Cheapest Amp ever - TB Exclusive!

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Let me say from the outset that this is a little embarrassing.

For all I know this could be one of those stories told a thousand times when I just happened to be out of the room. But neither TB search or Google has helped find out if this is a well known life-hack for bass.

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There I was, just practicing unplugged, as I imagine we all do time to time, though at that moment I was also comfort-testing some earplugs.

I was hunched down so rested the point of my chin, slack jawed, on the top horn of my p-bass.

Suddenly ... instant amp
Just add earplugs!

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I'm aware of the physics but was still amazed by the clarity and volume of the sound.

I then tried this trick on a few other basses (Warwick, Rick & Jazz) and it worked for all of them, and even more remarkably, each one kept its own distinct tone.

So TB brothers and sisters, I need one or two of you to check this out or tell me if it's a "thing", or has been a bass hack for years and I'll go quietly - back to my earplug bass amp.

Either way, this is your chance to try the world's cheapest bass amp, (almost) free and exclusive to TB.

I rest mt headstock on wood. Like, the bed frame, or couch. Way better than being crunched over with your face on the horn of your bass while trying to playing and having your head congested because of earplugs

 

[ElMon]

Think I’m in a good room to mention that unplugged playing on my electric basses was, IMO, a huge reason I found ‘my sound’ and feel. I’ve employed the jaw/wall/playing in a corner to amplify because of necessity. Trying not to bother folks/get a noise complaint.

I always sound like ME that way, and then when I do get to the amp/soundboard, it’s easier to be ‘me but only louder’.

That and the basses I’ve owned (LOTS) that have had that ‘it’ quality all sounded great unplugged. I want that B to shiver me timbers unplugged or she walks the plank In the TB ‘for sale’ section.

 

[Tim de Martino]

Yep that's the tone I've chased my whole life to be able to play and record with.

I had hoped piezo or lightwave was going to capture it, nope and certainly not regular mag pickups either.

It really is a magical, compressed and almost distorted sound with huge presence.

Oh and by the way, this also gets the natural sound of the bass very well, they will all sound unique with this technique.

It's also a great way to tune in a pinch with no amp.

Dirk

Yep, me too. I tried to start a thread asking for advice on how to do this - I had a Peavey TL-5 that sounded gorgeous unplugged, but either people didn't understand what I was trying to get at or there was really no advice to give. Short thread.

 

[George Dennis]

I rest mt headstock on wood. Like, the bed frame, or couch. Way better than being crunched over with your face on the horn of your bass while trying to playing and having your head congested because of earplugs

Heyyyyy - don't knock it 'til you've tried it! ... And how much did that couch cost you anyhow?

 

[Gilmourisgod]

I did that for months when I got my first RIC in 1978, but had no amp. The horn was perfectly placed to press my chin on. I hadn't owned a RIC for 35 years until I built my own a couple ago. First time tuning it up with strings on it, my head instinctively dropped to press my chin against the top horn. Talk about "muscle memory"!

 

[Gilmourisgod]

The "Chin Method" has become kind of quick litmus test for me on new basses. If I don't feel that resonant "thrum" in the body unplugged, its not likely to sound great plugged in either. Of curse pretty soon we'll all have Neural Networks implanted in our brains, at which point we won't need amps, just the USB connection in your armpit.

 

[TolerancEJ]

This is a variation on a trick I used to use when touring and I didn't have a small practice amp I could play in a hotel room. I would stand and put the tip of the headstock against the wall. The wall board became the speaker.

I did that for a few months while my wife and I were staying in an apartment, while our new house was being built. I didn't want to plug in the amp to bother any other tenants.

 

[TolerancEJ]

Yep, me too. I tried to start a thread asking for advice on how to do this - I had a Peavey TL-5 that sounded gorgeous unplugged, but either people didn't understand what I was trying to get at or there was really no advice to give. Short thread.

When I test a bass, I always play it unplugged first. I listen to its natural tone and potential rattling of loose parts.

 

[lestratele]

You can get a really great/efficient sound transfer through your teeth. Be aware, overuse of this technique will relic your bass.

WARNING: DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS AT GUITAR CENTER!!!

 

[Gilmourisgod]

You can get a really great/efficient sound transfer through your teeth. Be aware, overuse of this technique will relic your bass.

WARNING: DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS AT GUITAR CENTER!!!

Based on the complete lack of any salesmen demonstrating even a listless, half-hearted interest in the entire Bass section (about 1/10th of the total floor area) at my local GC, I don't think they'd notice me gnawing and slobbering on a bass. "I'M TESTING THE TONEWOOD!" he cried, before being hosed down with disinfectant.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

@George Dennis, I like the sound, the visual isn't pretty though. Hahaha

And I totally agree with listening the acoustic sound of any bass or guitar. That's where I start. If it doesn't sound good naturally all the electronics in the world aren't going to help.

 

[Tim de Martino]

When I test a bass, I always play it unplugged first. I listen to its natural tone and potential rattling of loose parts.

Same here, it's hard to really like a bass unless it resonates nicely.

Trouble is getting that tone into the amp. To me, pickups never really do justice to an instruments aoustic sound. Pickups can sound great, don't get me wrong, but they aren't the sound that I want to hear. Piezos are the same in the opposite direction - too much zing and no oompf. Closest so far is the NS CR5. If I blend mag and piezo, it can get fairly close.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

Hey @Dirk Diggler love your description of the tone.


For me this is the musical equivalent of holding a b&w photographic negative so the light reflects off the emulsion to glimpse a positive image. [Cue "Cheapest Film Print ever" thread]


Now we just need the picture of Dirk using his custom fanned-fret 6-string bass with earplug amp in the Quasimodo position way up past the 12th fret.

If we're taking votes on band names, let's start with "Quasimodo and the Belles".

Or, if it is a Death Metal band, Quasimodo and the Funeral Belles.