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Double Bass NS BassCello (now OmniBass) megathread

#41
Hi!

Was wondering if there are any UK based players using a NS BassCello? I'd really love to try one...alternatively anyone know of a UK dealer who would be able to get one for me to try?

Also, a quick technical question - am I right in thinking the difference between the low B and high C tunings is just down to the strings? As a four string BG player I think I would find the high C easiest to make the transition on, but like the idea I could swap strings in the future and have the low B at my disposal.

Any further comments appreciated, cheers

Tom
 
#43
Cheers for confirming that!

It's strange, I've played violin since the age of three (almost 20 years now!) but since taking up bass guitar (less than 2 years ago), the couple of times I've grabbed a cello I've found it impossible to think in 5ths and been frustrated by not having bass licks fall naturally!

Tom
 
#44
Something new from NS Design...

A five string fretted version of the Bass Cello:

basscellofret1.jpg


I suspect most of us in the forums are of the no-fret persuasion, but there are those who feel the need and currently have no other option than a non-bowable FEBGOAS (fretless electric bass guitar on a stick).

Your thoughts?
 
#49
Hey all.... I may have to travel this summer with the BassCello. So far, I've been able to throw it in the overhead... I've been to Japan with it that way, JAL is great. But dealing with US mainland airlines, I'm thinking it might be smarter to get a hard shell golf case. There's a road case available for the bass, too rich for my blood. Any suggestions?

Thanks, Marcus
 
#50
Marcus Johnson said:
Hey all.... I may have to travel this summer with the BassCello. So far, I've been able to throw it in the overhead... I've been to Japan with it that way, JAL is great. But dealing with US mainland airlines, I'm thinking it might be smarter to get a hard shell golf case. There's a road case available for the bass, too rich for my blood. Any suggestions?

Thanks, Marcus
Click to expand...

Marcus, Looks like it might fit in one of those SKB rifle cases designed for the Azola Ltg Bug. Have had zero problems, mine's been tossed on the asphalt w/o damage to the Bug, no overage charges, and SKB sent me a new wheel free when I needed one - great warranty.

Ike
 
#51
Hi! Another refugee from the slab side here...

I'm a little confused about the cello tuning. Is that standard cello pitch, or an octave below?

I ask because I'm using cello strings in fifths on my Warwick, and I'm having a little difficulty wrapping my head around the idea that NSD can get a 34" scale instrument to tune up that high and still have a wound A string.
 
#52
amper said:
Hi! Another refugee from the slab side here...

I'm a little confused about the cello tuning. Is that standard cello pitch, or an octave below?

I ask because I'm using cello strings in fifths on my Warwick, and I'm having a little difficulty wrapping my head around the idea that NSD can get a 34" scale instrument to tune up that high and still have a wound A string.
Click to expand...

According to the NS dealer info, the Bass Cello Strings are tuned in 5ths C to E, low to high.
 
#53
Bob Gollihur said:
According to the NS dealer info, the Bass Cello Strings are tuned in 5ths C to E, low to high.
Click to expand...

Yes, but *which* C? Cello C, or an octave below? I ask, because the ND Designs website mentions "octave cello" tuning, which leads me to believe, along with the 34" scale, that it's actually an octave below cello, or what you would get with double bass fifths tuning, à la Joel Quarrington.
 
#54
amper said:
Yes, but *which* C? Cello C, or an octave below? I ask, because the ND Designs website mentions "octave cello" tuning, which leads me to believe, along with the 34" scale, that it's actually an octave below cello, or what you would get with double bass fifths tuning, à la Joel Quarrington.
Click to expand...

It's the low C below the standard low E on a bass. I assume their "cello tuning" designation is based more on the fifth interval than anything else.
 
#55
Bob Gollihur said:
It's the low C below the standard low E on a bass. I assume their "cello tuning" designation is based more on the fifth interval than anything else.
Click to expand...

Ah, so it *is* an octave below cello. Thanks, Bob! Since the NSD instruments are quite expensive, and my gear budget is so low these days, I've been planning an experiment with custom gauges to tune my StingRay in fifths, an octave below cello CGDA, or possibly a fourth below FCGD.

I cobbled together sets out of Rotosound Jazz Bass 77 sets that look like this:

C = 130 (regular B from RS776LD, up 1 half step)
G = 100 (light E from SM77, up 3 half steps)
D = 75 (heavy D from RS77LE, standard pitch)
A = 45 (regular G from RS776LD, up 2 half steps)

F = 105 (regular E from RS776LD, up 1 half step)
C = 80 (light A from SM77, up 3 half steps)
G = 50 (heavy G from RS77LE, standard pitch)
D = 30 (regular C from RS776LD, up 2 half steps)

I figure these two sets should give me fifths tuning at only a bit more tension than a regular gauge 4 string set (which would be the RS77LD set), or approximately the same tension as a heavy gauge (RS77LE) set. The "fourth below cello" tuning would be easy to try, as I wouldn't necessarily need to have a new installed to try it out, but the "octave below cello" tuning would definitely need a new nut, since the string gauges are much larger than standard EADG bass guitar tuning, with the exception of the A string.

I'm curious what gauge string NSD is using for their high E, because the only three high C (in normal BG tuning) flatwound strings I know of out there are the .030 Rotosound, the .033 TI Jazz, and the .032 D'Addario Chromes. I haven't seen anything lighter than that, and as you can see from my studies above, using that gauge at high E would require tuning four half steps above normal pitch. I'm sure that would cause problems.

Granted, NSD is using custom strings, but I'd love to compare what I'm doing with my Warwick and what I'm trying to do with my StingRay to what NSD is doing.

That said, I'm not sure I would bother with a 5 string fifths tuning. The extra range would seem unnecessary to me.
 
#60
I'm currently saving up to purchase a basscello, but I'm not overly enthousiastic beforehand on the boomerang strap that will be supplied with it. So I have the following question: is the basscello compatible with the original NS strap system? The one that keeps the instrument a bit further away from your body? Anyone got any experience with both strap systems? And what are your experiences with the end-pin vs. the tripod?
 

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