Where's This Bass From?

[Arnold Schnitzer]

The treatment of the button area looks Czech/Bohemian to me.

[Chang Min Lee]

Thanks Ken and Arnold for your replies. I returned the bass today and asked about the scroll and tuners. Different guy today and he had no idea. I asked about taking off the plates to see what might have been there before and he said it would take too much time & effort and might cause damage.

I guess I just don't know how much this bass is worth if it's a decent sounding instrument (10K-20K for sound) in decent playing shape, but no one knows the maker or where it's from, or seems to be interested in it for that matter. I forgot to ask them to ask the owner about what she knows of the origin, scroll, and tuners. I'll call them tomorrow about that.

Just a hypothetical question: Let's say this instrument is German or Bohemian. What kind of price would you put on it? I understand if the question isn't really fair considering the crappy pictures I took of the bass, and not before hearing the instrument.

Thanks!! I greatly appreciate the help!

[Ken Smith]

The bass should only be valued after personal inspection inside and out as well as playing and listening. Measurements concerning playability are important in the pricing because changes or modifications can get expensive.

Arnold says Bohemian/Czech but I have my doubts because of the round back. There are some Bohemian Basses with a round Back but most of them are Flatbacks. I still think it is more Germanic and could be from the German/Czech border area which would make us both right..

I asked about taking off the plates to see what might have been there before and he said it would take too much time & effort and might cause damage.

Taking the Tuners off can cause damage? Well if done by a 'Plummer' maybe but not any decent Luthier. It is one of the easiest things to do. The worst than can happen is that the sound post falls. At that point being this time of year, you will know the Post is too short for the Bass. That can cause damage, the Post being too short not the tuners. IF the removal of the Tuners will damage the Bass then something is wrong with the Bass.

We have many many old German and Czech basses here all over the country. Many or most of them were imported shop Basses of various grades. Some of them are nice handmade basses that found their way over here one way or another. Some of the Shop made basses can be very good but unless the condition is very good before hand, the needed restoration work is often not worthwhile. Unless you have 'your own' Luthier there looking and advising you stay away from Basses that seem OK priced that have bassbar or soundpost cracks repaired or not. Very often, the repairs are poorly done and will cost a pretty penny to re-restore. Older more valuable pedigree type instruments are another story. Those are usually worth fixing at almost any expense.

On the Tuners, look inside the pegbox with a light and see if the upper holes look like they were altered or not in the least way. Use a good light and get real close. If holes were plugged and re-drilled, it should be easy to see.

The Scroll, Scroll Button and the F-holes are very nice and non typical in my opinion. This is not a shop bass.

If the Bass is free from major cracks like I described, in good health and has a good orchestral sound, then the market price could easily be in that 10-20k range U$D. The sound must be there, must.

What are the measurements of this Bass? Use one of my templates for the DBs on my website and give all the same type numbers as shown there.

[Chang Min Lee]

Darn! Alas, I have returned the bass to the shop. So, I can't do the close inspection of the scroll or measurements. I was coming from a standpoint of "Is this bass an upgrade to mine in sound quality" rather than "Where's this bass from" for most of the trial week. Then I was thinking this bass was an improvement to mine and wondering what I should pay for it. Thus the thread; just a couple days before it was due back at the shop. And I play currently on a Kolstein Nardelli which has served me very well. I'm just looking for an upgrade. Not my final instrument (hopefully).

The sound by the way is rather good. Not the quality of 25k-40k instruments I've tried, but not like the thinner 8k Germans. It has a mature woody sound that is clear in the hall. Oh, and yes I tried it in the hall and had another play it in the hall next to a couple other basses and it projects well with a pretty tone (not nasal or tubby). It doesn't fill up the hall with a boomy bass as well as some of the other basses in the section, but it is present and an improvement to my current instrument. Besides, my colleagues are playing on basses worth more than I'm able to spend at the moment. Oh, and the setup is very close to what I need. I'm keeping this bass in mind, but still looking. If I come back to it I'll get it checked by a trusted luthier.

Thanks again, Ken! I'll post again if I have further info. And thanks for the forum. It seems like a nice place to hang out.