That Marcus slap tone

phippsyg · #1 07-17-2007, 01:55 AM

Have been listening to a lot of Marcus and lately and his tone to me seems to be the opposite of what a lot of people do with a slap sound. Generally slap presets scoop the mids but in Marcus's sound the mids seem to be really present to my ears. It seems to be what fattens up his sound.
What is everyones take on this?

I guess I am trying (like the million others) to get his slap sound happening and was thinking if I boost the mids a little it my help. It also sounds like he has some chorus happening? I know its a bit of a secret, and no I don't want to buy the Marcus bass. Anyway maybe jump on Myspace page and check out the track icandee and the terribly sloppy Southern Fried (I will post polished versions, soon.... one day maybe?), and tell compared to the sound I have now, what I need to do to beef it up.

Dr. Cheese · #2 07-17-2007, 05:13 AM

Just get a Jazz bass and really learn some Marcus tunes, and the sound will come. It's really that simple.

phippsyg · #3 07-17-2007, 05:22 AM

Damn! I don't want to buy a Jazz bass or a Marcus signature as I was saying in my post. I did play the Marcus sig and the slap sound was great, however I didn't find it verstile enough (just my opinion). I looove my Alembic. However I was wondering if people thought that Marcus sound was fattened with mids as opposed to normally scooping the mids. Yes I want his sound just like everyone, however I don't want it all the time. I love the Stanley type slap sound I can get, and I think sometimes I can get close (?) to the Marcus thing, however besides his bass I wonder what is happening eq wise and if he is using chorus etc.

Dr. Cheese · #4 07-17-2007, 05:35 AM

You don't need a Marcus Miller sig, you just need a Jazz bass, any Jazz bass or Jazz style bass. For example, I can get a great Marcus Miller sound on a G&L JB-2, Squier Precision Bass Special Five (J/J), a Peavey Foundation, or a Fender Geddy Lee Jazz. I got a nice Marcus Miller sound with a Skyline 55-02 (Barts) when I split the rear humbucker towards the back coil. Get a jazz and get busy.

DWBass · #5 07-17-2007, 07:00 AM

Well, basically his bass has 2 band eq (bass/treble) so if any mids are worked in there, it's done so elsewhere. Secondly, his sound comes from his hands. I've only heard a few cats who can really achieve his 'sound' (Peter Muller, Oskar Cartaya). I don't know about folks getting an opposite sound as there are quite a lot of old school players who prefer that old school tone. I personally can't stand that brand new strings, treble boosted, ear piercing sound a lot of modern cats have when slapping! Listen to some Larry Graham, Mark Adams and other old schoolers and you'll hear the difference.

morf · #6 07-17-2007, 07:07 AM

To me, Marcus has THE slap tone period. Noone has a better tone than he does on his all stock MM Fender. I dont know how he does it. I tried a lot of different combinations to get to his tone on my Conklin, and I get fairly close with my mids and bass turned up, but like DWBass says he has an amazing touch that isnt very easy to copy. The man is as funky as they come.

I found out the more funk I played (fingerstyle, not slap) the better I actually got at playing Marcus' way.

lefty007 · #7 07-17-2007, 08:18 AM

A big part of the Marcus sound is not only the EQ or preamp, but the bass characteristics: ash body, maple neck and board, and the '70 pickup location. '70s Jazzes have a strong mids (and Jazz basses in general) so I little bump in the high and lows still leaves plenty of mids in the sound.

You don't have to have a '70s Jazz or signature model to get a similar sound, but it will certainly help. Amps are also part of the equation. You won't get a Marcus sound out of a Peavy 15" combo with no horn. You need a high-quality, modern amp.

phxlbrmpf · #8 07-17-2007, 01:20 PM

Marcus also has the ultimate slap tone in my book, some modern slappers tend to sound too thin and twangy but he always has the ultimate balance of bottom and "snap"! I'd love to see his amp settings sometime, I'm sure he doesn't boost his highs as much as most other slappers do.

bottomzone · #9 07-17-2007, 01:36 PM

Check out Byant Wilder:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/bwilder

Not bad..........

Yeah, right!!!!!!!!!!!

The best slap tones that I have ever heard were accomplished on a Peavey Cirrus 5, A Ken Smith 5 and 6, a Warwick Thumb 5 NT and BO, Louis Johnson and Danny Wilson(Jeff Lorber Fusion) on a Music Man Stingray, and a Sadowsky Modern 5 24. To each his tone..........

Keep God First!

A Groove is a Terrible Thing to Waste!

DWBass · #10 07-17-2007, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bottomzone

Check out Byant Wilder:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/bwilder

Not bad..........

Yeah, right!!!!!!!!!!!

I will be buying that cd! Dude is mad funky! Track 3 is a monster! I dig!

machine gewehr · #11 07-17-2007, 02:22 PM

Also,brand new DR Hi-Beams help his sound.I don't think he boosts much mids on the amp,it sounds like the combination of the "body+p.up placement+moded preamp" to my ears.OTOH,I have bad ears.

Dr. Cheese · #12 07-17-2007, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bottomzone

Check out Byant Wilder:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/bwilder

Not bad..........

Yeah, right!!!!!!!!!!!

The best slap tones that I have ever heard were accomplished on a Peavey Cirrus 5, A Ken Smith 5 and 6, a Warwick Thumb 5 NT and BO, Louis Johnson and Danny Wilson(Jeff Lorber Fusion) on a Music Man Stingray, and a Sadowsky Modern 5 24. To each his tone..........

Keep God First!

A Groove is a Terrible Thing to Waste!

Bryant Wilder is a good example of how much the Marcus Miller sound is essentially the jazz bass sound. He is sure not a Marcus clone, but certainly sounds like Marcus when slaps!

BTW, you are right, the Cirrus, Stingray, MTD, and many, many other basses have incredible slap tones too.

Eublet · #13 07-17-2007, 03:35 PM

i don't think Marcus has a lot of mids in his tone. not really scooped, the highs are definitely sizzling, and the lows are up just a bit. I guess you could say it is somewhat scooped. To me it just sounds like an active jazz instead of a passive one. Nothing really special about the tone itself, but his playing makes it really jump out at you.

T-MOST · #14 07-17-2007, 03:35 PM

The bass Marcus uses is not a stock Fender Jazz. It has A sadowsky 2 band pre and who knows what kind of pups. If you add that with "Marcus" you get the Marcus slap tone which you (or anyone) will never 100% duplicate. So don't stress... just play!

bottomzone · #15 07-17-2007, 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DWBass

I will be buying that cd! Dude is mad funky! Track 3 is a monster! I dig!

If you like Bryant Wilder, check THIS dude out:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/petermuller

There is only one Marcus...but Peter is KILLING!!!!!!!

Keep God First!

A Groove is a Terrible Thing to Waste!

MikeBass · #16 07-17-2007, 06:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bottomzone

If you like Bryant Wilder, check THIS dude out:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/petermuller

There is only one Marcus...but Peter is KILLING!!!!!!!

Keep God First!

A Groove is a Terrible Thing to Waste!

Peter Muller sounds EXACTLY like Marcus (thanks DW!).
Almost sad really how much he sounds like him.

Brad Johnson · #17 07-17-2007, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by T-MOST

The bass Marcus uses is not a stock Fender Jazz. It has A sadowsky 2 band pre and who know what kind of pups. If you add that with "Marcus" you get the Marcus slap tone which you (or anyone) will never 100% duplicate. So don't stress... just play!

Sorry, that's just plain wrong. Bartolini preamp, Fender Jazz pickups.

And IME the sound isn't that hard to get with an Ash bodied, Maple boarded 70's Jazz. The thing for me is, why try to duplicate his sound? I have no desire to be mistaken for anyone else.

Brad Johnson · #18 07-17-2007, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeBass

Peter Muller sounds EXACTLY like Marcus (thanks DW!).
Almost sad really how much he sounds like him.

+1

morf · #19 07-17-2007, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brad Johnson

Sorry, that's just plain wrong. Bartolini preamp, Fender Jazz pickups.

And IME the sound isn't that hard to get with an Ash bodied, Maple boarded 70's Jazz. The thing for me is, why try to duplicate his sound? I have no desire to be mistaken for anyone else.

Its just fun to learn and mold it into your own personal style. Nothing wrong with learning to be funky by taking pointers from someone like Marcus Miller imho.

Brad Johnson · #20 07-17-2007, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by morf

Its just fun to learn and mold it into your own personal style. Nothing wrong with learning to be funky by taking pointers from someone like Marcus Miller imho.

Most of the people I've heard go after it aren't about molding it into a personal style. They want to sound like Marcus.

BTW if this is going to have you crying again about me being mean to you, by all means ignore it. I had enough the last time. Otherwise, carry on.