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An email question I commonly receive: "I find myself needing to ship a bass across the country safely - what can you tell me?" Oof. Yeah, that's kind of a big deal, fraught with lots of costs, a decent amount of risk, and some unknown variables.Here is some stuff to think about.Shipping OptionsTo start with, you'll most likely need to ship it by truck, using a freight carrier (like Yellow Freight, RPL, and many others); unfortunately, unless you have an agreement through work or someone wit …

I heard from a customer who told me that he was talking to the owner of another bass shop (a shop which will remain nameless). When Gollihur Music came up in conversation, the other shop owner "talked a little trash" on our store, specifically saying, "How can you take a shop seriously if they're selling items like stick-on side markers?" Really? Is that all you've got? Okay, so... I guess I can understand a little bit of snobbery about side markers, even if they are temporary. Like we even say …

Here's why buying your bass gear at Gollihur Music is different (better!) I'm very aware that there are plenty of musical instrument stores, particularly online, where you can spend your bass dollars. If you have a local mom-and-pop music shop, I don't mind losing your business to them; we should support our local "bricks and mortar" stores whenever possible. But for those upright bass items you can only easily find online, we work hard to always be your first place to shop.Recently, as I was as …

If anyone asks, I'm a bass player, through and through. That being said, I've spent much of my time playing other instruments as well. Mom was a school music teacher and a pianist, so we always had a piano in the house growing up. When the school started kids on band instruments in 4th grade, like a surprising number of bassists (in my experience) I picked up the trumpet; later, I moved on to playing Mellophone and French Horn in high school. I also own a home studio where I record mostly ori …

While we stock a host of 2-channel preamplifier solutions for bassists who double (with every bell and whistle imaginable), sometimes simplicity takes the cake. I personally like using a Radial Engineering PZ-Pro for my upright (and electric, thanks to its switchable input impedance) needs, and while it's a full-featured, flexible unit (even has microphone capability!) it might be more than you need for a simplified stage rig. An A-B box like The BigShot i/o Deluxe A/B Switch provides a simp …

Sometimes a fresh look is all you need. Conventions. Patterns. We're pretty much all creatures of habit. From the music we enjoy, to the "licks" we play when we improvise, to how we approach problem solving; we often fall back on the familiar, the tried and true... basically, that which seems obvious or comfortable.It's only natural; cognitive scientists have studied the brain and found that our incredibly complex mind often resorts to "shortcuts" and conditioning to quicken decision-making. It' …

First-time prospective bass owner? It's time for "the talk."I talk to a lot of players who are searching for a first "real" bass for themselves. Usually, the conversation starts with, "I've been playing electric bass for years, and think it's time to make the jump to the upright bass, because I've always wanted one." Or, maybe it's a dialogue with a parent, on behalf of their child -- looking for a replacement for a rental or a school instrument -- and it's high time to get their kid a bass that …

When is a deal not a deal? Just like everyone, I like paying less. In fact, I've talked about it quite a bit in our newsletters over the years - hunting bargains is a bit of a hobby of mine. Of course, my wife says I'm destined to "go broke, saving money," but I digress... Product counterfeiting is a real thing. D'Addario was openly highlighting their issues with it back in 2010, with this blog post (which specifically talks about illegal copies of their guitar strings.) And, awhile b …

This list is in no particular order. Updated from an original concept by Bob Gollihur. Bridge Creep - As we continually tune up our strings, those strings try to drag the bridge towards the fingerboard. This can result in poor acoustic sound quality (as feet lose firm contact with the bass table), a decline in pickup sound quality, and a permanently warped and frequently falling bridge. Keep an eye on it, your bridge should be perfectly perpendicular (a 90 degree angle) to the bass' top; usuall …

We're more than a store - we're your upright bass information destination.Way back in the 1990s, Gollihur Music got its start because Bob (my Dad) was hosting a website.It was a simple site, where he mostly posted a bunch of links to upright bass-related things he'd found in his searching around online (this was WAY before Google), and he thought it might be nice to share those links with others who might benefit from them. Why? It was just something he did, simply because he had the wherewithal …

The String Is the Thing. A large part of our daily business - and a large percentage of calls we take seeking guidance - concerns strings. It makes sense; strings are one of the few "wear items" on a bass; unlike pickups, amps, and the basses themselves, they eventually wear out and need to be replaced. Perhaps more importantly, they are also an item that is easiest to change, when you're looking to improve or alter the way your bass sounds, responds, and/or "feels." So we get a lot of q …