Kolatein LoFaro Travel Bass

[flatback]

I rented a czek eze a cuppla months ago and I found the sound really inconsistent. To be sure when I got back to Gages Sam was concerned that the set up seemed tweaked, but I didn't much like the look of it either. I much prefer the look of the Kolstein, but like Damon said It would be great if it came with an attenuated price. **** five grand can buy a lotta bass if you know where to look ( I've been seeing a lot of cats who travel out here to SF with their own basses, and I would sure try and do that as long as possible)

[damonsmith]

I get the feeling they are trying to make a quick buck off the NY pros who are set to lose that much if they don't buy one....
Part of the point to me to get my own bass out of the hands of the baggage monkeys, not give them another expensive bass to toss around or lose.

[Mike Carr]

[quote=flatback;4092372]I rented a czek eze a cuppla months ago and I found the sound really inconsistent. To be sure when I got back to Gages Sam was concerned that the set up seemed tweaked, but I didn't much like the look of it either.

--------------------------------------------------------------------
For what it's worth, I might be wearing the crown of "king of the travel bass experiments" on Talkbass these days. Been thru a few of them, Carruthers, Eminence, a Czech Ease (sold it) an Azola Lightning Bug and in the end wound up buying back the very same Czech-Ease bass. I found that if my C-E's sound-post was the least bit "off position" it sounds real inconsistent, just as good Mr. Flatback reported. Once my C-E's sound-post was re-adjusted back to the original spot David Gage intended (there is a faint pencil mark visable in mine, that two other very qualified luthiers either didn't see or chose to ignore) the bass sounded remarkably more even that it had been when I got fed up with it and sold it last year. I have Jon Peterson at World Of Strings to thank for getting my C-E working good again. On my particular bass, if the sound-post is set in a manner that works for a regular sized bass, the bass sounds puny and wolfy too, bad enough that I thought I'd be better off with out it (I wasn't!) The bass sounds best with it's post set a lot farther south than I'm used to seeing on regular sized basses. Mine is sounding pretty good now, even when it's unplugged. Very, very good for jazz when amplified now that it's sporting a Wilson!

[Basicbassist]

Originally Posted by damonsmith

I get the feeling they are trying to make a quick buck off the NY pros who are set to lose that much if they don't buy one....
Part of the point to me to get my own bass out of the hands of the baggage monkeys, not give them another expensive bass to toss around or lose.

My sense is that the builders of travel basses are filling a three-part need on the part of bassists: 1) to meet size/weight limitations imposed by the airlines, 2) to avoid huge surcharges for bass coffin-cases where still accepted and 3) to avoid nearly inevitable BREAKAGE. Two cases in point relative to breakage: Chris D. was in Kolstein's shop this week when I picked up my Busetto Travel Bass. He had spent the past three years or so playing in Europe and on his last flight from Berlin to Finland, his 300 year old Italian bass suffered a crushed-in top deck despite the hard case it was in (not a Kolstein cargo case, he was quick to add). He brought the bass back to NY for repair. Second instance: I ran into Brian Bromberg last November at the NJ Cape May Jazz Festival. He had just arrived from Texas - by car. "Why," I asked, "did you drive?" He responded that his (now legendary) 300 year-old Italian bass had been smashed or broken too many times through air transport and that he now chooses to drive nationwide to all performance venues. Granted, Brian is not going to be a candidate for travel-bass acquisition for obvious reasons, but we bass-mortals might learn from his (and a multitude of other) air-transport breakage reports.

My point is that, sure, I'd much prefer to have my full-dimensional bass with me, but there are reasons for the emergence of the travel bass.

[Jeremy Allen]

Originally Posted by damonsmith

What I really want is the Czech-ease but with a carved top for under $2000.

Exactly!

[peterpalmieri]

I decided on a Kolstein hybrid over the travel bass, in 2 instances this month I was doubling I didn't have enough room for the upright and needed to pack it up, put it in the car and play the entire gig on electric.

This is one of those times where the travel bass would have come in really handy above and beyond the obvious other reasons to own this kind of instrument.

[Basicbassist]

Originally Posted by peterpalmieri

I decided on a Kolstein hybrid over the travel bass, in 2 instances this month I was doubling I didn't have enough room for the upright and needed to pack it up, put it in the car and play the entire gig on electric.

This is one of those times where the travel bass would have come in really handy above and beyond the obvious other reasons to own this kind of instrument.

That's one reason why I acquired the Kolstein Travel Bass - the band stands seem to be getting smaller in New York City and elsewhere and I needed to stop subjecting my (Kolstein) Fendt to the looming risks of damage. It's worked out as I had anticipated: the Travel Bass sounds and feels great, so the performances are not compromised in the least.

[Mark Perna]

I bought a Kolstein last July and it has become my main bass. I originally bought it to be a backup/bad weather/outside bass. What I've found is that once I worked out the setup kinks (it is really touchy on setup probably due to the 39 inch scale), it played and sounded better and more consistent that either of my Juzeks (1928 and 1933). It is barely affected by humidity unlike my big basses.

While it does have some acoustic volume, it must be amplified if you're going to play with people. It has enough acoustic volume that you could amplify with a microphone if the background isn't too loud. I put a Fishman BP-100 on mine (I think I'm the only guy left in the world using one but I get a great big fat sound out of it) and run it through an Acoustic Image Focus with 1 or 2 cabinets depending on the gig. I have the older Focus with the 10K input so I don't need a pre-amp.

I also have a Czech-Ease and both versions of the Yamaha Silent Bass. The Yamahas are barely passable. The CE is a nice plywood but the Kolstein just blows it away. I haven't sold the CE yet but it went into a closet last summer and hasn't been out since.

The Kolstein is easy to carry, it fits in the car with ease. It is much more robust since it's surface to volume ratio is much higher than a big bass. And it sounds like a carved bass unlike the CE.

I haven't had any problems going to the short scale. A couple of minutes of warm ups and I've got it. The problem is going back to the big basses. It is a lot easier to shorten the stretch than lengthen it. It usually takes me about 20 minutes of playing to get comfortable with the big bass after playing the K for a while.

[peterpalmieri]

This is really great to know.....This might be next on my list!

Originally Posted by calivox

I bought a Kolstein last July and it has become my main bass. I originally bought it to be a backup/bad weather/outside bass. What I've found is that once I worked out the setup kinks (it is really touchy on setup probably due to the 39 inch scale), it played and sounded better and more consistent that either of my Juzeks (1928 and 1933). It is barely affected by humidity unlike my big basses.

While it does have some acoustic volume, it must be amplified if you're going to play with people. It has enough acoustic volume that you could amplify with a microphone if the background isn't too loud. I put a Fishman BP-100 on mine (I think I'm the only guy left in the world using one but I get a great big fat sound out of it) and run it through an Acoustic Image Focus with 1 or 2 cabinets depending on the gig. I have the older Focus with the 10K input so I don't need a pre-amp.

I also have a Czech-Ease and both versions of the Yamaha Silent Bass. The Yamahas are barely passable. The CE is a nice plywood but the Kolstein just blows it away. I haven't sold the CE yet but it went into a closet last summer and hasn't been out since.

The Kolstein is easy to carry, it fits in the car with ease. It is much more robust since it's surface to volume ratio is much higher than a big bass. And it sounds like a carved bass unlike the CE.

I haven't had any problems going to the short scale. A couple of minutes of warm ups and I've got it. The problem is going back to the big basses. It is a lot easier to shorten the stretch than lengthen it. It usually takes me about 20 minutes of playing to get comfortable with the big bass after playing the K for a while.

[Basicbassist]

Hey calivox - I'm glad to get your comments. They reflect my experience very closely. I am very curious about the set-up "kinks" that you referred to having worked out. Can you explain?

[Mark Perna]

Originally Posted by Basicbassist

Hey calivox - I'm glad to get your comments. They reflect my experience very closely. I am very curious about the set-up "kinks" that you referred to having worked out. Can you explain?

I had a hard time getting the fingerboard buzzless up and down the neck. I had to take quite a bit of wood off of the board. I use the word "I" in this case meaning my luthier, Mike Shank of Shank's Strings. I'm fearless with bridge placement and string adjustments but I won't cut. Finding the best vertical position for the bridge is touchy and because it can shift in the soft case, it is an ongoing issue. A fraction of a degree down and the bass plays like a dream but the E flaps a little too much. A fraction of a degree up and the E is great but the rest of the strings get stiff. String height and pickup placement were other issues. These things aren't unique to the Kolsten but the short scale seems to exacerbate all of the problems. But after a bit of work, it plays and sounds great.

I put Spirocore mittels on mine and it just sings.

[Basicbassist]

Thanks for the details. I'm glad to say that my K-Travel Bass suffered none of those afflictions. But with your experience in mind, I'll keep close watch on the bridge placement, maybe even mark the current location. Those Spiro-Mittel's - do you find the added tension (beyond weich, I mean) advantageous for the 39" mensur?

[Mark Perna]

Originally Posted by Basicbassist

Thanks for the details. I'm glad to say that my K-Travel Bass suffered none of those afflictions. But with your experience in mind, I'll keep close watch on the bridge placement, maybe even mark the current location. Those Spiro-Mittel's - do you find the added tension (beyond weich, I mean) advantageous for the 39" mensur?

For clarity: it isn't the bridge placement that shifts but the angle of the bridge from the vertical. Ever so slightly angled down or up. Mine tends to shift up slightly in the soft case over time. The way the bass sits in the soft case, the bridge is right up against the case with a little bit of upward pressure. The whole bass gets stiffer although it still sounds really good. The angle change is visually imperceptible from the vertical but you can really feel it while playing. Every week or so I have to push down on the bridge the tiniest amount and the string tension relaxes again.

I've NEVER liked Weichs. They are way too wimpy for me. I've tried a dozen different kinds of strings and I always go back to Spiro mittels. Strings are an intensely personal choice though. You have a sound in your head that is YOUR sound. Whichever string brings you closest to that sound is string you should use. Of course, your sound is going to be influenced by your bass and even more by your touch so your choice of strings has to complement both of those to get YOUR sound. I have a fairly heavy touch and find that lighter tension strings crap out on me. The mittels can take anything I throw at them and respond. I gig enough that my hand and arm strength can take the mittels for as long as I need to play without tiring too much. And I like the sound.

[Basicbassist]

Thanks - I understand now. I'll check regularly for bridge verticality. I can see how the soft case can apply upward pressure on the bridge when the bass is carried in it. I suppose the bridge verticality of any bass is affected by the upward pressure applied when carrying in a soft case, but any adverse effect is more noticible on smaller axes where the tolerances from dead-on exact are smaller. Again, thanks for the heads-up.