Playing upright with earplugs sucks but I have to use them. I have one dot, a piece of paper cut into a circle and taped to the side of my board. Sometimes that dot has to move. After reading this thread I may consider another dot or two, but try whiteout or pencil. Thank you.
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Double Bass Position Dot Inlays: Where do most people put them?
- Thread starter Lorin Cohen
- Start date
Yeah, I hate hearing myself play, too
Most people = most common?
I only use the dots on the side of my fretboard whenever I need an indication.
If you apply them, make sure they contrast well with the colour of the fretboard to make them visible in the dim light on stage.
I only use the dots on the side of my fretboard whenever I need an indication.
If you apply them, make sure they contrast well with the colour of the fretboard to make them visible in the dim light on stage.
I've used these in the past. Easy to apply and remove. One at the G on the E string when I was playing basses with two different scale lengths.
gollihurmusic.com
Stick-on Fingerboard Markers (Temporary Inlays, side dots)
I often get asked about putting inlays on the side of fingerboards, as a visual aid to mark where the notes are. Here's a nice alternative, which is wonderfully temporary and comes in two colors, "bright white" or a "warm maple" color for a natural look.
gollihurmusic.com
I use 1/4 inch adhesive file folder dots on the side of the fingerboard, at what would be positions five, seven, twelve, fifteen, and seventeen on a fretted bass. This is not so much for shivots as it is for having to make long position shifts along one string.
I don't care if (insert famous bassist's name here) uses them; dots encourage the player to look at the fingerboard instead of listening. Tape or whiteout work well for absolute beginners, but should be done away with as soon as the student's ears develop.
We can put a man on the moon and split the atom, but after almost 100 years nobody has figured out how to make the top two strings on every guitar in the world stay in tune for more than a few seconds.
As someone who plays both BG and DB professionally and has for many years, I feel that the references to dots relating fingerboard to fretboard are not a good idea. Beyond similarities of tuning and function, they are very different instruments. I've expressed my opinion of dots or markers on the DB in almost all cases in this post already, and this is another bad idea IMO.
I'm more concerned with making guitar players that know how to tune
I have perfect pitch and can tune, and neither my Les Paul nor my classical ever stay where I put them.
If you know, why you need the dots, you know, where to put them. I need dots on harmonics, because I play music, where I have to play some high harmonics reliably, often after many bars of rests. That's why I need dots on harmonic nodes. Unless the bridge moves a lot, the placement keeps being in tune.
I have seen basses with dots on every half step on the side of the fingerboard. Mostly in the wrong position. Crazy.
I have seen basses with dots on every half step on the side of the fingerboard. Mostly in the wrong position. Crazy.
+1 for a lead pencil. If I'm playing a really dark venue, I put a small piece of glow in the dark tape (it exists!) at the 12th/19th. No shame in my game.
If you're set on permanent inlays @Lorin Cohen, I have great success with one line at the 5th "fret", one at the 12th and one at the 19th when teaching. I find it's around 3rd position students start to have significant intonation issues, then they get their bearings again at the neck joint, then lose it again in thumb. If you mirror your markers on your students DB with led pencil it really speeds up how quickly they get into position.
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all the above + wearing sunglasses at night (Blues Brothers theme). I seriously could not see or hear a f**king thing. Doing the Ron Carter thing with the amp also helps in such situations.I'm a fan of white-out. If something changes (type of string, bridge position, height of bridge adjusters) it takes 5 mintues to scrape off the old dot of WO and put a new one. No way am I going to drill holes in my fingerboard based on today's setup. The permanent markers will last long after today's setup has been discarded.
Now if you're asking just "where do people put dots?" without reference to permanence, I'll tell you where I have mine.
I have them at the 3rd "fret" (C on the A string) and 5th "fret" (D on the A string) and at the octave. Between 5th "fret" and octave, the neck heel provides sufficient information.
And yes, I know I'm not complying with the "correct" approach here, but I"m old; I don't have enough time to practice properly; sometimes I have to play in very loud situations; I'll accept the results.
I have them at the 3rd "fret" (C on the A string) and 5th "fret" (D on the A string) and at the octave. Between 5th "fret" and octave, the neck heel provides sufficient information.
And yes, I know I'm not complying with the "correct" approach here, but I"m old; I don't have enough time to practice properly; sometimes I have to play in very loud situations; I'll accept the results.
I have to take issue with the mindset that fingerboard dot inlays are a bad idea or hurt one's development, and I don't even use them.
I know many incredible bassists and bass pedagogues who use and argue in favor of dots. They are a great visual reference for the practice room; of course when you're playing in an ensemble you don't want to be staring at your fingerboard the whole time. Regardless, there's a reason why more schools, teachers, and players are becoming more in favor of inlays. They're becoming more professionally accepted and many are using them due to the nature of the instrument in combination with how modern repertoire demands larger shifts and for us to play with different tonal colors. You can't always "just hear it."
I know many incredible bassists and bass pedagogues who use and argue in favor of dots. They are a great visual reference for the practice room; of course when you're playing in an ensemble you don't want to be staring at your fingerboard the whole time. Regardless, there's a reason why more schools, teachers, and players are becoming more in favor of inlays. They're becoming more professionally accepted and many are using them due to the nature of the instrument in combination with how modern repertoire demands larger shifts and for us to play with different tonal colors. You can't always "just hear it."
I will stand on my original reply. They may be useful in certain specific situations but the way they are being discussed in this thread is not productive IMO. There are too many ways they are a limiting factor to development of good technique and listening skills. I've had too many students who've "grown up" with fingerboard markers of various types that have had serious limitations to think otherwise.. As I've said before, others may differ but that has been my experience.
I'm with you. Plenty of fretless bass guitarists have lines or position markers of some kind without it becoming a crutch. Trombone players use the bell as a reference for 3rd and 4th position, and I don't recall anyone ever getting yelled at for staring at their horn in all my years of concert, jazz, and marching bands--heck, that might have been the only thing my high school band director didn't yell about.
The part of the discussion around markers (in general, not specifically this thread) that I don’t understand is the idea that having dots or tape or whatever on your bass means that you aren’t listening and fine tuning by ear. Of course listening is key but I also use landmarks like the heel of the neck and that funny bit of grain near the C when moving up and the fingerboard. Doesn’t seem like that much of a stretch to be more deliberate about it if you find markers helpful.
The OP didn’t ask is fingerboard markers were the solution to all intonation problems, just said it was an option on a new build and was wondering what other people found useful. Personally, I like having a good reference for the 3, 5, and octave.
The OP didn’t ask is fingerboard markers were the solution to all intonation problems, just said it was an option on a new build and was wondering what other people found useful. Personally, I like having a good reference for the 3, 5, and octave.
