The acoustic bass guitar (sometimes called acoustic bass or ABG) is a musical instrument with a hollow wooden body. It is often bigger than a steel-string acoustic guitar. Like the electric bass guitar and the double bass, the acoustic bass guitar usually has four strings. These strings are tuned to E-A-D-G, which is one octave lower than the lowest four strings on a six-string guitar.

Sometimes, it is hard to hear an acoustic bass guitar without using an amplifier, even when other acoustic instruments are playing. To help with this, most acoustic bass guitars have pickups. These pickups can be magnetic, piezoelectric, or both. They allow the sound to be amplified using a bass amplifier.

Traditional Mexican music includes several types of acoustic bass guitars. One example is the guitarrón, a large, deep-bodied six-string instrument used in Mariachi bands. Another is the león, which is played with a pick. The bajo sexto has six pairs of strings. This instrument is also called Bajoloche and is played using a style that involves slapping or plucking the strings. Groups like Arsenal Effectivo and Herencia de Patrones helped make Bajoloche more popular.

History

The Bassoguitar made by the Regal Musical Instrument Company was likely the first mass-produced acoustic bass to use a guitar-like body. Harptone began making their B4 model in 1965, calling it the Supreme. Production of this model ended in 1975. Harptone also produced a small number of these instruments under the Standel name. Ernie Ball started making a model in the early 1970s. Ball wanted to create an acoustic-sounding bass that could match the sound of acoustic guitars. He said, "If there were electric bass guitars to go with electric guitars, then you should have acoustic basses to go with acoustic guitars." Ball noted that the closest thing to an acoustic bass was the Mexican guitarron, used in mariachi bands. He purchased one in Tijuana and modified it.

Ball worked with George William Fullerton, a former Fender employee, to design the Earthwood acoustic bass guitar. This model was introduced in 1972. Production stopped in 1974 but started again later under the direction of Ernie Ball’s employee, Dan Norton. Production ended again in 1985. The Earthwood was large and deep compared to most modern instruments, which gave it more volume, especially in the lower tones. Ernie Ball described the design as "an idea before its time." The instrument was rarely used in acoustic performances until the late 1980s, when it appeared on the MTV Unplugged television program. The Earthwood was soon replaced by the Washburn AB-40, designed by Mick Donner and Richard Siegle. The AB-40 and the more affordable AB-20 became the preferred choice for bass players on Unplugged.

Folk bass player Ashley Hutchings used the acoustic bass guitar with his Etchingham Steam Band in 1974 and 1975. An early rock musician to use the acoustic bass was Mike Oldfield, an English multi-instrumentalist and composer. He had a custom-built acoustic bass made by luthier Tony Zemaitis in the mid-1970s. He used this bass on many recordings, including his 1975 album Ommadawn.

Construction and tuning

The acoustic bass guitar, like the traditional electric bass and double bass, usually has four strings. These strings are typically tuned to E-A-D-G, which is one octave lower than the lowest four strings of a standard six-string guitar. Similar to the electric bass, some acoustic bass guitars have five or more strings, but these are less common. This is partly because the body of an acoustic bass guitar is too small to create enough volume for very low pitches, such as those on the low "B" string. One way to address this is by adding an extra high string ("E-A-D-G-C") instead of a low "B" string. Another solution is to use amplification to make the low "B" string's notes louder, or to slightly increase the size of the guitar's body.

Some models are semi-acoustic, meaning they have pickups that connect to an amplifier. These instruments do not rely on their body size to produce loud sounds. Instead, they create a unique tone when amplified, similar to semi-acoustic electric guitars. Thin-body semi-acoustic basses, like the violin-shaped Höfner used by early Beatles members and some Fender models, are not considered acoustic basses. Instead, they are classified as hollow-bodied bass guitars. Other semi-acoustic basses, such as Godin Guitars' "A-Series," sound closer to acoustic bass guitars and upright basses (double bass) when amplified. These models are sometimes used in professional settings to mimic the sound of a full-sized upright bass when it is not practical to transport one. As with semi-acoustic electric guitars, it can be difficult to distinguish between acoustic instruments with pickups and electric instruments with special body designs. Some instruments can also be fitted with different types of pickups, such as piezo pickups (common in acoustic-electric instruments) or synth pickups that can reproduce sounds similar to a double bass.

Saga Musical Instruments makes a four-string resonator bass guitar under their Regal brand. National Reso-Phonic Guitars also produces three models of resonator bass guitars. One well-known player of the resonator bass guitar is Les Claypool of the band Primus, who uses Regal RD-05 models.

Manufacturers

Other companies that make acoustic bass guitars include Alvarez, Baton Rouge, Boulder Creek Guitars, Breedlove, Chesbro Music Company (Teton Guitars), Cort, Crafter, Jerzey, Dean, Eko, Epiphone, Eston, Fender, Furch, Gibson, Gold Tone, Guild, Ibanez, Larrivée, Lindo Guitars, Luna Guitars, Martin, Maton, Michael Kelly, Oscar Schmidt by Washburn, Ovation and its subsidiary Applause, Ozark, Prestige, Ribbecke Halfling Bass, Samick, Sigma Guitars, Sunlite, Sandberg, Spector, Stagg, Tagima, Tacoma, Takamine, Tanglewood, Taylor, Vintage Guitars, Washburn, and Warwick.

Mexican bass guitars

Traditional Mexican music includes different types of acoustic bass guitars. The guitarrón is a large, deep-bodied Mexican 6-string acoustic bass guitar used in Mariachi bands. The bajo sexto has six pairs of strings, making it similar to a twelve-string guitar but tuned an octave lower. The thick strings create high tension, but the guitar is built with lightweight materials. In the 1920s, musicians in Texas started using the bajo sexto with the development of "Tex-Mex" music. It is still commonly used in traditional American popular music for parts that would typically be played by a piano. The tuning of these instruments is: (Capital letters are an octave lower than small letters).

Other Latin American countries also have similar acoustic bass guitars, such as the Bordonua.

Gallery

• Ashton Acoustic Bass
• Ibanez Acoustic Bass
• A man playing an acoustic bass.
• Taylor AB-1 Acoustic Bass
• Closeup of the fingerboard of a Taylor AB-1 Acoustic Bass
• Martin B65E Acoustic Bass