Well, *I* thought my tone was good...

[Dave Muscato]

Something you hate to hear a fellow bassist say...

--

I played a good-sized show tonight (500-seater). The supplied backline was a Carvin Red Line 1000 watt head with a Carvin Red Eye 4x10 w/horn. I played my Line6 Variax 705 with a Line6 Bass POD xt Live. The PODs have 2 outputs: one with amp & cab modelling and one without. I sent the modelled output straight to the board, and the direct out to the Carvin head and cab as a stage monitor.

I usually play fingerstyle, but the last song was pretty straight-ahead rock, 1/8 notes the whole time, so I decided to play it with a pick. I spent some extra time during soundcheck programming a good tone for that song, and decided on the '63 Fender P with roundwounds into the SVT model, a little bit of compression with the MXR Dynacomp, and just a touch of grit from the Big Muff Pi.

Afterward, a bassist friend of mine came up to me and said, "You sounded good tonight. Did you play that last song with a pick?"

Sometimes, I don't know why we bother (playing live, anyway). I guarantee the non-musician audience couldn't tell! Really, in a band context, do you think anybody notices bass tone? Or at least, do they notice and/or appreciate it at all in proportion to how much time, effort, and money we spend on it?

Curious about your thoughts,

Dave

[JimmyM]

You are absolutely right. Nobody cares about your tone at all. Unless it's bad. Then they care a lot. That's why we spend the money and the time. Or not. It doesn't matter if you do or not, as long as it sounds good.

[xifr]

Yes they do, but not as we do. The audience are not able to say 'That extra bit of lower mids really helped you cut through,' but rather they would say something like 'that sounded off,' or 'it didn't sound like the original' or 'it was lacking.' I'm not a drummer, but I might hear a song that sounds really tight, and if I listen closely, I'd notice that the drums have a very studio sound or something.

However, with that said, what your fingers sound like is infinitely more important than what your gear sounds like.

[BrandonBass]

as long as your tone cuts through and it fits the context of the song then its good. tbh, before i started playing bass i almost never notice the bass

not until i heard of Rancid anyways

[Bass Viking]

The important thing is: if it sounds good to YOU, you'll play better and the audience will notice (hopefully) even if they don't appreciate all the tweaking you did to get your tone.

[ogrossman]

Originally Posted by Bass Viking

...if it sounds good to YOU, you'll play better...

+1 No doubt about it; I play better when I'm liking the way my bass sounds (and visa versa).

[Smallmouth_Bass]

Originally Posted by Bass Viking

The important thing is: if it sounds good to YOU, you'll play better and the audience will notice (hopefully) even if they don't appreciate all the tweaking you did to get your tone.

That's right on there!

The musicians might notice, the band might notice, the soundman or engineer might notice but I doubt if anyone else really notices. The general public can probably distinguish between "it sounds bad" and "it sounds good". Playing in a cover band, I have a few sounds that will cover it all. I could go for the original recording tones but at the end of the day, it probably wouldn't make any difference anyway. A few solid sounds are all you really need.

[popinfresh]

To answer the original question, definantly not. I've spent thousands upon thousands on my gear and people in the audience (even my parents when they used to come to shows) wouldn't notice.. My mum only asked me the other day when I was practicing band songs at home if it was me that played "that thing" in "that song", talking about a line that i've been playing for almost a year, lol.

To me though, if I like my sound, I enjoy playing more and put in more energy, which is something that translates to the majority of the audience. The most compliments we get are tight and energetic.. Which I think comes from both our gear (we have a really full sound) and how we play when we're digging the gig overall. So it's not really that the audience doesn't notice the effort and time put in I don't think, but they only hear the big picture.

[stuonbass]

by the average audience member. They can care less about your tone unless it is really bad. The mix is a totally different issue. This is where you can get short shrifted. Some sound men will bury you in the mix or roll all your highs off (they dont like any clicky, fretty noises coming through their horns). Check to see how your bass guitar channel is EQ'ed on the board. If highs and mids are cut, try to get a listen out front of the mix.
Since I "discovered" tone, I have become a much different player, much more restrained and in the pocket. I can lock in with the drummer, feel the groove, and enjoy playing to much greater extent now.

[Ibanezzer]

like others I think the tone does make a difference, though I think that the little things that we as musicians fuss over are the things that make the difference between being just a medioche band and being a cool band that people want to come see. Like bassists who spend hours upon hours tweaking their line6 pods or their tube preamps just for that perfect tone. I just recently finally reached my perfect tone through a new preamp and man I must say it makes a huge difference to me, and I'm thinking other musiciasn though they may not notice specifically what causes it to be good they do appreciate it I think. BUt just the fact that I know that I love my tone is all that I need, what others think wouldn't bother me at all because I love MY tone, because its all mine and encompases a few years of searching to get it.

[Roger Pounders]

Tone does matter, but to different people in different ways,

to a musician, he/she will notice and say, I really dig that slap tone you get. are you hitting on the fretboard or below?

you will think, wow I really dig the tone I get when I play above the bridge with the tone pot set thus and and the neck pickup cut thus with my EQ set thus while using said strings and hitting with the pad of my index finger after such and such callous has developed to such and such degree, it fits the song perfectly etc etc.

to the layman, they notice tones, but more on a subconcious level that enables them to say, wow that song really sounds good and gets my toe tapping.

[Matthew Bryson]

I'm a little confused about the original post. The OP seems to have a real "why bother" attitude and based on the idea that nobody even notices… But in the story in the original post - somebody did notice.

A bassist friend came up to you and said…

Originally Posted by Dave Muscato

Afterward, a bassist friend of mine came up to me and said, "You sounded good tonight. Did you play that last song with a pick?"

He said that you sounded good and he did notice that change in sound when you used a pick. What more do you want? Did you want more people coming up and saying that same thing, or should this guy have carried on a bit more about it so that his comments would have been "in proportion to how much time, effort, and money" you've spent on your gear.
It sounds to me like at least one person (and probably more) did notice the subtle difference in your tone, but you're complaining that nobody notices?

[Scourge441]

Originally Posted by Matthew Bryson

I'm a little confused about the original post. The OP seems to have a real "why bother" attitude and based on the idea that nobody even notices… But in the story in the original post - somebody did notice.

A bassist friend came up to you and said…


He said that you sounded good and he did notice that change in sound when you used a pick. What more do you want? Did you want more people coming up and saying that same thing, or should this guy have carried on a bit more about it so that his comments would have been "in proportion to how much time, effort, and money" you've spent on your gear.
It sounds to me like at least one person (and probably more) did notice the subtle difference in your tone, but you're complaining that nobody notices?

The friend noticed because he's a bassist. The threadstarter is talking about your average, nonmusician everyday Joe.

[RikBass]

I have found from playing for many years to many audiences that the average punter can not pick the bass line or sound out of a song, they just notice that " something is missing " if you stop playing.

This is either frustrating or a blessing. Frustrating because of the time and energy( and Money! ) we put into attaining our tone ans a blessing because in the rock bands i play in it means none of the audience notice if you make a bit of a mistake. They also rarely notice if you don't.

I agree that if you feel you have agreat tone you play better and that when it comes to the crowd, as a bassist its best if they feel there is nothing to comment on as it fits right and must sound right.

I mean, how many times have you played a signature bass part to a non muso, or even your guitarist and got the response " Wow, does the bass do that? "

Be happy with your tone and your understanding of the basses role within most bands and groove. Other bassists will appreciate it and if you really want to stand out become a lead guitarist.
Rock on

[geoffkhan]

Take it as a compliment that he didn't notice your tone. That meant that you were fitting in to the ensemble and helping gel things.

Actually, personally, probably the first thing that I notice when listening to a bassist is their tone.

[bassbully43]

I still think the people just enjoy the music and unless you are playing way off scale or something crazy they wouldnt notice your tone at all. I agree with another who posted here they do notice if you stop playing thou since the bottom falls out...this is for sure. If you have a decent tone your fine a high treble of huge bottom might get some looks thou.

[Bassic83]

Nah. It's all about the choreography. That's all bands are- the frontman, and the dancers. You gotta be fly to get noticed. Ask Leland Sklar- he'll tell you!

[SteveC]

Originally Posted by Smallmouth_Bass

I doubt if anyone else really notices. The general public can probably distinguish between "it sounds bad" and "it sounds good". Playing in a cover band, I have a few sounds that will cover it all. I could go for the original recording tones but at the end of the day, it probably wouldn't make any difference anyway. A few solid sounds are all you really need.

Originally Posted by bassbully43

I still think the people just enjoy the music and unless you are playing way off scale or something crazy they wouldnt notice your tone at all. I agree with another who posted here they do notice if you stop playing thou since the bottom falls out...this is for sure.

I think you always want to have "your" sound. I play in a cover band and we play it mostly like the original, we get the main "licks" that you would listen for in there, but it also sounds like "us" playing. I have a basic sound that I use. I make most of my chnages by moving my right hand. Sometimes I'll adjust my on-board eq or pick-up pan, but rarely.

Most of your audience is pretty ignorant to the details. Anyone who would notice is probably another bass player or a friend who's there to listen anyway.

[dave s]

Out of all the local bands in my area (NE Ohio) that I've seen in the past 5 years, only a scant few bass players have rigs that (IMO) sound really good!

My favorite bass player uses SWR power and Eden cabs. Another player uses a power amp/preamp setup, the last guy uses vintage Fender basses through an old ampeg SVT/810 rig.

They all have one thing in common: Good note and string articulation paired with bone-crushing LOW end! I don't know why this is the type of tone that appeals to me, or whether it would be shared by others, but with tone like these guys get, they can carry the entire band on their shoulders.

And I have to agree with the original poster ... almost nobody in the audience cares!

dave

[tZer]

I agree that most audience members are completely clueless about the bass, tone, technique - any of that - unless you are really bad and make it obvious that it is you who makes your band sound like shiiite...

Your tone should make you (and your band) feel good about your role in the band. That was one thing I loved about my last cover band - they all were very complimentary about my sound, tone and technique. I could care less about what most in the audience thought about my sound - which is why I also paid close attention to stage presence. That is what 99% of the crowd WILL respond to - how you look and act, not how you play and sound. It always amazed me how "Johnny drunk-ass" would come up to me and say all these great things about how good I am when you could tell he barely even knew I played bass... It was clear he was reacting to my show and not my playing.

But for that rare occasion when there is another bass player in the crowd and your tone, technique and overall performance is right on the money - that is like the icing on the cake when they come up to you and say, "Dude! I love your sound!".

For the rest of 'em - shake yo groove thing, shake yo groove thing, yeah, yeah! Show 'em how ya do it now!