Recent content by Pentabass

This project got initiated because the top bend in about 3mm under the E- foot of the bridge. Since the bass has a decent resonant tone, it was felt that the effort should be made... However we are talking about a Hamburg model, Vienna Strings Instruments by Jim Laabs. These factory made...

The better pipe and cigar stores know all about two way humidity controll. You can get fresh humidipacks (Boveda) for about a dollar each from them.

Martin, if you were to shorten the tailpiece wire, and keep your tailpiece the same length, then you would lengthen your afterlength, thereby lowering the note it makes, yes. I did this with a shorter tailpiece, so that i got only two octaves, exactly, with a little fine tuning help. What...

Thanks to all for the suggestions. I have send messages... waiting for replies. In the meantime I keep the existing strings, swapping the A and raise the G string tunings (Raising the highest string to A and dropping the second lowest to G) and try to have some fun. The E does not sound good if...

Thank you, Mike, for your thoughts. For a moment, I thought: maybe I could keep the existing low E, and go up from there in fifths, E B F# C# , however then I realized that I might be loosing some of the proposed benefits of fifth tuning anyways: None of my existing cello fingering...

Thank you for the suggestion. I will follow up.

@ eub_player: I am not adverse to trying that approach, even though then I might as well take a cello. Remember as well that a cello has about 27 inch speaking length, whereas the 1/4 bass has 35 inches. @ Nathan: In the same vein, I would try your suggestion, GDAE, but my question is: do...

I would like to convert a lovely little 1/4 Wilfer ply with a speaking length of 35 inches, into fifths tuning. (CGDA) I would like to do 80% arco. The current set, (likely a set Thomastic superflexible orchestral tuning EADG) has a pleasing arco sound, but the lowest string becomes wooshy and...

You mentioned doing an adjustment prior to this starting. Are you sure the screws are in properly, not cross threaded, not stripped? Try using a straight bridge that has no adjusters and see if it will tolerate tension. May be it is time to give the bass a soft 'apron' above and below...

Hi Brian, this is good advice. By the way: I can't make out the picture too well: are you holding a lollipop in your mouth? Like Kojak, the detective ;-)

My vote would go to a separate case for the neck/fingerboard. Something more along a traditional gun case -- maybe also accommodating the bows and the tailpiece. However, for the body of the bass, my method of custom 'cloaking' the instrument in a composite (fibreglass or carbon fibre with...

Oh, yes, I am not too worried about the case being able to 'breathe' somewhere. (have you ever tried to open a Pelican camera case after a flight between different altitudes?). If you are concerned about moisture, or such, I would presume it is quite easy to put a strip of closed cell foam...

This particular incarnation was made in great haste - yet it works quite well: two pieces of cardboard were riveted together to form the base as you see it, sandwiching the nylon straps that offer the plastic rings through which the rope glides. The colourful rope is tightened in the same way...

Tell me more... I never saw that one.

Lets say you want to play one octave of the D major scale, on the D string. Do you play: 0 1 3 4 1 3 2 3 or: 0 1 3 1 2 1 2 3 or : 0 1 4 1 4 1 2 4 or : 0 1 4 1 4 1 2 3 or what?