Upton Basses

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Greg Clinkingbeard

Ken,
I agree that the Calin Wultur does look similar to the Upton basses and being fully carved, they may be better. They are also at least $1000 more. Quality has a price.

I was referring to this model;





They are NOT $1,000. more. I think they list for around 2k.

[Greg Clinkingbeard]

I knew you would set me straight. That hybrid does look EXACTLY like my bass.
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Okay, I've settled down. I still like it and think it's a good bass for the money.

[Greg Clinkingbeard]

Ken,
I know you have experience with other Calin Wultur basses, but what is your experience with this particular model. I do value your experience here.

[Ron Lacey]

Ken, thanks for the info. This Gliga on ebay is the spitting image of my Upton hybrid. It seems like the consensus is that the Gliga's are decent basses for the money. I always wondered where my Upton originated, but when I was talking with Gary Birkhamshaw before buying the bass he was cagey about where the bases came from. I'm not sure why he felt this needed to be a secret, seems like a positive point to me.

Anyway, to Jeff's original question; I've been pleased with my bass and I've gotten good comments from folks who have heard it. I like the sound and I find it easy to play. Part of the reason I went with Upton was the lack of local bass shops and little time to make road trips to bigger cities with any real selection of basses. Locally most of what I could find were 1/2 size basses since the only market is the local orchestra programs. There were a couple of 3/4 used Chinese laminates (not Shens) for a lot more than my budget and the shop had little interest in haggling.

I started out planning to spend $1500 on a Medio Fino laminate and talked myself into a Hawkes laminate at $1800. Then good news on my taxes last year and a little side income pushed me up to the hybrid Medio Fino at $2500. Had I realized that I was going to be in that price range in the beginning I'd probably considered some other options, but at my original budget of $1500 there were not a lot of choices, especially since I needed to get something that was reasonably well set up and playable and that I could get shipped to me. I could have done a lot worse and almost did until I came to my senses.

To be honest this is my first bass so I don't have the kind of experience that Ken or some of the other folks here have. It meets my current needs and I should be able to recover most of my costs if I do decide to trade up at some point.

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Greg Clinkingbeard

Ken,
I know you have experience with other Calin Wultur basses, but what is your experience with this particular model. I do value your experience here.

Personally I have not played one either by Upton or JR. I have talked to Rich at JR (the 'R' in JR) about these and others coming from Gliga and know a bit about them from the inside look as far as construction and Varnish. I was going to buy in the 3/4 sloped shoulder version some for a local School last year but the deal did not happen. I was between these and the Shens and it was a tough decision. I think either Bass would have filled the required needs but the School liked hearing "European Bass" better than "Chinese Bass" for around the same money.

Ron, that Ebay guy buys from JR so that may be the same Bass. You did just fine in your purchase and in the $2500 range. Rest assured, the market is limited and you found one of the better ones for that price.

In my Business I try to buy and represent only what I personally trust. The Calin Wulturs I brought in are fine Basses and if I have a problem, I just call Rich at JR and we work it out. With Shen Basses John is the guy I call over there but sometimes I talk to Paul whom I first met in 1997 with Sam. They too have great customer service.

When I went into this recent Bow business venture I called John and got some good advice from him. Luckily, I am dealing with a good Shop but the Culture is what you have to work with and not 'just' the Shop. If you ask for lower Priced goods and strip down the Bow (like Upton does with them) they will give you the lowest grade Sticks in the Barrel. If you demand only the highest quality and stay on their backs every shipment and pay the extra charges for these extra qualities, they will send you good stuff.

Basses and Bows can be very expensive especially coming from the BG/Slab world. An entry level DB is priced in the Boutique range of the BGs. A Boutique/Vintage/Classic (or anything else you can name it) is priced somewhere between a good Car and your House!

Makers/Suppliers have to struggle to get Basses made to sell for under 4k. I have talked to Arnold about this many times and have some understanding about his operation and why he does what he does the way he does it. The Necks he gets for the Standards are carved up at the Scroll only and the Heel/Block area is completely raw and un-shaped by the neck as well. These Necks can also be used as replacements for other Germanic Basses needing a new Neck as the Heel/Block area is at least 6" tall and ready to fit any Bass. This way, Arnold has total control of the Neck-Set and 'which' actual Neck goes into which Bass. With the Uptons from Gliga, the Necks are in the Bass already and you get only what he gets. For the price he sells them, I don't think 'Neck swapping' is on his option list. With the 'New Standard' Bass, you get what you pay for and the sound, well just TOO good for the money. I was there yesterday and heard one and mentioned that it sounded much more expensive than the price tag to 'MY' ear, for what that's worth..

[Greg Clinkingbeard]

Thanks for clarifying. FWIW, I was really holding out for a hybrid LaScala but couldn't afford one. For the foreseeable future, my Upton labeled Romanian bass is just fine.

[Ron Lacey]

Thanks Ken, I'm a big believer in the old adage of "you get what you pay for" and among the instruments I own, my humble little bass is far and away the most expensive. But I've always tried to at least get something that can be played. There was some real sticker shock when I decided I just had to play bass.

In the meantime, I'll keep window shopping the many fine instruments you and others have posted. I just wish I was close enough to stop by and play one or two. Ah, that's probably not a good idea, that could be the next step on the slippery slope to me living in my bass bag while all my money goes to alimony, child support, and bass payments.

[Ron Lacey]

I finally got around to changing out the year-old Obligato strings and installed a set of Spirocore Mittels on my Upton hybrid. While the Spiros are still fresh and zingy, I think its pretty clear that this bass likes the higher tension strings (roughly about the same on the G, +5 lbs on the D, +9 lbs on the A, and +10 lbs on the E). More volume and a clearer fundamental. The bass seems to respond faster; and even with my very limited bowing skills, I find the Spiros as easy, or easier, to bow versus the Obligatos. With my current setup I can't detect any real difference in left or right hand effort. So for me, more and clearer sound with no more work. So based on a single sample point, if you have one of these basses or one of their Romanian brethren and haven't used a higher tension string, you may want to give them a try.