Double Bass Yet another EUB build (but my first)!

[jimmy rocket]

I know how people like their build threads at TB so I thought I would throw my hat into the ring. This will be about 37" scale when finished, so much shorter than a full size DB, but I hope to emulate some of the feel of a DB on a shorter scale. The fingerboard and bridge will be radiused so as to allow arco playing.

I've got the basic body shape (what you see will be the top of a 2 piece poplar laminate body. The piece of wood sitting in the bridge position is just for visualizing approximately where the bridge will be. I'll need to cut a proper bridge later. I've begun rough shaping the neck with chisels and rasps.

Here she is. Sorry for the grainy first picture. It's rubbish but you get the idea.

 

[jimmy rocket]

No comments yet, but a build update for anyone who's interested. I've shaped the headstock a bit more, glued the fingerboard to the neck and shaped all that a bit more. I'm currently gluing the body stock together. I'm engineering the tailpiece right now, but in the end I may just look for a floating BG tailpiece rather than creating one.

Everything is poplar right now. I realize that this is an unorthodox choice for the fingerboard and assorted other parts, but this EUB is a bit of an experiment with materials and technique, so we'll see...

Any comments are always appreciated!

 

[ctregan]

Looks good Rocketman!

Always enjoy a build project on TB.

I noticed your neck mortice is square, will you be cutting the neck at an angle to get the string bridge height? The geometry can be tricky!

Any thoughts on pick ups yet?

 

[jimmy rocket]

Looks good Rocketman!

Always enjoy a build project on TB.

I noticed your neck mortice is square, will you be cutting the neck at an angle to get the string bridge height? The geometry can be tricky!

Any thoughts on pick ups yet?

It's subtle, but it's actually a bit more of an angle than the picture shows. I'll try to get some better pics up tonight or tomorrow. I've been working the neck pocket out to fit the neck.

The angle will give me about a 4 inch tall bridge which will be a carved upright style, and the strings will come over the bridge into either a body mounted bridge (a la the back part of a warwick bridge), a flying bridge, or through body.

I'm a little worried about string length. I think I'll be alright with some super long D'Addario chromes.

As far as pickups, I was planning on beginning with a basic passive piezo setup, but I expect that I'll need to add a preamp. I'm looking at a basic vol/tone 9v preamp.

 

[Honk'n_down-low]

Very nice - looking forward to seeing the finished project.

 

[jimmy rocket]

Thanks for the encouragement and comments.

Ok, here's a better profile of the neck mortise as it joins the body. The scale of this project gives me about a 3" elevation at the bridge at this angle.

Here's a full body shot. The neck is not crooked. That effect is coming from the angle I shot the picture at I guess. I'm currently working that black metal tailpiece to fit the body. From nut to tailpiece the strings will be 38" and then whatever I need to make it up to the tuning machines.

 

[jimmy rocket]

Ok, so there's still a lot of sanding to do before I'm even close to finish quality, but here's a first assembly next to my G&L for size reference.

 

[bassbob]

Looks good so far. I like the scroll you've made. If you can make the scale out to 38" that gives the equivalent of a half size bass. It will be interesting to see how a poplar neck holds up. I find the combination of the neck and fingerboard all together interesting also. I'd go with strings through the body to keep it simple and avoid wolf tones. You might as well get the benefit of all that poplar.

I have some tuning machines on ebay you can check out if you like. Have you thought out what your bridge will look like?
that can influence what kind of pickup you can use and what kind of sound you can get also. Good luck.

Bassbob

 

[jimmy rocket]

Looks good so far. I like the scroll you've made. If you can make the scale out to 38" that gives the equivalent of a half size bass. It will be interesting to see how a poplar neck holds up. I find the combination of the neck and fingerboard all together interesting also. I'd go with strings through the body to keep it simple and avoid wolf tones. You might as well get the benefit of all that poplar.

I think the through-body stringing will be what I eventually go with. Ockhams razor right? I'll be interested to see how the neck holds up as well. I made it bolt on so if there were any engineering changes that needed to be done in the future (additional support / fingerboard change) I wouldn't have to start from scratch.

The combo neck/fingerboard was inspired by the ergo EUBs where it's basically one wood in the neck/fingerboard and that's the entirety of the bass. We shall see... In any event I intend on staining the fingerboard dark teak or ebony for visual effect before finishing.

I have some tuning machines on ebay you can check out if you like. Have you thought out what your bridge will look like?
that can influence what kind of pickup you can use and what kind of sound you can get also. Good luck.

Bassbob

I've actually got some tuning machines en-route to me already, but the pickup question is still in flux. The bridge (as I imagine it now) will look like a shorter version of a full size URB bridge with some scrollwork. Haven't decided on what wood to cut it from yet, but I'll update. I was thinking I might want to go with something in a softer wood.

 

[jimmy rocket]

A little update. Work has occupied my time this week and progress has been slow, but here are a few shots of the bridge in progress and a rough install of the tuning machines.

Also, I've decided on a trapeze type tailpiece rather than going through body for string retention. In order to get the right angle from the bridge through the body the strings would have to be longer than I anticipated.

 

[Darkstrike]

This is looking real nice dude.

 

[Rickett Customs]

Nice,
but don't those tuners look a bit tiny in that headstock?
It would almost be more deserving of some UB tuners...... I'm doing my first EUB build too.
Just in case it might give you some insight:
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=485961

Yours is definitely giving me some insight.

Looks good man.

 

[jimmy rocket]

Nice,
but don't those tuners look a bit tiny in that headstock?
It would almost be more deserving of some UB tuners...... I'm doing my first EUB build too.
Just in case it might give you some insight:
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=485961

Yours is definitely giving me some insight.

Looks good man.

Your build is looking really nice. I especially like the integrated bridge/electronics and the laminated neck. If I ever do another build (probably a single-cut BG) that is the technique I'd like to use.

The tuners are a bit smaller than I originally anticipated. I might need to swap them out for some beefier ones later in the build, but I wanted to put them on there so that I could get some strings on there to get some ideas about fashioning the nut/bridge.

 

[Rickett Customs]

Your build is looking really nice. I especially like the integrated bridge/electronics and the laminated neck. If I ever do another build (probably a single-cut BG) that is the technique I'd like to use.

The tuners are a bit smaller than I originally anticipated. I might need to swap them out for some beefier ones later in the build, but I wanted to put them on there so that I could get some strings on there to get some ideas about fashioning the nut/bridge.

Ahh, You'll have yours done way before mine, appears you know the exact direction you're going. Me, mine will change as it's being done.

 

[jimmy rocket]

Ok, I'll post some more pics later today, but I've got some strings on it thanks to a new trapeze tailpiece, and I'm in the process of shaping the nut out of some nice hard cherry. Despite the fact that I'm still waiting for my super long D'Addario Chromes so I've only got 3 strings that (sort of) fit, I couldn't resist giving the electronics a little test drive.

I tried affixing the piezo directly to the bottom up close to the strings and got a very tin-can-esque sort of sound. I had some thin foam, so I tried encapsulating the pickup in the foam and placing it directly between the bridge and body (where I had carved out a little space) and it sounded fantastic through my LMII.

I've attempted to make a little recording direct into garageband. It's not shielded yet (as the slight buzz will tell you), and my intonation is atrocious, but here's a first glimpse at what this baby might sound like. (Soundclip Removed)

 

[Ivanov_br]

Such a great experience to make your own!

 

[jimmy rocket]

Ok here are the progress pics:

This is the full body pic. I'm still shaping the cherry nut a bit, and the bridge needs to be shaved down and radiused a little more for intonation and playability.

Here's a better shot of the tailpiece and the pickup in this stage of R&D

Here's a shot up the neck. Yes there are only three strings, yes they are old beat-down roundwounds. I couldn't wait for my super long chromes to come.

 

[jimmy rocket]

Ok, I finally had a free Saturday so I got a fair amount of work done. Here's what I've accomplished since last time:

-Created the control cavity in the back. My router never made it when I moved to NC so I cleared most of the material with a Forstner bit and did the rest of the work by hand with chisels.

-Finished the final wiring including re-casing the pickup in a denser foam with better wire (shielded). The preamp came from an Ibanez SRX 400. It gives me a volume and active tone control. The Piezo responds really well to the preamp, and gives a nice deep even response.

- Installed stand holder on the back of the body which attaches to a tom stand. I investigated the end-pin option, but realized I'd need a really big end pin. The drum stand gives me stability and portability.

- Still 3 strings as I await the ones on order.

I hope to put up some recordings in the next few days.

And now, the pics...

 

[akmusicfreak]

Jimmy,

I noticed your tailpiece looks a lot like the one on my Palatino EUB.
If you find any weird resonating of the strings or feedback issues try sticking some soft foam or sock between the tailpiece and the body, that's the fix that works well with the Palatinos.

 

[jimmy rocket]

Jimmy,

I noticed your tailpiece looks a lot like the one on my Palatino EUB.
If you find any weird resonating of the strings or feedback issues try sticking some soft foam or sock between the tailpiece and the body, that's the fix that works well with the Palatinos.

I haven't experienced any weird resonance yet, but I don't have the final strings on it, nor have I fine tuned the action/intonation. I will say that even with the missing string and the rough action/intonation I've been able to float a few nice (partial) jazz tunes out of her already. I've been rocking a jazzy "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" on the E and A strings that sounds nice and sweet. I cant wait to put the Chromes on and see what that sounds like.

I still have some high density foam though, and on your suggestion I may find some way to work that into the final tailpiece installation just to avoid any problems.

Thanks for the input!