Covers, cases - soft etc. for Double Bass?

[Bruce Lindfield]

The soft,padded cover that came with my 3/4 DB has started to rip down the side and is unravelling fast, so I need another one.

I've been looking online and there seem to be many options - things that are bags, varying amounts of padding - some that are like light, hard cases with some stiff parts and padding.

The other thing is the price - so looking around £250 seems to be fairly common - double for $ - now that's a lot of money - of course it'll be worth it to get the right thing - but I have no real idea what the pros and cons are, of particular models.

So I would of course appreciate any general advice - but I would be especially interested in the 3 or 4 options that I am considering at the moment :

http://www.djmmusic.com/items.asp?Ca...atus=0&Tp=&Bc=

So at the above link I am thinking about the two Ritter options and the Stentor vinyl padded cover for 3/4 DB.

The former are the expensive end at £250 while the Stentor is cheaper at £98.

I also noticed the following, which is reduced to about £150 :

http://www.bill-lewington.com/protec/c313.htm

Which looks a bit different and I wondered if anybody has any experience of these?

Thanks

[Bruce Lindfield]

PS - I did a search - but this topic doesn't seem to have come up before - I found one thread about repairing a soft cover - but I'm not up to that!!

[christ andronis]

Bruce, I'm very happy with my Mooradian Deluxe: www.mooradian.com. It's held up really well through some adverse conditions. I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that it fit my bass much more snugly than my old case and the extra padding protects alot better. I was expecting the nylon exterior to be light and prone to snagging, but, again, was surprised at how durable it seems to be. Well worth the money, IMO. Best of luck in your search.

[anonymous0726]

This oen looks interesting to me: http://www.violins.demon.co.uk/basscase.htm

[Bruce Lindfield]

Originally Posted by Ray Parker

This oen looks interesting to me: http://www.violins.demon.co.uk/basscase.htm

Yes - I think I'm going for one of these!

I did some more searching and found I can get them from :

www.thomann.de

...and with the strength of the £ against the Euro, I'm looking at about £160, rather than £250!!

[wphantom]

Hi all,

I had the same problematic a few days ago. I was looking at the Protec C313 deluxe that looks fine but I haven't seen a real review of it.

Finally I just order from a french Luthier a model that seems identical to the Professional Case from Bob Gollihur ( this one http://www.gollihur.com/kkbass/dbcase.html#dlux). It is 25mm really dense padding a lot of handles, backstraps a shoulder strap & small wheels (not really to use outdoor imho). It also has a semirigid reinforcement in the bottom. I have seen it and ordered it. I will receive mine on thursday so I can tell more about it (if I'm not satisfied, the luthier takes it back so, no risks for me).

Sylvain Clément aka WPhantom


I got it for 229€ so that it would be I think around £160.

[Bruce Lindfield]

That looks good - I was thinking of this Ritter one for 237 Euro :




CLASSIC DOUBLE BASS BAG 3/4 RCDB 700-T/BG, 17mmsoft-upholstering with reinforcing elements, stablewaterresistant polyester, 3 upholstered grips, adjustablerucksack-straps and hip-straps, removable handy-bag,light-reflecting stripes, big A 4 bag and an additionalbag on the front, removable upholstered bow bag, strongand stable zipper, reinforcing elements on the inside(scroll & bridge), reinforcing rubber element all over theoutside. Colour: black/grey

[Chef]

I use a Bobelock bag that I bought from Brent Norton, here:
http://www.nortoncustoms.com/bass_ac...ass-bags-cases
I've been gigging it 2-3 nights a week for about 18 months, and so far it's still in "as new" condition. Great bag for me anyway...
some more info here:
http://www.bobelock.com/softInstrumentBags/bass.html

[M Ramsey]

Bruce,

I've had a Protec (same as in your picture) for about 5-6 years now and I love it. When you get into good bass bags they can be quite heavy and this one is as well. But, it does a really good job of protecting my basses. I've had to repair a couple of handles (failry simple with rivets and washers) but that comes with most any bag with time. I play bluegrass and usually haul my bass out 5-7 times per month.

One thing that I like about this bag, is the really soft velvety interior. Also, the foam on the front of the bag can be replaced if it ever deteriorates. I haven't had to replace it yet.

In my humble opinion, this bag rivals the old Reunion Blues bag faor about half what they USED to cost.

[Tomasito]

Hi Bruce,

I've had the Ritter Cover with the thicker 25mm padding for about 8 months, and have found it very sturdy so far. I went for the version with the thicker padding because I tend to knock my bass a fair bit; and out of GAS, because I'd only ever had those plasticy one-ply covers before!

My bass always feels really secure in the bag, but there are two things that bother me about it: It doesn't fold down anywhere near as much as those squishier covers that a lot of guys use, and it's also a fair bit heavier (although its not excessively heavy.) The other thing that you perhaps don't envisage until youve had a go with the thing is that you might not be comfortable putting the cover on the bass in the vertical position. Doing so involves hanging the top of the cover on the scroll (because of where the zip stops,) and I sometimes feel like I've not got as much control as I'd like - my bass looks it's age already so I risk it occaisionally, but you really have to lay the cover on the floor and put the bass away that way.

Mine is the thicker cover though, so the 17mm one is bound to be lighter and more compact. I think if I was buying today I'd go for it over the thicker one if I didn't bang into doorframes so often!

The handles (sensibly placed) and seams are nice and robust, and the fabric of the outside is pretty hard wearing, I think it would be easy to repair if I ever had to - the handles would just stitch back on. There's plenty of room for paraphernalia - when I've had to travel light (if that's possible with a double bass ) I've been able to hide a Real Book, instrument and power leads, 4-way, wooly jumper etc. without feeling I was compromising the safety of my bass. I don't take the bow out on amp gigs (Spiros + Shadow!) so I've never risked a bow in the front pockets, but you could easily fit a couple of bows in their own cases. The backpack straps are redundant for me though. I'm 5 foot 6 and it just isn't happening!

Well, I hope my first post hasn't been too long winded! These things are important though, and we don't really have a great many options this side of the pond do we!

Cheers all, best wishes,

Tomasito

[Bruce Lindfield]

Yes thanks for that - I placed an order with Thomann and I noticed they have a lot of DB-related stuff at pretty good prices, as compared to England...

[curious_george]

Originally Posted by Tomasito

Hi Bruce,

I've had the Ritter Cover with the thicker 25mm padding for about 8 months, and have found it very sturdy so far. I went for the version with the thicker padding because I tend to knock my bass a fair bit; and out of GAS, because I'd only ever had those plasticy one-ply covers before!

My bass always feels really secure in the bag, but there are two things that bother me about it: It doesn't fold down anywhere near as much as those squishier covers that a lot of guys use, and it's also a fair bit heavier (although its not excessively heavy.) The other thing that you perhaps don't envisage until youve had a go with the thing is that you might not be comfortable putting the cover on the bass in the vertical position. Doing so involves hanging the top of the cover on the scroll (because of where the zip stops,) and I sometimes feel like I've not got as much control as I'd like - my bass looks it's age already so I risk it occaisionally, but you really have to lay the cover on the floor and put the bass away that way.

Mine is the thicker cover though, so the 17mm one is bound to be lighter and more compact. I think if I was buying today I'd go for it over the thicker one if I didn't bang into doorframes so often!

The handles (sensibly placed) and seams are nice and robust, and the fabric of the outside is pretty hard wearing, I think it would be easy to repair if I ever had to - the handles would just stitch back on. There's plenty of room for paraphernalia - when I've had to travel light (if that's possible with a double bass ) I've been able to hide a Real Book, instrument and power leads, 4-way, wooly jumper etc. without feeling I was compromising the safety of my bass. I don't take the bow out on amp gigs (Spiros + Shadow!) so I've never risked a bow in the front pockets, but you could easily fit a couple of bows in their own cases. The backpack straps are redundant for me though. I'm 5 foot 6 and it just isn't happening!

Well, I hope my first post hasn't been too long winded! These things are important though, and we don't really have a great many options this side of the pond do we!

Cheers all, best wishes,

Tomasito

I agree with tomasitoI also have the ritter bag except i have the more padded one. Not only do i love the bag but it looks cool too. About the backpack, you really have to hike it up on your back but it is great for long distances i.e walking the half of a mile to my dorm from the music building.
The one criticism i have is that i wish the bow pouch was a little larger to fit my hard case, but ill live.

[Mike Crumpton]

I need a case too and was looking at Bassbags - (about £120) coz they're made down the road in Derbyshire, and Westbury (£135 with wheels - 110 without and 22mm padding - you can get less padding cheaper) which have to made in China for the price - I think I've seen one of these at a distance coz the case has wheels in it. They are availble at the musiccorner.co.uk who don't stock them - they order them from soundpost when they get your order and get this, if you ring them up they just fill in a web form like the same as what you do ordering on line - this all makes me suspicious coz for all they're trumpetting of the web site about being a Christian company and filling it with fish logos they don't seem too bothered to know what the **** they're selling. And it will take 2 weeks delivery - unacceptable in this day and age.

My case that's fallen apart cost £250 and was a lemon. My sometime teacher paid £350 and that needed stitching up after a month or so and a leather patch put on. It seems price and quality don't go together. Other cheap cases - Turner violins sell a Warwick rock bag for £89.

When it comes to padding I now know form my expensive trash falling apart that the padding was thick but flimsy - not dense at all, and like most foam, decays with age. In fact, most nylon and other articfical fabrics can decay - UV light being a aprticular enemy - they go stiff, then the waterproof coating on the insde (which admittedly you don't normally see) starts to flake away then they just well - fall apart.

Having this big downer on cases i'm relluctant to spend £250 again. I can be careless and accident prone on occassions but I do take care of the bass. I've noticed several pro jazzers didn't have particularly bullet proof cases. Unlike the New Yorkers everyone drives to gigs I guess.

Cases are also sold on the number of pockets and handles. This is fine, but if you want to weaken something just put more seems and stitches in it. I'll probably go for bassbags unless I can see and closely inspect someone elses I think is better.

I like the point someone made about squishing up - one gig I'm doing on Sunday in fact is such that I traipse back to the car with the empty case.

However, IMHO, its not quality of cloth and number of pockets and handles that matter most if at all - they're all of a muchness, it's quality of zips in particular and stitching - coz that's what's ruined my case. I can't stitch it back together either because of the way it was made andn the way it's come apart. I have realised that if I had a wheel it might have lasted a whole lot longer. I am getting a wheel.

And I don't know about you lot, but if I want to carry music, rosin, my bow, another endpin and all the other marvellous pockets they stitch in so you bass wont stay on it's side and comes to lie bridge down in the road (this happenned once - but only once), I put them in my gig bag that I have to hand on the gig unlike the large unweildy case that gets put in the corner out of the way. I do this coz it's easiest - not coz the case wasn't designed properly BTW.

One final thought - even if the padding is 30mm, it will only protect the bass against say short (I mean short) sharp knocks on the back and sides - what it wont do is protect the bass where it is most vulnerable - to any force on the bridge or any sustained force in any direction. Protection given by cases wth heavy versus light padding I suspect is more reassuring than real.

[Mike Crumpton]

The Ritter may well be good but I don't beleive this:

Reflective safety strips
Large music pouch
MP3 player and headphone pocket
Front gusseted accesory pouch
Integrated mobile phone pouch

A bass case is just the pace I'm going to stick my moby (cellphone to you) now and just in case I've forgotten where I've left it I can always look out for those reflective strips.

[Aaron Saunders]

Well, the reflective strips are for when you're walking at night, so that you're more easily viewable. Think about it -- generally on nice gigs and considering today's general fashion sense (at least in Toronto) -- black wool coats seem to be the general wear. Gigs -- suits? Anyway, usually dark clothes.

Personally, I'd rather have reflective strips on my bass bag and NOT be hit by a random car (having my bass cushion the impact, of course) than walking around with something slightly more "stylish."

I'm in the market for a new bag myself. I definitely need to get one before going away to school next year, and I've been looking at the Ritter bags for some time now. Sounds like I'll be buying something (probably a Ritter) after I'm done (for a time) with my string experimentation.

[Chris Fitzgerald]

Originally Posted by HARRUMPHTON

Protection given by cases wth heavy versus light padding I suspect is more reassuring than real.

I used to think that, too, until I stumbled into a Soundwear case (came with the bass when I bought it). At first I was kind of annoyed because it balanced differently and was heavy as hell, but I've given it some pretty serious accidental whacks on doorframes and the like, and not a mark on the bass. Plus, the rubberized portions are designed to cover the places where your case is most likely to contact the ground when your bass is in it, so you can set it down briefly on a wet sidewalk without worrying about saturating the case. I'll likely buy another one for my new office bass when it arrives.

[Aaron Saunders]

Oh, also, I've had a Ritter bag for my slab for a while now. It's not even one of the really nice ones -- it's great, but there are much better ones available. Anyway, the padding is great, pockets are great, handles, straps, everything top notch. I've been using it for almost two years now to great effect. It's fit all 3 of my basses very well, and protects them marvelously. A buddy of mine also has an acoustic guitar bag he uses for a Blueridge, a nice classical, and an Epi jazzbox (not sure what model) and I've seen it take some nasty knocks, and none of his guitars have ever received a single mark while in that bag. His is a step up from mine with more (and more roomy) pockets.

[Bruce Lindfield]

Originally Posted by Chris Fitzgerald

I used to think that, too, until I stumbled into a Soundwear case (came with the bass when I bought it). At first I was kind of annoyed because it balanced differently and was heavy as hell, but I've given it some pretty serious accidental whacks on doorframes and the like, and not a mark on the bass. Plus, the rubberized portions are designed to cover the places where your case is most likely to contact the ground when your bass is in it, so you can set it down briefly on a wet sidewalk without worrying about saturating the case. I'll likely buy another one for my new office bass when it arrives.

I did look at the Soundwear covers as they had an advert in the last issue of Double Bassist magazine - but then I looked at the prices - up to £575 - and I rejected them pretty quickly!!

When I get my £10k-£15k bass - then I will buy one of those covers !!

[Tomasito]

Originally Posted by Mike Crumpton

The Ritter may well be good but I don't beleive this:

Reflective safety strips
Large music pouch
MP3 player and headphone pocket
Front gusseted accesory pouch
Integrated mobile phone pouch

A bass case is just the pace I'm going to stick my moby (cellphone to you) now and just in case I've forgotten where I've left it I can always look out for those reflective strips.

Absolutely, I'm not inclined to put my phone, or anything much, in the pockets - especially because the raison d'etre of the thing is that I WILL bash it into lamposts etc! I think they hype the reflective strips and 'MP3 pocket' to ensnare the 'youff' market Actually I suppose that's probably me!

Another reason for perhaps choosing a slightly less padded case (like the 17mm padded version Bruce has plumped for,) is that it will probably eliminate some of that 'If I leave my bass here, will it roll over?' worry. I admit I do usually end up double checking that.

Originally Posted by Mike Crumpton

I need a case too and was looking at Bassbags - (about £120) coz they're made down the road in Derbyshire, and Westbury (£135 with wheels - 110 without and 22mm padding - you can get less padding cheaper) which have to made in China for the price - I think I've seen one of these at a distance coz the case has wheels in it. They are availble at the musiccorner.co.uk who don't stock them - they order them from soundpost when they get your order and get this, if you ring them up they just fill in a web form like the same as what you do ordering on line - this all makes me suspicious coz for all they're trumpetting of the web site about being a Christian company and filling it with fish logos they don't seem too bothered to know what the **** they're selling. And it will take 2 weeks delivery - unacceptable in this day and age.

I considered these too, but found that there wasn't much info to go on - like detailed descriptions or pictures for example! Bit strange.

Originally Posted by Bruce Lindfield

I did look at the Soundwear covers as they had an advert in the last issue of Double Bassist magazine - but then I looked at the prices - up to £575 - and I rejected them pretty quickly!!

When I get my £10k-£15k bass - then I will buy one of those covers !!

Exactly, and I think that's key. I was pretty comfortable buying a case unseen, but were my bass more valuable or more delicate I'd consider that more of a gamble.

Tom

[Mike Crumpton]

I've seen Soundware cases much cheaper than that - contact http://www.musical-instrument-suppliers.co.uk/ they did have them starting around £250 maybe less. There is also the new 'Caswells' but they aren't on the web - the link above is a firm set up by the staff at Caswells who had a bit of a falling out so it seems with Mr and Mrs C who belatedly decided to sell as a going concern to people who weren't in the strings business and didn't want them as rivals or maybe vice versa - who knows.