Acoustic bass guitars

[Lefty Joe]

I have a 30" scale semi hollow bass. It's loud enough to play unplugged at home by yourself and it sounds great plugged in. No feedback even with tube overdrive.

Semi hollow was my first bass, which I would carry around with me and play at any opportunity -- including jamming with acoustic guitarists, unamplified. I definitely had to use a pick to be at all audible. No ABG's back then, woulda been nice.

Gotta say, though: now I do have an ABG, and it doesn't seem much louder. Probably because I favor fingers these days. And finally trained myself out of playing it as hard as I could, just to be heard, which wasn't ideal for either control or tone.

 

[BassicJazzy]

Semi hollow was my first bass, which I would carry around with me and play at any opportunity -- including jamming with acoustic guitarists, unamplified. I definitely had to use a pick to be at all audible. No ABG's back then, woulda been nice.

Gotta say, though: now I do have an ABG, and it doesn't seem much louder. Probably because I favor fingers these days. And finally trained myself out of playing it as hard as I could, just to be heard, which wasn't ideal for either control or tone.

I come away ham fisted if I play my Ovation ABG more than a day at a time. It totally wrecks my touch. That said, there have been periods in the past where I played nothing else for months on end. You can get addicted to the tone, plus the fact that you can play at any time of the day, without disturbing neighbors (or roommates).

 

[andare]

Semi hollow was my first bass, which I would carry around with me and play at any opportunity -- including jamming with acoustic guitarists, unamplified. I definitely had to use a pick to be at all audible. No ABG's back then, woulda been nice.

Gotta say, though: now I do have an ABG, and it doesn't seem much louder. Probably because I favor fingers these days. And finally trained myself out of playing it as hard as I could, just to be heard, which wasn't ideal for either control or tone.

That's why many consider ABGs useless. They're not loud enough acoustically, they might feedback when amplified and they are unnecessarily hard to play.
A semi hollow bass is loud enough for solo unplugged practice, works properly when amplified and it plays like a regular bass, with the obvious quirks of the design.
But of course everyone should play what makes them happy.

 

[Lefty Joe]

That's why many consider ABGs useless. They're not loud enough acoustically, they might feedback when amplified and they are unnecessarily hard to play.
A semi hollow bass is loud enough for solo unplugged practice, works properly when amplified and it plays like a regular bass, with the obvious quirks of the design.
But of course everyone should play what makes them happy.

Home rehearsal is the only reason I got the ABG -- and it didn't disappoint, outside of the fact that the low string doesn't seem to resonate the body quite as well as the rest. Possibly just pushing the edge of the instrument's efficiency, acoustically. If so, that wouldn't bode well for plunging lower.

FWIW, there is a way to semi-amplify an unplugged electric bass: hold it upright on a kitchen table, resting the bottom of the bass on the table top, and the table resonates in sympathy. It's not much -- really just barely noticeable -- but does add a bit of character.