Double Basses

[DayOfVengeance]

does anyone play one around here?
im interested in buying one but only have a limited amount to spend on it, $1000 Canadian. or a bit more.

the ones i've seen in the is price range are made out of plywood?... yes plywood! doesn't sound good or is that the norm?

any rules on what to look for etc, names to look out for...

any help would be grand!

 

[leddy]

I've been playing about 20 years. Basses are either plywood, carved or a combination of the two. Plywood basses are cheaper, but can sound great. A lot depends on the style of music. For jazz, bluegrass, pop, etc plywood can be just fine. Arco playing (using the bow) generally sounds better on a carved instrument. Generally, plywood will not give you as complex of a tone. More thump, less sweetness.

Take some time and read the newbie links over at Talkbass.com. It's a great resource. Stay away from the cheap Ebay instruments. Buy your bass from a qualified luthier who has personally set it up, or buy it used from a player who has had it set up. These cheap Ebay basses are no bargain. A proper set up and a good set of strings costs more than some of these basses. What does that tell you? Doesn't mean you can't find a decent bass for your budget, but you will need help and you will have to look harder.

It's a great instrument. It will take some time to get proficient. It helps to get a teacher (a teacher may be able to help you find a bass). Good luck with it.

 

[Gear_Junky]

i've rented an upright bass a couple of times - one time I played it, the other time our current bassist did. For electric-type music (rock/rockabilly, whatever) if you're going to amplify, especially with a contact pickup, they'll sound good. your budget is what it is and most likely you'll only find laminated models in that price range (unless you find something used with a solid top), so i wouldn't worry about it. it still sounds quite unique from any bass guitar tones.

actually, if you rent one first, you can see if you like it enough. last time we used it at a live concert I bought a $5 radio-shack piezo transducer and soldered a guitar jack to it - worked well, sounded good, but prone to picking up vibrations, so needs to be suspended on the bass somehow - the transducer is attached to the bridge or top, but the wires need to be kept away from anything that'll make them vibrate, or else it'll become low-end noise.

 

[DayOfVengeance]

wow, moves quick in here!

Thanks for the sound advice guys! I've only had the chance to play one twice for about half a day so im kinda a newbie. I've played electric for about 15 years and was recently looking into buying a Martin Acoustic (fretted) bass, it was about a grand as well...... so i think it would be best to take the suggestion of renting one first. I really think i'd get more use out of a upright, plus it would be a nice challenge.

I will be recording through a mic for now but "gear junky" that will definitely be an option later down the road, i would prefer like to mix DI and mic.

i have my eye on a 3/4 from 1950 (plywood) .... are these prone to warping at all?

 

[Gear_Junky]

yes, mixing a large condenser mic with a direct contact sound (preferably preamped) will sound GREAT. I did that once, back when I had a Tascam cassette 8-track.

Instead of buying that Martin, use the money on an upright bass and get this:

http://www.music123.com/Dean-EAB-Acoustic-Electric-Bass-519943-i1150843.Music123

it's Dean EAB Acoustic Bass Guitar (ABG) - although cheap and laminated, it's by far the loudest (acoustically) ABG of all the ones I tried (except Tacoma Thunderchief and their laminated half-sister Olympia). It's really huge, but postured properly not hard to play. And sounds pretty good.

I got mine even cheaper, as a "blem". I had to send the first one back, because there was something wrong with the neck, waited a few months, saw another blem and grabbed it for $129 shipped. These days they also run coupon codes with more discount off blems. If you no like, you send back

I've tried Martin SP phosphor bronze ABG strings on it as well as flatwounds, both sound great, depending on what you want. I figured the bright bronzes cut through better. The passive pickup is "ok", but NEEDS to be preamped. Don't forget to throw away stock strings as soon as you decide that everything is fine with it

Just FYI, I've wanted an acoustic bass guitar for maybe 10 years. I've liked the Tacoma Thunderchief for just as long, but was never gonna afford it. I kept trying all ABG's I saw at stores and kept reading about them and when I saw these Deans, read all of the reviews I could find. The problem is: ABG is a weird (and "bastard") instrument, so it's not like there's a few models in each price range. As far as I'm concerned there's only the Dean and the Tacoma (and Olympia), everything else is only useable with an amp. These can hang with a couple of acoustics (though don't expect miracles).

 

[DayOfVengeance]

i've yet to try a Tacoma, although i've heard many many good things about it.

about the dean, what a crazy cheap price but i've tried all sorts of laminated brands and they just don't have the deep warm tone that natural unfinished basses give. i didn't even plug the Martin in and i was in love with the thick chunky tone, that's why its still a toss up between a Martin (or any other unfinished bass) and a upright (i know two totally different sounds ).

gotta try the thunderchief though, problem is my shop won't just order a bass to try. b*stards!

 

[Gear_Junky]

i've yet to try a Tacoma, although i've heard many many good things about it.

about the dean, what a crazy cheap price but i've tried all sorts of laminated brands and they just don't have the deep warm tone that natural unfinished basses give. i didn't even plug the Martin in and i was in love with the thick chunky tone, that's why its still a toss up between a Martin (or any other unfinished bass) and a upright (i know two totally different sounds ).

gotta try the thunderchief though, problem is my shop won't just order a bass to try. b*stards!

well, i won't say anything about Martin for fear of unleasing scary things (and I haven't played one), but the Thunderchief (Tacoma) is probably THE acoustic bass guitar, there's just nothing else that comes close.

What you said about laminated ABG's, well I agree with you - I've hated every ABG I've tried (which was in the range of $200 - $700 or so), all of them were laminates except Tacoma. I've hated all of them (except the Olympia, which is a laminate Thunderchief copy). If I can remember... several Michael Kellys, an Epiphone, a Brownsville and a Carlo Robelli (Sam Ash brands), several other generics... Dean is a different animal. It's the biggest of them all (bigger than Tacoma, bigger than anything, read reviews, you'll see people actually complaining that it's too big, but it's the only way!). It does have that deep low warm tone that quenched my thirst for the Tacoma once and for all. Not saying it's as good (Tacoma is all solid woods, looks great too), but it's good enough for me - I couldn't have the Tacoma, I wouldn't buy any of those other jokes, Dean was it. It's only $150, if you don't like it, sell it or even send it back - Music123 has a pretty generous return policy. That way you can have the ABG and the upright!