KYDD Basses - Big Kydd
Reviewer: simon
Primary Use: Big band jazz
Amplifier Used: Gallien Kreuger mb150s with extension cab
- Vintage: 2005
- Number of Strings: 5
- Electric bass strings compatible
- Tuned in: 4th
- Bowable: Yes
- Position Markers: Yes
- Playable Seated: Yes
- Balance While Playing:
(10/10) - Transportability: (10/10)
- Overall Rating: (8/10)
This is a splendid instrument. There may actually not be another one in the UK - I found it lonely and advertised as a second-hand item in a Miami music store on the WWW. Getting it was a pain - the man only accepted an international money order and the post office (bless) left it at the nearest depot that would accept import duty - only about 30 miles away. All in all, second-hand, it cost me about £900 UK pounds.
Despite that: it stands on a tripod, which is a BIG plus over a normal dog-house bass. (It stands up by itself, and doesn't keep rolling away from you.) The scale length is 35inches - not too far off a normal length bass guitar.
It is fretless, and unlined, so regular bass players thinking of moving across will have to sharpen their ears, especially if they are sight reading. However, it does have marker dots on the side.
It comes fitted with a Fishman piezo pick-up. This is ok as far as it goes. You can use it to play your bass through an amp, but tonally it stinks. I would certainly advise that you also buy a tone box - Boss do one. I obtained one made by Baggs - both cost about £100. With all the above, and a bit of fettling on your amp's equalizer, you can get it to sound pretty much like a double bass.
It looks great. Every time I play it I get comments about how good it sounds, and how well it fits in with the genre of a big-band. I think that there are two relatively minor drawbacks: The stand folds up against the back of the neck. Inevitably you end up with a little dent in the neck which you will have to steam out. After that, you carry a tiny bit of sponge rubber around in the case to protect the neck. More importantly, it only accepts long-scale bass guitar strings because the distance between the string holder and the bridge is only an inch or so. Most proper double bass strings have an 'afterlength' of about four to six inches. This means that you are obliged to fit steel wound strings with steel cores. These are OK, but I have always wondered how good it would sound with orchestral double bass strings.
Text copyright © simon.
