Is this acoustic bass worth getting?

Question

http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/product/59227-eastcoast-electro-acoustic-bass-guitar-natural-satin.html#sterling_uk
I would say I play bass at a semi-semi-professional level, so I wondered if this bass is any good or if theres any ones that are way better for the price.
Thanks

Answer 1

I would not buy any instrument for a site that so obviously has the product description entirely wrong. That acoustic electric bass does not have a solid alder body, hard maple bolt on neck, and maple fretboard, JB bridge, or a humbucking pickup. Nor is it painted black. It's very cheap and most likely cheaply made. Those are not good things for a bass which has a lot of string tension due to the heavy gauge strings. If you're buying an acoustic electric bass you really need to go quality or just forget about it and get a solid body electric bass.

This is about the cheapest one I might possibly be tempted to buy:

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Ibanez-AEB5E-Acoustic-Electric-Bass-105956627-i1470159.gc

But if you're a semi-professional bassist you should invest a bit more and get something a bitter higher end (closer to $500 or so). Maybe a Takamine, Breedlove, or Godin (getting up around $1000 there though).

Answer 2

Ontherocks is right - stay away from that piece of crap.



I'm just chiming in to add something; even though it's an "acoustic" bass, it still needs to be amplified to play in any situation other than practicing by yourself at home. Bass sound waves have longer wavelengths than higher-pitched sound waves, which means they "penetrate" less and therefore need a lot more volume to be heard. That's why bass amps have about quadruple the wattage of equivalent guitar amps. That's also why upright basses have those HUGE bodies - to generate enough volume to be heard in a band or orchestra setting. If you play an acoustic bass guitar unamplified next to an acoustic guitar, no one will hear the bass - at all, period. It doesn't have the massive body of an upright and just doesn't produce the volume.



They still have their purpose - I have one and it's a lot of fun. You get a quite distinctive acoustic tone from an ABG that you don't get from a standard bass guitar. But don't get it on the notion that it will allow you to play in an acoustic band without an amplifier. You still need the amp.

Answer 3

Do you plan on playing live in the open without amplifiers? Than yes it's worth it... A nice Semi hollow bass would do you a lot better... Check out the Hofner Paul McCartney bass. Not so expensive and sounds great unplugged.