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Kala UBass Megathread, Part 4

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#341
I've just received my KA-UBassFL the mahogany model, the E-String kind of buzz's and has much less sustain than the others strings (the G string may suffer with the same issue but to a much much lesser degree) - its like something is vibrating and draining the energy, I can hear a vibration when I play the E, and G string, Just wondering if this an issue with my bass.
example: play the notes on the third fret position (on a fretless) when I play G on the E string it is dead compared to C (on A),
F (on D) and Bb (on G), unlike other users who don't want to put it down, I don't want to pick it up.

Any feedback would be most appreciated, Thanks
 
#342
WicklowI said:
I've just received my KA-UBassFL the mahogany model, the E-String kind of buzz's and has much less sustain than the others strings (the G string may suffer with the same issue but to a much much lesser degree) - its like something is vibrating and draining the energy, I can hear a vibration when I play the E, and G string, Just wondering if this an issue with my bass.
example: play the notes on the third fret position (on a fretless) when I play G on the E string it is dead compared to C (on A),
F (on D) and Bb (on G), unlike other users who don't want to put it down, I don't want to pick it up.

Any feedback would be most appreciated, Thanks
Click to expand...

Call Kala tech support tomorrow. They may conclude they are dead strings. If so, they will possibly offer to send you replacements.

Also, if they do conclude it's just dead strings and you keep the bass, consider doing some megathread reading on Thunderguts.
 
#344
SBassman said:
SUB owners - weigh in. How are you liking the SUB?
Click to expand...
My s-u-b strung with Thunderguts continues to delight me.
After ten years with an Ashbory, it's the answer to my all my frustrations: Frets, adjustable bridge height and good string options.

SBassman said:
What do you think about the intonation?
Click to expand...

I think it's not a perfect world. My glass is half full.
As I move from note to note, I hear music, not intonation problems.

If your glass is half empty, and you obsess over perfection of intonation on ukulele basses with rubber band strings, you may never be satisfied.

On my current TGs, the D can play 20 cents flat at the 12th, yet 10 cents sharp at the 5th. :eek:
But the firmer I press the fretting finger, I can go 20 cents sharp.

So personally, I accept that intonation is a moving target on this bass, and keep playing the best I can.
 
#346
I'm (finally..) sending in my SUB to Kala tomorrow to have the pickup issue fixed. I mentioned it in this thread a while back, the pickup keeps cutting in and out, and hopefully they'll fix it. Otherwise, I love the dang thing, and haven't heard of anyone else as unlucky as I am.
Woulda gotten around to it sooner if I hadn't fallen back in love with upright bass... After turning mine into a rockabilly monster, it'll be nice to be back playing my instruments on the smaller side of the spectrum! Good to be back!
 
#347
@DaveWave, I concur, as there are other options available, and people do have a choice, which they can try out. Maybe the participants can tell the readers what improvements they've have made. (eg: the French Contribution really impressed me)
 
#348
WicklowI said:
I've just received my KA-UBassFL the mahogany model, the E-String kind of buzz's and has much less sustain than the others strings (the G string may suffer with the same issue but to a much much lesser degree) - its like something is vibrating and draining the energy, I can hear a vibration when I play the E, and G string, Just wondering if this an issue with my bass.
Click to expand...

Er... perhaps you should first look if you play the U-Bass properly??

Especially the E string should be played with very little force, and I suspect you are plucking it too hard.

Second, if played acoustically without amplification it is totally normal that the E string is quieter than the other strings!

Do you have your problem also when you plug the bass in?

Best Wishes,
Christoph
 
#350
I have not read through all of the megathreads yet, but at another TBer's suggestion, here are my impressions of a basic spruce top UBass:

These things are amazing. I haven't had as much fun getting to know and play an instrument in a long time. My friend/bandmate/neighbor's wife recently picked up a basic spruce top Ubass and I was lucky enough to get to play it tonight.

The feel is really foreign yet strangely familiar. The rubber strings and short scale demand that you play very simply and stay deep in the pocket. You have to be very precise with your fretting hand and mellow with your plucking/picking hand. Light attack rules the day. I actually think, setting aside the scale of the instrument, that if you want to work on your time, feel, and touch this is the very best instrument you could possibly practice on as an electric bass player.

Tone-wise, whether plucked or picked, it provides, at least through my little Fender RAD Bass practice amp, the truest old-school electric bass tone I've ever been able to produce. It sounds like John Paul Jones on the first Led Zeppelin record, or like a Stax bass or an early Motown bass. I've been trying to cop this particular tone forever and it was just there as soon as I started playing the Ubass. Again, you really have to be mellow in your attack and precise with your fretting, otherwise you will get a lot of buzz.

I am well and truly blown away by this little instrument. The one negative to the evening was the pickup(s). After a bit of picking/palm muting it appears the bridge and pick up got a bit out of whack and the sound started to cut out. Pulling the bridge back helped to get it going again, but given this was apparently the first time this particular instrument had been given a workout I have to question how robust they are. Regardless, I still have to have one. Seriously, I have to! :p
 
#357
Last night, I was experimenting with the U-Bass using the following setup:

U-Bass -> Fdeck -> Guyatone ST2 -> Guyatone ST2

The ST2 is a relatively inexpensive compressor. With just one comp, you can get a lot of noise if you raise the settings too high. Though, really high-quality comps like FEA Labs stay quiet even at their max settings. But let's say you don't have $250 to buy one used.

With the two comps in serial, the first one compresses conservatively. The second one also as conservative settings. The result with the U-Bass was a very nice tone and even volume as the the sonic levels were normalized and additional harmonics were introduced, but because the compression is fairly conservative, the noise is at a minimum and I still have room to really thump the strings to more emphasis.
 
#358
3234718 said:
I want it. I wonder why no one seems very interested in a full size bass with poly/thundergut type strings. I guess the majority of the bass playing community is too slap-happy.
Click to expand...

Unlike steel strings, I *think* the amazing people at Aquila can dial Thunderguts in different thicknesses at different tensions.

I think there would be a Big market for a bass that is the scale of a guitar - 25 inch - tensioned correctly with a set of Thunderguts.

It can be called:
The GBass.

:)
 
#359
I think it would sell really well. Aside from all the amazing tonal options you can get out of thunderguts/poly strings, they're just so much fun to play. Something like this would be really well received, I think.
 
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