Burns-bass

Massive logical nightmare sorting that all out.

Went past the shop in Bristol and was going to pop in. Seems a shame. It wasn’t perfect, but wasn’t like the elitist and exclusive shops of the 1980s and 90s.

I’d work with the bass as it is for a while.

It’s often worth asking around for a local engineering firm who can build you a stand or even a rest much cheaper than the NS branded stuff. I asked one to make me a screw in endpin once and it was a few quid. A shop wanted to charge me £150 for a replacement unit.

Agreed. Some of it is prog-rock-esque. I just love his huge smile and sense of fun.

Seriously incredible playing. If you’ve not seen him, worth checking out. As well as the feel and the note choose it’s the clarity of it all. This is a solo gig where he’s paid to basically bust out all the tricks but it a band he’s much more restrained. I couldn’t listen to an album of it, and it’s not really something I’d want to do, but I’m glad he’s out there doing it - and with a huge smile and sense of humour.

Very cool!

That sounds really logical. The Wav basses I’ve played (including the 3 I’ve owned) have all had low string heights, so much so that you don’t need to use the traditional DB arm weight approach. Im not trying to rubbish EUBs, I think they’re ace - it’s just unless you get one of the ones with a proper frame (Yamaha, MK, etc) it can be hard to keep proper form. I think the idea of an EUB as a separate instrument is pretty spot on really.

The biggest problem with EUBs is that you can’t really replicate the same technique for DB that uses arm weight to stop the string. On a real DB you shouldn’t find there’s any finger pain as arm effectively pulls the string back. You intuitively use your body to counteract this. To explain how this works, imagine yourself hanging by your fingertips from the top of a building. To pull yourself up you’d use the biggest muscles you have in your arm and chest. Not your fingers. When playing DB with correct technique the thumb brushes the back of the neck and it is used to help you find position. Nothing else. The physical set up of most EUBs makes this impossible to do, so people use the electric bass technique of using the thumb and fingers to pull the string down. This is going to cause you no end of pain and problems. If playing DB or EUB is causing hand pain there’s a problem with technique and it’s worth getting a lesson to find out why

Where are you based? There are a few cheap ones for auction at Gardiner Houlgate tomorrow. That’s Corsham. If I had one I’d lend it to you y til you got better, but sadly I don’t.

We have a Monzo account for band stuff. To be honest it makes things much easier.

I get that. I suppose it’s because the only fretless basses I’ve had have had no dots or lines. If I try and look at the double bass neck when shifting it can put it all out of whack causing intonation issues. (To be fair, it sounds awful whatever I do.)

The book? Of course. Send me your address.

A skilled luthier can fill the holes in the back and you should be able to colour match the finish pretty well. Barring any major horrors under the scratch plate it’s probably all good. Reckon it could be a cracker. If not, you’d make it back selling the parts.

It was actually listed in this book about an adult tackling a challenging classical Chopin piece. https://www.awesomebooks.com/book/9780099554745/play-it-again/used?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22269009095&gbraid=0AAAAADocATCnalkwXsqdFAmiW5lnRd5EE&gclid=CjwKCAjw6ZTCBhBOEiwAqfwJd0iXgKCff0acdbiLGdATRlVoT1fIrbofB-tFEuikFJ1F2nwXjD__ExoCbWYQAvD_BwE I’ve finished the book (a signed hardback copy) and would happily send it to anyone who wants it. There’s some really interesting stuff in there (as well as some eye rolling at just how cultured the author is). Worth a read.

Not sure if of interest but the Canadian Petrucci score library has a huge amount of free double bass music. This is all content that’s legally free to download, share and distribute. Lots of things of interest (if you like the bow!) https://clara.imslp.org/?k=Bass&tab=works&ins=Double+bass|%3D%3D|1|false

You can, but you’d have to prove that the auction house had completely and purposefully misrepresented the item. They use all sorts of semantic tricks to ensure this doesn’t happen. Pay on credit card and you’ve got more protection.

Did you buy it on Facebook or through an auction house? Most auctions will argue their case on this and that the onus is on you to ensure the condition and originality before bidding. eBay is much more forgiving to the buyer. There are two ways to consider this. If it’s an investment for you, this is probably a bad one. If it’s a bass you want to play and enjoy for years to come it might be ok.