Review Demo - Eastwood Airline Pocket Bass
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 13 ต.ค. 2024
- Read the review: bit.ly/Eastwood...
You say you want a revolution? It seems sometimes that we are in the middle of one with today’s short-scale revival. Why the push? For one, short-scale basses are secret weapons in a lot of recording studios. They have a vibe all their own and can really make a track stand out with a different sound compared to their big brothers. These basses also attract guitar players to the “dark side” and can get blossoming musicians introduced to bass earlier, since smaller-scaled basses are more user-friendly for smaller hands.
Last year, Eastwood Guitars started a crowdfunding pre-order campaign to get a reissue of Valco’s Airline Pocket Bass to market. They quickly surpassed their goal and the bass was brought back from the history pages. Recently, we got our hands on one to determine if the contemporary model could do the original justice.
The Airline Pocket Bass arrived in a custom case, and I was instantly smitten. It’s so small that it’s cute. The APB’s scale length measures 26 1/2", but we shall not judge this bass on size. The mahogany body actually has some weight to it, and Eastwood stayed true to a lot of the original design, albeit with some upgrades.
Upon first strike, it took a little time getting used to the scale-all of five seconds. The APB bass is comfortable, balanced, and feels really natural. It’s also very guitar-like, which is understandable because it’s widely believed the originals were made from leftover guitar bodies. If you are normally a 6-stringer, you’ll feel right at home on the Airline.
Continue reading: bit.ly/Eastwood...
Read the review: bit.ly/EastwoodPocketBass
Premier Guitar reviewer goofed on the bridge type. Audio track should be corrected and the bridge type renamed (edited in/overdubbed).
Easy enough to do, a 5-minute job. 🤔
a trick : you can watch series on kaldroStream. Been using it for watching a lot of movies lately.
@Zayd Elijah definitely, I've been using Kaldrostream for since december myself :D
I learned on a borrowed Airline Pocket Bass in the '90s. I hated it then, couldn't wait to buy my own modern bass. Now, 25 years later I want it back. Gotta check out this update from Eastland!
Nice looking little thing.looks like you could have a ball with this beauty.Diggin the peizo.great demo.
you should have demo'd it with flat wounds too
On which planet is a floating rosewood bridge a "tune-o-matic bridge"?
The adjustment options are just like that of the tun o matic
@@musishoon7950 do you play dumb or are you dumb? It is a compensated wooden bridge without any adjustment possibilities AT ALL.
@@rkharper "no adjustment" then why are there two screws for action
@@musishoon7950 you're making it worse. Do you know what a tune-o-matic bridge is, right? On a TOM you're able to adjust the intonation of every string. This bridge is a compensated wooden bridge, where it is not possiblento adjust any string lenght at all. You adjust the rough intonation by setting the floating bridge plate at the right spot. The height adjustment is on the bridge plate and NOT on the bridge, I stand corrected. Don't try to outsmart someone, when you know nothing.
Rafi Kirder It’s definitely a compensated bridge. But I don’t think it’s a floating bridge which is one where you can move the bridge backward and forward. I think it’s fixed since it has a piezo pickup in the bridge. Otherwise the wire connecting to the output would be pulled and show if you moved the bridge. That is my guess anyway. Correct me if I’m wrong because I’m not really sure. Either way, for a small short scale portable bass, it actually sounds pretty good.
I've watched this video ten times now... each time I get more into this thing... I don't know if the bridge setup would be an issue... would it break easily? Would it be difficult to set intonation? The look is killer. It sounds freaking awesome.
The bridge setup appears to be quite similar to that of Hofner and other violin-style basses. That is, a raised wooden bridge in front of a "toothpick" style metal tailpiece. Try out those kinds of basses in your local music store, to see if that would be a factor for you. Personally, I feel that if you treat it as carefully as you would any acoustic guitar, then this more delicate bridge setup should not be an issue, but do see for yourself. Happy hunting~
Nice review. I didn't give this bass much consideration, but after watching your review I'm having 2nd thoughts about getting one. I mainly play guitar; I usually use a Hofner bass for the low end stuff, but the sounds you got from the Pocket Bass sounds like it would be a nice addition to the collection.
I’ve never played a short scale bass even though I have small hands. It has a unique tone. Overall a nice bass; it’d be nicer at a street price point of $499 to $549. I can’t justify spending $800 on this. I’ll wait until I see a used one in decent condition as I imagine it’ll go for 40%-50% of the new price.
Very cool short scale bass
Man, that is a warm bass.
I have one of the originals (although mine was sold through Montgomery Wards so is an “Airline” instead of a “Supro). Sounds great, easy to play, and has a 24.75” scale! The same scale as my Les Paul Jr. And yeah, it is a great recording bass.
hi, is your original bass a three bolt style? i'm trying to figure out how to do a neck angle adjust. the outer bolts are machine bolts into the wood of the neck.
the center bolt is the tilt bolt with a blind nut in the body so as not to strip. i'm surprised the outer bolts are not into blind nuts in the neck.
I had a 61 with the original flats on it it had been in a barn til 2005. It was frickin' amazing....my house got broken into last year and it, along with 8 other guitars were stolen....
Wow! That's such a sad story! I hope you can re-buy at least your favorites of that bunch.
Nice bass to go busking with.
Yeah, passer-bys would pity you and give you extra to get a real bass.
I have the original Airline Pocket Bass from 1962. Sound is great to cover Beatles songs
VERY nice baby bass! LOVE it!
Really versatile instrument! Nice review!
I LIKE it!
What do you mean nice review ? It is a wrong review. It is not 26,5 inch long. It is 26,5 inch scale. And he said that 4 times.
We all knew WHAT he meant~! When some1 mentions 'length' it always refers TO the scale length not the physical dimensions!
This thing’s low end is massive.
I dig the sounds but it sounds like the tester here has some fret dressing issues on the g string side...lots of buzzing around frets 7-10 although it could be due to the lack of adjustability in the bridge. Kind of mystifying why they would go with a compensated bridge. A real tune-o-matic style would be better, although I'm not really a fan of those on bass either. Also the string gauge must be huge to compensate for the short scale
Nice little beast!!...
Looks pretty fun!
Sound and feel is almost exactly classic Hofner Beatle even tho it looks very different
Where would you get strings for it? Does it require special length strings?
Chinese and Korean facsimiles that cost more than the vintage models they're based on will never appeal to me, but maybe they reduce demand for the originals. In that case, keep it up, Eastwood.
Nice looking bass, humbucker sounds good, but that piezo sounds awful. I would've preferred if it just had a tone control but still a nice instrument. (I guess it would sound better with flats)
If you don't mind my asking, how much does it weigh?
Premier Guitar reviewer goofed on the bridge type. Audio track should be corrected and the bridge type renamed (edited in/overdubbed).
Easy enough to do, a 5-minute job. 🤔
sounds good
A travel guitar similar to this would be cool
what's the fretboard size?
They can keep it. 900 to 1100 dollars for a short scale bass???? Better off buying an Ibanez Mikro for 200
Did you take the time to compare the sound?...the Ibanez sounds like a toy bass compared to this one!!...
@@mainsblanches8793 sure did!! And still wouldn't pay that much for a short scale
@@duke_of_destruction so don't buy one. But someone else might like it.
I played that much my Gibson EB-11 shortscale, and it is worth every penny. Even more with its custom pickups... Yes, it is also better than its cousin by Epiphone for 230 Euros which i also own and like.
A shortscale is far more than a cheapy, it is actually a concept of its own with its merits and its disadvantages - and we actually need some more really good instruments in this class. With different characters, of course.
Like this one, like Serek's shortscales, possibly also like the new Gibson
Why would a short scale be considerably less expensive exactly? If it's a quality instrument it will cost more than a crappy cheap ibanez.
It's very buzzy with round wound strings, flat wounds would be my choice for this bass, and the bridge is not a tune o matic... there are no intonation adjustments... which kind of sucks if it is used for recording! I'd like to try the shorter 26.5" scale but I doubt it is that much different than a 30" scale...
What does “pocket” mean?
There’s one for sale locally right now. I’m attracted to it but after seeing / listening to this vid. I just hate the buzz.
Way cool.
I need one.
900 dollars new. Or a used one for 849.99
Man, the thing about short scale basses is I believe you can ONLY use the neck pickup. The "pop" you get from a short scale bass sounds awful the treblier you get. I use exclusively the bucker neck pickup on my Mustang bass, and it sounds like it's the same case with this bass.
The pop? I'm not sure I know what you mean. Fret noise?
You can hear the strings behind the bridge with the full on piezo, kinda gross
Isn't the lack of a tone control kind of limiting?
Just adjust your amp or preamp or whatever. Not too hard. I'd only use this for recording anyway.
This thing would be cool to string up ADGC. Treble-bass!
That's an interesting thought considering that I am a ukulele player who plays a little bass (which is why I am here). A guitalele is tuned ADGCEA.
Why put a piezo?...everybody hates piezo pickups!!...
pocket bass?
Why most of these reviewers always play so high on the neck. The whole essence of any bass is below the lower A ffs🤦♂️
tell that to mccartney
@@gdrugg2006 he played certain parts and did not review some bass sound.
What is scale ???
Tom Howland 26.5"
Top
Way to expensive!!...
Wow this guy is really lacking for a bass demo. Can you start with the basics -- play a line with the HB, play a line with the piezo, play it with both? We don't need to see you trying to play licks and make comments. We need to hear the axe. With flats. With rounds. etc.
Looks cool, sounds horrible to my ears.
the bass is definitely cool but baldy here is spewing a lot of clueless hot air. exactly how many 10 year olds are buying short scale basses?
My birdsong was the same price and is far superior
GE Smith is no kid. And a lot of other well known bassists are adding short scalers to their arsenal.