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"Plays like butter"
- Thread starter AudioDwebe
- Start date
Not better, in fact it's closer to the opposite. Playing like butter means you get killer tone and speed with no effort at all. No struggles to overcome bass shortcomings. And usually the emphasis is not on tone, except that you don't have to struggle to overcome fret buzzes or the like.
Mojo on the other hand means a sort of indefinable "personality". And that can be in the looks, the tone or the feel. But more usually in the looks. But like with many talented artists with strong personalities, you often end up with a struggle to pull that magic out of the instrument.
So fretlessmainly who wants a bass that "fights back" is really saying he prefers an instrument with a unique personality even if you have to work to overcome it's quirks, rather than a more bland one that plays with no effort.
I've never considered a bass that plays effortlessly as "bland", or any other negative adjective.
I've noticed that too. Seems everybody can't wait to sell the best bass they every played.
The effort/effortless discussion...
I've got a Sigma SD14 DSLR. It is a big, heavy, Spartan piece of equipment. You've got to earn the great pictures.
There are a myriad of DSLRs from the major players that'll take a great picture with zero effort.
Not entirely sure why, but I take some pride in knowing I'm overcoming more in order to achieve. Really, it's almost silly. Easier should be better, no?
Guessing some bassists feel this way toward their gear.
I've got a Sigma SD14 DSLR. It is a big, heavy, Spartan piece of equipment. You've got to earn the great pictures.
There are a myriad of DSLRs from the major players that'll take a great picture with zero effort.
Not entirely sure why, but I take some pride in knowing I'm overcoming more in order to achieve. Really, it's almost silly. Easier should be better, no?
Guessing some bassists feel this way toward their gear.
My instrument have to fight back for me to really enjoy playing them. Telecaster guitars are probably one of the more stubborn guitars out there. No contours, two pickups that sound very different from each other, lots of treble, 3 saddle bridge, a bridge plate that has huge lips on the sides, sharp pieces on the bridge, and those vintage tuners that take forever to string up.
It's all worth the fight, though.
None of my instruments really play like butter. I feel like there should be more structure to a musical instrument. Can't leave butter in the car on a hot day!
It's all worth the fight, though.
None of my instruments really play like butter. I feel like there should be more structure to a musical instrument. Can't leave butter in the car on a hot day!
Yes, honest ads go much further than such ad lib buttery stuff. There are far better explanations, too many bass guitars, wasn't what I wanted sound-wise and so on and so on...
"Sounds like buttah" is to be avoided, as it is obviously a cover for something problematic. "Plays like buttah" is like the hot-knife-through-butter thing that has already been mentioned; nothing more.
Actually, I find this description much more helpful. It keeps me from wasting time clicking on the link.
Yeah, funny about that, ain't it?
I just can't imagine selling off the 'best bass I've ever played', especially before giving it some time to get acquainted with it.
As mentioned, honest reasons to sell go a lot farther and are much more believable.
I never use the term probably because I played with butter once when I was small and got a beating for ruining the living room drapes among other fabric covered things.
Well, not entirely. While I don't shy away from a unique personality, I primarily want a bass that stands up to the aggressiveness of my playing style. One with super low action is incredibly annoying to me because it's all clank and clunk and bzzz with none of the good aspects of what can come from those sounds on occasion. I'd say it's because of 20 years of playing double bass, but actually, even before I took up DB in '92, I had my electric set up with high action.
Here it's easy to spot the basses for sale that play like butter, especially the kijiji and Craigslist ads in French. Just look for the words WOW and a qui la chance.... Roughly translated means my bass ain't all it's cracked up to be and you will probably end up selling it like I did....
