Questions & Answers

The bigger the string intrument the more it costs. That is true if we compare similar features; that is, a solid timber violin will start at $230.00 and a solid timber double bass will cost significantly more than 10 times this amount.

However, there is a way around this situation: Whereas violins, made of plywood, sound awful, double basses, made of plywood sound often very good. As plywood is cheaper than carved, solid timber, entry-level basses are made of plywood to make the purchase affordable.

It is preferable to choose a bass that has a genuine ebony finger board. It is relatively expensive for the maker to use ebony for the finger board, and therefore we find very cheap basses that have painted finger boards, pretending to be ebony. Some call this type of fingerboard 'ebonized.' That is really misleading as there is not a trace of ebony in it.

The importance for having a proper finger board is not only the strength it provides for the neck, it is much easier, cleaner and professional to prepare a double basses for sale if its finger board is made of ebony. Virtually all double bass finger boards have to be planed to minimise the action (Distance between the strings and the finger board) without causing the vibrating string to buzz (hit the finger board). If the finger board is made of white timber, this planing will look really ugly - meaning, it has to be painted again to make it look ok, but chances are that the type of paint the maker used is different from the paint used in the workshop where the basses are set up prior to offering them for sale.

The action between string and fingerboard depends of the hight of the bridge, of course, but the bridge in turn has to be cut high enough to cater for the ANY finger position an any string. Often, finger boards have humps, or the whole finger board has one gradual, big hump. If the finger boards is NOT planed, the bridge hight has to cater for the highest point of the finger board - the hump - so that the string doesn't buzz. So far so good, but if the bass player has to play in other positions, then the distance / action of the string is uncomfortably high. With this in mind, the finger board has to be planed to create a comfortable action everywhere on the bass.

For these reasons a plywood bass is ok as long as it has an ebony finger board. (From around $1300.) If the bass is mainly used with a pick-up, then the accoustic volume is less important. It is then more a question of the sound quality, rather than volume. As said before, some plywood basses sound rather impressive.

THE NEXT STEP UP is a double bass with a solid top. The top is more important than the rest for the sound production. That's where the feet of the bridge sit on, and that's where the co-operation has to happen. Solid timber tops (spruce) will often co-operate in a favorable way, compared to plywood. (From around $2000)

THE NEXT STEP UP is a double bass that is made of solid timbers throughout - spruce for the top and maple for back, sides, neck and peg box. (From around $3000)