Buying a new bow.

[GuitarFreak664]

I'm an orchestral player in high school and playing in multiple youth symphonies and I am in need of a new bow. I don't need anything amazing and I was in hope of a good suggestion for something no more than 200. Also, I've been reading up on black hair vs white hair and I'm having a hard time coming to a conclusion. I play white hair ATM and I think it could use a bit extra response every now and again. I've heard that black hair can often give a much coarser sound and I was hoping someone could tell me if it makes much of a difference. Since I play mainly in a section I want a nice warm sound when playing especially in higher positions. I want that extra bit of grip if it won't adversely affect my sound. Also if anyone has sound samples of white vs black hair on similar bows I would love to hear them. Any help is greatly appreciated.

EDIT: I am a French style bower so this may or may not affect the harshness of the sound generated by the black hair.

[ao'connor17]

i don't know about french that much, im a german player, but look around on ebay. it may sound like a bad idea but thats where i got my first bow. and people are raving about the upton bass workshop bow ($100). and they come with black horse hair. with the upton, you could probably ask them to send you a bow salt and peppered (black and white horse hair mixed). i prefer black now, its grittier, and i think it sounds better with some helicore strings. good luck

[GuitarFreak664]

Now I'm looking at the Ken Smith Napoli bow. http://www.kensmithbasses.com/double.../KSB_bows.html Any opinions on this bow?

[CamMcIntyre]

For $200ish i'd check out the lowest level bow from Ken Smith, Bob G's Permabuco bow is i think just a bit more [$250ish], and then his normal Brazilwood bows are $150-160. I'm currently playing one of his Brazilwood french bows. However, i'm on the opposite end of the spectrum from you-i play 99% of the time w/my fingers [jazz major that also plays rock & musical theater].

[raebasso]

If you live near a reputable dealer, just go try some bows. You may be surprised by how different they all feel and respond. I just bought a new bow (supposed to be a backup to my ol' faithful), and to my surprise I love it even more (it's now my main bow)! You should have no problem finding a good feeling bow at that price, but you'll have to try them out, so you don't end up shopping again in the near future to replace a bow that you're not happy with! As for black hair, I use it exclusively, but it's a preference. It's a bit grittier, which is great for orchestral stuff. A lot depends on your setup (bass/strings/bow) as to how much of a difference it will make. Good luck!

[shostkontrabass]

I use "salt and pepper" hair. It's kind of inbetween black and white hair: a good amount of grip, but produces a very smooth, warm sound. I haven't used anything else since I first got my bow rehaired with salt and pepper, and I do solo, chamber, and orchestral playing. As for buying a bow, I would go to a local shop, if you have one, pick a few bows in your price range off the shelf, and just sit down with your bass and try everything with it: short, long, hooks, slurs, bounces, et cetera; and then try it in all the different ranges on your instrument. After you do this with 3 or 4 or 5 bows, you'll probably have a good idea of what you're looking for, and if you find one that you really like, most violin shops will let you take it home for a week or two to try out in orchestra and whatever other playing you do.