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Double Bass Baby Bass megathread

#381
The MOG basses? They are $1200 -- which includes shipping to the US. There are 3 models, and I think they are all the same price. The woods are all native to South America. Granadillo for the necks and purpleheart for the board.

He speaks english (but it's better if you speak Spanish), and will return your emails very quickly.
 
#382
leona1 said:
does anyone here own a ray ramirez compact baby bass?
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I've never played a compact BB, but I've spent some time with a full sized Ray Ramirez bass. I like some of his touches. (I've only played one, so I don't know if this applies to all of his basses, but....) I really like the thicker and wider neck. I really dislike the original necks. They are uncomfortable to me. I can deal with it, but given a preference, I would chose Ray's neck. Also his fingerboard is alot more substantial. I love a nice thick peice of ebony. The Ampegs are flimpsy-er. I guess it doesn't really matter much, but, again, given a chose, I like Ray's board.

And then there are little things that I liked. The input jack is in a much better location and the endpin system seems more stable. Of course, with Ray, you have a ton of options...preamp, wood body, smaller body, piezo pickup, different neck woods, etc.

The tone of this particular bass is pretty close to the original, but not quite as thumpy. It has a strong output, but I thought that running a preamp in front of the amp gave a much punchier tone. The Ray Ramirez bass has alot more sustain. (maybe because of the wooden bridge...or maybe because the bass is hollow.)
 
#383
I added a Schaller magnetic pickup to mine, and couldn't be happier. I was originally going to wire in a tone control so I could roll it off, but it thumps pretty good as is. I ended up having a shorter bridge made out of walnut so I could lower the neck, and I tucked some foam under the bridge protector like I have on my Precission. I don't notice a big difference in sound between the aluminum bridge and the wooden one, even when using the diaphram pickup. The bass is definitely more useable now in a Classic rock setting - and I can't see why it wouldn't be perfect for Latin or Oldies/50's rock as well.

babybassparts035.jpg
 
#385
lowendgrumble said:
I recently acquired a 90's Azola baby bass reissue. The sound is great, and the level of craftsmanship is unparalleled. It's currently strung with spriro weichs.
The only thing is, I'm looking for that old school, very traditional Latin sound, and it's 90% there...just wondering how to get it the rest of the way. Thinking, from what I've read, it might be because the wood bridge opposed to the original aluminum bridges. Any thoughts or insight into getting it the to that extra 10%?
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Hi,
I had the same bass you talk about, and I miss it dearly, but its in good hands now!
I found the closest in getting to an original ampeg BB sound was pulling the volume knob, so its set in passive mode. the volume drops quite a bit, but you can bring it up with your preamp. tone knob all the way down. the sound its fuller.
solo guage thomastik strings, also help. I did tried an aluminum bridge on it from my ampeg, but the sound did not change that much. at least to me ears
good luck man
rb
 
#386
I'ved been experimenting with mixing the pickups through the B-15. For 90% of the fingerstyle playing, the magnetic on its own seems to work the best. For bowing however - the diaphram shines! Still trying to find the right mix of the two to best emulate an actual upright.
 
#391
I'm getting a classic full bodied BB in Ampeg sunburst (brown around the edges). It will basically be spec'ed like the original but will have a wider and thicker neck. The neck will be granadillo and the board will be purpleheart. It will have a metal bridge and black tailpeice/pickup cover.

At first, I wanted to have a scroll on top, and he was willing to accomodate---but as we talked a bit more, I realized that he was using his headstock as his 'trademark' stamp, so I told him to use his design.

I also asked about sending my own woods, but after some more talking, he said that he buys wood that is pre-dried and it sits in his shop for about a year before he uses it. It is all South American wood, so it is easier to get and cheaper than importing maple and ebony. But I also realized that it is pretty strong wood.

I asked if he used a metal rod in the necks, and he said that he uses automobile springs that he re-fashions to aid in the rigidity of the neck.

Honestly, I was hesitant about buying one because there are no reviews, and I still don't know what to expect, but I feel that he really puts alot of thought into the lumber, electronics and construction techniques.
 
#392
wow!!! i contact him for a price quote on the mini and the price is not bad.... i really want one but i to didnt see any reviews anywhere as well. ill wait till you get yours nicky. so hopefully you can get us a review. so far it seems the customer service is up since he does responds so quickly to emails.

i was thinking of contacting him over the phone but dont know if he speaks spanish only. :confused:
 
#394
NickyBass said:
Did he respond to your email within 10 minutes? I usually don't have to wait more than a few minutes for a reply. It's pretty scary. Haha.

I don't know how well he speaks english. I know he can, but don't know how strong it is. It's worth a shot.
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yeah more like within 5 minutes :eyebrow: its crazy .... but i was thinking of going with an all white mini or that orange one he has on the website.:hyper:

i was even thinking of going with a ray ramirez as well but M.O.G are a little more in my price range.
 
#398
NickyBass said:
He is hoping to have it finished by the end of January, but he is working alone, so there is a chance that it could take a little longer. I ordered it about a month and a half ago, so I haven't been waiting long.
Click to expand...

Awesome. I'm looking forward to hearing your impressions of it.
 
#399
Hey! My friend NickyBass invited me to join this thread, since I also play and own an EUB. But since I hardly visit TalkBass' DB area, I've just recorded a video as sort of a "credential" as an EUB player:



Please read the description. I know that my plucking hand technique will arise lots of criticisms and suggestions (nothing wrong with that, of course :)), but I can tell you: The standard jazz pizzicato technique produces a very loud "thud" preceding each note, and that sounds definitely bad in that context (Salsa). That's why I pluck the strings the way I do. Anyway, hope you enjoy this effort. Thanks for watching!
 
#400
Hey, glad to see you over here! Thanks for sharing the video. I am at work, so I cannot view it now, but I would love to hear how the Sendel sounds.

I use a different technique on the baby bass than on traditional upright too. It is such a unique instrument and tone that it sometimes requires a different approach.

Here I am at a recent session, and this is usually how I play:
IMG_0193.jpg


IMG_0141.jpg
 

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