Suhr Classic P

A Classic For a Reason

Wildwoodians, the world of music changed forever when a small Californian company had the brilliant idea to put frets on a bass in the early fifties, allowing players to lock in their intonation with greater precision (not to mention, it was a lot smaller than an upright!) and creating a whole new instrument in the process. The low-end thump of these newfangled "electric basses" provided the rib-thudding backbone to hundreds of hits throughout the years, weaving its tone into the fabric of American music. Our friends at Suhr have captured the iconic sound of these vintage basses in their Classic P model, which is their unique spin on the P-style archetype. It combines vintage feel and tone with a modern fit and finish, making for a marvelous playing experience. Let's dive deeper and see what makes the Suhr Classic P such a powerful boom broom!

Bringing the Thunder

The Classic P's thunderous tone is the product of Suhr's premium tonewoods and a spectacular Vintage-Style Classic P split-coil pickup. The resonant alder body helps things sound beefy, while the Indian rosewood fretboard rounds off the sharpest edges of the attack by imparting a subtle bit of musical compression. However, the roasted maple neck is what sets the Classic P apart. Maple is already a stiff, strong wood, but the roasting process dries all the moisture out of it, making it even stronger and more stable. That stiffness means it acts as a sort of wooden tuning fork, boosting the Classic P's overall resonance and sustain and giving it a decidedly woody vintage flavor. This also means the neck doesn't move as much, allowing for a consistent setup.

Of course, the real star of the show is the pickup. The Vintage-Style Classic P split-coil is the sonic equivalent of a machete: who needs a Swiss Army knife when you can just hack your way through anything? It produces a round, springy, piano-like attack with outstanding depth and fullness that gives way with immediacy to a powerful, sonorous fundamental-heavy tone with just the right amount of overtones. The lows are deep yet clear, the midrange packs a broad, walloping punch, and the highs are full-bodied and glassy. It's the kind of sound that fits in anywhere--a testament to how well our friends at Suhr nailed the Classic P's well...classic tonality!

Back in Time

Playing the Classic P feels like stepping back into an alternate past, combining old-school neck specs with modern attention to detail to provide a supercharged vintage playing experience. It has a true-to-vintage 7.25" radius and a 1.72" radius, and the Vintage P neck shape nails the feel of the originals: slim near the nut and fatter near the twelfth fret. If you enjoy a beefy neck (and here at Wildwood's Bass Department, we do!), the Classic P will immediately feel like home.

But, it also has modern appointments like heavy stainless steel frets that allow it to rock for many years, Hipshot tuners with excellent stability, a satin finish for faster feel, and a heavy-duty Gotoh bridge. So, you get the best of both worlds: vintage feel and tone with modern reliability!

Take It to the Bass-ment

Wildwoodians, our Bass Department is delighted to showcase the Suhr Classic P, a bass that delivers a world-class vintage playing experience but with all the conveniences of a modern instrument. Its massive tone and vintage feel harken back to a fertile time in music, and we have no doubt it will help unlock your creativity and inspire you to reach new heights on your low-end journey.