Double Bass NS Design NXT Megathread

[mp40smg]

All... I am thinking seriously about taking the plunge on either a WAV5 or an NXT5.
Here is the question..

Is there no love for the white? I am thinking of going either the white or trans black. But I have seen no "action" shots of the white.

 

[Mark Gollihur]

All... I am thinking seriously about taking the plunge on either a WAV5 or an NXT5.
Here is the question..

Is there no love for the white? I am thinking of going either the white or trans black. But I have seen no "action" shots of the white.

The white one has been surprisingly slow. I've sold a couple, but I thought they'd be super popular with praise band bassists. They look pretty sharp, though.

 

[tfer]

Even in the EUB world, traditional colors matter.

I do like the white, and the black is gorgeous, but most players seem to gravitate towards the more traditional upright shades.

 

[steve_rolfeca]

My NXT originally lived in Northern Ontario, and the climate had shrunk the fingerboard just enough that the dot markers were sticking up.

When I levelled the fingerboard, it came up an attractive mottled black to dark-brown. With the Amberburst finish, it looks great against the flamed veneer on the body and headstock.

I don't know that I would like that look with a white or black instrument.

I realize that black is only a dye job away, but still...

 

[Nohrellas]

I took a bit of a break from my NXT and now that I'm back, could someone shine a light on whether the arco response of it is similar to that of an acoustic upright bass? I still don't have the option to get or properly try an acoustic UB, I can only compare it to my great grandfathers cello that I have here, with the bass bow I find it very easy to at least get the notes to ring out clearly on the cello, while it seems exceptionally hard on the NXT. Is that due to it being a bass, thick strings and high tension (I'm using the traditional NXT strings) or does the solid body nature of it have something to do with it?
Basically, does the NXT respond similarly to an acoustic UB when playing it arco?

 

[steve_rolfeca]

...could someone shine a light on whether the arco response of it is similar to that of an acoustic upright bass? ...I find it very easy to at least get the notes to ring out clearly on the cello, while it seems exceptionally hard on the NXT.
...Basically, does the NXT respond similarly to an acoustic UB when playing it arco?

Total newb here, but perhaps I can shed some light on this:

I sampled some bass bows on my NXT, but all the vendor had was violin rosin. Totally hopeless.

Tried one of the same bows later w/bass rosin (coarse and much stickier), and it was a breeze.

All of this on 10 year old standard NXT strings.

 

[Nohrellas]

Total newb here, but perhaps I can shed some light on this:

I sampled some bass bows on my NXT, but all the vendor had was violin rosin. Totally hopeless.

Tried one of the same bows later w/bass rosin (coarse and much stickier), and it was a breeze.

All of this on 10 year old standard NXT strings.

Hmm, I'm currently using Nyman Bass rosin, maybe I'm just doing something terribly wrong.

 

[ChrisW_Music]

I took a bit of a break from my NXT and now that I'm back, could someone shine a light on whether the arco response of it is similar to that of an acoustic upright bass? I still don't have the option to get or properly try an acoustic UB, I can only compare it to my great grandfathers cello that I have here, with the bass bow I find it very easy to at least get the notes to ring out clearly on the cello, while it seems exceptionally hard on the NXT. Is that due to it being a bass, thick strings and high tension (I'm using the traditional NXT strings) or does the solid body nature of it have something to do with it?
Basically, does the NXT respond similarly to an acoustic UB when playing it arco?

I'm a newcomer to bowing myself, and am having quite a bit of difficulty getting good sounding notes, and avoiding the lower strings' tendencies to play harmonics, or not even sound cleanly.

I don't know if I'm saying something that's obvious to most people, but I've had a lot of success by focusing on where on the string the bow is placed, the angle of the bow to the string, and developing consistency with the techniques.

A website I've found some really helpful videos on is Home It's aimed primarily at acoustic double bass players, but has some really good stuff on basic techniques, as well as more advanced stuff, and a lot of it is free to watch.

 

[Nohrellas]

I'm a newcomer to bowing myself, and am having quite a bit of difficulty getting good sounding notes, and avoiding the lower strings' tendencies to play harmonics, or not even sound cleanly.

I don't know if I'm saying something that's obvious to most people, but I've had a lot of success by focusing on where on the string the bow is placed, the angle of the bow to the string, and developing consistency with the techniques.

A website I've found some really helpful videos on is Home It's aimed primarily at acoustic double bass players, but has some really good stuff on basic techniques, as well as more advanced stuff, and a lot of it is free to watch.

That's exactly my issue, especially on the thicker strings I tend to ring out a harmonic instead of the actual note. I'll check out the site, thanks for the tip.

After some more testing I also found that, if I practice arco for a prolonged period it seems to get much more consistent by the end of it, could that be a case of the rosing "warming up" or am I just getting more consistent at the end of a practice session? Again, this might be something very obvious and silly, sorry if it's a stupid question.

 

[DoubleMIDI]

EUBs are harder to bow than acoustic uprights, specially the ones without a resonator chamber where the bridge sits directly on thick wood. Soft rosin helps a bit (the higher pitched the bowed instrument, the harder the rosin, so avoid cello, viola or violin rosin), but good bowing technique (position and angle on the string, angle of the bow hairs, weight on the string and speed of the bow) and maybe a short impulse of additional weight at the beginning of the note help. Also the sound is less inspiring on a EUB because of the missing resonator.

Nymans is medium rosin, can work, but a softer one might be more desirable. But one warning, soft rosin can make the bow hairs stick to the string when the bow is stopped with the hairs on the string which is not nice to resolve. Specially in summer or in direct sunlight.

 

[mp40smg]

Even in the EUB world, traditional colors matter.

I do like the white, and the black is gorgeous, but most players seem to gravitate towards the more traditional upright shades.

So, sunburst and trans red would be considered more traditional?

I would think the trans-black would the most "traditional" looking of the NS?

 

[tfer]

So, sunburst and trans red would be considered more traditional?

I would think the trans-black would the most "traditional" looking of the NS?

The sunburst on mine, is very reminiscent of this.

 

[ChrisW_Music]

That's exactly my issue, especially on the thicker strings I tend to ring out a harmonic instead of the actual note. I'll check out the site, thanks for the tip.

After some more testing I also found that, if I practice arco for a prolonged period it seems to get much more consistent by the end of it, could that be a case of the rosing "warming up" or am I just getting more consistent at the end of a practice session? Again, this might be something very obvious and silly, sorry if it's a stupid question.

I have a 5-string, and find that I have to move the bow very slowly, especially on the low B, to not get a harmonic. I also get squeaks and stuff from accidentally contacting adjacent strings. I think that as I warm up in a session (rather than the rosin ) my technique gets more refined and my sound more consistent. One of the videos on that site that I found particularly helpful was one on bowing technique that showed how to use your elbow to control bow position and angle. Practising in front of a full-length mirror is also really helpful.

 

[crocau]

I had to replace a broken NXTa charger and got an incredible customer service with NS Design ! Within four days, I had a new one in my mailbox !
I am very happy with this instrument, with the Traditional strings.
Still, I wonder if a Fishman Platinum Preamp would help. More control over the EQ, a little compression, a tuner...

 

[fivestringgecko]

Just popping in for a quick NXT post...

I had to replace a broken NXTa charger and got an incredible customer service with NS Design ! Within four days, I had a new one in my mailbox !
I am very happy with this instrument, with the Traditional strings.
Still, I wonder if a Fishman Platinum Preamp would help. More control over the EQ, a little compression, a tuner...

I agree on customer service. The top bolt on my stand stripped out (the one that holds the instrument up), and NS had a new one out to me in only a couple days. I did end up upgrading to the CR stand though, and I'm MUCH more confident in that stand. Looks like drum/cymbal hardware and is MUCH more robust. Still, great customer service from NS.

I've only been playing upright for a few months so far, but had quite a bit of fun doing some studio recording with my NXTa this weekend. Ran through the switcher on my pedalboard to go to the mixer, which was handy... used my Vintage Ultra to dial in a sound that the recording engineer liked. Here's a shot from the studio, and the board build I was running through. (Sidenote: NXTa sounds very "Primus" with the pedals in the front row. Unfortunately, that wasn't for THIS recording. We were doing jazz standards.) I'll post back with links when we get tracks finished and posted. Probably won't be for a little while yet though... Vocals and horns aren't scheduled until later this month.

NXTa / Fender MIA Pbass V > One Control Switcher > Mini Volume X (aux out to Polytune) > Future Impact > Octabvre > Symmetry > Aftershock > Proton > Polytope > Little Black Box > Timeline > Vintage Ultra > mixing console

5sg.

 

[Spanky123]

Best stomp for NXT 4-string (original)?

Is a Line 6 Bass Pod okay? I am looking for an all-in-one stompbox that goes well with an NXT bass -- more for practice than anything else.I find I get bored less if I have a box making different sounds. Budget-friendly is good. I like low noise preamps that fatten nicely. I see an inexpensive Zoom pedal on Amazon. Opinions and recommendations appreciated. (The pedal collection above is impressive, but way out of my league).

I live in a remote location so I cannot visit a retail shop. I have to mail order.

 

[ArtechnikA]

Best stomp for NXT 4-string (original)?

Check the input impedance spec of whatever you're looking at. The higher the better - something in the 10 MegOhm is good, although I've had decent results in the 1 MegOhm range. But 10 was better. The piezo pickup doesn't have much output and low impedance will have reduced volume and lowered high-frequency response. With enough preamp gain, this might be manageable.

Read the specs, preferably try before you buy.
Or just buy an fDeck buffered pre/HPF and run whatever you want after that (my approach...)

 

[Spanky123]

Thanks for pointing out the impedance issue. I also have an acoustic upright with an inexpensive transducer. I am hoping that whatever I buy will work with that also.
Has anyone ever tried this with an NXT?
Invalid Link Removed

The manual says output is:
Line + 2dBm
(with output load impedance of 10 kΩ or more)

Check the input impedance spec of whatever you're looking at. The higher the better - something in the 10 MegOhm is good, although I've had decent results in the 1 MegOhm range. But 10 was better. The piezo pickup doesn't have much output and low impedance will have reduced volume and lowered high-frequency response. With enough preamp gain, this might be manageable.

Read the specs, preferably try before you buy.
Or just buy an fDeck buffered pre/HPF and run whatever you want after that (my approach...)

 

[steve_rolfeca]

Thanks for pointing out the impedance issue. I also have an acoustic upright with an inexpensive transducer. I am hoping that whatever I buy will work with that also.
Has anyone ever tried this with an NXT?
Invalid Link Removed

The manual says output is:
Line + 2dBm
(with output load impedance of 10 kΩ or more)

Wrong measurement- you've got to worry about the input impedance, not the output.

Don't use the B1on with an NXT, unless you've got a high-impedance preamp you can put between the NXT and the Zoom. Ditto for the B3n and G5n. They are all less than half a MegOhm.

The difference is profound- you lose some lows, and the treble gets quacky-sounding.

My MS-60B will do in a pinch (it's 1MegOhm), but my NXT still sounds better when I put an FDeck HPF pre before the Zoom.

I don't know that you need a full 10MegOhm input impedance, but you definitely want at least 5MegOhm...

 

[Spanky123]

So it looks like this HPF thing is the way to go if I want to play with consumer pedals.....

What do you think of the low-end Zoom boxes once I have the impedance sorted out?

EDIT: I have a Tech21 Sansamp Bass Driver DI. Does that help with the impedance?

Wrong measurement- you've got to worry about the input impedance, not the output.

Don't use the B1on with an NXT, unless you've got a high-impedance preamp you can put between the NXT and the Zoom. Ditto for the B3n and G5n. They are all less than half a MegOhm.

The difference is profound- you lose some lows, and the treble gets quacky-sounding.

My MS-60B will do in a pinch (it's 1MegOhm), but my NXT still sounds better when I put an FDeck HPF pre before the Zoom.

I don't know that you need a full 10MegOhm input impedance, but you definitely want at least 5MegOhm...