Wanting to pick up the double bass.

[xxfaux_punkxx]

So I've been thinking of playing the double bass but I have quite a few questions about it.

First off what would be recomended for a begginer. I play electric bass but never played a double bass or anything similar to one.

I know double basses are fretless. This will be new to me. I heard you could mark the frets with tape until you learn your finger placements. What kind of tape would be best and where can I find a chart showing where to put them?

Where can I look to find a double bass that's reasonably priced. All the ones I've seen are a couple grand.

What's are some maintance basic maintance procedure's that I need to know and follow regulary?

[Andrew McGregor]

First of all, welcome.

Well, there's a whole lot of links at the top of the forum to help you out... go read them.

A couple grand IS entry level, but remember the resale value is quite good, so it's not a huge financial risk. You also need a case and a bow (yes, really, you can't learn to play in tune without one). Especially, don't even think about eBay until you know what you're looking at. Setup is very important, and quite expensive... I spent over $1000 on setup work on my bass not so long ago, which is just what a setup including fingerboard plane and a set of strings costs. That's not so worrying on a $10k bass like mine, but obviously it makes a huge difference at the low end.

Plan on taking lessons for a while... this is important because you need someone with the experience to figure out a physical approach to the instrument that works for you and won't injure you. You can't teach yourself that part. Hand and back injuries really suck, so don't risk that. A proper setup will help a lot with the injury risk.

[tomshepp]

Find a bass shop in your area. You could start by renting a bass and bow. Find an experienced teacher in your area. Local universities are a good place to start. That person can help you with all the other stuff. Be patient. Be persistent. Have fun.


Plus 1 to what Andrew said.

[pnut166]

Originally Posted by xxfaux_punkxx

I know double basses are fretless. This will be new to me. I heard you could mark the frets with tape until you learn your finger placements. What kind of tape would be best and where can I find a chart showing where to put them?

Where can I look to find a double bass that's reasonably priced.

Use a tuner, and mark the edge of the fingerboard with small dots of nail polish. Decent Engelhardts can be had fairly cheap.

[powerbass]

Learning to play the upright bass is challenging. It is a much more demanding instrument to play physically and technically compared to electric bass including electric fretless. Developing good intonation requires discipline and precision, that is why learning from a teacher is a good idea. That doesn't mean you can't have fun messing around with one and learning to play it at your own speed. You may end up feeling frustrated though since it does take a lot of practice to get even basic intonation and finger strength playing root/5th. A teacher will get you going in the right direction and you will progress quicker. Since you are just starting out find a bass that is not expensive but is set up well. A good set up by a bass luthier is very important. Be careful about buying cheap basses that need work. Even some basic repair and set up work combined with new strings, maybe a pickup and carrying bag can cost more than the value of bass. TB classifieds or craigslist may have have a bass that will get you going without a huge financial investment

[xxfaux_punkxx]

Originally Posted by tomshepp

Find a bass shop in your area. You could start by renting a bass and bow. Find an experienced teacher in your area. Local universities are a good place to start. That person can help you with all the other stuff. Be patient. Be persistent. Have fun.


Plus 1 to what Andrew said.

Thanx for all the advice guys. How much do the usually rent for?

[xxfaux_punkxx]

oh some more questions that i didin't find in the stickies...

I have a lot of animals around the house. A case is obviously needed to protect my bass from getting knocked over (which will happen at least once). Aside from keeping it in it's case when not in use what's the best way to store it (I.e. corner? give it it's own room? closet?)

What kind of stand would be a good place to start?

How would be the best way to transport the instrument?

A violenist friend told me that they make a metal bridge for ochestral instruments that gives the instrument a little more... modern sound i guess... where would I get one of these and what is it actually called?

[drurb]

Hello and welcome. You've been given some excellent advice so far. For your own good, please follow every word of it. I'll amplify and add a few points:

Setup is crucial. Buy a double bass from a real double-bass shop that will include a good setup.

Stay away from cheapie basses, including CCBs (Cheap Chinese Basses) and BSOs (Bass-Shaped Objects) that are hardly good enough for firewood. Note that there are some fine basses from China. CCBs are another story.

Cheap basses are really expensive wastes of money. By the time you pour money into them to get them playing even half-way decently, you still end up with a cheap bass that plays marginally, sounds bad, and is subject to all kinds of failures including, implosion (for real!).

The absolute minimum you will need to pay for a new quality instrument with a decent setup is around $1500. That's rock bottom. There is no magic. There are no exceptions-- short of someone just giving you one.

No, don't think about a metal bridge at least until you learn to play. Specialty items like that should only be chosen after one has a much deeper knowledge.

I suggest that you read, not only the stickies, but many of the threads here. For example, do a search on "bass stands". Some like them, some don't. A number of factors determine whether a stand is a good idea for you. There's a wealth of information about them. No, your bass should never get knocked over. Not even once.

Transporting a double bass? Again, there are many, many threads about this here. You'll find that there are techniques to get a bass into almost any vehicle.

So, pull up a chair, open the search function, and read, read, read. Then, c'mon back with questions. Most of us are happy to help but please take advantage of the reams of information that have already been set down.

Enjoy!

P.S.-- Get a teacher.

[lhoward]

Originally Posted by drurb

. . . . . No, your bass should never get knocked over. Not even once. . . . . .

A good method of supporting and immobilizing your bass when its not being used is imperative to avoid expensive repairs, not to speak of it being unusable until repaired. The link below is a TB'er who build a type of rack used in bass/violin shops:

Bass Rack Construction.

I thought about doing that myself by using white oak to make an elegant stand. But I decided on an easier, more utilitarian method that ensures the bass is held secure. Also, since its in my house, I don't need mobile capability that most multi-bass, wood stands allow. In the pics below, a 1"x4" piece of wood (of whatever hard wood you'd like to use) which is screwed into each of the wall studs that the piece of wood can accommodate. A closed loop anchor is mounted on the wood. I used small, brass drawer handles mounted at a 45 degree angle to allow for some movement when a velcro strip is looped through it. I use the 1"x18" velcro type shown at the link below and can be found at any number of hardware stores:

http://www.velcro.com/index.php?page...ation-velstrap

The pics below show my setup. I lean the bass against the wall with very little space between the scroll and the wall. I don't tightly cinch down the velcro strap, but leave a little looseness so its not putting strain on the neck. A bass in its case can be secured in the same way. The small brass handles I mounted are about 22" apart. Someone else can use whatever spacing is needed.

Lloyd Howard

[sirero]

store it on its side on the floor.

[xxfaux_punkxx]

I found a teacher. Just out of shear dumb luck my singer plays a variety of stringed instruments (violen, viola, cello, double bass, etc).

next step... finding a Double Bass.

[timobee4]

Do yourself a favour and trust your ears, none of these nonsense markings on the finger board, I was 13 when my DB teacher went nuts at me because I marked my bass with a pencil. he said "tune the bass, then hear the notes, reference with open strings and use them as often as you can, hear it don't see it! I thought you how to hold your hand and fingers" I practiced in dark room and I still do every night after 30 years. Get a bow for tuning but its garbage that you can't learn without it. Must learn to tune your bass properly and with a bow its easier.
forget the bass guitar fingering on DB but hopefully your teacher will tell you that too. I tell my students to practice in front of the mirror so they see if their shoulder drop or have bad posture. You can also order some DVD's like The Acoustic BASS taught by Gary Peacock (I love every note he ever played)
And Jazz Upright Bass with Ed Friedland. The information from these two DVD's worth a million times more than this whole thread of great advices! So tune up and open those mini satellite dishes on the side of your head! Good luck and welcome the the world of Upright! Stick to it and you'd love it, give it couple of years and you'd be using your slab as a chopping board hahahah3

[Phil Rowan]

IMHO/IME learning at least basic arco technique and keeping it part of your practice routine directly benefits pizz technique.

xxfaux_punkxx, if there's a local symphony orchestra in your area, try contacting them and ask to be put in touch with one of their bassists. You could perhaps get a few lessons with said bassist, or at the very least, pick his/her brain with questions/advice-seeking on getting started on double bass.

[Don Higdon]

Originally Posted by xxfaux_punkxx

I know double basses are fretless. This will be new to me. I heard you could mark the frets with tape until you learn your finger placements. What kind of tape would be best and where can I find a chart showing where to put them?

Don't. Just don't. It's like training wheels on a 10-speed.
Slow down, take a deep breath, be patient. There is no reason why you can't succeed without them.

Originally Posted by pnut166

Use a tuner, and mark the edge of the fingerboard with small dots of nail polish.

DB advice from someone who doesn't own a DB. Priceless.

[chuck3]

What Don Higdon said. Forget the tape and stuff. I got my Upton with some side markers, but even those aren't really essential. What's essential are your ear and some muscle memory in your fingers.

I played upright only rarely for decades, just EBG, then added upright over the last couple of years. The opportunities to play multiply if you can do both, so I recommend it. But I also recommend having a teacher on upright, at least for a while, to get the basic technique down.

[Mary Ann]

In Houston kids pay about $60 per month to rent a Christopher chinese laminate bass that is set-up and insured for maintenance and repairs. That money will go toward the purchase of a nicer bass so might be a good way for you to go if you can come up with the monthly fee.

We haul the bass for lessons and concerts (she uses a school bass at school). We own 2 SUVs for a reason. We like to leave 1/2 of the back seat up and the other half down so the back of the bass rests against the side of the seat back that is up. We put the seat belt around the bass so it is nice and safe.

My kid marks a couple of spots on her bass neck with black pinstripe tape from the auto parts store. This makes the markings very discreet and she uses them for large shifts where it's difficult to exactly peg the high note when shifting from a low note. She has a great ear and can correct fingering by ear so this is just an additional aid. I assume she will do that when she moves from 1/2 to 3/4 to aid in the size transition. Obviously some here are intensely opposed to that so YMMV. Use it as an aid and not a crutch and you'll be fine. Whatever makes your bass experience enjoyable.

It would be way too much effort to bag the bass every day after practice so my kid uses a stand that we ordered from Lemur. It is nice and sturdy and sits in the corner relatively out of the way. We don't like it when she lays her bass on its side at home since we have a blind dog and that endpin is a lethal weapon. Whatever keeps the bass safe but makes it very easy to grab and play for you personally is what you want be it case, stand or side.

My kid has a wheel from Lemur that replaces the endpin for long trips through schools for concerts or contests. That thing is great. Sometimes they leave their cases far from the performance location so being able to use the wheel with or without the bag is great. It's a lot for a kid to carry stool, bass, music, stand, etc. although you won't be in that position any time soon.

Good luck with your quest. Double bass is the coolest instrument. Thank goodness my kid doesn't play violin.

Mary Ann

[pnut166]

Originally Posted by Don Higdon

DB advice from someone who doesn't own a DB. Priceless.

And how, exactly, do you know what I own ?

[Don Higdon]

Originally Posted by pnut166

And how, exactly, do you know what I own ?

From what you put in your profile:
Current Setup:
MIM Jazz Deluxe, various pedals, P-beater, Line6 LD150, TE Mk V pre, Tapco 800W, Seismic 410, Seismic 210
Previously owned gear:
Peavey Patriot, Zoom multi pedal

[Steve Swan]

If some pencil marks on the side of the fingerboard will give the beginner confidence to practice more at the start of this journey, that's a good thing. An eraser will take off these training wheels in a jiffy.

[drurb]

I'd also caution against the use of visual markers for all but a very, very short period (maybe, 2-3 weeks, at most). Players do not look at the fingerboard when they're playing and it would be a poor habit to develop. In addition, as has been pointed out here before, given the nature of the DB, even slight changes in the position of the bridge can make those markers wrong quite easily. There's no substitute for so-called "muscle memory" and ear-training. It's often a constant, decades-long process of improvement.