Indeed. I didn't cover the differences in which finger. I have spent a lot of practice time trying to make them sound the same because I am, primarily, a finger player and I use two fingers most of the time, and three when I need to.
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If tone really is in the fingers...
- Thread starter mbell75
- Start date
Most every top notch bassist does not play an instrument that costs thousands.
Some do.
It is absolutely true that the “tone is in the fingers,” presuming one is referring to knowledge, skill, feel, execution, etc. That is your starting point.
The instrument needs to fit the gig. That might be a dumpster diver for a punk gig, or it might be a showy Fodera if you are backing up a big name tour. Just depends on what the folks at the audition are looking for. You can be either over dressed or under dressed, and not get the gig.
Hone your skills, get experience, and play instruments that make you comfortable on the gig. The rest will take care of itself.
Because the off the rack $300 bass from GC isn’t even made by the name on the headstock and apparently, that’s a big deal to some people.
They’re trying to make another musician feel like a scrub. Factual accuracy is kinda beside the point.
This is a little over the top, but I get your points. I don't think anyone is expecting a bass player to bring a Fodera on tour. I think it simply comes down to vanity. People buy what they want and can afford.
IMHO the axiom means: Regardless of what bass and gear you use, you will always sound like you. It doesn't necessarily mean your tone will be exactly the same though.
IMHO, to a large degree your fingers (actually the way you use your fingers) do create tone, but the pickups, amp, speakers, strings, and even to a small degree the wood and scale of the instrument tend to take this tone and modify it substantially.
Most professional players I know (and I know quite a few), have a LOT of basses. Walk into their music room in their house and you'll see sometimes dozens of basses from Fodera to Hofner and everything in between. For the same reason a painter has multiple paint brushes, a musician has to have multiple instruments.
Do they have to be expensive? Depends on what your definition of expensive is. I think the law of diminishing return starts around $1500. There is a vast difference between a $70 Glarry bass and a $300 Squier Classic Vibe. There is a smaller difference between the Squier and a Mexican Fender, and an smaller difference to an American Professional. As the price goes up, the return on your investments diminishes.
I enjoy quality gear. I am a "buy the best you can afford and cry once" guy. A higher end instrument has a "feel" to it. If you blindfolded me and had me play a cheap bass versus a premium model from the same manufacturer, I could tell a difference in how it feels. The finish, the fretwork, and the craftsmanship. Even the pots and knobs feel different. If I were a touring musician playing hours a day, day after day, I'd want an instrument that felt good to me. I wouldn't have anything to do with price.
Lately I have been getting into custom builds. I did one myself, with a Warmoth body and neck, then I added all the components I wanted. It is an awesome instrument. Cost me about $1100 to get all wood, hardware, pickup, etc. I wanted. I have two custom builds in progress. Neither of them are absurdly expensive, but they are more than you'd pay for an off the shelf US Fender Elite. Each of them are being built to my specifications. The neck shaped how I want. The pickups I want. The control layout I want. Etc. To me, that justifies the extra cost on an instrument I plan on owning for the rest of my life.
And lastly...I enjoy quality craftsmanship and beautiful wood. One bass I am having made will be an awesome player, but it will be just as pleasing hanging on the wall in my music room. It will be a piece of playable art.
So yes, you can get a $200 Guitar Center clearance special and absolute rock it as a professional. But I suspect many of them have the same sense of feel in an instrument I do, and they like the feeling of quality.
Do they have to be expensive? Depends on what your definition of expensive is. I think the law of diminishing return starts around $1500. There is a vast difference between a $70 Glarry bass and a $300 Squier Classic Vibe. There is a smaller difference between the Squier and a Mexican Fender, and an smaller difference to an American Professional. As the price goes up, the return on your investments diminishes.
I enjoy quality gear. I am a "buy the best you can afford and cry once" guy. A higher end instrument has a "feel" to it. If you blindfolded me and had me play a cheap bass versus a premium model from the same manufacturer, I could tell a difference in how it feels. The finish, the fretwork, and the craftsmanship. Even the pots and knobs feel different. If I were a touring musician playing hours a day, day after day, I'd want an instrument that felt good to me. I wouldn't have anything to do with price.
Lately I have been getting into custom builds. I did one myself, with a Warmoth body and neck, then I added all the components I wanted. It is an awesome instrument. Cost me about $1100 to get all wood, hardware, pickup, etc. I wanted. I have two custom builds in progress. Neither of them are absurdly expensive, but they are more than you'd pay for an off the shelf US Fender Elite. Each of them are being built to my specifications. The neck shaped how I want. The pickups I want. The control layout I want. Etc. To me, that justifies the extra cost on an instrument I plan on owning for the rest of my life.
And lastly...I enjoy quality craftsmanship and beautiful wood. One bass I am having made will be an awesome player, but it will be just as pleasing hanging on the wall in my music room. It will be a piece of playable art.
So yes, you can get a $200 Guitar Center clearance special and absolute rock it as a professional. But I suspect many of them have the same sense of feel in an instrument I do, and they like the feeling of quality.
I watch most Rig Rundowns, I rarely see guys with instruments under $2k and when I do, it’s usually a guitar or bass that has sentimental value to the artist from when they were starting out. You rarely see guys playing anything but US made instruments. I have yet to see a Squier or Epiphone. I see this at most shows I go to as well.
Seriously?
Maybe for the same reason some people wear nice clothes instead of clothes from Walmart?
I do. The expensive stuff usually stays at home. I sound awesome no matter what I play. Next!
I’m unfamiliar with watching Rig Rundowns. I kind of go by the pro bass players I run into while traveling. The vast majority are toting some kind of decent but otherwise rather ordinary bass.
I think it comes down to using whatever gets the gig. Auditions are competitive and often have rather complex dynamics going on.
I got bombarded with the "tone is in your fingers" when I joined here a couple of months ago .
It gets annoying when you are asking for simple answers for specific questions and people start posting comments like that.
It's almost like certain people think you can make your instrument sound any way you want with just your hands. That's BS. Not even close to the truth, BUT,
Your sound can be highly affected by your fingers. Particualry the first few milliseconds of a note.
Where you play and how you pluck the string does have a big impact on your sound. The shape of your fingers coupled with the direction of pull and power have significant impact on tone. Hell, even your skins texture impacts tone. Soft fingers tend to make a soft round sound where as hard callouses sound more like a pick.
I just dont understand the need to use blanket statements for every tone thread when we all know gear does play a massive role.
It gets annoying when you are asking for simple answers for specific questions and people start posting comments like that.
It's almost like certain people think you can make your instrument sound any way you want with just your hands. That's BS. Not even close to the truth, BUT,
Your sound can be highly affected by your fingers. Particualry the first few milliseconds of a note.
Where you play and how you pluck the string does have a big impact on your sound. The shape of your fingers coupled with the direction of pull and power have significant impact on tone. Hell, even your skins texture impacts tone. Soft fingers tend to make a soft round sound where as hard callouses sound more like a pick.
I just dont understand the need to use blanket statements for every tone thread when we all know gear does play a massive role.
Care to elucidate?
Several others have said the same thing.
"Tone is in the fingers" is only partly correct....
Flawless/articulate technique can only optimize the attributes of an instrument...that's it
If someone believes great tone is the rich harmonic piano-wire tone of brand new roundwounds, the greatest fingers on the planet won't make an old worn-out set of flatwounds sound like that....nor will they make those same worn flats on a P-bass sound like new fresh rounds on a Stingray
As far as "Tone is in the fingers" relates to TB, its just become a cliche thats starting to rival "Jaco only needed four strings" as a douche-ey non-answer.....
Flawless/articulate technique can only optimize the attributes of an instrument...that's it
If someone believes great tone is the rich harmonic piano-wire tone of brand new roundwounds, the greatest fingers on the planet won't make an old worn-out set of flatwounds sound like that....nor will they make those same worn flats on a P-bass sound like new fresh rounds on a Stingray
As far as "Tone is in the fingers" relates to TB, its just become a cliche thats starting to rival "Jaco only needed four strings" as a douche-ey non-answer.....
This is another part of the equation. You might go for a "next best thing" bass if your #1 is one that is difficult to replace. If I was playing shows all the time (I play VERY few these days and mostly record), I'd probably go snag the MIM Geddy Lee. Plenty good as a bass. About half the price. I'd cry less. haha. ...but, since my instruments are rarely outside of my home (maybe once a week), I am comfy just having my #1 be my only one. I do, seriously want a Walnut 4003 though. Thing is, they are more than my Jazz. ...and I'd instantly have to drop a couple hundred into it to change the bridge out. I prefer playing with a pick these days and that bridge is not fun.
drumvsbass
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Tone is indeed in the fingers (and ears as far as EQ choices go). But the difference in playability of a $300 instrument compared to a $3000 is a open chasm. Good tone is subjective, why would you pay for an Alembic when a washtub with a string and a broom will fit your tonal and expressive needs, unless the Alembic makes it really easy to get that vintage washtub tone you're looking for.
Should anyone else's opinion matter of how you choose to spend your kids inheritance $$$ on your own current masturbatory enjoyment of life?
I leave that one for open discussion.
Should anyone else's opinion matter of how you choose to spend your kids inheritance $$$ on your own current masturbatory enjoyment of life?
I leave that one for open discussion.
I know where my fingers have been - and I'll leave it at that.
moral of this thread - watch less youtube, interact more with human beings.
moral of this thread - watch less youtube, interact more with human beings.
no way. Met human beings. I am good with the few I frequent. haha. ...but, yes on YouTube. Not not that YouTube is evil or anything, but YouTube and even, gasp, forums can be cesspool of group think.
