A Bass, but no Maker

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Adrian Levi

I am curious about the uneven shoulders ?
I have a bass with one shoulder same as this one one more sloped ! I'm guessing that it was done to provide better access to the upper register as it certainly does DOES help , but then why just not slope both shoulders for a symmetrical look?
Any info would be interesting .....

Many old basses especially hand made are uneven. Also, many larger basses when cut down end up uneven as well. maybe for a reason and moyeb by accident. I have owned many. Look thru my DB pages and find them..

[Adrian Levi]

Originally Posted by Ken Smith

Many old basses especially hand made are uneven. Also, many larger basses when cut down end up uneven as well. maybe for a reason and moyeb by accident. I have owned many. Look thru my DB pages and find them..

I had a look and it was hard to find a bass that looked really even

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Adrian Levi

I had a look and it was hard to find a bass that looked really even

Most of my basses are hand made. That's the main difference. Factory carved tops, backs and basses in general will be uniform to the eye. Hand made basses are uniform to what ever the maker is drinking..

Another thing I find quite often are uneven set ff-holes and/or f-notches. The same reasons as above apply here as well.

The fact that a bass is perfectly even or way off to the naked eye has no bearing on the sound or quality of the bass. It may have a slight bearing on the makers detail or finishing work but I have seen some of the least beautiful and/or uniform old basses that sound amazing.

Try overlooking these factors when evaluating a bass. These 'even Steven' details are more for the Judges at a makers competition than a playing Gig or audition.

If the unevenness somewhere makes the bass hard to play, then and only then does it become an issue. At that point, if you like the bass, try working around it. I have seen players get up on their toes to play over the fingerboard with some high shouldered basses. Sure, low, even sloped shoulders are more fun to play over and may cut down the stretch or work to play it but if it's the sound you are after, get some high heel sneakers!

[Adrian Levi]

Originally Posted by Ken Smith

Most of my basses are hand made. That's the main difference. Factory carved tops, backs and basses in general will be uniform to the eye. Hand made basses are uniform to what ever the maker is drinking..

Another thing I find quite often are uneven set ff-holes and/or f-notches. The same reasons as above apply here as well.

The fact that a bass is perfectly even or way off to the naked eye has no bearing on the sound or quality of the bass. It may have a slight bearing on the makers detail or finishing work but I have seen some of the least beautiful and/or uniform old basses that sound amazing.

Try overlooking these factors when evaluating a bass. These 'even Steven' details are more for the Judges at a makers competition than a playing Gig or audition.

If the unevenness somewhere makes the bass hard to play, then and only then does it become an issue. At that point, if you like the bass, try working around it. I have seen players get up on their toes to play over the fingerboard with some high shouldered basses. Sure, low, even sloped shoulders are more fun to play over and may cut down the stretch or work to play it but if it's the sound you are after, get some high heel sneakers!

That is interesting !!
I have a question though - what is the definition of a factory carved bass ? I was under the impression that factory basses were basically handmade ,but by a group of individuals and not just one luthier ??

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Adrian Levi

That is interesting !!
I have a question though - what is the definition of a factory carved bass ? I was under the impression that factory basses were basically handmade ,but by a group of individuals and not just one luthier ??

Factory made and hand assembled is one thing. Shop made/Cottage industry and then hand assembled is another.

They do have carving machines now for well over 100 years. Carved Tops sometimes have the bassbar looking part left in known as 'integral'. These need to be carved out and a REAL bar made and put in.

There are many ways to make a product and run a business. Necks/Scrolls are often supplied to many makers from one single supplier. This is happening even today on more than one level.

[Matthew Tucker]

Personally, i find a little assymetry is beautiful ... and to me a perfectly symmetrical bass outline is rather boring.

Perhaps this is why "factory" basses appear so plain.

[igor kondur]

This bass was made for export in Moscon on music factory called "LIRA"
close to my home(10 miles)
Igor