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Kala UBass Megathread, Part 5

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#921
scotch said:
I owned a solid mahogany and a spruce top w/ laminated sides for a while. They were virtually identical in volume. I ended up keeping the spruce as I liked the tone better.

Thunderguts are noticeably louder than the Pahoehoe's. Still, you won't get appreciably LOUD acoustic volume with a U-Bass. They really are best plugged in! I do use mine sitting outside on the porch or on the couch watching tv, works fine for that.
Click to expand...

Couch noodling is really the only time you can play this unplugged. It balances nicely on my gut when I'm sitting at a 45 degree angle in front of the tv.
 
#926
In my experience the open E string has a strong output through an amplifier, but then I rarely use that note but for tuning. The problem for me is with the the F, F#, G, and G#. They need some boosting.

As all of my acoustic basses including the Ovation tend to feed on the low A, it may be with the acoustics in my room. But it has been hard to handle via my primitive Fish&Chips equalizer.

Yesterday saw the arrival of a now not very expensive 2nd hand TC 1140 parametric equalizer. I set it to boost the E string notes mentioned. And to keep the 2nd partial A frequency of 110Hz down. Appears like working.

Klaus
 
#927
I did a quick search but haven't seen any one else discuss this. Have any of you had pain in your hands or forearm after playing you Ubass for several hours?

I have 2 Ubass's, my wife bought me a 5 string solid body Cali for Christmas and I was one of the lucky winners of a Spruce Top 4 string. Both are fretless.

After practicing on it for a couple weeks I used the solid body for a 5 hour New Years Eve gig, with no issues at all. And I've used it on several gigs since.

Last week I was hired to play in the pit for a musical. The director liked the tone and I loved using it in the tight space we were crammed into. After 3 4hour+ rehearsals and 3 shows my right forearm was killing me.

I play professionally and teach upright at a university. Four to 6 hours a day of Jazz Upright is nothing and is pain free.

Any Ideas? Similar stories?
 
#928
As told I experienced a sound improvement, when I took the tuner out of the line between UBasses and teh Fish&Chips equalizer.

But a problem entered: I use Neutrik cables, which allow for a noiseless hot swap of instrument. Only unplugging the UBasses, but not guitars or ukuleles, started giving a cracking noise through the amplifier.

That noise disappeared when I plugged the UBasses into the TC 1140 parametric equalizer with its high impedance.

Do cables build up a static load, that will not be released through a high impedance input?

Klaus
 
#930
jdepriest said:
I did a quick search but haven't seen any one else discuss this. Have any of you had pain in your hands or forearm after playing you Ubass for several hours?

I have 2 Ubass's, my wife bought me a 5 string solid body Cali for Christmas and I was one of the lucky winners of a Spruce Top 4 string. Both are fretless.

After practicing on it for a couple weeks I used the solid body for a 5 hour New Years Eve gig, with no issues at all. And I've used it on several gigs since.

Last week I was hired to play in the pit for a musical. The director liked the tone and I loved using it in the tight space we were crammed into. After 3 4hour+ rehearsals and 3 shows my right forearm was killing me.

I play professionally and teach upright at a university. Four to 6 hours a day of Jazz Upright is nothing and is pain free.

Any Ideas? Similar stories?
Click to expand...

I bet it's the sharp-edged bound body. Happens to me sometimes on bound basses. It's pinching your nerves and muscles - you should try to find a way to hold your arm up a little & rest less on the upper bought! Can be tricky when seated.
 
#932
thehorse said:
Oh BTW, is it normal that when plugged in the E string output is noticeably lower than the other strings?
Couch noodling FTW
Click to expand...

I had a acoustic Mahagony (2013 model with preamp), same E string problem. Sent it back and ordered a red SUB, which had a skewed bridge and was not very well build (someone posted a picture of his SUB's bridge, which had the same problem). Got a sunburst replacement SUB, which looked much better, but had low D string output and a much too high G string output. Sounded harsh on the G string.

I still believe that a flawless acoustic U-Bass is a great instrument, but I will not order a fourth. I'll try the Tanglewood. It is not yet available in Germany, but the distributer offered to send one to a local store, where I can test it.
 
#933
So far I've had
1) Spruce top fretless-weak e string volume, good intonation
2) Solid hog fretless-volume ok, horrific intonation
3) Exotihogany fretted-weak g string volume, ok intonation
4) My current spruce top fretless- just about perfect.
Inconsistency it seems is an unfortunate reality of the acoustics. Maybe the new generation will be more consistent.
 
#934
little george said:
Hey, you are using it plugged aswell, arent you? The E string unplugged does not have very much sound or sustain at all. You see, they have the body size of an ukulele ;)
Click to expand...

Well, I plugged it in, and the difference in sustain between the E and the other strings is still noticeable.

Here's a clip of me playing four notes on each string starting from E, trying not to change the touch: https://soundcloud.com/easylungs/ubass-e-string-sustain

Here's another clip that is more musical: https://soundcloud.com/easylungs/kala-ubass-fretless-mahogany

(Setup: UBass -> Boss RC-300 Looper -> line input of 15W Crate bass combo; the instrument input doesn't work; recorded from the laptop mic)

While in the latter setting the difference is less prominent, it is still noticeable. I cannot attribute it to the pickup because I clearly hear and feel it unplugged. I restrung the E, but nothing changed. Maybe, just maybe the string can vibrate more freely if I raise its nut slot a little bit with something like epoxy. Also, if it's possible at all to raise the bridge saddle without degrading the acoustic coupling to the pickup, I'd like to try that, I just don't know how yet.

Well, I guess I can adjust my playing and bass parts taking this into account. The instrument is otherwise incredibly cool. I also will try other string types.
 
#939
Temcat said:
Well, I plugged it in, and the difference in sustain between the E and the other strings is still noticeable.

Here's a clip of me playing four notes on each string starting from E, trying not to change the touch: https://soundcloud.com/easylungs/ubass-e-string-sustain

Here's another clip that is more musical: https://soundcloud.com/easylungs/kala-ubass-fretless-mahogany

(Setup: UBass -> Boss RC-300 Looper -> line input of 15W Crate bass combo; the instrument input doesn't work; recorded from the laptop mic)

While in the latter setting the difference is less prominent, it is still noticeable. I cannot attribute it to the pickup because I clearly hear and feel it unplugged. I restrung the E, but nothing changed. Maybe, just maybe the string can vibrate more freely if I raise its nut slot a little bit with something like epoxy. Also, if it's possible at all to raise the bridge saddle without degrading the acoustic coupling to the pickup, I'd like to try that, I just don't know how yet.

Well, I guess I can adjust my playing and bass parts taking this into account. The instrument is otherwise incredibly cool. I also will try other string types.
Click to expand...

After earing your recording, I agree with you, the E string does have less sustain. Since you already restringed it, I think the problem might be a badly filled nut, or perhaps this string is too high in the tuner, not sitting right in the nut. A good luthier could be helpfull here, and the repairing pretty cheap...
 
#940
little george said:
After earing your recording, I agree with you, the E string does have less sustain. Since you already restringed it, I think the problem might be a badly filled nut, or perhaps this string is too high in the tuner, not sitting right in the nut. A good luthier could be helpfull here, and the repairing pretty cheap...
Click to expand...

Problems with the nut only would influence the open E string. If it is a problem with the string-to-instrument connection, then the problem is with the string seating under the soundboard. Try taking photos through the rear access port.

Klaus
 
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