Boring Dull Sound

[fulouzero]

I don't feel like retyping it. I sent this email to a local shop. You might be able to help me some also. Thanks

Whats up,

I need to have my bass adjusted or some suggestions. I'm not exactly new to bass, but I haven't felt motivated to learn since I received the bass guitar due to the tone. It's so unbelievable boring to play. The tone is dull and it seems as the tuning is right. I played my friends bass and it had a nice ring to every note. It was tuned EADG as was mine (exception for B).

I actually tuned it to the next B in thought that it was the solution. I squinted and held the string and it snapped The tuning is on target. However, It had the right sound before it broke! I've tried putting new string on it before. It seemed to give it a nice sound for a little over 3 days. I'm so frustrated T_T, I've been persuaded to keep my bass for months on months and if I'm going to do that I need a good sound for motivation. I can play anyone elses with enjoyment, but mine with tears.

The sound is an acoustic problem (correct word?). Without the amp, it still sounds lifeless. I might as well play mellow goth rock covers... Any help would be great. Some information on what it might be, what it is, and how you (or I) can fix it and at what price would be great. Thanks for reading -_-

James

[Dogbertday]

hm... sounds like your instrument just isn't speaking to you. What type is it? did you order it online?

but to try a quick fix before you trash it... stick some new strings on it... maybe something with a lot of sing... these other guys could help you out more with that than I could


oh yeah... you actually tuned a low B string up an octave?!?!?!

[pbass2]

Whoa--hold up here. What kind of bass is it, what kind of strings, exactly HOW are you tuning this bass?

[fulouzero]

What do you mean how am I tuning the bass? I use a tuner and twist the tuner machines.

Strings - Ernie Ball Slinky

Guitar - Got it from a pawn shop T_T

Hi James:

This guitar was discontinued a few years ago, but here are some details:

• Spruce Top
• Mahogany Back & Sides
• Dovetail Neck Joint
• Smooth Satin Finish
• Fast Mahogany Neck
• Cream Bound Rosewood Fretboard
• 5-Ply Body Binding
• Die-Cast Machine Heads
• Martin Strings
• Cutaway Shape
• 4-Band EQ Pickup

List price: $249.00

Best,

Ali

James wrote:

> MESSAGE I have AXL Player Deluxe 5 string with Active Pickup. I was hoping I could get some technical details and
> possible some images.
>
> The serial number on the back of the head is
> 200310164
>
> Thanks,
> James
> RESPOND 1
--
-- Ali Fard, Marketing Manager
-- The Music Link, www.themusiclink.net

[pbass2]

Just the tuning to the next B thing threw me for a minute, but I see what's happening.
You say it sounds lifeless unplugged. How does it compare to your friend's basses unplugged? Do they resonate against your body better and seem more "alive" acoustically?
As for plugged-in, does that pickup have any screws for adjustment?

[pbd]

hmmm, a new amp or effects pedal always helps me get over a hump. New strings is probably the quickest fix though. A nice new set of strings will liven up any bass. Also, take some 000 steel wool and polish the fret wire while the string are off. It will change the way the next feels as well. If you are really feeling ambitous you could also use the steel wool to clean the fret board and the oil it with a mix of equal parts linseed and lemon oil. Let it set over night, wipe it down and string it up.

The new strings will liven up the sound the clean fret board will freshen up the feel.

Good combo!
enjoy,
Todd

[Kuchar]

My first thought is that you need to go to GC or a local shop and play some basses, find one that you like, and buy that one.

You don't the tone of a bass, you don't like the tone of a bass..

No way to change that unless you buy new parts or like replacing strings every week.

[fulouzero]

My friend's Spectre is godly hooked up or not.

[Parabolic Box]

Originally Posted by fulouzero

Strings - Ernie Ball Slinky

I dare say that's the cause of the problem. Ernie Ball strings take the road to lifeless rather quickly. But I'm sure some will disagree.

However, it may be time to get a bass with a tone you like more.

[GlennW]

Originally Posted by fulouzero

What do you mean how am I tuning the bass? I use a tuner and twist the tuner machines.

Strings - Ernie Ball Slinky

Guitar - Got it from a pawn shop T_T

Ali was confused. The specs you recieved were for an acoustic guitar.

A different pickup might help.

[namraj]

Originally Posted by GlennW

Ali was confused. The specs you recieved were for an acoustic guitar.

+1

but if your not motivated your not motivated, a new zing may get you motivated for a week or two but not much longer, you need 2 find a better way to motivate yourself to play, i suggest joining a band.

[kalle74]

"I'm not exactly new to bass, but I haven't felt motivated to learn since I received the bass guitar due to the tone. It's so unbelievable boring to play. The tone is dull and it seems as the tuning is right. I played my friends bass and it had a nice ring to every note. It was tuned EADG as was mine (exception for B).

I actually tuned it to the next B in thought that it was the solution. I squinted and held the string and it snapped The tuning is on target. However, It had the right sound before it broke! I've tried putting new string on it before. It seemed to give it a nice sound for a little over 3 days."



hmmm...

how old are your strings? does your friend have fresh ones?

maybe you just prefer the "zingier" sound of new roundwounds (like me)... put on a fresh set of strings, and see if it gets any better. depending on how much you sweat (and if your sweat is acidic), and if you wash your hands before you play, your strings will lose their "zing" in a very short time. my hands sweat alot, and the strings stay fresh for maybe two hours. after that they start to go duller and duller...

the solution for this are:

-keeping your hands clean when playing
-wiping your strings after you´re done playing

or, you could buy a new set of strings every once in a while (not economical, though).

or boil them to get rid of the gunk (some people will disagree and argue they´ll not be the same and will snap easier).

[pbd]

lots of good ideas flying around, have you tried any of them yet?

let us know the results please,
Todd

[pricey]

Are you playing this plugged into an amplifier?

Playing with the EQ will definately improve your tone, start with everything set to 12 O'Clock, and then adjust until you get what you want. You say it sounds dull, so try a treble increase or a drop in 'bass'.

New strings will definately help, try looking for some 'Elixirs' which last for much longer than a normal string (I'm not sure if they do them for bass to be honest, but just ask at your local music store for some long life strings.)

Also, if that Stringray copy you have is anything like an MM Stingray, (I don't know how much you paid for it, so I could be wrong) it should have an onboard active EQ. Play with the knobs on the actual guitar and see how that improves the sound!

Try moving where you play the strings, playing right over the pickup where the strings are tighter should give you a brighter snappier sound than playing at the neck which will give a more mellowed round sound.

Don't give up!
Some players spend their whole life looking for the sound they want, just because you have a bit of trouble with your first bass doesn't mean its not for you!

Good Luck!

[JTE]

Look, if the bass sounds dull and lifeless unplugged, sell it and find one that sounds like a musical isntrument. I used to manage a store, and I took a lot of peoples' money to try to fix this problem. And I wasted a lot of my own time, money, and energy trying to turn two different basses into something they weren't. If the sound ain't in the wood, the electronics arent' going to help. Good electronics allow you to sculpt a good sounding bass' sound. But the bass has to sound good first.

A mahogany body wiht a 'hog neck is going to be kind of dull compared to other materials (however, the specs on that don't much match with the picture- "Cream Bound Rosewood Fretboard" isn't what's in the picture at all, and a dovetail neck sounds kind of suspcious for what appears to be a bolt-on neck).

Anyway, get to some music stores (if you can) and try out a lot of different basses to find some that sound good to you.

jte

[GlennW]

Originally Posted by JTE

If the sound ain't in the wood, the electronics arent' going to help. Good electronics allow you to sculpt a good sounding bass' sound. But the bass has to sound good first.

I disagree with that completely. Ever heard a Dano or an old H22?

I've heard many guitars and basses that sounded good not plugged in that sounded bad when amped, and vice versa.

The "wood is more important than the pickups" theory is bogus IMO.

[JimmyM]

I think both of you are right. Wood definitely plays into the sustain and decay of a bass, but tonally, I think it's more a function of the neck/body joint and where the pickup is located. You can get those overwound pickups and make drastic changes in tone and whatnot, but it always sounds like the same bass basically. Everything adds together to do what it does.

And then the player comes along and just throws a giant monkey wrench into the works

[JTE]

Yeah, I have heard and played Harmony H22s and a bunch of Dano/Silvertones. And the amplified sound isn't drastically different from the unamplified character of the instrument. The Harmony still doesn't have any sustain, and it's got a plunky sound that's very cool. My Silvertone (super short scale, like a guitar scale) had a great Steve Swallow thing going on around the 10th fret, but the PUP only contributed to the basic character of the bass. It didn't sound like a solid body bass at all.

The sound is in the wood, and I think the neck is the most important part of the wood, then the way the neck is joined, then the body and the bridge. That determines the essential sound of any particular bass. No, you can't make a P bass sound like a Jazz, and that's silly to suppose otherwise. But MY P sounds like MY P because of the wood, not the PUP. It sounds different from the other three P's I've owned, and from the myriaad P's I've played over 30 years. Why? Because the wood is different. My '73 always sounded bright, edgy, harsh, and had no warmth nor blossom to the note. It attacke the music rather than supported it. It had the stock '73 Fender PUPs, a set of '65 PUPs, two sets of re-wound early '60s PUPs, a set of DiMarzio PUPs (whatever was hip in 1978), some Duncan Vintage P PUPs, and the stock '73s rewound by Seymour himself. It had three bridges (stock, BadAss II, Schaller) on it. It had literally every string I could get my hands on while managing a guitar store. It always sounded like a twangy in your face bass, never like a Funk Machine. And, that's how it sounded unamplified.

And there's the fretless I had that never sounded right until I replaced the body, although replacing the rosewood board with a slab of ebony got it finally going in the right direction. And all the guitars and basses I changed PUPs in for people in my 11 years running a store, where it never made a major change in any of the instruments. OK, so it overdrove the amp more, or warmed up a particular Strat a bit. But that Strat still sounded like THAT Strat.

I stand by my experience.
jte

[GlennW]

Originally Posted by JTE

The sound is in the wood, and I think the neck is the most important part of the wood, then the way the neck is joined, then the body and the bridge. That determines the essential sound of any particular bass. No, you can't make a P bass sound like a Jazz, and that's silly to suppose otherwise. But MY P sounds like MY P because of the wood, not the PUP. It sounds different from the other three P's I've owned, and from the myriaad P's I've played over 30 years. Why? Because the wood is different. My '73 always sounded bright, edgy, harsh, and had no warmth nor blossom to the note. It attacke the music rather than supported it. It had the stock '73 Fender PUPs, a set of '65 PUPs, two sets of re-wound early '60s PUPs, a set of DiMarzio PUPs (whatever was hip in 1978), some Duncan Vintage P PUPs, and the stock '73s rewound by Seymour himself. It had three bridges (stock, BadAss II, Schaller) on it. It had literally every string I could get my hands on while managing a guitar store. It always sounded like a twangy in your face bass, never like a Funk Machine. And, that's how it sounded unamplified.

It almost sounds like your P has a maple body, but it probably doesn't...maybe it's one of those strange pieces of wood that comes along every now and then. But, I can't help thinking a set of LaBella DT flats and a SD SPB-2 run straight to the jack with a .1uF cap across it would have bassed up the sound considerably. But again, you obviously put a lot of effort in it, and you were there.

I agree about the neck making more difference than the body, even the same wood, a chunky maple neck will sound different than a slender one.

[JTE]

It was a heavy ash body, with a huge one-peice maple neck. Rolling down the tone control cut the highs, but never warmed up the bass. It went "blaatt" instead of "thump!". And the guy who bought it loved that sound.

See, it's not about being bassy or trebly, it's about the inherent balance between them. Doctoring the signal is just that, doctoring the signal. But the signal is what the PUPs sense from the vibrating strings. And that's purely a function of the strings and how they vibrate, which in turn is based on how the wood, metal, and assebly affect the strings.

jte