acoustic bass? michael kelly firefly???

pbass337 · #1 08-16-2010, 11:26 PM

so im looking for an acoustic bass nothing too pricey. i dont want posts that say like "well if youre willing to spend a bit more..." i dont wanna pay that much. i dont have too much money. im looking at the 4 string michael kelly firefly right now.

so basically i want to know a good cheap bass. nothing over lets say $450. or a review(?) or something of the firefly

bellis1 · #2 08-16-2010, 11:32 PM

I found a Michael Kelly Firefly Fretless Acoustic for $500. If you research enough, and don't rush it - something good will come up.

5string5fingers · #3 08-16-2010, 11:33 PM

Ibanez AEB10

**Engine207** · #4 08-17-2010, 07:39 AM

I just sold my 4-string Firefly for $225. Nice little (huge) bass, but I just never seemed to play it...

jhines · #5 08-17-2010, 07:58 AM

I have a Morgan Monroe MVAB-500. It is a four string, fretted and has a pretty comfortable neck. I believe it is in your price range with a nice hardshell case. The finish and overall detailing are very understated (i.e. not a flash "stage" guitar). The preamp is a Fishman but nothing very special.

If you get one, you will want to order some phosphor bronze strings and a set of black tape wound strings. Give them both a try as they have very different sounds but both sound acoustic'y.

As a huge side note, and I know you didn't want to hear this, the Martin BC-15E is super and the Tacoma Thunderchief is pretty good too...if you can find one.

4Mal · #6 08-17-2010, 09:02 AM

Used Thunderchief or nothing ... so save your sheckles until. IMO - the low end import basses aren't lively. The tops are way too stiff and tone suffers as a result. Same thing with low end import acoustic guitars. My Tacoma was about $500 in the case, used in near perfect condition - so they are out there but you do have to look and be patient.

kevcooke · #7 08-17-2010, 09:11 AM

I have a Michael Kelly Club Custom 5. Very quiet unplugged (to be expected), but sounds nice. Plugged in, it doesn't pick up the low B even slightly - very disappointing. Biggest waste of money on a piece of gear I ever spent if I'm going to be honest about it.

Joe Nerve · #8 08-17-2010, 09:23 AM

Well, if you were willing to spend a little more you could get just about anything. But you're not, so I'll go with what you're asking.

I had to.

I've got a fretless firefly, or dragonfly (I forget). Bought it a long time ago when they were still 32" scale. It's a beautiful bass, and sounds awesome plugged in. Acoustically it's not all that loud however. I own 3 acoustic basses by the way. The other 2 are a Carlo Robelli which I won, and a 5 string JBP which I bought at NAMM after searching endlessly for an affordable decent 5 string.

It seems from all the basses that I checked out while at NAMM that the cheaper the bass the worse the amplified sound. Diffferent string volumes, not as rich as the more expensive ones, distortion when you start EQing a bit, etc. My Carlo Robelli is like that, yet it definitely has the best tone and most volume unplugged. And while I like my MK lots, a few years ago I ordered a fretted one online. It had neck issues down near the 12th fret on the G string. Unplayable notes. I returned it. They sent me another. Had the same issue. I saw that as a huge red flag, contacted MK asking if they could send me a decent bass, and they responded saying they would fix the one I had, but couldn't/ wouldn't do anything about me getting one that didn't need fixing. ???? That completely turned me off to them. That plus the fact that I think their quality control in the early days was phenomenal, and that that all went out the window. They used to auction factory 2nds on ebay at a discount. It's how I got mine. The ONLY thing wrong w mine is that it has a pinhead size dot of white paint on the underside of the neck. The bass is flawless otherwise. I doubt I'd ever buy another MK, but if I did I for sure wouldn't without trying it first. Unless i could return it w no problems.

Your best bet is to probably do what you're doing by researching here, trying to get to stores to check some out, and then either buying one cuz you fell in love with it, or ordering online where you can return it if it's not the one for you. Lots of companies put out affordable ABGs now. And DON'T buy one of the bargain ebay ones. I did and it was joke that I was embarrassed to resell for $50.

pbass337 · #9 08-17-2010, 10:39 AM

thanks for the ideas. i think im looking for something four string (neck size just seams too big for me) and i prefer fretted basses. the thunderchief looks beautiful and from the videos it sounds great but a little out of my price range right now

pbass337 · #10 08-17-2010, 10:59 AM

OH! ALSO ANOTHER QUESTION! michael kelly firefly or dragonfly: which is better for the money and review if possible???

LAPetrarca · #11 08-18-2010, 09:45 AM

Copied and pasted my resppnse to a similar post earlier today............

Personally, after having owned several, I'd say go fretless. I've owned fretted acoustic basses by several manufacturers but was NEVER satisfied because every one had an annoying "fret rattle". I finally switched to a Michael Kelly fretless and added a set of tapewounds and voila! It sounds VERY good. No annoying rattle and I can tweek the tone to sound alot like an upright.

Which leads me to another issue.......

No matter the make, no matter the model, no matter what ANYBODY says about how much louder one make or model is than another, you MUST accept the fact that if you're going to jam along with more than one or two acoustic guitars, you WILL NEED to plug in. It's just a fact you must accept or you'll be completely disenchanted. A small practice amp, 35 watts or so, will do just fine!

ps: LOVE my MK Dragonfly!
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Joe Nerve · #12 08-18-2010, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pbass337

OH! ALSO ANOTHER QUESTION! michael kelly firefly or dragonfly: which is better for the money and review if possible???

I thought the only difference was the inlay? Just checked and mine is the the firefly. The neck inlay is a lot less elaborate than what I remember on the dragonfly. 32" scale (pretty sure they don't make them any more). No complaints. Was bought, as already mentioned, before they went into mass production. I'm quite certain many things changed at MK after I purchased mine.

MNAirHead · #13 08-18-2010, 10:56 AM

You're decribing an AEB10....

Joe Nerve · #14 08-18-2010, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MNAirHead

You're decribing an AEB10....

Me?

No. It's a firefly. Curious why you say that though.

MNAirHead · #15 08-18-2010, 11:27 AM

no silly .. the OP "pbass337"

basspraiser · #16 08-18-2010, 12:11 PM

I will have to let you know soon....I have a slightly used Kelly Dragonfly coming later this week or early next week.

I would say you can find a decent Dragonfly used for less than your budget (I did)....will post more about feel and voume etc when I get a chance to play it some....

have fun trying some EABs out - I did!

PS - my GAS is REALLY for a nice Rick Turner or an upper level Breedlove but these are more than I wanted to spend right now....

lazyone2 · #17 08-18-2010, 12:22 PM

If you look on e-bay there are alot of Michael Kelly Acoustc Bass Guitars for sale new and under the price you don't want to go over.