1980s Kawai FIIB 110R Neck Through Vintage Bass Guitar Rosewood w/ Active Electronics, Japan

Up for sale, a 1980s Kawai F-IIB 110R vintage neck-through bass in exceptional condition and in perfect working order. A rare Japanese model clearly inspired by Alembic’s instruments in both tone and function, this particular F-IIB features five-piece hard maple/mahogany neck-through construction with maple body wings capped front and back with rosewood. Mated with a high mass string through body bridge, the bass yields a particularly rich and authoritative natural acoustic tone. Each humbucker is powered by its own 9v battery, and the bass benefits greatly from the articulation, immediacy and roundness of the active electronics. The bridge pickup has a full sound with enough nasally top end attack and upper-midrange burp to cut through when needed and provide the necessary presence. With both pickups engaged, there are a myriad of subtle variations via the three-way Tone Character toggles, and the interaction between both pickups and tone switches provides many of the most pronounced and thumpy sounds the bass has to offer. The mini toggles are essentially midrange boost/cut controls, neutral in the middle position. At the neck, the bass has a certain softness and breadth, with a pillowy low end that sits well in a mix. Weighing 10lbs 8oz, this bass has been professionally setup here at Mike & Mike’s Guitar Bar with 45-100 roundwound strings, comfortable action and spot-on intonation. The maple/mahogany neck has a modestly chunky C-shaped profile carve with generous shoulder in every register, measuring .860” deep at the 1st fret and .995” at the 12th. The thick slab rosewood fretboard retains the stock medium jumbo fretwire which has plenty of meat, showing only the faintest hint of wear beneath the A and D strings on frets 1-3. This bass plays cleanly up the 34” scale with a straight neck and responsive, optimally-adjusted truss rod. The brass nut ensures optimal sustain and note clarity, measuring 1 9/16” in width. The headstock features a rosewood veneer and Kawai eagle logo inlay. The original gold Schaller tuners turn smoothly and hold accurate pitch. All of the electronics function as intended, with individual Volume and (passive) Tone controls for each pickup, with an active three-way Tone Character mini toggle dedicated to each humbucker and a traditional three-way pickup selector toggle. Hardware includes the original high-mass bridge, and there is one replaced string ferrule on the back of the bass. This is a notably well-kept vintage Kawai, and cosmetic wear on the gloss Natural finish is limited to a handful of faint finish scratches on the body as a whole. The smooth gloss finish on the neck profile is immaculate. A padded faux leather gigbag is included.