Kala UBass
The Kala UBass is the size of a baritone ukulele but has the range of a bass guitar i.e. it is tuned EADG in the same octave as a standard bass guitar. It achieves this through polyurethane strings.
The original bass ukulele was the Road Toad. The downside is that it was very expensive - out of the range of most ukulele players who might be curious about it. Then they hooked up with Kala who used Road Toad's technology and adapted a standard baritone ukulele to produce a cheaper bass ukulele. The Kala U-bass is in a range that makes it affordable to someone who wants to include bass in their ukulele group but wants to keep the aesthetic.
One thing to keep in mind if you do buy a Kala UBass is that you need to get an amp at the same time. Polyurethane strings don't produce much volume on their own and need to be amplified.
It comes in two versions: fretted and fretless. If you're used to playing fretted instruments, it takes some getting used to a fretless instrument. But it does give you that distinctive sound of a stand-up bass.
On Video
The folks from RISA demonstrate the UBass.
On eBay US
 SALE KALA U BASS Ukulele Bass Guitar w case  US $499.99
|
 Sprucetop FRETLESS KALA U BASS Ukulele Bass GUITAR US $409.95
|
 NEW Sprucetop FRETTED KALA U BASS Ukulele guitar Bass US $409.95
|
On eBay UK
 Kala uBass Bass Ukulele Electro Acoustic NEW £399.99
|
 Kala uBass Bass Fretless Ukulele Electro Acoustic £399.99
|
Specifications
Size: Baritone
Construction: Solid mahogany top, back and sides.
Fretboard: Rosewood. 16 frets (12 to body)
Bridge: Rosewood
Neck: Mahogany
Tuners: Custom Hipshot
Pickups: Piezo
4 Comments
I’ve just bought the fretless Kala ubass model a couple of days ago. Having only played regular fretted bass before I’m finding pitching notes a little challenging so far, but worth persevering with because I want that upright sound which this little guy almost captures.
It is possible to play unamplified when practicing at home (nobody hears my bum notes then!) but once plugged in it really has an astonishing bottom end. The polyurethane strings have a great feel although I’m also finding using vibrato difficult in these early learning days. The ADG strings are tending to go flat often so far and I’m hoping this is just due to the strings stretching while settling in? There’s way too much wrapped around the tuners which might not be helping either.
The fit and finish is pretty good, with a nice grained mahogany. The edge of the fretboard could have been rounded off a little more, feels a bit sharp.
Well done Kala, a great bass with a huge sound!
Nic: Thanks for sharing your experience. I’m really tempted to get one. But I’d probably go for the fretted version.
Just bought one and have played on it only a few days (bought the fretted version) and find it very easy to play and works well with my amp. As with earlier comment, strings are still stretching and have too much around pegs and I may have to trim them up a bit to increase accurate intonation. My impression is that the instrument will blend much better with the two ukuleles I play with than did my fender bass, which was too strident. I’ll find out tomorrow at our next rehearsal!
Thanks for the review Skidbass. Hope it worked well with the ukes.
Got something to say?