Well, I did it. Been playing EB for 12+ years, played upright for one year during college. Now, after 6 years without a URB I am finally a proud owner of a Shen SB80! I'm very excited.
I started off by buying a Palatino EUB a week or so ago, but I wasn't sold on it. Even with the rubber under the pickup thing and damping the tailpiece, etc. For one, the Pally came to me with an overly bowed neck, so with the bridge adjusted to its lowest my action was still about 11mm on the E side to 9 on the G. Not fun for jazz pizz playing. On top of that, the fingerboard wasn't glued on well so it rattled when I played the E string (you could actually lift it up and see daylight underneath for about 6 inches up the neck!
Whatever.) Besides that, it just didn't have the feel, the sound, or the magic of a real accoustic bass. I'm not an experienced URB player, but after the Pally, this Shen feels and sounds like butter!
For the money, and just to get me back into the jazz realm, I'm very happy with this bass. It's definetly better than the school bass I used in college and exceeds what I'd expect from a sub $2k (with setup, bow, and gigbag) URB.
Thanks to you guys for the experiences you've shared regarding these instruments. I haven't made a lot of posts, but I'm on here reading probably an hour a day for the last few years, be it both the upright and the electric side. I don't have pics, but it don't matter. It looks exactly like the one on the Upton site, though I bought it from a local shop in Seattle. (
http://www.uptonbass.com/SB80-SHEN-B...n-Double-Bass/) Cheers!
Now, about getting some lessons...
