Thomann 22NA 3/4 Europe Double Bass

I've had this bass for about three months now, and i can say its pretty much perfect at this price point. I had the pleasure of loaning (for so long it probably counted as stealing) a solid carved bass from a friend while i decided which bass to buy. it took me three years, but hey. i also had the dubious pleasure of playing on an array of laminate student instruments during the same period of time.

I would say the sound quality of this bass, the voice it produces, is about 80% as good as the carved bass. It is nothing in comparsion to the average laminate student instrument. its a really focused, warm, round tone. really about the only negative thing i can say about the sound it makes is it is a little quiet. it does not project massively, but it suits me personally for home use.

The setup from Thomann was perfectly serviceable. I would have liked the bridge about 1mm lower than the lowest they offered with their free service, but I was pleasantly surprised when it arrived anyway.

there are a few minor negative points: the tuning machines feel a little vague, the endpin rattled a little bit too much, there are a few little nibs in the shiny finish. The biggest sticking point i can think of, the one that people might be put off by is the quality of the wood used in the soundboard. Its probably a reject from a more expensive bass? probably sourced from broken pieces?

basically there is a gouge that has been expertly repaired vertically up the top right bout. you cannot see it immediately, but stare at it long enough and you can't un-see it. Also the bookmatched top wasn't quite wide enough and the lower left bout has been glued to another matching piece. the bookmatching is slightly off centre - the line is in the middle of the bass, but the grain is mismatched too much to one side.

I'm not really complaining, but these are details that might put someone off the natural finish. most of these details would have been hidden under the colour on the standard issue brown variety.

final verdict? at this price, its truly superb. I'm actually a little bit in love with it

Very happy with this upright bass. Sound is clear and rich. I have used Schaller humbucker (makes it sound like an fretless electric bass - although no feedback issues) for large venue gigs and piezos for smaller gigs (no feedback with pre-amp) and the sound is great. Thomann installed Thomastik Spirocores before shipping which are excellent, and also sent the strings they removed, so I have back-up/spares if neccessary. The bridge action was ok when shipped (although strings were rather high) but the feet fit well. I adjusted the bridge to lower the action which has improved playability (mostly jazz, some bluegrass) by sanding the top down and thinning it, this has also improved the sound. I recommend this upright bass and the service from Thomann was exceptional.