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looking for a nice loud accoustic

M

madfiddler

Mar 6, 2004
194
0
Derbyshire, United Kingdom
www.sibling.co.uk
#1
hi all

it seems like years since I last logged in here!...it probably actually is :(

anyway I was hoping you could help me out, I guess this question is often asked, but I'm looking for a decent accoustic bass, something that is easily carried about has a decent volume unplugged but a nice precise tone when plugged. I'll be using it for indie/rock style music

so what would you all recommend?

thanks in advance
mf
 
#2
Well, since nobody jumped in, I'll give it a try......


First, you MUST accept that the terms "loud" and "acoustic bass" do not go together. You can try as many as you want but, the truth of the matter is that there is no such animal as a "loud acoustic bass". That is of course with the exception of an upright.

Armed with this cold, hard fact, here are some of my thoughts:

Some may try to tell you that the Tacoma Thunderchief is the only ABG capable of accompanying multiple acoustic guitars without amplification.

This is really only a half-truth. I have not owned a Tacoma but I've tried them out on various occasions. Truth is, if they are louder, it's only by a very small margin and it's not enough to not consider having to plug in.

I've owned several (more than a half dozen) over the past several years, both fretted and unfretted. Every single one needed to be plugged in when trying to accompany more than one acoustic. You might be able to get away with using a felt pick but, fingerpicking just won't cut it. Ultimately, the only way to reproduce that driving bass sound is to amplify. A small practice with no less than a 10" speaker should work fine.

Also, every fretted ABG I've owned seemed to have an annoying "boink" and, what I call fret rattle. Seems now matter how cleanly I tried to fret a note, there is almost always that "boinking" sound.

I kept searching, trying different rigs until I finally picked up a Michael Kelly Dragonfly Fretless Four.

Believe it or not, even the fretless had that annoying fret rattle with roundwound strings on it.

I bought a set of GHS Tapewounds, had a pro setup done and now, she sings sweet and low with no fret rattle and no "boinking" going on. Gets very close to that deep, upright sound. I still need to plug in to get a nice, deep mellow "thump" but, it sounds awesome! I use mine with a little Crate BT50 bass amp with builtin octaver and distortion.

Many other bassists have enquired about and complimented me on the sound of my ABG when out on a gig.......even at some Bluegrass Jams that I've participated in. And alot of those guys are purists.

I let a couple of upright players try my rig out and they've all absolutely LOVED it! So much so that there have been a few that have gone out and gotten their own ABG's. :D

Hope this helps! Others may have differing points of view but, this has been my experience with ABG's over the last 10 years. I'd also highly recommend a feed back buster sound hole cover since they're more susceptible to feedback than a solid body bass. :bassist:

Forgot to include a picture, so, here it is on edit:


Stuff039.jpg
 
#3
I had a Tacoma Thunderchief that was a very beautiful guitar but didn't have half the volume of older pre-fender TC's I've played. I wouldn't buy any AGB without playing the exact one you want to buy, no mail order in other words. They are just to finicky.

I bought mine online and regretted it since setup is such an issue with these things as well as tone.
 
#4
Given that no acoustic bass guitar is really loud, the most volume you're going to get is an Ovation or Applause (same bass, different headstock) with the deep bowl back. There are only two or three in the same class as these for volume (including the Tacoma, which is a nice instrument), and they're a better buy than most.

Here's my Applause - when the photo was taken it had the original roundwounds, but I've installed D'Addario Chromes. It's a short scale, but later models are 34" scale. Got this one on Ebay with factory case for under $300.

Applause_Bass_WS-2_in_case.jpg
 
#12
madfiddler said:
also just happened to spot this - local to me too
no idea if this is a good price or not

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Ovation-Celeb...14&_trkparms=72:1301|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318
Click to expand...


My first ABG was an Applause....cheap Ovation copy made by Kaman. The tone was VERY thin and not pleasing to me at all.

Due to the lack of body mass, an ABG is limited in how much the body can resonate to get that deep, rich bass sound. IMHO, you need wood, not polyester, to make a bass body resonate to get that deep tone. The Applause just didn't cut it. It sounded "plastic".
 
#14
madfiddler said:
oh dear....I have a bad case of GAS

Invalid Link Removed
seems like a great price too

I need to find were I can go play one of these beauties!
Click to expand...

Here in the states, the local Guitar Center carries MK. I'd seriously consider going fretless with an ABG for reasons I outlined earlier!

I have the four string fretless version (see my earlier post) and it is one sweet sounding and playing axe!
 
#15
I used to own an Olympia OB3CE, which is the import version of the Tacoma Thunderchief. It was the loudest ABG I could find when I was looking and it did sound and play pretty good. Unfortunately, as previously noted, it wasn't even loud enough to play unamped with one other acoustic guitar in my living room so I ended up selling it.

ABG's look cool and sound good when playing by yourself. They definitely fit the image of a coffeehouse acoustic band so they've got their place. Just make sure you understand the limitations before buying one.
 
#16
With the right strings, the Dean Playmate is real loud - I think it has one of the largest bodies available for AEB

Here's mine
dean.gif


I got it for $90 on Craigslist, but I think the street value goes between $100-200, so it's very inexpensive. And it's a beast! I've brought it camping a bunch of times - even dropped it 10 feet onto some jagged rocks by accident and it was FINE! lol
 
#17
OK well finally whilst on a family holiday to florida I picked up a natural Michael Kelly 5 string fretless - fortunately I got to play this and compare with a 4 string freltess amber and a b-grade 5'er in transluscent black

the natural for me stood out, its a very "pretty" bass imo

first job will be to replace strings so up for hearing some recommendtions - I'd like a farily bright upright sound....

here are some pics attached and below

cheers
Chris
 

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#19
I also want to give a shout out to Dean Johnson's Music of Zephyrhills, FL
http://www.singnplay.com

Very friendly and helpful

now I did read around here somewhere that another TB'er thought DJM was expensive, however bearing in mind I was on vacation in FL and had limited options on where to look for one of these basses I was very happy with the service and the price....compared with the cost of getting one of these in the UK new I saved about £250 (punds sterling) so in my book this was a bargain

if anyone goes down there don;t be decieved becasue the place just looks like someones home with a sign outside :) .....its a real little alladdin's cave :)

Thanks Dean :)
 
#20
i was contemplating the purchase of an acoustic bass but then I read several threads which discussed their low volume.

Why not just use a regular electric bass and combine it with a tiny and cheap 10W practice amp that can be bought very cheaply (< $100)? I assume that this would be louder than an acoustic bass. They can be very compact and light so are easily transportable by hand together with a bass.

Of course you would need an mains supply but in most situations this is available.
 

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