1st Upright NS CRM4 or Carved Bulgarian ?

[dusteroo]

Hello All,
I have been lurking for quite sometime. Am trying to decide between a NS CRM4 "used" and one of the Gollihur Bulgarian Carved acoustic bass"used ". Been looking at Englehardt also. I play mostly at church and a few outside small parties where the music is mostly 60,70,and 80's rocknroll and Jimmy Buffett,Beatles,Stones, and so on. Any info appreciated. Thanks

[Buogon]

Considering the music that you play, a EUB may best suit your needs.
The carved i would not recommend for this, not saying that it is wrong for this genre
but for durability and transporting. You may also look at a "king bass" aka (rockability)

[longfinger]

That kind of music goes well with the electric bass guitar, either fretted or fretless (Bill Wyman was the earliest famous adopter of the fretless BG). Why do you want an upright for this repertoire?

If you were playing 40 swing and 50's rock'n roll then a good sturdy plywood bass will do great for the look and sound and will handle well in the outdoor parties. (Do you need to be amplified for these parties?) If you're playing 60's 70's 80's rock music but you like the physical nature of playing an upright, then an good EUB and the proper bass amp would do great.

I'm not sure if you are playing the old rock hits in the way they sounded on the records, or if you are aiming to re-interpret them in an acoustic way. What sound are you going for?

I suggest looking at your song list and pay attention to the sound you want for each song and style, then find the instrument family that best fits that sound.

[dusteroo]

Thanks for the replies. I have a Fender Precision for the outdoor parties and the 70's music. I do play in Church twice a month so I really don't know what genre I'm looking for,just thought a upright would be nice,but maybe I should hold off.
Thanks

[Bruce Lindfield]

I have an NS EUB, which I bought first - as well as a full-carved Double Bass and I must say that I now play the latter all the time and wish I had got it first!

Although the NS bass was a useful transition and easy lead-in to the "real thing"!!

But then that may be because I play Jazz and the real "sound" of Jazz is all about Double Bass and it does help you swing!!

[Phil Smith]

Originally Posted by Bruce Lindfield

But then that may be because I play Jazz and the real "sound" of Jazz is all about Double Bass and it does help you swing!!

I don't know if this is true.

[Bruce Lindfield]

It is for me!!

[Nathan Parker]

I don't know if it's true either, but when you look at the number of bassists in jazz that play double bass compared to those that don't, they (the numbers, that is) are overwhelmingly in favor of the double bass.

[Bruce Lindfield]

I struggled for many years to play swinging walking lines on BG - but it just feels so natural on DB - the way the envelope of the sound works so that you have a quick decay - whereas on BG you are always fighting the sustain...?

[Nathan Parker]

I dunno, I'm a terrible bass guitar player, and have never really tried to seriously use it for jazz. I like the stuff Steve Swallow plays. But, he has admitted that he is trying to make his bass guitar sound like a double bass. For me, the double bass just speaks to me more.

[Marc Piane]

Its all about the attack my friends. The DB lets out a big puff of air at the front end of the note. That pulse (I like to call it the punch in the gut) is what drives the band. It really has nothing to do with the ability to swing on chop. Sure, I've heard cats that can swing on chop but I've never heard a guy that can drive a band like a good DB player.

[longfinger]

Ok, this has gone a bit off topic. There are a few separate threads about electric bass guitar in jazz in the bass guitar forum I recall.

This topic was more like the acoustic upright bass (or EUB) in rock music like the Rolling Stones and Beatles etc.

To play rock as rock is normally played, the electric bass guitar with a powerful quality bass amp is the best choice.

If you want to rock music your own way, then you decide what to do and how. Listen to how Eric Clapton changed "Layla" 1970 version to "Layla" 1992 unplugged version.

Another change in topic, for the "Eric Clapton's Unplugged" video, Nathan East should have really been playing a double bass and not some weird acoustic bass guitar that needed an amp to get a good sound. There's another thread on talkbass somewhere about the real world viabilty of the "acoustic" bass guitar.

[dusteroo]

Thanks for the replies. I plan on playing Worship Music,Bluegrass,Classical,Blues, basically all kinds of music. So I guess I just need an all round upright to start out with. Something in the 1500.00 to 2000.00 range was what I was thinking. I'm not interested in the NS CR4M anymore or any other electric upright. As I said earlier,I have a Fender Precision Electric for The Rolling Stones,just interested in trying something new in acoustic upright. Brand names appreciated.
Thanks

[Tejano Bass]

check your PM . . .

[Peck_Time]

Originally Posted by dusteroo

As I said earlier,I have a Fender Precision Electric for The Rolling Stones,just interested in trying something new in acoustic upright. Brand names appreciated.
Thanks

Read the stickies, there's a metric butt-load of info there...

Brand names are not as much use as on the slab side. Do you have any good bass luthiers in your neck of the woods? (ie 200 mile radius)

Play the instrument before you buy, hopefully with your teacher there as well.

Factor in the cost of a setup if needed.

Oh yeah, please call it a 'double bass' or doghouse or bull fiddle , anything but acoustic upright!

[dusteroo]

[quote]Oh yeah, please call it a 'double bass' or doghouse or bull fiddle , anything but acoustic upright! [quote] OK ! "Double Bass it is ! Thanks