Acoustic Bass Guitar...worth it?

[GretschWretch]

Forget about having a bass with a plugged-in tone your P bass, Jazz, Ric, Stingray, or Thunderbird, can't give you.
Forget about the convenience of just grabbing something for a quite practice session.
Forget about MTV Unplugged...they weren't even unplugged, right?
I don't like acoustic basses so neither should you.

So is it do as I say or do as I do?

 

[mikeoso]

So is it do as I say or do as I do?

Maybe "Do as the people who don't do it do"?

 

[jd56hawk]

So is it do as I say or do as I do?

For the naysayers, apparently.
Me?
I'm one of the biggest acoustic bass fans here.

 

[chadds]

 

[GretschWretch]

For the naysayers, apparently.
Me?
I'm one of the biggest acoustic bass fans here.

Yeah; like we don't know. You are the Dean of high-end Deans.

 

[GretschWretch]

Maybe "Do as the people who don't do it do"?

The references are horribly outdated, but I believe the last verse is germane to your comment.

 

[Felix Lopez]

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[BadSanta1281]

TalkBass...

Where owning multiple P basses is never questioned but the thought of getting one ABG is discouraged.

 

[chadds]

This guy shows how important technique is. He gets all manner of different tones. Do you hear more than a touch of string noise? A better mic would have given us up a better acoustic take. Plugged in and or mic'd this video shows the wonder of the ABG sound.

 

[mikeoso]

This guy shows how important technique is. He gets all manner of different tones. Do you hear more than a touch of string noise? A better mic would have given us up a better acoustic take. Plugged in and or mic'd this video shows the wonder of the ABG sound.

Sound? You want ABG sound? Yo, @kesslari , where you at?

 

[jd56hawk]

Yeah; like we don't know. You are the Dean of high-end Deans.

After B-Mac, of course.

 

[yonatan1991]

We'll ,you have all ready lot of options and opinions.for me what it's work in the end it's acoustic bass thet call Stanford robot 4. The most lound one , and perfect tone for me . Also i have Tacoma tunderchif fretless thet also sound pretty great .

 

[mikeoso]

Why does your byline say you're an acoustic curmudgeon? You are an acoustic diplomat.

Nah...I just spent so many years in the classroom that I'm proficient at being nasty in a polite way.

 

[kesslari]

Sound? You want ABG sound? Yo, @kesslari , where you at?

I recently got this beautiful ABG from Steve Burke. I'm still learning my way around the ABG, it plays very differently than an electric, so I don't consider myself expert on it by any means, but I recorded a song so folks could hear the acoustic sound of the instrument.


A note - for years I was in the "the ergonomics aren't my cup of tea, and to really play with others you need to be amplified, so I'll just play electric, through a battery powered amp if needed".
Since the pandemic and working from home (and living in a truly beautiful part of the world) I wanted to be able to take a 10 min break from work and not have to decide "do I go outside or do I play bass, or do I spend most of the break hauling an amplifier outside so I can play bass?" So my reason for getting an ABG wasn't primarily "to jam with others" but rather to take better advantage of opportunities to practice outside. I'm finding that it has other advantages, and I wind up getting requests from fellow musicians to play it when we play together. Not all the time, but enough...

 

[mikeoso]

What you cant do with an unplugged ABG

Blast their socks off
cut through the mix
blow their ears back
make their ears bleed
slappa da bass
sound like a P but unplugged
sound like a doghouse, but easy to carry
gently finger and get volume
rest a limp wrist on the lower bout while playing
crunch
be heard in a "redneck looking place called the Dew Drop Inn"
Fill the room
get great sound out of a cheap instrument
get great sound out of a small instrument

what you can do with an unplugged ABG

play the kind of bassline that acoustic music calls for
practice unplugged and hear the sound
play in a small jam with reasonable acoustic players
gig in a small quiet venue with reasonable acoustic players

 

[yonatan1991]

I recently got this beautiful ABG from Steve Burke. I'm still learning my way around the ABG, it plays very differently than an electric, so I don't consider myself expert on it by any means, but I recorded a song so folks could hear the acoustic sound of the instrument.


A note - for years I was in the "the ergonomics aren't my cup of tea, and to really play with others you need to be amplified, so I'll just play electric, through a battery powered amp if needed".
Since the pandemic and working from home (and living in a truly beautiful part of the world) I wanted to be able to take a 10 min break from work and not have to decide "do I go outside or do I play bass, or do I spend most of the break hauling an amplifier outside so I can play bass?" So my reason for getting an ABG wasn't primarily "to jam with others" but rather to take better advantage of opportunities to practice outside. I'm finding that it has other advantages, and I wind up getting requests from fellow musicians to play it when we play together. Not all the time, but enough...

Sound amazingggg . I'm afraid to ask how much does it cost.

 

[kesslari]

Sound amazingggg . I'm afraid to ask how much does it cost.

Cost was surprisingly reasonable, and Steve was wonderful to work with. @Steve Burke for details.

 

[mikeoso]

Sound amazingggg . I'm afraid to ask how much does it cost.

As JP Morgan probably didn't say, but could have, "If you have to ask, you can't afford it."

 

[yonatan1991]

Cost was surprisingly reasonable, and Steve was wonderful to work with. @Steve Burke for details.

However i guess you're pretty satisfied . What strings are you use?

 

[yonatan1991]

As JP Morgan probably didn't say, but could have, "If you have to ask, you can't afford it."

I guess so . Maybe a third hand ...haha