Sandberg celebrates its 35 anniversary with special-edition California Supreme bass
Fresh take on the company’s flagship model boasts quilted maple top and Delano X-Tender pickups
We’ve seen some eye-catching new bass guitars from Sandberg in the past few months, including signature models for Victor Brandt and Opeth’s Martín Méndez.
Now the German company has unveiled a new model to celebrate its 35th anniversary, the California Supreme.
The new version of Sandberg’s flagship bass design boasts a hand-selected curly maple top, matching headstock and noble oval inlay.
There’s also a six-bolt European maple neck fortified with Sandberg’s "Thermo Treatment," which roasts the wood in a thermal oven for several days for increased playability, tone and stability.
Pickups are Delano X-Tenders, and electronics are an active Sandberg three-band system with bass, mid, treble and balance controls, as well as a push/pull volume knob that selects between active and passive. In passive mode, the EQ's treble control acts as a passive treble blend.
Other specs include a 22-fret ebony fingerboard with oval inlays and "glow-in-the-dark" side dots, as well as a tailpiece, knobs, solid bridge and Sandberg Super Light tuners made of stiff aircraft aluminum.
The 35th Anniversary California Supreme is available in Blueburst, Honeyburst and Redburst with a high-gloss finish.
Get The Pick Newsletter
All the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox!
For more information, head to Sandberg Guitars.
Thank you for reading 5 articles this month**
Join now for unlimited access
US pricing $3.99 per month or $39.00 per year
UK pricing £2.99 per month or £29.00 per year
Europe pricing €3.49 per month or €34.00 per year
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Rich is the co-author of the best-selling Nöthin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the '80s Hard Rock Explosion. He is also a recording and performing musician, and a former editor of Guitar World magazine and executive editor of Guitar Aficionado magazine. He has authored several additional books, among them Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, the companion to the documentary of the same name.
“Unprecedented customization”: Brubaker merges headless guitar hype with modern modular designs for the NBS Series – which offers switchable high-end preamps
“Designed to handle virtually any style of music you throw at it”: How Ibanez pioneered the high-performance workhorse bass guitar with the SR series – and made low-end more accessible than ever before