Playing Bass with a Low Frequency Hearing Loss

[MasterOfNone]

Hi all,

First time poster here, couldn't find a beginners forum so I decided this was probably the best place to ask my question.

First of all, I have a low frequency hearing loss (from an illness as a baby) that makes it very difficult for me to hear bass lines in many songs. In fact, I wasn't really aware of the existence of the bass as a young child until I saw one being played in a live band, and was wondering what the electric guitar with the fat strings was.

However, for one reason or another, I've been developing an interest in playing the bass recently. I can easily hear really "mid rangy" sounding bass tones, in songs by bands such as Interpol, Joy Division, The Cure, Tool, and others. I also like funk basslines a lot, as well. I can pick these bass lines out easily, but roll of the midrange and I loose the bass in the mix instantly. I used to think this was a normal thing, but apparently the average person doesn't have any problem hearing and following bass lines in any and all songs.

I guess what I'm really asking is if I would just be wasting my time trying to learn without being able to hear the low frequencies well. If I do start playing, I plan on getting a cheap SX Jazz bass (more mid-rangy than a P bass, it would seem), and seeing how it goes. I can mess with the EQ on my stereo to make the bassline stand out (I do this a lot already) so I can start to learn the songs and such. I worry that this approach won't help my when I want to play with a band with a regular mix going on, which is my eventual goal. What do you guys think? Any bass players out there with a hearing loss like mine?

[Mingus]

If you believe, then you can achieve! Seriously, you can do whatever you want, don't let your problems discourage you.

As a side question, If you turn the Bass way up, can you feel it? Would that make a difference?

[MarkTAW]

Heh, feeling the bass rather than hearing the bass is one way to approach it. A buttkicker in addition to a practice amp may be interesting.

You could also go for an 8 string bass, where the strings are doubled an octave higher. Surely you can hear the bass on Led Zeppelins' Presence album - that's all 8 string bass. Though most bands wouldn't hire you if that was your main thing since you start competing with the guitars and vocals for sonic space.

[MasterOfNone]

Well, I listen to music on headphones a lot, don't own a real speaker system outside my car at the moment (this will change soon), but yeah, I can definitely feel it. Not sure if I can feel the pitch, though, which is key for by ear learning and such. Also, I can hear the open low E when played by itself, so I can hear frequencies that low, just not as well. I'm sure I'll be able to get by when practicing and such, but its the gigging I worry about. I guess I'll have to get a pretty hefty monitor system or something, but thats a ways down the road at this point. I'm thinking I'll just get the SX Jazz and a decent amp when I get paid, and see what happens. Its cheap enough that I should be able to eat even if I don't wind up being a success.

[MarkTAW]

Just because you can hear the string doesn't mean you can hear the fundamental. There are other higher notes contained within the low E that you can hear even if the fundamental is missing.

The fundamental of an open E string is 41.2 hz, which is a mere octave above the minimum sound we can detect, much less hear with any meaning.

None of us can hear bass as well as other frequencies, and it's not until about 80 decibels that we hear things anywhere close to flat. For more, read up on Equal Loudness Contours aka Fletcher Munsen Curves.

This mp3 is 25 seconds long. It starts with a tone anyone should hear just above 600hz. This tone is made up of 5 different notes, each an octave apart. The lowest is that of the fundamental of the open E, the highest is 5 octaves above.

Every 5 seconds the highest octave drops out until for the last 5 seconds you're left with 41.2 hz alone, fundamental tone of the open E.

http://www.marktaw.com/temp/41.2hz.mp3

I can hear these in my headphones just fine & if I listen through good speakers I can hear it if I turn up a bit. Through my laptop speakers it just sounds like buzzy farting - they can't produce the low notes.

If you can hear the last tone with halfway decent headphones & with good speakers, then you can hear the fundamental of the low E string, otherwise you're not hearing the low E, but rather just the overtones.

This doesn't mean you can't play bass, it just means you're not hearing the lowest notes the bass can produce, and hearing hints at those notes.

This isn't meant to replace a hearing test given to you by a competent professional, however, who should be able to tell you how much low end hearing loss you really have.

Lastly, have you considered earplugs that cut the highs more than the bass? Every musician should wear earplugs to protect their hearing & the uneven coverage most people complain about could actually help you.

[MasterOfNone]

So, I whipped out my hearing charts, and quickly noticed that the lowest frequency they measure is 125hz, which isn't that low. In that range, I have a moderate hearing loss(according to the key on the side), about 50-60 dB. The loss starts at about 600hz, and seems to continue flat.

I can definitely hear the second to last tone in the sequence MarkTAW posted, and I'm pretty sure I'm hearing the lowest one, but its possible I'm just hearing some distortion. I don't think so, though, so thats encouraging. Though, I've got to say I still have trouble with some parts in real music. The second bass break in Led Zeppelin's "Good Times, Bad Times" sounds really muffled to me, even with headphones and boosted EQ. Upright acoustic basses are almost inaudible to me in most songs. However, I think I'll be able to fight my way through some of the difficulties, and at least have some fun learning. Thanks for all your help. Time for a new question...

[MarkTAW]

The second to last tone was ~82.4 Hz and would correspond to E above the lowest E, which I believe is the lowest note on a guitar.

The second bass break in Good Times, Bad Times *is* really muffled and URB *is* almost inaudible on most songs.

How about the bass line to Peggy Lee's "Fever." That's a very audible URB. I don't think it hits a note below A, but that A is already 55 Hz.

Dazed & Confused would probably be a really good song for you to test your hearing on. It starts with a brief open E (41.2) and then has this descending riff that starts at ~100 Hz (G) and goes down to ~62 Hz (B) before repeating. If you think you have a real rolloff in the last few octaves, this would be the song to test it on. But if you have a general flat-lined problem below 600 Hz, I wouldn't worry - most human speech is in the range of 600 Hz and if you can hear speech, low notes on guitars, car engines and stuff, you should probably be able to hear bass.