Do solid body basses losen up?

[Joe.shaffer]

fantastic! de-evolution is real!

Yes it does, video games and television are causing it to accelerate at an uncontrollable rate.

 

[Ric5]

Sometimes the wood in older basses seasons more and makes the bass resonate better. Or maybe it was just a better piece of wood to begin with.

 

[SurferJoe46]

Since most basses are covered in plastic or at least paint - that may take a few eons.

I don't really know if a bass can gain or lose moisture as fast as people would like to think unless the bass is RW all over or the finish is removed, fell off or it's just naked un-oiled wood.

Once it's sealed, painted, dipped in urethane or chicken fat then all bets are off for it moving, aging or changing moisture content on a time scale short of a whole bunch of years.

By then the bass player has degraded so far he's addled and can't tell the tone of a bass from a broomstick with a rubber band.

I'm beginning to think that a sanded neck is just asking for trouble if certain conditions exist. The fact that they can inspire/respire might ultimately be a problem for neck stability.

I'm also gonna give a SLIGHT concession to conditional aging:

Mojo - since it's just dirt and nasal secretions, might mellow the sound of a bass somewhat - especially if it gets pretty thick.

 

[johnk_10]

Since most basses are covered in plastic or at least paint - that may take a few eons......................


..............Once it's sealed, painted, dipped in urethane or chicken fat then all bets are off for it moving, aging or changing moisture content on a time scale short of a whole bunch of years.

By then the bass player has degraded so far he's addled and can't tell the tone of a bass from a broomstick with a rubber band.

IMO, your answer shows that you have no experience. if you ask most luthiers that paint guitars, you'll find that lacquered instruments continue to dry out year after year and DO become more resonant with age.

 

[lowphatbass]

I'm going to go with "trial by fire" theory. Most basses that were horribly mistreated, structurally un-fit do to materials or workmanship, or just plain dogs aren't around anymore. Time has weeded-out a lot the weak basses. It's just a dumb theory, honestly I have no clue.
In terms of UB's, the use of aged wood and the seasoning(opening-up)of a bass from playing(bowing) are fact.

 

[nukes_da_bass]

I believe it was SWR engineering in Sylmar, Ca (or whatever corporation builds SWR amps) that was using that experiment with 7000 watt amps driving subsonic vibrations into wood blanks before sending them to (Warwick?) in Germany...

The rub is supposed to be that sound waves open up the cellulose in the wood.
The theory is that dead spots disappear from a neck eventually.
Because of this, I always have one or two basses leaning against my cabs so that even practicing on other basses will modify the cellulose and kill dead spots. So who cares if its a placebo? If I perceive that my basses are more responsive then they are more responsive, and i will be a more confident happier player.
Now if I could only get this technique to work on my wife...

 

[Fliptrique]

After a year of playing my mayones be5 I honestly think it did improve. Seems to sound more alive, also sounds better with old strings (i`m a NEW roundwound kind of guy).

I don`t really hear it in a live context, but playing it unplugged I have a feeling it just sounds a bit better than it did when i bought it.

Had the same feeling with my stingray 5 - after two years of playing it non stop it seemed to be noticeably louder.

It of course can be just due to me just playing a bit better and learning how to set up a particular bass.

 

[BuffaloBass]

De-evolution, for sure. Look at the junk folks watch on TV. We should all live vicariously in a sub 100 IQ world rather than progressing, dont ya think?

Should be called NON-reality TV as it keeps you from doing REAL things.

My Valenti #067 has a relatively new piece of pau ferro for the fingerboard, so I KNOW it will age well over time. ( plus I cant get the truss any tighter!!!)

 

[s_mcsleazy]

as someone who owns a instrument from every decade since the 60's i can say there is a little diffrence in comparison to basses that are simalar from more modern times. i have a 25 year old aria bass and it sounds diffrent acosticly to most newer basses made from the same wood. its got alot more low mids.

but still even if you made a bass from the exact same tree and added the exact same pickups, nut, tuners, bridge there WILL be some diffrences however small

 

[Plake]

I hold the opinion that individual players inbue their instruments with mojo. I realize this sounds silly from a scientific standpoint, but it's a mysterious universe.

I've played Jeff Berlin's Dean, and it sings. Victor Wooten, Will Lee, and another prominent player evaluated Jaco's recently recovered B.O.D., and they agreed that there was something extraordinary about the bass, even in its reconstructed form. I've also played a few basses owned by and gigged on lot by players I respect, and their basses also feel and play good.

It might just be the placebo effect at work, who knows, yet I do believe that players impart something into their basses.

Plus 1 more. It sounds corny but i think thats whats great about vintage pieces....they have soul.

 

[5string5fingers]

I have a feeling the neck may have shifted and seated itself better in the pocket.

Could be true as I did removed the neck several days ago.

 

[KJung]

Do new solid body basses loosen up like acoustic instruments do?

I know with acoustic guitars and the like,they're very stiff from the factory and after a year or more depending on the material they loosen from vibrations and settle and become more resonant?

I'm speaking strictly from an acoustic stand point,not plugged in.

The only reason why I ask is because when I first got my RBX it sounded rather quiet and dull compared to my old p bass and now after playing it extensively over the past couple weeks it definitely seems louder...the character seems to come out more in my playing that it did before.

Over 40 or 50 years... maybe (especially if the wood used was not properly dried/cured at the time of production). Over weeks... you are hearing most probably a combination of the strings breaking in a bit (especially if the strings were fresh when you purchased the bass) and also your ears 'getting used' to the tone of the bass, and your chops slightly adjusting (this happens pretty much subconsciously) to fit the instrument.

IMO and a bit of IME!

 

[Bernin]

Voodoo. Pure mumbo-jumbo and snake teeth.

Nothing gets better with age except fine wine and cheese and only to a point

Well I can think of something thats best aged 18 years... if you know what I mean
(I'm 18 so i can say that without it being creepy)

 

[5string5fingers]

Well I can think of something thats best aged 18 years... if you know what I mean
(I'm 18 so i can say that without it being creepy)

Scotch right?............

 

[mcnach]

Yes it does, video games and television are causing it to accelerate at an uncontrollable rate.

I agree... but that is still evolution. Evolution does not imply a direction!

 

[pie_man_25]

There's a ton of theories about the "aging" of the wood. I personally think that IF it happens on an electric bass at all, it's probably not going to be very much; however, with acoustic guitars, violins, double basses, ukuleles, I've heard a lot of people say that the instrument really does sound better as it get older and played more and more. The theory (from my understanding) is that the fibres are all really tight at first, and as it gets vibrated, the fibres all loosen up and the instrument sounds more "open". I think it would affect an electric bass much less because of the fact that the body is generally much thicker, and much less exposed to the elements (moisture, temperature, etc...) because of the usual finish. One could also argue the "trial by fire", or "natural selection" theories - that the vintage instruments (guitar, ukulele, violin, etc...) sound better because they were the ones that were built better to begin with and all the "dogs" were unable to survive for an extended period of time, at the moment I think I believe this is a stronger factor in the "it sounds better with age" idea than the idea that the wood is loosening, although I do think that it still plays a large role.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[KJung]

There's a ton of theories about the "aging" of the wood. I personally think that IF it happens on an electric bass at all, it's probably not going to be very much; however, with acoustic guitars, violins, double basses, ukuleles, I've heard a lot of people say that the instrument really does sound better as it get older and played more and more. The theory (from my understanding) is that the fibres are all really tight at first, and as it gets vibrated, the fibres all loosen up and the instrument sounds more "open". I think it would affect an electric bass much less because of the fact that the body is generally much thicker, and much less exposed to the elements (moisture, temperature, etc...) because of the usual finish. One could also argue the "trial by fire", or "natural selection" theories - that the vintage instruments (guitar, ukulele, violin, etc...) sound better because they were the ones that were built better to begin with and all the "dogs" were unable to survive for an extended period of time, at the moment I think I believe this is a stronger factor in the "it sounds better with age" idea than the idea that the wood is loosening, although I do think that it still plays a large role.

Just my 2 cents.

Yeah, you make the point that I typically make.... many older instruments sound very good, but unless you were there to play that exact instrument 50 or 100 or 300 years ago, there is no way to determine, as you point out, if it is 'one of the good ones' that just survived through the years, or if it was 'typical' 100 years ago, but now is amazing due to aging.

In terms of variance explain, I tend to believe it is about 90/10 the former and latter (so a bit different). No way to know. Wood does obviously change over time, but change is not necessariy always a good thing.

One thing is clear... the OP's bass did not 'change' over a few weeks do to the wood settling in

 

[5string5fingers]

One thing is clear... the OP's bass did not 'change' over a few weeks do to the wood settling in

I agree. More than likely,just strings/humidity,possibly resetting the neck right when I took it off.

 

[rob7]

any wood gets better with age,thats a fact....so yes....

 

[anonymous122511]

Yeah, you make the point that I typically make.... many older instruments sound very good, but unless you were there to play that exact instrument 50 or 100 or 300 years ago, there is no way to determine, as you point out, if it is 'one of the good ones' that just survived through the years, or if it was 'typical' 100 years ago, but now is amazing due to aging.

Not necessarily. Anyone who has had a well played solid wood double bass (or cello or violin) that had been sitting unplayed when they acquired it or that they let sit unplayed for longer than a few months understands that as an instrument can loosen it will also tighten back up. I hope that anyone who hasn't experienced this first hand will emmediately run out and drop $10k+on a nice old upright and let it sit untouched a couple of years, then play it several hours daily for six months before refuting this.

I think your idea that the tonal improvement one hears in a solidbody is due mainly to the player adjusting to the idiosyncrasies of the instrument is the foremost reason one perceives the instrument improving. Of course increasing player familiarity will also improve the quality of sound one can extract from a solid wood acoustic instrument. That doesn't change the fact solid wood acoustic instruments do tighten and open in direct relation to how much they get regularly played.