The acoustic bass guitar is gaining popularity. There are lots to choose from. Do solid body piezo-only instruments count as ABGs? Is there one on the market that really give you a good acoutic sound? Which piezo system is your favorite? Can these instruments be useful in real life, or are they just relegated to the occasional rendition of "La Bamba"?

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http://www.edfriedland.com

Had A Tacoma Thunderchief EB-4......... loved it but just never played it. Sold it taking only a 50 buck loss after a year. The bass has a fairly large body with the Piezo under the bridge. EQ package was only so so. But the playability was really great, save the large body size being somewhat cumbersome.

Mo

I have a Hohner abg. Definitely not a "high end" instrument, but a decent abg none the less. I have found an ABG to be an instrument which does not have a great amount of usability. It is not loud enough to play acoustically with even one guitarist, never mind a group of any kind. It is not inexpensive enough to "take it to the beach". When amplified it sounds interesting, but if you turn it up loud enough to be heard over the drums it turns into a feedback machine. YMMV.

One of the groups I play with plays folk-ethnic music. I am the only electric instrument. Often we are playing, it's a nice day, the audience drifts outside and the bandleader says let's go outside where the people are. So everyone walks off the stage and there I am. So now I bring my ABG out with the rest of them. I doubt that anyone can hear me, but at least I have something to do. Actually, I think the guitarist can hear because he plays a little better with me standing by him.

I also use it for the occasional wedding ceremony-with a guitarist and flute--more for the look than the sound.



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http://www.jps.net/jeremy/basspage.html

I have a real nice Martin B-1 (see photo: http://albums.photopoint.com/j/ViewPhoto?u=1322113&a=9824025&p=32598672)

It's not very loud, and plugged in I far prefer my semi-acoustic Rick Turner Renaissance, but it makes a great "beach" bass. When I know I may be waiting around for someone outside, I toss it in the truck and bide my time noodling or practicing. This has led to some fun jams with guitarists & others.

When I ran my unsuccessful political campaign for State House last year, I used to go around with my friend Joe Cano, a great Latin guitarist, and play impromptu acoustic sets at schools & coffee houses and senior centers. I had to really bang away to be heard, but it helped keep the beat and folks enjoyed hearing us play interspersed with short bits of political rap.

Aloha,

Jonathan
kalepa@maui.net

I'm a convert to ABG's since I got a Taylor AB-2 from a friend a couple of years ago. It is fretted, and I like it so much that I got another - a fretless Ab-3 w/ flamed maple back and sides and spruce top. These are definately high end instruments - $1800 - $2000 new street price. They are solid wood (no laminates) w/ ebony boards and Fishman p/u and 2 band eq. Acoustically they have wonderful tone, but are not very loud. Amplified they sound fantastic with the bass all the way up and treble almost all the way down - run flat they're to bright and guitar like, especially if you have rounds on them. I have Thomastik Jazz Flats on the fretless and its an amazing sound - tons of mwah and incredibly responsive. So much so that I don't try to use that one in an electric band setting. The fretted one (all Imbuia- Brazlian Walnut) has heavier flats on it and I use it every time we play. I use it for songs that would go well with an URB - jazzier tunes, gospel, rockabilly, tango - and it has a wonderful, woody tone. Big Thump. It also never fails to get the attention of any other bassists in the room;-) Feedback can be a problem - some nights I can feel the kick drum through the top of the Taylor. One thing about these basses is that they are extremely sensitive and responsive to your technique - good or bad. No slop allowed, cause it comes right through. With the settings I use they have a very acoustic, URB sound, but somehow it doesn't come off as a "URB Wannabe" - it has its own character. On the down side thay are very large boxes, and only available with a gig bag (high quality). And price wise they're not out of line for quality solid-wood acoustic guitars, and quite a bit cheaper than a new Fedora, Sadowsky, Zon, Alembic, etc. My main axes are a "project" G&L fretless and my '68 P-Bass that I've had since '74, and I use them for 70% of our tunes, but for some songs I just gotta have that ABG!