Closest EUB to double bass for pizz practice?

[simonlewin]

Hello there,

I'm currently having double bass lesson and have my own double bass at home.

But, I travel a fair bit and wondered which EUB available would be closest in 'feel' to a double bass, allowing me to practice when away.

At present I'm only playing pizz - no bowing.

Perhaps I'm asking for the impossible?

Thanks in advance,

Simon

[damonsmith]

Everyone has their own opinion on this. I like my ergo because it responds most like a double bass since it is one piece of wood.
It is simple and affordable, has a double bass scale and very woody tone.
Others like an EUB to feel more like one, with a similar bridge and an ebony fingerboard.

On a side note, I hope your teacher is having you at least practice arco, otherwise you really shouldn't be paying for lessons.

[Mike Arnopol]

The Volante bass is by far the closest in sound and feel to the double bass. The people that say that a solid hunk of wood feels like a double bass make me wonder. ANY time I've played an EUB that was solid wood I thought that you might as well use a fretless electric and call it a day. The Volante has a bass bar and a sound post. The envelope and walking feel is almost indistinguishable from a GOOD double bass.I tour with a pretty big name jazz artist and have to have a walking feel and a sound that has to be virtually the same as a double bass. I used to own the Alter Ego and it's not even close.

[damonsmith]

Well, the Ergo and fretless electric have little in common. The solid piece of wood make it respond like a carved bass, especially for arco, but also carries the same vibration between pizzicato notes to make it more double bass like.

If the Volante is more double bass like than the Alter Ego I would say it is probably a great instrument, it looks great in on the site.
A lot of this depends on how much double bass technique you have. If you are more of an electric player, most EUBs will sound more electric and vice versa.
I have a really well made fully bowable 7 string ergo, so I like playing either that or my acoustic bass. Still, the Volante looks amazing. It looks great for jazz situations (like yours) where audiences would get uptight over the looks of an EUB.

[Mike Arnopol]

A solid hunk of wood will not and can not respond like a double bass. The envelope is all wrong. That being said, I think that a lot of solid wood EUB's sound very cool and do some cool things. I play a custom Lakland fretless on my gigs and think that a NS EUB could do some cool things. I'm not trying to promote the bass that I play and bash the others. I needed an EUB that sounded and felt as close to a double bass as possible. For the function of convincingly substituting for a double bass. Eberhard Weber played an EUB that sounded nothing like a double bass, or an electric bass. But as its own voice, it was very cool.

[damonsmith]

I own one that is a solid piece of wood, the envelope is fine, it bows great and sounds more like a double bass than any other I have tried including the Alter Ego. I am not sure what other factors Jesse from Ergo has going on besides the piece of wood.
I guess my feeling is that since it vibrates freely, it responds more like a carved bass.

[salcott]

My old Merchant Vertical Bass with the patented"springer bars" feels to me more like an upright than any others I've tried. The bars give a bit both arco and pizz, giving a close approximation to the way an acoustic bass's top reacts.

[hdiddy]

As a practice instrument, Yamaha SLB200/SVB200SK Silent bass is hard to beat. Plays like one, feels like one, and even has the upper rib for it to lean into you. I tried both an Ergo 4 and a NSD CR4, and as much as it sounds great, it doesn't even compare in terms of feel. IMO, anything that uses a tripod doesn't cut it for DB simulation purposes.

[daHammer]

Can't let this pass with entering my vote for the Eminence. The feel is pure double bass, though perhaps a little easier on the hands and arms than a URB with a fairly high or heavy action. The tone when amplified is practically indistinguishable from an amplified URB.

[damonsmith]

The tripod thing is something you can deal with or not. Most of the EUBs with additions to be more like a body end up flopping around for me, so the tripod is no problem.
It should also be mentioned that the more like a double bass you get the more it will be priced like a double bass.

[Mike Arnopol]

The Volante (and the Alter Ego ) with the crappy dollar are close to $5k.

[hdiddy]

Not if you go for Alter Ego's Baby Unico which is more like $3+K

[damonsmith]

That is where the Ergo wins out. With the necessary mods (new strings and stand) it still comes under $1000. It has a much more woody sound than the Wav4.
You could throw in a high quality combo amp and still be $1000+ under any of these others - not that they aren't great choices.
I may even end up with one of them one day. A 7 string Volante or Alter Ego would be great.

[Basso Musico]

Hey everyone, thanks for mentioning AlterEGO. Most of you know by now that I'm a fan and an endorser.
Simon, what worries me is that you are looking for an EUB that you you can use only for practice while traveling. While I completely get how hard it is to travel with a double bass, my concern is that by thinking of an EUB as just a practice instrument, you aren't going to get the most out of either your EUB or your double bass. Best of luck with that, though, and I'm with Damon - you need a bow.
Anyway, AlterEGO is fantastic, in my opinion anyway. The sponsored thread is here (http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f184/), the website is here (http://www.alter-ego.it/) and if I can answer any questions, just PM me.
Thanks,
Rick McLaughlin

[dar512]

Do you care if it sounds like a DB, or do you just want it to feel like a DB under your fingers? That'll make a big difference in the answers you get.

Another question - how are you traveling? If you are going by air, that will also affect the answers you get. Many EUBs are still fairly long and I suspect would still be hard to travel with on a plane.

The Eminence RN4 breaks down to fit into a traveling golf container, so is useful for traveling on planes. But its bout is not as realistic as the yamaha or the merchant.

[simonlewin]

Originally Posted by dar512

Do you care if it sounds like a DB, or do you just want it to feel like a DB under your fingers? That'll make a big difference in the answers you get.

Another question - how are you traveling? If you are going by air, that will also affect the answers you get. Many EUBs are still fairly long and I suspect would still be hard to travel with on a plane.

I guess it was more the 'feel' of a DB that I was looking for.

And most of the time I'm be traveling by car (but with no space for the DB).

Thanks for all the advice/ideas so far.

Simon

[digirira]

Originally Posted by Mike Arnopol

The Volante bass is by far the closest in sound and feel to the double bass. The people that say that a solid hunk of wood feels like a double bass make me wonder. ANY time I've played an EUB that was solid wood I thought that you might as well use a fretless electric and call it a day. The Volante has a bass bar and a sound post. The envelope and walking feel is almost indistinguishable from a GOOD double bass.I tour with a pretty big name jazz artist and have to have a walking feel and a sound that has to be virtually the same as a double bass. I used to own the Alter Ego and it's not even close.

I read in the stopping feedback thread where you said the Volante sounds better than the Czech-ease. Do you mean just when it is amplified, or acoustically as well? I can't imagine the Volante projecting any real acoustic sound.

Thanks

[BigBeatNut]

Originally Posted by Mike Arnopol

.... The Volante has a bass bar and a sound post. ...

I'm confused. The only pics I've seen of a volante ( LINK ) show a bass with a front and no back, so far as I can tell. Given that sound post connects front and back, what does it do with this bass ? Or is there a different Volante ?