Ok thanks. Is there a solution to the shakiness? Anyone found a workaround?
And what do you like more about the Ibanez compared to the Ibanez (besides the price)?
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Double Bass Ibanez UB804 EUB.
- Thread starter Marty Forrer
- Start date
Ok thanks. Is there a solution to the shakiness? Anyone found a workaround?
And what do you like more about the Ibanez compared to the Ibanez (besides the price)?
I haven't found anything. I just assume it's a problem inherent to EUBs, and personally I can live with that.
Soundwise, I find both instruments really similar (I only used the piezo on the omnibass, I really didn't like the magnetic pickup on that instrument), and if you want to try to emulate the sound of an acoustic double bass with any of those instruments, you will definitely have to process the sound with both: the bests results I've got so far is the use of an acoustic bass IR + EQ+ raise the action. In this video, I was just starting to experiment with IR (no EQ used) but the results can be much better with proper use of EQ:
However, the neck, string separation and fretboard radius are way bigger on the Ibanez, so it really feels much more like an acoustic bass, which forces you to think (and play) more like a double bass player than an electric bass player. This makes a BIG difference.
And last but not least, I find the Ibanez way more visually appealing.
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Agree about the use of IR and EQ to emulate URB sounds. On a fretted EB, palm muting also makes a difference when I want to fake the thumpy sound of orchestral pizz. I also agree about the visual appeal of the instrument; it's an elegant design, IMHO.
comes w/ d'addario chromes ecb81, wsap to labella tapewound .60 to .115 and a nino-mute and you'll think it's an ampeg baby bass
Hey there Ibanez UB804 peeps,
What's a typical string height on these basses. I know everyone is different, but I'm used to fretless EB with fairly low action, about 3-4 mm measuring EB style @ octave - curious about the difference in feel re. string height.
Thanks in advance.
What's a typical string height on these basses. I know everyone is different, but I'm used to fretless EB with fairly low action, about 3-4 mm measuring EB style @ octave - curious about the difference in feel re. string height.
Thanks in advance.
I keep my action just a touch higher on my UB than on my fretless basses, because I often use the bow. If you are pizzacato with a light touch you might not need a higher action.
I just picked up my own UB804, and I'm impressed.
It's got really good action for an EUB, and I don't have to shred my fingertips to get a good plucked note sound. The pickups seem much more sensitive and responsive than anything I've had on either an upright or an EUB. I wonder if the individual bridges for each string (presumably with a piezo pickup under each one) have something to do with the great action and sound.
My main upright bass point of reference is an Upton Hawkes (I had a plywood and a hybrid), and the neck feel on this EUB is really close to that (big and chunky, but still very comfortable).
For EUBs, I had an Ergo, and that was hard work. It played like a vertically oriented bass guitar. Believe it or not, the closest EUB action to an upright that I've had was on a Palatino (probably because of the long length from the bridge to the string terminators). That had the most "bounce" in the playing feel. The UB804 seems to be somewhere between those two. It sounds way better than the Palatino (which was boomy with feedback problems) and plays much easier than the Ergo (which was very much like a stick bass in playability and sound, or lack thereof on both counts). I like it a lot. It's by far the nicest EUB I've played.
As others have said, it's its own thing, not really like an upright (I don't think the note decay is anywhere near fast enough for that), more like a really sensitive fretless bass guitar sound. I can get a decent upright feel to the sound, but I think I'll have to work on my muting technique to make this behave enough to approximate an upright. I have to roll off the highs a bit (maybe halfway?) to make the finger noise acceptable. It can get really bright, and that's not what I would be looking for. As you might expect, rolling off the highs too much (completely?) makes it a bit too boomy. But on either extreme, it's not a sound I haven't gotten from an upright/piezo setup before.
It may be a fools' errand to try to make this sound like an upright, but I love the way it plays, and a shoulder replacement surgery has made playing the real thing impossible for me right now. (It might get better; it might not.) For now, I think this little EUB is going to be perfectly fine for my modest upright-y goals. It's very comfortable to play, doesn't take a ton of work to get good sounds out of it, and
I think the finish, fingerboard wood, and color is just beautiful.
It's got really good action for an EUB, and I don't have to shred my fingertips to get a good plucked note sound. The pickups seem much more sensitive and responsive than anything I've had on either an upright or an EUB. I wonder if the individual bridges for each string (presumably with a piezo pickup under each one) have something to do with the great action and sound.
My main upright bass point of reference is an Upton Hawkes (I had a plywood and a hybrid), and the neck feel on this EUB is really close to that (big and chunky, but still very comfortable).
For EUBs, I had an Ergo, and that was hard work. It played like a vertically oriented bass guitar. Believe it or not, the closest EUB action to an upright that I've had was on a Palatino (probably because of the long length from the bridge to the string terminators). That had the most "bounce" in the playing feel. The UB804 seems to be somewhere between those two. It sounds way better than the Palatino (which was boomy with feedback problems) and plays much easier than the Ergo (which was very much like a stick bass in playability and sound, or lack thereof on both counts). I like it a lot. It's by far the nicest EUB I've played.
As others have said, it's its own thing, not really like an upright (I don't think the note decay is anywhere near fast enough for that), more like a really sensitive fretless bass guitar sound. I can get a decent upright feel to the sound, but I think I'll have to work on my muting technique to make this behave enough to approximate an upright. I have to roll off the highs a bit (maybe halfway?) to make the finger noise acceptable. It can get really bright, and that's not what I would be looking for. As you might expect, rolling off the highs too much (completely?) makes it a bit too boomy. But on either extreme, it's not a sound I haven't gotten from an upright/piezo setup before.
It may be a fools' errand to try to make this sound like an upright, but I love the way it plays, and a shoulder replacement surgery has made playing the real thing impossible for me right now. (It might get better; it might not.) For now, I think this little EUB is going to be perfectly fine for my modest upright-y goals. It's very comfortable to play, doesn't take a ton of work to get good sounds out of it, and
I think the finish, fingerboard wood, and color is just beautiful.
@ArteK glad to hear it is working for you, my needs and expectations are similar to yours on the UB804. I like the hybrid sort of sound that takes fx and settings well. When a more upright sound is needed I use foam mutes under and close to the bridge, I cut those from mic pop filters, which are cheap and plentiful. Arco was important to me but my regular bow was a bit too heavy so went with a half size bow but may try a cello bow for better articulation.
I have a bit of a question I hope others can help with. I have played bass for decades, and had a fretless every so often, but never an upright, and never with a bow. So I bought a UB804 hoping for a different posture due to some injuries and age. I read that a bow was a good way to practice intonation, so I bought some stuff from Amazon.
1. Vingobow 3/4" white haired German carbon fiber bass bow
2. Kolstein Ultra All-Weather Bass Rosin.
It took awhile to get enough rosin on the bow to actually grab the string; no doubt mostly technique on my part. I tried the OEM strings and they seemed to function somewhat but on several occasions I tore a hair from the bow while bowing the E string. After doing that 3-4x I bought some new GHS Precision Flats in Medium, thinking maybe the OEM D'Addario's just had some rough spots or open spots in the flatwound that trapped bow hair. The GHS felt a little nicer and bowed a little better, but I am still losing hair while bowing the E in the mid section between the bridge and end of the fingerboard.
I have watched a few video's on playing with a bow, but I don't recall any mention of this problem. Maybe a new bow just loses hair awhile. Maybe a new bow will be loading up rosin awhile. Perhaps it's an ancient curse ...
I'd appreciate any opinions. I have some TI Jazz Flats on order, but I'm not sure I'll mount them here; maybe they aren't part of the solution.
1. Vingobow 3/4" white haired German carbon fiber bass bow
2. Kolstein Ultra All-Weather Bass Rosin.
It took awhile to get enough rosin on the bow to actually grab the string; no doubt mostly technique on my part. I tried the OEM strings and they seemed to function somewhat but on several occasions I tore a hair from the bow while bowing the E string. After doing that 3-4x I bought some new GHS Precision Flats in Medium, thinking maybe the OEM D'Addario's just had some rough spots or open spots in the flatwound that trapped bow hair. The GHS felt a little nicer and bowed a little better, but I am still losing hair while bowing the E in the mid section between the bridge and end of the fingerboard.
I have watched a few video's on playing with a bow, but I don't recall any mention of this problem. Maybe a new bow just loses hair awhile. Maybe a new bow will be loading up rosin awhile. Perhaps it's an ancient curse ...
I'd appreciate any opinions. I have some TI Jazz Flats on order, but I'm not sure I'll mount them here; maybe they aren't part of the solution.
The Chinese bows often have low quality hair. Expect to need a bow rehair from a local bow maker.
But one more reason for that might be the construction of bass guitar strings which are stiffer and shorter than DB strings.
I have a Vingo bow and the hair is very fine and that might be the reason why it breaks easily.
You might use too much pressure on the bow because of the stiff strings or too less rosin on the bow. Typically I break hairs while applying rosin to the bow. It takes a while until you have enough rosin on the bow for a good grip.
But one more reason for that might be the construction of bass guitar strings which are stiffer and shorter than DB strings.
I have a Vingo bow and the hair is very fine and that might be the reason why it breaks easily.
You might use too much pressure on the bow because of the stiff strings or too less rosin on the bow. Typically I break hairs while applying rosin to the bow. It takes a while until you have enough rosin on the bow for a good grip.
I appreciate the info. I have so little info about bows an rosin, that it's hard to find a 'known good' in my world to try and improve on. I'll keep trying rosin and hope I get traction before the hair is gone. I live in a small town; rehair will involve shipping it out (or giving up).
New guy & electric bass player here; I've been watching this thread for a minute.
Yesterday I ordered and paid for a used UB804. Hopefully it'll be a great fit for my regular band - we play somewhere most Fridays/Saturdays. It might even for some of my Tues gigs where we have a different guest host each week.
Been watching videos on UB plucking technique and attempting to practice by holding my fretless in a more upright position. Have also played a friend's EUB at a couple band jams. Should be an interesting journey.
Plan is to pluck for a while until EUB becomes more second nature, then invest in a decent bow just to learn how, maybe use on intros to ballads, etc.
And yeah, while I've heard it'll never sound like a DB, I'll probably start raising the action for a slightly more UB tone from the get go. Might even throw on some TI flats,
Yesterday I ordered and paid for a used UB804. Hopefully it'll be a great fit for my regular band - we play somewhere most Fridays/Saturdays. It might even for some of my Tues gigs where we have a different guest host each week.
Been watching videos on UB plucking technique and attempting to practice by holding my fretless in a more upright position. Have also played a friend's EUB at a couple band jams. Should be an interesting journey.
Plan is to pluck for a while until EUB becomes more second nature, then invest in a decent bow just to learn how, maybe use on intros to ballads, etc.
And yeah, while I've heard it'll never sound like a DB, I'll probably start raising the action for a slightly more UB tone from the get go. Might even throw on some TI flats,
FWIW there is such a thing as too much rosin on the bow, if you can try .to have a lesson or three with an experienced arco bass player. I use an inexpensive bow and have yet to have any broken hair with the original strings, there is a trick to getting the right touch.
I'll see if I can clean the hair a bit; I read a toothbrush can be useful.
I remembered that I had an old family violin in the closet (probably 100 years old but otherwise unremarkable). I gave it 3 strokes of rosin and it worked much better than my new CF bow did! Curiously, I pulled a hair on the E string still before I ended my experiment. It's interesting that I can always make better sound on the other strings than E, and it is the only one that pulls hair. I appreciate your thoughts.
New/Used UB804 arrived yesterday - One gig under my belt last night. Previous owner had action raised about halfway between traditional UB/DB level and where I set on my fretless electric. It's high enough to lean more toward DB tone than electric; I can live with that for now, though will probably raise it after I work more on technique.
Question - Anyone have experience with both GHS Precision Flats and Thomastik JF344's? Which do you prefer for this bass and why?
Previous owner strung mine with Precision Flats.
Thanks
Question - Anyone have experience with both GHS Precision Flats and Thomastik JF344's? Which do you prefer for this bass and why?
Previous owner strung mine with Precision Flats.
Thanks
I'm still okay with how the Chromes are working on my bass, if I do decide to try something different it would probably be a Rotosound TruBass 88 Nylon Tapwounds set which I love on my Washburn AB20.
I like Chromes on my fretless Jazz bass.
Just not any of the UB804 demo tones I've heard with them. What really got me interested was a demo with TI JF344's, which lean more into traditional DB tones.
Now that this one arrived with GHS Precision Flats, I kind of like it too. Definitely leans more in that direction.
Though the one IB804 TI JF vs GHS PF demo I saw seems to show the TI's as being slightly more articulate without sounding electric-fretless.
Curious what others think
So, keep in mind my opinion is based on minutes-to-hours of playing this instrument ...
The Chromes that come on it are pretty neutral; tension is high for a BG, but probably very low for an URB. I think DaD strings are very well made and a good reference point but I don't usually enjoy them.
The GHS Precision Flats are one of my favorite BG strings for classic rock on a Precision. I like them fine on the UB804 but I like them better with 2 turns off each bridge saddle. I think this would be a good place to start for Rockabilly of GP use.
The TI Jazz Flats are softer, of course. I found they were a little more neutral for bowing (with very limited skills on my side). They had a much more Fretless Bass kind of sound I thought, and they rattled on the fingerboard a bit. I'll leave them on awhile because I usually like them a lot.
