I know this is all subjective, but I don't have any sustain issues (as noted above) and play with low action and very heavy hands.
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I NEED more punch/sustain!
- Thread starter chaunceyjiggson
- Start date
I know this is all subjective, but I don't have any sustain issues (as noted above) and play with low action and very heavy hands.
"two fixed firm vibration-free points", that's fine for Grand Pianos, but what if one end of the string is at the nut, or a fret? The body of a Jazz Bass guitar with a bolt on neck doesn't come close to comparing to frame of a cheap piano, let alone a well made grand piano. A "SOLID THICK METAL FRAME" makes for something entirely different from a Bass Guitar.
Just sayin....
"fixed firm" is a 1/4" thick steel or cast bridge,
not something that is compliant and bleeds off the vibrations to the rest of the strings and the body.
And the nut has nothing to do with a fretted note.
There's another thread here somewhere about this...
not something that is compliant and bleeds off the vibrations to the rest of the strings and the body.
And the nut has nothing to do with a fretted note.
There's another thread here somewhere about this...
Agreed here too although I vary my strength constantly... when I'm heavy handed in some basses I get a sharper adsr decay rate but on my main basses they just sustain like crazy. The Wilkinson on my Carvin and simple metal on my ebmms work perfectly. Stock nut, stock everything. Just really good wood and great design and build quality of the woodwork.
But we strive to get as close as possible to that example. The point of my post though was to demonstrate the example of the best use of applied physics to create a sustained bass string. And also fwiw, a piano is more like a bass guitar than not imho in how the string is placed and tuned and used. Particularly as far as physics goes, it's identical aside from how the tone is amplified.
i'm new to bass (less than a year) but when i switched my old bent-tin bridge to a gotoh 201 (don't swear at me if i mention that it's HIGH MASS
) my bass went from decent to awesome.way more punch, way more sustain. like i said, i'm inexperienced though, so feel free to prove me wrong about the bridge making a difference.
i'm new to bass (less than a year) but when i switched my old bent-tin bridge to a gotoh 201 (don't swear at me if i mention that it's HIGH MASS
way more punch, way more sustain. like i said, i'm inexperienced though, so feel free to prove me wrong about the bridge making a difference.
I presume/hope you replaced the strings too?
And as someone notes earlier... there is no such thing as a bent tin bridge. There is bent Steel which is an excellent rigid metal design. High mass though CAN alter the tone, I won't argue the point. I agree. But it shouldn't alter the sustain particularly... and only the tone if the previous bridge was truly poor. Was it a fender bridge or a knock off or...
I don't usually play tuned down except briefly in 1 band that tuned down 1/2 step till I realised there was no reason to do it. Anyway, for fun dropped the E on my Am Std P Bass with D'Adarrio 105 string on it. Was expecting it to be floppy and unplayable but was surprisingly fine. Sounded, played and felt great. Plenty of volume and sustain. Made me think trying a smaller rather than larger gauge string might help. Good to know if I ever get the call for a new metal band.
Agree with all comments on compression and also playing with more amp volume but a lighter touch. I found I'm doing this more and more lately, turning up the amp and controlling more with my fingers on the bass. Another thing to consider is your tone and EQ. If you're looking for sustain, are you playing clean or is there any dirt in your signal. Most overdrive/fuzz/distortion will definitely increase sustain. You haven't mentioned your rig but for punch, 10" cabs will be more punchy than 15" or 12". And more 10"s are better. Also, make sure you don't have to much bass in your EQ settings and if anything boost the low - mid midrange frequencies.
Agree with all comments on compression and also playing with more amp volume but a lighter touch. I found I'm doing this more and more lately, turning up the amp and controlling more with my fingers on the bass. Another thing to consider is your tone and EQ. If you're looking for sustain, are you playing clean or is there any dirt in your signal. Most overdrive/fuzz/distortion will definitely increase sustain. You haven't mentioned your rig but for punch, 10" cabs will be more punchy than 15" or 12". And more 10"s are better. Also, make sure you don't have to much bass in your EQ settings and if anything boost the low - mid midrange frequencies.
oh yeah i whacked some rotosounds on there as soon as i could.
it was a bare basic (ungrooved) stock bridge that came on my gretsch junior jet, i've heard they're okay but this one was terrible...strings sliding all over the place, not holding tension, etc.
i think the sustain improvement came about from putting on a high-performance bridge in general, the high-mass part is probably irrelevant.
- Oct 3, 2004
- 536
- 616
- Disclosures
- Jackie endorses Sire guitars,EBS amps and pedals,Dunlop Strings,Evidence Audio cables,and iGiG cases
So there you have it....
$199 ESP power cable for your amp
$100 Monster cable
$20 Tusq nut
$100 Badass Bridge
$500+ and you will sound great (the same really)
Personally, I would start with pickup height and maybe different strings.
This is pretty funny but I know for a fact well made cables produce better tones.I know the owner of ESP but,I haven't tried his gear yet.
I used Monster for about 3-4 years and I didn't know enough to know the difference back then.Now that my ears have matured and I know what I'm listening for,I know there's a direct relation to cables and tone.
The cables I currently use, Evidence Audio,clearly shows this is true.I've done A/B tests with my basses,my studio monitors,and my rig and there's a very noticeable difference in clarity and punch.They don't pay me to say this,I'm speaking purely from my personal experience.I also have video/audio proof of what I said if you're ever interested in hearing.Not trying to prove a point,just trying to help you improve your sound if you're interested.
Peace!
- Oct 3, 2004
- 536
- 616
- Disclosures
- Jackie endorses Sire guitars,EBS amps and pedals,Dunlop Strings,Evidence Audio cables,and iGiG cases
Thanks!!! Fortunately,I've never had a bad instrument to make me post such questions as the OP.The majority of my basses are stock with the exception of my '74 Jazz.I only changed the pickups because the coils were separating,causing me to lose signal.
My other basses are dang near close to perfect!!!
Thanks again!
Peace!
i'm new to bass (less than a year) but when i switched my old bent-tin bridge to a gotoh 201 (don't swear at me if i mention that it's HIGH MASS
way more punch, way more sustain. like i said, i'm inexperienced though, so feel free to prove me wrong about the bridge making a difference.
Your old bridge wasn't made of tin, first of all. There are 1,000 threads about this subject. Personally, I doubt that you are experienced enough to discern real subtleties and the difference is in your head.
So here's an update on my situation. I tried heavier strings and that really did the trick! I put a 130 on the low c and the punch and sustain was ridiculous. I still hold firm that a better bridge will improve at least my tone cause the standard fender bent steel bridges are damn near terrible. I played with my band last night at a show and my saddles slipped down to unplayable levels and I had to switch basses (a problem I've experienced more than once just never as bad) and I'm more than definitely going to upgrade my cables just for some added clarity and whatnot. And on a side note I got a kick out of the guy saying he would use a 105 tuned to around A! The only way that would ever make sense to me is if you wanted no tone at all and wanted to sound like fieldy from korn (possibly the worst bass tone in history, sounds like a broken baby rattle being slapped to death) if you want any sort of clarity I wouldn't use below a 130 for A and even then I would probably still go a tad bigger. Thanks for all the help guys I really appreciate it!
Don't buy into that. There are always a few that insist they can hear a huge difference and that everybody else is deaf, but the vast majority (and very respected dudes) disagree, including myself.
I absolutely refuse to believe anyone who says their bridge saddles worked their way completely out of whack on ANY bridge during the course of one show.
What I said was I was surprised that dropping my 105 E string to C actually sounded pretty good but whatever you da man on tone.
Op just wants to hear that he's right. Well go ahead buddy, spend your money on whatever you want. Nobody can force you to wise up.
