New to upright

I'm much like you, I'm an EB-turned-URB player. I've just gone through the experience of buying my first double bass. I was helped out significantly by a luthier who let me borrow a bass for a month to see if it was something I wanted to invest in. I got hooked quickly. Heed the advice of others: DO NOT buy one of these inexpensive Chinese basses that are going for $500 on e-bay. Even if you are inexperienced (like me), a keen eye looking over the bass will reveal why they are so cheap. After much researching and personal financial analysis, I settled on an Engelhardt EM-1. At $999 from Music123.com, it was the best compromise for me. Yes, I would rather have a high-end laminate or carved bass, and I would have rather bought from a luthier, but my options in my neck of the woods are severely limited. I will be using it primarily for bluegrass and traditional mountain folk music. But if money is less of an object for you than me, I would spend as much as you can afford. There are many options out there in terms of models and places to purchase them. I found this website to be invaluable, along with Bob Gollihur's webiste (All Hail), www.gollihur.com. I also used the 2X Basslist to search on a variety of topics when I was looking around. You can use the link on Bob's website, it's in his links index. Good luck.