+1. Any of those three will growl things up nicely (with the right tube support of course).
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in search for REAL growly basses
- Thread starter BASSaSuperNova
- Start date
+1. Any of those three will growl things up nicely (with the right tube support of course).
Do you have something particular in mind?
Not really.
I play rounds from GHS all the way, not that i like em THAT much, but they feel good to my hands and im thinkin of "never touch a running system".
Can you suggest some strings known for a rich and strong character?
Really thanks for your advise so far.
You guys a very informative!
You might try Rotosounds or LaBella Steels. Also, another poster mentioned that he has the same bass as you and was getting tons of growl from DR Black Beauties.
You might look in the Classified: Accessories section and see what "lightly used" strings people have up for trade or sale and try a few different things. Might save you a ton of money in the long run (over buying a new bass), provided that you like the feel of your bass in the first place.
I still think you are really limiting yourself looking for a "growly" bass (whatever that means). What most people associate with growl is likely just new roundwound string tone through an all tube amp. I would focus on getting a versitile bass that you are comfortable with and then getting a pedal to give you that little bit of grit that you need. I really don't see much point in focusing on basses that have a focused tone as tastes and playing styles can change over time. Its hard to go wrong with just a jazz bass. Slaps some bright rounds and play through a pedal and you have growl city. Put on flats and wind back the treble and you have a good vintage tone. You can always EQ growl into a versitile instrument. It can be hard to get it out of instruments that have a natural "growl" to them (eg warwick thumb).
If the OP asked for the growliest of them all, to me it's obvious that's what he needs 
A versatile bass is good if you're playing a lot of styles with multiple bands, otherwise a specialised tone is to be prefered in a certain genre. This being said, I owned at some point a Jazz and the tone was not even close to a W's, completely different animals. And I wouldn't call a F Jazz versatile either - it's the other way round: a tone that fits most styles, but in the end it will still sound like a Fender, and not a Warwick
A versatile bass is good if you're playing a lot of styles with multiple bands, otherwise a specialised tone is to be prefered in a certain genre. This being said, I owned at some point a Jazz and the tone was not even close to a W's, completely different animals. And I wouldn't call a F Jazz versatile either - it's the other way round: a tone that fits most styles, but in the end it will still sound like a Fender, and not a Warwick
I guess my point is that I can get a "growlier" sound by playing a versitile bass through an appropriate pedal into say a Eden rig than you can get by playing your growliest bass of choice straight into that rig.If the OP asked for the growliest of them all, to me it's obvious that's what he needs
Your comment has some important truth in it.
I guess finding the definite sound is a journey and therefore a versitile bass could be the right choice.
...anyway, im on fire testing some real growly (different qualia is no prob) basses and that's why i mentioned it in the title.
You will prolly be able to get a growly tone out of a versatile bass and some more equipment, but the real question is why would you want to invest more than just the bass itself in order to get that tone? IMO the lesser the best - anything more than just bass + amp + cab would only dirty the tone and eventually choke the natural sound of that bass. And a bass that's growly by nature will have the same tone regardless of the rest of the rig, while getting a specific tone mostly out of the rig itself rather than the bass would require a lot of experiments until finding the right combo of gear. Just my 2 cents.
One might consider another possibility:
Your right hand technique (or left hand if you're a lefty). Plucking near the bridge is a BIG part of getting that quick bark and full resonance.
It's not always the gear.
IMHO.
That said, my lovely j-bass growls like a pissed off grizzly. In the best sense of the word.
Your right hand technique (or left hand if you're a lefty). Plucking near the bridge is a BIG part of getting that quick bark and full resonance.
It's not always the gear.
IMHO.
That said, my lovely j-bass growls like a pissed off grizzly. In the best sense of the word.
the "growliest" bass i have played is the azola jazzman 1, and i am a long time warwick player. the azola is maple on ash. it is a jazz shape with a basslines mm style pickup, built by steve azola who usually builds electric uprights. all it does is growl. it is very articulate as well. i actually have it up for sale locally. let me know if you are interested. i am moving back to passive p-style basses and hollowbodies.
Yamaha Nathan East, Ken Smith, MTD, Skjold. I've owned all 4 at one point or another, and they are all growly.
