I already own a Kala electro-acoustic U-Bass with the Fishman pickup and Road Toad Pahoehoe rubber strings which is fantastic. I wanted to get a somewhat more conventional solid body and having loved the quality of my electro-acoustic, I wanted to buy another Kala.
Just like my other one, this is just so playable. Thirty minutes after it arrived I didn't want to put it down. The build quality is flawless. I love the cream colour. My only criticism is that the colour of the white pickguard seems a bit cheap (or is it that the sweet cream body is so creamy). The pickguard itself is actually quite thick but to my eyes the white isn't the best. I will investigate replacing it or painting it or maybe I'll find I stop noticing it. It is available with a black pickguard but I don't like black so that wasn't an option. Thomann seem to be the only ones selling the new pink, blue and cream colours with white rather than black pickguards.
The Kala necks are nice and chunky which I much prefer over the Flight necks. Frets are perfectly finished. It feels like the neck was made just for you. This is the same as my other one. The whole bass just feels like a big lump of quality (and it is heavier than you expect for such a tiny bass).
The pickups sound great with a nice, full sound to them. The tone control seems to have a wide sweep from bass to treble providing a lot of flexibility.
Another great feature is the gig bag. This is high quality with thick padding, a neck pillow and a front pocket you can actually get something in (although like most it's not deep enough). You won't need to change it (just a shame they're always black - a matching cream colour would have been amazing). Ironically, my electro-acoustic Kala U-Bass which cost twice as much, came with a terrible gig bag which offered no protection despite being described as "deluxe" so I had to spend another £70 buying a nice Kala gig bag which it should have come with.
This bass is wonderful. You just won't want to put it down. They also seem to be quite the conversation piece. Being the solid body, it's also easier to have it slung lower so it looks more "expected" rather than a weird Mark King vibe. Why anyone would bother with full-sized ones is a mystery. I've got one (an excellent Harley Benton PJ bass) and I never play it now I've discovered the world of U-Bass.
