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is a pbass better for reggae than a jazz?

#22
And before Robbie used the Hofner, it used to belong to Family Man.

It doesn't matter at all what bass you use for ANY music. What matters is if YOU like it. If you would rather play a Precision and you think it would get your sound across better, get one. If you would rather play a Jazz, get one. If you would rather play an 11-string custom, well, let's not get carried away ;)
 
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#26
you know what??

i think most of you guys are too worried about gear, and you forget one thing, the music!!

i think that the reggae bass players (family man , robbie) didn't care about the instrument, of course they prefered to play a jazz bass, but i think they would have used any instrument available at the moment

there's no hate in my post , just a statement

peace
 
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#27
bongomania said:
No, and frankly there's a lot of misconceptions out there being repeated.

A P has stronger mids than a passive J, and we hear those low mids as these huge deep lows, but the fact of the matter is the actual frequencies we're hearing are not the low lows. A J can actually put out stronger, lower fundamental lows than a P due to the placement of the neck pup.

For another thing, if your J seems bright then use the tone knob! That's what it's for. Also read up on reggae technique, because proper technique is what generates that deep throbbing boom on any kind of bass with any kind of strings. I have rounds on my J and can get a super wide deep boom just by playing with reggae technique.

A P is a good "shortcut"- roll back the tone, throw on some flats, and you don't need technique to get a big fat boom. :)
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+100. Your right hand technique with the tone knob rolled off will have the biggest influence in the sound. I think a P or J would be perfect for reggae. And as others have said, most of the "fathers" of reggae bass use Jazz basses, so really I would tell you to get the one that feels better to you as P and J necks are different sizes.

Raising the action a little is also a good recommendation as somebody mentioned.
 
#29
I use a P with flats in my group, foam mute sometimes.
I also play a J, and am looking to get a 5string with some nordstrands in there.

...but most importantly, like these guys above said, it's not the gear, it's the feel. Reggae music, first and foremost, is about love and respect. Without that, you aren't really listening and believing in the music.

for some pbass pups reggae sight, check this.http://youtube.com/watch?v=XfANkOkMx_8&feature=related
 
#30
Hand a good reggae player ANY decent bass, with all the trebles cranked through the roof, and they can probably still get a decent thud out of it by muting. All this talk about what bass to use for what is gear nazi at worst and noobish at best.

And +1 for the instant holes in the BS "the greats use x" arguments. Some of the Riddim Killah's best work was with that Steinberger, and all the progentitors legendarily played whatever bass they could afford or even just get their hands on.

Getcha ignance/arrgance out ya mouth, yo!

When I see someone trying to tell BurningSkies what to use for a reggae gig it does make me laugh a bit. The cat is a dingwall nut and an a-list dub dude, lol. Yeah, he sure needs that J to make him "legit".
 
#31
bigfatbass said:
Hand a good reggae player ANY decent bass, with all the trebles cranked through the roof, and they can probably still get a decent thud out of it by muting. All this talk about what bass to use for what is gear nazi at worst and noobish at best.
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Pardon me, but I think comments like this are not necessary. It's neither gear nazi or noobish. All bassists choose their instruments based on certain tonal goals. Finding an instrument that allows you to completely find your voice is totally different from making an instrument work in a given setting.

Lastly, there is nothing wrong with being noobish. Everyone is noobish at some point, so being condescending about a line of questioning in that regard sounds rather haughty to me. We should let all players ask their questions, and allow others to answer them, without anyone having a fear of being called noobs or nazis.

We can all make our comments about various instruments working without resorting to condescension.
 
#32
Eublet said:
Pardon me, but I think comments like this are not necessary. It's neither gear nazi or noobish. All bassists choose their instruments based on certain tonal goals. Finding an instrument that allows you to completely find your voice is totally different from making an instrument work in a given setting.

Lastly, there is nothing wrong with being noobish. Everyone is noobish at some point, so being condescending about a line of questioning in that regard sounds rather haughty to me. We should let all players ask their questions, and allow others to answer them, without anyone having a fear of being called noobs or nazis.

We can all make our comments about various instruments working without resorting to condescension.
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I love my P bass for all the reasons you described, but mostly I agree with bigfatbass. There *is* way too much focus on "what's the best type of bass for ______ music?" Just play the frigging tunes.
 
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#34
PLAY WHAT FEELS BEST!!!!

Currently I'm Rocking my Jazz bass with dead ROUNDWOUNDS! and i dial in a NICE fat DUB tone! But for the most part i use my jazz with 2 1/2 yr old CHromes!.

IT doesn't matter what you play, So what if the greats used a jazz or p, thats not why i got my jazz.

I've been to like 10 big name reggae shows in the past 4 months. Bassist for the marley brothers was rocking a 6 string ibanez with rounds, another one rocked a 70s jazz bass with flats.

Bassist for Steel pulse i'm pretty sure used an ibanez or brand that looks like those bodies & played rounds. One of the best live reggae bass tone i've heard was The mystic roots band playing with Pato banton, the man was using a 5 string warwick with flats!

On Sunday night I had the Great honor of Seeing Mr Freddie Mcgregor & John Holt play with the new york Ochrestra and their live band... I was far away but i'm pretty sure the dude was playing a 5 string Ibanez through his 2x 4x10 HARTKE!

Gear doesn't matter in Reggae, find what works For you!. My suggestion is to put flats on any bass you have, for reggae as it will be easy for you to immitate your fav reggae tone(ew not reggaetone thoEWWWW).
 
#35
The condescenion is the key, as is the air of elitism by somehow inferring that the instrument itself doesn't have much of a role once a person reaches a certain level. Even the best players have very definite preferences for instruments and how they fit in particularly genres. Everyone I've met cleary has an opinion on what instruments generally fits best where, so pretending it doesn't here and telling those who are generally curious to just not worry about isn't very practical IMHO. Look at the number of basses in your sig. Why not just keep the Squier and throw the others out if it's not important.
 
#36
Eublet said:
The condescenion is the key, as is the air of elitism by somehow inferring that the instrument itself doesn't have much of a role once a person reaches a certain level. Even the best players have very definite preferences for instruments and how they fit in particularly genres. Everyone I've met cleary has an opinion on what instruments generally fits best where, so pretending it doesn't here and telling those who are generally curious to just not worry about isn't very practical IMHO. Look at the number of basses in your sig. Why not just keep the Squier and throw the others out if it's not important.
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you know you're right in a way kind of, but thats not to say whenever a in-experienced reggae bassist is looking for a new bass they need to run out and get a Fender Jazz bass with flat wound strings and a 8x10 ampeg fridge witha big ampeg tube head.

like i said you play what feels best and sounds best, but don't listen to some of the people on TB that will tell you you gotta play a P with flats for reggae, cause its simply not the case.

I live in south florida and we get tons of reggae shows and i will tell you out of all the major acts i see these days i rarely see a fender. Lots of ibanezs, warwicks, steinbergers and a lot don't even play flatwounds anymore!
 
#37
Heres the bassist for Steel Pulse!
2156697348_44fd41ac5f.jpg


no fender in sight
 
#38
Eublet said:
The condescenion is the key, as is the air of elitism by somehow inferring that the instrument itself doesn't have much of a role once a person reaches a certain level. Even the best players have very definite preferences for instruments and how they fit in particularly genres. Everyone I've met cleary has an opinion on what instruments generally fits best where, so pretending it doesn't here and telling those who are generally curious to just not worry about isn't very practical IMHO. Look at the number of basses in your sig. Why not just keep the Squier and throw the others out if it's not important.
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I didn't say that one's instrument is not important, and I rock both my Squier fretless and my MIA P bass regularly on gigs. I'm also not saying that they don't sound different because they do - moreso to me than to anyone else, IMHO, but whatever. The point is that the important part about playing reggae is not in the instrument, but in the player. Timing, taste, and feel are *way* more important than selecting a bass specific to the genre, especially considering that the genre was invented by poor street kids in Jamaica with limited tools available - think washtubs and plastic buckets for drums - not rich-by-comparison white youngsters in suburban USA, going shopping at the local GC for a "reggae bass." The corollary to the line of thinking that you need a certain bass to play a certain style is snobbery - like you need an upright to play jazz (trust me, I lived that one for years), or that you need a Fender for recording and session work, or that you need a whatever to play whatever. IMHO, bigfatbass's comment about gear nazi's is appropriate and not condescending. The only way in to the country club is by wearing the right logos. :rolleyes: *That's* where elitism exists, IMHO.

My intention has been to draw the attention of "noobs" to the art and craft of their music, not their tools - focusing too much on the tools of any craft is a dangerous and expensive preoccupation that does nothing to take you towards the goals of your craft.

But good point - I think I'll take the "clubs" out of my sig, it sends the wrong message to "noobs."

I'm certain bigfatbass was not trying to be condescending, and neither am I.
 
#39
Did any of you with attitudes notice that the OP asked a very specific question. That's what many of us tried to answer.

While I agree that there is no perfect bass for any style and most things depend on one's technique and EQ/tone adjustments, being unpleasant and disagreeable about it doesn't help anyone.
 

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