Hi, Michele - enjoyed your web page and information. As a former resident of the Nashvegas and the music scene there (though back in the early 80's) - hope you enjoy it - it will be quite an experience. I never felt completely comfortable there - Harlan Howard told me, "It's different for you, you write because it's what you are - you're not writing for money." Ha!
I am Dudley-Brian Smith, the aforementioned member of Smithfield Fair, and our bassist has used the B-50 exclusively since 1978. He's currently using two fretless B-50's (1976, 1978) and on occasion uses my fretted 1979 B-50. All of them are amplified the same way - a single Shure SM-11 lavalier microphone suspended beneath the bridge, aimed up at the lower bout, and connected to a flush-mount XLR in the end block. This is a simple and effective procedure - the suspension device is made of velcro and attached under either the bridge plate or a strut by means of a large map tack. Drilling a 1" whole in the endblock for the XLR, though, may seem drastic. There are a lot of lavalier microphones available, but this one has proved durable, reliable and remained relatively inexpensive (they can be found for $150 or so). I have them in all of our road basses and guitars to great response. Sound men love them, but depending on the sound system, may have to boost the gain. (All sound men are not created equal and to many of them - all instruments should be electric, use 1/4" jacks, have a pre-amp, etc.). If you borrow an SM-ll, you can run the mic. cord out the sound hole to try this before making the big move to install.
In the studio, we've started using an AKG 414 laying on a handtowel in the lower bout and sometimes coupled with the SM11. This system produces a great acoustic response and preserves the fabulous tone of the instrument. I'm not keen on pick-ups, as most sound doinky and non-acoustic/metallic. Some are better than others, but I've never liked the Fishman that came with the Guild B-50 and later B-30. Other opinions differ, but I'm trying to preserve the wonderful sound and acoustic quality of the instruments we use.
A friend of our's Randy Palmer of Henri's Notions, has a custom-made acoustic bass guitar and he uses some sort of pick-up and pre-amp system. I've emailed him to get that information and will post it here when I receive it to give you some options.
Feel free to visit our web page (
http://www.smithfieldfair.com) for more information - or listen to the band's sound on myspace (
http://www.myspace.com/smithfieldfair) or on You Tube (live clips friends have posted - just search for Smithfield Fair) - and that may help give some qualifier if that is the sound you are looking for. Bob Bob and I started out on upright bass - our father was an upright bass player in swing bands - so that's our perspective. All the best and hope this helps. dbs