| A couple years ago I went from a Knoll Brazilwood bow (close to 150 grams) to a Metropolitan and really loved the feel of the carbon fiber. The balance seemed to be similar to some much more expensive bows in my luthier's shop. Then last year I took a chance and bought online a used Marco Raposo Octagonal Pernambuco bow with silver linings and an after-market silver tip. (Right here on TBDB in the classifieds...) 'Used' it was actually less money than the Metropolitan, but it really turned me around. I thought I liked a heavier bow, but after some time with the Raposo, I was converted from that way of thinking. Now the Metropolitan rarely gets taken out of the case. There's something about how the wood of a bow reacts to the wood of the bass - in general and specific to my bow and bass - that the carbon fiber just couldn't replicate. The balance on it is great, and I think when you consider how much more resilient it is against damage, it's still the right bow in certain situations. I'm by no means unhappy that I bought it, and intend to keep it for cetain situations.
My best advice is to get around as many bows as possilble shortly before you're ready to pull the trigger. Try them with your bass and with a bass that you don't know very well - and compare them to the bow you're playing on now. You'll probably feel more comfortable with your old one, but you'll notice things about all the new bows that it can take some time to get to understand. I wouldn't balk at spending 10 or 20 hours demoing bows until you feel like you really know what you're after.
Hope that helps... certainly it's just one player's experience.
Brian Casey
Portland, OR | 
