Michael Neal on Maxwell MTV Unplugged

Noviisi · #1 08-24-2011, 02:28 PM

Hi!

What bass does Micheal Neal play in this album? Is there any good info about the player in the net? I can't find any... I would really like to know how to create a bass sound like that! Can you help me?

Here are some vids:
maxwell - the lady suite - MTV Unplugged - YouTube
maxwell - the suite urban theme (the hu - MTV Unplugged - YouTube
Maxwell - Mellow Sumthin Live - YouTube
Maxwell - Gotta get closer live (MTV unplugged).wmv - YouTube

Noviisi · #2 08-25-2011, 09:21 AM

It seems to me that it might be IBANEZ SR 505!!

Given that it really isn't high end bass I'm really suprised.
The sound is still awsome.
Can anybody confim that it is Ibanez SR 505 Mahogany?
You can see the bass in the two last youtube videos.

Would he be using Ibanez standard pickups? Or could he have changed those to make the sound better?

I heard that Ibanez changer the mics of SR 3 years ago. Today thay have Bartolini pickups. What were the pickups over 10 years ago when the video was recorded?

I was testing this bass today in a music store. I really couldn't get the exact sound from it. Could have been a worse than ok amplifier.... There was some growl but not like that in the videos. Any SR players here that could comment on gettin the Maxwell kind of growl/sound from your SR??

bass12 · #3 08-25-2011, 09:54 AM

Mike "Funky Ned" Neal is a great player. Check out his playing with Rare Essence and live with Me'shell Ndegéocello...

bass12 · #4 08-25-2011, 10:04 AM

As far as the bass is concerned it definitely looks like an Ibanez to me. What the pickups/electronics are is anyone's guess. You might want to try and track Mike down and ask him yourself. There are two other things to keep in mind. The first is that the sound you are hearing has been processed a certain way and is inevitably different from what you would experience playing the bass through an amp in a shop. The second point is that you could pick up ten "identical" basses (same manufacturer, model, specs) and they could all sound different.

Noviisi · #5 08-25-2011, 10:15 AM

Good points. Thnaks! How could I get Mikes email?

Big Pluck · #6 09-05-2011, 01:37 PM

I just got off the phone with Ned. He's my best friend.
He says it was a Tobias. Don't ask me the model. I'm not sure if he even remembers.