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Post subject: Fender Acoustic Basses
Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 2:50 pm
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Who owns one? Who's played one? What do you think of it?

Just thought I would set this up for all acoustic bass players to chat/discuss their opinions. I have played one fender ABG and was impressed compared to most others I had played.


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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 2:57 pm
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I was at a music store with one of my friends who's an awesome bass player - while I was trying out guitars in the acoustic room he picked up a Fender acoustic bass (I don't remember what model it was though, sorry) and started jamming along on it.

I've quite impressed with the sound - mind you I didn't even know there was such a thing as an acoustic bass (besides those monsterous ones) until that day.


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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 3:01 pm
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They are pretty uncommon, most don't have the volume to be played unplugged anyway so are rather pointless but the Fender impressed me. I suppose that's from running Tacoma though because the thunderchief is probably THE acoustic bass.

Edit: And by "the monstrous ones" do you mean double basses?


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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 3:17 pm
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indie-bassist wrote:
And by "the monstrous ones" do you mean double basses?


Yep, that's what I meant. Totally forgot what they were called though.


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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 3:20 pm
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:lol: They are possibly some of the most awesome instruments ever built. They just sound so good! But apparently are very tough to play. I am dying to try one out, there was one at my school that needed stringing, but now I've left so that chance was blown. :(.


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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 3:28 pm
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They don't have them at your music stores there?


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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 3:30 pm
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Nope, local music store is purely guitars/basses/drums. And the only store that does classical instruments around here only sells violas,violins etc.


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Posted: Fri Jun 29, 2007 1:54 pm
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i may have played one but im not sure. my acoustic is a Michael Kelly. fretless 5-string. but not sure if ive played a Fender acoustic bass.

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Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 2:29 pm
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I envy you, the Michael Kellys are fantastic basses.


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Posted: Mon Jul 09, 2007 10:10 am
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ah yes. shes b-e-a-utiful. i may post a pic of her one day.

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Look at the greatest bands of all time. The most notable member is always the bass player.


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Posted: Mon Jul 09, 2007 11:14 am
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I have a blonde BG-29.

Probably the loudest acoustic bass you can get. I have played it on the beach with a half dozen acoustic six strings getting beat on and it can be heard. I use a pick for those adventures.

It's great in a hotel room without an amp.

It also sounds great comeing out of my Hartke KickBack..!!!!


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Posted: Fri Aug 03, 2007 3:08 pm
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I bought the 4-string Fender Victor Bailey acoustic about a week ago. I played a Breedlove, the other Fender acoustic basses in the shop (Guitar Center in downtown Seattle) as well as another one by a maker I've forgotten.

The Fender VB has the "right" tone for me. Yes, tone is subjective, but for acoustic instruments, I know almost instantly whether a particular one is right for me.

The Fender VB has an interesting appearance. I kinda look like the Victor Bailey sketch that's on the headstock (kinda), so that was a neat surprise.

The arched back is elegant.

The neck is great. It's a 34" scale and a bit longer than I'm used to playing. My other bass is a 1995 Washburn Bantam something-or-another that has a very "guitar-like" neck. It's much shorter than the VB acoustic.

I'm having a bit of a challenge in fretting frets 1-3 on the E & A strings. The angle of my wrist when playing down there doesn't afford as much leverage as I need to properly fret the notes. As such, my girly-man hand needs to get get bulked up. :)

I plugged the VB into a bass amp. According to the salesguy who helped me, it was "play louder than everyone else" day, so he turned the amp up. (Note to guitar store shoppers: everybody would prefer that you slow down and hit all the notes vs. playing the bits you know at breakneck speed and pausing for 2 seconds to make a fingering change. Of course, we've all done this, and know it's my turn to be the Old Guy. )

The electronics in this guitar are great. They are Fender/Fishman. There's a mic (transducer?) inside the sound hole, at the 6 o'clock position. I believe there are pickups in the bridge, too. The onboard electronics / pre-amp includes a dial that allows one to dial-in the mix of the two pickups. I played with each isolated and then tried various blends. I needed to adjust the onboard EQ a bit to compensate for the amp being set to 11, but I was able to dial-in the tones I wanted.

The fact is, I don't play out. I'm a bit of a hack. I like to play along while watching TV or listening to music, but plugging the Washburn into my amp results in the rest of the family complaining about the sound. The acoustic will be a perfect addition.

My only concern is that I can't figure out which hardshell case to get for the guitar. It comes with the deluxe gig bag, but I feel no security in keeping it there.

Also, it seems that getting replacement strings (Fender Phosphor Bronze, blah blah, Acoustic Bass for a 34" neck isn't easy. The only place I found them was online at juststrings.com. Only $15 / set, the cheapest bass strings I've ever purchased. (FWIW, the strings arrived quickly in perfect condition.)

Best,
T


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