Do solid body basses break in over time?

[asberrys]

It is hard to believe the low intensity vibrations of the strings cause any structural changes.All wood is is a bunch of micro straws that suck up water from the roots and sap from the leaves.Very compact though.
I bet even if you had one of those sub-sonic horns they use to start avalanches with and blasted away at the bass 24/7 it would not make a jot of a structural difference.
I think it has more to do with humidiy changes and drying out,hence lightening weight wise.

 

[LowDog]

I know a guitar player that will leave one of his solid body guitars (un plugged) next to a stereo speaker when he goes on the road. He will leave the stereo on low and let the vibrations of the music go through the wood. He says that over a period of time it will break in the guitar. His theory is that the frequencies of the music will go through the wood and train the wood to vibrate with the music. I know this to some will be a bit far fetched, but he is a great guitar player and his guitars always sound good.

 

[Jools4001]

That's why old Fender's sound so good - they've been played for 50 years. The structure of the wood has changed with all the resonance being applied.

Or maybe it's because after 50 years, all the ones that sounded rubbish have been junked and only the good ones remain?

That's a far more likely explanation IMHO

 

[Doctor J]

I wonder will this discussion ever occur with carbon/graphite instruments, surely they change over time too? Isn't it great, though, how all the aspects of playing and aging make instruments sound better instead of worse? Wouldn't it suck if great Fenders magically started to sound crap over time, instead of better. It's lucky things go that way, huh? There wouldn't be any kudos in playing an instrument old than you are, riding someone else's ass groove. Nobody would be able to make any mojo money, either, that would be a real shame.

 

[Margus Alviste]

The idea that a refin or aging significantly changes the tone of a solid body instrument first makes me giggle, and then makes me cry

Most of those that feel these trivial issues have an impact are either in the business of selling refins, or are in the camp of 'hearing what they want to hear'.

A change of strings will have massively more impact on tone than a refin.

Not IMO

I agree with your last sentence. Perhaps even with the one before that. But the tone of that MTD really changed after stripping the finish off. Of course, the difference is not as big as in case of changing the pickups or the strings but it changes slightly the sound. This particular bass had a very thick lacquer finish covering both it's neck and body. After stripping off the finish I had a feeling like the wood could breath freely for the first time. The sound was more open. Of course, it could be the imagination but there were several people who heard exactly the same thing (one of them being a luthier) not even touching the bass.
BTW, the same effect appeared when I tried to use two Black Korina Warmoth bodies with the same neck - one was finished in thick Clear Gloss finish as the other body was just oiled by me. The two bodies gave me slightly different sound. Am I crackbrained??? (It maybe so because I also hear the difference between different cables. Some guys keep telling me that there is no way one can hear that but I still do hear the difference. Well, working at the studio I still prefer to use certain cables.) Please help me to understand!

 

[Arpeggiator]

an idea that has occurred to me : if a brand new bass fitted with a piezo system and nothing else (no magnetic pickup) would you really be able to hear a change in the wood? because of the way a piezo works (through vibrations and pressure) as the wood changed presumably the vibrations would change and thus effect whats going into the piezo pickup?

 

[Margus Alviste]

There's more... Perhaps a different topic but let's use this one.

I've experienced a strange phenomena - after letting someone ells play my bass it affects the way how I feel the bass after that. It's difficult to put into words but there is something that really changes the feel of the bass. First I thought that maybe they have changed something physically - the height of the strings or something but then I realized that they didn't. Actually there are different kind of players, some of them can play my basses and it doesn't affect at all. But some players have a big impact so that I cannot even touch my bass a few days. I've tried to test it and every time the "bad" guys play my bass I get the same bad feeling. So it has to be something that really exists.
Perhaps it's some kind of energy they put in? Some sort of hex?
I've heard the same thing from my fellow bass players who are professionals. There are instruments they never borrow out.

Does any of you have had the same experience? Or am I really a crackbrained?

 

[dvh]

It does really exist - but it's purely psychological.

But here's another one: the belly of the bass player sits firmly against the body of the instrument (unless you hang the thing down by your knees). Surely that has an impact on the wood's resonance.

So - innie or outtie?

 

[Vanceman]

Lots of interesting thoughts here. I usually like others to play my bass, I'm trying to get as much mojo injected into it.

I've read something about some brand of acoustic guitars that are subjected to vibrations prior to leavng the factory to enhance the sound.

A couple of weeks ago, I applied my version of this to my 10 year old Fender Jazz. I used a large vibrating massager, the kind with the two balls on it (no, not that kind), and set the neck on there. As I changed the speed and program, the strings were resonating so wildly I had to put a towel to dampen them. When the body was placed on the vibrator, I could barely feel the vibrations coming through at all. So the neck must be the most resonant piece.

There is now a definate difference that I can feel and hear. The dead spot on the G string around the 6th/7th fret is completely gone, the sustain has increased, and the sound seems more open and even. So, what really happened here? Did I just vibrate all the gunk off the strings, or did I impart 30 years of playing into the bass?

I'm going to try it again, but this time plugged into a amp! With effects!

 

[Osprey]

So - innie or outtie?

I love it! Now following this line of thought, there are other items local to your bass which might be altering the tone, but I don't think TB would appreciate the thread going that way.

While I'm typing...it's all in the mind, of course. My bass sounded wonderful when played by someone else last week, and it gave me confidence in the instrument but it didn't change the molecular structure.

 

[T-MOST]

Your bass isn't going to "mellow" over time. that just does not happen with these types of instruments. the "feel" of the neck or fretboard may change with use but the sound will be the same. We have all experienced someone playing your bass with a tone thats different from when you play it. Alot of that is already there. it's the technique applied that releases it. So maybe if you learn to play in a totally different way you can then change the tone of the bass in "your" hands. "Modding in anyway' isn't what we are talking about here.

 

[Ric5]

Your bass isn't going to "mellow" over time. that just does not happen with these types of instruments. the feel of the neck or fretboard may change with use... but the sound will be the same.

Actually the pickups will degauss slightly as time passes which will make the bass slightly quieter in years to come. This could be interpreted as mellower.

 

[Matt Dean]

I second those who have suggested changing amps and strings...

 

[cnltb]

I believe basses do"break in".
The question if amps,strings etc contribute more or less to the tone of an instrument is another matter/thread. No?
Ways to possibly improve an not so good instrument without waiting for it to "break in" are obviously available and have been listed above.
Simply coming to really know an instrument can also help. Adjusting your touch , best sounding places where to plug can all make a difference.

 

[smeet]

It is interesting that NOrstrand uses one piece necks.This use to mean really cheap but it makes perfect sense.No decoupling of the string vibrations with the fretboard ''cap" transition.

It does make sense if you think about it, even though my first reaction was that it was a primitive and cheap way to make an instrument.

Just to be clear, I think I heard the first instrument that Nordstrand made that way, and I think he liked it enough that he is offering it as an option. I don't think it will become standard on his instruments.

But when I get the money up to order a Nordstrand, the one-piece neck is definitely on my list...

 

[cnltb]

It does make sense if you think about it, even though my first reaction was that it was a primitive and cheap way to make an instrument.

Just to be clear, I think I heard the first instrument that Nordstrand made that way, and I think he liked it enough that he is offering it as an option. I don't think it will become standard on his instruments.

But when I get the money up to order a Nordstrand, the one-piece neck is definitely on my list...

as in no glued on fretboard?

 

[lomo]

They do get older, but they do not sound better.

 

[BartmanPDX]

Lots of interesting thoughts here. I usually like others to play my bass, I'm trying to get as much mojo injected into it.

I've read something about some brand of acoustic guitars that are subjected to vibrations prior to leavng the factory to enhance the sound.

A couple of weeks ago, I applied my version of this to my 10 year old Fender Jazz. I used a large vibrating massager, the kind with the two balls on it (no, not that kind), and set the neck on there. As I changed the speed and program, the strings were resonating so wildly I had to put a towel to dampen them. When the body was placed on the vibrator, I could barely feel the vibrations coming through at all. So the neck must be the most resonant piece.

There is now a definate difference that I can feel and hear. The dead spot on the G string around the 6th/7th fret is completely gone, the sustain has increased, and the sound seems more open and even. So, what really happened here? Did I just vibrate all the gunk off the strings, or did I impart 30 years of playing into the bass?

I'm going to try it again, but this time plugged into a amp! With effects!

That's really weird. Just for kicks, you could try this with a bass and record it directly before/after.

 

[smeet]

as in no glued on fretboard?

Exactly. Just a nicely carved chunk of solid maple with frets in it. Seemed really wierd to me at first, but it makes sense that it would resonate nicely, with no glue or joints in there.

 

[lomo]

That's really weird. Just for kicks, you could try this with a bass and record it directly before/after.

That would make sense, and be logical, as blindly listening to the recordings multiple times would be. However, there is no logical, objective evidence to suggest that solidbody instruments improve with age. The support consists of subjective anecdotes. It's analagous to me saying my Grampa smoked a deck a day and downed a pint of JD 3x a week and lived to 104, so those habits must be good for you. There's nothing wrong with believing whatever we want to believe, as long as it's not passed off as truth. BTW, the onus of proof falls upon he who believes a given hypothesis is true, and not on others to prove it is not. Otherwise, I could say there's a basett hound eating pretzels at the center of Uranus, and since noone could possibly disprove that with 100% certainty, I could claim it's true. I'll step off the box now and give another a turn.