Another first bass question, sorry.

[Maude]

Evening all,
Now I realise that there's no substitute for actually trying the bass you want to buy and that a really good quality fully laminate would probably sound better than a really cheap partially carved bass, but.
I think I'm going to be getting a new Gedo bass due to a number of factors, my dilema is which one, I'm on a very limited budget and even if I had more money to spend I couldn't justify it with a young family and an old cottage to renovate.
My question is I would need to amplify it in the acoustic band I'm in (I'm currently using a Harley Benton EUB and the band are happy with the sound of that so I sure on of the cheaper Gedos will sound fine) ,would I be better getting a full laminate and use the money saved (£200ish) on a really good pickup, or get a laminate with carved top and a cheap (J tone) pickup. I suppose I'm asking will a carved top make much difference if l'm going to use a pickup. I won't be able to buy the carved top bass and an expensive pickup.
I realise all basses will sound different but is there a rule of thumb kind of thing?
Thanks in advance for any help or advice.

Edited May 6, 2013 by Maude

[thisnameistaken]

Yes all basses do sound different, but oddly enough all pickups don't. They're mostly based on the same tech (piezoelectric transducers generating a charge from vibrations being transmitted through them) and they all sound pretty similar.

Still, because all piezo pickups have the same unpleasant characteristics a wise investment would be a dedicated acoustic preamp (especially one designed for double bass) so save money wherever you like and put it towards a good pre, which will go some way to helping you dial out how awful the pickup sounds.

[Maude]

I have a BBE Acoustimax, Behringer ADi 21 and Line 6 X3 live which has a few preamps in it so hopefully I can get something decent sounding out of it.
I've bypassed the pre in my Harley Benton EUB and run the piezo straight into my ashdown minirig and it sounds really good.
So many choices :-)

[tinyd]

To answer your original question, the consensus seems to be that if you're going to play amplified then the carved top will make less of a difference plus laminate tops are supposed to be less likely to cause feedback problems. However, if you fancy the carved top for 'acoustic' reasons, one thing you could try is to get a 'mid range' pickup like a Bass Max. I have one of these and I plug it straight into my GK MB150 amp and it sounds pretty usable (I have a Fishman Pay Pro preamp but since I got the GK I find I prefer the sound straight into the amp). The trick for me was to tweak the EQ to get rid of the nasty 'boomy' high-mids.

[invicta59]

Have you thought of having a word with a local luthier? He may have knowledge of good second hand basse, or even be able to supply a decent one himself, and would probably throw a setup in with the cost...

I'd also budget for new strings. The ones your bass will come with will inevitably be the cheapest set of steel cheesecutters you ever encounter. Innovation make some really good strings and they can be found for about £75 - £80 online. I use Silver slaps currently, and they are a nice low tension string with a decent bit of sustain.

[thisnameistaken]

[quote name='tinyd' timestamp='1367915117' post='2070818']
To answer your original question, the consensus seems to be that if you're going to play amplified then the carved top will make less of a difference plus laminate tops are supposed to be less likely to cause feedback problems.[/quote]

This is certainly worthy of consideration, but also bear in mind that pickups aren't the only way to amplify a bass. The Ehrlund EAP might be a mic or it might not, but it sounds like a mic and resists feedback like a piezo, so if you're willing to splash out on something like that then you will definitely hear a lot more of your bass in an amplified setting.

Also bear in mind that if you plan to do any recording it might be better to get a bass that sounds good acoustically. In fact given that you're likely to do most of your practise acoustically, again, you'll want it to sound nice.

Not that laminates can't sound nice, of course.

[Dave Vader]

[quote name='Maude' timestamp='1367875735' post='2070617']
[size=4]I've bypassed the pre in my Harley Benton EUB and run the piezo straight into my ashdown minirig and it sounds really good.[/size]
So many choices :-)
[/quote]

I am interested in this, are you running it with no preamp at all then? Straight from piezo? Does it have enough output straight into the amp this way? I quite fancy doing this to mine now, just to see what happens. The less things with batteries in, the happier i am.

[bassace]

Powerwise you can run a piezo straight into an amp no problem. Trouble is that the impedance of a pickup is considerably higher than that 'expected' by most amps. So although you may get a passable sound you will certainly get a much better one if you use an outboard pre as a buffer. Something to do with infrasonics which I don't really understand: but I would never do a gig without a Fishman Pro or FDeck-HPF.

[fatback]

I'd go for the somewhat better bass (assuming it feels as good to play).

You can beg, borrow, steal, finesse the electronics bit as time passes. As thisnameistaken says, you'll be practicing acoustically, and sounding good to yourself is so encouraging. You may keep the bass for years, while I'll bet in two years time you won't have the same amp setup at all.

[Lfalex v1.1]

[quote name='Dave Vader' timestamp='1367934327' post='2071169']


I am interested in this, are you running it with no preamp at all then? Straight from piezo? Does it have enough output straight into the amp this way? I quite fancy doing this to mine now, just to see what happens. The less things with batteries in, the happier i am.
[/quote]

From an EUB position, it's worth noting that the NS NXTs are, to the best of my knowledge, passive, with just a volume and passive tone control, plus the ARCO/PIZZ selector.
Whether they incorporate a buffer of some sort, I do not know.
Oddly, I'd say the pre in my NS CR5 is excellent, and only reveals any gremlins when you crank the treble up...

[Maude]

Thanks for all the replies, some noteworthy points made but only reinforcing what, deep down, I think I already knew, I was sort of hoping there might be a 'don't worry, get a full ply and it'll be fine' reply. A ply probably would be ok but there'd always be that 'what if' in my mind.
I'm going to get a ply with a carved top. I could stretch to a full carved but only the cheapest available, which coupled with the fragility of a full carved in comparison to s ply worries me, this will be a gigging bas.To address some replies, I've allowed £100ish for new strings and if bought from Gedo it will have a proper set before shipping including fitting whichever strings I want.
The EUB pre amp bypass, the one in the Harley Benson, which is a Palatino even came in a Palatino box, is IMO rubbish, hissy and tinny sounding, the only way I could make it sound good was by using an outboard pre so I tried bypassing it and improved the bottom end by miles, plus no hiss or batteries, after getting the sound U liked from an outboard pre I found that I could get the same sound just using the eq on my amp, I still use a pre if I'm going into the PA.
My next dilemma is there is half carved from Gedo on sale which is Romanian built rather than Chinese in my price range but it's a very white blonde which I'm not sure I like but would probably be the best sounding. I know it shouldn't be looks over sound but I've got to live with it, oh the choices :-)

Edited May 12, 2013 by Maude

[bassace]

You could do well to get a ply with a carved top - a hybrid. That way you could get a very good compromise and, assuming you are going to amplify (who doesn't?), a very good sound that you could have difficulty getting if you bought the 'wrong' carved. I started with a ply many years ago - paid £45 brand new - and had lots of great adventures with it, including several gigs with 'names'. If only they knew!

[thisnameistaken]

No point buying a bass you don't like the look of. You need one that you'll want to pick up every time you walk past it or you'll never get your intonation sorted.