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Ukulele

I meet a guy today playing bass lines on a tenor ukulele he was at the music store he just got new strings.He even tuned it EADG.I thought it was weird but then after talking to him it makes sense.I know it is wrong octave so i dont need to be reminded!But anyway i am in middle of trying to make a small bass to screw around on here and there.But with this you could pratice any where with somthing this small!You could learn songs at work!So many things would be withen reach!Anyone else doing this?And what is the opinion on this?
 
Yes i know of the kala ubass i have a set of road toad strings on the way for my 24 inch scale project.But the ubass still makes you use an amp so i plan to use my head phone amp setup with my project bass.But i find it to be a cheap and easy option for playing and practicing where an amp is not possible.Even the head set amp would be rough at work i will still need to hear my name if i am paged.Not trying to sell the ideal to anyone just made so much sense when it was explaned to me just one of the simple things i think we might all be overlooking!
 
Wow thats a neat song i am going to try to figure it out!

At home=Drag amp out,open case get bass out,hook eveything up,all while sitting in computer chair with an almost 4 foot long bass looking for the song.

At work=**** i'll think about this the whole time i am at lunch and then go through step 1 when i get home!

HACK ASS UKULELE=Play song on cell phone and pull the cheap uku out of the work drawer or back pack!

Thats the way he told me does it do anything for any one else?
 
Wow thats a neat song i am going to try to figure it out!

At home=Drag amp out,open case get bass out,hook eveything up,all while sitting in computer chair with an almost 4 foot long bass looking for the song.

At work=**** i'll think about this the whole time i am at lunch and then go through step 1 when i get home!

HACK ASS UKULELE=Play song on cell phone and pull the cheap uku out of the work drawer or back pack!

Thats the way he told me does it do anything for any one else?

Yeah, I find this an interesting idea. I have a Kala Tenor uke already. Would you use the stock strings and tune down to EADG?

I'd like to have a small form factor bass that I could carry around and noodle on!
 
You might have seen this!

Kala's Ukulele Bass - comparable to the Ashbory bass, but not suck.

ubass_details-510x393.jpg
 
Yes as it was brought up before the u basses are very nice but still you need an amp.The ideal here is for quick easy practice.Go anywhere play anytime type thing!

With a UBass, if you are just practicing you don't need an amp. You can hear it just fine acoustically. If you're by yourself that is. If you're playing with a guitar player or another Uke player, then you need to plug it in to be heard.
 
The one i played i had a hard time hearing with much of any back ground noise. a couple of teens looking at a guitar behind me and talking cover up the bass with out a amp!But i do love the way that things sounds with an amp!It is my insperation for my homemade bass using the same strings and pickup!But less than half the price!Wonder why this ideal is so hard for people to accept?
 
So, did any of you try doing a tenor tuned like a bass but an octave (or 2?) up?

My wife and I are looking at doing some walking tour vacations in the future. She's an artist, so plans to setup and paint during these walks. I'd like to have a mini-bass with me to play around on while she paints. Since we'd be walking up to 10 miles per day, it would have to be really light. I've tried the Kala U-Bass, but it's hard to hear when there's any background noise, so I was thinking a tenor ukulele tuned EADG might work. If I got an electric one I might be able to use it sometimes with my iRig for working on songs.

Anyone done something similar?
 
My solution is to work on learning to play the tenor uke. It is very comfortable for bass players IMO given the string to string spacing at the nut. I have been looking for something to sit on my porch and noodle with. And all the low frequency stuff was expensive and / or needed amplifcation. The uke has fit the bill for being low cost, fun as hell, no amp, sounds good, and fairly easy to learn. And even though I am not working on bass lines, I think my bass playing is better with the other instrument practice going on.
 
I don't think you're going to find a tenor uke sized bass that is loud enough unplugged, because the ukulele is too small. That's why acoustic basses are big, I guess. Maybe if you had some kind of resonator, or round back or something, it might work. The best bet is to Just tune a tenor an octave higher than the bass, or maybe use a baritone uke.
 
SketchMan3 said:
I don't think you're going to find a tenor uke sized bass that is loud enough unplugged, because the ukulele is too small. That's why acoustic basses are big, I guess. Maybe if you had some kind of resonator, or round back or something, it might work. The best bet is to Just tune a tenor an octave higher than the bass, or maybe use a baritone uke.

Yes, the intent was to use the tenor uke tuned EADG like a bass, but an octave or two up.

I got one with a pickup so I can see what it sounds like through an octaver.

MX
 

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