Ergo Instruments EUB 5

Made in USA (by a US Citizen- this shouldn't be important, but in this world of 'outsourcing', it's refreshing to find a US product actually made by the company itself!) in 2008- Simple, to the point, bas(s)ic design that I LOVE! There's really nothing here that's not needed- just 'plug in, tune up, and PLAY'! Solid mahogany construction, super slick feel, excellent tone, etc.. Really the best EUB I've ever run across- including those $3k+ monstrosities that are so delicate that you really don't want to take them out (And I've played about every one available at various NAMM shows- The BSX is the only one that even comes close- the rest; and I mean ALL the rest- that I've played sound 'clacky' or muddy, and indistinct, and have been uncomfortable to play; the Ergo really should withstand the rigors of life with a musician, as there's really nothing that could go wrong with it in terms of bits coming off, or the pickup system giving out (no batteries, or switches- as was pointed out, the bass is 'stationary', so it's just as easy to make adjustments at the amp!) This is the second Ergo I've gotten (the first was from 2004), and it's LIGHT YEARS ahead of my first one- MUCH more professional instrument, and a higher degree of craftsmanship... No bells, and whistles, so I can't give this bass a 'high' rating for 'features', other than to say that it doesn't really need any!

I play this bass in a few pretty loud bar bands (2, or 3 times a month plus weekly rehearsals, and the odd home studio project), and through my Gallien Krueger rig, it's PERFECT- Seriously, there's nothing in the sound that I'd want to add, or take away- I switch from pizz (pluck) to arco (bowed) alot, and not having to hit any stupid switches, or adjust any knobs to do so is wonderful- this feature alone kept me from getting into an NS Design, or Clevinger (though there were other reasons- particularly regarding the price tag!). Again, no 'frills' here, as the pickups are wired right to the output jack (my earlier one had a knob that didn't do much other than 'muffle' the sound in a less than musical way- Less is definately More!), so I just plug in, and play with no worries! Couldn't be better at this point! I find myself playing whole gigs with just this bass- the bands I work with all ask specifically for this bass rather than any of my bass guitars (though when I have to 'play that funky music, white boy', I still grab my '74 maple fingerboard Jazz bass with DiMarzio pickups)...

Again, this one is FAR ahead of my first Ergo- particularly in terms of the finish (and sound)- not only is the Satin finish perfectly applied, but I got it with a beautiful 'Burst' (something rather new for Ergo) that adds such a classy vibe that I find it even more inspiring to play- the position dots are perfectly intuitive, and very easy for the player to see (but aren't so obvious, as they're located UNDER the strings, and on the 'player side' of the bass- they're not even visible to an audience more than 4 feet away; so it doesn't look like 'training wheels' (don't let anybody tell you you're 'cheating' by using position markers- I'm told that Bertram Turetzky has even admitted to putting the occasional pencil mark on his fingerboard! And if position markers are good enough for Edgar Meyer.....) The only 'hitch' was that upon arrival, the bridge just needed to be 'stood' up in it's slot (just like with an acoustic bass, the string tension is what holds the bridge in place, and I'm convinced this is how such a natural tone is achieved with the Ergo- It doesn't take but a second or two to make sure it's in position at the gig- much less hassle than trying to set an acoustic bridge- which the same thing happens to), so I'm giving it a '9' rating; but haven't had to touch it since! All in all, there was less initial set up involved than any instrument I've owned (and there have been PLENTY!)...

Again, there's really nothing that could conceivably go wrong on this as long as I don't abuse it (common sense stuff: don't leave any instrument in a car any longer than you have to, and try not to use it too often in a bar fight.... actually, the Ergo would probably be an ideal 'piece maker' in such a brawl!), rather 'standard' Gotoh tuners, that could easily be replaced, and upgraded if need be; I don't (though I came up in the '80s, when the order of the day was to buy a $200 axe, and upgrade it with heavy duty hardware (usually a Leo Quan 'Badass' bridge, Shaller tuners, and DiMarzio pickups) to make it 'custom'..) No gig bag is included, but I made a 'case' for mine for $20 using some 4" PVC pipe, a little egg crate foam, two 4" PVC end caps, and a drawer handle; This is probably a better case than some $300+ Anvil job! The included stand is a heavy duty Pacific, which are made by DW- the highest regarded drum company in the business- I've read a few complaints about a 'rattle', but I've found that as long as the plastic washer is in place at the base of the stand, and everything's tightened down really good, there isn't any noise coming through the amp (another tip: get a small piece of carpet, or rug similar to what drummers use to keep their bass drum from walking away while they play, and you won't hear any extraneous noise from the stage either!)

Ergo is a 'one man operation', and is obviously the guy's 'calling'... He's always responded to any questions I've sent within 24 hours with a friendly professionalism you have to respect- he just seems like a 'groovy' kind of guy (yes, he uses the word 'groovy')!... I haven't had any problems at all in this department, nor do I forsee any in the future.. The last reviewer apparently got a little 'burned' by a lack of communication, but in reality, it COULD have just been a case of lost emails- I don't think his being in the UK had anything to do with anything, as we're living in a global community at this point due to the Internet, so I surmise his problem came from a breakdown in our technology more than his getting ignored (again, this is simply bas(s)ed on my experience alone); Gotta love AOL- I know I've had more than a few cases of 'lost' emails!

Been playing since 1984 (upright since '87; and EUB since '94- a horrible 'Framus' dog, but the 'seed' was there..), and have tried EVERYTHING out there at various NAMM shows, etc.. Overall, there's a certain 'vibe' I get from my Ergo that really makes it a joy to play; Who'd have thought of playing rock music with a bow?!! I certainly wouldn't attempt this with an acoustic bass, and the 'clacky' tone of most EUB's makes for a very 'grating' experience for all involved (Just go to Youtube for examples of crappy bowed sounds from most EUB's! Who'd want to sound like that? YUCK!!); I also believe bands continue to ask for this bass because of it's natural, VERY musical sound- particularly the rock guitarists, who don't seem to 'fight' for sonic space with that bass guitar anymore (I believe that because the instruments are so closely related, and that rock guitarists play with a huge amount of low end, there's a bit of frequency cancellation that requires extensive EQ compromises between guitars, and bass guitars.. The super long scale length of the Ergo (42"!!!!)means that there's a whole series of overtones that don't interfere with guitars at all, so there's an added 'depth' to a bands sound going on... Add all this to the fact that the bass is WELL under $1000 (and I'd like to add here that the Ergo is a FAR superior product to the Palatino 'fall apart as soon as you get it' bass {yes, I've actually played one a friend bought off Ebay}, and the P.O.S. Dean Pace that can't even be bowed that are in the same price range- my new Ergo is definately better built than the NS Design 'WAV' bass as well!), and I believe there simply isn't a better deal to be had if you're in the market for an EUB- It might be time for certain 'snobby' players to re-evaluate their opinion of an EUB- This is NOT your father's 'stick bass'!

Simple basic design, decent enough Gotoh tuning pegs, extremely basic/cheap (but nonetheless) hot pickup (basically a piezo pickup cut in half and rewired then stuck with sticky foam under the very cheap mahogany coloured piece of wood for a bridge

When I first got mine the e string was almost completely dead - got some brand new strings (??80!) and changed them over, only to find exactly the same thing happening - sounded like something was just touching the string when it was being plucked (similar to obtaining a harmonic for tuning) and as a result a v unrewarding sound when played through amplification

Lots of different people had a look at it for me, different views aplenty until a luthier noticed that the string tension was non existant and causing the e to vibrate v erratically - he added a string tree to the headstock to give some more break angle and tension. results are much better so have a nice even response from the strings - mark reflects the out of the box sound tho

Nice action, easier to play than a double bass - no complaints

Bought an exotic wood version from ebay so v soft - dings at the slightest knock but I'm not bothered, adds to the character!

In a word, rubbish. emailed Jesse about the sound issue - was explained away as the bridge getting knocked in transit. was told to move the bridge until i find the "sweet spot"

After trying this to no avail emailed again and again but no comeback - put it down to or geography (I'm in the UK and he's in the States) so too far to pay him a visit so didnt give a toss. Very disappointing and would not recommend to anyone outside of the states

A nice bass, left a sore taste in my mouth to start with after all the hassle I had to go through but love playing it now it's fixed (no thanks to Jesse tho) hence the pretty high rating

Read the other reviews, mine is dark, stained.
Simple, straight forward, simple to play,, wonderful.

The sound of this EUB kicks ass, except for the bright sound of ebony, sounds just like a URB. I love it. I played a crappy thin-body 3/4 bass, and this EUB blows it away. So portable, looks tall and skinny sound big and fat! LOVE THE SOUND! Just a word of warning, unless you have a amp that handles piezos well, get a pre-amp or a piezo buffer (http://www.scotthelmke.com/Mint-box-buffer.html) check it out!

Nice low action, nice simple finish, looks feels and smells great with some lemon oil! Love love love the fret markers, HUGE HELP!

Rock soild, makes travel a breeze, I keep thinking,
"Why did'nt I just get one of these before?" duh!

Jesse is great with e-mails and getting back to you, top notch!

Been playign electric bass for 10 years, upright for 4. Played really good URBs and bad ones, this ergo is simple portable with a great tone, for under $1000 bucks you just can't beat it!

Solid Mahogony 5 string Electric Upright Bass. Made right here in the USA.
No frets, no lamination, just 1 nice piece of wood carved to the neck of an upright/double bass.
single piezo pick up (similar to a realist) under the wood bridge. with single tone knob, nothing else.
nice Gotoh tuners at the headstock
it comes with a cymbol stand to mount the bass to for playing.
Very compact, easy to use and mount and play

This bass sounds really nice, and the action is really good. It is a little chunky at first (after all it is a 5 string EUB) but once I started to get use to it, it is rather natural to play. (it has been a while since I played Upright...)
the bass is rather bright, due to the Piezo pick up, but warms up nicely. an that one pickup is HOT It is really helping me clean up my playing too, becuase I hear all the nuances of my playing (kind of like playing a REALLY hot G&L bass that gets every little movement...)
I am looking forward to bowing this bass, I think it will really move some air with the LOW B. It is an electric upright and the sound reflects that. I like it better than a NS 5 string EUB I played at a local music store. the NS sounded like my Rickenbacker 4003... I wanted EUB sound and this bass delivers. I am currently running it through a Sansamp (another GREAT device!) as a DI box and a little tone shaping for extra warmth) and through a GK 800RB with an accugroove tri112, it rocks!

the ation was very low (maybe a little too low) maybe the wood shifted, but I have been increasing the hight with shims to get the strings from hitting the fingerboard. this is rather annoying since the pickups are WAY hot and every hit is heard. by raising the bridge a little more the stings can vibrate without hitting. I also woud use a little harder of a wood in the bridge, but maybe the soft wood is what gives the warmer sound.
the finish is nice. evenly put on and natural looking.fit and finish was over all nice. my only concern was the action, it is not a guitar, and should not be set up like one the 42 inch scale strings need more room to move. but with the string hight set where I like it, I love playing this bass and look forward to gigging with it!

it is simple in design, simple to maintain and a solid axe. It will withstand live playing NO PROBLEM. the finish will last, and the hardware is good. When I use it I will have a second bass, but that is to get a different sound, If I was doing a live Jazz trio, I would use this bass alone and enjoy the time playing it

Jesse Blue is a great guy. timely, helpful, nice, and very talented in his luthier skills. He makes a really nice bass. it really acheives the goal he set forth with it and it is a great player's bass. He answers questions quckly and honestly. he is ready and willing to help with questions and gives fast answers. Class act and a fine Luthier.

I have been playing bass for 25 years. jazz upright, slap upright, and a meriad of bass guitars, Rick4003FL, Rick 4003/5, 4080, Fender 74 Jass, Fender 72 PJ, lightwave 4 string fretless, 8 string washburn, guild 4 string acoustic (the big one...) and this is a great addition ot the collection. it is a great bass for a great price, it is easily transported (I own a 2 seater sports car and it fits right in there. unlike a fullsized upright...) I would indeed get another if it was lost stolen or damaged.

Hand made right here in the USA, serial number 0158, made sometime in may through july 2005
3/4 (42" scale) 5 String Electric Upright Bass
One tone control that doubles as a mute push/pull and one output jack, nice and simple.
One pickup under the bridge, some type of vibration to sound thing, transducer.
Body and neck are made from cherry.
Light lacquer finish
The body is Like an upright basses neck with a little bit more girth because of the extra string. Very thick and heavy duty feeling, but very lightweight at the same time. Also, the neck is completely contoured, exactly like an upright, so you can bow it. Also has nicely placed positon markers for the fingerboard, which were a nominal upcharge, but make my transition to upright all the easier right now.
5 Chrome Gotoh tuners
Came with a cymbal stand made by pdp for mounting to the ergo's built in mount The ergo has a very adjustable setup for both pitch and height. Me being 6'2", and my sister being 5'4", can both play it easily when it is adjusted properly.

As far as features go, it has what is needed , nothing more. A active preamp with tone controls, and an xlr out would be nice options, perhaps something by aguilar, but it isn't needed whatsoever. I set my amp completely flat and had a great sound right off the bat, it's all in the fingers with this baby.

Only thing that would be better is if he included an option to purchase a gig bag or case, it didn't come with anything to protect it during transport. I'm just going to make a case out of plywood and 2x4's with some blankets for padding and some hardware store hinges and a shedlatch to lock it up :)

I'm getting into jazz starting with college this fall, and wanted an instrument that would sound more like an upright than my fretless, but would both be easily transportable, and not cost an arm and a leg. It sounds like an upright bass, and I don't know how.....It just does.

Playing it through my Mesa M2000 Basis bass head, the solid state channel with flat eq controls and the knobs in the middle, going into an avatar (avatarspeakers.com) 1x12 and 2x10. Only effects are compression, which is built into the head, to keep the bottom from overwhelming my poor 1x12.

The Ergo isn't noisy whatsoever, and has great response, i'm amazed.

Very full, very warm sound. It sounds like an upright, but not as bright as an ebony fingerboard, a little bit more relaxed sounding than that.

It will produced full on fingerstyle upright jazz sound, and because of the neck radius is supposed to be bowable. I don't have a bow and don't have any idea how to play arco, but hopefully will be learning soon, so i've got no idea how it sounds for arco. It wouldn't be good in a metal setting, in my opinion because of the mellow, muted upright sound, but for everything that you would hear traditional upright fingerstyle sounds in, it would substitute 100%. I've got no idea about whether it sounds good bowed or not. It's got a single control for tone, which doubles as a push / pull mute. Nice and simple.

I really love it and the sounds i can make with it. I'm truly in awe of it's sound, i was expecting giant fretless bass, but it sounds so much better than that.

Action is fine, higher compared to electric bass, but on par with most of the upright basses i've played, if not a little easier to play, but the position markers help a bit.

The pickup is under the bridge, so adjustment isn't an option, and it was setup perfectly from the manufacturer. Only thing I needed to do was put it on the stand, adjust to my height, and plug it in to play. Simple.

The finish is slightly tacky to my hands when they start to sweat, maybe it needs to cure for a bit longer or maybe i should sand it a hair on the back of the neck, and there were several small dings in the body, and a couple of points where the finish was thicker than other areas. It looks great overall, and only someone with a magnifying glass would notice these minor imperfections. The serial number is stamped directly into the body with wood

The bass and stand are very light weight, but feel sturdy and I wouldn't imagine there being any problems playing out with it.
The only weak point to me, and this is hypothetical only, would be the connection where the ergo's mounting point connects to the cymbal stand, there is alot of force on that joint, which is adjustable for pitch, and that may be where this thing breaks someday, but I'd just have to buy another piece of that drum hardware and reinstall it, it looks like a piece of a drum kit custom cut to fit. The simple controls and setup options almost guarantee to me that there won't be any problems that wouldn't be easily remedied. Plug and Play.

The gotoh tuners are great, seem to stay in tune over a few hours of playing with minimal retuning, and with flatwound strings, i might wear the fingerboard slightly, but this instrument should last a lifetime with proper care.

The finish is some light lacquer that shows off the wood nicely, and would probably be the only thing that would need to be redone at some point, i'll probably end up wearing it thin on the back of the neck over the next few years, but thats to be expected of almost any light finish.

The neck is like the thick part of a louisville slugger, i doubt anything but extreme temperature/moisture changes will affect it. It doesn't have a truss rod, but neither do any uprights that i've ever seen.

I'd definitely gig without a backup, the only reason I bring other basses to gig's right now is to get different sounds. I've had a string break once in my 10 years of playing, and it was the low E string on a rickenbacker that I was slapping right by the new bridge saddles, which on a rick are triangle shaped. Anyways, unless something catastrophic took place, i wouldn't need a backup.

I've emailed jesseblu a billion times over the last 2 months and he responded courteously and promptly each time. He told me exactly what was happened during the process, and I had changed my order a few weeks after originally placing it(deciding to add the low B) and he didn't have any problems with that. He kept to his deadlines, and was easy to deal with.

I've been playing for 10 years this year. I own a Carvin bb75p 5 string with highC, hotrodded fender j and p basses, nice super bartolinized ibanez epoxied fretless 5 string with highC, michael kelley firefly acoustic/electric 5string with highC, and now Ergo EUB5. I've got a mesa m2000 basis bass head with calzone rack, furman pl-II rack rider, sabine rt-7100 rack tuner, and avatar ( http://www.avatarspeakers.com ) 1x12 and 2x10 speakers.

Only thing I wish this bass had was a case and an XLR out.

I would definitely get another one if stolen or destroyed, there are quite a few EUB's, electric upright basses, on the market these days, but for any that have 3/4 scale (42") like this one, their all in the multi thousand dollar range, and honestly, i've read reviews where they state that some of them sound alot like big fretless basses.
This ergo sounds like an upright, period.

My favorite features are the simplicity of controls, since I've got a lot of basses with active eq's and a kazillion tone controls, this is a nice contrast, almost gets me into the mode of simplicity mentally when playing I really dig the instruments vibe. It sounds great, i'm a guy who is usually never content with -stock- anything, so It was a great surprise to me that this sounded so good. I left all the tone controls flat on my amp on purpose to see if this would need eq'ing to sound good. It doesn't, i put the tone control in the exact middle, and started playing. I might even get a aguilar DI and a small poweramp to go with my 1x12 because I'm so confident I don't need tone controls with this.
I've tried out numerous low end (sub-2000 dollar) upright basses trying to figure out what i really needed/wanted for jazz starting this fall (2005) when I start college. I just didn't find anything that sounded very good to me, and I tried quite a few different brands of plywood basses. One of my other needs was portability, i'm going to be riding the bus an aweful lot, and a small combo cab with this bass would be easily portable compared to a giant double bass. Plus, this is a solid neck, I don't have to worry about same problems someone with a huge wood instrument would have. The only real downside is that I need amplification to be heard. The bass is resonant when played without amplification, and would be fine for practice in a quiet environment if you were constrained by neighbors, parents, ect for practice.

For the price, this is unbeatable, I wish these were in stores, because this quality is amazing, and others would be able to hear how good this sounds compared to full db's that cost 2 or 3 times as much. Not to mention the cheap pallandino or dean electric uprights that sound like crap and play like crap that I've seen around.

I'll have some recordings up with this thing soon, just email me and I'll give you the link, or check out http://www.talkbass.com, and check my profile, bassmutant, for the link to my site with my jam mp3's on it. It will be a while, it's july 2005 now, so give it a month or two.