Maude Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 I'm seriously thinking about getting one of these but cannot try one anywhere as nobody local stocks one. I've done plenty of research and like what I see and hear but obviously it's a lot of money to be spending blind. Thomann seem to have the best price and at least I can return it if I really don't like it. I've noticed that a few folks on here have had one but seem to move it on after a year or so and I was wondering why, why is it not a keeper? I mainly play DB now and fretless acoustic and this would be an inbetween type of instrument so please leave any 'acoustic basses are pointless' kind of comments elsewhere. Just after some genuine feedback from owners and ex owners on the good and bad aspects of playing one. Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMG456 Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Not an owner but also interested party. Finally played one a couple of weeks ago in GuitarGuitar's acoustic shop in Glasgow. Only through an acoustic guitar amp. Sounded terrific up around E on the G string but got progressively thinner as you dropped down through the pitches - I suspect this could simply be the limitations of the amp and through a full range bass rig it would have been good. Action was very high for an electric player but could be adjusted to suit. Beautifully made and finished and very useable horizontally. Didn't try vertically as they didn't have the end pin handy. Partially why I am interested would be for bowing but I'm lead to believe that the body is not cutaway enough at the waist to allow easy bowing of the E or G strings - perhaps an owner could comment? If you are or could get near one of their other shops I'm sure they would ship it to that branch for you to try. Ed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naetharu Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Alas, I have not tried a B10 but I can say that Takamine make some very nice instruments. My next-door neighbor plays a lot of folk music and all three of his guitars are Takamine, and each one is stunning to look at and beautiful to play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattmit Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Wunjos had one to try last time I was there about a week ago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyTravis Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Always wanted one, been years since I played one. No idea if I'd use it but I'd certainly look at it a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mykesbass Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 [quote name='Mattmit' timestamp='1451485610' post='2940867'] Wunjos had one to try last time I was there about a week ago [/quote] Interesting, they had one a couple of years back and were suggesting they were open to offers. Might be worth a call @Maude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 They don't have one listed on their website, or don't they list everything? If I get one new it will probably be from Thomann as their price is the best and with free returns and a three year warranty you can't go wrong. Wunjos is a 500 mile round trip and if they posted it then I assume I would have to pay to return it if I didn't get on with it, if I could return it at all. Obviously a used one would be a different story. I'm just mainly curious why quite a few on here that have owned one, have said how amazing they are but then moved it on after a year or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 I've had a hankering for one of these for ages, I used to play Clarky's occasionally (considered buying it), and I played the one in Wunjos a couple of times before Xmas. Truth is, it's a strange beast and hard to employ sensibly. The curvature of the finger board (to full DB status) may allow bowing in theory, but it's hard to imagine anyone actually playing TB10 as an upright - surely anyone capable of bowing would rather play a DB? - and it certainly makes playing it as an electric Fretless more challenging. The one thing that bass gives you is the classic DB tone in a Fretless electric, but only so long as you can cope with the radius and the high action. I think of the TB10 as an excellent studio bass or home noodler, but I'm really not sure under what circumstances I would gig one live. I still want one, mind, I just don't have any real justification for it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 [quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1451512276' post='2941202'] I still want one, mind, I just don't have any real justification for it! [/quote] And there lies my problem I haven't even entertained the idea of it being an upright, it would balance weirdly with its high centre of gravity, feel weird with its short scale and wouldn't bow properly because of its body shape. I have my doublebass for that. I would only use it as a traditional bass guitar. I have an electric and acoustic fretless but obviously they don't do the DB sound. My main band is now purely doublebass and everything else is acoustic instruments. The high action and large radius is what is attracting me as I can play my lines and work on new ones with a very similar action, I actually hope it has a DB esque string spacing as well as the physicality of a DB neck makes you play in a way totally different to ABG. I've used my ABG in the band on occasion but it just doesn't have that oomph. I could noodle with the TB10 without having to get the DB out, sounds small but for my circumstances it would mean a lot. I have a bit of spare cash at the mo and feel like treating myself to something special and at the mo this floats my boat and would get more use than a high end electric bass. Just worried about buying an expensive ornament. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 Forgot to say that my DB is set up as an old time thumpy thud kind of sound, not very refined but that's what I need most. But lately I've been needing a brighter jazzy tone and considered getting a second cheap DB for this but I really have nowhere to keep it. The TB10 would fill this gap nicely as it seems to still retain quite a zingy tone compared to a bluegrass style Db sound. I'm talking myself into now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EssentialTension Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 (edited) I have a Takamine B10, the predecessor of the TB10. It was Clarky's before me but I think it's not the only one he had. I bought it from him in autumn 2011, IIRC. It's unusual in that it has had lines and side-dots added, after factory but before I bought it. I hate the side-dots because they are, IMO, in the wrong place. I also wish it was still unlined. I have even considered having the fingerboard replaced but the expense puts me off. I have exchanged the complicated to use standard pre-amp with a simpler but also Takamine pre-amp. I have gigged the B10 regularly for about four years with a folky-cum-Americana band with acoustic guitar, acoustic tenor guitar, electric piano and a percussionist, sometimes with full (but small) kit sometimes only cajon. I use old La Bella 760FS strings through a Mesa Walkabout 112 combo. The band and at least some audience members always comment positively on everything about how the B10 looks and sounds. I play it horizontally and never upright. I added a strap pin on the neck heel for this purpose and it balances unproblematically. The experience of playing it and its sound are both somewhere between a fretless bass guitar and an upright. Although any upright afficionado is probably not going to be impressed. The action will feel high to most bass guitarists but, IMO, that's partially responsible for the sound produced. The bridge is not adjustable and the intonation is in your left hand. The body shape does not allow for proper arco playing; so if you are looking to bow it then I wouldn't waste your money. The case is very large and, with the B10 inside, is very heavy. I use a (not cheap) soft but heavily padded cello case and the actual B10 case is in the loft with the end-pin. Here it is with the rest of the collection ..... Edited December 31, 2015 by EssentialTension Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 So you actually play it while standing up Dave? I have to say that I think of this as purely a lap bass. It's so big that even disregarding the weight I thought it would be too much for a standing gig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EssentialTension Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 (edited) [quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1451554863' post='2941406'] So you actually play it while standing up Dave? I have to say that I think of this as purely a lap bass. It's so big that even disregarding the weight I thought it would be too much for a standing gig. [/quote] Yes, me standing and bass strapped and horizontal. No problem. EDIT: I say 'no problem' but, of course, I did have to get used to it, like any new and unusual thing. However it didn't take long and was 'no problem'. Edited December 31, 2015 by EssentialTension Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maude Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 Is the string spacing at the bridge wide like a doublebass or more guitar like? BTW, thanks everyone for the replies and info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EssentialTension Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 [quote name='Maude' timestamp='1451559946' post='2941488'] Is the string spacing at the bridge wide like a doublebass or more guitar like? BTW, thanks everyone for the replies and info. [/quote] B10 measured E to G at the bridge is two and five-eighths inches. My Precision bass is slightly short of two and a half inches. My upright is three and a half inches. The difference arises I think from the longer scale length on the upright. Mind you I play finger-style over the end of the fingerboard where the string spacing is more like two and three-eighths on the B10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toneknob Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Playing catch-up a bit, just found this thread. I've got a TB-10, bought from Wunjo about this time last year. (In case you didn't see the thread I posted at the time, it's the one used by John Giblin on Kate Bush's "Before The Dawn" gig). Mine is used mostly for at-home practice, solo and with friends on acoustics. I can see it being used for acoustic jazz or country/americana gigs at some point, it's been tried in my electric jazz outfit but it didn't really fit. The only gripes I've had is that the pre-amp rattles a bit in its cubby hole, but it's only really audible when you're playing acoustically. I've used the end-pin for "upright" playing, but only when seated and positioning the bass like a cello. Standing, there's not enough body size to stop it rotating in place while playing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted January 29, 2016 Share Posted January 29, 2016 So that was you! I heard all about your purchase at the time, and again when I bought mine. I had no idea it was another Basschatter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toneknob Posted January 29, 2016 Share Posted January 29, 2016 [quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1454051626' post='2965733'] So that was you! I heard all about your purchase at the time, and again when I bought mine. I had no idea it was another Basschatter. [/quote] Hiya! Read all about it... first towards the tail end of the Kate Bush thread: http://basschat.co.uk/topic/244008-kate-bush-at-the-hammersmith-apollo/page__st__60__p__2554876#entry2554876 And then picking up a few months later: http://basschat.co.uk/topic/254282-more-love-for-wunjo-and-basschat How did you hear about it? I wonder if you know someone that I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted January 29, 2016 Share Posted January 29, 2016 [quote name='toneknob' timestamp='1454057797' post='2965783'] How did you hear about it? I wonder if you know someone that I know. [/quote] Damned right I do. His name is Tom, and he's the manager of Wunjo's Bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toneknob Posted January 29, 2016 Share Posted January 29, 2016 Aha, well that makes sense. He and Lawrence were there to handle my sale and part-exchange. In fact Tom and I bumped into each other near Tottenham Court Rt tube as I struggled out with the PX guitar (a bulky Shergold 4/8 double-neck), and he offered to take it the rest of the way to the shop. Nice! (I declined, what with being British and everything). Another strand of the story: once I'd bought the Tak, the PX Shergold took centre stage in the Wunjo window. Next thing I know, session bassist and facebook friend Phil Mulford has posted a pic of himself playing the Shergold in the shop, saying something like "Just what I need for The Commitments. now all I need to do is work out which neck goes with which strings". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Review now posted: http://basschat.co.uk/topic/276552-nbd-a-new-approach-to-fretless/page__pid__2972559#entry2972559 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zmeynal Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 (edited) I own one. Definitely shouldn't buy before spending some time with this instrument. When I've purchased mine (about 5 years ago) I had not tried it before and when it was delivered I was really upset with the fact that I can't pay it, though I've tried different fretless basses before and had no problems. It has a really massive neck and body and I wouldn't call it a Fretless Bass Guitar BUT rather Mini-Doublebass. So, besides my bass exercises I've spent bulk of hours learning to play it from scratch. However, as long as you play Doubleness - you will escape this problem Secondly: Feedback/noise, which you can avoid by being careful with volume and positioning re speakers. Third: it is TOO HARD to carry in its beautiful original hard case. But you can find an extra-large carry bag, or avoid this problem at all if you drive. Other than the above points, It is REALLY AMAZING instrument both in terms of sound and look. I have not sold mine and I never will. AND don't listen to [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]'acoustic basses are pointless' saying guys - They are just jealous *can't figure out how to add photos here...[/font][/color] Edited February 25, 2016 by zmeynal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 I played mine in a band situation for the first time last week at rehearsals on Wednesday and Saturday. Absolutely gorgeous sound, very flexible, and attracted immediate compliments from my bandmates. Against all my expectations, and despite having my regular stool with backrest and footrest to sit on, I ended up playing it mainly standing up. As mentioned elsewhere it's really not a heavy bass, just very bulky. First gig with this bass is a 3-hour semi-jazz gig tomorrow night (at The Forester, just off Northfields Avenue in Ealing, in case you're nearby) and I'm really looking forward to it. At the volume we'll be playing at I'll be surprised if feedback is going to be an issue. I'll be going through a PJB Bass Briefcase. I've already bought a cello gigbag in a particularly nauseating shade of chrome yellow so carrying it will be fine too. And punters will see me coming ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EssentialTension Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 [quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1456397975' post='2988513'] I played mine in a band situation for the first time last week at rehearsals on Wednesday and Saturday. Absolutely gorgeous sound, very flexible, and attracted immediate compliments from my bandmates. Against all my expectations, and despite having my regular stool with backrest and footrest to sit on, I ended up playing it mainly standing up. As mentioned elsewhere it's really not a heavy bass, just very bulky. First gig with this bass is a 3-hour semi-jazz gig tomorrow night (at The Forester, just off Northfields Avenue in Ealing, in case you're nearby) and I'm really looking forward to it. At the volume we'll be playing at I'll be surprised if feedback is going to be an issue. I'll be going through a PJB Bass Briefcase. I've already bought a cello gigbag in a particularly nauseating shade of chrome yellow so carrying it will be fine too. And punters will see me coming ... [/quote] Horizontal on a strap? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Jack Posted February 25, 2016 Share Posted February 25, 2016 Yup. I still don't believe that it's a practical substitute for an EUB. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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