Steinberger Spirit XT-2 Standard Bass Black

I waited almost a month for it to be stocked and it mailed a week early. I'm ecstatic about this bass. I'm taking lessons online and even though I have 2 other basses, the Steinberger is my go to bass. It's got a great tone and is easy to use. The only real negative is the strap lock placement on the back is awkward to wear the strap.

Its small, light but with a full sound. Good quality craftmanship. The hardware is all quite solid. If you have fret buzz, you can adjust the truss rod. See video below.

I purchased the XT-2 mainly for portability as I'm doing many fly out shows this year and need a bass that will fit in an airline overhead. I didn't want to spend a lot of money but the bass I received was defective. The finish was applied well and it looked great but the bass arrived practically unplayable . The strings were a mile high off the fretboard, the intonation wasn't close, and the neck was severely backbowed. After adjusting the truss rod , lowering The string height and adjusting the intonation, I still was unable to achieve good playability. Upon closer inspection I noticed that the neck was very warped, having a very noticeable hump around the 10th-12th fret area. To be blunt, the neck was gooched. I'm sure that I received a lemon, (or possibly an item that was previously returned by another customer) and placed back into stock I'm sure they are not all as bad as the one I got. Even though I understand that this is not an expensive instrument, the sound was uninspiring. It was ok when played fingerstyle, but not a lot of lows or highs. Kind of a dull, bland tone in general. Slapping on this bass didn't sound very good at all to me. Your mileage may vary. The tuning system on the bridge was also rather stiff and notchy feeling. The ergonomic issues have already been talked about and yes, without the addition of a (now extinct) steinberger strap extender hook, the bass is very awkward for the average player. In order for this thing to be workable for me, I would have had to modify the balance point with a self fabricated strap extender and add better electronics to suit my taste. For all that extra work and expense, I decided to simply get a $$ refund rather than replace the bass for a non defective unit. To sum up, better pickups and a strap extension, (and better quality control) would make this a unique, decent bass, but as I found it, it did not live up to the Steinberger name. It's just a Steinberger knockoff.

I had one of the Hohner B2A basses in the late 1980's and have kicked myself so many times for selling it. That bass played through an Ampeg SVT was intoxicating. It was thick, powerful, rich and very articulate. Longing to recreate that sound, I finally order one of the Steinberger Spirit XT-2 basses from GC. I'll admit that I was slightly disappointed with the XT-2's sound at first, but that soon changed. The stock strings were not too bad, but this bass screamed for a set of LaBella Flatwounds (S500L), so I ordered a set and installed them as soon as they came in. Part of the problem I was having with the sound of this bass was the electronics; they're passive, not active electronics, which was the key to the B2A sound. On the plus side, the XT-2 is solid wood, like the B2A, so being an engineer, that sound "problem" was ease to solve; I simply bought a Boss GEB-7 seven band bass equalizer. Problem solved! Note to ALL bass players: Regardless of your bass, a Boss GEB-7 should be a tool in your sound toolbox. Playing this bass and Boss EQ through my (new) Ampeg SVT head and two Hartke 410XL cabinets, I have my old sound again! Actually, it's better than before! The Hartke cabs sound MUCH better than the two Ampeg 410HE cabs I had. I did the A/B side-by-side test and the Hartke cabs blew the Ampeg cabs away. So, I sold them to GC. I own Gibson SG and Fender American Standard basses, and while these are great basses, I actually find myself grabbing the XT-2 when I want to play. It's light, and once you get used to it, it's easier to play than either of my other basses. The sound is deep and penetrating, no matter which amp/speaker combination I'm using (I have a GK MB800 head, 700RB II head, two GK 210 Neo cabs, two Hartke 410XL cabs, two 210XL cabs and two 115XL cabs), plus other assorted gear. If you've been looking at this bass, you should buy one and invest the time it takes to get used to it. The sound is addictive!

I am pleased with this guitar. The one thing that irks me though is that someone flattened out the bridge before it was sent to me. The manual states "Your Steinberger instrument is set up prior to leaving Steinberger". However this was not the case with the unit I received. I wonder if it was purposely "unset up" so that I would have to visit the guitar center and pay an additional fee to have it set up.

Light weight allows my bad spine to do a show because it is so light. Nice!