ubassman

Just wondering what experience people may have with gut strings?. Its for an orchestral short length Italian chamber bass ( string length 102cm ). I have a set of Pirastro Flat Chrome that produce a great sound in solo tuning. The instrument is very old and would have originally had gut strings and rather than use solo tuning I want to go to orchestral tuning ....any thoughts?

Its all a very personal thing depending on the sound you are after and no doubt many will chip in with different solutions! Quite a few players that I know love the sound and portability of the Gallien Kruger MB112 combo - pretty affordable at around £300 new and great sound that pulls the best from a bass in a small venue. Heres a link to some info if you fancy delving a bit more into this one http://www.thomann.de/gb/gallien_krueger_mb112.htm Any amp is only as good as the pick up and if you are chasing a really pure acoustic sound you may need to look at an alternative to your piezo type of pick up . A Schertler 'DYN-B' at around £500 is very expensive but worth it . This pick up and amp makes for a very natural bass sound ! http://www.schertler.com/homepage_schertler/dynb-en.html Perhaps stating the obvious here but if you raise up the amp on a stool to get it to chest height it will be much easier to hear?

Maybe not less 'bassy' but they should turn down the 'boomy' ! The issue is likely to just be that the sound post needs moving towards the bass bar a tad and should be a really cheap adjustment. If its a string solution that you decide to explore then it might be useful for you to contact your preferred string manufacturer with the issue and see what they advise. Here's some info I came across recently investigating Kaplans by D'addario. Click on the tab that says HEAVY and read the description on the right hand side, and then compare it with what the description says when you click on MEDIUM ....you are entering the murky world of string tension -v- what your ear tells you! http://www.daddariobowed.com/BowedProductDetail.Page?ActiveID=4495&productid=21

Something to keep up your sleeve if that doesn't work is that you might experiment with different A & E strings - a lower gauge and tension will reduce the volume. If you have a luthier who does a lot of bass repairs you could well find that they will have several spare sets of decent old strings kept from instruments that they have serviced/ restrung and with a bit of persuasion you can beg, steal or borrow a couple to try (...well maybe not 'steal' !). Chances are that your sound post adjustment will sort the problem.

A laminate bass should be ok . In my small arsenal of basses , I have an 'outdoor' ply bass that has been baked by the sun in summer and out in the moist cold wet air in winter . The tuning takes a while to settle in whilst playing because the wood changes its moisture content and expands / contracts ...is not really good for the bass though ...but difficult to say 'no' if its a gig you want to do ! P.S. I wouldn't play my carved basses outside - been there, done that, ....bad idea!

[quote name='MandShef' timestamp='1358430797' post='1938980'] Never seen a bass duet done like this before! [/quote] Thanks for sharing! ...don't they make it look so easy ! Just looking at the change over in the first couple of seconds where Edgar picks up the D note in thumb position with hands behind his back with perfect intonation - hard enough to do facing the fingerboard !!

+1 on the sound post adjustment. Have a read of this - although it relates to the violin, the principles are the same. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_post

One thing to watch out for is the length between the nut and the bridge. 3/4 basses are generally in the region of 105cm. Many 3/4 lower cost basses have shorter playing lengths at anything from around 100 - 105cm because they are aimed at the student market. The shorter string length makes them very playable as you don't have to stretch as much between notes at the lower end of the register ( i.e. equivalent of 1st - 3rd fret on a bass guitar) and the string tension is also less. The shorter length instruments are a great way to get started but if you want to get a good sound they need a bit more care in terms of fitting correct tension strings otherwise they can sound lifeless and lame ( most strings manufacturers produce data based on how the string will perform at 105/106 cm and logically if you have a shorter instrument of say 100cm, the string doesn't have to stretch as far as the 'design length' and so doesn't 'sing'. Simple way to get around that is to go for a string tension that is 'high' and it will play like a 'medium' on a shorter length instrument. Personally I like Pirastro Obligatos and I have played them on a 103cm bass very successfully with a great pizzicato jazz sound and excellent bowed sound ). I would definitely consider going second hand and go for a bass comes from a good home in that it is well set up in terms of string height (otherwise it may feel like you are playing 'cheese wire' strings ), and also that the sound post and bridge are correctly positioned. Some new basses can be ok but many have the cheapest set of string on them and need to be set up my an experienced luthier as they come straight out of the factory with a high action so that this can be adjusted to suit the player and their style. My thoughts would be to get a good 'used' laminate bass which you can pick up anywhere between £500 - £750 and invest in some good strings which may set you back a further £150 ( but you can upgrade the strings at a later date after you have gotten used to the DB !). I say laminate simply because they are more sturdy and robust and ts unlikely that they will develop cracks . When learning its easy to be clumsy carrying the bass around and carved tops (at around this price) can become uneconomical to repair especially if the top needs to come off to stitch a crack in the top ( a student of mine left his Stentor DB in a car overnight, brought it inside the next day into a centrally heated house and got a split below the left f hole!! - you just won't get that problem with a laminate bass ( plywood) which will sound just as good and keep its resale value if you don't bond with the DB as an instrument). All the best with your quest ! BTW , I have a Boosey and Hawkes instrument that a student has asked me to help find a new home for - ticks all of the above boxes and might suit you really well? If you are interested PM me !