Bass Action for Slap

FunkJazz · #1 12-08-2009, 01:03 AM

After 5 years as a pro, and not playing for 25 years, I just bought an Ibanez 5 string bass because I want to learn to play that funky slap style. Should the action on my bass be set high for slap, or low? When I thump the low B or E with my thumb, it hits the fretboard and makes a lot of noise, That's not the sound I am looking for. Would it help if I raised the strings, or lowered them.
Thanks,, Get the funk out.

puremusic · #2 12-08-2009, 02:27 AM

I prefer low action and most others who play that style do also. It would be hard to get a good sound with high action.

MNAirHead · #3 12-08-2009, 02:30 AM

I find it easiest to get percussive sounds from very low action...

johhn smith · #4 12-08-2009, 02:41 AM

i've found that low action is better. it'll be easier on your hands and honestly, why make anything harder than it has to be. if you are hitting the frets on the b or e then examine how you are striking the strings, perhaps there is something not quite right with your technique. i slap all of the strings and don't encounter this problem. i just tried to make my strings hit the frets and found that the only was i could do this ( on a bass with no issues ) was to hit the strings really hard with my thumb or pull really hard with my fingers, so maybe think about developing a softer touch.

David1234 · #5 12-08-2009, 03:00 AM

Medium-low, not super-low. Say 2mm to 2.5mm at the bass's third highest fret (which is a good place for the thumb to hit when slapping).

If you angle your hand so that the thumb can only hit one string, then it will. As you move from string to string, do so by changing the height of your hand, not the angle.

FunkJazz · #6 12-08-2009, 08:25 PM

Thanks for the input. That's exactly what I wanted to know. I'm going to set the action lower, that always makes a guitar easier to play. I will aim for the third fret, that 's a good target. This thumb technique has always been hard to learn. I know if I keep at it, I will find the key to make it work for me. When I played top 40 gigs back in the 80's I played slap on one song, (Urgent by Foreigner) that was always my favorite song of the night.

FunkJazz · #7 12-08-2009, 09:16 PM

I lowered the strings, that immediately made a huge difference. THANKS to everyone for the advice. I can actually get some good tone out of it now, and the E has a nice twang to it. I raised the pickups a little until they look they are level on both sides. Anyone have an opinion on pickup height for a good slap sound.

Craig_S · #8 12-09-2009, 12:35 AM

Pickup height should be set to manufacturers specs.

johhn smith · #9 12-09-2009, 10:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunkJazz

I lowered the strings, that immediately made a huge difference. THANKS to everyone for the advice. I can actually get some good tone out of it now, and the E has a nice twang to it. I raised the pickups a little until they look they are level on both sides. Anyone have an opinion on pickup height for a good slap sound.

if you search youtube for slap bass you can find some video which may or may not help your hand positioning and show you some fingering ideas. alex sklarevski has some lessons on YT as well.

Thunderthumbs73 · #10 12-09-2009, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunkJazz

After 5 years as a pro, and not playing for 25 years, I just bought an Ibanez 5 string bass because I want to learn to play that funky slap style. Should the action on my bass be set high for slap, or low? When I thump the low B or E with my thumb, it hits the fretboard and makes a lot of noise, That's not the sound I am looking for. Would it help if I raised the strings, or lowered them.
Thanks,, Get the funk out.

Low. Improvement in both right and left hand technique will help with the extraneous noises. That said, there is a balance between string low enough for comfortable slapping, and strings are so low that the instrument is unplayable.

I find bassists who have the strings adjusted low, who slap, and can play cleanly with fingerstyle, getting a minimum of buzz are also reasonably light pluckers.

If you are coming from the school of "set the action high and dig in", setting the action low for good, efficient slap, may require a different mindset and approach altogether that goes beyond slap technique, specifically, to make that low action work for you in your general playing.

Kipaste · #11 12-09-2009, 11:08 AM

I second the medium low, especially if going for the funky old school funk vibe. While very low action is nice for tricks and frills and for super modern hifi (IMO thin and uninteresting..) tone, I always find my bass sound lacking just a tiny bit of something. Raising the action a bit seems to give a bit more thump and meat to the notes which I find super important. Also, that big mid cut with heavy high and low boost is something I'd avoid as much as possible. Meaty mid tone is where the funk is at and that way switching between fingerstyle and slap is a lot less painless. IMHO of course.

FunkJazz · #12 12-09-2009, 06:47 PM

The action is low now, and it sounds way better. From here I will just have to experiment with the action and pickups. I like the action low as long as I don't get fret buzz when playing with fingers. From what I am reading here, it sounds like if it is too low, you can loose the good tone. I still have a lot of work to do on my style. I have seen just about every slap video on YouTube, I'm buying books and tapes, and working on a lot of songs, I'm going to learn how to do this. Thanks to everyone for the input. It really helps when I hear from several people and they all have the general same idea.