Anyone know anything about the Duke Composite DB?

[missileme]

Hello Everyone. I just registered on this forum the other day after reading some threads about the Duke DB made in Germany on Basschat. It seems like some of you have played their double basses.

I have been playing the electric bass for 2.5 years. But after briefly trying out the double bass, I got this strong feeling that I should have started out on the double bass.

Anyway I read through every post about the Duke and those that own it rave about it. But I have a few questions:

Has anyone actually played the carbon composite bass?

Is Duke primarily a rockabilly bass maker? Thus making the pizz sound without amplification a lot less resonant?

I did go through their facebook site but the recording level output is low and even with my PJB headphones, it's still weak. I can tell that the carbon composite is a little more boomy but that doesn't say anything at all.

Anyway if anyone has any idea, I'd really love to hear what you have to say about Duke Double Bass.

Final word, I would like it to be a composite because of less maintenance.

Thank you for all information in advance.

[TheRev]

The Duke basses are certainly aimed at the blues/rockabilly crowd, but I imagine you could play anything you like on them, provided you like the feel and sound (with your strings/pickup/amp/cab/etc/etc).

I'm liking the slimline composite - looks like the perfect tour bass. The Peacemaker is a bit of a beast!

[TPJ]

My Duke is loud and bassy, when it wore guts and now with Spiro weichs. It's different sounding than my hybrid which is a loud and shouty thing. I don't play rockabilly, but play country, punky rock originals and some jazz. It's a very resonant bass and throws a lot of sound. I have no experience with the composite basses but if they were better than wood, more people would probably be playing them. Ply and carved double basses can take quite a bit of abuse and any good luthier can work on them. I don't know how many luthiers would be prepared to work on a composite bass.

[PaulKing]

Maintenance? I've got 2 ply basses that are over 70 years old, I don't do anything to them except abuse them at gigs. They might be vintage collectors pieces, but they work hard for their money!
You don't really need to worry about maintenance on a decent ply bass.Not enough to decide composite is the only answer.

[Happy Jack]

Chief interest for me would be that 8Kg weight ... that's a pretty sharp reduction on a ply bass.

[missileme]

[quote name='TheRev' timestamp='1485277798' post='3222744']
The Duke basses are certainly aimed at the blues/rockabilly crowd, but I imagine you could play anything you like on them, provided you like the feel and sound (with your strings/pickup/amp/cab/etc/etc).

I'm liking the slimline composite - looks like the perfect tour bass. The Peacemaker is a bit of a beast!
[/quote]

Thanks for the reply. The Peacemaker seems to be a bigger or wider bass. I do not even see that on their site. Is this a 44 or 78?

[missileme]

[quote name='TPJ' timestamp='1485338277' post='3223168']
My Duke is loud and bassy, when it wore guts and now with Spiro weichs. It's different sounding than my hybrid which is a loud and shouty thing. I don't play rockabilly, but play country, punky rock originals and some jazz. It's a very resonant bass and throws a lot of sound. I have no experience with the composite basses but if they were better than wood, more people would probably be playing them. Ply and carved double basses can take quite a bit of abuse and any good luthier can work on them. I don't know how many luthiers would be prepared to work on a composite bass.
[/quote]

Thanks for the information. You really do have a point. What if during air travel, it gets damaged and I have to fix it in Sao Paulo Brazil....... ? Never thought about this because they say carbon fiber instruments are really strong, but then again airlines really do abuse luggage. I should know, I travel often.

[missileme]

[quote name='PaulKing' timestamp='1485436051' post='3223949']
Maintenance? I've got 2 ply basses that are over 70 years old, I don't do anything to them except abuse them at gigs. They might be vintage collectors pieces, but they work hard for their money!
You don't really need to worry about maintenance on a decent ply bass.Not enough to decide composite is the only answer.
[/quote]

Thanks for reply. The answers here are making me think about the Chadwick Folding Bass along with the Duke Composite. Chadwick has a very large following that swear by it. I believe Ed Friedland has one too and raved about them.

I am waiting for an answer from Thomann about several basses including the Composite, so I will keep the ply option open too.

[missileme]

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1485443380' post='3224010']
Chief interest for me would be that 8Kg weight ... that's a pretty sharp reduction on a ply bass.
[/quote]

That is really attractive. Weight saved is great since several airlines allows you to have as many bags as you want, as long as it is under a certain weight in total. That makes the composite money saving in the long run when I have to travel with the bass and a whole lot of every day necessities.

[TPJ]

[quote name='missileme' timestamp='1485511267' post='3224434']
Thanks for reply. The answers here are making me think about the Chadwick Folding Bass along with the Duke Composite. Chadwick has a very large following that swear by it. I believe Ed Friedland has one too and raved about them.

I am waiting for an answer from Thomann about several basses including the Composite, so I will keep the ply option open too.
[/quote]

If you need a DB for travel then the Chadwick is a no-brainer. They have a proven track record from pros around the world. They may not have the acoustic loudness of some other basses, but reviews indicate they do fine and the travel convenince makes it all worth it. Plus, you can recoup much of the cost if/when you sell it on.

[missileme]

[quote name='TPJ' timestamp='1485512884' post='3224457']
If you need a DB for travel then the Chadwick is a no-brainer. They have a proven track record from pros around the world. They may not have the acoustic loudness of some other basses, but reviews indicate they do fine and the travel convenince makes it all worth it. Plus, you can recoup much of the cost if/when you sell it on.
[/quote]

Thank you for the information.

I have had several others tell me the same thing. The price difference (Chadwick being 300 US dollars more expensive) is not a big deal, especially when I think that if I get the Duke Composite, I will have to get a case (which is not included), which will make the Duke a lot more expensive.

I normally do not like to think about selling the equipment before I buy it, but the long story short, as you say, I can unload the Chadwick very easily anywhere in the world.

The appeal about the Chadwick is that it comes with the case. Now getting a case for the Duke is a royal pain in the butt. Long story short, I can not get a hold of one in Brasil, Japan, or Ukraine where live. To get it shipped to any of those places, a Tuff Lite Travel should end up costing me at least 4000 dollars. Even a cheap Eastman will run me 1500 US dollars. I could go to the USA to pick one up but the airplane, hotel, etc will cost me at least 1500 bucks.

All this and your comment is making me lean towards the Chadwick.

[SubsonicSimpleton]

Might be worth considering something like a removable neck Eminence EUB if you are going to fly a lot - they can be transported in golf club hard cases, and fit the cabin lockers on many aircraft which means you can avoid ever putting it in the hands of the baggage handlers. You could probably buy a nice acoustic double bass for your main residence plus the EUB and hardcase for travel for the same sort of outlay as a hardcase + duke composite or chadwick.

Different airlines have different specs for what they consider over sized baggage, and they are subject to change, you might want to check out this thread on talkbass https://www.talkbass.com/threads/airline-restrictions-master-list.1200408/#post-18265522

One thing to consider is how will your practicing be affected by your living arrangements - EUBs like Kolstein and Eminence sound pretty nice acoustically but are very quiet, which makes them very neighbour friendly if you can only practice at antisocial hours.