neck muting question (and Bill Clements/Fretgroove)

[WWcringe]

Hi

I recently found this clip of bassist Bill Clements...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3h7fH592u8

Nice playing huh?

I really like the tone on this clip, presumably partly Bill's technique and partly the innovative neck of the instrument he's using (thumbs up to him, and the luthier, who I found here: www.fretgroove.com).

But, can someone tell me about the muting he's using on the neck... ?

I've seen plenty of other players that use this too (eg Victor Wooten). It seems particularly common with bassists who slap, and in fact I think I've seen footage where Victor moves the damping from the bottom of the neck a bit further up for slapping/soloing...

I presume it helps mute the strings on fast playing where it wouldn't be possible to mute everything with fingers/hand?

However, on the clip of Bill there seems to be plenty of sustain (his vibrato helps of course) and he has what looks like quite a lot of material muting the strings (over the first fret?) even though he isn't playing a very percussive style...although I realise to play just with the left hand he must be using quite a lot of gain on the amp...

I'd like to experiment with this, does anyone else here use this? If so, what are you using?!

I don't slap that much (one of many things I need to learn), so is this irrelevant, or is it useful anyway?!

Any advice on this appreciated, I've wondered about it for a while!

Cheers,

Tom

[HaVIC5]

What that muting does, typically achieved by a scrunchie or something similar, is not allow the open strings to ring at all. The nature of the mute doesn't mute or dampen anything past the first fret or wherever its applied, it pretty much only applies to the open strings, where it deadens them basically entirely. When you're doing flashy slap stuff, it can get a bit messy when your hands are flying all over the place, and invariably there will be some open strings that you inadvertantly hit, or ring sympathetically when you can't afford any hand motion to stop them. A lot of tappers (including myself) use it also as an easy way to clean up their playing when the open strings aren't needed. That's basically what Bill is doing here - since his playing is basically just two-handed tapping minus one hand, the mute is there to compensate for a lack of right handed muting and helps him pull off those crazy one-handed lines.

Here's me using one on a tapping thing I did a couple years back. It would have been basically impossible to do it without the scrunchie in place (it's around the 2nd fret)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fduv3nF-kFA

[WWcringe]

Thanks Adam! That's by far the most helpful answer I've had on the topic (pretty much confirms what I had guessed), I just need to get something to try it with!

Great playing on Maple Leaf Rag, and your other clips too..

Bill seems to get plenty of sustain in his clip, maybe he doesn't have the damping too tight?

Still keen to hear what anyone else has to say on the subject...and what do you think of the Fretgroove bass?!

Cheers

Tom

[JAUQO III-X]

I own a 6 string Fretgroove bass. The concept is interesting. It sounds like a fretless and it sounds like a fretted if you want it to, all in the same song even.

The fret lines are brass inserted into the fb but instead of a enclosed piece of metal there is a slot cut into it what would be a fully concealed fret.

It has two very well balanced and hot single coils made by Marco Cortes( the creater and builder of Fretgrooves basses).

It really has a lot of growl and it sustains for days.

More info about the fretgroove bass.

http://www.christianmusiciansummit.c...6&func=&Style=