NS Design WAVc Electric Upright Bass: First Impressions

New bass day!

The double bass (AKA upright bass, stand-up bass) is famously a physically demanding instrument to play. I've experienced a few different chronic pain issues that have caused me to slow down or pause my playing over the years. This latest bought with pain issues is going to be the most challenging situation since trying to re-start playing after a long pause during the 2020 pandemic lock-downs.

I need an instrument that will let me play sitting down in a regular chair, will not require that I lift it or support its weight, and that I can eventually move very easily when I am ready to get back to gigging. I took a chance with the NS Design WAV after seeing many pro players use NS Design basses over the years.

I purchased my instrument from the excellent Gollihur Music online store. They have been my primary online retailer for double bass gear for about ten years now. Mark Gollihur very kindly suggested that I should consider purchasing the NS Design electric cello stand for this instrument since it allows me to lower it to the level of a regular chair. The stand is lightweight and feels very sturdy. I can even extend it high enough for me to play the instrument standing when I want to, though it feels a touch wobbly at that height – I probably wouldn't git standing with the cello stand.

One of the things that Gollihur does really well is that they provide very detailed information in their listings. From reading the product listings for this instrument, upgrading the strings and tuners is highly recommended if you are a double bassist looking for a double bass experience. I followed Mark's advice and Mark was able to offer to install USA Hipshot tuners and my favorite set of strings on this bass: Evah Pirazzi Weich G, D, A, and Spirocore Mittel E (and B!).

He installed the strings free of charge and sent me a photo showing what it takes to get these tuners on to the bass if you want to do it yourself.

An Aside on Strings

Why do I use weich (light) upper strings and mittel (medium) low strings? At least with the Evah Pirazzi strings, the weich set still feels quite substantial under the fingers. They don't have that wiry and insubstantial feeling that really light strings have. Also, I like the warmth of the synthetic-core strings in the high register to tame some of the overtones and resonances naturally present when you start playing high up.

To counter the natural darkness of lower-pitched strings, I like a metal-core string. Also, I find that on bass, lower-pitched strings are also naturally a bit quieter so to counteract both of those tendencies I prefer a the medium-gauge metal-core Spirocore strings. There is nothing as disappointing as laying in to the low strings of a bass and barely hearing or feeling the fundamental pitch. Since I am primarily a jazz player, I don't actually hang out in the lowest register for extended periods of time so the slightly heavier string doesn't have a risk of really fatiguing my left hand.

Oh, and why do I play an Evah A and not a Spiro A? It's because I want to be able to more easily play arco on the A string. When playing in thumb position I like to be able to play around the octave A on the A string and not having to fight a Spirocore string while I am doing that.

Back to the Bass!

There are some things that are a little annoying about this instrument but, I am really glad that I made this purchase!

The Good:

• It's so fun to play! Despite the bad tendon pain I have in my left shoulder at the moment, I can't help but want to play the instrument for a couple minutes every time I walk past it. I love the clear fundamental pitches, the plentiful sustain, the ease of access to the entire range of notes across the instrument, and how clearly the notes speak, even high up on the A, E, and B strings where acoustic basses sometimes start sounding choked and muffled.
• This is my first time spending a lot of time with a double bass with a low B and I was worried that it was going to really kill my left hand. I am surprised at how easily I can play on this instrument. For example, I can play ostinato patterns in E or F minor with the bass note on the B string and my hand feels very relaxed.
• Not having the reference points of the back of the instrument and the neck block are a bit disorienting, but since I can't play in first position easily at the moment, they let me play what I am used to playing up by the nut in higher positions more easily than if I were playing an instrument with traditional construction.
• There are so many dots on this fingerboard! I am not opposed to dots on a traditional instruument and you kind of have to have them on an instrument like this with no physical reference points that you can use to orient yourself on the fingerboard. It's nice to be able to find a pitch more confidently because of these dots.
• The sound is pretty good for a solid-body instrument with a piezo pickup.

The Weird:

• There are so many dots on this fingerboard! It's easy to get lost in the maze of overlapping dot patterns. If I were to build up serious gigging chops on this instrument, I would have to practice for a while to build up muscle memory so that I don't have to rely on the dots until I get past the octave. I really don't need dots in first position and probably only need dots starting at the fifth on a given open string.
• The G string fundamental leaves a little to be desired. The instrument has a little bit of the issue that solidbody electric bass guitars have in that the G string doesn't speak in the bass frequencies very well. The WAV is the entry-level NS Design bass. I wonder if the more expensive models solve this issue? Or maybe I need a slightly more substantial G string?
• The instrument has a switch that enables switching between "pizzicato" and "arco" pickup modes. I am not sure which is which, but one of the modes feels very "electric" or over-hyped in a way that doesn't feel pleasing to my ear.
• The string spacing at the bridge is about 2-3mm narrower than what I am used to on my acoustic double bass. I can definitely feel that my fingers feel a bit confined and less agile. I think that I will adjust to this over time.
• The fingerboard is flush with the body of the instrument. I am used to hooking my thumb slightly under the fingerboard when playing on my lowest string and there simply is no way to get under the fingerboard on this instrument.

Next Steps:

• I haven't tried this instrument arco yet. Wondering if I am going to get a usable sound with my bow?
• I want to try this instrument through my HX Stomp with some double bass impulse responses, subtle EQ, and subtle compression. Might be fun to get into some bigger reverbs and delays – maybe I could use this instrument for solo looping sets?

Final Word

I have no regrets with this acquisition and am looking forward to getting more time on this instrument and eventually gigging it! If I really connect to this instrument format I might upgrade to another NS Design model.