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Double Bass thoughts on Prima bass

#22
...Did I mention that when the Prima lays on its side, the headstock sinks to the ground!? Do real basses do this?

So did mine, they balanced it out with a heavy 14mm steel endpin :hmm:

.....and I dont even think that was because of "light" materials in the body. The bass sure wasnt light, and the body had terrible acoustic properties. Hateful, hateful bass.
 
#23
I own a Prima from Freedom Guitar..

I will say it is not the best upright I have owned, but after I got done setting it up, it plays good.

It still needs some FB work to eliminate a slight buzz on the D string in some places.

But we have beat the hell out of it and it has stood the test of gigging!!!

I wouldn't steer a beginner away from this bass. They aren't that bad.

Now if I had the extra change to drop on a higher end bass, I would have. But for now, it is fine.

I also put a one of those custom built pick ups on it. The one that connects to the FINGERBOARD (for all you typo technical police)and it is built like a musicman bass pickup.

Play On!!
 
#26
The temptation to buy and inexpensive bass with an official name and/or logo can be powerful.

My first DB was made by Framus, had a crazed sunburst finish, and had a little brass plate on the tailpiece that said "Peterutti Special" or something like that. It was a ridiculous bass, in many ways, despite (or perhaps, because of) being a "Peterutti Special." My point is that having a label, a fancy name plate, or being sold by an established shop, doesn't make something a musical instrument worth having, IMHO.

I will pass on the classic TBDB advice, as distilled by better players than me:

- Read the newbie links, especially regarding CCB's and BSO's

- Get at least one lesson from a good teacher who plays for a living; maybe they can share some insight as well as keep you from maiming yourself (or others) with the DB

- Get somebody to look at the bass who can really play and/or a good luthier.

- Try lots of basses. Talk with lots of experienced DB players.

- Consider renting or borrowing a bass for awhile while you shop around.

- Remember the old maxim, "Marry in haste, repent at your leisure."

To the OP, glad that your friend found a used bass that they like. Hope that the romance lasts a long time.
 
#27
jmbstudios said:
I own a Prima from Freedom
But we have beat the hell out of it and it has stood the test of gigging!!!

I wouldn't steer a beginner away from this bass. They aren't that bad.
Click to expand...
You'll only really know in a few years when the wood isn't green anymore and things stop shifting. Cross your fingers. :ninja:

Caveat Emptor. Otherwise, congrats and good luck.
 
#28
jmbstudios said:
Well it is nice to see the technical police are up and around today.

:scowl:

Give it a rest.:rollno:
Click to expand...

Well, he is right. Its not a fretboard, its a fingerboard. Lets show a little respect for these noble instruments, yes?

Inaccurate language can beget inaccurate thought. Inaccurate thought could hurt one's playing. Therefore, using the wrong term for fingerboard could make a person play a Db instead of a B## at just the wrong moment. :)

Reminds me of that classic George Orwell essay, "Politics and the English Language." Its all about how society is going increasingly sour because folks have lost the ability to express themselves incisively, creatively, or accurately.
 
#30
Eric Swanson said:
Well, he is right. Its not a fretboard, its a fingerboard. Lets show a little respect for these noble instruments, yes?

Inaccurate language can beget inaccurate thought. Inaccurate thought could hurt one's playing. Therefore, using the wrong term for fingerboard could make a person play a Db instead of a B## at just the wrong moment. :)

Reminds me of that classic George Orwell essay, "Politics and the English Language." Its all about how society is going increasingly sour because folks have lost the ability to express themselves incisively, creatively, or accurately.
Click to expand...

Well get over it.

A little slip of terminology and away we go!
 
#31
jmbstudios said:
Well get over it.

A little slip of terminology and away we go!
Click to expand...

:) Hey, none of it is bothering me at all. How about you?

I dig the casual approach. Lets all just call things whatever we want. Why use terms that other folks will understand?

For myownself, I am going to go quiver my jellybean and ploop out some semiquatroons.

I need to shed a thorny, uptempestuous pigeon farthing in the kloop of Xb for my obligatory jib this even.

Y'all got that? :)
 
#32
For what its worth, I've been paying a CCB, Cremona SB-2 for about 3 years and its been fine. I don't doubt that there are better basses out there and if it hadn't been a gift I might have bought something else. To be pefectly honest, I think that buying a CCB on Craiglist or similar for short money is not a crazy idea. If mine were destroyed I'd probably upgrade to an Upton or something along those lines if I had the money, otherwise it would be another CCB, objections of the canon of this board understood.
 
#34
Bass said:
Ha ha ha, headstock. :smug:

Ah, so some other basses do this too. It just seemed unusual to me, maybe a bit hard to balance being top heavy. And also an indication of less or lighter material in the body.
Click to expand...

My Kai Arvi slowly falls on its scroll if I take the endpin out - which I do every time I move it, because I play with a fixed-length pin and travel with a retractable pin. I don't think it's a problem, but I usually make a point of putting the case on first, which tends to give enough mass and friction to alleviate the problem.
 
#35
It really bugs me to see these "critical parent" terminology corrections directed at newbies that obviously come from an electric bass background. If you go out of your way to make them feel unwelcome during their first post(s) here, they are not likely to come back. It's a way to kill off discussion from newly enthusiastic players and reduce the size of the talkbass community and its paid memberships. It feels like playground bullying. This thread is about buying an inexpensive first doublebass from a rock oriented guitar shop. Of course he's going to use the terminology that he knows from electric bass. Give it a rest.
 
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#38
Steve Swan said:
It really bugs me to see these "critical parent" terminology corrections directed at newbies that obviously come from an electric bass background. If you go out of your way to make them feel unwelcome during their first post(s) here, they are not likely to come back. It's a way to kill off discussion from newly enthusiastic players and reduce the size of the talkbass community and its paid memberships. It feels like playground bullying. This thread is about buying an inexpensive first doublebass from a rock oriented guitar shop. Of course he's going to use the terminology that he knows from electric bass. Give it a rest.
Click to expand...

Get over it. It's good for them. What's gonna happen when they move out?


somebody gibve me anoyther drink
 
#40
I was curious about my bass, and I found this place and this thread on Google. Let me talk about my experience.

I have a University Grade in Bass playing (around 13 years of studies), and I played with the National Symphony Orchestra in Costa Rica in the 80s, although later I changed my orientation to informatics.

I know many different basses, from the sublime to the profane, including carved and laminated instruments, concert, orchestra and jazz style ones. For many years I was out of practice because I didn't have an instrument and I was pursuing my computing career very hard, but later I realised I needed to have "something" at hand to recover part of my art. You know, a bass player always will be a bass player.

Then, I found in EBAY an instrument. In that moment I was out of money, so as cheaper (with obvious restrictions), the better. Also, I am located in Costa Rica, so transportation is an issue. The bass was a Prima P-98 instrument.

It arrived in a weak cardboard and within a nylon case and having a bow. I supposed it was broken inside, but was in one piece. The strings were ... how to say, a piece of crap. I never saw so terrible strings in my life from any brand. And the Bow is nice looking but just that; I suppose cost $25 the most. The varnish had some issues but was, in overall ok. And the Fingerboard was "different" than the standard black one. $800 the instrument, $100 transportation by sea, $100 taxes (more or less) ... still useless instrument.

I know what I do with my bass, so I purchased a new set of Pirastro Obligato strings, adjusted the bridge, and never used the Prima bow but my Schicker 25 years bow that cost several times the bass itself.

With some training time, to recover my skills and to let the instrument to be accustomed to me and the new elements, the 4/4 Bass started to show its real soul. It still needs Fingerboard adjustments, although I can live with the gizz the G string produces (this seems to be a standard problem), but when you know how to manage a Bass, the P-98 is a wonderful, powerful, and extremely sweet instrument. The 4/4 box has very good resonance, particularly when playing the four seasons with a chamber orchestra in a good theater.

It is not perfect, but many depends on you, not in the Bass itself. If you know what to adjust and you learn to drive it, the P-98 is a very good instrument. I still have it and will have for many more years... oh, this bass came to my hands 15 years ago, and the Fingerboard is the "best" part of the instrument ... it is, some way, soft and gentle with your fingers, letting you to communicate better with the instrument, something I didn't feel before with instruments costing more than $20000.

In general : I recommend the instrument, but it must be adjusted first to acquire its potential. If you can't adjust it or to afford a Luthier to do the job, better try another alternative. Oh yes, and I live in an extremely humid tropical country and this instrument works here as in its paradise.
 

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