Capo use on the bass

[Pdaddy1978]

My capo pretty much stays in my acoustic guitar case.

 

[albertus]

I have done it a few times but more for harmonics sake than other motive.

 

[direwolf333]

Gotta have a G7th for Green Onions and Born on the Bayou.

B.B. King, who happened to pick up an axe I stuck in the corner strung up with some gnarly, heavy wire, and asked, “Why you workin' so hard?

 

[SLPimp]

I say you can, but I dont. Have played with a lot of players who used capos and just changed keys.

 

[JamesGrant]

Interesting - it never occurred to me to use a capo when playing bass. Done it many, many, many times on acoustic guitar (would be in trouble without it!). The bass fretboard notes are ‘burned in’ to my brain and I suspect I’d look at, or feel a section of the fretboard (and markers!) and not easily ‘transpose’ relative to the capo. That position/fret/sting has its identity and it doesn’t change.
(I have down-tuned about 3 times in my life - it’s too slow and too confusing!)
I guess you get used to what you get used to.
I played a few times with an acoustic guitarist who used 3 capos at the same time and in alt tunings, sounded amazing but no idea what chords he was playing from the shape of his hands!

 

[fretlessman71]

Wouldn't a capo throw off your intonation?

Not if you install it correctly. Me, I like it rather tight, and directly on the fret.

 

[Jeff Scott]

 

[kevmoga]

This is the silliest thread I’ve seen in a while

 

[bigdaddybass12]

No, if you play for capo junkies, learn to play by patterns. 1, 4, 5, 2 etc. This will make your life easier. TRUST ME. The 2 guys I play bass for are capo junkies. 1 gig they will capo on 2nd fret, the next gig same song 1st fret. They are the singers & players and it is their gig. so I can’t say anything except move my “pattern” down a fret.

 

[rwkeating]

I could probably play bass with a capo (for a while), but the instant my brain would say "you know the real note you are playing is ...." then I'd probably lose it. Is this caused by really knowing the fingerboard or a fault of "imagination"?

 

[aprod]

Think about it. You show to an audition and say "wait a second I have to get my capo." Do you think you are getting the gig? I have never seen a pro player use a capo, ever.

 

[BassicJazzy]

Wow, that is just a terrible idea. Talk about screwing up your muscle memory.

 

[BassicJazzy]

Real bass players do not. Thirty keys, are you sure?

Sure, in a quantum reality. As Don Adams used to say, "Would you believe....?"

 

[Dlew919]

Sure, in a quantum reality. As Don Adams used to say, "Would

0 sharps or flats (C)

1 sharp (G)
2 sharps (D)
3 sharps (A)
4 sharps (E)
5 sharps (B)
6 sharps (F#)
7 sharps (C#)

1 flat (F)
2 flats (Bb)
3 flats (Eb)
4 flats (Ab)
5 flats (Db)
6 flats (Gb)
7 flats (Cb)

Now minor keys work the same. So that’s two lots of fifteen.

30.

Do we use Cb? Not often. But we could.

 

[turf3]

Well, I'm no pro, especially on electric bass. I have used a capo in performance on one song, where my Simandl fingering in half position was going to take me from F to G# on the E string, over and over and over and over, for the repeated riff, for 5 minutes. So I took it up one fret and played the F as open.

I'm not proud of this; I would have done it on double-bass the hard way (no capos on upright bass); but there it is.

I have also used a capo to simulate a short-scale bass on a couple occasions. Capo up, tune back down. Instant floppy strings!

 

[SharpCat]

0 sharps or flats (C)

1 sharp (G)
2 sharps (D)
3 sharps (A)
4 sharps (E)
5 sharps (B)
6 sharps (F#)
7 sharps (C#)

1 flat (F)
2 flats (Bb)
3 flats (Eb)
4 flats (Ab)
5 flats (Db)
6 flats (Gb)
7 flats (Cb)

Now minor keys work the same. So that’s two lots of fifteen.

30.

Do we use Cb? Not often. But we could.

I saw a YT video where IIRC they detailed 31 different keys, but a lot of the less common ones had larger steps in places. Here, you double the 15 listed to account for minor keys, but since those are enharmonic with one of the listed keys, I’m not sure they should count.

 

[Ritter667]

0 sharps or flats (C)

1 sharp (G)
2 sharps (D)
3 sharps (A)
4 sharps (E)
5 sharps (B)
6 sharps (F#)
7 sharps (C#)

1 flat (F)
2 flats (Bb)
3 flats (Eb)
4 flats (Ab)
5 flats (Db)
6 flats (Gb)
7 flats (Cb)

Now minor keys work the same. So that’s two lots of fifteen.

30.

Do we use Cb? Not often. But we could.

How many think in notes and not intervals when they play though?

 

[turf3]

0 sharps or flats (C)

1 sharp (G)
2 sharps (D)
3 sharps (A)
4 sharps (E)
5 sharps (B)
6 sharps (F#)
7 sharps (C#)

1 flat (F)
2 flats (Bb)
3 flats (Eb)
4 flats (Ab)
5 flats (Db)
6 flats (Gb)
7 flats (Cb)

Now minor keys work the same. So that’s two lots of fifteen.

30.

Do we use Cb? Not often. But we could.

Well, OK, but you put your finger in exactly the same place for C# and Db.

Really, there are twelve major scales; the twelve natural minor scales are identical except starting on different notes (which doesn't matter to practicing as you should always practice scales over the full range of the instrument; music in the key of C doesn't stop on C. Then you've got harmonic and acending melodic minor patterns (which I practice using that pattern descending as well); the two whole tones, the three diminisheds, and then you get into the exotics.

12 major/natural minor
12 harmonic minor
12 ascending melodic minor
2 whole tone
3 diminished
gives me 41 scales to practice.

I better get after it!

 

[HelpImaRock]

I went down the bass capo rabbit hole this year. I’ll use one to get a handle on a riff my guitarist writes with one. I’ll also use it on my 5 when I want to play in C or Eb standard because I need a specific note to be open.

They’re great writing tools. Yall are closed minded.

 

[PolkaHero]

I use it for one song where we changed the key from E to C. The original bass line has a lot of root and seventh jumps which is easy with open strings. Using the capo I can play it the same way instead of having to finger every note.