Acoustic Bass Buying Guide (kind of)
Basses in this video:
Ibanez SRH500F – review link below
Washburn AB-20 – review link below
0:00 Want an upright sound?
1:22 Want an upright alternative?
2:43 Sound (plugged in)
4:43 Sound (mic only)
5:27 Want to play 1-2 fretless songs a gig?
6:35 Just want to have fun?
7:13 Want to play at campfires?
7:50 Conclusions
I was surprised that these basses sound a little similar plugged in. Trust me – the bigger body has a rounder acoustic sound. And as I wrote in the video, the Ibanez is set to its best sound setting, while the Washburn EQ is flat. If I set the Washburn to sound its best, the difference in round base tone would be MUCH greater. The Washburn and other full acoustic basses are also less delicate so you can play harder and get more sound out of it.
I really love that Ibanez bass – it’s one of the best basses I’ve ever played. That’s why I made a video about it:
Why I Love The Ibanez SRH500F
But I sold it. Why? The main reason why is I like to sing and play. I don’t want to plug in the bass every time I want to practice, or play one song for fun, or jam with friends in my living room. I also want to be able to put one mic in front of me and record the exact sound in the room.
Washburn AB-20 Fretless Acoustic Bass Review
Reasons for buying a full acoustic:
-mwah!
you want to sing and play
-you want to play acoustically with people at home (caution: the volume will be low)
-you want a bigger bass sound that sounds MORE like an upright (caution: it doesn’t sound like an upright)
-you play pretty hard
-you’re an upright bassist who can’t always take an upright to gigs
Some recommendations to check out, in order of my preference, but just do a YouTube search for “acoustic bass”:
K. Yairi
Rudy Sarzo
Furch
Harley Benton
Takamine
Warwick Alien
Emerald (carbon fibre)
Ibanez (AEGB24E)
Bace (which sounds most like an upright, but it’s a little big for me – I don’t have a car)
Reasons for buying a semi-acoustic:
-mwah!
-super easy to play
-more portable
-you have a light touch
-you always play plugged in anyway
(By the way, this kind of bass is still better than an electric for practicing by yourself without an amp if you’re not singing, or you don’t care if the bass volume is low while you practice singing.)
Some recommendations:
Ibanez SRH500F
Rob Allen
F Bass
Cort
ESP LTD TL-4Z
Reasons for buying a non-acoustic electric fretless:
-mwah!
-cheap
-most portable
-you always play plugged in anyway
Some recommendations:
Ibanez
Fender Squire
Fender
Video links:
Straight, No Chaser – Bass Duet (with the basses in this video)
Pyrrhic Love – My original song featuring the Washburn bass:
#Acoustic #Bass #Buying #Guide #kind
Originally posted by UCXUSUkWysWICVt5ZSPoXj-Q at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4l1P2ScI6U
I play fretless acoustic bass , and have a special made 1993 Ovation Elite fretless , a real low tones with half wound La Bella strings at £6 each , so the basses he talk about are total crap
I just went with the Fener Kingsman. My neighbours do not want to hear a 400 watt Mark Bass amp !
I have a Fender Kingman. It probably gets played more than any other bass in my collection, but NOT for why I bought it. Why it gets played the most? It sits in the corner of my bedroom and is VERY easy to grab and noodle on. It IS my woodshed bass.
Acoustic basses are NOT loud enough acoustically alone to work as a viable band instrument, however. As such, I just bring an electric and a 1×12 cab to any "acoustic jam".
Hi i got Fender acoustic, what i need less expensive just to get this sound. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHQ14_DhExM&ab_channel=VictorLevchenko
thanks
Brenton, can you just make it simple and send me a note like we're communicating now and give me the names and models of both of those basses?
Brenton;
What are the names and model of the two basses you are desribing? Did you mention the brand (name of manufacturer) of either bass?
My Dean Exoticas are more versatile than my P or J basses…Aphex System electronics, Aural Exciter and Big-Bottom Sound.
Killer tone with the proper strings…D'Addario black tapewounds.
https://youtu.be/Nsf2ydAbHxI
If you want an acoustic bass guitar to use amplified, you really should get one with a magnetic pickup. Piezos alone have a clacky sound that will always sound artificial. There are some things you can do with compression to help. You can also use an EHX attack decay pedal, in parallel to dry signal to tame that clack. But the best solution is a magnetic bridge pickup.
If you want an acoustic bass guitar for recording, get a Martin, use flatwounds or tapewounds.
Bought the 500F 2 years ago and haven’t put it down since. Sound and playability are fantastic, you get the mwah!!! ????
Thanks for NOT doing a bunch of sound samples. There's no way to really hear what an instrument sounds like over the internet. Too many factors affect the sound. The conversation was excellent, speaking about the various scenarios for which someone might want an acoustic, and the applications thereof. Nice work, thank you.
"Bass players when you go to the campfire, just play acoustic guitar" Gem comment 🙂
Of all the acoustic basses out there, the closest I've heard to sounding like an upright is actually a fretless Uke bass with silicone strings, however, none of these instruments put out enough volume unplugged except the long discontinued Ernie Ball Earth bass (and few sound like an acoustic once plugged in except the aforementioned Uke bass).
Acoustic bass for a upright sound is a Takamine 10, those basses you have are garbage. Lol!
Wanted to get a fretless bass. For me, the ibanez sounds great. What can you say about using the bass with a decently sized amp to bring to a jazz band?
This is my acoustic bass with double bass strings by Gideon weingert .didn't found something more close to upright sound then this
https://youtu.be/bAHPNIucILc?si=3naGKrS-OfNJJ7K8
I use my ibanez srh500F w/ labella tapewound strings whenever I cannot or do not want to haul my upright, bands love it.
I'm interested in trying out a fretless, and to get upright-ish sounds. Have you ever tried any of those small acoustic Uke-basses? Would you recommend them?