Bass for acoustic oriented gigs?

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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71959
    Bridgehouse said:

    True - I forgot about the reissue - but the only one I’ve seen listed is £4.5k  - for a 70s Gibson bass... yeah, right...
    It's bit unfair to describe it as a 70s Gibson - it's nothing like any of the later ones they made, and from what I can tell is a pretty accurate recreation of the original, much as the '72 Les Paul '54-style goldtop and Custom are.

    I wouldn't pay that sort of money for the one my friend has, though - it's cool, but not particularly usable for anything outside that Mountain fuzz bass sort of thing... or maybe as an electric upright. The short scale probably doesn't help either.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • Winny_PoohWinny_Pooh Frets: 7732
    Fretless 4 with flats


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  • I've never personally seen the point of the big bulky acoustic guitar with a bass neck stuck on it type of bass's as I've never heard one that can even keep up with a unplugged acoustic guitar and singer,

    so that said id go for a Semi or solid electric bass as you'd be plugging it in anyway and either DI if the place has monitors or use a little amp (TC Electronic 208/112 or the little mark-bass, or the Trace Elliot elf)

    years ago I did a few gigs as a trio (acoustic, piano & bass) I used my Jazz bass & Tech 21 sansamp DI into a little 10" powered pa monitor it was great for little coffee shop/art gallery gigs.
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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24579
    I've never personally seen the point of the big bulky acoustic guitar with a bass neck stuck on it type of bass's as I've never heard one that can even keep up with a unplugged acoustic guitar and singer,

    so that said id go for a Semi or solid electric bass as you'd be plugging it in anyway and either DI if the place has monitors or use a little amp (TC Electronic 208/112 or the little mark-bass, or the Trace Elliot elf)

    years ago I did a few gigs as a trio (acoustic, piano & bass) I used my Jazz bass & Tech 21 sansamp DI into a little 10" powered pa monitor it was great for little coffee shop/art gallery gigs.
    I’ve a QSC 10.2 frfr and plenty of DI pedals and that’s always an option.

    Like most things tho - it’s nice to have a thread to consider other gear purchases ;)

    I do really fancy a vintage hollowbody or semi... but well..
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  • horsehorse Frets: 1563

    I do really fancy a vintage hollowbody or semi... but well..
    By the time the albums finished a vintage semi will probably be all any of us can manage
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  • martmart Frets: 5205
    I've never personally seen the point of the big bulky acoustic guitar with a bass neck stuck on it type of bass's as I've never heard one that can even keep up with a unplugged acoustic guitar and singer,
    ...
    Lots of people seem to think like this, and it’s certainly true that an acoustic bass will struggle to be audible acoustically even with a lightly strummed acoustic guitar.

    But amplify that acoustic bass and you get a sound quite different from an electric or semi hollow - and quite a pleasing sound in its own way.

    I’ve got a handful of solidbody electric basses, and one semi-hollow and one acoustic. The acoustic gets played out more often than the semi.
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    quite a pleasing sound in its own way.

    Sounds like the definition of faint praise. Put a compressor (or two) after a solid electric bass and you can get any sound you want. I can't see the point in putting up with the uncomfortable, inefficient, poorly intonated design that is the Acoustic Bass for anything other than cosmetic appeal. Didn't it come about purely as a result of the unplugged fad of the 90's?
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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24579
    horse said:

    I do really fancy a vintage hollowbody or semi... but well..
    By the time the albums finished a vintage semi will probably be all any of us can manage
    Cynic ;)
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71959
    JezWynd said:

    Sounds like the definition of faint praise. Put a compressor (or two) after a solid electric bass and you can get any sound you want. I can't see the point in putting up with the uncomfortable, inefficient, poorly intonated design that is the Acoustic Bass for anything other than cosmetic appeal. Didn't it come about purely as a result of the unplugged fad of the 90's?
    No, Guild and Eko - possibly others - made some in the 1970s. These were actually fully acoustic, too - definitely the Eko, which I had one of, although I've never played a Guild. The Eko wasn't loud, but it was loud enough to hold its own against a fingerpicked acoustic guitar and a not overly-loud vocalist in a 'café gig' format. It was huge though!

    A compressor on an electric bass doesn't sound the same at all - if anything, you want the opposite.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24579
    ICBM said:
    JezWynd said:

    Sounds like the definition of faint praise. Put a compressor (or two) after a solid electric bass and you can get any sound you want. I can't see the point in putting up with the uncomfortable, inefficient, poorly intonated design that is the Acoustic Bass for anything other than cosmetic appeal. Didn't it come about purely as a result of the unplugged fad of the 90's?
    No, Guild and Eko - possibly others - made some in the 1970s. These were actually fully acoustic, too - definitely the Eko, which I had one of, although I've never played a Guild. The Eko wasn't loud, but it was loud enough to hold its own against a fingerpicked acoustic guitar and a not overly-loud vocalist in a 'café gig' format. It was huge though!

    A compressor on an electric bass doesn't sound the same at all - if anything, you want the opposite.
    I think Ovation and Takamine did ones in the 70s too. Certainly early 80s for both of them but most likely 70s.
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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    I do really fancy a vintage hollowbody or semi... but well..
    ... not at HarrySeven prices. :-p
    Be seeing you.
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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24579
    I do really fancy a vintage hollowbody or semi... but well..
    ... not at HarrySeven prices. :-p
    The good old Gibson wasn’t really vintage - and it was really rare so probly fair to be honest.

    No, I’d like a players grade guild or harmony or even a Hofner (non-violin, foul things..)
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    ICBM said:
    JezWynd said:

    Sounds like the definition of faint praise. Put a compressor (or two) after a solid electric bass and you can get any sound you want. I can't see the point in putting up with the uncomfortable, inefficient, poorly intonated design that is the Acoustic Bass for anything other than cosmetic appeal. Didn't it come about purely as a result of the unplugged fad of the 90's?
    No, Guild and Eko - possibly others - made some in the 1970s. These were actually fully acoustic, too - definitely the Eko, which I had one of, although I've never played a Guild. The Eko wasn't loud, but it was loud enough to hold its own against a fingerpicked acoustic guitar and a not overly-loud vocalist in a 'café gig' format. It was huge though!

    A compressor on an electric bass doesn't sound the same at all - if anything, you want the opposite.
    Yeah, I've obviously overstated my case but I think I'm right in saying that they were unusual instuments prior to the unplugged era, when suddenly every company had to have one on their line.

    Re the compressor thing - I've had good results using 2 comps, you can accentuate the bloom effect or get a spot on Hofner thud sound feeding one into another, esp. with a Pog2 after to control attack. My favorite lineup -



    The Maxon is a stunning comp for bass - while many comps rob a bit of bass or else deaden it, the Maxon accentuates the low end in a really natural way. It's a remarkable pedal (in spite of the cheesy light up effect and huge footprint!).
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71959
    JezWynd said:

    Yeah, I've obviously overstated my case but I think I'm right in saying that they were unusual instuments prior to the unplugged era, when suddenly every company had to have one on their line.
    Yes, that's definitely true.

    I have to admit that the whole 'unplugged' thing used to really annoy me - because in 99% of cases, everything was plugged in! Splitting hairs possibly... :) but like you, I used to think that if you're going to plug in an electro-acoustic bass, why not just use an electric one?

    I only ever used the Eko a couple of times, and strictly acoustic - I don't think it was even mic'ed from memory. Just for tiny acoustic gigs where we needed minimum volume and equipment.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • martmart Frets: 5205
    JezWynd said:
    quite a pleasing sound in its own way.

    Sounds like the definition of faint praise. Put a compressor (or two) after a solid electric bass and you can get any sound you want. I can't see the point in putting up with the uncomfortable, inefficient, poorly intonated design that is the Acoustic Bass for anything other than cosmetic appeal. Didn't it come about purely as a result of the unplugged fad of the 90's?
    As usual, the dislike of acoustic basses makes a brief contact with reality and then rushes off into the realm of absurdities.

    Uncomfortable? That is obviously just a matter of taste/compatibility.

    Inefficient? What a bizarre thing to say. No, it’s quite efficient actually, I pluck a note, and the note sounds through my amp just as much as if I’d plucked the same note on an electric bass.

    Poorly intonated? Huh? I assume you abhor all acoustic guitars for the same reason? Besides, play a fretless and the problem disappears.


    So excuse me if I don’t rush off to buy another compressor and spend weeks fiddling with controls on both in a mad quest to get less compression out of an electric bass. If it’s ok with you (and even if it’s not) I’ll just pick up my acoustic bass, plug in, and get a sound I like a lot straightaway with no effort. Based on past experience I’ll also gets lots of positive comments from the audience about my sound. YMMV obviously.
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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24579
    Careful now. 

    This is is a discussion about basses in the context of acoustic gigs, not vintage instruments and dealers.
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  • martmart Frets: 5205
    Careful now. 

    This is is a discussion about basses in the context of acoustic gigs, not vintage instruments and dealers.
    Lol, and apologies for thread de-rail. :)
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  • BridgehouseBridgehouse Frets: 24579
    mart said:
    Careful now. 

    This is is a discussion about basses in the context of acoustic gigs, not vintage instruments and dealers.
    Lol, and apologies for thread de-rail. :)
    :D
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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    Careful now. 
    Down with this sort of thing.
    Be seeing you.
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  • mr-macmr-mac Frets: 200
    edited May 2018
    The old hollow f hole 335 style Aria Diamond Pro (or Epiphone version 5120 iirc).  MIJ, humbuckers, Has a great tone out of box and has a bridge damper unit that allows you to flick between normal and a damped sound that sounds much more like a double bass.  It's also nice and light.
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