2002 ESP LTD C-304 Active 4-String Electric Bass Guitar

This Korean-made bass was brought-in for consignment. The owner thinks it's a late-'90s bass, but after scouring ESP catalogs and attempting to guesstimate with its serial number, I think it's actually a 2002 build and appears to be the "C-304" model. It's a fusion-style, full-on, through-neck, active electric bass and has the sound, thump, and mwah you expect from that type. The fret access is crazy, there's scoop-outs everywhere for easy playability, and it's lightweight as well.

Specs are: 33 7/8" scale, 1 9/16" nut width, 1 1/4" string spacing at the nut, 2 3/8" spacing at the bridge, 12 1/2" lower bout, 10 3/4" upper bout, and 1 3/4" body depth. The action's set at 3/32" overall at the 12th fret and the neck is a slim-to-medium C-shape profile with something like a 14" radius to the board.

Materials are: neck-through maple/walnut neck, mahogany (or similar) body wings, flamed-maple top veneer/cap, rosewood fretboard. Pickups are active EMGs with a 3-knob EQ/active boost section and passive volume and tone controls. The bass is all-original and the hardware has a satin-gold finish.

Condition issues: it plays like a champ with a straight neck to about where the truss rod's functionality terminates, but from the 12th fret and up there's a hair of up-bow so if you're wailing on it, you'll get a little fret buzz as you reach for high notes. The adjustable saddles are also at their lowest setting for two of the saddles, so if you have a really light touch and want action even lower than 3/32" at the 12th fret, you'll need to find some alternate saddles that adjust lower and install them. There's almost no evidence of playwear except for a light scratch here or there. It still had the cling-film on the control cavity's backplate when it came in!

Work included: a light fret level/dress, mild cleaning, and a setup. It's wearing something like 105w-45w gauge strings in roundwound nickel. The battery for the preamp is still good to go.

The finish is satin and the hardware is all finished in satin-gold, too.

The frets are in good shape.