EKO AB/4 Fretless

Bought this in 1981, it arrived 10 days after it had been finished if you believe the theory that the serial number is related to the date of manufacture. It is a 4 string fretless version, 34" scale, solid (pine?) top, laminated back and sides, rosewood fingerboard. Enormous body, dreadnought shape but 51/2" deep at the belly. It takes a bit of getting used to playing in a comfortable position. As mentioned in other reviews the bridge arrangement contributes majorly to the huge deep and round sound. It arrived fitted with black nylon strings and originally I replaced these with bronze wound strings, which were much louder. Plenty of zing, planty of tone, plenty sustain. I restrung it left handed and off I went. It was fitted with a piezo of unknown make shortly after I took delivery but this was always extremely toppy, prone to feedback and a very weak signal.
I have rated this realistically, an ABG is a strange hybrid and as such will never tick all the boxes for features.

Originally, using bronze wound strings, it was loud and fullsome but with a slightly brittle sounding attack. I was mostly using it to practice. It was difficult to use live. Recently I have been using a variety of different roundwound strings and the sound really has opened up amazingly. Good smooth attack, broad tonal range, bags of sustain, sound fundamental, woody depths and chiming harmonics. Acoustically it sounds delicious. I have yet to fit black nylon strings that others recommend.
I have replaced the old pick up with a K&K Pure TB transducer. This was revelation! I was used to long faces at the sound desk at my local acoustic session when I brought out the AB4. The K&K has completely changed the reaction. At every session musicians and punters both seek me out to comment on the sound. No preamps, no jiggery-pokery, just plugged straight in to the board. No feedback, no stray howls no particular eq, it honestly sounds great straight off the bat. It has much of the characteristic of an upright, with just a touch more percussion.
To summarise: a great big fat tone, gutsy dynamics full 'mwaah' attack acoustically; and now with the K&K it can be reproduced, amplified live.

It arrived in a 'gig bag','80's style. It weighed more than the bass. Within a month the handle had detached and then a few months later the zip broke. I immediately had it restrung and set-up for left hand, which took installing a new nut, the original snapped, and involved some sanding of the solid rosewood bridge.
It has remainded remarkably stable with only slight seasonal adjustments and some tweaking when changing string types.
The finish is below average by today's standards but OK.

The bass has survived for 20-odd years now with only dings and scratches despite some serious topples and falls. it is not the easiest of instruments to leave standing, it is also such a cumbersome shape it is difficult to find an appropriate stand/support.

The floating rosewood bridge went missing during a restring. I thought it was doomed as Eko have long gone. Bernie Goodfellow (of GB basses) came to my rescue and located a replacement, what a hero.
There was a web site for fans of this instrument but it seems to have dissappeared. It seems that someone has re-issued a version of this bass under the Eko name although I have yet to see one.

I have been playing since the late 70's. I also own and use a 75 Precision and an '06 EBMM Bongo. I have tried a multitude of other ABGs. Not one has rivalled the acoustic tone of my AB4, it may be an age thing,(the bass, not me!). Since I fitted the K&K I have been using it live to great appreciation, (the bass, not the playing I'm sure). Some expensive models do rival it for tone amplified, but only some. If it were stolen I would be extremely upset, possibly murderous. It may not be the most comfortable of instruments to play, nor the beauteous and certainly not the most celebrated but it makes all the right noises

Mine is a 1981. It's fretless, 35 scale. For the rest I would like to compliment the other reviewer for his excellent review, I have the exact same experiences. I also tried the other strings and switched back to the nylon ones. Mine has a small piezo that is susceptible to noise because of the flimsy cable, but I solved it by connecting it with a good isolated cable. I tried a bass from the same series in a store when I didn't have the money to buy one. It had the brass strings and I was already impressed, a week later the store had changed them to steel which is a bad idea. After buying mine I remember the experience I had years earlier and changed the nylons to brass but the nylon strings are best. Not a lot of features which made it my favorite bass to pick up without having to plug in, set an equalizer etc. Too bad it was too big to bring with me while I am abroad now for a few years. And the best bass is the one you want to play all the time, this is one of them.

Acoustic it's pretty loud. I bought it because I wanted an acoustic and fretless, this seemed a nice combination. The (later added) piezo worked out fine after a little bit of experimenting. It sounds like an upright to me. For the rest see the other review.

You need to set the action a bit higher to get volume. You have to work this base, but less then a double bass. No problem if you have strong fingers. Just not a fast as your "high speed" bass. Give the rosewood fretboard some TLC, a bit of the right oil will work wonders.

It's been around since 1981 and still sounds great and doesn't look too used. Too bad the EKO decal is coming off. Normally I don't care about wear and tear on bass, because the good ones get used.

It doesn't need support, and if it does you can go to your local luthier. He will probably appreciate the craftsmanship in this bass.

I have been playing quite a while, this is a nice addition to my set of basses. I wouldn't be surprised if this bass is the only one I will still have when I am 64. I sold my Gibson EB-3 (1970) and I promised never to sell that one... (although the guy that bought it is much happier with it then I was since I only used one setting on the bass anyway). I am not playing that much anymore and now have a Tribute by G&L L-2000 and the chord somehow keeps getting in the way...

I have used it in a acoustic jam once and that was OK, but it's always tricky to amplify an acoustic in such a situation. (Pianos and uprights included).

Thinking about an electric upright now (that Stagg one gets mixed reviews), but I might better ship in my EKO.

Fantastic value since I bought it for 200 euros and you can even get them cheaper. The cable cost me another 20 euros and I am using it with a bass equalizer as a pre-amp.

This is an acoustic bass guitar (ABG) made by the original Eko factory in Castelfidardo, Italy, from 1977 to the final closing of the factory in 1982. The line consists in two four stringed models, the AB/4 fretted and fretless, and the six stringed model, the AB/6, wich I have seen only fretted, but it could be that a few pieces came out as fretless. My 1979 fretless AB/4 is the same size as a dreadnought body but about twice deeper than a guitar, solid spruce top, laminate mahogany back and sides, mahogany neck, rosewood fingerboard with white maple fret markers (very smart!), original oval soundhole and, most important feature of all, trapeze tailpiece and floating rosewood bridge: strings are attached like an archtop, or a true upright, and the bridge push on the top rather than pulling like with glued bridges. The overall quality is rather good, fine woods and workmanship.

What makes this old Eko line of ABG in a class apart is their special tone quality. Indeed, these basses tend to sound like a true upright, and this is why they are so sought after by bass players here in Italy and in Europe. Of course don't expect the loudness of a real doghouse (no ABG in the world can match it... just compare the body size, it's an easy understanding!), but the tone quality and texture, when equipped with suitable strings and correctly set (I'm speaking about it later) can really mimic the upright. I think the solid top and the string attachment/pushing bridge have some responsability in it. I have recorded often with it (I must say that I'm a jazz GUITAR player but also I double on bass when needed) and all my colleagues where thinking that it was a TRUE bass, and also when I use it live (I have made it amplified very simply by fitting two large diaphragm K&K stick-on transducers inside the body, under the bridge) the tone I can get is 100% upright believable. This instrument has freed me from the need to ask for a bass player when I have to go in the studio... and arguing about time, style, tone etc etc. Now I do it on myself exactly the way I want it! Ah ah ah ah!!!
As I said before, strings choice is crucial. Forget about brass round wound type, those strings get a very treblish and clangy unpleasant tone. The best choice are black nylon flatwounds style heavy gauge (I have a Rotosound set at the moment, but also La Bella or Fender are ok) and also the Thomastick Acousticore acoustic bass strings are an interesting option, worth a try. Set the string action a bit high and pluck the bass with a strong energetic approach, and voila! the upright is there.

The neck is equipped with an adjustable truss rod, so setting it is quite straight... just be careful, loose completely the strings before any adjustement, and NEVER force the rod... be gentle. If you keep the string action on the high side, there is less need for an extremely flat fingerboard, while if you prefer to play with very low strings that could be an issue. In any case, as I already said, if you look for that upright tone, keep the action high enough to allow strong plucking, slapping etc without buzzing... quite simple.

The bass is sturdy made, old 70s school, when stuff was made to last... just a bit of normal care and you won't get any problem.

Well... this is a painful issue. You must know that the TRUE Eko factory went bankrupt and closed in 1982. Amen. The nowadays new Eko it's just a brand, a label that a bunch of Italian merchants put on the headstock of some soulles dull crappy absolutely non interesting anonymous guitars and basses made in China. They have absolutely NO relation with the old factory and products, they know NOTHING about it, they don't have any spare part, an furthermore they are completely nasty, unsupportive, unpolite if you try to get in touch with them for anything.
However, in case of need of repairing, ANY professional luthier can do the job... who cares for Eko anyway???

As said before, I'm a jazz guitar player and teacher, but I also play bass. Owning this bass has made me able at last to go in the studio and record the bass THE WAY I WANT... I don't have to deal anymore with other bass players (and I don't have to pay them!). With a bit of experimentation and the right setting (and the right playing style of course!), this ABG can really deliver a true, believable upright tone, and this special quality makes this ABG different from all the other ABG available on the market nowadays. Highly recommended!