Best bass for studio work

[NoSlapForYou]

All that said, I still think the engineers will be happier if you just show up with a P bass.

 

[4string5string]

The one that you know how to play the best...

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

I quit using LaBellas once the TI Jazz Flatwounds arrived. Labella are the stiffest dullest strings I’ve ever played, unless we’re talking about the Labella Low Tension Flats, they are quite nice. Just my take of course. Lakland has some beautiful 44-64’s and the Skyline 44-46’s are quite reasonable.

I had TI JF344 on all my basses.
Then I put a set of light-gauge Chromes in an Elrick as I accidentally broke a string, and then, when the J neck of my bastard P bass started to feel the upcoming winter I decided to try a set of stiffer strings and carry out a thorough setup.
I tried Pyramid (good vintage tone), Fender (sandy and trebly) and Dunlop (total waste of money), but they were all in the 45-105 range, and had a tension which I couldn’t easily adjust to.
Then I installed a set of LaBella DTF 760 FL; going from TI JF344 (they were back up again in the meantime) , I had to tighten the truss rod just a tad.
They are stiffer than TI (of course, even the LTF-4A you mentioned are stiffer than them) but not by a great extent and they are very, very punchy with a very balanced volume between the strings and a super smooth finish under the fingers.
I am very satisfied
Now I’ve got a J and a P with TI, an Elrick with Chromes and a P with LaBella; the P has got a J neck and they adjusted to it very easily.

 

[BlackVincent52]

 

[sonojono]

This entire thread will answer “P Bass”

And I am contributing that a P Bass is definitely what you need for your situation. Good luck!

 

[PrairieThunder13]

Yeah, you know what, try looking out for a nice peavey t40. No hum, and fret buzz, well you won't be getting any fret buzz with a good touch. Flatwounds definitely help. The old peaveys have thin necks so definitely keep the tension low - i've got thomastik infeld jazz flats on mine. Great sound. What i'll say is number one, i've had many occasions in the studio where i've run through 3 or 4 options and not had luck, picked up the peavey and got it to sit right away; number 2, they're absolute chameleons but one sound i haven't quite managed to cop on mine has been that of the jazz bass, meaning that it might be a nice compliment to your jazz; and number 3, incredibly high quality construction. Definitely great instruments.

 

[brianrost]

What do you want out of a bass that your Yamaha and Harley Benton aren’t giving you? Are they set up properly with good strings?

+1,000,000

In case someone has not already given you the short answer:

A repairman can easily do any necessary fretwork and properly shield the electronics so it's quiet. If you don't do your own setups, get it intonated while it's in the shop. Those three things are more important than anything else. As long as the bass has an good sound, you're done. Otherwise you can go down the rabbit hole of swapping pickups.

 

[Rib 13]

For what you are describing, I would suggest a PJ bass....You have the P at your disposal if trying to stay classic but can dial in/out extra articulation at the J bridge as needed for a more modern flair if the situation requires it....Equally important will be your string type choices and newness

 

[Smooth_bass88]

A Fender Precision Bass, all day. Actually you should have two of them; one with roundwound strings and the other with flatwound strings.

 

[luciens]

If I had new ears, and it were for money and it was reasonably straightforward tunes like 70's funk, oldies, etc., I'd just bring my Tony Franklin and be done with it.

If I'm the proverbial "audio engineer", though, and it were my own recordings, etc., I'd probably use all 3 of the basses I currently have (Tony Franklin, Jaco jazz bass and L2000).

For a live gig, the L2000 fretted bass hands down. I don't care who the "audio engineer" was. He'd just have to kiss my azz, and deal with the L2K because that's just what he would get.

All that said, tho, I think the Tony Franklin would probably be the most versatile recording bass you could possibly get for any price. Not only a P bass, but has the P/J configuration, the blade PU switch like on a guitar, and can get everything from a pure Jaco-tone-turned-up-to-11 on the bridge PU, to the freak nastiest dirtiest P bass tone possible of any P bass in existence. But also totally smooth for that "just there in the background" bass tone because of the lack of frets, but still sounds like a P bass. So I just wouldn't use anything else, personally for basic stuff.
If I needed a fretted bass, it would be the L2000 and my Cali 76 guitar compressor.....

L

 

[39-Bassist]

A P bass, A Jazz bass and a Stingray sounds about what you may need...lol

Actually I personally would do a Jazz bass with flats and a set of S.D. Stk-2J's...they are quiet and sound great. BUT that is just me.

 

[Hypocrite]

I'd say stick with Yamaha, maybe a fiver for the RnB, active/passive switchable, your choice of rounds or flats.
Forget Fender, the price seldom matches the quality, unless you (or your clients) actually care about the name on the headstock. A decent Yamaha TRB will last you a lifetime.

 

[Acoustic356]

Look at the greats and see what they used...

• Lee Sklar
• Nathan East
• Anthony Jackson

Alternately, take a listen to the bassists that do the type of music that you want to record and see what they are doing.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

Great. The OP is looking at Squiers and a $5K Custom Shop bass is suggested. I’ve read that Pino uses TI flats.

Don’t know whether a Squier is good enough for the OP but when you’re asked what the best bass for recording is … you can usefully watch this video and decide:

 

[DrayMiles]

A Fender Precision bass.
A Fender Jazz bass.
A Musicman Stingray bass.
An upright bass.
A Moog keyboard.
Some kind of 5 string if you deem it necessary.

You're covered in the studio... In relation to Bass only... IMO.

 

[jessiejs]

This is true. It matters so much less now. I record and mix my own music at home. I've used wildly "inappropriate" basses to get certain sounds. I used a P bass with flats on a metal song. Once I ran it through a Darkglass amp sim and boosted a lot of high mids, I don't think a single person in the world could have identified it as a P bass with flats.

With an infinite variety of plugins at your disposal now, you can get almost any tone with any bass.

Having worked in studio recording for years, I can attest that what you say is correct. We can use whatever we want, however, it is always best to start with the right tones or at least as close as possible so you don't have to do too much when it comes to sonic and tone balancing later. Kind of like having a vocalist singing through a low quality dynamic mic in a room with untreated acoustics. Yea, you can do it, but the amount of work you are going to have to do post during the mixing process is gong to be extreme.

Having said that, I think a bass is easier to force fit than other recorded tracks.

 

[pbass2]

This is true. It matters so much less now. I record and mix my own music at home. I've used wildly "inappropriate" basses to get certain sounds. I used a P bass with flats on a metal song. Once I ran it through a Darkglass amp sim and boosted a lot of high mids, I don't think a single person in the world could have identified it as a P bass with flats.

With an infinite variety of plugins at your disposal now, you can get almost any tone with any bass.

I do that stuff all the time too--you can get some unexpected cool sounds. For working on your own music, anything goes. But the OP has some fairly genre-specific needs it seems which do just scream "pbass!" And then if he ever does do sessions for someone else, he has that covered. Most of my sessions are out of my home studio these days, though I still do some in the pro studios here in LA, and it's still the case, you wanna walk in there with a good passive 4 string P (doesn't necessarily have to say "Fender" on it), and then have at least one more option. You absolutely can't go wrong with 3 basses: a P w flats, another P or a J with rounds(fiver if you must, depending on the genre of music), and then some kinda shorty/hollowbody or whatever for a quirkier vibe--Hofner, Mustang, Longhorn, whatever.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

THE Studio bass is a Fender Precision... period. Ask any audio engineer.

 

[BostonJazz72]

Hi - not sure if this has been addressed but what is your price range? If you willing to go higher a gold standard for recording seems to be a Sadowsky. They have the German models which are a bit cheaper. Also, is there a sound you are going for in your head. If so, find out what bass that musician is playing and maybe buy that one? Lastly, are you recording at home or not? In either case a good quality DI is going to make a huge difference. I recommend Khan/Shaw/Noble/Arkham/Reddi.

 

[_Obra_]

P