P-Bass great for Reggae?

[WI Short Scaler]

Play the bass you want (for any music) - simple as that.

I was wondering if I was the only one that thought that was true. With all the variations of strings, fingers/pick, EQ on amps or mixer, pedals, etc you can pick the comfortable bass you like and than make adjustments to your tone if needed.

 

[VegetarianBass]

Throw some flats on a pbass and turn the tone down. Let the bassline drop as loud as you can stand.

 

[VegetarianBass]

I don’t currently have a PBass (Stingray Special 5) but I roll the highs and lows all the way down on my bass, boost the mids all the way, then add the lows as needed. I have flats on. I was playing Aston “Family Man” Barrett lines this morning before work and it was sounding good.

 

[chadds]

Sit with your P and pluck up and down between neck and bridge and listen for the tone changes. Try finger tip, pad and side of finger and listen for those tone changes.

Then adjust your tone controls to allow you to hear those tone changes you do with your fingers.

Then you can get reggae tone or a different tone just by hand position.

Yes Pbass gets it done. Don’t be afraid to dial your tone to accentuate or diminish whatever makes the music.

 

[sethlow3]

27336465[/URL], member: 34601"]I always preferred a Hofner violin bass for dub sessions. They have a massive, deep sound that is perfect for reggae styles.

yeah this… I owned a German Hofner about a year and it excels at that. There have been some reggae guys who have latched onto it as a tool. It can also be coaxed to sound like an upright quite nicely too. Pick tones are great on it!

I agree with the others that have said if anything, a P will excel at low, dubby, warm reggae. Better than a J IMHO.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Hi everyone I love reggae and was wondering is the P-Bass great for reggae I love many artists such as Dennis Brown, Bob Marley, Alton Ellis and many more i always see Jazz Basses get more praise for it but not P-Bass to me it shouldn't matter what Bass it is any music is good for any Basses so i was wondering would a P-Bass cover any Reggae music or not?

It's fine. You just need to drop your low mids quite a bit. Ps inherently sound angry. Js are more smooth. But, low mids down, bass up, perfect.

 

[scuzzy]

if you really wanna dub....ovation magnum with flats, solo the quad coil neck pickup. dub city with great note definition.

 

[bearhart74]

ask Bill Laswell..

 

[BioDriver]

More surprised people think anything but a P bass would be best for reggae.

 

[conttador]

Yes, put some foam on the bridge to mute your strings & you’re ready!

 

[salmon256]

Slightly stoopid uses some active bass and use to use an Ibanez of some kind. Honestly IMO reggae is all about play style and groove. Don't get me wrong a lot of classic dub records it's a p or jazz but also I have friends who play reggae (stoners...) and they play nice but no matter the gear they sound like a punk band. Use flatwounds, look into brands of flats, you got let em get old or go with some that sound good, chromes I even thought worked well for me even with the brightness of them. (No matter what though, whatever you like is what matters, rounds or flats etc.) Play more near the bridge and neck, go slow or groove slow. Robbie used a hofner sometimes! If you want to choose one of those two, yes jazz but I think any bass for the most part can work IMO! Good luck dude!

 

[salmon256]

I always preferred a Hofner violin bass for dub sessions. They have a massive, deep sound that is perfect for reggae styles.

Hell yes! Hofner are great for Reggae as proven by Robbie! !

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

P-bass is great for everything in my humble opinion ..

 

[pbass2]

More surprised people think anything but a P bass would be best for reggae.

A Jazz is kind of considered the iconic reggae bass, mainly because of Family Man. That said, I answered "yes". A P is great for reggae.

 

[RGerhart]

Hi everyone I love reggae and was wondering is the P-Bass great for reggae I love many artists such as Dennis Brown, Bob Marley, Alton Ellis and many more i always see Jazz Basses get more praise for it but not P-Bass to me it shouldn't matter what Bass it is any music is good for any Basses so i was wondering would a P-Bass cover any Reggae music or not?

I would think that a P would be actually a better choice for reggae than a J, but you can't really argue with Aston "Family Man" Barrett, right?

Also, punctuation? I read the OP post and almost hyperventilated. Whew!

 

[Bill Murray]

It truly depends on your tonal goals and the type of reggae you’re playing. In general, a p-bass is definitely capable, especially if you’re playing roots reggae.

However, you’ll be hard pressed to find a modern reggae bassist who’s no using an active 5.

 

[wncBass]

Reggae bassists like jazz basses because they have more low end and less mids than a p bass. Both will sound great though.

 

[BassBrass]

Dingwall or Modulus would be my choice for that, along with some great cabs and a head with a lot of wattage.

so, in rural non tourst enclave Jamaica did you knock off a Brinks truck for the cash? Or are you given or save up to buy a used bass and Hartke 350 and build your own 2/15 cab? Sorry I didn't see the word "modern" or capitalist.

 

[pbass2]

Reggae bassists like jazz basses because they have more low end and less mids than a p bass. Both will sound great though.

And in reggae, the music is arranged such that everything has its own space and dovetails together, so you don't necessarily need (or want) those more forward P mids - along with the bass typically being very prominent in the mix you can really get away a much bassier tone.

 

[J-Mags]

Most basses sound good for Reggae, and most strings too. My P with flats sounds great, but so does my Mustang, and so does my 80s metal bass with steel strings. It's mostly a matter of hand position and EQ. Instrument tone knob off. Plenty of low end, moderate mids, avoid highs. Find a frequency somewhere in the mids to cut through a bit if necessary, but keep it mellow. Set your amp loud and play gently. If you're mostly a rock player like me, it takes concentration not to get hasty with the beat. That's a lot more of a factor than your gear.