Double Bass Best Hybrid Bass That You've Played?

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Denp90

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Aug 23, 2016
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#1
I'm looking to get a hybrid bass to use as a travel instrument.

I'm hoping to get some input on what hybrid basses have really impressed people on this forum.

Which hybrid basses have really stuck out? What was the best bowed tone that you've heard from a hybrid bass? What did you like about them that separated them from the other hybrid basses that you've played?

With that in mind, I know how preferential basses are and that American Standard, Upton and several Chinese manufacturers all have very long lists of happy customers. I'm just asking for opinions.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!
 
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#2
American Standards are not hybrid but all ply. New Standards come in hybrid models. They are excellent in general but no two are exactly alike. My student bought a Shen SB150 recently and I thought it was wonderful sounding, the best one I've heard. I haven't been all that impressed with the others I have experienced. I've played a couple Christopher hybrids I thought sounded very good, too.
 
#4
I love my New Standard hybrid and prefer it more then most solid wood basses in the $10-18,000 range. There are some others on here that seem to have the same opinion. They are great for the money but a little pricey as far as hybrids go. (I think new they are around $7000, but i bought mine used so I'm not 100% sure)

To me my NS La Scala has the great pizz front end and quick response under the bow. It is very even across all registers from low C to the opposite end of the fingerboard. I used to own a upton brescian and it was more "fluffy" sounding, Not as clear or as quick to respond. To me the upper positions sounded more nasally and muffled on the upton compared to the new standard.

Shens are also great for the money, I've played a lot but never owned one.
 
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#5
csrund said:
Shen makes a 190 model hybrid based on their Rogeri pattern. It has a solid spruce top, solid willow ribs, and a laminated flat back. I've always thought it seemed like a lot of bass for the money. They have audio/video demonstrations of it on their website: cscproducts.com
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This. Take my opinion with a grain of salt as I haven't had the luxury of playing hundreds of different basses, but:

When I bought my carved Shen Rogeri I was able to A/B it with one of the 190s and I was really impressed with the tone of the hybrid in relation to my carved bass. It was enough to actually make me question whether the extra cost of the carved bass was even worth it.

It was one of the loudest, most full sounding hybrids I've ever played. It didn't quite have the low end or acoustic output of the carved bass, but aside from that it had tone for days. If anything, it might have been an easier instrument to amplify for those reasons.

The only downside as far as travel purposes go is that those Rogeris are big. They have deep ribs and a wide upper bout. The scale length on mine is 41.25" yet I needed a 7/8 size case for it.
 
#8
I am seriously in love with my Upton Bohemian Hybrid. All the guys I play with love my Upton. It sounds better every time it gets played. I play Bluegrass, but I also wanted some Danny Thompson, and Dennis Crouch type sound. I had no idea basses sounded this good.
 
#11
Thank you everybody for all the great info!

I'm going to look into all the suggestions.

I haven't been terribly impressed with hybrid Shen basses in the past but I've never played a Rogeri model and I bet there are some great SB150s circulating so it may be worth my while to try and find one.

I've always heard great things about the New Standard La Scala. Has anyone ever played or been able to compare a flat back to round back La Scala?
 
#13
I recently purchased a flat back hybrid Pamplona from Wil de Sola. This is a new model he is making -- similar to a La Scala but with a gamba shape. This is an awesome bass. Huge sound and growl but even across the whole fingerboard. It far exceeded my aready high expectations given what people have written about the New Standard basses.
 
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#14
I'm not competent to compare basses for anyone other than myself. I've also really only played one hybrid - my 2013 Upton Bohemian flatback. That said, I like it a lot more than the '51 Kay it essentially replaced, and it suits my purposes.

This question is similar to many that arise in photography - what is the best camera you have ever used? While there are clunker cameras, and clunker basses, much of the output of the device, wether photographs or music, depends on the user; I struggle to understand the value in the question. I'm pretty sure that a skilled, trained bassist could get much more out of my instrument than can I.
 
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#15
BobKay said:
I'm not competent to compare basses for anyone other than myself. I've also really only played one hybrid - my 2013 Upton Bohemian flatback. That said, I like it a lot more than the '51 Kay it essentially replaced, and it suits my purposes.

This question is similar to many that arise in photography - what is the best camera you have ever used? While there are clunker cameras, and clunker basses, much of the output of the device, wether photographs or music, depends on the user; I struggle to understand the value in the question. I'm pretty sure that a skilled, trained bassist could get much more out of my instrument than can I.
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I agree with you on that point to an extent. The quality of an instrument, IMO, does make a difference in certain cases. Particularly of interest to me is the solid top vs plywood top. That is one of the biggest differences in sound that I can think of, particularly in the arco reponse and tone of the instrument. The pizz sound of a hybrid or carved bass is much more pleasing to my ears as well.

If tone really didn't matter, why wouldn't we all just pick the most trouble-free option and play ply basses?
 
#16
Thanks for the answer Chris.

I think that I need to stop at the Upton shop to really form an opinion since they have so many models and options.

chief bogan said:
I recently purchased a flat back hybrid Pamplona from Wil de Sola. This is a new model he is making -- similar to a La Scala but with a gamba shape. This is an awesome bass. Huge sound and growl but even across the whole fingerboard. It far exceeded my aready high expectations given what people have written about the New Standard basses.
Click to expand...

I couldn't find any information on this model online. Is it like a Cleveland with a smaller body?

BobKay said:
This question is similar to many that arise in photography - what is the best camera you have ever used? While there are clunker cameras, and clunker basses, much of the output of the device, wether photographs or music, depends on the user; I struggle to understand the value in the question. I'm pretty sure that a skilled, trained bassist could get much more out of my instrument than can I.
Click to expand...

If we were talking about regular carved basses, I would agree with you 100 percent.

Hybrid basses have a lower ceiling because they lack the same acoustic qualities and some hybrids that I have played clearly feel like more of a compromise than others. I'm really just trying to gauge whether there is a hybrid bass out there that can come close to a solid carved instrument. I'm fully aware that what I'm looking for may not exist but if it's out there, I'd love to find it!
 
#17
While I doubt you'd go wrong buying any of the recommendations made so far, I think one thing you shouldn't overlook is just going to any shop within a reasonable distance and trying every bass within your criteria/price range. I got really lucky--the seller I bought my hybrid from has no idea who made it, but for $2000 the thing blows every bass I've played for anything close to the price out of the water, and friends/teachers who play instruments substantially more expensive are routinely impressed with the quality even before they ask how much it cost me. Again, the aforementioned basses are all great choices (at least, I know the ones I've played were totally acceptable, and I'm sure the others are too), but you might just get lucky with a bass from an unknown maker or a maker you didn't think to explore, etc etc.

Aside from that, I've played one of the Thompson hybrids and the sound was good--it was a bit thuddy and boomy overall, but the bowed sound was pretty powerful, and the jazz pizz sound was decent, though I think that was more the fault of the strings. I've also seen/heard a lot of beautiful playing done on Shen hybrids.
 
#18
CSBBass said:
While I doubt you'd go wrong buying any of the recommendations made so far, I think one thing you shouldn't overlook is just going to any shop within a reasonable distance and trying every bass within your criteria/price range. I got really lucky--the seller I bought my hybrid from has no idea who made it, but for $2000 the thing blows every bass I've played for anything close to the price out of the water, and friends/teachers who play instruments substantially more expensive are routinely impressed with the quality even before they ask how much it cost me. Again, the aforementioned basses are all great choices (at least, I know the ones I've played were totally acceptable, and I'm sure the others are too), but you might just get lucky with a bass from an unknown maker or a maker you didn't think to explore, etc etc.

Aside from that, I've played one of the Thompson hybrids and the sound was good--it was a bit thuddy and boomy overall, but the bowed sound was pretty powerful, and the jazz pizz sound was decent, though I think that was more the fault of the strings. I've also seen/heard a lot of beautiful playing done on Shen hybrids.
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I like this answer. There is a lot of baloney sales pitching and malarkey going on out there these days, and we certainly get our fair share of folks asking should I play this model or that. I try to advise as best I can, but in the end doing just what CSBBass says is best imho: go to your local shop, play lots, fall in love. Don't sweat the brands too much.
 
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#19
Denp90 said:
(quote regarding new standard Pamplona model)

I couldn't find any information on this model online. Is it like a Cleveland with a smaller body?
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Here's a nice thread about one. I'm sure the OP would be happy to answer questions/brag about their new bass either in the thread or via PM. :)

If we were talking about regular carved basses, I would agree with you 100 percent.

Hybrid basses have a lower ceiling because they lack the same acoustic qualities and some hybrids that I have played clearly feel like more of a compromise than others. I'm really just trying to gauge whether there is a hybrid bass out there that can come close to a solid carved instrument. I'm fully aware that what I'm looking for may not exist but if it's out there, I'd love to find it!
Click to expand...

I can only speak to my experience, but I don't feel that the New Standard hybrids I've played are missing anything compared to carved basses. If I felt they did, I'd have "upgraded" to a New Standard carved bass! But as I've said many times before, I don't ever feel held back by my bass; if anything, I am holding it back. But don't take my word for it - feel free to check out any of the videos in my series to hear what it sounds like; all of the videos were shot with a simple "mic in front of the bass" technique.
 
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