Kala UBass Megathread, Part 6

[CnB77]

There's some homemade converted baritone ukes on ebay, but they look kind of terrible.

~$350 is as cheap is it gets with the kala rumbler, which isn't worth it when you can get the exotic mahogany for 50 bucks more.

That's what I was seeing, but I wanted to make sure. I guess I'll have to keep an eye on the used market to get a deal. Thanks!

 

[davewave]

Is there such a thing as a U-bass style instrument under $250?

The success of Kala has brought out the clones and the price cutters.
The other uke companies are jumping on the bandwagon.

There's an Eddy Finn EF-EBASS ukulele bass mahogany with Aquila TG strings on Amazon brand new for $315.

Has anybody seen or played one?

 

[Gorn]

Based on the specs and pictures, it looks like a direct ubass copy with a fin-shaped sound hole. Still not under $250, and the nut looks to be cheap plastic. The superior nut on the exotic mahogany ubass makes it worth another $85, in my opinion.

Nothing's really wrong with the rumbler for $350, but there's no back hatch which makes string installation a huge pain in the keister.

 

[davewave]

It's pretty funny, as I'm posting about a u-bass clone, Mike Upton sent an e-mail about it.

There are always folks who shop by nothing but price, but the fact is that Kala stands behind their products, and are responsive to customer inquiries.
There are real live folks in Petaluma California USA who will help you out.
I can testify to that personally.

California custom acoustics on the way!

U-BASS - The Original
They say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. Well if that is the case, then lately we have been very flattered. We are starting to see imitations of our ground-breaking U-BASS coming to market. Our product, support, marketing, and related activities are well advanced of the imitations.

In 2007, when I first met Owen Holt in Hawaii and played his original Big Bufo bass design, it would have been hard for me to imagine that six years later we would have an entire product line dedicated to U-BASS. But I knew, even back then, that there was something special with this instrument and I was hooked.

I was so excited about this slice of thunder that we didn't just look at adding one instrument to our current line-up, but we built a dedicated brand and spent countless hours and resources improving the design, developing new models and introducing thousands of Bass players to the U-Bass.

Today we have over 35 different U-Bass models including Electro-Acoustic models, the SUB solid body series, and our top of the line California solid body models made right here in our Petaluma Custom Shop. We are also tooling up our production for custom California made Electro-Acoustic models of U-Bass! Stay tuned.....

We are so blessed to have some of the greatest bass players in the world endorsing and playing U-BASS on tour and in the studio. But the most amazing thing is having a rabid end-user fan base supporting us.

Thank you for giving us the support that got us to this level,

Michael Upton
Kala Brand Music Co.

 

[olitoon]

U-BASS - The Original
They say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. Well if that is the case, then lately we have been very flattered. We are starting to see imitations of our ground-breaking U-BASS coming to market. Our product, support, marketing, and related activities are well advanced of the imitations.

Really? What about the quality control issues? Sorry guys, but this is marketing bull$hit, another reason to not buy a Kala instrument.

 

[flymustangs]

I tend to agree with this sentiment. I have a Cali solid body that I really like, but it was a painful road to get a good quality instrument.

 

[Temcat]

I tend to agree with this sentiment. I have a Cali solid body that I really like, but it was a painful road to get a good quality instrument.

Did you have quality issues specifically with Cali or was it that you had to buy a Cali to get a quality instrument from Kala?

 

[flymustangs]

I originally bought a S.U.B. from Sweetwater. The quality on it was pretty poor. It was fretted and had intonation problems and fret buzz no matter what I tried. They offered to take it back. At that point I decided to go ahead and upgrade to the Cali thinking it would be much better quality since it was more expensive and built at their US facility instead of just being "checked" by them after it was imported.

I received the Cali from Sweetwater and it had issues as well. The first thing was it didn't come with the charger. Sweetwater didn't have a replacement and Kala didn't seem in a big hurry to send a replacement. The biggest issue was that it had a dead string. When I talked to Ryan he said it was most likely a bad pickup.

The problem here was that they had since changed to a new pickup so the instruement would have to be returned to them to be "modified" to accept the new pickup. At that point I had pretty much had enough and was going to return it to Sweetwater and just play the Acoustic Hog that I already had. I couldn't believe these two instruments had made it through Kala's QC, especially since one of them was built right in their own shop.

I got another call from Ryan and he offered to replace the Cali with one they were actually building at the time. He assured me that it would be gone over completely by multiple people before it was sent out.

When it arrived, it lived up to Ryan's promise and plays very well. It's fretless so the intonation issue, common with these, isn't a problem.

Just so it's clear, I don't think Kala is a bad company. I just think they had some growing pains that are common when a new product has explosive success. They did eventually get my problem sorted out and I have a couple of fine instruments.

 

[Gorn]

Does anyone know how long shipping time is for strings ordered directly from road toad?

 

[SBassman]

Really? What about the quality control issues? Sorry guys, but this is marketing bull$hit, another reason to not buy a Kala instrument.

I won't go down the QC road. I just don't have the stats to say one way or another.

My take on Kala's statement is:

- They deserve credit for having the vision to bring their offerings to market. That is indisputable.

- They helped open lots of eyes and ears. That is indisputable.

- They are a very nice bunch of guys, and they are genuinely interested in serving the customer.

- They shouldn't be making references to people copying Them. It's just lame. They didn't innovate in this space. They acquired things, and they did a good job bringing them to a bigger market.

- The real innovation to date has been from: Ashbory, and then, Aquila/Mimmo. I really believe that.

- This class of bass is just beginning to be developed/defined. We have much, much greater things ahead, IMHO. Guitar scale micro basses like Gold Tone's are the start of that.

 

[J Posega]

I won't go down the QC road. I just don't have the stats to say one way or another.

My take on Kala's statement is:

- They deserve credit for having the vision to bring their offerings to market. That is indisputable.

- They helped open lots of eyes and ears. That is indisputable.

- They are a very nice bunch of guys, and they are genuinely interested in serving the customer.

- They shouldn't be making references to people copying Them. It's just lame. They didn't innovate in this space. They acquired things, and they did a good job bringing them to a bigger market.

- The real innovation to date has been from: Ashbory, and then, Aquila/Mimmo. I really believe that.

- This class of bass is just beginning to be developed/defined. We have much, much greater things ahead, IMHO. Guitar scale micro basses like Gold Tone's are the start of that.

Nothing to say of Road Toad Music and the design that originated the U-bass?

And why shouldn't they talk about people copying them? Gold Tone goes ahead and rags on Kala in a big chart on their website as to why you should buy their Bass Uke instead of the competition.

I honestly wonder what the bass world would be like if there had been TalkBass when the first P-bass copy was produced back in the day.

 

[SBassman]

Nothing to say of Road Toad Music and the design that originated the U-bass?

And why shouldn't they talk about people copying them? Gold Tone goes ahead and rags on Kala in a big chart on their website as to why you should buy their Bass Uke instead of the competition.

I honestly wonder what the bass world would be like if there had been TalkBass when the first P-bass copy was produced back in the day.

We all interpret things differently. Gold Tone's comparison chart is, to me, a very different situation. And something employed by bazillions of companies in their marketing literature. The fact is - they are different instruments, and the comparison attempts to highlight the differences.

 

[tymbrewolf]

I purchased a low tension set for my ashbory. They tossed in Med a and e which is what I ended up using. Only a couple days shipping time. Great to deal with. Still miss my hog ubass. If I had a fretless one, I would not have gotten the gt mb. Both have their weaknesses and strengths

 

[scotch]

The Gold Tone comparison chart draws some subjective conclusions that don't match my experience and preferences. I happen to prefer the shorter scale and find it comfortable.

Both instruments are amazing bargains for the price. They fill a similar sonic role but look a little different.

I'm not sure pitting them 'against' each other is a particularly wise marketing move. They are different enough to appeal to different people. I assume the market is large enough to accommodate both and make them profitable.

They had a whole bunch of the GoldTones at Summer NAMM. I'd venture to say that my cursory inspection would lead me to say that GoldTones quality control was more consistent, but that Kala's range of features and options was better.

I do wish Kala could get the pickup and preamp functionality consistent. I feel like it is a better sounding instrument as long as everything is working right! (By "better" I mean more organic, deep and unique sounding)

 

[SBassman]

The Gold Tone comparison chart draws some subjective conclusions that don't match my experience and preferences. I happen to prefer the shorter scale and find it comfortable.

Both instruments are amazing bargains for the price. They fill a similar sonic role but look a little different.

I'm not sure pitting them 'against' each other is a particularly wise marketing move. They are different enough to appeal to different people. I assume the market is large enough to accommodate both and make them profitable.

They had a whole bunch of the GoldTones at Summer NAMM. I'd venture to say that my cursory inspection would lead me to say that GoldTones quality control was more consistent, but that Kala's range of features and options was better.

I do wish Kala could get the pickup and preamp functionality consistent. I feel like it is a better sounding instrument as long as everything is working right! (By "better" I mean more organic, deep and unique sounding)

Interesting stuff.

While I don't find the comparison offensive, I would also question whether it was the best way to go about it.
I think there could have been a good focus on what makes the MBass different, without a reference to the Kala.

 

[Gorn]

How much does everyone think they'll charge for the US made acoustic? I'm guessing about the same price as the US solidbodies.

 

[scotch]

How much does everyone think they'll charge for the US made acoustic? I'm guessing about the same price as the US solidbodies.

Maybe more? There's a bit more skill and build time involved with a hollow acoustic body. But theres also less wood. It will be interesting to see!

 

[bluebird28]

I just sold my Tacoma ThunderChief and OHSC, picking up the ThunderChief in the case and picking up the GT MicroBass in its Gig bag is a world of difference. The weight, the size, and being able to move about with hitting anything is wonderful. Now to sell my Ovation CC075 5 string acoustic bass.

 

[MarcusPHagen]

Interesting stuff.

While I don't find the comparison offensive, I would also question whether it was the best way to go about it.
I think there could have been a good focus on what makes the MBass different, without a reference to the Kala.

I don't know how you can say that something is "different" without comparing it to something. What would you suggest they reference instead of the Kala?

Marcus

 

[SBassman]

I don't know how you can say that something is "different" without comparing it to something. What would you suggest they reference instead of the Kala?

Marcus

The scale is significantly different.
The Ergo-Glide body is completely different.
Both can be stressed without a reference to the other instrument.

Either way, again, I don't have a problem with it. I agree it might not be the Best way to market, but that's a subjective thing.

The good news is that we have two different yet very cool instruments out there.