This is a pic of Ruby Magpie... bunch of friends from Minnesota bluegrass circles... Pete Mathison is the bass player (one of the best in Minnesota, I think), and in this pic he's holding his Kala Ubass.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
This is a pic of Ruby Magpie... bunch of friends from Minnesota bluegrass circles... Pete Mathison is the bass player (one of the best in Minnesota, I think), and in this pic he's holding his Kala Ubass.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
It's always an interesting topic to ponder. Here's something I'm in the process of working on. I'm going to try this with my buddy's Microcube battery powered bass amp when I get a chance.
rudy44
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Wow that is $2000
Originally Posted by MikeEdgerton
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Are you talking about Joshua Bell the classical violinist or Josh Bell concertmeister for the Providence Mandolin Orchestra?
Len B.
Clearwater, FL
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Back to the original post, I'm thinking she knows bass is big, she's a bass player that doesn't want to have to lug it to a festival. It's a festival, outside. Most of us don't take our best instruments to the campfire events, some of us do. I'm thinking she's thinking small so she can enjoy the picking, I'm not real sure we need top notch sound in this environment. With that said, there seem to be plenty of smaller alternatives that will fill that need that have acceptable size vs sound.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Not very loud and not much for low end..
KMUZ Community Radio
www.kmuz.org
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Hey Mandomedic! How've you been!
We tried an acoustic bass guitar once, but gave it up for a 3/4 size bass. For the very reasons Mandomedic gives. For acoustic music an upright bass can't be beat. Our bass player uses a bass that can tolerate being taken out of doors for festivals. I think he picked it up used, but it sounds great. I know for a fact his bow was more costly than his bass.
Ha, ha! keep time: how sour sweet music is,
When time is broke and no proportion kept!
--William Shakespeare
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Don't even waste the money to rent one. It won't be loud enough unless it's amped.
Our bass player plays a Luna through a bass amp.
The more I'm around people, the better I like dogs.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
I play all the time with an acoustic bass player, who plays unplugged--he hates amplification. He also plays occassionally with our dance band. For a jam, it's awesome. For accompanying a dance, it can certainly be heard, at least by the people in the band. Since it's rhythm, I'm not sure it matters to the dancers. Heck, you can't always hear the stand up bass, either--either as an audience/dancer or player. Cast my vote for "rent one and see"--and try it unplugged.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
There's no dearth of articles complete with step-by-step pics by bassists who've made the modifications to the Palatino V- (you can get a used one from Musician's Friend (NFI) that's as good as a pre-modded new one)
With EUBs (electric uprights) scale length is important for a good sound. Ergos and other "sticks" are super portable. The Ergo is full-scale with sound good without any needed mods. Ergonomics on any EUB are challenging--folks have mounted any manner of aluminum tubing to the V500 body to make it feel better. If I got a Palatino I'd saw the scroll off the top--which makes the bass cumbersome and lessens portability.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
I will add to the chorus on the Kala U-Bass. I play mando, banjo and bass in a group, and the U-bass that one of the other guys brings to practice and gigs is way lighter than my fender Precision, which I now leave at home. Now that I've gotten used to the short scale, I really like the sound. Many small amps are available that are plenty loud enough, if the issue here is lugging gear. Never heard an acoustic bass guitar that was loud enough un-amplified.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f101/d...thread-303366/
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Whatever you go with--Kala, Steinberger, Ergo, palatino, slab...you'll need the amp, and you can't skimp there. The good news is that there are great-sounding amps that are small and portable; the bad news is--these aren't cheap. But with a good amp, even a $100 fender squire can sound good
EUBs are great for jazz, and for outdoors
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
I will add to the chorus on the Kala U-Bass. I play mando, banjo and bass in a group, and the U-bass that one of the other guys brings to practice and gigs is way lighter than my fender Precision, which I now leave at home. The one that I'm playing is fretless, so more precision is required in the left hand, but I like being able to do the long slides without frets (shorter scale makes shorter slides less distinguishable). Now that I've gotten used to the short scale and the feel of those plastic strings, I really like the sound. The tone is more like a standup than an electric. Nice bottom without too much in the high frequencies. Many small amps are available that are plenty loud enough, if the issue here is lugging gear. I've plugged this thing in to amps with only 15W and a 8" speaker and it still sounds better than any Acoustic bass guitar I've ever played through an amp. Never heard an acoustic bass guitar that was loud enough un-amplified.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
I'd like others opinions on personal preferances for a battery powered busking / jam amp. My friend has the Roland Bass Cube RX which he likes a bunch with his Martin acoustic bass guitar. Here's a video overview of the Bas Cube RX:
http://www.roland.com/video/page.cfm?vid=19200537
rudy44
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Roland makes great sounding bass amps. You won't go wrong there.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
???HUH??? Obviously there are ones to avoid (you mention them below). Please explain.
Jim
My Stream on Soundcloud
Playing lately:
Brentrup A4C -- 1915 Frank Merwin Ashley violin -- 1904 Embergher Type 3 -- 1937 Gibson L-Century -- 1939 Gibson L-00 -- ca. 1890s Celebrated Benary Banjo -- 1985 Monteleone Grand Artist Mandola
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Nice site Rudy. I like your style.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
You often get what you pay for. Generally, one must spend closer to $2K for a "decent" bass. The world is full of "bargain"-priced instruments, which generally lack in one or more crucial aspects one would generally desire in an instrument of any type. The sub-$1k field of uprights you see on ebay is generally referred to as "CCB" (also, BSO), generally built in China (although there are of course very good Chinese basses as well), and shipped without set-up. Some folks have had success with these, others not. In an upright, you at least want to have a level fingerboard made of very hard wood like ebony--you probably wouldn't want to pay to have a soft-wood fingerboard planed on a cheap bass. Also, some of the "bargain" uprights have been reported to have insufficient bracing and reinforcements in multiple areas.
The palatino VE-500 is notorious for being playable, and not bad sounding with requisite tweaks (get your bicycle innertube!...mostly concerning bridge, transducer and tailpiece). Others like the Dean Pace look like uprights but may actually perform more like a slab (electric bass guitar). If you don't play arco, you might be fine with one of these Staggs, et al. There's a Steinberger economy model but I haven't played one. One nice thing about the palatino is its full scale-length dimensions and real bass bridge--something that those accustomed to stringed-bass would want. Another EUB that many players use is the Eminence
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Hi Jack: Semi retired.. Down to 3 days a week of repair work after I get off the air doing my shift on www.kmuz.org community Radio. Have an F-5 partially bound and hope to have it playing soon.. This one's mine.. And you?
KMUZ Community Radio
www.kmuz.org
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
I've heard many bass players on many different types of basses, all mentioned here.... Nothing beats a standup bass.. With all the choices for carts and wheels, why not use a real upright bass. There's no sound like it, and visually, it can't be beat. If you go with a flat-top acoustic bass guitar, you still have to lug and amp, cord, make sure you have batteries, power or something... Get the real deal and quit pretending...
KMUZ Community Radio
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Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
Thanks, Mike. I appreciate the complement.
Hopefully you found and liked the Mando page. I'm always looking for a slightly different path to travel.
rudy44
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
While I agree that nothing beats a upright acoustic I feel that there’s lots of reasons why it might be logical to look for an alternative.
If I’m going to gig with mine it’s becoming more and more problematic to fit it in my newer downsized car. My Honda Fit isn’t an easy sell, and I have a lot more stuff to pack than just the bass. Luckily I still have a RAV4 that can accommodate it. This isn’t a new problem, and I’m sure everyone’s seen the photos of the bass strapped on top of the touring vehicle when Bill Monroe used to travel a lot.
I’m getting older, and my muscles don’t appreciate the upright the way they used to. I can’t tell you how many of my friends had to give up upright due to rotator cuff injury. Yes, I know that technique has a lot to do with it, but decreasing muscle mass will eventually run smack dab into the fact that upright is a very physically demanding instrument. I’d just as soon improve my chances for avoiding it before it becomes more of a possibility.
I love the tone of a good upright, but it’s not loud enough in about 95% of the playing situations that I’ve been involved with. What’s the first thing I have to do? Figure out some way of amplifying it. As long as I have to amplify then I might as well consider something that’s easier to play (and haul) at the same time. I’ve been actively playing for 30 years, so I have some knowledge in this area.
I am becoming a fan of shorter scale lengths (mensure) for just about all of my instruments for various reasons, and upright isn’t immune to my sensibilities. The 34” scale of my electric is much more comfortable, and adapting the scale length to an upright configuration has instantly improved my enjoyment of playing again.
Cost… although a good ABG or EUB can be costly, a good upright has its own cost factors to consider. A lot of the inexpensive uprights can be improved with good strings (how’s that $200-$300 dollars for a playable set making you feel?), better bridge, tail gut, etc. By the time you get done “improving” an inexpensive import it isn’t so inexpensive any more.
Then there’s tradition. It’s got its place, but can’t we move on a bit? I personally love bands that push the tradition envelope a bit, and I gladly accept U-basses, ABGs, and even a good EUB as an alternative. What it takes is a good performer to convince the trad police that there might be a better way. I love seeing someone like Victor Krauss playing an EUB occasionally.
Some of the top performers have given in to the difficulties of packing a 3/4 or full size acoustic bass in favor of something a bit more packable. Oh yeah, don’t forget about what you’ll do when you need to fly. I’m not even going there. I once personally observed a shaped bass case roll off the top of the loading conveyor and hit the concrete. They just picked it up and threw it back on for another try. I’m glad I wasn’t on the receiving end for that!
Sorry for the long-winded post, but I’m just saying our chosen method of entertainment makes room for everyone and everything when given the chance.
rudy44
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
I took a tour through the whole place.
Re: How do you feel about an acoustic bass guitar in your jam?
This past Jan in Tamworth i ventured over to the Bluegrass night @ the supper club. The bass player was playing a uke bass... it sounded fine... It was almost really really good. I was very surprised.
I got chatting to him during a break and turns out his van had broken down prior to the gig leaving him no way of getting his upright to the gig. A great alternative indeed.
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