My bass is now a year old so I thought I'd give you my thoughts (few) of our journey.
We've been out in 90 degree heat and direct sunlight, so hot it was painful to play
and extreme cold without any problems. No popped seams or cracks. I keep the humidity at home just above 30%, don't use dampits or anything else.
Going into the fall last year the bass sounded choked and unresponsive. Not much low end and the volume wasn't what it had been.
I experimented with strings and just basically dealt with it. Finally, a trip back to KC Strings confirmed my suspicion. Aiden forced (understatement) the soundpost loose and relieved a lot of tension. New basses can shrink and mine apparently sure did. I discovered that my bass has a very well fitted soundpost patch, as a preventive measure against a possible crack at some point in its life. With the grain slightly crossed, it may just do the trick.
I tried a Realist before going with a Full Circle mostly and am now back to the Realist. The Realist really captures the woody, resonant quality and lacks the slight piezo quack of the Full Circle on this bass. Close contest, but the Realist wins.
I'm using Obligatos at 5-8 mm right now and really liking the way it plays.
The bass is BIG with a 43" string length, 28 1/2" lower bout and tips the scales at almost 30lbs. It has been a tight fit on some gigs, hitting either a piano bench or drum kit. It's amazing how 2-3" can make a difference. It won't fit in the front seat of my wife's Volvo and barely fit in my old Cherokee, necessitating a new car. Something to think about.
There are times I worry about its effect on my knees and back after many years of carrying it around. This really helps:[Invalid or Expired Link Removed] and I wouldn't be without it.
After the first year, I believe even more strongly that I made the right choice. This a very nice instrument that will only continue to improve with time. A piano player on break looking at the bass recently made a nice comment. "Your bass will be a magnificent instrument and one of the really great ones in time". The way it is going I don't expect to wait long.
We've been out in 90 degree heat and direct sunlight, so hot it was painful to play
and extreme cold without any problems. No popped seams or cracks. I keep the humidity at home just above 30%, don't use dampits or anything else. Going into the fall last year the bass sounded choked and unresponsive. Not much low end and the volume wasn't what it had been.
I experimented with strings and just basically dealt with it. Finally, a trip back to KC Strings confirmed my suspicion. Aiden forced (understatement) the soundpost loose and relieved a lot of tension. New basses can shrink and mine apparently sure did. I discovered that my bass has a very well fitted soundpost patch, as a preventive measure against a possible crack at some point in its life. With the grain slightly crossed, it may just do the trick. I tried a Realist before going with a Full Circle mostly and am now back to the Realist. The Realist really captures the woody, resonant quality and lacks the slight piezo quack of the Full Circle on this bass. Close contest, but the Realist wins.
I'm using Obligatos at 5-8 mm right now and really liking the way it plays.
The bass is BIG with a 43" string length, 28 1/2" lower bout and tips the scales at almost 30lbs. It has been a tight fit on some gigs, hitting either a piano bench or drum kit. It's amazing how 2-3" can make a difference. It won't fit in the front seat of my wife's Volvo and barely fit in my old Cherokee, necessitating a new car. Something to think about.
There are times I worry about its effect on my knees and back after many years of carrying it around. This really helps:[Invalid or Expired Link Removed] and I wouldn't be without it.
After the first year, I believe even more strongly that I made the right choice. This a very nice instrument that will only continue to improve with time. A piano player on break looking at the bass recently made a nice comment. "Your bass will be a magnificent instrument and one of the really great ones in time". The way it is going I don't expect to wait long.
