WAV 4 EUB - What else do I need?
 

I'm in the process of buying a pre-loved NS WAV 4 EUB. It is my first venture into (E)UB playing though I have gigged a couple of times on fretless electric. Though my playing has been fallow the last two years before then I was regularly playing fretted electric bass. Don't laugh but the EUB is mainly going to get played in Church where I hope it's upright image and crossover tone will be a little better received by our new minister than the sight of me wielding any of my electric basses! The attraction of EUB in Church for an EUB noob like me is that there is a whole chunk of stuff we play every Sunday so I'm hoping repetition will lead to familiarity and then eventually competence if not mastery. Will probably start taking both EUB and electric bass down there and play EUB for this core repertoire and the electric bass for the stuff (hymns mainly) that changes every week.

If I've done my home work right I think it should plug straight into the Hi Z input on my Acoustic Image amp (leaving the second Low Z free for an electric bass) I have a SanAmp Bass Driver DI in any event which I could also use to shape the tone independently of the pre-amp section on the AI.

I'm thinking of swapping out the strings, once I've established I can actually play it, and when doing so am thinking of going down the D'Addario Helicore Orchestra route (as recommended by Team Gollihur) and swapping the tuners out for Hipshot Ultralites.

Are there any obvious snake pits I'm going to fall into in any of the above?

a couple of other things...

one piece of the set repertoire has pedal bass throughout in the organ score. Perfect opportunity for some arco playing I think. So what double bass bow would people recommend for a noob? I'm looking at one of the Thomann carbon fibre ones.

Finally has anyone ever put a Hipshot D-Tuner on a WAV 4 or is that a no-no on an EUB or UB?

For cheaper bows carbon fiber is not bad, but don't expect too much from them. For some occasional bowing they are OK. You want quality hair on it. Black or white depends on the bow, strings, rosin, ...
For some long notes any bow with good hair will do the job.
If you want a really good bow, expect to pay more for the bow than for your instrument.

I appreciate your attitude and willingness to try out something new! Please bear in mind that the EUB is really nothing like its electric cousin. There's a different mindset and physicality that goes into the EUB/UB that needs to be taken into account. I don't want to dissuade you from trying; far from it. However, I also don't want you to get it, and then a couple months down the road be frustrated because it's not as easy as the electric and you're not where you wanted/hoped to be.

You can certainly try putting a Hipshot DeTuner on the WAV; I'd check and see how far the post is going to stick out so you can ensure that you get adequate wraps around it to make the DeTuner worth it.

As for bows, I echo everything mentioned. Any bow really benefits from good, quality hair. I had a great bow that was "meh," but once the stock hair was off it and I had it rehaired, it came to life.

Actually, get the NS Electric "Traditional" set - they are the same strings as the Helicore Orchestrals, but sized to fit the NS Basses so you don't have to wrap them around the back of the bass. Added benefit: They're a little cheaper, too!

thanks one and all.

Mark, are these from Thomann.de the right ones?

I daren't buy from the States (though I bought my AI Clarus 2R from Bob back in the day) because the UK Border Agency keeps massively overcharging me for import duties and taxes on mountain bike equipment and then makes me spend months trying to claim the overpayment back!

They are indeed the strings I mean.

Personally, I'd stick with the strings and tuners that come on the bass for a while until you get a feel for how you like it. The world of bass strings is vast and confusing - best tackled after gaining a little experience! You may find that you're perfectly happy with it now and save a bunch of money. Tuners, especially - why not wait until you have a problem with them before changing them?

I cuncur with all the above comments about bows; start out simple and cheap and make sure you have good hair on it. Start out with a medium-hardness rosin until you find out what you like. Nyman, for instance, is a good all-rounder.

I'm not sure what a Sansamp Bass Driver would do for the tone of an NS upright. Those DIs have a pretty strong personality of their own that leans toward sounds that are usually preferred by electric players - not that that's necessarily bad, but if the Hi-Z input of your amp doesn't give you what you want (actually, it should), you may want to look into a preamp/DI that is focussed more toward acoustic-type tones like a Fishman, LR Baggs or the like. Any pre designed to work with double bass pickups should also do well with the piezos in your Wav.

Enjoy your bass! I love my NS. It's a great instrument.