Fact: It's not the bass

[2BitHack]

What's the best fingers for Metal?

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[Hevy T]

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

I was thinking Edward Sissorhands to tell the truth

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

I also agree with the op. I've heard Les Claypool playing a banjo bass and he sounded like himself. Not sure if that's something he does often though..

 

[SteveCS]

...
But the musician is perhaps the most important piece.

Does anyone know where I can get aftermarket upgrades?

 

[nanymoa]

I play in two different bands, one of them progressive hard rock fusion, and the other, more of a soft pop latin rock style . I play in both of them with different basses all the time, and the guys love them, two of the most frecuent basses are an active 6er with steel rounds, the other a passive p with worn in flats, I've reherased with friend's gear as well. Played on a JB and they loved it. I find it a nice exercise to be able to transmit your part honestly, no matter the bass in cuestion.
To be more detailed my flats P I dial 1 o clock bass and treble and lots of mids the amp. And my active 6er gets 80% bass and treble on board and a flat amp. I mean 2 really different bass sounds, that I like and also try to transmit that.
Waiting for a short scale with a passive humbucker and a piezo only fretted semi-hollow. That last one being more controversial about fitting all styles, I'll have to try it out and see.

 

[sketch]

In the fingers: technique. Fret buzz, sustain, speed, note choices, attack.

In the equipment: timbre, frequency range, THD, coloration, "tone".

 

[ashtray]

This has been discussed ad nauseum - but yeah, its the player. Its 90% the player. But its 10% the gear too. So when you get nice gear you sound a little bit better - maybe just 3-4% better, but still - better than you sound on cheap gear. And the better you are, the more you can coax from both cheap an expensive gear - but the key there is an amazing pro bassist might be rated at "92 rating" with cheap gear but get a "96 rating" on pro gear.

I might get a "42 rating" on cheap gear, and a "44 rating" on pro gear.

So yeah - mostly the player.

 

[Flaked Beans]

The fingers are extremely important indeed, that's what she said.

 

[Mantis Tobaggan]

I agree different qualities within any instrument will make a difference.

What I disagree with is the idea you can arbitrarily, objectively quantify what is "better" with regards to this.

What I mean is, "quality" is in the eyes of the individual player and ultimately has nothing to do with what the bass is made of, how much it cost, what brand name is on the headstock, where it was made, how old it is, etc.

Quality really comes down to the tastes, experiences and goals of the player.

A high-end, boutique active 7 string fretless bass with a whammy bar handcrafted by an excellent luthier from fine woods will likely be of high quality, but it will also likely lack the qualities in a bass sought by someone knocking out blues in dive bars or spitting out punk rock in a dive basement.

We could agree that overall Rickenbacker makes a quality bass, yet some swear by them and some loathe them. Does this mean Rics are objectively better or worse than "Bass X?"

Taking the micro-view, bridges, for example. An expensive high mass bridge made of the "finest" materials may be thought of as better-made and higher quality than a bent steel plate bridge ala vintage Fenders, but many swear by the cheaper ones.

It all depends on what your muse and music is. It's completely subjective. There are all kinds of legitimate reasons why a player might prefer a cheap Asian P-bass knockoff over a Fodera and why their music might be better sounding, or more appropriate sounding, on the former.

The idea that "this bass was made in America"or "this bass is 40 years hold and has mojo" or "this bass was made out of magical tonewoods by Company X and cost $2000, therefore it is better and higher quality across the board and music made on it will sound better than a less expensive bass made from different materials" is nothing but nonsense. Complete rubbish.



Sure, it'll sound different. Different: that's all. Whether it sounds "better" is completely subjective and that will vary from individual player and listener to individual player and listener.



Totally (but respectfully) disagree, for all the reasons above and many more. It may well sound different. "Better" is an altogether different thing, and it is impossible to make that statement as if it were some kind of fact. It couldn't be further from being a fact.



Yes, ANY two basses will have variables that make them sound different, even if they are essentially identical. But there's nothing you can point to in one bass and make the claim that it is objectively "better" in any absolute sense from any other bass.

Honestly, for someone who says they cannot make a bass guitar sound good, you seem to have a lot to say. I learned on an $85 dollar bass. I worked every note i could get out of it and worked to make it sound good, despite it having the action of a bow. When i played my parts on a musicman while sitting in a guitar store, shockingly, they sounded better and were easier to play. It was like leveling up instantly. You are saying the bass makes no difference you are objectively wrong. Period.

 

[MojoPenguin]

I think it depends not especially on the instrument, but on a good setup, proper shielding and quality cables...

 

[Alper Yilmaz]

Amen!

Okay, so it's my opinion. But my opinion is that the thread title is, in fact, a fact.

I've heard too many basses played by a as many bassists, ranging from a Squier to a Fodera and everything in between, that sounded both fantastic and awful. It's the player, period.

The better the player, the more he or she will be able to draw the quality out of the higher end basses. But that same person will still be able to bring a subpar bass to life. Either will sound fantastic.

Anything in the hands of someone like myself will all sound pretty much the same. Yes, a turd.

Can I get an Amen!

 

[andruca]

Fortunately I realised what the OP brings to the table some 15 years ago. So happy I did, saved me a lot of money. I'm still finding and selling gear I don't use from time to time.

 

[Yaralag]

Lemmy would still sound like Lemmy on a Thunderbird, but he just sounds better on a Rickenbacker.

Why are you talking about yourself in the 3rd person?

 

[Yaralag]

I think a good player could show up to a gig with a $100 bass and do just fine as long as they have a decent amp. If you don't have skill and a good amp you could be playing a million dollar bass and it wouldn't matter one bit.

 

[chris_b]

IMO, this is all too simplistic.

I know the the difference is in the player, but while good sounding gear isn't going to make a bad player sound good, it will make any other kind of player sound better.

That might be why many good players choose the gear they do.

 

[StereoPlayer]

The bassist for The Roots has been seen to play a cheapo Teisco bass on the old show.....

 

[Funkmabassup]

crappy players will often sound even more crappy on highend basses, the responsiveness of many highend basses make sure everything is picked up and amplified, while many of the cheapo basses are much more forgiving at sloppy tecnique

 

[madjazzbass]

CV basses are better

? What are CV Basses?

 

[monsterthompson]

Rabble rousing thread has roused the rabble. Troll-tastic.

 

[madjazzbass]

Playing on a (properly set up) "higher end" Bass always made me "feel like" I was a little bit better than I actually am because I didn't have to struggle so much with it. I was still a "meah" player, but (TO ME) I sounded ... ?... less meah ...? (Ha!) and a little better cause the Bass played really nice, Ha!!