Last year was pretty rough, due to unpleasant unforeseen circumstances (some tangentially covid related,) I ended up letting go of my Pedulla in 2020. Things are on the upside, but last year has left me with a fear of Gas.
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How is this tone?
- Thread starter Dr. Cheese
- Start date
I'm sorry to hear that. You're one of my favorite posters on this board. Keep on keeping on!
sorry to say it sounds great, doc, no new bass for you! 
(seriously sounds good)
(seriously sounds good)
Anyone thinkin they need to spend cash on a fretless should research Bakithi Kumalo's early career, wit Paul Simon. His Washburn fretless tone ruled.
For real, none of his “nicer” basses sound better than that old Washburn.
My condolences for the loss of your Pentabuzz. It was a truly gorgeous bass. That being said.. I'm sure you'll manage fine with your Yamaha.
On another note.. I was playing my TMB505 through my Pod Go into headphones last night using the m9 carbine and svt810 sims.. "for the price" nothing. I was in tone heaven.. plugged in my P-bass sporting ti flats. Yep. More tone heaven.
While sometimes a pickup swap might be called for.. it's not just about the bass.. it's about the strings, the signal chain, and of course what you put into it.
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Your bass sounds fine to me. The Washburn that Khumalo played on “Graceland” wasn’t a high-dollar model and it had sky high action. It might be an unpopular sentiment at TB to say that one of the best examples of bass guitar was done on a cheapie that most of us would regard as unplayable, but there it is.
Your bass sounds fine to me. The Washburn that Khumalo played on “Graceland” wasn’t a high-dollar model and it had sky high action. It might be an unpopular sentiment at TB to say that one of the best examples of bass guitar was done on a cheapie that most of us would regard as unplayable, but there it is.
From what I have heard, Jamerson’s Funk Machine had crap action too.
TMB’s nice basses. I played one a few years myself. You are also right about swapping strings or any number of other things improving the tone.
BobDeRosa
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- May 16, 2012
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Sounds great! It's really tough to go wrong with a Yamaha at any price level. I see no reason to upgrade.
Sounds a lot like an upright bass. Pretty cool.
It does get that upright growl.
I can’t wait to hear it. It’s in the faingers as I say here in Savannah. Definitely in the faingers.
I lucked out this because it is probably 25 years old and has been defretted. Yamahas tend to be well constructed, but the EMG split pickup is the real game changer.
Yer bass sounds great, Doc. I think folk put a little too much emphasis on gear and its cost, and on low action. I think intent of the player and HIS belief in the gear he uses is far more important than the amount paid or name on the headstock. Yamaha basses are built exceedingly well at all price points. I also gave up a very high end, well respected fretless 5 for my current G&L M2500 fretless. For my style and tonal goals, the G&L is simply better. I'm not a flatwound fan. I can appreciate the vibe, but rounds are where I find the tones I am looking for. Steel rounds, even..
As far as action; Jamerson, Miller, Will Lee, Kumalo and many other heroes of mine, plus upright bassists, and I believe, Jaco himself, ran action far higher than folk are willing to believe today. Strings vibrate in an elliptical pattern similar to a planet's orbit. Gotta have enuff room under them to fully vibrate. You get more projection of a string into the pickup, thus more sound. I run my fretless action fairly high for this reason. My fretted action, too. I have no issues getting sustain an mwah outta my basses this way. And my hands adapted, they don't get sore. Plus, fewer marks on my board, in general, vs lowish action.
Each of us is our own worst critic. Each of us, tho, has our own thing to contribute to the world of tone. Don't critique away yer uniqueness, Doc. Own it. That Yamaha sounds fantastic. And, a new set of strings can fundamentally change the tone of any instrument. And strings are far cheaper than a new bass. Especially today. I keep a few sets around for differing moods. I may not like flats, but the folk that hire me sometimes do. So I keep sets for those occasions.
