My Bill Paulin EUB is here!!

[RiseOfTheWooten]

The courier arrived earlier than expected and I wasn't home to sign for the carton so I asked them to redirect it to the local post office for me to collect as soon as I can. So I pick up the carton at the post office first thing tomorrow morning, I couldn't care less if I'm late for work.

Bill has been an absolute professional throughout the past couple of months during the making of the EUB, communication was frequent and succinct. Bill also regularly (and unexpectedly though it was always a pleasant surprise) sent me photos showing progress of the EUB at regular intervals. Bill and his wife have been very friendly and open people throughout the whole deal.

These are the photos of the EUB taken by Bill Paulin himself, as well as some photos of the work in progress over the past couple of months:

[jrduer]

Congratulations! Nice pics.

My new Ergo is supposed to ship this week, and I can't wait.

~John

[Nazar Jazz]

Congratulations on a purchase! Does the neck feel as that of an upright? Any sound samples?

[RiseOfTheWooten]

Originally Posted by jrduer

Congratulations! Nice pics.

My new Ergo is supposed to ship this week, and I can't wait.

~John

Ah I can empathise with you having to wait. Mind if I ask what kind of tunes you'll be playing on your Ergo? I'm going to using my EUB in a jazz/pop/fusion context, but I'll be mostly experimenting with it as well.

[jrduer]

Originally Posted by RiseOfTheWooten

Ah I can empathise with you having to wait. Mind if I ask what kind of tunes you'll be playing on your Ergo? I'm going to using my EUB in a jazz/pop/fusion context, but I'll be mostly experimenting with it as well.

I'll be using it immediately in a Kingston Trio tribute band (I like Paul Gabrielson's work with the Trio over the years). But I really want to branch out, and use it in a more blues/rock-oriented setting. I'm completely self-taught, at this point, so I'll probably also be looking for a teacher to "unlearn" my bad habits.

~John

[RiseOfTheWooten]

Originally Posted by Nazar Jazz

Congratulations on a purchase! Does the neck feel as that of an upright? Any sound samples?

I'll pick up the EUB first thing tomorrow but I would pretty much have to head off to work immediately. It's going to be a very distracted day at work till I get home again. No points for any guesses as to what I'll be doing all weekend!

This is my first EUB so I will be experimenting a lot with this baby until I find 'my sound' on it, as well as how to best to record it. I intend to post sound samples when I do.

[RiseOfTheWooten]

Originally Posted by jrduer

I'll be using it immediately in a Kingston Trio tribute band (I like Paul Gabrielson's work with the Trio over the years). But I really want to branch out, and use it in a more blues/rock-oriented setting.

I've been expanding my musical horizons in recent times myself. I happened to be listening to a bit of Celtic/Irish/Scottish folk in the past couple of months while the EUB was being made. Have you heard of Kate Rusby?

Originally Posted by jrduer

I'm completely self-taught, at this point, so I'll probably also be looking for a teacher to "unlearn" my bad habits.

I started off with a very good teacher first, to learn the correct technique, and then I've been on my own. I bet my technique has wandered off from 'correct' since then....

[jrduer]

Haven't heard Kate Rusby. I went to her site, and tried to listen to some clips, but those links weren't working. Maybe I should buy a CD...

Thanks for the tip.

Edit: And while we're on the subject of EUBs, I've been trying to figure out a setup that would let me switch from 5-string electric, to EUB, to acoustic/electric, without carrying several amps/cabs around with me. Any thoughts? I'm mainly concerned about plugging/unplugging, and EQing different instruments.

~John

[RiseOfTheWooten]

Originally Posted by jrduer

Edit: And while we're on the subject of EUBs, I've been trying to figure out a setup that would let me switch from 5-string electric, to EUB, to acoustic/electric, without carrying several amps/cabs around with me. Any thoughts? I'm mainly concerned about plugging/unplugging, and EQing different instruments.

Funny you should bring that up. I've been wanting to get a rig for a while but decided to put in the money for this EUB. Now that I've got it, I'll be on hunt for a rig that can do exactly what you're describing. It'll all come down to money though, I'll be buying the best of whatever I can afford. I'll see what I can find out and post here. Unless there are TBers who can advise?

Incidently, another owner of one of Bill's EUB (also a TBer) advises that he's been using the Eden WT 330 amp and Eden T10210xST speaker.

[jrduer]

My thoughts so far have run like this: Plug my electric 5er into my rig (Ashdown ABM 500/Aguilar GS212), and run a direct signal to the board; plug the acoustic/electric straight into the board through a DI, and fold it back through the monitors; and run the EUB direct, as well.

Or, maybe use an A/B box, and run both the EUB and the acoustic/electric through the same DI/board channel. If I use two EQ/preamps, one each for the EUB and the acoustic/electric, and EQ the board flat, then I wouldn't have to worry about changing the EQ setting on the electric rig.

Or, perhaps, get a second, smaller combo, and run the EUB and acoustic/electric through that, so the monitors don't get jammed up with low frequencies.

This is all giving me a headache...

~John

[RiseOfTheWooten]

I picked up the EUB first thing this morning as soon as the post office opened, they practically know me there because it's close to my home and they were curious what was in the box. The EUB was very securely packed in a crate made by Bill himself.

The EUB itself is beautiful, the photos do not do it justice until I finally saw it for myself. I'll see about taking some photos of my own and posting them here.

I didn't have much time to spend with the EUB before having to rush to work but the action felt great, comparable to the double basses I've played. It'll take a little getting used to, not having a large double bass body leaning against me but boy the fingerboard felt very fast and accessible when playing the higher notes, particularly in thumb position. The fingerboard itself looks amazing. The unamplified tone sounded full and well rounded to my ears, I'll put it through the little practice amp and the MBox over the weekend. I intend to purchase a rig sometime in the next few months so I'll be bringing it around to the shops and trying things out, I need to get something that I can plug my bass guitars into as well. So with that in mind, I don't think I'll be able to fully explore what I can do with the EUB yet.

It came out of the crate in tune. The double bass I've been playing feels like it has a slightly longer scale, so I had to adjust my playing a little to get my intonation right. I'll have a better look when I get home tonight.

I should add that Bill included 2 extra bridges in the crate on top of the bridge already 'installed' on the EUB, to allow me to play around with string height. One of the extra bridges is a non-fitted/filed blank for me to experiment with.

[RiseOfTheWooten]

Originally Posted by jrduer

My thoughts so far have run like this: Plug my electric 5er into my rig (Ashdown ABM 500/Aguilar GS212), and run a direct signal to the board; plug the acoustic/electric straight into the board through a DI, and fold it back through the monitors; and run the EUB direct, as well.

Or, maybe use an A/B box, and run both the EUB and the acoustic/electric through the same DI/board channel. If I use two EQ/preamps, one each for the EUB and the acoustic/electric, and EQ the board flat, then I wouldn't have to worry about changing the EQ setting on the electric rig.

Or, perhaps, get a second, smaller combo, and run the EUB and acoustic/electric through that, so the monitors don't get jammed up with low frequencies.

This is all giving me a headache...

~John

I am anticipating headaches myself! But the limiting factor for me will be money so that'll keep the headaches to a neccesary minimum for now..

I'm not sure how the EUB will respond to EQ-ing and/or effects, or maybe I run it flat with or without a compressor. I've never amplified my DB actually so this is all new to me.

[ToneRanger]

Originally Posted by RiseOfTheWooten

Incidently, another owner of one of Bill's EUB (also a TBer) advises that he's been using the Eden WT 330 amp and Eden 210XST speaker.

That'd be me!
Last week I had my first gig where I swapped between EUB and BG. I found I didn't need to change EQ at all - I generally leave my EQ fairly flat, except for adjusting low end to suit the room. I found I had to boost the lows on my Warwick BG a little to make it sound as fat as the EUB - other than that, I was able to swap around without touching the controls.

[rockola]

Here's a shot of Bill Paulin with four of his EUB's taken yesterday at the Brisbane Timber & Working With Wood Show. I tried the one on the right, his personal instrument as I understand - veeery nice.

[wookiephil]

Edit: And while we're on the subject of EUBs, I've been trying to figure out a setup that would let me switch from 5-string electric, to EUB, to acoustic/electric, without carrying several amps/cabs around with me. Any thoughts? I'm mainly concerned about plugging/unplugging, and EQing different instruments.

~John

I've just purchased an EUB from Bill. it should arrive in a week

I'm planning to purchase a Radial BassBone to do the switching/EQ between my 5'er and EUB
( http://www.tonebone.com/tb-bassbone.htm )

Pretty powerful piece of gear for those of us without a Eden rig

--phil