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  #31  
Old 10-06-2014, 09:21 PM
Marty1 Marty1 is offline
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****, was off the forum for too long. That was a good lookin bass. Oddly enough, maybe its a Canadian thing, but I've never seen/played any Tacoma's of any kind. I gotta look into those. I see you have some and I've seen it in other sigs on this site, so it can't be that obscure.

Anybody else have an opinion on their acoustic basses? And (at the risk of detracting from my original question), how are their guitars?
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  #32  
Old 10-06-2014, 09:27 PM
cliffmac cliffmac is offline
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Originally Posted by Marty1 View Post
Any hidden gems in the acoustic bass market? What is the best value in inexpensive acoustic basses?

It's not my main instrument but I'm looking to get one to record some stuff and to mess around with. I'm looking at cheap ones, and thinking maybe a kingman bass. I've tried one, liked it, but my expectations are not so high given that I'm not looking for the cream of the crop. I imagine its the same as acoustic guitars where there are certain cheap models/brands that are a great value at entry level prices. Anyone got ideas?

I'm looking for something in the 400$ to 600$ range.
sadly the cheap ones in your price range need pre amp upgrades. You are better off to raise your sites price wise. I tried a Dean 5 string awile back and it sucked plugged in.
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  #33  
Old 10-06-2014, 09:31 PM
posternutbag posternutbag is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marty1 View Post
****, was off the forum for too long. That was a good lookin bass. Oddly enough, maybe its a Canadian thing, but I've never seen/played any Tacoma's of any kind. I gotta look into those. I see you have some and I've seen it in other sigs on this site, so it can't be that obscure.

Anybody else have an opinion on their acoustic basses? And (at the risk of detracting from my original question), how are their guitars?
$550 for a Tacoma is a very good price. I sold mine for considerably more. It was the best AGB I have ever owned or played. If you have read my others comments, then you know that that is faint praise, but it is praise, nonetheless. If I needed an AGB for an MTV Unplugged performance, I would go with the Tacoma Thunderchief.

They come up on Ebay semi-regularly; if you keep an eye out you should be able to snag one. You might want to make sure it is a pre-Fender buyout Tacoma. The build quality supposedly suffered after the buyout. I have not A/B pre and post buyout ABGs so I cannot confirm this.

I played one of their acoustic guitars (6 string) about a month ago. I thought it was a nice enough guitar, but nothing special, good fit and finish, OK acoustic tone; I didn't plug it in.
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  #34  
Old 10-14-2014, 05:04 PM
Marty1 Marty1 is offline
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.

Thanks for the info
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  #35  
Old 10-15-2014, 10:23 AM
letseatpaste letseatpaste is offline
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Late to the thread, but I LOVE my little Kala U-bass, I gig with it weekly in an acoustic bluegrass/country band. I get all kinds of compliments on the sound (sounds an awful lot like an upright when it's plugged in), and tons of smiles and questions about it. The scale length makes walking bass lines a breeze. It also responds best to a light touch, so I can play long gigs without my fingers really getting tired. We also play around one mic, so it's great for leaning in for vocal harmonies.

I have it paired with a Markbass CMD-121P amp which is pretty lightweight but plenty loud/deep.
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  #36  
Old 10-15-2014, 10:56 AM
RustyAxe RustyAxe is offline
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Originally Posted by Marty1 View Post

Anybody else have an opinion on their acoustic basses? And (at the risk of detracting from my original question), how are their guitars?
I have a Thunderchief CB10e, and for much of my work it's my go-to bass. Nice neck, good electronics, good build. I've changed nothing but the strings. I also have a Guild B50 (32" scale) and like it a lot. Both are strung with nylon wound strings ... GHS on the Tacoma, and D'Addario on the Guild. Both give me a very upright-ish tone (with the right technique and EQ, of course). Both are usually played through my "mini rig of doom" ... GK MB200 into a Genz-Benz STL8 8" cab, mic'd to FOH if I need it.
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  #37  
Old 10-15-2014, 11:07 AM
Sari Sari is offline
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Tacoma Thunder Chief. If you can find it.
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  #38  
Old 10-15-2014, 11:12 AM
quiltingshirley quiltingshirley is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by letseatpaste View Post
Late to the thread, but I LOVE my little Kala U-bass, I gig with it weekly in an acoustic bluegrass/country band. I get all kinds of compliments on the sound (sounds an awful lot like an upright when it's plugged in), and tons of smiles and questions about it. The scale length makes walking bass lines a breeze. It also responds best to a light touch, so I can play long gigs without my fingers really getting tired. We also play around one mic, so it's great for leaning in for vocal harmonies.

I have it paired with a Markbass CMD-121P amp which is pretty lightweight but plenty loud/deep.
Which U Bass are you playing? The one that you see most folks playing with the stretching "rubber band" strings or the one they call the rumbler? Or a solid? I've only seen them used in ukulele setting and wasn't sure they'd work well (or be accepted) with guitars.
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  #39  
Old 10-15-2014, 11:45 AM
tdq tdq is offline
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Just throwing this out there. I've never played it so can't comment other than carbon fibre seems like a good idea for an acoustic (non-upright) bass.

http://www.emeraldguitars.com/basses/xb-34-bass/
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  #40  
Old 10-15-2014, 12:35 PM
letseatpaste letseatpaste is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by quiltingshirley View Post
Which U Bass are you playing? The one that you see most folks playing with the stretching "rubber band" strings or the one they call the rumbler? Or a solid? I've only seen them used in ukulele setting and wasn't sure they'd work well (or be accepted) with guitars.
Mine's not the solid body electric looking one, it's not the Rumbler model but it's that same acoustic style. Mine is the one made from solid mahogany, the more entry level ones are laminate. It does have the thick polymer strings (as do all the U-basses as far as I know). Would work great in a lot of settings, country, jazz, etc...

The sound on this video doesn't really do it justice, but you get the idea. It's got a pretty low fundamental tone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xanMq-R8JXE
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  #41  
Old 10-17-2014, 04:16 AM
Snowman19 Snowman19 is offline
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Default Impressive Bass Guitars I've seen over my experience

"Vintage Icon V4 - looks good, plays good. And it's cheap as chips!" (Thanks, Chris)

"Squier Affinity P for sure. Squier have always impressed my with providing cheap-but-great axes"

“Epiphone EB3, I went to the shop expecting to buy a more expensive Fender but came away with this! Probably the best looking bass around, lovely thin neck and surprisingly versatile tones. Faultless build quality too and can be had for less than £200”

"Danelectro Dano 63 bass

The Squier Classic Vibe Precision Bass 60s
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  #42  
Old 10-17-2014, 09:54 AM
quiltingshirley quiltingshirley is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by letseatpaste View Post
Mine's not the solid body electric looking one, it's not the Rumbler model but it's that same acoustic style. Mine is the one made from solid mahogany, the more entry level ones are laminate. It does have the thick polymer strings (as do all the U-basses as far as I know). Would work great in a lot of settings, country, jazz, etc...

The sound on this video doesn't really do it justice, but you get the idea. It's got a pretty low fundamental tone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xanMq-R8JXE
Thanks for the video. Sounds good for what I want it to do. (And the price is right).
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  #43  
Old 10-17-2014, 09:56 AM
RustyAxe RustyAxe is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Snowman19 View Post
"Vintage Icon V4 - looks good, plays good. And it's cheap as chips!" (Thanks, Chris)

"Squier Affinity P for sure. Squier have always impressed my with providing cheap-but-great axes"

“Epiphone EB3, I went to the shop expecting to buy a more expensive Fender but came away with this! Probably the best looking bass around, lovely thin neck and surprisingly versatile tones. Faultless build quality too and can be had for less than £200”

"Danelectro Dano 63 bass

The Squier Classic Vibe Precision Bass 60s
Which one of those is an ACOUSTIC BASS GUITAR?
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  #44  
Old 10-23-2014, 06:48 PM
SJ VanSandt SJ VanSandt is offline
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Default Gold Tone Micro-bass

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GVyaR1EaeY

Add a Roland Bass Cube and you are set to go. Sounds more like a real bass than any acoustic bass guitar, they all have to be amplified to be heard anyway, it cost about what a good set-up for an upright would cost (apparently), and it's dead easy for a guitarist to play. They've come out with a 25" scale length - basically the same as a guitar - but I like my 23" scale just fine: I like to play fretless and it falls under the fingers more easily.
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  #45  
Old 10-27-2014, 10:37 AM
MBE MBE is offline
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Originally Posted by Mooh View Post
I have a recent Gold Tone resonator bass:

http://www.goldtone.com/products/det...Beard-Bass-PBB

The stock strings were pretty bad so I immediately restrung it with my usual D'Addario Chromes flatwounds. I got the optional screw in stand so that it can be held like an upright too. Surprisingly loud unplugged and bright even with the flatwounds, but it has mellowed a bit with the age of the strings and when played closer to the bridge...quite controllable when plugged in.

It's a bit of a departure for me as I generally use a Godin fretless five string, but it sure is nice not to have to plug in all the time.

Other acoustic options out there are, 1) used Washburn AB models, not much acoustic volume, but nice plugged in, 2) used Godin Acoustibass, I had a very nice fretless one, 3) Ibanez, new or used.
How much bass does the GoldTone put out acoustically with flatwounds? The only recordings I've found online were with roundwounds and it sounds very "guitar-like" in its frequency response. If it actually has some low end to the tone, it might be my next instrument purchase (I can't find a single one to try out in Canada).
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