NS Design NXTa 4

About the NS Design NXTa 4

At 132cm long and weighing just 4.8kg, the NXT4a trades the bulk of a traditional double bass for a compact maple body and neck fitted with a Richlite fingerboard, running on a 41.73-inch scale. Its Polar Pickup System includes a dedicated arco/pizzicato toggle that adapts the electronics for either a percussive, articulate response under the bow or a smooth, sustained tone when plucked. The electronics themselves are battery-free: a capacitor-based active circuit charges from any AC outlet in just 60 seconds and then delivers up to 16 hours of performance, with a fully passive mode available as a backup that needs no power at all. Controls are kept simple - a rotary volume, a push-pull switch for active/self-powered mode, a tone control and the arco/pizzicato toggle. It's offered in 4-string (this model) and 5-string versions, and ships with a compact gig bag that includes a bow holder and a pocket for a tripod stand.

Where to buy

• Reverb NS Design NXT4a Electric Upright Bass 4 Satin Black 2.599 EUR Best price View details
• Reverb NS Design NXT4a Electric Upright Bass 4 Satin Black 2.651 EUR View details

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Source: https://reverb.com/item/36506440-ns-design-nxt4a-electric-upright-bass-4-satin-black

Sound character of the NS Design NXTa 4

The Polar Pickup System's dedicated arco mode is built to capture a percussive, articulate bowed attack, while pizzicato playing yields a smooth, well-sustained plucked tone - both described by players as rich and genuinely easy to amplify compared to miking an acoustic double bass.

What owners of the NS Design NXTa 4 say

Owner feedback is strongly positive and consistent, landing at 4.5 out of 5 stars for both sound and overall quality. The recurring praise centers on versatility - a tone that comes through clearly whether the instrument is bowed or plucked, paired with genuine practicality for anyone splitting time between electric bass and upright. The one piece of context worth carrying into a purchase decision is the honest distinction some critics draw: this is an electric instrument engineered on its own terms, not an attempt to acoustically clone a double bass, so expectations should be set accordingly rather than assuming a one-to-one substitute.

Playability & handling of the NS Design NXTa 4

User reviews put the NXT4a at 4.5 out of 5 stars overall, with sound and build quality both rated equally highly - a rich tone that's described as easy to amplify whether the player is plucking or bowing. It's specifically recommended for electric bassists looking to add an upright to their setup, since the learning curve is gentler than moving to a true acoustic double bass, and the compact size solves the storage and transport headaches a full-size bass brings along. The honest counterpoint from more critical voices: NS Design's electric uprights aren't trying to perfectly replicate a traditional acoustic double bass's character - they're built as their own kind of electric instrument first, which is worth knowing going in if the goal is a direct acoustic substitute rather than a genuinely new playing experience.

Recommended accessories & strings for the NS Design NXTa 4

A compact gig bag with a built-in bow holder and a pocket for a tripod stand comes included, covering transport without extra purchases. Since the active electronics are capacitor-based rather than battery-powered, the main routine task is simply plugging in for 60 seconds before a long session to keep up to 16 hours of active-mode playing time in reserve - and the fully passive mode is always there as a zero-maintenance fallback.

Technical data for the NS Design NXTa 4

Price history for the NS Design NXTa 4

Cheapest seen: 2.599 EUR  ·  Most expensive seen: 2.651 EUR

The history of the NS Design NXTa 4

NS Design's NXTa brings the brand's ergonomic minimalist design to a more accessible price point below the premium WAV series.

About NS Design as a manufacturer

NS Design was founded in 1990 by Ned Steinberger, a designer whose career started in 1976 at the Brooklyn Woodworkers Co-op and took off when he partnered with Stuart Spector on the NS-1 bass in 1977 - a design that became Spector's most popular bass guitar. In 1980, Steinberger founded his namesake company, Steinberger Sound, which found immediate success pioneering headless guitars and basses built from materials like carbon fiber, all driven by a design philosophy centered on ergonomics and function over tradition. He sold that company to Gibson in 1987 (Gibson kept building the instruments until 1998), then launched NS Design in 1990 to carry the same ergonomics-first approach into bowed electric instruments - violins, violas, cellos and basses like the NXT4a. In 2022, Gibson and Steinberger announced a new collaboration on a headless guitar, rekindling the partnership more than three decades after their first deal.