Acoustic or U Bass ?

[Buzzy]

I've been offered some gigs with an acoustic band. In the past when I've done acoustic gigs I've used my P bass with foam under the strings and played with my thumb
through a small combo. This has given me a nice thuddy sound.
This band have asked if I would use an acoustic bass or a Ubass as it fits the look of the band.
I had an acoustic bass years ago and had feedback problems with it, also it was too quiet when played unplugged.
Should I buy another acoustic bass or go for one of these Uke Basses ?
Hobgoblin have an Ashbury uke bass does anyone know if they are ok ?
Any advice would be welcome, the band has got potential so I'm tempted to buy something but not sure what the best option would be.

[JapanAxe]

For sound, convenience and space-saving, go for a U-bass. Acoustic bass guitars are huge, often a chore to play, and don't sound like much in a band context.

I tried 2 Ashbury's and was not impressed - read about my U-bass shopping trip [url="http://basschat.co.uk/topic/284295-nubd-kala/page__p__3042215__hl__nubd__fromsearch__1#entry3042215"]here[/url]. I ended up with a Kala, which so far has impressed all who see and hear it with its cuteness and massive sound!

[Cat Burrito]

I like the look of these uke basses but if you go all acoustic, anything other than an upright gets lost in the mix. Just from a space saving point of view I'd pitch for the uke, assuming you'll always be plugged in.

[Len_derby]

I'm more or less in agreement with the Japanese Axeperson.
In my experience the cheaper Uke Basses have poor intonation, with little option for adjustment. If I was buying again I'd go for Kala. The feel of the rubbery strings needs getting used to as well.

What about a semi-hollow bass? Their looks might be acceptable to your band and if you're going have to use amplification a bass of that kind would be versatile for other ventures.
Options; Chowny, Yamaha BEX, Fender Coronado, Ibanez, etc.
Usually something good for sale on this forum!

[BigRedX]

Personally unless the music and people are fantastic or the gig is so well paid that you'll have covered costs of any new gear you buy fairly quickly I'd pass.

With one or two rare exceptions nothing other than a double bass is going to compete volume-wise with even the quietest of "acoustic" bands without amplification. Also IME you need to spend a lot more money to get an acoustic bass guitar to plays and sounds as good as your favourite electric bass.

[sarah thomas]

I have a Kala U bass and it's great. Much admired, sound wise by all who've heard it. The fretted version has intonation issues, so go for the fretless. It has ghost frets so plenty of vIsual guidance but not available in the UK (unless someone knows otherwise). I got mine from Germany. Brilliant little things.

[TPJ]

I've had/played both a UBass and acoustic bass guitar. The UBass sounds great but I found I got tired playing them as they are so cramped with the very short scale (20-21"). Plus intonation is iffy. If you're just playing simple lines then it would probably be ok. I sold my Kala and kept my Ibanez acoustic bass guitar as the tone shaping was far superior. At the end of the day, if it's just for looks, get the most playable one for you.

[Cato]

Turn up to the gig with a BC Rich Warlock, when they complain that it doesn't fit the image tell them that you happen to have a spare P bass in the car. They'll be delighted.

As others have said, short of a double bass anything you play will need to be plugged in if they want the bass to be heard, so it seems a bit daft for them to be worrying about aesthetics.

[dannybuoy]

[quote name='Len_derby' timestamp='1470995582' post='3109814']
I'm more or less in agreement with the Japanese Axeperson.
In my experience the cheaper Uke Basses have poor intonation, with little option for adjustment. If I was buying again I'd go for Kala. The feel of the rubbery strings needs getting used to as well.

What about a semi-hollow bass? Their looks might be acceptable to your band and if you're going have to use amplification a bass of that kind would be versatile for other ventures.
Options; Chowny, Yamaha BEX, Fender Coronado, Ibanez, etc.
Usually something good for sale on this forum!
[/quote]

The Kala is just as bad as the cheaper clones when it comes to intonation. The fretless would overcome it, or make things worse, depending on your accuracy!

If the U-Bass appeals but want a bigger version, check out the Aquila ShortBass One. There was a used one up for sale recently on one of the Facebook groups.

Ever considered an EUB or one of these? [url="http://baby-bass.com"]http://baby-bass.com[/url]

Edited August 12, 2016 by dannybuoy

[project_c]

I recommend an acoustic, because the Ubass felt like a tiny guitar strung with sticky spaghetti to me when I tried it, and the tone was not as upright-ish as I expected it to be, I felt like I got a more upright-ish tone with a p-bass strung with dead tapewounds. You don't need a posh acoustic bass as long as you find one with low action, and put either tapewounds or the deadest possible strings you can find on it, otherwise the tone will be very 'acoustic guitar'-ish. I have an ugly chinese made short scale 'Artisan' acoustic I bought for under £100, I bought it after trying a huge variety of expensive acoustic basses, all of which were terrible to play, both in terms of tone and setup. The cheap chinese was the best of the lot much to my surprise.

Be careful with feedback, you will need to plug into an amp and acoustic basses tend to suffer from feedback.

[Buzzy]

Thanks for the replies, ironically I sold my upright last month as I hadnt used it for about a year.
Think I'll use my P for a while before spending any more money, also see how far the bands gets before I commit.

[EssentialTension]

Expensive ... but I have gigged an amplified Takamine B10 in an five piece acoustic guitars/ukulele/tenor guitar + piano + bass + drums with never any feedback. I don't see why some other cheaper acoustic bass could not work; especially with careful handling and some appropriate eq.

And it looks the part ...

[pmjos]

For me the best I have tried is the Rob Allen MB2 5 string. I run it through some AER Amp Threes and you could kill a pig with the low frequency off that. But compress it and it can thump and really interestingly it pulls a really good Jameson type vibe as in a 65 p going through a B15. I find mine really, really useful and its sits well in the mix. Its not that great at the true fretless sounds until you get higher on the register. It compares very fabourably with my NXT EUB 5 but the EUB has the edge with a bit of growl for jazz.

Its worth the investment if you are after that sound. I think a Kala is nice, sound nice but using it all night....... nah not for me.

[alyctes]

I've had both an acoustic bass guitar (an Adam Black, now sold) and a Ubass (fretless Kala, now sold) (and I still have an Ashbory, with an O).
I got rid of the acoustic because I couldn't get used to the bulky body and because it was too quiet not to use with an amp - so it was relatively hard to carry around, hard to play, and I still had to bring an amp as well.
The Ubass was much better, for me. I sold that because I wasn't in a band which needed it. The intonation was a little tricky but not impossible, and the noise was fab

Edited August 14, 2016 by alyctes

[dannybuoy]

There's a fretless ShortBass One 14 on eBay at the moment. If you're open to fretless I would seriously consider it!

[TrevorR]

I got a Faith Neptune Titan and a Feedbackbuster plug for more acoustic based stuff. Works well and sounds pretty good through an amp or PA. not had much feedback issues at sensible volumes.

[Owen]

Uke bass. Fine and dandy. End of.

[Sparky Mark]

I got a fretted kala u-bass simply for acoustic jam sessions in my local. Fantastic pseudo double bass sound through a peavey micro bass combo and once the strings were bedded in (stretched out?) sufficiently, staying in tune wasn't an issue. You do need to have accurate and consistent fretting pressure or intonation will suffer.

[sblueplanet]

I like the look of the Gold Tone micro basses. They do one with a longer scale length so prob better intonation and also an electric cutaway version. The UK stockist is Eagle Music.

[duffer1]

Jimmy Powells does a 25inch scale semi acoustic Hofner style bass. Metal strung but with the violin shaped body it looks the part.

Otherwise I'm working on a cigar box bass with plastic strings that uses a resonator for acoustic volume.

It's early days but it works......

See pic.

[Geek99]

Your band mates are delusional - an acoustic bass unamplified would need to be huge physically to be heard over even one acoustic; I know as I've tried it. You can't even hear yourself, let alone them hearing you

[JoeEvans]

The R&D on acoustic basses was done about 400 years ago and the double bass was the result... Nothing else will work for an unamplified gig, and even a big, loud double bass played hard can only fill a small, quiet venue.
But I do love my Tacoma Thunderchief, and it's great to have something to take to acoustic sessions; if your band-mates don't object to a small amp hidden away somewhere, a good electro-acoustic bass should be no trouble in terms of feedback.