The Kala Sub U-Bass is a great little solid body bass that not only gets some looks, and I’ll admit, some strange comments from other band members, but plays and sounds absolutely amazing! One of the bands I play with asked me if I was up for a benefit and they wanted to know if I wouldn’t mind playing a little bass. Little did they know (pun intended) that I would be playing a little bass! Aside from the comments of, “Is that really a bass?” and “No way can that sound anything like a ‘real’ bass”, the joke was on them. Not only were my fellow band-mates surprised by the tone and sound of the bass, they were even more pleased when I pulled off a bass solo on a U-Bass.
The bass that Kala had sent for the review was the 5-string Sub bass. This version of course sports a low B, just like the normal scale size basses. While the frets may seem a little close for larger fingers, it is actually very comfortable and easy to play. While it may look like a toy, let me assure you that it is far from it. The low and warm, punchy mid range tone is almost reminiscent of an upright bass sound. As a matter of fact, I have not come across a bass that really sounds like the Kala Sub U-Bass, and that is meant in a positive way.
It is constructed with a Poplar body with a Mahogany bolt-on neck and available with either a rosewood or walnut 22 fret fingerboard and bridge. The saddle on the bridge is of a composite material and is fully adjustable. The nut is GraphTech TUSQ. The tuners are custom Hipshot Ultralite and the strings are the Road Toad Pahoehoe Polyurethane. The Electronics are the Shadow U-Bass NFX and controls are volume, bass, and treble. The Kala Sub U-Bass is a short scale bass at 20 1/2 inches with an overall length of 29 1/4”. A deluxe padded bag is included with the Kala Sub U-Bass.
The Kala Sub U-Bass 5-string version is available in 2 colors, sunburst and black, both with a high gloss finish. Kala also has metal strings available, the Kala Metal Round Wound U-Bass Strings, which not only are great for the solid body U-Bass, but also for the acoustic U-Basses.
Check out the Kala Sub U-Bass available in 4-string and 5-string versions at a music retailer near you!
