The Complete Handbook of Upright Basses
A Professional's Guide to Selection, Setup, Maintenance, and Business Opportunity
by Alumigogo Books
non-fiction
The professional reference for choosing, maintaining, and understanding upright basses — with no marketing, no hype, and the practical knowledge to make sound decisions.
About this book
The upright bass is deceptively complex. A $3,000 instrument and a $30,000 instrument may look similar, but differ profoundly in materials, construction, sound projection, and maintenance demands. Players and professionals often lack clear frameworks for evaluating these differences — or for recognizing when a problem is a setup issue, a maintenance oversight, or an actual instrument limitation.
This handbook provides that framework. Written for professionals, ensemble directors, luthiers, retailers, and serious hobbyists, it covers the concrete knowledge required to select the right instrument for your context, understand how it actually works, set it up correctly, maintain it systematically, troubleshoot common problems, and understand the business landscape that supports the instrument. Each chapter is grounded in real-world scenarios and measurable specifications — not marketing claims or abstract theory.
Whether you are buying your first bass, managing an ensemble's instrument inventory, building a repair practice, or exploring business opportunities in the market, this handbook provides the practical information you need to make decisions with confidence.
Reader Reviews
Barbara Martinez
★★★★★I bought this expecting a typical 'how to choose your first instrument' guide, and for the most part that's what I got — but the first chapter's explanation of how bridge placement actually affects sound was genuinely enlightening. My one frustration: the chapter on business opportunities (Chapter 6) felt thin compared to the technical depth of Chapters 2 and 5. I'd have preferred more case studies or specifics about rental program economics. That said, this is the most useful bass reference I've found that isn't either a repair manual or a retailer's marketing.
Brian Adams
★★★★★Finally, a handbook that treats upright bass players like adults and professionals rather than consumers. The real-world scenarios in Chapter 3 (especially the decision tree for ensemble directors) saved me hours of research when we rebuilt our rental program, and Chapter 1 alone justified the purchase — it's the clearest explanation of bass setup I've read outside of a luthier's notes. No fluff, every chapter is immediately usable, and the troubleshooting in Chapter 5 has already solved two problems in our shop. Highly recommend for anyone serious about the instrument.