DRW Instruments 12-String Basses

drw instruments custom 12-string basses

DRW Instruments is located in Adelaide, Australia, and they started building 12-string basses in 2015. The company’s owner is David Webber, who is a fine bassist as well as a custom bass builder. DRW had built custom guitars for a number of years prior to tackling the 12-string bass. David has owned a Hamer 12-string bass for over a decade.

DRW 12-string basses carry designates such as “db 1201”, indicating a 12-string bass and the first one built. About the first two 12-string basses built, David told us, “the shell of ‘db 1201’ sits in my workshop as inspiration to continue the journey. The ‘db 1202’ fretless was a nice bass but I wasn’t happy with the neck as it wasn’t up to spec. The truss rods and tuners were later used on ‘db 1205’, which is a fretted bass.” Thus far three more of these “Series 1” 12-string basses have been built.

We believe that DRW Instruments is the first company in the world to build multi-scale fanned fret 12-string basses, they are referred to as “Series 2” and thus far four of them have been created.

DRW’s second 12-string bass was this fretless; it no longer exists.

This is the first 12-string bass sold by DRW Instruments and is designated as “db 1203”. It is long 34” scale with a Fender-style set neck and 20 frets, dual Martin-style 560 mm truss rods, and Gotoh tuners. It incorporates a single Gotoh JB Classic jazz bass style pickup. Hamer style bridge / tailpiece.

This bass was originally White but was repainted Black prior to being sold. It was built in 2015.

The body is Kauri Pine. The neck is European Maple and the fingerboard is Jarrah, a high density hardwood type of Eucalyptus tree found in abundance in southern Australia.

This is the second 12-string bass sold by DRW Instruments and is designated “db 1204”. The body is Jarrah, a high density hardwood variety of Eucalyptus tree, and was recycled from old wood that had been originally used in a wharf. The bolt-on neck is European Maple, long 34” scale, Indian Rosewood fingerboard with 20 frets, incorporating dual Martin-style 560 mm truss rods.

This bass has a single Bartolini M44CBC-T bass humbucker pickup. Gotoh tuners. The clear finish is Behlen stringed instrument clear lacquer.

DRW Instruments Fanned Fret 12-String Basses

2018 DRW Instruments multi-scale 12-string bass, designated “db 1208”.

When asked why he chose to build fanned fret 12-string basses, David responded, “Because it had to be done. I wanted to take the huge sound these iconic basses make to a new place, and it has.”

The body of this bass is made of European Beech wings combined with Australian Red Wood. The bolt-on neck is Queensland Maple with a Jarrah fingerboard, 20 frets, dual Martin-style 560 mm truss rods. Scale length of the ‘E’ string is 34 1/2”, and 32” for the ‘G’. Gotoh tuners. There are four db12 single bridge assemblies.

The pickups are Seymour Duncan passive soap-bars; bass and treble volumes, one tone control. The bass is finished in Behlen stringed instrument clear lacquer.