Cheap Amazon Bass Ukulele - Worth The Wait?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 มิ.ย. 2024
- Cheap Amazon Bass Ukulele - Worth The Wait
I originally bought a cheap Amazon bass ukulele back in February 2022 but there were issues with it. 9 months later I finally get another Batking solid body ukulele, was it worth the wait?
Batking solid body ukulele - cheap on Amazon:
00:00 Intro to cheap bass ukulele - was it worth the wait?
01:46 The original Batking bass ukulele and the problems
02:57 Long, boring story about bass ukuleles
07:57 The new bass finally arrives - it's fretless!
08:59 First listen to the cheap bass ukulele
13:03 Closer look at Batking fretless neck through bass ukulele
15:46 Sound demo of cheap bass ukulele
17:51 Overview of cheap Amazon / Ebay Batking bass ukulele
Website: ukulele.wales/
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Ukulalien Play Along Channel: / ukulaliensukuleleclub
Thanks for the review. I don't think i would have been patient enough to wait so long. But It looks beautiful and if anyone can get it to play well, you will. And you look fabulous 👍
Thanks Shirl, it was all quite fast moving to start with but yes, I can't believe just how long it dragged on for! Thanks for the compliment too, been eating less and doing more and it does seem to have worked so very pleased. :-)
Wow, I can't believe they got rid of the frets to solve the problem 😧Hope you are well Rachel 👍🏾
I know Clive, extreme to say the least. Certainly took me by suprise.
Love your bass lessons
Thank you very much 😊
Hi! To solve that obscure buzzing problem you can look at the nut slot- they were probably filed too deep. That is why no amount of bridge adjustment you did made any difference- it was the other point. So - I don't have a bass uke- but I do have a dozen full size basses and with cheap ones I also had this kind of problem.
What I arrived at was: if I can't solve it by trussrod adjustments or bridge raising, then I look at the frets themselves- I check they are properly dressed, radiused and planed. If not, I do that. And if it still does not solve that, I try and change the nut - cut a new set of string slots and usually that solves the problem.
To check the nut height- do press string(s) at the third fret, see if string touches the first. If so, bad news, needs new nut OR a lighter string gauge! That also solves some problems- some thinner and higher tension strings may sometimes help (saved a short scale EB-0 like that). Standard luthier practice, that! Curious why they didn't catch that.
Anyhow fantastic playing! Thanks for the info, story and the music!
Great info here, Thanks. 😎
I did try altering the nut on both the basses they sent me (with their permission) but still couldn’t get rid of the buzzing, and this really was the worst case I’d ever heard on a bass ukulele. My own personally opinion is that the bridge / saddle design on these basses are just too low for the fretted models and because of the design, they can’t be adjusted. I did take it too a local luthier who also could solve the issue. Thanks for your fine advice though. 👍
@@UkuleleWales Raising the Nut isn't going to stop fret buzz when you are fretting the string. I have not seen any reviews of these rubber stringed basses that would make me want to buy one. They just look awkward to play and the sound does not impress.
The Solution for solving the fret buzz by taking off the frets is a bit extreme. It then becomes a different instrument. Also, not impressed by Chinese quality control. What is wrong with these people to send you out an instrument which they know you are going to review and not check it thoroughly? The mind boggles.....I hope they compensated you for your patience.
@@victorangelo6514 Agree, the nut won't cause fret buzz, since the string line is straight from the fret to the bridge. The nut has to be just high enough that if you fret at the second fret, the string just clears the first fret by a few thou". Any higher and you run into intonation problems.
The action on the 12th fret needs to be about 6mm with these strings, but we didn't get that rather important piece of information in the video. Strange that the problem was only on the A string, and it wasn't helped by raising the bridge. It would appear to be a neck or fret problem, assuming the bridge adjustment brought the action up to at least 6mm. One of the problems with short scale instruments is you don't get much adjustment out of the neck, so they have to be made spot on.
They're actually quite easy to play, but the tone is soft string acoustic, not what most people are used to. I actually prefer a more even EQ, because if you push it too far to the base you lose all the string harmonics and only hear the primary.
ETA: I've found some dealer photos of the fretted version, including a good side profile. The action looks way too low.
Hi Rachel, saw your video on the backing ukulele bass ,and decided to go for one, unfortunately being left handed had to pay a bit more, l put a bid in at £210 and got it, it arrived very quickly and in perfect order. Concerning the buzzing noise I was advised to change the strings for Gold Tone Micro Bass Silverbacks strings, and have got say what a massive difference they make ,so over the moon. Thanks for all your hard work absolutely love it. Cheers Pete Wilkes.
Thank Pete, great to hear and so glad you are loving your new bass. 😊
Thanks! Fret job/leveling job needed? Happy holidays! 🌞🎅🏻🎉🎉🎉🎉
With the frets gone, I suppose we will never really know!
Sounds great
Glad you enjoyed :-)
Hi, thank you for your video. With the adjust of trussrod the buzzy sound decreased a little bit.. works fine for my home use, but could be better.
Thanks for the comment. Glad you got yours better, I did try adjusting the truss rod on the 2 fretted models but just couldn’t get rid of the nasty sounds. I do think it’s an issue with the design of the pickup / saddle but good to hear you got yours a bit better. 👍
Glad you are better. Nicer ways to lose weight! Hope your pup is well too. Again thank you for an insightful review of an instrument. Stay well & hope you have a fun production with all the kids shining.
Thanks and yes the pup is fine. Don't worry, I've been careful with what I've been eating for almost a year so the weight loss was an intentional thing. School production was great too Thanks.
It sounds great when you play it, Rachel. Have you looked into the Squier Mini P-bass? It's not a uke, but it's smaller scale than the short scale Mustang bass, and have heard it weighs a lot less.
Thanks. I do have a short scale Daisy rock bass but TBH, these days I'm sticking with my bass ukes, so much nicer (lighter) to play. Have a lovely purple Squier full scale bass though, not getting rid of that! LOL
So sorry you were ill. Covid isn’t fun.
I purchased a cheap bass uke a few years ago, Hadean solid body. Not a neck through. It’s sound isn’t bad but it is very heavy.
Thanks Loree, I recovered quite quickly this time Thank goodness. I've seen the Hadean basses around, glad to hear your sounds good.
Hello. I bought the exact same fretted Batking bass ukulele you did. It had numerous problems that I had to fix. First, I checked the nut. The cutouts on the nut were very poorly sanded. So much so it had sharp edges in the string rests and had to be replaced. I ordered a new nut and a set of flat wound strings which I like the sound of on my Kala fretless bass. Next, I noticed that one of the string pass through holes under the bridge had been drilled poorly. I glued a piece of dowel in the hole to completely block the hole and then drilled a new pass through straight and at the proper depth. Thirdly, after I glued the new nut in place and added the new flat wound strings and tried to play it, it made an electronic howling sound through the amp. I opened up the electronic trapdoor on the back I found two wires shorting out. I made a little spacer out of styrofoam to fix that. Finally after the fixes I have a very nice sounding Batking fretted ukulele bass. Fixes took a couple of days and few bucks but it is definitely worth it.
Wow, Thanks for you Batking story Matt, sounds like you've had to do an awful lot of work but at least you have a great bass now. I will definitely be looking at the pickup / saddle in the future and will be double checking the electrics too!!
Sounds like it was a design flaw for sure, I had a Marcus Miller Sire V7 that had exactly the same issue as your ukulele, it sounds very nice, great content Rachael 👍🏽🏴
Thanks. Shame it was such a long wait. 👍
Rachel. I had a Batking bass uke sometime ago. I ended up sending it to a luthier who still has not been able to fix it. My main problem was with the electrics. The luthier still has it and he is has been unable to source parts for it. I have decided to just write it off in the end.
Hi Gary, was that the one you'd swapped the strings on? I remember asking you about it when you had it on Ebay.
i remember when you bourt pinky :) also i have the uke from your room ( the e uke ) mr G showed me where it was
Glad you got the uke from my room and even better you love it!
@@UkuleleWales how could i not ... i was looking for one on amazon a couple of days before😁
I think one would expect to do some frett leveling and set up on that fretted bass, My bass did the same thing but after doing the fretts properly and it is perfect
This one I think was beyond repair. I so think it’s the design of the bridge / saddle area being non-adjustable, plus the fact the 2 they sent were identical faults wasn’t a great scenario.
Hi,
Great video!
Looks an awful lot like my Ashbury bass.
I bought over a year ago from Hobgoblin for a good price as there was a problem with it. Turned out to be the piezo pickup. After fixing I was never happy with playing it as I come from a full size electric bass background and was having trouble with the big strings and short scale. The Ashbury has an adjustable bridge but with the huge strings I couldn't get happy. Anyway a cheap Maholo turned up on Reverb and that has become my 'thick string' ubass. So I thought about turning the Ashbury into a real electric bass and use metal strings. I've done lots of changes on my Jazz basses so have a draw full of bits. I removed the piezo and preamp. Fitted a BBOT (bent bit of tin) bridge, cut out two slots for Jazz piuckups (stolen from one of my Squires). Replaced the electrics (stolen from one of my Squires) Then found an old set of full sized round wound strings and fitted them, had to fit a new nut too . This is now my full time ubass. I love the sound. It is in tune all the way up the neck. The strings are evenly matched. I just love this bass.
I have some pics but don't seem to be able to upload them.
Hi Doug, yes, there seem to be a few similar looking basses out there these days, the Ashbury, Maholo, Thomann and this one. Really interesing to see you "modded" the Ashbury, would love to see a pic or even here it. Maybe you could enter the "Show Us Your Ukes" - all explained here - th-cam.com/video/OhsA2fZuHCE/w-d-xo.html
@@UkuleleWaleswhat strings seem to be your favorite on your Uke Bass’s? I’m always looking for that more of a upright thump. Right now I am using Black Thundergut strings.
I just started playing the bass ukulele N my fingers Hurt. I just wanted to know will the pain go away 😂 I love playing N watching U play
Thanks. Your fingers will get stronger and hopefully that will make it much easier for you to play. Are they rubber strings you use? If so try pressing slightly less, if the note doesn't sound good, then you need to press a little harder.
Hi Rachel,
I started with a freted bass. What a mistake. I think it is better to start with a fretless bass. Better Sound, no buzz and the andjustments are quite easier I think. It would be nice to see more fretless bass tutorials. Thank you Rachel for all of your videos. Great work. Greetings from germany.
Thanks Christian and yes, definitely more fretless stuff to come. I've been sticking with the fretted basses for the beginner lessons but like you, I much prefer playing fretless.
'Birdland', nice! From a fellow Cardiffian
Cheers, one of my favs too! Happy New Year.
So cool! Serious question, what makes you specifically play Ukulele Bass as opposed to a full size? I’m a standard bass player and want to dive into the u-bass I’m just curious why someone would solely play Ukulele. Anyway wonderful review
Good question! I do also (and have done all my life) play both standard bass guitars and double bass although these days, the older I’m getting the less I’m playing the bigger ones. I didn’t even realise that bass ukulele was the the same as bass guitar for ages!! 😂
@@UkuleleWales awesome! that makes perfect sense and it seems like you’ve developed a niche
@@UkuleleWalesanyone who has had a Fender Jazz hanging on their shoulder for 40 years that is a easy answer. WEIGHT and size…and the right Uke Bass you lose nothing and maybe gain a few things….not a fan of that brand. Goldtone Micro abase is great. So is the right Kala.
A 20minute video so worthwhile just to hear u say farty sound 😂😂.
My izzuzi ubass is fret less, I didn't know any better at the time but it plays fine except for the quiet E string that I fixed with the tips from Michael Kohen. Though I did it quite roughly and thought I'd ruined the uke at one stage, but no the E and A string now A lot clearer. When I tried to cut though the bridge it snapped instead 😱 but it had the same effect 😁
LOL Thanks Nigel!! Will definitely trying the bridge mod, glad it worked for you.
I'm looking to buy a left handed electric ukulele bass and saw this and thought it would be ideal. But I'm a little bit worried now because I can see they sell the fretless right handed model but all the left handed ones still appear to be fretted
Personally I wouldn’t buy one of these with frets as the 2 I tried both had the same sound issues. The same seller did have some LH models of their other bass ukuleles (blue, red and black ones) but they seem to be out of these at the moment. Quite often this will happen and sometimes more appear but unfortunately sometimes that is the end of the run. Still wouldn’t buy the LH fretted version of this one as I honestly think it is a design issue with the pickup / saddle. Fingers crossed they do more with the other pickup soon. 🤞
Hola Rachel, he visto varios de tus vídeos
Pienso comprarme un ubass Batking pero estoy viendo que muchos comentarios dicen que no les han salido tan bien sus ubass, me recomiendas comprar uno?
Hi Carlos, I would be very careful. I have had some nice instruments from Batking but the more recent ones have no been as good. What sort of bass are you looking for? Solid body / electro acoustic?
Rachel, that signature bass riff in Amin for the intro theme … where’s it from?
Is it an original or are you maybe quoting?
Hi Mari, it’s my own, I can’t even remember when I started playing it. I have been told it is similar to a song (poss by Kiss??) which I had never heard and when I did listen to it, there is a similarity for the first few notes but that’s about it and it’s actually the start of a minor scale. 👍
@@UkuleleWales The song is 'I was made vor lovin‘ you' by KISS. Released in 1979 it became a #1 smash hit.
What is your preference in strings for hollow body U Bass?
My favourites are definitely Thunderbrown strings but I do also like the Thunderblacks too. 👍
What is the sound difference between the steel string and plastic string? Does
the steel string sound better?
Great question but definitely a subjective one as some people prefer the sound of the steel strings (and metal around a nylon core) and some prefer the rubber strings. Check out a short video I have done with 7 different bass ukuleles all playing, some aware metal, some are rubber. th-cam.com/users/shortsyyGYolwDXRw?feature=share
Nice bass! I have a question; I have been looking for one of those in fretless since I saw this video and I can't find any for sale in the US. Did they switch the whole production to fretless or did they just make a one off fretless for you? To be fair, I was only looking for a 5 string. I already gave an Aklot 4 string fretted and really like it
I know they were selling other fretless ones but if I’m honest, I think the design of the bridge / saddle being non-adjustable would really make me think twice about buying another one.
Thank you, good to know
I'm waiting for the Musoo mini 5 String Blue Ukulele Electric Bass Guitar from amazon, should be here around new year. I hope it wont be too bad...
The Musoo 5 strings have the other style bridge / saddle / pickup so hopefully it will be fine. My Pinky Musoo is a great bass. Let me know what you think of it when it arrives, would love to know.
@@UkuleleWales Unfortunately they cancelled my order, something about delivery failure... So I'm still searching for a replacement, any suggestion?
@@bobgraton854 That is disappointing. They did seem to be having issues with shipping all year and the covid situation in China seems to have got much worse recently. Is it a fretted you are after and 5 string or would you consider 4 string?
@@UkuleleWales I'm a beginner, started with a fretted kala scout 4 month ago and was looking for a 5 strings only in the hope to reach even lower and deeper sounds and for fretted because I assumed it was easier.
Ultimately I would like to get an upright bass but i'm not ready for the minivan life yet ;)
Have you tried the thunderbrown strings? they are a lot better than the OG kala strings. More tension and less elasticity...
Thanks for all the work, it's greatly appreciated.
Are replacements strings easily available?
Hi, this would suit most rubber / polyurethane bass ukulele strings such as Aquila and these are readily available in many places, here are a couple of links.
www.southernukulelestore.co.uk/strings/bass/
www.bassdirect.co.uk/bass_guitar_specialists/U_bass_strings.html
www.amazon.co.uk/Aquila-68U-Ukulele-Thundergut-Stability/dp/B007TI9NZY
So the saga continues...I look forward to watching you try to improve this uke bass! I think the name on the headstock should be changed from Batking to Fartking. Feel free to pass that along! LOL Soon, they'll come out with a pricier special edition with extra fart noises built in. Cha-Ching! $$$
LOL I almost spat my tea out when I first read this Jules, absolutely spot on. I may have to customise the headstock!!
Truss Rod Adjustment.
I did try it on the original “dud” fretted basses but didn’t solve it.
@@UkuleleWales Ahh...bridge also then hopefully, otherwise your dressing frets.
or wait, that 4-string doesn't even have an adjustable bridge...yeah; i would go with the 5-string, for it's adjustable bridge if nothing else.
OH, wait again....the pocket area of the neck could be sanded on a surface plate...put some painter's tape on the edge toward the head stock and sand off some toward the body end.
@@RulgertGhostalker No frets on this one and yes, have said all along the desgn of the bridge which can't be adjusted was the main issue. 🤍👍
i remember you going over that, and agreeing....and i just remembered these are "neck through", so no neck pocket to work on.
but you could try tearing a bit of mach book cover; and try propping up the offending string, at the nut, or at the bridge.
Wondering if it was high frets or a warped finger board? Shame they took the nuclear approach.
I'm still wondering too, wish I knew the answer. Personally I think the bridge was too low, therefore making the frets too high and because of the design, no room for real adjustment. I honestly thought they would change that so going fretless was a huge suprise too me.
Do you have a contrabass uke?
Sorry, I’m not sure what you mean? If you are talking about pitch, these are exactly the same pitch as a regular bass guitar or double bass or contrabasse. Hope that helps. 👍
@@UkuleleWales seems there are two types of uke bass but no one seems to know where the dividing line is.. Apparently it's to do with neck length primarily..
Unfortunately I'm a sound guy, not a musician and don't have all the terminology.
@@captnaberystwyth2879 Trying to figure the 2 types. I'd say you get electro acoustics which tend to be 20" scale (but not always. Some with metal, some with rubber strings but all have piezo pickups. Then you have the solid body bass ukuleles which can be anything between 2-" and 23 1/2" scale. They can have piezo pickups, both rubber and metal string and magnetic pick ups which are all metal strings. These are all the same ptch - exactly the same as bass guitars. There are picolo basses which are even smaller and these tend to be tuned an octave higher and have a small guage string. Have I fried your brain yet? 😜
@@UkuleleWales fzzzt..
@@captnaberystwyth2879 My husband is asking "do they all sound the same?" The answer is yes. 👍
Frets need leveled
Quite likely yes but I wasn’t prepared to do the work, especially as both instruments they sent me had the same issues. All sorted now with a fretless.
I just subscribed. I've seen a few of your videos. I think you are charming.
Thanks for subbing and glad you are enjoying. 😊
Good to see you are recovering from yet another doss of that dreaded covid
Sorry about the spelling
Thanks Peter, timing wasn't great because of the school show but recovered much quicker this time. Appreciate the well wishes though.
Pronounced OOO KOO LEH LEH not You Kah Lel Lee. A Portuguese product, not Hawaiian. Introduced by the Portuguese in 1878 when they came to Hawaii as contract laborers to work as sugar plantation workers. Hawaiian name meaning, Jumping Flea, as Hawaiians watched this being played, the immigrants fast moving fingers upon the frets and plucking the strings reminded the Hawaiians of "jumping fleas". Uku is flea, lele means to jump. You're playing the Jumping Flea.
Blah blah blah. We're aware of the origin.
Actually this looks more like a bass guitar than a uke.
@@johndransfield1265 my comment was designed for many who do not know it's origin. So think outside of the Ukulele....Blah Blah Blah.
I like there chicken.
Pish posh, don't worry about the pronunciation. She's English not Portuguese, right? But bless your heart, you really want people to know. So here's the new spelling: ookoolele. There we are, all fixed up.
Dude if you put in as much practice a$ you do trying to correct people, you’d be a professional YOU’K Player!
Rachel!! I bought a new mini bass ukulele and I’ve been wanting to show it to you as it’s also your favorite color…..purple! The bass is called Mayones Cali 4. They are extremely expensive but the are the only bass in the world like it. What’s your email so I can send you pictures of it. I really think the ukulele community needs to know about this instrument! Please look them up! You won’t be disappointed!
And now I'm jealous Chris. They are absolutely stunning basses and have been on my radar for a long while. Am I right in thinking they are an octave higher that a standard bass? You really must get your entry in for "Show Us Your Ukes"!