Acoustic Bass Guitars

[flaxattack]

correct  
i didnt like the turner
more cause it was fretless....
i listened to some clips of the ribbecke on their site ad was quite impressed
there is a dealer in nyc that i might run in and check it out. but its a 4 so i probably wont be in a rush
i use the kelly with ti powerbass flats
needs a neck adj when i changed them
but the sound is quite impressive
my only complaint is its very wide in the body

[bigredbass]

AJ, I love the way the Martins look:  All that nutmeg-colored mahogany with the cutaway.
 
For me, UN-plugged, they all sound like a Jumbo guitar body with a bass neck shoved in it.  I realize they are asking a lot to duplicate an upright, but I've not heard any that were even close.  I would love to bluegrass with one (as I'll never be worth a dang with an upright), but they're not loud enough or bassy enough.
 
Plugged in, depending on the strings, you can get a half-assed electric sound out of them, provided it doesn't start howling from feedback, and that piezo harshness doesn't make me nuts.
They really need electric strings, though.  I'm not sure phosphor-bronze strings are a good idea on box guitars, but they REALLY aren't a good idea on ABG's.
 
The only thing that came sort of close was a Larrivee I tried, and naturally they're not made any more.
 
I really wish somebody would make one that really works, for a reasonable price.  The Halflings are fabulous (I tried one, could NOT believe how good it sounded), but for five grand, they oughta be, way past what I could justify for one.
 
J o e y

[kmh364]

FWIW, BKBass Barry has a custom Bil Mitchell acoustic bass guitar (he's a BM endorsee) that he raves about. Not sure of the cost or availability: Bil does mostly six-string acoustic guitars, and they're usually not cheap (he does have a lesser non-custom line as well). Perhaps we can get Barry to chime in on a description and impressions of his bass.
 
http://www.bilmitchell.com/
 
P.S., Sorry that this doesn't help your dilemma, Jazzy: please excuse the thread hijacking.

[kmh364]

Jazzy:
 
FWIW, how about the Alvarez acoustic iV as used by Mike Inez on the Alice In Chains MTV Unplugged DVD/CD? He got a very nice tone out of that bad boy and they are, apparently, dirt cheap:  
 
http://www.angelfire.com/ri2/bob2/mikeinez.html  
 
http://www.alvarezgtr.com/prod_page.html?SeriesID=5&ItemID=97  
 
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Alvarez-Regent-Series-RB30SC-AcousticElectric-Bass?sku=518727
 
Cheers,
 
Kevin

[chuck]

Have you considered a Mariachi bass the bigger the better.
Chuck

[bkbass]

Alright,alright. Bil Mitchell makes some of the finest acoustic guitars and ABG'S on the east coast. Although he is mostly an acoustic guitar builder. He and Sara can build or do expert repairs on anything with strings on it. He also builds electrics and two or three jazz boxes a year. Bil has a current waiting list of a year and can offer you just about anything in options. He is a master inlay artist (although humbly will not admit to it). His work is clean and ranges from the sublime to the most ornate pieces I have ever seen. Check out his website http://www.bilmitchell.com/ I'm in all the music stores at least twice a week including new york and these old eyes and ears have seen a lot of crap. Every once in awhile a small builder such as Bil emerges to offer a excellent product at a fair price. Most would call that value. I own and endorse 4 of his models. I have a jumbo 4 string fretted single cutaway,a jumbo 8 string (4+4) fretted single cutaway, a jumbo 4 string fretless  single cutaway and a dreadnought 4 string piccolo. I also have a Modified Taylor AB2 and a Carvin AC-40 fretless. Bil and Sara's instruments complete my speaking voice as a musician and allow me to reach into areas I could not get to with the any of the plywood wonders I come across in my visits to the various stores. So if you looking for an acoustic bass instrument that is comparatively loud unplugged with tone and character I would suggest speaking with Bil or Sara.
 
[edit: website address]
 
(Message edited by davehouck on March 16, 2007)