NickA

Its just a small double bass. Rather nice to play I should think. One for the authentic classical performance people methinks rather than the rockabilly slappy brigade!

This was on the wal facebook page a bit ago. Didn't sell. The seller wasn't sure what its made of .. looks like mahogany with ash facings, but more likely solid ash with stained edges. It is a tad expensive for a single pickup passive bass, with an unshaped body, but the neck is the same as that on a full blown MK1 / custom, so worth £1600 in itself ! That thumb rest has to go tho.

Well it's a fix and you got a pre for a good price. Result! Still a mystery why it didn't work without ...

Good point One thing the PJB amps lack is notch and low pass filtering. It's not been an issue for me, but then tweaking the position and clamp force of the realist sound clamp modifies the sound a lot on its own; which isn't an option with a Shadow or Underwood wing pickup. The input impedance of the flightcase is 4MOhm; the EDB-2 gives a choice of 1, 5 or >20MOhm; I've heard 4-5MOhm is about right for most piezo pickups, but more impedance will increase the volume a bit. Still, the underwood should still work, volume-wise, into 4MOhm.

I also have a PJB flightcase for my double bass and electric. My pickup is a realist sound clamp, but I also have a shadow "slot into the bridge" type which is similar to an Underwood (though less good I'm told). With the amps gain switch to passive, I have its gain knob to about 50%-75% and it is fine with either pickup (the realist has a volume control and I have that to a bout 75% too). However, I found that one of my leads had a small fault in it which doesn't affect the active electric basses but severely attenuates the output of the high impedance piezo pickup (I haven't found the fault yet - it's just that lead doesn't work with the realist), the result being that I can't get a high enough input into the flightcase - even with max gain the red lamp won't flicker. What I'm saying is, are you sure your lead is OK. Try some different leads. Failing that, see if you can borrow someone else's pickup - or someone else's amp and try the pickup into that. The flightcase is a great amp for double basses and its input impedance is nice and high, it should work with any working piezo pickup and lead combination and without any pre-amp. I've only tried a pre-amp once and a) it didn't improve the sound b) it was an extra thing in the chain to stop working (flat batteries in the case of that one). Incidentally, I have never used the "active" input switch on the PJB - even my 9V active basses can't make enough input for that. I conclude that they do like a nice fat input voltage and that the "active" input is probably for active basses with two batteries (ie the 18V ones), also I think mine sounds nicer if the red input lamp is just on the point of flashing - ie it also wants a big output from the input stage into the EQ too. PS: I presume you're in Yorkshire - but if that's South Yorkshire you could always drop down to Derby and try swapping around with my near identical kit.

Saving my ring finger for when I get up into thumb, 1 2 3 territory .. ;¬)

Oh, to answer the. Op's original question ..... When I DO use simandl, finger no 3 just rests on the string mid way between 2 & 4. Don't think it matters.

Im just an old stuck in the mud. For me a "proper" Warwick is sculpted heavy wood ( ovangkol, bubinga, boire) with a through neck, oddly angled pickups maybe and a clear sound thatuts through. Thumbs, dolphins & streamer stage X. 🙂 Spot the real one ( the home build is pretty good, but still don't sound quite like a Warwick .. I blame the bolt on neck and one piece bridge 😉 ) Maybe need to move on a bit. Joe, meanwhile, always sounded great playing anything.

One visit, around 84. Was supposed to be revising for finals but saw a classified add saying they had such exotica as a Vigier with "delta metal" finger board, so sloped off to Wapping. Cobbled streets, narrow stairs, tiny room. Almost no stock " vigier's sold mate" ... I couldn't have afforded it anyway. Ah memories.

Used to go hear that Joe Hubbard with Morrissey Mullen at the half moon in Putney; back before slapping was sneered at. He sounded pretty good to me back then on a stock Jazz Bass. This here custom fortress seems like an attempt to make as un Warwick a Warwick as poss ( ash body, bolt on neck, one piece bridge, narrow frets, maple fingerboard) very similar to the fodera and more like a future-world fender than a Warwick. Still, if someone offers you a lovely bass for free .. even if youre not that keen on the make ....

Simandl was aimed at huge double basses with fat gut strings and high actions .. and playing deep orchestral notes in low positions. You can use it on electric basses, but I don't think it's ideal or compulsory. Certainly involves a lot of position shifting! Personally I use a modified simandl ( plus thumb pivots) method on the double bass, but it has a 44" scale and my hands are not big. Also play the cello, on which standard technique uses four fingers with extensions in both directions and two different first to second finger spacings; the scale is only 27" but it's tuned in fifths, so quite a stretch. The electric basses are only 34" scale so easy enough to 4 finger if you want to. Plus if you use the technique I think is called "blocking", then you can play any major or minor scale without changing position, but only with all fingers in play. In the end it's whatever suits your physique and instrument, but good to expand horizons by trying different things.

Helen at Tofts in Stone seems very competent. Malcolm Healy down South. Good recommendations from fellow orchestra people for Timothy Batchelar in Leicester too (http://www.batchelar.com/). George Stoppani in Manchester ( http://www.stoppani.co.uk ) did a great job of my 'cello many years ago and also makes lovely basses (something of an early music specialist). As for "the best" ... well; who knows. But T&G Martin in Oxfordshire are reckoned by many to make the best basses in the UK and also do restoration (https://www.thomasmartin.co.uk/). None of it will be cheap; these are skilled people who take time and care and why shouldn't they be well paid for that.

1885 German bass. Had it 30 years. Spent £136 on new strings 20 years ago. £800 on a bow last year. Two carry cases over the years .... That's it. To be fair tho, it did fall over once and the finger board fell off, repaired at great cost to the insurers ( who have since gotten their own back by charging outrageous premiums ). Whilst being mended the mender had a poke inside and declared that the fall had dislodged old repairs, so I got lots of mends re-done and a new bass bar too. Hence the £1500 bill on a bass that cost £2000. That was 22yrs ago and It's been great since. Out to orchestra every week, jazz sesh once a fortnight, no problems. Go for it, but expect big insurance bills.

'cause it's "vintage", ie nearly as old as me! Shame he painted over the cracks and scratches .. it would be vintaged vintage then and worth even more.

Ah the joys of autocorrect. I too have trouble sustainng my pizza , had to switch to lasagne. 🙂

New Dutch Bass School - trendy modern playing technique that recommends (demands?) such things as, both feet on the floor, tuning in fifths, HEAVY or WEIGHTED bows. Extreme classical players; don't go there unless intending to play cello concertos and violin sonatas on a bass. Though makes for some interesting reading. There is a bit of technique in getting the sound to start. More force on the string to start it sounding, the less to keep it going. Most people only get a screach or harmonics when first learning. Sticky rosin (Neumann) and proper horse hair on the bow ( some cheap composite bows have synthetic hair, which is too slippery) both help, some people rub a bit of rosin on the string too. Really good players use very little rosin but have very soft grippy "bowing specific" strings. I found Jazz specific strings (great sustain in pizz) hard to bow with any subtelty and had to switch to hybrids to play in an orchestra. But they weren't impossible. Persevere for a bit, and when money allows trade the strings for something a bit less specialised?

Another PJB fan here. My PJB flightcase is great with a piezo pickup; little switch to "passive" and the gain adjusted to suit. Some of you (Hapy Jack included) saw mine and a lovely AI amp at the double bass bash methinks. I probably liked the AI even better than my PJB as it had a great sound in a smaller (even smaller) box and more knobs and buttons. The PJB has no HP filter stage, you can only turn down the bass knob, but I've never felt the need; even my full sized carved bass doesn't sound boomy through it anywhere I've yet played (admittedly a smallish sample of places). Plus I wanted to play an electric (or three) through it too and reckon the PJB is better for that than the AI (or an AER .. which is another option for the very flush). For those of you with a rockabilly bent (and possibly owners of metal double basses!) the PJB may prove a little soft and HiFi sounding - dunno.

Well, I for one was interested in the suggestions :¬) thanks all.