Steinberger Guitars Spirit XT-2 Standard Bass HY

I had a Honer B2A in the 80’s and have regretted selling for years. In recent years I have bought another Steinberger Spirt and a Status Barracuda so was excited when I saw these for sale.

I ordered one and was keen to play it when it arrived. Initially I was pleased with the setup and playability and loved the retro style.

Comparing this bass with my Status has shown it’s weakness. The sound is nowhere near as good as the Status with lower output, even when played in passive mode, and the tone not as strong.

What I notice now is the action is not as low as I would like and I’m struggling to improve this through tweaking the setup. Also the fret edges are sharp and need stoning to make them smooth on the fretboard edge.

I still play it a lot and still like it but I probably won’t use it live, which I was planning to do.

Ultimately I think £320 would buy a better bass if you’re not fussed about style or portability. There’s lots of choice in this price range. If you want a retro ‘cricket bat’ bass this is probably your only option.

I might add an active circuit to improve the sound.