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i have a maton 12 string mastersound. an amazing guitar, better than any other 12 string i have played. and i’d love to buy more from them, just not in the mastersound shape!

they do a great free guided tour of their factory, but focus on the production of acoustics. probably a sign of the current focus of the company, and maybe part of the reason they have been so boring so far (with a few exceptions, like my 12 string!) with the electrics…

bring back the big ben!

Yeah Steve… don’t get me wrong. There are some beautiful Mastersound’s out there. I recently saw a band with a black hollowbody six string Mastersound with body binding and block inlays that looked amazing. But honestly, how hard would it be for Maton to try a few old their old shapes out on the public? A small run of 100 reissue Fyrbird’s (in red or white) would be superb.

Sweet Jesus that thing is cool looking!

The Lucksmiths’ bassist has a cool red BB:

http://www.messandnoise.com/images/3006143/620×400-c.jpeg

Also, forgot to mention as a matter of interest…. I also have a VERY early Hot Cake pedal from 7.7.1977, once owned by Harry Lyons of ‘Hello Sailor’ fame (Kiwi band of note) – the maker of these pedals, Paul Crowther, reckoned it was one of the first ones he’d made…. the date and who it was made for is scratched on the inside of the pedal.

Hi ,
re: the Maton Starline 4606 you make the comment that ” . . the Starline 4606 (is beautiful… apart from having the wrong pickups) . . ”

Could you please elaborate on what you mean by the “wrong pickups”
I am really interested to hear your opinions and comments on this

Thanks,

Hi Paul. As far as I’m aware (I may be mistaken, though), Maton never put Gibson-type humbuckers in any of it’s Starline models. They always used their own pickups, which ranged from their cheap chrome single coils from the late 50’s to the Maton humbuckers on the George Golla model. You can check out the Starline range at the online Maton museum here. Also, another feature on the new Starline’s which isn’t quite right is that they used Gibson-type speed knobs. The early Starline’s had the early white Maton knobs, while the later 70’s models had the Phil Manning Custom/Guild type knobs. It’s a shame as these 2 little points make this great guitar seem more like a Gibson jazz box instead of a reissue of a Maton classic.

this instrument, I thought was a fenton-wille bass, i have seen one,
but i did not relise it was a maton bass

The construction of this Big Ben bass reminds me of one of the original MS-500’s I had – double binding…although the MS-500 had an angled neck join, which was quite unusual. The three MS-500’s I owned all had different headstocks. First one (blonde) had the regular early rectangular, the one with double binding (blonde) had a rectangular with little swept wing at the top, and the third (cherry with Bigsby) had the large Fyrebyrd type (like the Big Ben)
I don’t have any pics unfortunately, 2 of them I sold at Smithy’s, the other I swapped for a Volvo..heh
I will post some pics of others I had (I did have a big Maton collection) I’ve recognised some of my old ones already posted…the red El Toro, sunburst Wedgetail and the mint white Fyrebyrd with tags
Can’t find a decent pic anywhere of a Baroque bass…or the 3-pickup Magnetone I had once
Anyway, thanks for a great site

my old maton big ben bass has been stolen somewhere in south australia .it is recognisable by the machine heads had to have them changed when the originals ends broke off, the new ones are larger and chrome please all keep your eyes pealed as this has been in my family for 50 years bought it when I was 15 now just turned 65

ps also have a maton eltoro bass

Hi all, was very interested to see the Big Ben bass which originally had the plastic strings on it. I have a Mastersound bass Model – M.S. 1100 Serial No. 303 which when I bought it 33 years ago it still had the same plastic strings also. My old girl is in fantastic shape which enables me to still gig with her. I`ve never seen another & also never a Big Ben either.If I was able upload a pic I would, I`m still catching up with all this stuff after all these years

Hi, a friend and I were given a Maton Tobacco burst 63-64 Big Ben bass guitar in 2007 that we are now looking to sell. I do not know how to subscribe to this forum to post a topic to gather interest but I understand these are fairly sought after going by the prices I have been quoted for it. I would love to send around some photos of it and find it a home with someone who will appreciate it. It’s in similar condition to the one in this post, maybe a tiny bit more scuffed. There is also a crack in the body at the base of the neck but has never grown since I’ve had the guitar.

If anybody is interested in having a look at it, please send me an email on [email protected] or give me a call on 0410 493 199. I am located in Melbourne. I apologise if advertising is not acceptable however wasn’t sure where else to go where people would know the guitar!

Hi to all and thanks for this website.
It may blow you away that I actually own
A (which I believe to be called) Big Ben
Electric guitar. It looks, feels and sounds
Amazing .
I wish this website lets me post pics.
Regards tony

Hey Tony,

I am super keen to see this Big Ben Guitar!!!!

Can you email me on [email protected]

if it isnt a big ben I can tell you what it is

Greg

Hi maton lovers. I’ve got news for you.
Maton made a 6 string version of this truly
Magical guitar. I actually own one. It’s beautiful
And plays like a dream. The neck is to die
For . I wish I can post a photo but it seems
That I can’t paste here.

Hi I have a 69 Baroque Bass would you like some pics

Hi everyone! It’s been 25 years since I smashed Sandy Mathewson’s Big Ben Bass into tiny pieces. Yep, it was me. It was splintered beyond recognition in the car park of some cruddy little flats in Adelaide and the remains, unceremoniously lobbed into the nearest wheelie bin. I presume it is now residing at the bottom of the Wingfield dump. The Bass was never stolen, just inherited and subsequently used for a pretty good Townshend impersonation. Pete would have loved it.
– “Happy Anniversary Baby.”

And that’s the truth, Ruth!

ps It was still in the family

Just found this while researching my days back in 1961/2 when the band I was in bought Maton Fyrbirds in lieu of Fenders. I still have my Maton bass guitar and can supply a photo if you provide an email address.