After a short switch to bass guitar, I found I could not be satisfied by anything else than playing upright basses. The Carruthers SUB-1 has a very good tone. The neck is removable for those who tour a lot, and I think a special road-case is available. The gig bag could be improved, however. The integrated preamp gives a lot of tone adjustment freedom. The neck and Macassar ebony fingerboard are impeccable, although some players could want more bow (scoop) on the FB. The maple bridge is not adjustable. Any 3/4 size double-bass string can be used, but it comes with special Thomastik Spirocores (same gauge but shorter than regulars). I prefer to use warmer sounding strings from Pirastro.