Kala UBass Megathread, Part 4

[grvthang]

My UBass and my baritone ukulele aren’t from the same maker, and I can’t guarantee for the last 1/1000 of an inch, but the string lengths appear being very similar.

However I see no way to mount Pahoehoe strings on my baritone ukulele. Neither tuners nor bridge would fit.

Without dissecting neither of the instruments I would say that the UBass has a bigger headstock, bigger tuners, a fatter and wider neck, a compensated bridge high enough allowing for larger string amplitude, and a dedicated mounting system for the fat strings. I might assume differences in thickness of the soundboards and in the strength of the bracing.

And despite the congruency in string names: my retuned baritone ukulele plays an octave above the UBass.

Klaus

Thanks for the response and explanation.

 

[AStrummer]

Not sure if I'm posting to the right place - please let me know if I'm not. I helped my 13 y.o. son buy a Kala UBass, fretless, to play while we were out of the country for .5 year, and he loves it. He's an upright bass player. One problem he's had since day one: the G string buzzes like crazy. I had the store adjust the truss rod a little bit a few months back, but that hasn't really helped much. Any suggestions? Would those wound German strings be less likely to buzz, since they're narrower in diameter? (I'm a piano player, not a bass player so excuse the ignorance)

thanks for any help!

Art

 

[SBassman]

For whatever it is worth:

My acoustic fretless is up for sale in the for sale section.

 

[caeman]

U-bass time this morning a church. With summer over and the two hobbies that took up many of those weekends. The u-bass should be getting more time for the next few months.

 

[Tom Howland]

Looking to trade a nice G&L L1500.
Ash Body
Amber Finish
Rosewood Fingerboard.
Retail for $750.00

For a Kala fretless 4-string
Must have case too.

 

[SBassman]

Looking to trade a nice G&L L1500.
Ash Body
Amber Finish
Rosewood Fingerboard.
Retail for $750.00

For a Kala fretless 4-string
Must have case too.

Sell it and buy my fretless.

 

[caeman]

Looking to trade a nice G&L L1500.

They look like nice basses. I bet it would sing as a fretless. It is a shame that I can no longer play full scale basses, or I might have been tempted.

 

[slaerts]

Not sure if I'm posting to the right place - please let me know if I'm not. I helped my 13 y.o. son buy a Kala UBass, fretless, to play while we were out of the country for .5 year, and he loves it. He's an upright bass player. One problem he's had since day one: the G string buzzes like crazy. I had the store adjust the truss rod a little bit a few months back, but that hasn't really helped much. Any suggestions? Would those wound German strings be less likely to buzz, since they're narrower in diameter? (I'm a piano player, not a bass player so excuse the ignorance)

thanks for any help!

Art

It could be one of several problems. Have you tried re-stringing it? Does the buzz stop when you apply a little pressure to the string at the nut? My E did this and wasn't a problem when plugged in but for acoustic practice it drove me mad. Re-stringing solved the problem for me.

 

[SBassman]

Anybody know any more on when the sound hole covers are coming?

 

[Bubbatron]

Does anyone know how to tell the old from new thunderguts?

 

[Timmy-Watts]

Hey guys. Sunday we had a gig just before Jeff Coffin's Mu'tet (look it up). Got to introduce the U-Bass to Felix Pastorius (yes, Jaco's son). He loves it. He was blown away. I told him to remember where he first saw it He is almost a foot taller than me.

 

[bassmagics]

Interesting! Have to try a set!

 

[bassmagics]

Hey guys. Sunday we had a gig just before Jeff Coffin's Mu'tet (look it up). Got to introduce the U-Bass to Felix Pastorius (yes, Jaco's son). He loves it. He was blown away. I told him to remember where he first saw it He is almost a foot taller than me.

Cool Tim! I have listen to the Mu'tet but have only heard them on CD not live. Was it Roy Futureman on drums?

 

[tombowlus]

Howdy folks. I'm just wrapping up my review of the (fretless) Solid Body 5-String, and I was so inspired, I not only bought the test unit, but yesterday I ordered a solid mahogany Acoustic-Electric 4-string (also fretless) to go along with it!

I'll update with pics of both once the A-E comes in.

 

[Timmy-Watts]

Cool Tim! I have listen to the Mu'tet but have only heard them on CD not live. Was it Roy Futureman on drums?

Yes. On drum kit. They were all amazing. Great to hang and talk with them too!

 

[Gorn]

Looks like I'm back in the ubass game. I just bought norcal's fretless hog from the classifieds. I've been out of the loop for a while. What's the deal with these silver rumblers? Are they basically black thunderguts?

 

[scotch]

Looks like I'm back in the ubass game. I just bought norcal's fretless hog from the classifieds. I've been out of the loop for a while. What's the deal with these silver rumblers? Are they basically black thunderguts?

Yeah. A little less treble but much more like a Thundergut than a Pahoehoe.

 

[Gorn]

So they're black thunderguts with less treble? Are they just as sticky? Also, I remember hearing about the possibility of pyramid making flatwounds for the ubass. Any news on that?

 

[Timmy-Watts]

So they're black thunderguts with less treble? Are they just as sticky? Also, I remember hearing about the possibility of pyramid making flatwounds for the ubass. Any news on that?

They were so sticky for me they are not usable. For me. I guess about the same as TG's.

 

[Hothersale]

I just installed a set of Silver Rumblers yesterday and I like them a LOT. I thought they might just be a marketing ploy -- Thunderguts colored grey -- but I immediately noticed that their tone is a lot more consistent from string to string. Also, the G-string has not thinned where it crosses the saddle, which is something that always happened with Thunderguts. They are sticky like Thunderguts, unfortunately, but I'm pretty much used to it now.