Hello, everyone...
Just need some advice on how to tackle something. I have an entry-level carved bass I bought back in 2001 and got it set up locally. At the time (and now) I didn't truly know what I was doing, and just had to trust the bass to be "good enough". All I knew it that the bass ended up being a lot more playable than the university borrowed Englehardt that I was loaned for the first couple of months.
Now that I'm dedicating a lot more (all of my) practice time to DB (pizz/Jazz but using the bow for intonation practice), I want to make sure I'm in a decent spot with this bass, since I spend literally two hours a day working with it. I know I need to change out the strings from the almost 20 year old D'Addario Helicore Orchestra strings.
The bass seems "fine" but a little unfocused on the E string...woofy instead of growly. And I just am not sure it's "easy to play" compared to a good bass.
Anyway, I do intend to get a luthier to get it set up if I can find a good one in MD, but really also want some unbiased opinions regarding sound, and whether this bass is a keeper for ever, or needs to be upgraded (timeline based on calculations of "good enough to spend two hours on daily for a while... or...I'll make MUCH better use of time if I upgrade sooner).
Electric is much easier. I got a "good enough" bass pretty quick into my journey back in 95. My starter bass (Yamaha RBX) was playable and didn't mess me up as I was beginning, but it really wasn't a "pro" bass in terms of providing playability and sound that I'd ultimately need for all the music I was playing. I moved to a "good" bass (StingRay 5...obviously a much smaller investment), and then any bass above that (and I've had plenty), were just above that line. I still rely on my StingRays as my primary gigging basses, and though I have an American Jazz and went through my boutique phase, no bass was truly better than the other...just different.
For DB, I need to understand what that line is. I understand there are a lot of factors here. I'm not going to be an orchestral player, but would use the bow at times for musical expression (and technical practice), but assume that's 25 to 30% of my need vs using it for jazz combos, big band, and for "dinner" sets with my current corporate band. And if it helps me sound like Adam Ben Ezra, then all the better.
I hope that makes sense. Anyway...any advice? Anyone willing to meet at some parking lot in a socially distanced way and try this bass? Or is there a luthier one could recommend locally that REALLY would in an unbiased way point me in the right direction?
It's really NOT a good investment to spend hours and days of research into what is pure speculation until I can form that baseline. Hope that makes sense, and thanks for any advice.
Just need some advice on how to tackle something. I have an entry-level carved bass I bought back in 2001 and got it set up locally. At the time (and now) I didn't truly know what I was doing, and just had to trust the bass to be "good enough". All I knew it that the bass ended up being a lot more playable than the university borrowed Englehardt that I was loaned for the first couple of months.
Now that I'm dedicating a lot more (all of my) practice time to DB (pizz/Jazz but using the bow for intonation practice), I want to make sure I'm in a decent spot with this bass, since I spend literally two hours a day working with it. I know I need to change out the strings from the almost 20 year old D'Addario Helicore Orchestra strings.
The bass seems "fine" but a little unfocused on the E string...woofy instead of growly. And I just am not sure it's "easy to play" compared to a good bass.
Anyway, I do intend to get a luthier to get it set up if I can find a good one in MD, but really also want some unbiased opinions regarding sound, and whether this bass is a keeper for ever, or needs to be upgraded (timeline based on calculations of "good enough to spend two hours on daily for a while... or...I'll make MUCH better use of time if I upgrade sooner).
Electric is much easier. I got a "good enough" bass pretty quick into my journey back in 95. My starter bass (Yamaha RBX) was playable and didn't mess me up as I was beginning, but it really wasn't a "pro" bass in terms of providing playability and sound that I'd ultimately need for all the music I was playing. I moved to a "good" bass (StingRay 5...obviously a much smaller investment), and then any bass above that (and I've had plenty), were just above that line. I still rely on my StingRays as my primary gigging basses, and though I have an American Jazz and went through my boutique phase, no bass was truly better than the other...just different.
For DB, I need to understand what that line is. I understand there are a lot of factors here. I'm not going to be an orchestral player, but would use the bow at times for musical expression (and technical practice), but assume that's 25 to 30% of my need vs using it for jazz combos, big band, and for "dinner" sets with my current corporate band. And if it helps me sound like Adam Ben Ezra, then all the better.
I hope that makes sense. Anyway...any advice? Anyone willing to meet at some parking lot in a socially distanced way and try this bass? Or is there a luthier one could recommend locally that REALLY would in an unbiased way point me in the right direction?
It's really NOT a good investment to spend hours and days of research into what is pure speculation until I can form that baseline. Hope that makes sense, and thanks for any advice.
