Making a bass sound like a guitar?

[Serac]

Is the only difference in sound between a bass and a guitar the strings, and the amp?

I'm thinking there's more to it, but let me run you past this idea of mine:

Could you make a bass sound more like a guitar by using guitar strings on a bass, and vise versa? Would it work?

[Mon Rominee]

A bass is tuned one octave down from a guitar. You want it to sound like guitar? Get a piccolo bass.

Or an octave (up) pedal and 2 more strings.

[Matt Till]

This is the trick I've been hiding for a while. I take guitar strings... usually Ernie Ball Heavy Bottom Light Top, and I string them up on my Peavey Guitar... I usually end up with a pretty accurate guitar sound.

Guitar.

[Selta]

Just capo the 12th fret?

-Ray

[Serac]

Originally Posted by Ray Salamon

Just capo the 12th fret?

-Ray

does that work though? It'd be cool to be able to play both insturment sound on your bass and change in the middle of a song...

[Freaky Fender]

A lot of the tonality of a guitar is produced by the shape and way a guitar is made, and the guitar strings them selves have less metal than bass strings, so there is no possible way to make it sound like a real guitar, even with 10K worth of midi gear, it won't sound like a REAL guitar.

[TheNerdBass]

Distortion... I have a setting that will make your ears bleed...

[Brendan]

Originally Posted by Matt Till

This is the trick I've been hiding for a while. I take guitar strings... usually Ernie Ball Heavy Bottom Light Top, and I string them up on my Peavey Guitar... I usually end up with a pretty accurate guitar sound.

Damn. I use the same trick. Only, I'm using DR Legend flats on my Squier. I guess great minds think alike.

[invisiman]

Cut everything, except treble, and boost it as high as you can without it getting to hissy. Otherwise, just buy a guitar.

[BlacktotheBlind]

with some distortion and an octave pedal i can get a decent guitar sound, but it just isn't the same.

[GetLow]

why would you want to sound like a guitar? everyone knows it's all about the lows.

[Bob Clayton]

i've used a capo before. granted not at the 12th fret, but yes, it works.

[Aaron Saunders]

Originally Posted by clay

i've used a capo before. granted not at the 12th fret, but yes, it works.

Yeah, but it doesn't actually sound like a guitar, because the sound of the bass, especially in that range, is so much rounder/fuller/tubier than the guitar. It might be the right pitches/range, but the sound is incredibly different.

[Bob Clayton]

Originally Posted by Aaron Saunders

Yeah, but it doesn't actually sound like a guitar, because the sound of the bass, especially in that range, is so much rounder/fuller/tubier than the guitar. It might be the right pitches/range, but the sound is incredibly different.

oh yeah, without a doubt, it would be in the right octave but totally wrong sound.

i thought he meant will a capo work on a bass at all.

[Aaron Saunders]

Originally Posted by clay

oh yeah, without a doubt, it would be in the right octave but totally wrong sound.

i thought he meant will a capo work on a bass at all.

Ohhh. Yeah, sure. I've actually used 'em a lot in solo works -- capo'd across E, A, and D, leaving G open, etc. It's really fun .

[jenderfazz]

The sound will never be exact, even with a capo at the 12th fret, since the bass is a longer scale than the typical guitar (we're talking at least 8-10 inches longer) giving a very different character. But if you want to get close, I guess stringing a 6 string EADGBE and capo-ing the 12th fret might work pretyt well. With distortion on, you shouldn't hear much difference.

[syciprider]

You may get the correct frequencies but you won't get the right tone.