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chris squire "sound" epiphany

W

williamk

Apr 2, 2008
871
28
#1
I stumbled upon this on youtube



and I had an epiphany; is it possible that the famous CS rick sound doesn't actually come from the pickups, the pick, the bi-amping and what-have-you, but actually from all that fret noise and buzz? Geezus! You don't hear it that much on the record but when the bass is isolated you can really hear how the strings buzz on the frets like a chainsaw. Was his action THAT low??
 
#4
Absolutely, though I wouldn't discount the other factors. His picking technique gets some flesh as well as plastic on the string, and that's part of it too. But I remember seeing an interview with Billy Sheehan talking about his setups, and he was quite explicit that he aims to get a (controlled) amount of fret buzz out of his setup precisely in order to imitate Squire's sound.
 
#5
Rickenbacker 4001, Rotosound 66's, fretbuzz, stereo and Marshall.
And it's all about fretting hand finger pressure and pick attack as well.

Low action vs high makes all the difference in the world in getting a decent, Squire-like 70's tone.
 
#6
I'm kind of thick headed.

Someone please explain to me why they think that is actually CS playing. It says "an isolated track from the Rock Band game", so that means it's really CS's bass track and not a cover or ?

It's a little fret buzzy but that could be fretting hand technique related, not so much setup. IMO.

CS is the best pick player ever.
 
#8
Immigrant said:
I'm kind of thick headed.

Someone please explain to me why they think that is actually CS playing. It says "an isolated track from the Rock Band game", so that means it's really CS's bass track and not a cover or ?

It's a little fret buzzy but that could be fretting hand technique related, not so much setup. IMO.

CS is the best pick player ever.
Click to expand...

I wasn't particularly reacting to the youtube clip, just to what I've heard about Squire's playing in general, from interviews with him and others.
 
#9
Immigrant said:
I'm kind of thick headed.

Someone please explain to me why they think that is actually CS playing. It says "an isolated track from the Rock Band game", so that means it's really CS's bass track and not a cover or ?

It's a little fret buzzy but that could be fretting hand technique related, not so much setup. IMO.

CS is the best pick player ever.
Click to expand...

It's the real thing. The game provided many isolated tracks of many songs of many artists.
 
#10
fret buzz is the key to a lot of classic tones.squire geddy lee and steve harris are known for insanely low action.squire just lets it happen,and its part of his tone.harris disguises his buzz with flats,and geddy lee is just a bass god and his frets dont buzz. the wood really smacking off the fretboard creates that punchy sound.
 
#11
Immigrant said:
Someone please explain to me why they think that is actually CS playing. It says "an isolated track from the Rock Band game", so that means it's really CS's bass track and not a cover or ?
Click to expand...

Rockband works from the original recordings for each instrument, rather than the final mixed song. They do this so they can adjust the mix depending on what instruments are playing at the time(ie, if you're playing bass in Rock Band, the volume on the bass track gets turned up so you can hear it more easily), and so that when the player is missing notes, the instrument track they are playing is muted.

People have ripped the isolated instrument tracks out of the files, and they are pretty easy to find on youtube and elsewhere. I find they can be helpful for learning songs(particularly ones where the bass isn't very prominent in the mix).
 
#12
I've got the Jammit version of "Heart of the Sunrise" and I don't hear so much string buzz, but that might be because of the processing. (EDIT TO ADD -- yes, the fret buzz is there in the 2nd half of the song without the processing.)

I've tried to get CS's sound, and low action seems to help, along with a Rick that has the old capacitor on the bridge PU (new ones you can pull up a pot to engage that old sound).

The best I ever got was with a 4001c64s because it had the capacitor. I was using Low Riders rather than Rotosounds but I thought it got pretty close for not having the giant rig he has.

A lot of his sound is in how he attacks the strings. He has a range of expression with his attack, which he shows off in HotS. I think this is as important as the bass and rig.
 
#13
Oh hey, I also have Roundabout on Jammit. I forgot!

I'm listening to it now..

There is a whole lot of string buzz, plus plenty of tiny bits of open string ring when he didn't really want it.

When you hear these masters on their signature songs playing not so perfectly, but how it sounds sooooo perfect in the mix, it brings hope to the amateur heart. Listening to Paul McCartney's bass on A Day in the Life, it's not perfect, but in the mix.. ahhh yes!

There's a lot of bleedover on Chris' track, too, so you can hear Jon singing a pre-final take of some of it, along with some keys and drums.
 
#15
I just checked at Jammit and they had Yours is No Disgrace, which is pure sweet Rick tone with little effect to it, for the most part. Also, CS seems to have known that song a lot better before he recorded it because he's not making as many muffs.

I'm pretty sure Heart of the Sunrise and Roundabout were studio compositions. You can hear how his sound changes for every section as he punches in on a different day.

There are sound changes on YiND too, but they seem to be planned.

Some of the the things that he does are really what we'd call "wanking". He's firing the pick and fumbling some notes but it goes so fast it sounds good. Plus, he's not far off from where he wants to be even if he is off from time to time.

I'd say CS is my favorite bass player. I also like Geddy and Jeff Berlin a lot, for different reasons. But CS just hits me right where I like it --tone, style, range of expression.. I gave up on Ricks because they are not reliable -- dead spots on the neck, bridge lift, hard to intonate, etc. But I sure love that sound!
 
#17
jasper383 said:
There is a Youtube (which I can't find) of CS playing a white Jazz Bass at a Yes rehearsal, and it sounds a LOT like the Ric.

I think most of CS's sound comes from the strings, the player, the EQ, and the way he picks.
Click to expand...

He's played different basses on tracks that people assumed were his Rick, so there's some truth to that. But isolated, you probably could tell it wasn't the Rick.
 
#20
jasper383 said:
There is a Youtube (which I can't find) of CS playing a white Jazz Bass at a Yes rehearsal, and it sounds a LOT like the Ric.
Click to expand...

I've seen that one as well. As I recall, Patrick Moraz was on keyboards, so I think it was a rehearsal session for the Relayer album - they certainly were rehearsing a track from Relayer. They were in Montreux, Switzerland, if memory serves. :hmm:

I agree: Much of Squire's tone is really unique to him, and comes at least as much from his technique, as from his gear & settings. I know, because when I was a new bassist I tried to replicate Squire's tone. No dice. I could only get so far - no matter how much I tried.

MM
 

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