Travel Bass

[stewblack]

Anyone recommend a travel bass? Folding or otherwise. My ambition is to cycle to rehearsals.

[machinehead]

I bought a Steinberger Spirit XT-2 for taking on holidays.  It's worked out perfectly and you get a full 34" scale instrument too - not the case with all travel basses.

The Bass itself is well made, lightweight, plays well after a setup, and sounds really good amplified.  I've actually gigged it a few times and it performed well beyond my expectations.

EDIT And it comes with a gig bag that you can carry over your shoulder on the bike.

 

Frank.

Edited November 6, 2018 by machinehead
adding more info.

[Paul S]

Same meat, different gravy - the Hohner B2 variants.  B2, B2A, B2B, B2AD etc.

[stewblack]

Thanks guys, I will go and investimagate.

[TorturedSaints]

I picked up an Aria Sinsonido travel bass to take away with me.  Probably not to everyone's taste but stows away small.  Not particularly cheap new, but I got mine for about £120.   Mine lives in a rifle bag and has the rucksack straps on you would need to cycle to rehearsal.  It's probably most suited to acoustic-sounding gigs because of the piezo pickup.  Or there's always a Wing Bass - depends on the budget, and Alan at ACG is currently doing some very small/short basses to order.

[therealting]

Snapdragon?

[Vinny]

I turned up to a few gigs on my motorbike with a Samick Corsair. 24" scale P bass!

[ped]

For true portability I’d suggest something shorter scale.  

Personally I always found short scales a compromise, not always that much smaller and not as full sounding as a long scale, but not without charm. 

In this case I decided to try a half scale bass, which might not seem to make any sense, but bear with me. Being half scale you can use regular strings, normal tuning but an octave up, which sounds very full. 

You can always then add an octaver, which gives a really great sound, almost a signature sound on its own. I feel that sounds much better than a normally tuned short scale. 

Then it becomes a fun instrument in its own right, which opens up new ideas and ways of making basslines.

They are made by a few companies and it seems lots of luthiers are open to the idea, too. Mine is a Wingbass (designed by the owner to fit into hand luggage) but I’ve seen some great looking ones on here from Stradi (see also his Facebook page), Sting was recently seen with a Mayones, but Mayones won’t tell me anything or even give me a response. 

Another advantage is that you keep the same spacing as a normal bass, same strings (think I went one sub level heavier, Elixir light instead of super light) and you won’t want to put it down. 

Worth considering perhaps - I’m sure a UK based company can rustle one up for you at a relatively low cost, it needn’t be too fancy but the temptation to fill it with gadgets was too great for me lol

I’m in York if you’d like to try mine

 

[stewblack]

Thank you all for the responses. Some great ideas. And Ped for that really kind offer. If I end up round your way I'll give you a shout!

[anzoid]

Another option might be Anygig basses - https://www.anygigguitar.com/model/anygig/anygig-agb.html
Full-scale, look to be pretty lightweight and cheap on eBay - around £200-220.

It's got a piezo rather thahn "proper" pickups

I've got a Steinberger XT2 and it's very transportable... and got an Anygig bass strap holder on its way to add to the Steinberger to make things a bit more comfortable.

[Jus Lukin]

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Edited March 1, 2022 by Jus Lukin

[ped]

3 minutes ago, Jus Lukin said:

I have a Hofner Shorty I don't use which I'm thinking of selling. Let me know if it would be of interest and I can put it up properly!

That reminds me, I think I need to renew my subs!

I think you're paid up until Feb 6th. If you go to create an advert it should have the expiry date above the price box

[Jus Lukin]

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Edited March 1, 2022 by Jus Lukin

[Blink]

Depending on budget a Status Streamline would work. Being carbon fibre it will still be in tune when you get to the rehearsal regardless of the weather that you have just cycled through. I have a 5 string and it is a great workhorse.

[ped]

Ah yeah Streamlines are cool... think we had one for sale here recently... 

[peteb]

Last time I was at Jon Shuker's place, he had one on the go (headless, designed to fit into overhead storage) - looked stunning...! 

[EmmettC]

I tried a Snapdragon folding guitar recently and it was very impressive. I haven't tried the bass, but judging by the design and build quality of the guitar I would say it's worth a look.

[MacDaddy]

Another shout for the Snapdragon bass. Both Happy Jack and I have one.

[ped]

People loved it at the LBGS!

[SIENNA]

I have a Traveler Ultra-Light and also the TB-4P. The latter is a little larger, but the sound is fantastic driven by a special Seymour Duncan pickup designed for that model. The Ultra-Light has a Piezo pickup, and I wasn't happy with the tone - a bit thin and flat, and it was gathering dust. However, I recently picked up an iRIG UA, which is capable of processing both of these into an awesome sounding beast - and this universal do everything box is also smaller than a packet of cigarettes. I play the TB-4P when my Fender gets too heavy and my back/shoulder hurt. It is so light. I've fitted with Schaller Straplocks on the TB-4P and with the Gruvgear solo neo which I purchased for my Fender attached, it's the least stressful thing to wear in my bass wardrobe. The ultra-light has a special strap and the strap button is also the audio out. A novel thing is how the strings wrap around and under the bass - which means you get to use long strings, which some say helps with tone. It's hard to think of anything smaller/lighter than the ultra light. The TB-4P is about the same size as a Status Streamline and does sound better than the ultralight. They are both getting close to one tenth the cost of a Status Streamline on the second hand market. Another feature for people wanting to practice/jam while away from home is the TB-4P has a pre-amp and aux-in and headphones out so I can listen on my headphones, and play along to tunes out of the mobile. However, the iRIG UA also does this, and fattens the tone up. I have been known to sit in my car and play along at lunch times - they are so compact I don't even hit the windows.

Edited March 17, 2019 by SIENNA