Acoustic "Classical" style, nylon string BASS guitar?!

[Mincer]

Any old guys remember the Ernie Ball Earthwood Bass? One of the first music stores I worked at carried them. As wide and as deep as a guitarron, they had a full scale neck and big copper wound strings. Sounded great, played well. Very rare, made in the late 70's.

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I remember the ads for those in the late 70s/early 80s Guitar Player magazines.

[ICTGoober]

Any old guys remember the Ernie Ball Earthwood Bass? One of the first music stores I worked at carried them. As wide and as deep as a guitarron, they had a full scale neck and big copper wound strings. Sounded great, played well. Very rare, made in the late 70's.

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[Erlend_G]

Hey guys! ♪

I finally, accidentally found the instrument I was talking about:

https://www.londonguitarstudio.com/p/esteve-contrabass-6-string-guitar

The one I played in Gambia was a 4-string classical. But Esteve makes several models. They are a bit out of my budget though, but I'm sure they are wonderful instruments.



-Erlend \m/

[treyhaislip]

Okay.

I once had a Chateau acoustic bass guitar (made for bronze strings),. Made it a fretless conversion, put flats on it-

It had no lows *at all*, but a barky and bold midrange; that really stood out for jam sessions, and also free jazz use. My plan was to put a magnetic pickup in the soundhole, aswell as vol/tone pots-

But I lost that bass.

Is that Tacoma real expensive? :/. I like the thought of a cedar top though; reason steel-string ABG's make "no sound" is because the thick strings and heavy bracing. I think.

Rock on man \m/

-E

Those Tacoma's are becoming pretty expensive since the company is no longer building guitars (Fender bought them out sometime in the 2000's and then shut them down around 2008?)

I remember paying around $350-$600 for a Chief while now they seem to be well over $1,000.

I remember the nylon strings really added a unique sound--extremely balanced.

Best of luck finding the bass you are looking for!

[Aceman]

In Gambia they likely used Cat gut. Probably Lion....

[Erlend_G]

because...a Tacoma Chief with a Cedar top, while designed for Steel Strings, with Nylon/Classical stings actually sounds phenomenal.

Okay.

I once had a Chateau acoustic bass guitar (made for bronze strings),. Made it a fretless conversion, put flats on it-

It had no lows *at all*, but a barky and bold midrange; that really stood out for jam sessions, and also free jazz use. My plan was to put a magnetic pickup in the soundhole, aswell as vol/tone pots-

But I lost that bass.

Is that Tacoma real expensive? :/. I like the thought of a cedar top though; reason steel-string ABG's make "no sound" is because the thick strings and heavy bracing. I think.

Rock on man \m/

-E

[treyhaislip]

Nope . How come you ask?

because...a Tacoma Chief with a Cedar top, while designed for Steel Strings, with Nylon/Classical stings actually sounds phenomenal.

[solspirit]

Well... There's plenty of string out there for when you do find it.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AB344--thomastik-infeld-acousticore-acoustic-bass-strings-4-string-041-086

These strings must play themselves for $77
How good could they be for this price? Crazy

[Erlend_G]

:/ I'm thinking that I'd get one of those gigantic, mexican bass guitars. .

Those seem to be the closest, to the instrument I tried in Gambia. (Though much bigger!)

[GuitarStv]

Would a Taylor GS mini get you in that ballpark? It sounds like a bass and uses nylon core strings (although they've got a metal wrap around them).

[ICTGoober]

Many guitarrons I've worked on for local Tejano and Mariachi bands have large nylon strings for the basses. Don't know about any sources, but hey - the internet is at your fingertips.

[Erlend_G]

I totally agree with you BUT...have you ever tried nylon strings on a Tacoma Chief acoustic?

Nope . How come you ask?

[treyhaislip]

No. A steel string acoustic, and a classical guitar- is built in two completely diffenret ways. It's two different things.

Try putting steel strings on a flamenco guitar (or the other way around)... and You will understand what I say! :o

I totally agree with you BUT...have you ever tried nylon strings on a Tacoma Chief acoustic?

[Erlend_G]

Try looking under North, South, and Central American instruments. There are a number of instruments which match your general description.

Portugese, spanish? I think:

"Sometimes a 4-string acoustic bass guitar (violão baixa) is also part of the instruments to accompany the Fado singer (man or woman)"

:/ who knows. I wish these basses were mainstream,
I can't afford anything else .

It was wonderful to play. Had a rich, sonorous tone, exactly like the bass strings of a good nylon/classical guitar, but one octave lower.

It seemed to have mahagony neck, back and sides- with a cedar top.

[idsnowdog]

Cool!

In west africa they played the "Kora"; which was a harp, with dual sets of strings (one for each hand), a pumpkin? body, with goat skin top .
And there was a...one stringed fiddle, with no fretboard... the string was stopped at different harmonic intervals.

Aswell as alot of drums. .

PS: Couldn't find the "classical bass" anywhere on that list. It had nothing particularily "african" about it; it looked like any "spanish" classical guitar. Just bigger.

-Erl

Try looking under North, South, and Central American instruments. There are a number of instruments which match your general description.