Double Bass What to do?

tb-player

tb-player

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Mar 6, 2019
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#1
Earlier this year, I placed an order for a build at Upton bass. Originally, my plan was to get a standard ply, since Upton had just announced one last run of that bass. Granted, I had a standard Upton once before, but it was a hybrid (that I never should have let go). It played fantastic and had lovely, articulate tone with incredible projection. After some consideration, I came to the conclusion that an all-ply bass wouldn’t hold a candle to the tone of my old hybrid. And I wanted the option to customize a few things. So I ended up putting a downpayment on an Upton Brescian Hybrid. Just a tremendous instrument.

Fast forward 9 months and I've all but given up playing. I still noodle and play at home to keep my chops in the vicinity of acceptable. But I didn’t gig even once during this past summer season. My super-fun, off-season jam band has kind of faded into oblivion. And I even quit my weekly ‘megachurch’ gig. I guess my passion for playing is pretty much disappeared. But... I still have a gorgeous (and expensive) custom upright on the way. It should be completed sometime around the first of the year(although anytime a builder gives you an ETA, add 3 months :rollno: ).

What to do?

I could just halt the build and lose 15%, according to their return policy. I could try & arrange the sale of my build spot to someone who doesn’t want to wait a year+. Or I could go ahead and let it arrive, in the hopes that a shiny new object might reignite my desire to play.

At this point, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. But I'm open to advice.

Here's an example of the bass & color. It really is nice (who am I kidding? I'll probably keep it just so I can look at it... lol)

Brescian.jpg
 
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#3
You're probably asking the wrong people. Pretty much everyone here plays at least somewhat regularly, and is in it for life. So we'd probably all take the bass.

That said . . . I was somewhat in your shoes at one point in life. It wasn't that my passion for playing died, per se. It's just that other things in life had to take priority, and I didn't play or have a DB for 15 years. When the time came that I picked it back up, it sure would have been nice to have a bass like you're talking about ready to go. Not to mention, I might have been able to "keep my chops in the vicinity of acceptable" through those 15 years.
 
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#5
Things to consider:
You're looking at a somewhat-expensive lesson (losing the 15%), a more expensive lesson (buying a nice big ornamental piece), or an expensive investment toward a future time when you might want to play the bass.
"How badly and/or how soon I need the money" would loom large in my decision.
Taking delivery of the bass will NOT be economically profitable - you won't recoup your money in the foreseeable future.
Your tag line about "not being pre-CBS" implies that you're not yet retirement age. God willing, you will have a fair number of years left to play music. Before I retired 7 years ago, I could not have known that I would be playing in orchestras and jazz bands and enjoying the heck out of it.
Further complicating the issue: No matter how nice that Upton will be, rest assured that there are plenty of other basses just as nice or better, for similar money.

Hope this helps!:cool:
 
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#6
I would cancel the order and eat the 15%. In that time you could work on finding out what "tremendous" really is. It is not any hybrid or any bass in that range.
It more like the 77K cornerless Italian bass I played at ISB or a high end handmade bass by someone like Nick Lloyd. I don't know what it is about Upton that make people exaggerate what they are. In this range they are absolutely solid and reliable.
It really does a huge disservice to them as well the buyers. They should have a good reputation for making solid, workhorse basses like an American version of Shen.
Instead, you can't help but be let down when you play one after all the hype.
 
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#7
damonsmith said:
I would cancel the order and eat the 15%. In that time you could work on finding out what "tremendous" really is. It is not any hybrid or any bass in that range.
It more like the 77K cornerless Italian bass I played at ISB or a high end handmade bass by someone like Nick Lloyd. I don't know what it is about Upton that make people exaggerate what they are. In this range they are absolutely solid and reliable.
It really does a huge disservice to them as well the buyers. They should have a good reputation for making solid, workhorse basses like an American version of Shen.
Instead, you can't help but be let down when you play one after all the hype.
Click to expand...
Cancel my $7500 bass and buy a $77,000 bass? Got it. :thumbsup:
 
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#12
If financial consideration isn't a consideration (ha!), I'd keep the bass. I stopped playing for awhile, sold off my instruments and kit, and rued that day when I came back to playing. In my experience, being a musician never really leaves you. That said, if you need the money, do what you need to do and don't think twice about it. It's not an end-of-the-world decision.
 
#14
IMHO whether you gig or not doesn't have to be a factor. If you still want the bass and can afford the bass, then get the bass.

If you are certain you don't want the bass and never will: Upright basses don't tend to sell quickly most of the time. So unless you already have someone line up who wants the bass, I suggest eating the 15%.
 
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#16
tb-player said:
I could just halt the build and lose 15%, according to their return policy. I could try & arrange the sale of my build spot to someone who doesn’t want to wait a year+. Or I could go ahead and let it arrive, in the hopes that a shiny new object might reignite my desire to play.

At this point, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. But I'm open to advice.
Click to expand...

You evidently have some sort of upright now that you are noodling on and were playing. So that (if you don't get rid of it) covers the case that you have something to play when or if you want to again. If being shiny would help your interest, shine it up.

At which point it is pretty much a matter of how much of an impact it is on your finances. Seems like trying to "sell the spot" until you can't get away with canceling, and canceling if you can't sell the spot is likely to be a less expensive route, but whether that even matters is between you and your bank account.

Presumably at the time you ordered it you felt you could afford it, but if you don't think you're going to play it, and you do have a bass to play should you change your mind, 15% is likely less than you'd lose trying to sell off the "new, custom (but to your specs, not theirs) bass" after arrival. If sinking the money into it and holding on to the new one isn't a cramp in your pocketbook, might as well, though. That's pretty much why I still have my electric, though my electric was not expensive. I presently have no place where playing electric is going to happen, but rather than sell it off and rue the day later on I just keep it around and occasionally pull it out and fire it up at home. But the upright gets me playing with other people, and that's better, IMHO.

I play a ply Czech bass fairly happily myself. I occasionally think about upgrading, but it's not the instrument that holds me back and it's not fiscally wise (nor fiscally irrelevant) for me at present.
 
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#18
damonsmith said:
Cancel it and understand what you are buying next time. A much more basic instrument will likely suffice for your current situation.
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Oh, I understand what I’m buying. I’ve owned an Upton hybrid and enjoyed it. I was silly to let it go, but that’s how GAS works, I guess. TBH, I feel like this Brescian is a relatively basic instrument with a couple of frills my last one didn’t have.

Not that this thread is about defending Upton basses, but I like what Upton does. The basses are well-made and the setups are excellent. Plus, they stand behind them. I’m not a guy who will ever own a $10k+ bass. I’d rather buy a nice watch, in that range. For what I do, Upton is an easy, safe way for me to know exactly what I’m getting… a new, quality upright at my price point.
 
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#19
T_Bone_TL said:
That's pretty much why I still have my electric, though my electric was not expensive. I presently have no place where playing electric is going to happen, but rather than sell it off and rue the day later on I just keep it around and occasionally pull it out and fire it up at home. But the upright gets me playing with other people, and that's better, IMHO.
Click to expand...

That is why I keep my electric upright around (an NS Design Wav 4). I hardly play it - about 10 times a year when I get together with some ukelele players.

But it wasn't that expensive and it's long since been written off (had it for 15 years or so) so I keep it around with the intention of dedicating more practice hours to it at some point. Which is only possible if I actually have it.
 
#20
tb-player said:
Not that this thread is about defending Upton basses, but I like what Upton does. The basses are well-made and the setups are excellent. Plus, they stand behind them. I’m not a guy who will ever own a $10k+ bass. I’d rather buy a nice watch, in that range. For what I do, Upton is an easy, safe way for me to know exactly what I’m getting… a new, quality upright at my price point.
Click to expand...
This is a more measured post. Just add "Made in New England" to the list for full accuracy. 7K goes a lot further for new instruments made in Chinese or Eastern Europe.
 
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