live is proud to be an authorized dealer for Mayones. This Patriot 5 Fretless MR is 100% brand new and is being sold with a full manufacturer's warranty. Photos are of the exact bass you'll receive.

Our in-house guitar tech will inspect, test, set up, and clean all of our instruments on site prior to shipping. All of our instruments are guaranteed to be fully functional upon arrival.

We've got an excellent in-stock inventory of Mayones basses and guitars, but if you don't see something you like, hit us up and we can work with you to customize your dream instrument and get a custom build going!