DB or electric, fretted or fretless, four or five, flat or round? The choice is usually pretty obvious.
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Do you think the scale will ever tip back towards hi-fi/active basses?
- Thread starter Just Wrong
- Start date
when did the scale tip back to passive? I didn't know we were keeping score. At the moment I have only active basses, so hope that answers your question.
If I was hired for a studio date, I would bring a P Bass and have a 5 string available just in case. But, I'm not really a studio guy. I've done some sessions, but it was never a major income source. So, while I agree that a P makes sense in that scenario, I can't really base my instrument choice on something that I don't do. I have a P bass. I love it. I play it when it's appropriate. But, I also have active 5's, passive 5's, a J4 and a passive/modern 4.
The bulk of my playing is either a P4 or an EBMM SR5. Both sound great. I'm comfortable on both.
I've been asked to play certain instruments in the past, and every once in a while, someone has asked for a modern 5 string. So, it does happen both ways.
The bulk of my playing is either a P4 or an EBMM SR5. Both sound great. I'm comfortable on both.
I've been asked to play certain instruments in the past, and every once in a while, someone has asked for a modern 5 string. So, it does happen both ways.
Please question why give credence to an opinion like that. When you read of a trend who wrote this opinion? Why give credence to it?
Did the producer ask for a certain type of instrument? Do the people who call you in studio or live care? Did they hire you for your musicality or your big glasses, I mean passive bass? Are you someone that they don't tell what to play but trust your instrument choice?
This is certainly the wrong focus.
Listen to all kinds of music. PRACTICE. Find some fun mates to play with. Make good music. Rinse and Repeat.
Did the producer ask for a certain type of instrument? Do the people who call you in studio or live care? Did they hire you for your musicality or your big glasses, I mean passive bass? Are you someone that they don't tell what to play but trust your instrument choice?
This is certainly the wrong focus.
Listen to all kinds of music. PRACTICE. Find some fun mates to play with. Make good music. Rinse and Repeat.
But from the bass, not a stompbox. If that’s what the Variax is. Sorry, I’m too simple to venture into the outboard FX universe. Nothing wrong with it, and TBH, if I was on the rising side of my life rather than within sight of my end, I’d be more interested in the cutting edge of bass tech. As it stands I’m grateful I’m still able to be relearning the neck with three fingers instead of four.
Variax was a bunch of digital/DSP emulations built into the instrument:
It won’t be me who is promoting them. I have two active basses but they never get used in active mode. I just haven’t found anything about active electronics that I need.
Ahhhhh, I C said the blind man. Proof of my ignorance on full display right out of the chute on Monday morning. I’ll show myself out now and leave the future to those who still have one.
- Apr 18, 2008
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- Disclosures
- I'm highly opinionated and extremely self-assured
I’m planning on putting a nice hi-fi active circuit into my (cheap Chinese copy of a) Club.
And roundwounds.
Active/Hi-Fi basses never went away.
If you are in the 1st call LA session club a lot of your work will be on a passive Precision, but you'll also own half a dozen others, including active basses. You'll come prepared to give the client the choice.
Most of the rest of us only have ourselves to please, so will have a range of instruments that suit us. I currently own 2 passive and 4 active basses. Having a battery or not wasn't a consideration when I bought them.
IMO there's more variety out there these days than ever before.
If you are in the 1st call LA session club a lot of your work will be on a passive Precision, but you'll also own half a dozen others, including active basses. You'll come prepared to give the client the choice.
Most of the rest of us only have ourselves to please, so will have a range of instruments that suit us. I currently own 2 passive and 4 active basses. Having a battery or not wasn't a consideration when I bought them.
IMO there's more variety out there these days than ever before.
Well, you're Just Wrong. (that had to be said) You supply one anecdotal story and assume a "trend". More samples are needed to prove a "trend" in any but one limited environment (LA studios). Even that is the experience of just one person. I think acoustic basses and tubas will have a comeback when the grid goes down.
Active basses never went away, IMO. The genres that predominantly used them waned.
Wow, this couldn't be more untrue. That's like me saying people who play P/J's lack any originality, which would also be quite untrue.
I gig with one of each as appropriate and see plenty of both kinds on stage with other players, so I guess I can’t tell which way anything is tipping right now. Plenty of both sighted in the wild.
If ever I have the wild fortune of going from “decent cover guy who doesn’t drive us nuts” to getting a studio call, I’ll pay whatever they’re paying me to play.
I have a Sadowsky Modern 5-24, a passive Moollon Classic J, and a Sadowsky Will Lee 4. I choose what's right for the song. I could probably get by with two basses at this point. Trends are just that - trends.
As far as I see it, there are more hi/fi active basses out there than ever before.. Just look at the classifieds on TB.. That’s the beauty of the times we are in, we have way more custom basses available than we did back when I was growing up.. Many more options than a simple P bass, tho I’ll admit they are very good at what they do.. however, The “hippie sandwiches “ are alive and well !
Play genres where those sorts of basses are still used. TB doesn't really represent the real world bassist. In real life I know maybe one bassist who is super duper into flatwounds but around here you'd think playing flats is almost a necessity.
I’m not sure the scale ever tipped. I see plenty of hi-fi, active, booteek, etc. on stages. For recording? It’s up either to the producer or the player depending on who has more clout. A working player still probably needs a Fender-shaped-object of some sort to please some clients and bandleaders but that doesn’t preclude using other basses when appropriate.
Some of it is just style dependent. I don’t bring Steinbergers to blues gigs, for example.
I brought my NS Radius 5 to one recording session and the engineer claimed he couldn’t get a clean signal even after I engaged the pad on the DI box. Since I use it all the time at home, I know the output is perfectly fine, but I didn’t want to waste any more time. I plugged in my 50s P and the engineer and other musicians were all happy. When I mixed the Gibson mudbucker pickup in with the P pickup they were ecstatic with the heft. Problem solved.
The fact that low-end active basses are still for sale means there is still plenty of demand for active basses at all levels of the industry from weekend warriors in dives to pros rocking the Enormodrome.
Some of it is just style dependent. I don’t bring Steinbergers to blues gigs, for example.
I brought my NS Radius 5 to one recording session and the engineer claimed he couldn’t get a clean signal even after I engaged the pad on the DI box. Since I use it all the time at home, I know the output is perfectly fine, but I didn’t want to waste any more time. I plugged in my 50s P and the engineer and other musicians were all happy. When I mixed the Gibson mudbucker pickup in with the P pickup they were ecstatic with the heft. Problem solved.
The fact that low-end active basses are still for sale means there is still plenty of demand for active basses at all levels of the industry from weekend warriors in dives to pros rocking the Enormodrome.
I'm kind of surprised how my super-modern Bordwell 6 can get some great P tones with the turn of a few knobs.
