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Popular basses you hate??

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#201
Stingrays and Sterlings.

I am unable to tame the highs on any of these I have ever played. And no, it's not in the hands. A hard-edged glassy, trebly tone is a hard -edged glassy trebly tone and will never get that chicken-grease motown or blues sound.

In my opinion.
 
#202
GregC said:
1. You said it''s not about negativity. Of course it is! It's about one's NEGATIVE feelings towards a bass or brand of bass. Stop trying to change the definitions of words. Your axe to grind about "PC-ness" is irrelevant here.

2. Yes, people have those negative feelings. So what's the purpose of stating them on the board? Many of these opinions seem to be based on little to no experience with the actual bass(es) in question. What is there to learn from those opinions? Nothing. This thread is devolving into arguments that go in circles, just as anyone could have predicted when it started.
Click to expand...

Definitions? mmmmkay.
This is supposed to be a "forum" isn't it?
"a place, a meeting or a medium where ideas and views on a particular issue can be exchanged"?
It doesn't say that everybody has to agree. In fact, I believe that the opposing viewpoint is a key element. There has been an exchange of information and opinions. Near as I can tell, there has been no name-calling or coarse verbiage. Speaking personally, my first post was simply an answer to the thread's title - and I mentioned no names! I simply stated my feelings regarding certain types of basses. Sometimes people just like to rant - I applaud that. Let 'em - it's part of a free society. The only thing that has gone in circles is this argument. And why? Because some people object to the "feel" of the topic. Those that have engaged in the original spirit of the thread are having a good time with it, and nobody is getting hurt.
The nice thing about it is that coming here is entirely voluntary. If for some reason, a person was unhappy with the direction of the thread, they could conceivably just... leave, right?
BTW if one's negative feelings about an instrument are directed at the concept or cosmetics of same - you don't necessarily need to have played it to hate it.
 
#203
lucas vigor said:
Stingrays and Sterlings.

I am unable to tame the highs on any of these I have ever played. And no, it's not in the hands. A hard-edged glassy, trebly tone is a hard -edged glassy trebly tone and will never get that chicken-grease motown or blues sound.

In my opinion.
Click to expand...

That's how people always describe that Pino tone, isn't it?

Hard-edged? Glassy? Trebly?

Must be in his.....feet, then.
 
#204
lucas vigor said:
Stingrays and Sterlings.

I am unable to tame the highs on any of these I have ever played. And no, it's not in the hands. A hard-edged glassy, trebly tone is a hard -edged glassy trebly tone and will never get that chicken-grease motown or blues sound.

In my opinion.
Click to expand...

And you'd be right. I love the core tone that defines MM basses, but I can't stand that hard top end either. I think that the type and placement of the pickup is where the bulk of the sound happens, and the active electronics are what creates the hard edge. So I bought an OLP, which is passive and retains the fundamental tone, but doesnt have the "crack" of an active 'ray. Those who like the whole MM package feel there is something missing, but for me it's just right. Now if I could just put the neck on a diet...
 
#205
Well, if I were looking for 'chicken-grease motown' and/or some type of 'blues sound', I might think about flatwounds.

Of course, I play rockabilly on a Bongo. Maybe I just got lucky in that ALL of my EBMM basses had some sort of defect that allowed me to get a tone without that "hard top end".

Could be the strings, I guess.
 
#207
bovinehost said:
That's how people always describe that Pino tone, isn't it?

Hard-edged? Glassy? Trebly?

Must be in his.....feet, then.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't use the terms "hard-edged" to describe the tone of a good piano, or "piano tone" on a bass guitar.

Rich rining overtones, like a piano has, would be how I would describe it.

I do agree with Bovinehost, that flats tame the high end on a Ray and can sound damned good.
 
#210
I used to own a Sterling. I tried to like it. I did try flats, and nothing but nothing could bring the treble down like you can on a passive bass. Nothing could make it go from an "open" to a "closed" sound the way it does when you cut the tone knob on a P or a J.

The build and looks were there, that's for sure. But I wanted to be able to play sweet, mellow stuff and I could never get that tone. Now if all I was interested in was a hard-edged, in-your-face aggressive tone for slapping or even for punk, that Sterling fit the bill. But not for roots music, or blues, or anything requiring that old-school sound, forget it.

I have had better luck with a Carvin Icon, the MM Bongo and a Warwick Thumb. Those were active basses that could mimic that "tone rolled off" sound of a passive.

Question: What type of bass did Pino use for the "voodoo" album by DeAngelo?

And if one more person says "It's in the hands" I am going to vomit. I can get plenty of either mellow OR hard edged sounds on any of my passive basses, just by varying the attack. I've been doing it for thirty years now.
 
#211
lucas vigor said:
I used to own a Sterling. I tried to like it. I did try flats, and nothing but nothing could bring the treble down like you can on a passive bass. Nothing could make it go from an "open" to a "closed" sound the way it does when you cut the tone knob on a P or a J.

The build and looks were there, that's for sure. But I wanted to be able to play sweet, mellow stuff and I could never get that tone. Now if all I was interested in was a hard-edged, in-your-face aggressive tone for slapping or even for punk, that Sterling fit the bill. But not for roots music, or blues, or anything requiring that old-school sound, forget it.

I have had better luck with a Carvin Icon, the MM Bongo and a Warwick Thumb. Those were active basses that could mimic that "tone rolled off" sound of a passive.

Question: What type of bass did Pino use for the "voodoo" album by DeAngelo?

And if one more person says "It's in the hands" I am going to vomit. I can get plenty of either mellow OR hard edged sounds on any of my passive basses, just by varying the attack. I've been doing it for thirty years now.
Click to expand...

I play all sorts of blues and roots music with my SR5 (essentially a sterling 5). I can get mellow tones out of it. I rarely slap and never play punk... Vomit if you will but it's in the EQ and the hands. :)
 
#217
lowend1 said:
Definitions? mmmmkay.
This is supposed to be a "forum" isn't it?
"a place, a meeting or a medium where ideas and views on a particular issue can be exchanged"?
It doesn't say that everybody has to agree. In fact, I believe that the opposing viewpoint is a key element.
Click to expand...
Straw-man argument. I'm not arguing against opposing views, but mindless "hate". If they're not informed views and/or simply state "I dislike this bass because it's ugly" or (my favorite so far) "Brand X has ruined bass playing!", there's no benefit to the reader.

lowend1 said:
The only thing that has gone in circles is this argument.
Click to expand...
Then you clearly haven't read the past few pages, thus missing the umpteenth revival of the totally-beaten-to-death "boutique vs. Fender-style" argument.

lowend1 said:
The nice thing about it is that coming here is entirely voluntary. If for some reason, a person was unhappy with the direction of the thread, they could conceivably just... leave, right?
BTW if one's negative feelings about an instrument are directed at the concept or cosmetics of same - you don't necessarily need to have played it to hate it.
Click to expand...
Since you just started posting a couple weeks ago on TB, I'll give you a pass on missing the sticky from the moderators at the top of the forum.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=138979 Post #6:

"from here on out there will be no more ugly bass threads tolerated in the bass forums, unless you are posting about your own instrument. too many folks participate here with too diverse a set of instruments for these kinds of threads to end up doing anything but pissing people off.

interesting thing - the folks with experience, who gig and who are in general serious about bass usually don't waste their talkbass time posting about basses they don't own, talking about how they find someone else's instrument to be ugly. something to emulate, folks. so if you want to talk about an ugly bass, make sure it's one of your own, or it will be deleted.

EDIT(jt) : the bongo addendum this goes for posts too. you wanna call a bass a toilet seat, that bass better have a handle or else you better own one.

if you have a negative opinion about an instrument, be sure to tie it to something beyond the subjective appearance - "the body was uncomfortable for me to play" or "the neck was too round for me, felt like a baseball bat".

otherwise, if you find something ugly, say so if such an opinion is asked for, otherwise keep it to yourself. this isn't rocket science, guys. respect other folks' instruments."
 
#219
I hate:

- Fenders because they're old fashioned and haven't modernized anything in nearly 50 years.

- Gibson because they sound like mud and they're too heavy.

- Rickenbackers because all you can get is that Chris Squire tone out of them.

- all boutique basses because they're overpriced and fancy and the only real bass is a P-bass, preferably vintage style.

- except of course I hate Fenders.

- Bongos because they look funny.

- Stingrays because they're only good for slap.

- Laklands because all they did was copy an already good design.

- except I really hate Fenders and Stingrays, so much for liking Laklands.

- Dingwalls because the frets are always crooked.

- passive basses because they aren't versatile enough.

- active basses because they aren't organic enough.

- G&Ls because they aren't distinctive enough.

- anything with four strings because you can't play a low D.

- anything with five strings because if you were any good, you could get it done with four.

- Anything with MORE than five strings because that's a guitar, not a bass.

- Pointy headstocks.

- Basses with no headstocks.

- Drop D Tuners.

- Humbuckers.

- Single Coils.

- Piezos.

- Basses with flats because they don't cut through the mix.

- Basses with rounds because they're too zingy.

- Wals because the market has gone crazy.

- Pre-CBS Fenders for the same reason.

- Post-CBS Fenders because they aren't Pre-CBS Fenders.

- All basses made in the 70s.

- Basses made anywhere but the USA.

- USA made basses because they're overpriced.

Okay, what have I missed?
 
#220
bovinehost said:
I hate:

- Fenders because they're old fashioned and haven't modernized anything in nearly 50 years.

- Gibson because they sound like mud and they're too heavy.

- Rickenbackers because all you can get is that Chris Squire tone out of them.

- all boutique basses because they're overpriced and fancy and the only real bass is a P-bass, preferably vintage style.

- except of course I hate Fenders.

- Bongos because they look funny.

- Stingrays because they're only good for slap.

- Laklands because all they did was copy an already good design.

- except I really hate Fenders and Stingrays, so much for liking Laklands.

- Dingwalls because the frets are always crooked.

- passive basses because they aren't versatile enough.

- active basses because they aren't organic enough.

- G&Ls because they aren't distinctive enough.

- anything with four strings because you can't play a low D.

- anything with five strings because if you were any good, you could get it done with four.

- Anything with MORE than five strings because that's a guitar, not a bass.

- Pointy headstocks.

- Basses with no headstocks.

- Drop D Tuners.

- Humbuckers.

- Single Coils.

- Piezos.

- Basses with flats because they don't cut through the mix.

- Basses with rounds because they're too zingy.

- Wals because the market has gone crazy.

- Pre-CBS Fenders for the same reason.

- Post-CBS Fenders because they aren't Pre-CBS Fenders.

- All basses made in the 70s.

- Basses made anywhere but the USA.

- USA made basses because they're overpriced.

Okay, what have I missed?
Click to expand...
Diy and homemade basses, yeah who they foolin'
 
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