Bloopdad1

Hi all. Does anyone have any experience using Tempera Strings? Orchestral use. Looking specifically of how well they blend into a professional section? Ta

My go to double bass solution is a Acoustic Image Clarus II coupled to a Barefaced Super Midget (1x12). The built-in HPF on the Clarus is superb (plus no need for a preamp) Loads of headroom, great arco sound too. (using either a Realist or a twin sensor Yamahiko on my old English bass). Great stuff.

If that were true a double bass Luthier wouldn't be able to sell a new £15000 bass. Everyone would be looking to buy old basses. It takes a decent setup, and for the first 6mths a couple of trips back for sound post tweaks and general checks but basically you're good to go from day one. *Providing you've bought from a great Luthier with a proven track record. Ultimately if a bass needed 40yrs to "play in" there would never be any new basses!

Get ready for the long haul.... After 35yrs of playing in orchestral sections, pit bands, opera ensembles, chamber orchestras and jazz groups all on double bass I still barely know my derrière from my elbow! 😂

I specifically hunted down a 100 over the 200. Far greater stability playing arco and better weight distribution when seated. Vastly superior for my needs over the 200. But, the 200 has better electronics and a better amplified sound in my opinion. But feel and string response, bow response was more important to me. Would I buy new? Hell no! You'd be mad to shell out £5k on a bass that in 6mths s time if you tried selling it would make £2k max! 😂 I'd rather spend that amount of cash on a Czech Ease bass (the one with half it's bottom bout missing..) Keep an eye out here, occasionally a 100 pops up. But out of all the EUBs I tried the Yamahas are the best. Good luck.

On first look it seems a little pricey? Loads of these type basses available in "musical chairs" for sale section for a lot less... To warrant that price I'd expect provenance and some history. No details of dimensions, string stop, repairs etc? (mind you, it might have been worth a bit more before Martins got their hands on it 😂)

I can't justify the price personally. But I did once buy a bass with them already on it, they were AMAZING. Butter smooth powerful arco, solid pure fundamental with delicious mids and bell like harmonics. Build and feel second to none. In 35yrs of playing I hadn't played better, they really suited that bass. I loved them and wanted to replace them. Until I priced up a set!!! Gutted, but I couldn't justify the price. Superb "millionaire money no object" strings! 😂

All the ones that I know of used in the pits in most of the theatres I've worked in (to facilitate a quick change from BG to DB) are much simpler than that one. Large clip in clamp on the top of the neck (around half position) and LOTS of padding/pipe insulation around the bottom bout areas. Kinda been the go to solution for the past 30yrs. But if you're looking for one for home use then a "prettier" solution might be better!

Awesome. Congratulations. Get that rosin slapped on and do some long (frog to tip) slow heavy bowing. I used to shout "you've paid for the bow, you may as well use all of it!" Strongly reccomend getting a couple of lessons just to get you started. Top tip - after using the Pops seal it up in a zip-lock bag to stop it drying out, and keep it upright! 😂

Yep, pretty much what I said. My main orchestral 4 stringer is blockless. It's completely stable, light as a feather and sounds glorious. But he states that the neck on this bass is too narrow (ex 3 stringer) to take 4 strings. He mentioned that a standard width fingerboard protrudes either side of the neck... So to sort that out he's unfortunately probably looking at a new neck... (say hi to Mr Alcock for me)

Remember, the bow is the basses "amplifier". If you've always plucked or fingered a bass the note can only have ever at first sustained then it will ALWAYS decay.. . With a bow you enter the other 50% of the world! The world of crescendo... As others have suggested go to a teacher just for a few basic lessons. Arco is where its at! Pizz gets you about 10% of what a bass can REALLY do. (mind you I've been doing it for 40yrs and still learn every time I pick the bloody thing up!) Oh, BTW, either go for Nymans or Pops (don't let them dry out, they go "off" when left out). Learn how to apply rosin - it really isn't how you think you apply it!

Tough decision. I don't know what I'd do...? FYI, once it's tarted up and it turns out well it'll be worth +£5k. If you get it converted to blocked it'll be worth about +£6.5k (but the conversion will be in the ballpark of £1.5k). Unfortunately for it to really sing all that yuck Ronseal varnish will have to be removed. Two ways of doing this... Either painstakingly removing carefully the ronseal to reveal the original finish (it'll take weeks!) Or strip it back to wood and apply a new finish (the Luthier would probably find a few old repairs that will need addressing). Then there's a new neck to fit... It all depends on how good a piece of spruce the top is made from. If it has uniform, straight tight grain with no big repairs or knots then it should produce a good sound. It's a tough choice, and a big job and not cheap unfortunately but at the end I've no doubt that it'll be a decent instrument. All this is in my opinion and with only your pics to go by. Either way, good luck.

One things for sure 99.99% of all blockless basses have the distinctive "hump" where the ribs joint into the neck boot. (that's how to spot them instantly) They're inherently weaker than a standard constructed bass, often poorly made (beech necks) and are very expensive to convert them to blocked. But boy, do they sound amazing!! Out of all my basses the blockless sounds the best. In my section my desk partner plays a Hawkes Panormo and there's also basses by Dawson, Lowendal, Hart and Tarr. My little blockless wonder blows them all away.

The "boot" joint on a blockless bass is difficult to describe. But once you know what to look for it's like night and day! Best thing to do is familiarise yourself with images of the boot and look through the F holes up to the base of the neck inside. If it's a large "pad" of wood then it's already been converted. If it looks like a narly carved boot like thing then it's original (using a mirror and torch can help). As long as the neck doesn't w the neck doesn't wobble it's a decent bass. I'll dig out a couple of pics of a boot joint later. Look up the tyrol / blockless bass group on Facebook. Loads of examples there.

Don't forget that it's a blockless bass (no neck block). Saxon/Tyrolean/southern German around 1880 It's a decent old bass and once sorted should sound better than any laminate instrument. Providing as you said that the table is in good nick, the work described (bridge, post, tail piece etc) is reflectively cosmetic. It's defiantly worth the investment. Once repaired get a price to have it converted to standard construction from blockless. That's why the fingerboard is wider than the neck - to replace the neck from a 3 string width to 4, the conversion from blockless will need to be done first. Then you can have a new neck grafted to the new block. One of my basses is blockless - it has an absolutely superb sound, better than many Italian basses I've played worth well over £80k. That's why they are often called "blockless wonders" in orchestral circles.

Bass Luthier ship their customers new instruments all over the world. Fright cases are available (with air compressors for the air bags and humidifiers as appropriate). Touring orchestras have loads of these cases. Most orchestras touring through Europe however load the instruments (including harps, percussion etc) on a wagon and that drives overnight while the musicians fly. As you're moving and not touring I'd look to drive it myself. Or pay an insured specialists courier.

All 3 of my double basses sound great either through my BB2 or my Super Midget. They're so good that I instantly sold all my Bergantino cabs the week after I first tried a BF 12" cab. The Super Midget loves theatre pit work and the BB2 eats up big bands and loud jazz stuff. (obviously both superb for bass guitar). Can't comment on the BB3, can it be even better!?!??!?

Bloody 'el...! If you think £160 is expensive for a set of double bass strings you ought to Google Pirastro Eudoxa! They're about £650 for a standard 4 string set! (and my main orchestral bass is a 5 string....) 😁 Gulp!

No... Stay away from the Headband. Lots of negative comments on it on another thread.

Almost every Luthier and Archetier will let you have a trial. That's kinda how it's done. Off the top of my head Bow speed, Tim Richards, Turners, Martins, Adrian McGill, Bristol Violins, Ealing Strings, Gallery Strings, A Reis, Ken Knussen, Ed Gaunt, Brian Tunnicliffe - [retired but probably the best archetier in the UK] plus many more I'm sure, all offer to mail out a selection of bows to try. The archetiers mentioned above (Tim, Brian, A Reis, Ed and Andrew plus many many more) all offer to make exactly what you want for whatever budget you have with the reassurance that you're not committed to buy it if it's not right. But beware, bows go from £100 to £80,000 for a gorgeous Satory french job!

When you buy a bow (or a double bass) you usually arrange to have it for a few weeks trial to see if you like it. (Alternatively an archetier - bow maker, will make you a bow and if you can't get on with it won't charge you for it).