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Has anyone tried this guitar bow on bass?

gtirard

gtirard

Feb 22, 2020
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Paris, France
inred-music.com
#1
I'm curious to try this on my ABG?

No expensive, so I can take the risk to try, no issue if it doesn't work with my ABG, except that I hate buying disposable chinese junk


It says: "Designed for acoustic guitars and basses, but can also be used for any steel-strung instrument with an opening for the bow"

But I haven't found any bass demo…

Thoughts?

1738917973116.png
 
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#2
Sorta makes sense that it'd work with a soundhole... but it's not very long. if you try it let us know how it works.

And in the time-honored TB tradition of suggesting something completely different than the OP asked about, dulcimer bows might be be a better option, about the same usable length and don't need the soundhole. The big advantage of that being not so much that you can bow an electric but that you can bow closer to the bridge.
 
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#3
pklima said:
Sorta makes sense that it'd work with a soundhole... but it's not very long. if you try it let us know how it works.

And in the time-honored TB tradition of suggesting something completely different than the OP asked about, dulcimer bows might be be a better option, about the same usable length and don't need the soundhole. The big advantage of that being not so much that you can bow an electric but that you can bow closer to the bridge.
Click to expand...
Thanks! Can you provide a link?
 
#4
larkinthemorning.com

Jim Bows - Hammered Dulcimer Bows, Tamarind Wood, Pair

The JimBow is a fantastic new Hammered Dulcimer accessory that allows the HD to be bowed, creating a beautiful psaltery like sound - making the HD two instruments in one! Each pair is made from select hardwoods, the bow is made with 1/8th inch nylon rod. These fine bows are being used in Russia...
larkinthemorning.com larkinthemorning.com

A very clever idea. I've once made a substitute (and used it on an actual hammered dulcimer) from a roll of double-sided tape with a couple of circles of thick weedwhacker twine wrapped around it. Rubbed Pops rosin on it and it worked well to record a few notes. Sustain is short but if you rock it back and forth and do a little tremolo bowing, that works well.
 
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#5
gtirard said:
I'm curious to try this on my ABG?

No expensive, so I can take the risk to try, no issue if it doesn't work with my ABG, except that I hate buying disposable chinese junk


It says: "Designed for acoustic guitars and basses, but can also be used for any steel-strung instrument with an opening for the bow"

But I haven't found any bass demo…

Thoughts?

View attachment 7145436
Click to expand...
TLDR: Not sure how that would work for anything but the very occasional novelty special effect, but for 30 bucks perhaps that is the point?

  • To get a good basic tone from a traditional bow you need to be able to control weight and balance through the 'spring' in the hair without bottoming out on the stick - here the hair has no movement against that big metal plate so is in essence solid.
  • If you can get enough pressure to make a nice note you will probably be close to bottoming the string out on the fingerboard, given the typically low action of the electric bass when compared to a string bass with an orchestral (arco) setup.
  • If you try to use the edge I imagine the hair parting and putting the metal directly on the string, which won't sound pretty.
  • The total length is just over 21cm with 'handle' (I won't call it a frog'), which probably means about 14cm of active hair and perhaps 11cm of useful hair - barely enough to get the string started, and certainly not enough to build up any real bow speed or for a long blossoming crescendo.
  • To get more purchase for a quicker/cleaner start you could overload with rosin, but then you can kiss goodbye to most of your string life, And if you use it on rounds I can't see the hair lasting too long either. Can you imagine taking it to a bowmaker for a re-hair!!
Overall I think not, but it probably does deliver about what can be expected for 30 bucks.
 
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#6
SteveCS said:
TLDR: Not sure how that would work for anything but the very occasional novelty special effect, but for 30 bucks perhaps that is the point?

  • To get a good basic tone from a traditional bow you need to be able to control weight and balance through the 'spring' in the hair without bottoming out on the stick - here the hair has no movement against that big metal plate so is in essence solid.
  • If you can get enough pressure to make a nice note you will probably be close to bottoming the string out on the fingerboard, given the typically low action of the electric bass when compared to a string bass with an orchestral (arco) setup.
  • If you try to use the edge I imagine the hair parting and putting the metal directly on the string, which won't sound pretty.
  • The total length is just over 21cm with 'handle' (I won't call it a frog'), which probably means about 14cm of active hair and perhaps 11cm of useful hair - barely enough to get the string started, and certainly not enough to build up any real bow speed or for a long blossoming crescendo.
  • To get more purchase for a quicker/cleaner start you could overload with rosin, but then you can kiss goodbye to most of your string life, And if you use it on rounds I can't see the hair lasting too long either. Can you imagine taking it to a bowmaker for a re-hair!!
Overall I think not, but it probably does deliver about what can be expected for 30 bucks.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I agree, lots of good points here. Probably a bad idea, I prefer @pklima's suggestion.
It also goes with my reluctance for cheap chinese toys.
My context is that it's my anniversary soon, and my daughter asks me for gift ideas, and she's got a student's budget.
My problem is that I already have everything I need, so it's hard to find new ideas, especially on a budget.

By the ways, I think the strings of my ABG cost more than the guitar bow, so if I ruin them because of the bow it will cost more to replace them than to buy the toy. :roflmao:
 
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#11
Klangfarbe said:
They dont work well on Bass. Of course we have all seen Michal Manring using them but they are nothing like a real Bow.
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I'm a double bassist who plays arco, so I understand this. I also understand that an E-Bow is far more practical and purpose designed for electric bass.... unless you want rosin all over your electric bass strings. They work great. Like a real bow on a real double bass, you have to spend time getting the technique together.... and you have to get the E-Bow *specifically* meant for bass. It has stronger magnets than the guitar E-Bow for obvious reasons.
 
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#13
JazznFunk said:
In all seriousness, why not get a legit E-Bow if that's the sound you're chasing?
Click to expand...
Good question… My daughter has one, I should try it, but I remember when I tried one in the 80's, it didn't give a feeling of "bowing" the string, since you essentially keep your e-bow above the strings and let it resonate. Plus it give an "ambiant" sound, which is not really my thing. I should try anyway.

What I like in the bow for hammered dulcimer is the possibility to actually "rub" the string.
 
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#14
SteveCS said:
The irony here, as an E-Bow user, is that the E-Bow, as great as it is in it's own right, probably sounds even less like a real bow than the novelty 'bow' in the OP!!
View attachment 7145596
Click to expand...
For sure. But it sure beats getting rosin all over your flatwounds. If you're going to coax a tone out of an electric bass even with a 'novelty' bow with hair, it has to have something to grip the string. Otherwise it'll just be 'shh....shh.....shhh....'.
 
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