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Double Bass Upton vs. Shen

A

alanbarnosky

Jun 13, 2007
67
0
Ypsilanti, MI
www.waywardroots.com
#1
I love my old Kay, but need something with more defined tone and better for bowing. I've narrowed it down the Upton standard laminate and the Shen SB100. I've played the Shen, set up by a professional luthier, and it has a nice, deep growl. Sound is good, volume is good, only thing I noticed is tone/volume across all strings isn't the same. I've played Travis Book's upton about a year ago, but it was on a stage and couldn't get a good feel for the true sound of the bass. Somebody in northern michigan is selling a year old Upton on craigslist, he is about a 6 hour drive from me. I'll check it out in about two weeks.

So the question is, overall, Shen vs. Upton, which is better? I'm looking for best tone and solid construction. I will be hitting the festival circuit next year and need something that can withstand tempature changes, humidity, and crazed festival goers. I realize there are better basses out there, but my budget is 2 - 2.5k, and I want a ply bass so I don't have to worry about cracks and damage as much.

Thanks!
 
#2
They're both good but slightly different in overall character. The Upton felt really solid to me, perhaps more so than the Shen. The Upton I tried had a lot of volume but was a little more midrangy than I usually go for. That said, it had plenty of sustain and growl and seemed built for the long haul. The Shen is a little more traditional looking in color and finish. I wasn't crazy about the look of the Upton but it seemed highly functional. Apples and oranges I guess. Both represent a good value. Upton is a great shop and will likely be there for you if you need them in the future, Shen is a little harder to get to.... Go play the Upton and see if it moves you, that's the only way to tell which is right for you.
 
#3
For me, the fact that Upton is made in America, and a green company, and is available to honor warranties by driving to the shop, AND takes full value trade in on the instruments they make in case you want to upgrade, would make me lean away from Shen. Im saving up for an Upton Hybrid myself.
 
#4
CatfishStudios said:
For me, the fact that Upton is made in America, and a green company, and is available to honor warranties by driving to the shop, AND takes full value trade in on the instruments they make in case you want to upgrade, would make me lean away from Shen. Im saving up for an Upton Hybrid myself.
Click to expand...

These are factors definitely to be considered in my own search for a DB instrument...
Thank you for putting a voice to my unspoken musings...
 
#5
I haven't had any experience playing a Shen or purchasing one, so I'm not going to tell you which I prefer, as I've only played and purchased an Upton Standard laminate. I CAN tell you, however, that the people at Upton Bass are extremely helpful and friendly. I spoke to Gary, who is the owner of the shop, for the better part of two and a half hours when I put my order in. He answered all of my questions, no matter how newbie they were. After I put my order in, I kept in touch with Kate, and she kept me updated as to the progress of the build and even sent me pictures of it in the shop midway through. Not to mention the bass looks and sounds great! Now, I've heard many good things about Shen, and I'm sure they make a great bass. But so does Upton. I'll say you can't go wrong with either one. Good luck in your endeavours!
 
#9
I bought a Shen this past summer. I wanted a New Standard, but couldn't afford it. I looked at Uptons, but didn't want to wait to have one made.

I'm more than happy with the SB100 I bought. It's solid, sounds great, plays great and looks tasty. For the jump blues I play, it was a good purchase.

I'm not too far from you (New Hudson), so if you want to check mine out, shoot me an email and we'll hook up. I play in Ann Arbor a lot, so you could check it out at one of my gigs if you're in the area.
 
#10
I bought an instrument from Upton when I was a junior in high school, needing a solid instrument to audition for music schools. My hybrid was wonderful, really great tone and response for a bass in it's price range. Gary, Eric and all the guys at Upton are always friendly and willing to work with you if any problems should arise. The sound also expanded a huge amount, it had a deep rich tone pizz or arco. It's now in the hands of another high school bassist, the brother of one of my best friends. He loves it and will be bringing it off to whatever music school he gets into. They're made in America, very reasonably priced, very solidly built, great customer service... I'd always recommend Upton in a situation like this. They're hard to beat.
 
#11
Alan, since you mentioned bowing, you might want to consider moving up to a hybrid bass this time, regardless of the maker. I have an NS La Scala Hybrid... carved top, solid sides, lam back. It sounds great under the bow, and it has that extra bit of durability in the back. Maybe hang onto your Kay for the times when you just don't want to subject your main bass to the abuse.
 
#12
Thanks for all the info, any other opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Marcus, thanks for the advice but I'm pretty sure I know what I'm going for, at least for now. Unfortunately I don't have the money or space for two basses, and I'm getting tired of and feel limited by this Kay. I do prefer the sound of a carved, or even a hybrid, but can't afford it and don't want to risk it with all the traveling I expect to be doing. I am also not extremely careful with my instruments, so I want something that can handle potential wall hits and similar goofs on my part.

Another question - what about resale value for either of these? If I buy the Upton, it will be $1700 for the bass, adjustable bridge, and Revolution pickup - definitely a depreciation since the original purchase. Should I expect the price to stay the same, or raise, or even fall, in the future? How about for a Shen?
 
#13
I don't imagine Uptons or Shens will ever be expensive collectors items due to the large amount that are out there but, because they are basically solid instruments that should last if taken care of, your resale value should stay pretty consistent and shouldn't drop to far from whatever the standard price is for one of them used.
 
#14
Can't answer your direct question, but I've had nothing but good experiences with Upton customer service. That counts for a lot in my book.

I came close to ordering a new Upton Standard, and would have if the Lidl I'm playing now hadn't shown up at a price I couldn't refuse. I ended up buying a new set of strings and a revolution Solo II pick up for it from them.

Nothing but good things on my end. If I decide I need something more, I'll seriously consider a trip down to Upton for one of their Basses.
 
#15
For what it's worth, I owned a Shen for a little over a year, which I bought from Upton. I was coming from an old Kay which had great sound and playability but required constant fiddling (pardon the pun) to keep it together and playable. The Shen was nicer looking and easier to play but had very little to offer in the sound, and the plastic like finish really bothered me. I loved the set-up they did at Upton though. But I traded it back and got the Upton Standard and never looked back. It's light years ahead of the Shen in every respect. Everyone who has seen it or played it loves it, both classical and jazz players. In fact I brought a couple of them down and they bought Uptons too. Can't beat the service or quality at Upton in my opinion.
 
#17
joinercape1 said:
For what it's worth, I owned a Shen for a little over a year, which I bought from Upton. I was coming from an old Kay which had great sound and playability but required constant fiddling (pardon the pun) to keep it together and playable. The Shen was nicer looking and easier to play but had very little to offer in the sound, and the plastic like finish really bothered me. I loved the set-up they did at Upton though. But I traded it back and got the Upton Standard and never looked back. It's light years ahead of the Shen in every respect. Everyone who has seen it or played it loves it, both classical and jazz players. In fact I brought a couple of them down and they bought Uptons too. Can't beat the service or quality at Upton in my opinion.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this! How does the Upton compare to your old Kay?
 
#18
alanbarnosky said:
Marcus, thanks for the advice but I'm pretty sure I know what I'm going for, at least for now. Unfortunately I don't have the money or space for two basses, and I'm getting tired of and feel limited by this Kay. I do prefer the sound of a carved, or even a hybrid, but can't afford it and don't want to risk it with all the traveling I expect to be doing. I am also not extremely careful with my instruments, so I want something that can handle potential wall hits and similar goofs on my part.
Click to expand...

I hear ya. One last question... have you bowed your Kay at all, hopefully after some instruction from a teacher of arco playing? (sorry, that seems a little insulting, I don't mean it to be)

Not trying to be a putz, or to keep you from shopping for a bass that you like. But I've heard some incredible stuff from some pretty humble instruments... arco or otherwise. And one of my students has a "My Old Kay" (40's) that I would be happy to play anywhere on any stage, anytime.

Sorry if I muddied the waters for you. Those Uptons sure look nice. Actually, so do the Shens :atoz:
 
#19
Marcus, thanks for the suggestion. I practice on it with a bow, and have gotten some instruction on how to use it, though I am still learning. Its just not that great of a sound using a bow, or at least not what I am expecting to get out of it. This bass would be fine for a beginner youth orchestra player who is still learning musicianship and technique. I feel I have gotten beyond that, and ready to move on to a bass that is a little bit more responsive to expressive playing.
 
#20
The Kay is a great old bass, early '40's I've been told, but it's pretty beat, been gigged for most of it's life. I'm no classical player, I practice acro a lot but use the bow only occasionally on gigs, which are anything from duos to big bands, what we call "GB" around here. The Upton is a far more dependable instrument for my needs, and after a short break-in period it sounded great and gets better all the time. It's actually the third bass I've had from them, the first two were when they were using the European builds and finishing them in there shop. Those were great basses too, but a little heavy and more finicky for this old man to deal with. I work on and around Cape Cod and the islands, the humidity changes hourly, it's a nightmare for big wooden objects. My current bass is three years old and has been dragged around in boats, cars, etc. to a few hundred gigs already. It's actually the prototype for their in'house built Standard series, it has number 1 on the label! But Gary and Jack are the best, and turn themselves inside out trying to please their customers.
So to answer your question, the old Kay has charm and sopunds good, the Upton has charm, reliability, and it sounds great too. Best of luck....Never tried the Shen Willow, mine was laminated. So is my Upton.
 

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