knirirr

Some work by a luthier to replace the BG-style tuners and it's now possible to fit proper double bass strings on this instrument. Not cheap, but far better than paying £6000+ for the deluxe Triumph model.

As such a player, I did indeed go the other way. The French bow seemed more fatiguing on the hand and it was uncomfortable to use for a longer practice session; no such problem with the German. The hair on the Thomann £50 German bow isn't great but it works well enough for the purposes mentioned above.

I had one custom bass made, back in the 1990s. The reason was the usual problem; demands of the genre creates pressure to get an upright, but transport and storage is a bit of a hassle. I saw a Framus Triumph in use locally and so thought an EUB might suffice. The only one I was able to obtain I had to get made to order, and though it was a very good instrument it had the major disadvantage that it was still a total PITA to transport (not really much better than a DB) and only vaguely approached DB tone and feel. Also, I mistakenly ordered for a 5 string after initially thinking it would be useful, but it eventually turned out that I have no use for one. Now I have a Warwick Triumph Lite, which is still not perfect but a lot cheaper and closer to a DB.

Something like this, perhaps: https://shop.warwick.de/en/instruments/electric-basses/warwick-custom-shop/triumph-models/17266/warwick-custom-shop-triumph-4-string-orange-racing-stripe-design-18-3738?c=3734 ...far too expensive for any circumstance other than a lottery win (about £6-7k IIRC). I've got the amplification I need, but might also buy one of these. https://philjonesbass.net/cms/index.php/product_bg-200/

The drummer at my usual jam is attempting to organise an outdoor session at our normal venue, for the middle of August. Assuming we're having a good day, the audience normally sits down quietly at tables.

That is one way to get away with it which I will admit to having used on various occasions. Usually the general public don't seem to notice a thing and so it works quite well, but there's always a fear that there's someone in the audience who is better than me (quite a large pool from which to draw) who will spot it.

If this had an unlined fretless neck (pulling the frets out won't do) I would buy it immediately, despite having no need for it and needing the money for an MOT: https://shop.fender.com/en-GB/squier-electric-basses/jazz-bass/paranormal-jazz-bass-54/0377100501.html?rl=en_US As it stands, my local garage is safe.

$1520, plus dismissal, I think (includes fretless BG plus various upright offences).

How about this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3n7ohJsUYKk&list=OLAK5uy_mqPo-qOGmHBkMb3DiPE6k3coJzyagH9oo It's much more at the jazz end of the scale but there's some funky stuff there (the title track is pretty good).

Not a bass, but as a Flying V got mentioned I thought I’d add that I used to play one in a swing big band (we did a few Glen Miller covers). It was a reddish orange with a mirrored plate on the front, had a red leather studded strap and was played through a Marshall Mercury amp. Sounded quite good, I thought, but got some odd looks. https://www.guitarchat.co.uk/topic/620-old-flying-v-in-poor-state/

Jazz pianists, piano or guitar trios etc. might be fair enough. Singing or horn playing could well be further than some venues would want to go: https://slippedisc.com/2020/06/a-full-assessment-of-the-covid-risk-of-playing-wind-instruments/ (TL;DR no-one seems to have any definitive information).

Correct. It's not just cheese - there's endless fun to be had with the highland bagpipe! Classical: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8H2HHs6Iqg Jazz: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mFeMMXhTua-ZXjiy9qcwuzLDCPlIam80E

I've had an old Flying V since the 90s, but this instrument just beats it: For anyone who's interested it's a Grainger & Campbell army regulation pattern set which I got new in 1988, IIRC. Not much chance to play these days, unfortunately.

I do indeed. Excellent player.

I already mentioned the teacher who has been helping me with a similar BG -> DB transition and is doing online lessons at the moment. Here's his site in case it's of interest to anyone else: https://pauljefferies.com/ From what I've seen so far it's possible to continue with both; I certainly don't want to miss out on BG playing - fretless BG is my favourite instrument. The only problem I have noticed is sometimes if I spend longer on the BG I have to remember to do longer stretches on DB to avoid being slightly flat, but it soon comes back. The opposite problem doesn't seem to apply. The house bassist here matches that description: http://www.oxfordjazzkitchen.com/ She's very good, and probably not much more than 5' tall.

As there was some discussion about how to make one of these taller, I thought I'd post an update with the means by which I solved this. A plumber friend happened to have a spare length of copper pipe of just the right diameter to slip over the end pin, to which I have added a rubber ferrule and a washer on top to protect the base of the instrument (plus a quick polish with Brasso). A bit of foam wrapped around the end pin before insertion prevents rattling.

Under normal circumstances, when the weather's not good enough to dry outside, I have to share my practice room with drying clothes. A sufficiently large dehumidifier (as mentioned above) and a heated drying rack usually sort things out fairly quickly, and I've not noticed any problem with the bass gear.

To my ear, slapping is not a pleasant sound; that's it. I've got nothing against funk.

It would be interesting to know how it turns out. I did consider one for similar reasons but ended up scoring a s/h Warwick Triumph instead.

Another one turned up just before the lockdown. It's too many, but I have a good excuse for each.

The answer to most of these would be "no", except: 1: Often (with BG or EUB). The drummer and pianist get to sit down, why shouldn't I? 2: Yes, guitar or highland bagpipe. 4: Though this is another "no", the guitarist in a band I once played with spotted someone he didn't recognise wearing one of our badges (see also 15). 15: According to a old student newspaper clipping "$OTHER_BAND provided adequate support, and in fact turned out to be much better rehearsed than the headliners." 20: Often.

Thanks. The bit about reading in particular resonated with me: Anyway, so as not to go too far off topic:

Are you thinking of resting the end pin on the base a drum throne with the seat removed? That should defintely be a bit more stable.