Anybody here got an acoustic base?

[columbia]

Not a fan of ABGs at all. If you can plug up (Fender Rumble bass amps are super light now) the uke basses are better, if you have money and space for a doghouse, it's best for acoustic settings.

The worst abomination is the Taylor mini bass guitar with phosphor bronze strings--what are they trying to accomplish? It's the bass equivalent of a six string banjo.

[Wade Hampton]

Originally Posted by nightchef

(I think the bottom line is that there's a reason why upright basses are as big as they are.)

Yep - it’s called “physics.” No luthier woke up a few hundred years ago and said: “You know, let’s use up some of that extra wood we have laying around by building a really BIG bass viol.” No, it was out of necessity, pure and simple, that bass viols evolved to be the size they are. Any smaller and they’re not really practical.


whm

[BoneDigger]

To follow up on what I said earlier. I am often tempted by the "I'm going all acoustic!" thought, and then I buy an acoustic bass. I realize pretty quickly that I can get much more variety out of electric basses. Acoustic basses, played unplugged, tend to blend into the guitar sound too much. If I try to add acoustic bass guitar to a recording, I'm never happy. The electric is much more suitable for recording. That's not to say it can't, or hasn't, been successfully done. It just doesn't work well for me.

[Wade Hampton]

Another aspect that usually gets overlooked in these discussion threads about ABG’s is that it takes much more to get a good tone out of them than many expect. With my Tacoma ABG I was happy with the sound of about every third note.

Try as I might, I couldn’t get what I considered a good sound out of two thirds of the notes I played - I just didn’t have the right hand technique to pull it off.

I don’t know if that’s a common problem, but I suspect that it’s more common than generally acknowledged. Because I actively, consciously worked on getting a better tone but was unable to achieve it.


whm

[davenumber2]

I'm not a big fan of acoustic basses. Fine for solo practice I suppose but you get lost when playing with others. I have a P bass and it covers all the bases (or basses? )

[gfspencer]

How hard is it to learn to play a Martin bass? I sing bass and have a pretty good ear for it but I've never tried to play bass.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

...I am now down to three electric basses, but one is a hollow Gretsch 4 string that actually sounds almost as loud unplugged as some of the acoustic basses I've owned...

A short-scale with humbuckers and flats/nylons - especially a hollowbody like your Gretsch - will get you the "thump" and "woof" that fill the sonic space of an upright in a band arrangement, IME more so than a typical ABG with a piezo UST...

Been looking at one of those for myself for a while, BTW...

[BoneDigger]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

A short-scale with humbuckers and flats/nylons - especially a hollowbody like your Gretsch - will get you the "thump" and "woof" that fill the sonic space of an upright in a band arrangement, IME more so than an typical ABG with a piezo UST...

Been looking at one of those for myself for a while, BTW...

Yes, mine has flats on it. It sounds really good!

[scotchnspeed]

I have a 6 string Larrivee bass that is phenomenal. Projects well, amplifies well, and a perfect neck shape considering the size.

[perttime]

Originally Posted by BoneDigger

Yes, mine has flats on it. It sounds really good!

I was just reading an old Bass Player magazine, and one of the articles suggests that a short scale bass with flat wound strings would be one step towards reaching the upright bass sound, attack and decay.

Using some foam material to slightly mute the strings near the bridge is another. Apparently, that was the usual thing in the early days: foam strip inside the "ashtray" bridge cover.

[Inconnu]

Bass player here! I’m glad I can finally contribute to a discussion a bit more.

I do own an ABG (acoustic bass guitar), it’s an Ibanez EWB30 in satin finish. It’s an all laminate, but I chose it over a solid top Fender because the sound was more balanced and the sustain was great. It’s a long scale (34 inch). It’s not uncommon to see shorter scale ABGs, but I feel that there’s a compromise in terms of sustain with those, which can be frustrating at some point. I used to have a short scale ABG and it sounded dead over the 7th fret.

In terms of volume and tone, an ABG will never be as loud as an acoustic guitar. Physics, as other users posted. You need a bigger body to move enough air to hear the lows. Plugged in, they all sound ok. I partly choose my Ibanez becss as use of its built in XLR out and chorus effect.

Honestly, as a bass player, if I want to play acoustic, I use my upright bass. The ABG is mostly used for on the fly practice or if I get an idea for a new riff or groove that I want to record real fast on my cell phone.

I wouldn’t spend a fortune on a ABG, though (almost sold mine a few times, but I keep it for what it is). Again, the « true » acoustic bass is an upright bass (for me anyways).

[Ray175]

The only acoustic bass guitar with reasonable volume I have heard is the Mexican gitarrón. Extremely deep and a beast to play! Not the most comfortable of instruments but plenty loud and good projection.

[s2y]

I've been a bassist off and on since the late 90's. I've never played or heard an expensive ABG. The entry level and intermediate stuff lacks the volume to compete with most acoustic guitars. Godwin, Rob Allen, and a few others offer a thinline piezo bass that is much more practical. Since ABGs require an amp, might as well play a thinline piezo bass.

[Kappy]

Also bass player here. If you want to play standing up, with a strap...

If you play bass by plucking the strings instead of using a pick (plucking is much more common), your fingers and therefore your wrist, is/are relatively perpendicular to the strings. This is quite comfortable with a solid body bass that's maybe 2 inches thick. Acoustic bass guitars are much deeper, at least as deep as an acoustic guitar. The resulting angles may or may not be comfortable for you. They weren't for me.

[s2y]

Originally Posted by Kappy

Also bass player here. If you want to play standing up, with a strap...

If you play bass by plucking the strings instead of using a pick (plucking is much more common), your fingers and therefore your wrist, is/are relatively perpendicular to the strings. This is quite comfortable with a solid body bass that's maybe 2 inches thick. Acoustic bass guitars are much deeper, at least as deep as an acoustic guitar. The resulting angles may or may not be comfortable for you. They weren't for me.

Excellent point. A friend of mine did some damage to his wrist this way.