How Many Practice Electric Bass Unplugged?

[Blues Bass 2]

I do .
I sit in front of my couch in my living room and play while watching football , basketball or baseball . Anything on TV that I don't have to listen to .
Works for me .

 

[Green Knight]

I play my Kinal Kompact unplugged when in front of the computer, when the kids are in bed, or when just in need of a short break from something. I almost never plug it in. The other basses I would never think to play acoustically.

 

[SaucyJackBass]

All the time, but I have a Fender Acoustic Bass. It sits in my family room and I pick it up while watching TV almost every night.

 

[primusfan1989]

Hardly if ever, so much of practicing bass to me is touch and you don't get any sense of that playing unplugged to me

 

[Berger912]

I have noticed that sometimes I just want to grab the bass and sit on the edge of the bed and practice unplugged. It's so simple and easy with no cables, no headphones or wireless electronics to worry over.

I was wondering how many other folks do this and if it is considered an effective way to practice?

Thanks.

i do all the time even if it is just torun scales, i keeps my fingers limber

 

[GreggBummer]

I have a Hagstrom Viking bass. It is semi-hollow body. It sounds great just on it's own. Both my wife and I are in healthcare and work odd hours... so a low volume unplugged bass is fantastic to have around. It also sounds wonderful plugged in- once you learn to tame the neck pickup.

 

[lizardking837]

I have noticed that sometimes I just want to grab the bass and sit on the edge of the bed and practice unplugged. It's so simple and easy with no cables, no headphones or wireless electronics to worry over.

I was wondering how many other folks do this and if it is considered an effective way to practice?

Thanks.

I do this at least once a week and focus almost entirely on scales and theory. I like it because there's less distraction from messing with my amp, effects or just wanting to jam along to songs I've already played a million times.

 

[Kevin Teed]

I have noticed that sometimes I just want to grab the bass and sit on the edge of the bed and practice unplugged. It's so simple and easy with no cables, no headphones or wireless electronics to worry over.

I was wondering how many other folks do this and if it is considered an effective way to practice?

Thanks.

I do it all the time. Last week was the first time I plugged in since last august.

 

[Lee Kirkham]

Always.

 

[growlypants]

If all you're doing is exercises, to keep the hands in shape and work on timing... why plug in? If it's sound, obviously you're going to need that amp!

 

[Kael]

Mostly fretless, mostly unplugged. The comments about picking up bad habits from this have not been accurate in my experience.

 

[jlo95]

I have noticed that sometimes I just want to grab the bass and sit on the edge of the bed and practice unplugged. It's so simple and easy with no cables, no headphones or wireless electronics to worry over.

I was wondering how many other folks do this and if it is considered an effective way to practice?

Thanks.

I practice unplugged frequently. I find it is good for working on attack and tone and many other things. If you can get a consistent and desirable sound from your electric unplugged then it will sound great plugged in also.

Of course it is important to play plugged in to also develop the sound that will come from your amplifier.

They say the sound is in your touch. I say go straight to the source! Unplug baby

 

[ONYX]

After 39 years of playing, I have no reason to plug in until I get to the gig.

 

[Spidey2112]

I do, all the time.

 

[fishdreams]

yes. It can work in a super quiet environment where one can really hear oneself. (Like 5am in the morning). There is a different more direct connection to the instrument, and I for example really enjoyed the physical freedom aspect, like walking back and forth through a room while playing scales. It helps to have a good acoustic environment (wooden floor, wood panels). Keep the technique in check - as pointed out elsewhere, hitting the strings very hard on an electric bass can be detrimental to good tone and fluent technique.

I have also played sessions not plugged in, for example with another bass player or a cigar box guitarist. Technically it becomes about really hitting the strings, and it should be considered an entirely different technique than playing amplified.

 

[Muttleybass]

If I'm just walking by the bandroom and feel like noodling, or finger exercising, no. But serious practice I'll plug in for sure.

 

[Dr. Keebs]

Every once in a while, I may do it. If its something quick like a melody line, or a section of bass line that I want to get on the fingerboard, I may run through it unplugged for ease of use. Not as a habit or routine, though. If I'm practicing or learning, I generally want the response of whatever electrical signal/tone/effect the song imparts.

 

[michael_t]

Practicing unplugged is what I did as a beginner. That's how I developed the bad habit of playing harder than I really needed to, which in turn prevented me from learning proper techniques. It was an ear-opening experience when I started using an amp and a pair of headphones for home practice because that's when I realized my bass actually sounded the way it should without straining my fingers.

 

[ctmullins]

All the time.

 

[lermgalieu]

Every time this thread comes along, there is a contingent of bassists who say that playing unplugged is fine - if you don't want to hear yourself. For the record, I can hear myself absolutely fine unplugged, and I even have a bit of tinnitus. If there is ambient noise, I can lower my chin to the upper bout or put part of the bass against a wall and hear even better. But that's usually unnecessary - In a quiet room I can hear every aspect of my playing, in some ways more so than with an amp. It's my favorite way to practice.