It's not the Bass, it's you

[bluesblaster]

set up is a huge part of the equation, but what works for some doesnt work for others in that regard. Jamerson had his old P bass action set way high, probably because coming from an upright its what he was use to, I've heard it said that when others picked up his bass they found it darn near unplayable, But it worked for him and thats all that mattered

 

[kesslari]

To the OP, from your post, it's not you, it's your bad@ss neighbors
Kidding aside, yeah, it's the player.

 

[Gougedeye]

It's the magician, not the wand.

That is signature worthy!

 

[David Cardoza]

One of my favorite stories on the subject... Years ago, Chet Atkins was approached on stage,
just as he was finishing a solo set. Kid says "Man, that guitar sounds great!" Chet puts the
Country Gentleman on it's stand and says... "How does it sound now?"

 

[Blankandson]

I like this.

 

[NKBassman]

No matter what bass I pick up, I've never found one that's instantly made me a better player. Some are easier to play than others, but I always max out based on my skill, not the instrument.

 

[Robroy]

No matter what bass I pick up, I've never found one that's instantly made me a better player. Some are easier to play than others, but I always max out based on my skill, not the instrument.

I've actually found some guitars are easier to play than others, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the price.

 

[NKBassman]

Don't get me wrong, some are definitely easier to play than others, but I've always sound like me at the end of the day no matter if I'm holding a Squier or a Sadowsky. I didn't actually play any better on a Sadowsky than I did on the Squier... just played the same licks a little easier.

 

[Samus C]

I see a whole lot of confusion of style/skill with actual timbre of the instrument and voice of the amp, etc. This reminds me of a quote I saw in a article about recording heavy distorted guitars:

I'm going to give Fletcher a stock Tele, a stock Twin, and 8 million years to get the "Carcass" guitar tone. He may get something he or others believe is 'good', 'heavy', or 'whatever'. But you ain't gonna get that guitar and amp combination to give you the level of distortion, saturation and flat out square wave rectification activity yer gonna get from a Les Paul Standard with EMG's into a Mesa triple rectifier.

And that's about the gist of it. Recent example from my end:

I was looking for a backup for my TRBs to take to a show we played in Puerto Rico, cause I didn't feel like risking my hard to replace gear. I tried about a billion different things, and nothing worked. One of the ones that didnt work was a Ibanez BTB575. Played great, put on some new Kalium strings, and it sounded AWESOME in my room.

I got to the practice space, was trying it out, everyone agreed it was awesome. Then we started rehearsing. And it disappeared in the mix. The only way we could get it to cut was by making the EQ on it sound all squawky with no low end or emphasizing the lows and losing the note definition in the top end. Or turning up so loud I drowned out everyone else. Plugged in my TRB6 again and we were golden. Ended up returning the bass cause even though it played great, felt great and looked great, I'd have to gut the electronics and replace them with something else to even get it to cut in my band.

That said, its always been all about the electronics when it comes to this kind of thing. Pickups and your amp. At least in my experience. I'm sure if I replaced the stock pickups in that Ibanez with some Bartolini P4s, it'd have sounded REALLY similar to my TRB through my amp. Probably to the point that no one could tell the difference. Doesnt matter that one had tighter string spacing and a longer scale length, doesn't matter that one was made of maple and mahogany and the other is made of alder.

 

[DigitalMan]

Basses are like golf clubs. The top of the line is not going to make you a better player suddenly. However, no one should be fighting with ill-fitting equipment, and the pros have a higher bar set before diminishing returns appear for them on top level gear.

 

[NKBassman]

set up is a huge part of the equation, but what works for some doesnt work for others in that regard. Jamerson had his old P bass action set way high, probably because coming from an upright its what he was use to, I've heard it said that when others picked up his bass they found it darn near unplayable, But it worked for him and thats all that mattered

Same with Eddie Van Halen's Frankenstein guitar. Virtually unplayable by all accounts.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

If he'd shut up and just play guitar I would Let me tell you something...Ted has had amp failures. Don't let anyone fool you. Besides, if he's against high tech, why isn't he playing an acoustic?

I liked him a Whole lot more when he just shut up and played guitar!

 

[Dr. Cheese]

The first time really noticed how much difference it makes when a great player plays your bass was when I regularly ran up my credit card at Rock Block Guitars in Nashville. The guy working the bass section was Anthony Joyner, a great player who used to tour with Faith Hill. The dude would play my bass, or some bass he was trying to sell me, and it sounded like a completely different instrument! If it would make any difference, I would kick myself for not putting two and two together, and pay Joyner for lessons, instead blowing money on one bass or another, like gear was my problem.

 

[vmabus]

If it's not the bass why is this in the basses forum? Why do people stop practicing to post on talkbass to tell others to practice instead of posting on talkbass? How do people that practice all the time know about talkbass?

I was just takin' a break for a cuppa, then back to practice.

 

[St. Louis Scot]

My moderately expensive Aria sounds great. My under-$400 MTD also sounds great. But... and this is a big important but... she plays differently. Her neck is cut different, her frets are a different size, her pickups are boomier, even her weight and heft are different. As a result, I play differently when with her than the Aria. Not better or worse, but different. I could see why a bass built incredibly well or with certain options might allow a talented bassist to play more smoothly, or faster, or with more precision, or in some way have an advantage he or she might not have had with a less expensive bass.

But YMMV, and then again... I like cold toilet seats. So...

 

[St. Louis Scot]

...Why do people stop practicing to post on talkbass to tell others to practice instead of posting on talkbass? How do people that practice all the time know about talkbass?

Ahhhhhhhhh ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha... inhaaaaaaaaale... ahh ha ha ha ha ha!! Right on, brother.

 

[MegaSwing]

set up is a huge part of the equation, but what works for some doesnt work for others in that regard. Jamerson had his old P bass action set way high, probably because coming from an upright its what he was use to, I've heard it said that when others picked up his bass they found it darn near unplayable, But it worked for him and thats all that mattered

Setup didn't matter to Jamerson at all. I'm pretty confident that the only adjustment he ever made on his instrument was tuning up. It sounded like a bass to him, and THAT'S all that mattered.

 

[bucephylus]

Many years ago in the early 80’s when I bought my first bass (a black Hondo II, 4 string) I let my next door “professional bassist” neighbor play it to get his opinion.


This guy has played with the Trammps, and many other R&B groups from the 70’s, he’s toured the world, done tons of session music, and still gigs today in a jazz band, and an oldies band where they do 70's covers.


He picked that damn (less than $200.00) bass up and the two of them together sounded like Stanley Clark & his Alembic…..pure magic.


Years later I got a crappy used Yamaha bass that had been ridden hard and put up wet. I let another “supper bass player” buddy of mine play it, and you could almost close your eyes and see & hear Jaco.


My present “pawn shop” ESP LTD B-104 that I got for $100.00 bucks - (after a professional set up), is blowing my freaking mind, and I’m constantly amazed at how it not only sounds in my hands, but also in the hands of others that are so much more experienced & skilled than me.


What am I saying: I’ve read dozens of posts of people comparing different basses, different tones, different everything, and I’ve seen a lot of people get really upset about their bass being harshly critiqued as “junk” or lacking in some way.


I submit to all of you, that ultimately it’s not the bass, although good electronics, exotic woods, good construction, etc. etc. helps…..


Ultimately it’s us, our hands, our skill, our passion, our dedication, and our efforts. The bass is the paintbrush, but your arms, hands, and fingers are Michelangelo………

That is a fantastic post and dead on. OTOH, nothing wrong with going for good tools; just important to keep the priorities straight. Good job!

 

[Neveragain55]

That is a fantastic post and dead on. OTOH, nothing wrong with going for good tools; just important to keep the priorities straight. Good job!

Thanks, I love all of the replies so far, and I'd love to hear (read) more stories of people having the same experience of putting their bass in the hands of somebody else only to be blown away by what they heard.

I'm sure most of those stories would be very old from when they first started before they got really good themselves.

 

[bucephylus]

Thanks, I love all of the replies so far, and I'd love to hear (read) more stories of people having the same experience of putting their bass in the hands of somebody else only to be blown away by what they heard.

I'm sure most of those stories would be very old from when they first started before they got really good themselves.

Yeah, I'm not too sure about stories about giving my bass to other players.

But, one experience I strongly recall was in about 1985. I was in grad school at Stanford. My wife and I had just had our third child; so, we were poor and trying to juggle low income with hard work and a busy young family. We took the kids to see some traveling act called the (Something or other, I forget) Little Circus; which was a low cost small circus performance. But, the circus troop had this smoking band that was providing background sound and playing heavy duty bebop tunes during intermission etc. I'm sure those cats were barely making a dime. The freakin' bass player was a monster. He was playing some kind of inexpensive (MIM or MIJ) Jazz bass and just absolutely tearing it up.

I will never forget that. Showed me that monster players not only make unimpressive basses sound incredible; they also play with commitment and passion, even when they are not the center of attention or making a bunch of coin.