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A Bass Player's Guitar

MUSHROOMSeAcOw

MUSHROOMSeAcOw

Aug 1, 2010
416
1
Georgia
#1
I am ashamed to admit I have been dabbling in guitardation to satisfy some musical urges in between boring songs with the band. Shopping around for an ax, I started to wonder what bass players find attractive in a guitar. What neck profiles, pickup combinations, etc. would you look for in the bass's decidedly inferior cousin?

I have to say I'm partial to SGs with three humbuckers. My brother runs one through a nice Marshall combo, and he gets a very nice general rock sound out of it.

What would you look for in a gee-tar if you had to buy one, from a bassist's perspective?
 
#3
I play guitar nearly as much as I play bass, but bass is and has been my primary since I got into music.

I think that it's completely personal preference. Some are Fender guys, some are Gibson guys. Personally, I really love PRSs :bassist:

As for pickups, I like the clarity of humbuckers so that I can get a wide variation of tones with my multi-effects unit without too much trouble. Usually I prefer something like the neck on a PRS: not as thin as 80's shred machines, but not as fat as a Fender or Gibson.
 
#4
I have two USA Strat. A '04 w/ hot noiseless pickups (my traditional guitar) and a '09 Oly White, Rosewood w/ DiMarzio rails (my Blackmore wanna-be guitar). You should be comfortable with a modern C type neck. I'm having a GAS to buy a white SG.
 
#5
I personally have a very cheap Ibanez RG7 (got for $200 used shipped) and just run it through a POD. I play a preset I made that sounds identical to Periphery/Bulb. I have several noise gates to get rid of the hum, though. Seven noise gates, actually.

My chain:


Input > 4-band semi-parametric EQ > Gate > Gate > Gates > Tube Screamer > Gate > Gate > Compressor > ENGL Powerball (Line 6 Big Bottom) > 4x12 Treadplate (Dynamic Mic) > Noise Gate > Noise Gate > Output.

I just play through headphones or through my monitors (latency comes in here. But I CAN hook up the pod to the speakers if I like.)

 
#6
lol guitars aren't inferior to bass. I have an SG and I really like it, and I also have a classical guitar. I like guitars with a bigger body, ES-335s come to mind, and I tried a les paul and the body felt really small to me...i didn't really like it.

For you, I'd figure out the type of music you want to play, and check out what the guitar players are playing, and check them out--you do it on bass, you can do it on guitar too :)
 
#7
+1 to superbassman2000.

I simply got a cheap model because of my budget. But it can still sound like a dream if I go digital, which is all I do anyhow. As far as the cheap-construction goes, it doesn't bother me. It's not a bass.
 
#8
superbassman2000 said:
lol guitars aren't inferior to bass. I have an SG and I really like it, and I also have a classical guitar. I like guitars with a bigger body, ES-335s come to mind, and I tried a les paul and the body felt really small to me...i didn't really like it.

For you, I'd figure out the type of music you want to play, and check out what the guitar players are playing, and check them out--you do it on bass, you can do it on guitar too :)
Click to expand...

Lol, the inferior thing was a joke. I like the guitar a lot, there are so many songs out there that I love, but the bass can be plain boring to play alone. I'm on the brink of pulling the trigger on an Epi G-400 Custom at the local shop, it is truly awesome (despite the fact that it is very similar to my brother's).
 
#9
If you buy an Epi G-400, in no time will you be having a massive GAS attack for a real Gibson SG!

If you want to buy an amp, test the Tech 21 Trademark 60 (around $320). I tested about a dozen guitar amps in last December and nothing else under $500 came even close to the 60.
 
#10
Bass player dabbling in guitars here also. About a year ago I decided to try to pick up the guitar and learn another instrument in addition to bass. What I found was the Tele's were too twangy for my bass ears. The standard Strat was too sharp for my taste as well. I wanted something smooth, darker, lots of tone control with clean chords and a crisp but not harsh top end. I found that just about any guitar with humbuckers fit the bill, a nice bridge between bass and guitar.

I started with an Les Paul and really liked it but missed not having a wammy option then stumbled across a new offering from Fender. The Fender Blacktop Strat with dual humbuckers and a maple neck is the perfect guitar. Looks fantastic (black body, maple neck and fretboard, dual humbuckers, 5 way switch, and a wammy). Plays fantastic and can easily go from creamy rich thick bass like rifs on the low E with neck pickup to full shread on the bridge pickup. The price was right also, just $450. Fender makes a Blacktop Strat, Jag and Tele, all with dual humbuckers. Check em out, they're LP killers.

Here's a link:
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#11
I play bass, guitar, drums and keys, so I'm always gassing for something!
Being a big Rush fan, & also a Gibson guitar lover, I have a Gibson Alex Lifeson Signature ES-355, a Gibson Les Paul Axcess, and a Gibson 30-Year Commemorative Flying V.
The Axcess is my favorite. It has a Floyd, so the tuning stability is excellent, you can split the pickups & get both humbucker and single coil tones, and it plays like a dream.
If you like the Gibson SG, then play a few & get one of those. I've played some great SGs, and I love their snarl, light weight, comfort and balance - a classic rock guitar that will always be in style.
 
#15
I 'played' guitar before I ever started bass, and have traded and played many guitars.

I love both single coils and humbuckers, but I'm too traditional for split coils. My three favorite guitars I've owned were a Fender Standard Tele 2008, a Gibson Les Paul Studio Limited from 1996, and PRS SE Custom, but I only own the Tele now. But I still g.a.s for my old guitars.

I'd also check out Godin, they make fantastic stuff.
 
#17
I was always partial to Gibsons over Fenders, for that reason my 2 main electrics are a sweet '70 ES335 and a an Ibanez GAX70 which is a budget guitar but plays like butter and really sounds great. I do have a Stratofrankenwhammy type beast and several acoustics floating about as well.
 

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