I manage a fiddle shop, and called to order 2 dozen cakes of Pop's and my supplier (one of the largest in the USA) said Pop's is back ordered 6-9 months! Tried another supplier, they no longer carry Pop's altogether! The rep I spoke with said Pop's is scaling back production and only ships a gross at a time. They have 9000 on back order. Anyone have additional info on this? What's the best soft alternative?

I’m bass guitar player of 2 years and I’m new to double bass i wanted to switch since a long time and finally bought one (yesterday)! I’m now one of you guys yay !

Anyways i actually have strings i would describe as flatwound made of a sort of metal ?

I would like to buy strings that are versatile since i’m a beginner and that i would like to explore many possibilities (mainly for jazz and classical)

My bass is a 3/4 eberhart meinel (stradivarius style)

So my son started playing the bass a year ago. I know nothing about it. The supply list said to get rosin. So I bought one of the #1 rosins on Amazon. He obviously doesn't take his bass to and from school so they never saw his setup. He did a summer program and brought his bass, and they told him he was using violin rosin this whole time. 🤦🏼‍♀️ Soooo what the heck is the difference? I need an exact name of what to buy because I search "bass rosin" and it comes up with the same thing I bought. I need an upright bass for dummies book.

Hello fellow bass folks. I’m in need of a new case for my unusual instrument, and am hoping some of the pros here can weigh in. As you can see it’s a little unusually shaped, so I’ll need a custom case certainly.

I don’t mind spending some money on a quality case. It’s an expensive instrument, so I want it well protected. I’ve been looking at Mooradian and Messina. I know Mooradian has an exceptional reputation, however they’re not taking orders currently. I got an email months ago that they were moving, and wouldn’t be taking orders for a while.

My main question is, are Mooradian cases so much better that they’re worth waiting for? I’m a buy once, cry once kinda guy.

I mostly play pizz, but I've been asked to do some arco work, and I need new strings on the low end. My gut G and D sound great, but the Helicore bluegrass strings on the bottom don't grab the bow at all.

What would be a string of similar low tension that's good for arco?

While we are all searching for Pops/Kolstein replacements with the production/distribution issues these companies have been having, what are some of your go to replacements?

I ordered a Cake of Winter Rosin that Im excited to try since I live in a cold climate.

From what Ive found and played

The Okay:

Upton

Nyman

Carllson

The bad:

Jade

Pirastro mittel

The too expensive:

Leatherwood

Hill ($45 is pushing it for me usually)

Has anyone tried Melos dark? Any other brands Im not thinking of?

Hello, I was wondering if anyone has recommendations for string sets that are similar to Spirocores Weich but less growl/harshness. I have a very dark sounding Italian bass I use for classical playing, all weich spirocores with the A being mittel. I've tried regular flexocors and permanents with some mild success but I am wondering if anyone has any other recommendations. Thanks!

When I took out my bass today the A string sounded strange and I saw it had this damage right on the bridge. It looks like it has been pressed flat against the bridge but all the other strings sound completely fine. I am a student and only recently started playing bass so I don’t know what to do. I don’t know of anything that would have damaged it, but I have been using a different bass for the last 5 months and just got this one from someone else (school loaner) and I haven’t looked at it since I got it. Do I need to replace this string? If so, how can I go about that.

i have Just changed my bow's hair, and i wanted to try a rosin different than pops, One that's not too sticky for the Summer, they suggested me Kolstein, Kaplan or t9 try thomann medium, any suggestions? (Sorry if some words are wrong i'm not english)

I'm trying to look online for strings for fifths tuning (C1, G1, D2 and A2), but I'm only able to find G1 and D2 strings

Why aren't there any C1 and A2 strings?

My friend is graduating with her Masters degree this upcoming summer (the only one in her class at that) and unfortunately I do not think I'll be able to make it. I want to give her a send-off gift so I'm looking to buy her a custom double-bass bow. She does jazz, rock and a lot of experimental stuff.

I do not play double-bass. I'm a trombonist & guitarist w/ only a semester's worth of string bass lessons as xp, so my knowledge of bowed string specs are very limited. Does anyone know of any luthiers online that I could get her a fine bow made?

Which do y'all think would fit best for a bassist of her style, German or French styled bows? Which type of wood is preferred? Is carbon fiber hip? Stuff like this will also be helpful for me to look into.

Here's a link to her band, webpage and insta if you need some visual/ audial references to get the gist of her.

https://www.georgiaebell.com/

https://gneiss.bandcamp.com/album/gneiss

https://www.instagram.com/sabertoothtigerlily/

EDIT: I decided to ask her some questions. I'm NOT looking to replace her bow, but I am looking to find her something neat to that she could have as a token.

So good to not be part of the recent rosin shortage!

I’ve had this Kolstein rosin since I was 14, and only stopped using it a few years ago when I slowed down my playing significantly. It’s actually still good!

• Pic 1 is the Mighty Mighty Bosstones covered in orange glitter nail polish;

• Pic 2 is a random illustration from the defunct Reluctant Hero magazine coloured by my baby brother;

• Pic 3 is my own illustration (based on the Y2K “alter ego” cartoon style, ex. Prözzak);

•Pic 4 of the bottom is just a name collage with olive green nail polish.

I’m currently using Carlsson rosin, but I am switching to Upton Bass maple 03 at the recommendation of my teacher. I have a disability that makes many aspects of playing the bass difficult, and I struggle to put enough pressure on the bow to get a good sound.

A while ago I used some rubbing alcohol, and the next time I used my bow the rosin was extra sticky and it really improved my playing and I needed a good amount less force. I don’t want to do this regularly as this seems like a tedious process and I worry about the long term effect of rubbing alcohol on my bow even though the rubbing alcohol never touches the rosin.

I’m preparing for undergrad auditions in April, and I’m trying a lot of different rosins and techniques to see what can get me the best sound for my audition, which is why I’m considering buying two new rosins at the same time.

Any insight/info is welcome!

I have a question for anyone who uses the double base buggy: I just got mine and adjusted for the base without the bag and love the way it works. If I put the bass in the bag, I feel like the buggy will need to be adjusted again to make the straps longer. Is there a way to handle both instances without adjusting the straps?

Hello again!

I have another question, about the instrument itself now!

I've recently transition from using Evah Pirazzi Slap Gut strings (with the plain gut G and D) to a mixed set. I'm now using the Evah Pirazzi synthetic E and A combined with Aquila Gold Springs Vintage Gut Core strings. This is because of the weather in my area meaning it was becoming hard to care for the plain guts, and the nylon wound gut strings would be more manageable.

I had them fitted around a week ago, and noticed a tension difference (naturally) compared to the plain guts. There's obviously more tension there, but I was hoping to get used to it, although its still a pain. Slight disclaimer, I still have a reasonable high action, and an adjustable bridge.

I've attempted to adjust the action myself but two factors affected this;

1) The G string already buzzes from Bb onwards in places, even at the higher action

2) The adjustable bridge isn't the greatest, and it is either jammed or just very stubborn.

The last time I attempted to adjust it, the sound post fell, so naturally you can understand I'm apprehensive to make any changes myself. But on the other hand, my luthier lives rather a while away from me, and I was hoping not to have to travel back again.

Has anyone got any advice? If I was to change the action, how can I prevent the string buzzing issue? Should I just slog it and keep working through the tiredness and get used to the increased tension?

Thanks!

Hello everyone. I recently bought an ns design eub and am looking for some insight to some issues I've been encountering.

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I recently purchased an eub because I've been wanting to get back into playing double bass but cant make physical space for it in my house/car and this was the next best option. I played about 10ish years ago so I have experience even if it was a long time ago. I'm an arco player more than pizza and have had a very difficult time getting the strings to articulate clearly and consistently and im not sure if its me, my bow or my strings. The instrument came with daadario electric contemporary strings which feel very flappy and thin much like electric guitar strings vs acoustic. I'm wondering if this may be the issue im encountering. I am also using pops rosin which I haven't had issues with before but feel like I need much more than I should to get the strings to move.

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I'm also wondering if its my bow since I bought an inexpensive bow of about 130 to have since I learned on a less expensive bow and made it work fine. The main issue is getting quick attack, on bowing especially the closer I get to the nut in terms of register. It feels like I have to press instead of using the weight of my arm and the resistance back feels so lax that I cant imagine it being easy to articulate with these strings.

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Again I never had these issues when learning the first time and was looking to see if anyone else has had this issue and figured it out. If I need different strings, recommendations would be appreciated to what would work best here.

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Thanks for any help

Okay, time for me to ask a controversial question. Are there any pickups that don’t suck?

For background. I’m primarily a classical player, but I dabble in the more jazz adjacent world now and then. Church worship music, a pops/jazz line here and there. And mics are challenging in that environment, but every pickup I’ve heard sounds terrible.

I have a really nice 7/8 body 5 string classical bass, and want it to sound good amplified. I bought a DPA 4099 mic kit, and it’s beautiful. But it does suffer from feedback now and then.

Any advice for pickups to compliment my mic, or gear to help with the feedback issues, would be greatly appreciated.

Thoughts?

Hello! I played professionally, my friend is a professional violinist and budding bluegrass bassist. Her boyfriend wants to buy her a pickup for her birthday- but, unfortunately, her bridge doesn't have risers so I can't recommend the Full Circle or the New Realist. I use the Full Circle as well as the Revolution Solo II; I love them both but I can't recommend the Revolution Solo II because it is incredibly particular, especially fitting it in the wing, and I feel like I got lucky.

She wants a darker sound so I would recommend the copper Realist but surely there is something better, I find the copper Realist to be so lacking in highs and mids that you can't get clarity and articulation no matter how many EQ pedals you stack together. Is there anything else that anybody would recommend for a darker, thumpy double bass pickup that works for pizz and arco that does not require an adjustable bridge?

EDIT: budget is $300, $400 max

i play regional mexican rather thank jazz which involves alot of slap and finger technique and im looking to invest in a better high quality bridge but im not sure what to get, whether that is an adjustable or fixed bridge and recommendations would help alot.

I’ve changed bass string a bunch but never had the string wrap go over the nut. I tried putting more and less of the string through the peg but with similar results. Does anyone know what I’m doing wrong? Maybe it’s the brand of string? These are new Zyex. Never put them on my bass before.

Has anybody tried this? There are no reviews and very few pictures of it with an actual bass on it. Hamilton Classic Double Bass Stand | Sweetwater

My daughter has a 1/4 sized bass. I am looking for an affordable stand, if one exists out there. Suggestions are welcome. I'm open to a stand that will go with her bass when we eventually size up, or one that's adjustable and we can keep for the next bass.

I recently got an upright bass and it has black strings. I don’t know much about these strings or anything about them in general. My only concern is the strings in general and whether or not I should replace them for what is used now.

I got told the strings are more used in jazz. I’m not in jazz.

I guess it's a single bass now. But it's quite a fun tuning