Good uprights for beginners on a budget??

sleepy_monkey · #1 02-19-2008, 12:00 PM

I play bass and have played upright before but think I would really love playing an upright for a set during gigs....especially since my 2 guitarists can play banjo, dobro, mando, etc......

Just wondering where cost effective decent uprights are to start on.......

Any and all help is appreciated!!

Links to a page or if anyone has anything they might be looking to get rid of....thanks everyone...

mjt0229 · #2 02-19-2008, 12:20 PM

This is a hard (and common) question. The answer you'll get is that going cheap isn't usually a good idea - and that when you by an inexpensive instrument, you're frequently buying someone else's problem.

That being said, for $1000 you can sometimes find an old used plywood bass like a Kay, a King, or an Epiphone. My first bass was a Kay C-1 that we bought for like $600. With a lot of practice, a little setup and some fresh strings, it got me in to college.

I sold that bass on Ebay about a year ago for about $1200.

sleepy_monkey · #3 02-19-2008, 12:25 PM

Yeah, I play nice bass equipment so I realize that buying lower end stuff is not going to be great....maybe I should just save up until I can spend at least $1,000 on one I guess....

frichter · #4 02-19-2008, 12:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sleepy_monkey

Yeah, I play nice bass equipment so I realize that buying lower end stuff is not going to be great....maybe I should just save up until I can spend at least $1,000 on one I guess....

Thats a great idea. In the meantime, try getting some time in on a db on a regular basis so you can really check it out and decide what it is you want out of the instrument you end up buying.

sleepy_monkey · #5 02-19-2008, 12:40 PM

The problem is that most music stores around here don't have the uprights in stock (or the one's they have are out of my league..haha)......so if I can find one that will stay in tune for the most part for not too much I might grab it until I can figure something else out.

sleepy_monkey · #6 02-19-2008, 12:42 PM

And I am guessing that these are crap?

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-3-4-EBONY-FI...QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/BIG-MONSTER-4-4-...QQcmdZViewItem

Marcus Johnson · #7 02-19-2008, 01:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sleepy_monkey

And I am guessing that these are crap?

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-3-4-EBONY-FI...QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/BIG-MONSTER-4-4-...QQcmdZViewItem

Yes.

sleepy_monkey · #8 02-19-2008, 02:04 PM

haha...

MacGeorge · #9 02-19-2008, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sleepy_monkey

And I am guessing that these are crap?

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-3-4-EBONY-FI...QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/BIG-MONSTER-4-4-...QQcmdZViewItem

You really need to try a bass before you buy it, which means that ebay should probably be left out as a source. Would you really want to be stuck with crap instrument that felt wrong and sounded terrible? A thousand bucks could get you a brand new one from say a place like guitar center, musiciansfriend.com, or sam ash. BUT!!! Generally speaking, they are worthless pieces of crap. Your much better going to a shop and trying out some used basses. If your new to uprights it's understandable to be a little apprehensive about spending a decent amount of cash, but your not going to get anything worthwhile if you don't.

sleepy_monkey · #10 02-19-2008, 04:42 PM

True...I pulled the trigger on my Modulus without ever playing one, but of course did my research before hand....

I might have to drive over to Atlanta to check some out though.

Gufenov · #11 02-19-2008, 05:41 PM

Sleepy Monkey - last Saturday the Alabama Bluegrass Music Association held the annual Showcase of Bands at the Bessemer Civic Center. There was jamming in every spare corner, and there were a ton of basses there. I saw a bunch of Kays and Engels, a beautiful new KC Strings Hybrid, a Miesel from Jim Laabs and even a couple of Cremonas. You would have had a chance to see and test-drive quite a few!

You could check out Fretted Instruments in Homewood. Plywood Palace in Cullman had an older Kay for sale last time I was there. Atlanta is certainly worth the drive to get your hands on some basses, too.

NUTT · #12 02-20-2008, 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sleepy_monkey

True...I pulled the trigger on my Modulus without ever playing one, but of course did my research before hand....

Your Modulus is much smaller & sturdy than a 6 foot tall, fairly fragile double bass. Modulus in particular uses some of the most stable materials used in modern electric bass design. Kinda hard to warp a carbon fiber neck, eh? I think you are reaching a little bit and comparing apples to oranges.

I'm new to double bass and managed to find a decently set up, fully carved Knilling 1308T with a bow, case & tuner for a little under $1200. I got it locally on eBay without ever playing it, knowing that I was taking a huge risk. I got really, really lucky that the bass was in decent condition and sounds good.

That said, I did email the seller and got a good history on the bass. It was bought off of a college bass student & used for a high school bass student. I felt confident that it was well set up & confident that if there was something wrong with the bass I could have walked away from the transaction when I went to pick it up.

sleepy_monkey · #13 02-20-2008, 09:13 AM

Nutt, I am not comparing an electric to an upright...just saying that I bought my Modulus but had researched it. I do realize there is a lot more to an upright...that I would need to pay attention too anyways.

Guf, I didn't know that was last week!!!! Ughh.....I will check out Fretted Instruments...not too far from me...and I actually grew up in Cullman...so I might stop by there the next time I am up. thanks for the info....

Steve Killingsworth · #14 02-20-2008, 11:42 AM

Hop on I-65 and drive to Nashville. Visit Dustin Williams' shop and you will have many good instruments to try. Dustin carries Shen and Kohr basses. Both are Chinese-made but are very good instruments. He usually has a few vintage plywoods and some higher end carved if that is what you are looking for.

Nashville Violins occasionally carries a bass or two. Gruhn Guitars has an American Standard for sale right now--maybe above your price range but almost certainly a great bass. Corner Music had a decent sounding Eastman ply in their shop a couple of weeks ago. Nashville Used Music also carries several lower-end uprights.

The point is that Nashville has several options within a 4-5 hour drive.

sleepy_monkey · #15 02-20-2008, 12:40 PM

Great thanks...Nashville is about 2.3-3 hours from me...

sleepy_monkey · #16 02-20-2008, 12:41 PM

Is there a site for Dustin Williams' Shop?

Edit: Found it and emailed him. Thanks!

sleepy_monkey · #17 02-20-2008, 08:36 PM

Found a local upright for $500 and an EUB for $450 both with bags and bows....should have pics soon....and I will be asking more questions and if I should get them...haha.

washtub_bass · #18 02-21-2008, 03:49 PM

this will be deemed spam, but google "Bogdon Box Bass" it's well under $100 and Bass Player Magazine raves about it in the January 2008 issue.. it playes great, sounds wonderful, and has a pickup too.

whyxxnot · #19 02-26-2008, 10:31 AM

I'm new to uprights and i was wondering if building my own bass would be more cost efficient, and i was also wondering if anyone has information on building them

sleepy_monkey · #20 02-29-2008, 07:43 PM

I am going tomorrow to check out the standup...if I get it I will post some pics....might get the EUB too...but just depends on how it is