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NBD: My new Michael Bornhak double bass


Fran Diaz
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Hi all,

After a very nice trip through France and Germany I came home with my new Michael Bornhak double bass ([URL]http://www.bornhak.de/[/URL]). Michael is a very talented luthier who worked for Andreas Wilfer until he set his shop in Waldkirch, a beautiful town in the south of Germany, in the middle of The Black Forest.

I was looking for a bass with pizzicato playing in mind but that could also work well under the bow and this one does it, even with Spirocore Mittels. I love everything on this bass: woods, tone, volume, playability, fit, finish, attention to detail,... When I visited Michael to see and try the bass he was very friendly and he even went home and left me alone in his shop with the bass so I could play it for as long as I wanted without distractions.

I love an old bass as much as the next guy around here but provided the quality of the instruments compared being equal, buying from a living, working luthier was a plus for me as a way to support such an art, so this was my choice: my 2014 Michael Bornhak double bass:

go to this link for the full gallery slide show:
[URL]http://s97.photobucket.com/user/frandiaz/embed/slideshow/Gear/Michael%20Bornhak%20double%20bass[/URL]

Some selected shots:

that's the bass changing hands:
[IMG]http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l240/frandiaz/Gear/Michael%20Bornhak%20double%20bass/MichaelBornhakampFran02_zps81146bf8.jpg[/IMG]

full shot:
[IMG]http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l240/frandiaz/Gear/Michael%20Bornhak%20double%20bass/MichaelBornhakDB_full_zps5b26be41.jpg[/IMG]

the beautiful scroll:
[IMG]http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l240/frandiaz/Gear/Michael%20Bornhak%20double%20bass/MichaelBornhakDB_headstock03_zps7569f725.jpg[/IMG]

the French inspired neck botton:
[IMG]http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l240/frandiaz/Gear/Michael%20Bornhak%20double%20bass/MichaelBornhakDB_neckjoint03_zps4ae4bbe7.jpg[/IMG]

Michael even carved the bridge and adjusters from scratch:
[IMG]http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l240/frandiaz/Gear/Michael%20Bornhak%20double%20bass/MichaelBornhakDB_bridge_wheeldetail1_zps8f7874a9.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i97.photobucket.com/albums/l240/frandiaz/Gear/Michael%20Bornhak%20double%20bass/MichaelBornhakDB_bridge_wheeldetail2_zps74194cdd.jpg[/IMG]


You can hear some sound samplers that Michael recorded here:
[URL='https://soundcloud.com/bornhakbass/sets/gamba-doublebass-soundsample[/MEDIA]'][MEDIA=soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/bornhakbass/sets/gamba-doublebass-soundsample[/MEDIA][/URL]

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  • 2 weeks later...

Two weeks at home and I'm still in love with this bass. :hyper:

I just finished some arco study and if the arco tone with the Spiros keeps getting better (as it is happening one day after another) I might retire my other bass.

One question for Spiro guys: Are the weich easier to bow than the mittels? I might give them a try just to hear how the bass responds to those (nothing wrong with the mittels, I'm just curious).

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  • 3 weeks later...

Quick Update: It's been exactly one month since I got it and I'm still loving it...even though its sweet smell of varnish and oils is vanishing.

I raised the string height a tad and I love the tone even more than before...more meat and less string buzz (a sound that I also like, closer to a fretless electric bass, but that I don't want at the moment).

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