Remember when you hit THAT sound?

[Bar Band Bassman]

For bass it's always been more of a "the sound and or ergonomics of this bass make me want to play in a certain way, a certain style". One notable exception is a Squier Paranormal Jazz that I rarely played. Swapped pickups. Meh. One day I put a set of Pure Blues on it and voila!

For amps, the first time was 2 Acoustic 2x15 cabs run through 2 Acoustic heads: a 150 and a 140 B. Then years of wandering in the desert - Ampeg, GK, Trace, Peavey, Behringer, etc. Genz Benz Shuttle 6.0/12T hit the spot! Still hits it! I have a few others but that's the one.

For guitar, I have a D'Angelico Excel strung with flats and I plugged it into my cheap Behringer V-Tone GMX 110, fiddled with the dials and got my perfect roots rock/rockabilly rhythm tone! What a pleasant surprise!

BBB

 

[Rip Van Dan]

Hey guys,

simple question: do you remember when you first hit the sound that you were hearing in your head?

I'm asking because it just happened to me. I recently bought a new guitar, an Am Pro II Stratocaster. Yesterday, I used it the first time for recording. I plugged it in, loaded the Morgan Amp sim and suddenly there it was! The sound that I had always had in my head. That was incredible! Until then, I was close, but never quite there. I have been playing for over twenty years, but yesterday was an absolute revelation. And the weird thing was that it wasn't even a real amp or a great stage with excellent tech, fancy equipment or whatever. I was sitting at home, in my sweat pants in front of my computer, headphones on. Surreal.

So, do you remember that time? Or have you not (yet) experienced it? What did it for you: a bass? An amp? Pedal maybe?

Let's hear some stories!

First time I really got that sound in my head was 2008 when I bought an Eden Nemesis RS400. Sound was clear, clean, and articulate with that round sound you get out of a Jazz with both volumes and the tone control turned all the way up and a little boost set at 250Hz in the low-mids. I'd never played through an amp that clean and clear. Prior to that I'd used a 1966, all-tube, 50-watt,Fender Bassman amp; toured with a Standel piggy-back 215 rig (best sounding amp prior to my Eden gear); played through a Yamaha 115 combo; played through a GK guitar amp into two JBL 112 PA speakers with the full-width horns; played through a GK Backline 250 into a GK115bpx (worst set up I ever played through).

Then in 2010 I bought an Eden WT500/800 directly from David Nordschow. He left Eden to found DNA and my new amp had been the one on his cab testing bench that he used to design all the Eden cabs from 1999 until 2009. He had upgraded the power section to 400-watts per channel into 4Ω or bridged at 800-watts into 8Ω. That amp had a similar sound to the RS400, except that it had added that tube warmth to the sound, which is what the Eden WT series were known for. I ran that into an acoustic B410+GK115bpx stack until 2015 and was pretty happy with the sound.

In 2015 I finally ordered the DNS-410 cab by DNA that I had lusted after for the last 5-years. First time I played through my Eden WT500/800 into that, I was amazed at the clarity and articulation of the sound and how little power it took to play at gig levels. Was an eye-opener for me. But the time that I really hit the sound in my head was when one of the groups I was playing with started playing Eminence Front by the Who. The bass on that at the beginning hits a low F and then, two measures later, a Db. Man, hitting that low F was just THE sound with my '82 Jazz into my WT500/800 played through my DNS-410 cab - the sound is just soooo full! Plus with my WT500/800's master set at 9 o'clock, it would sustain the sound from that single strike for two full measures and still be ringing out audibly when I moved to the Db. That was/is just the best sound.

My '82 Jazz has really spoiled me. It has the same feel to the neck that my 1965 Jazz did that I bought in 1966 , but has a LOT more sustain. My '65 was stolen in 1976 along with all my touring gear and it took me until 1985 to find a replacement for it. My '82 has a 4-bolt all-maple neck and I attribute the much better sustain to that neck. It also has a little brighter sound than my '65 did because my '82 has the 70's era pickup spacing (4" center to center), which puts the bridge pickup almost 1/2" closer to the bridge. I'd love to have my '65 back, but my '82 Jazz would remain my primary bass even if I did. Through my Eden and DNA gear, my '82 Jazz just has THE sound.

 

[ctmullins]

DiMarzio Super Distortion at the bridge.

Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier in Amplitube.

*drool*

I've now used that on almost every recording I've done since stumbling across it a few years ago.

 

[meisi]

Ampeg SVT

Was only into a 4x10 but it was the real deal. Band setting. I was 15 or so. Rocker switches were so cool. Easiest EQ to dial ever. Bass cut was so logical and way ahead of its time, imo. Funny to see HPF as a feature of new amps.

Even the Eden WT800 half stack I thought I wanted didn’t make me happy in a band setting and I sold it without a single regret.

 

[Jazzdogg]

Several years ago, I bought two custom speakers (with composite cabs) from Mike Arnopol.

When I amplified my double bass using an Acoustic Image Focus and those cabs it was almost a spiritual experience because I had finally achieved the elusive goal of "my bass, only louder."

 

[Fat Bottom Kyle]

I had lots of similar reactions running through my helix using the Ian Allison presets. Especially the b15 one. Just bliss to my ears. Works with all my basses too. It’s a great time to be alive playing bass .

 

[nixdad]

I started playing in '77. My sound finally came together in 2024.

This bass...

or this bass:

Strung with these strings:

Going through this preamp (which is responsible for SOOOOOOO much of this equation):

 

[logdrum]

That sounds changes over the years. For me rather than the sound in my heads it's more like the music (melody, rhythm, harmony ) in my head is what I seek, I am my best when I play improvised music.

 

[Pings Bass]

I spent hours in our rehearsal studio in front of our pa mains with my bass and a spare 1/3 octave EQ. Got my curve dialed in just the way I liked it.

First gig I played with it, our soundman struggled all night with my bass.

Turns out the ideal sound you hear in your head isn't necessarily the sound that works in the mix. I've sent a flat signal out my DI ever since.

 

[dmt]

4 first times stick out (3 with guitar, the last one with bass)

1) in a music store decades ago when I was still pretty new to electric instruments, I plugged some guitar (maybe mine) into a Fender Super 60 1x12 tube combo (Fender’s early 90s take on getting a Marshall sound) at a local store. After having only played through solid state guitar amps till that point, I was immediately and dramatically struck by how I suddenly sounded like a Who record. That’s what I’d been missing (as opposed to using Boss overdrive and distortion pedals through my solid state amps). Shoulda bought it but it was out of my price range. I later bought a used rack mount version of the Suoer 60 with matching closed back 1x10, and had a lot of fun with it, but never felt like it gave me "that sound" (maybe due to the different speaker and cab? I dunno — the amp w/ cab is now long gone).

2) a decade later, in a vintage music store in Asia, I found a beat up old Strat and plugged it into a silverface Pro Reveb. Holy cow. My guitar playing buddy was with me, and both our jaws dropped. I sounded just like Stevie Ray Vaughan. That was the tone. Kinda should have bought it, but a) I’m much more of a Les Paul guy than a Strat guy, b) I like Stevie Ray a lot, but it’s not like he’s my favorite player or that I especially aspire to sound like him, c) it was hella expensive for both the guitar and amp, and d) I was afraid of buying such an old beat up piece of wood (would it fall apart? I’d never bought anything like that and didn’t know). I didn’t buy it, and writing the reasons out now, I shouldn’t have, but I still think about that one sometimes. On the other hand, it would have been a great financial investment.

3) Same store, same amp and same friend around a year later, I found an old maple neck Tele and plugged it into that Pro Reverb amp and… oh man. That was it. The country sound. It was expensive, but I really should have bought that one. But… I’m not really a country guy, and like I said it was expensive, so I didn’t. The store closed not too long after and I ended up chasing trying to get that sound again for years, only to finally spend a bunch of money on a ‘58 AVRI Tele that gets close but still isn’t quite the same, and which will depreciate in value over time as opposed to that old Tele, the value of which has skyrocketed. But, I’ve never bought a guitar as an investment — I’m buying instruments to play. Still, these two old Fenders I’ve mentioned have made me think as I am currently in more of a downsizing stage of life and the value of everything is less than what I bought it for, but that Pre-CBS stuff (and even CBS era amps) has gone up over the years.

4) First time I plugged in a P bass I’d read that a P bass was really the rock bass sound, but I was coming up in more of a Jazz bass era and the best player I knew, a guy who took me under his wing a bit when he saw that I, someone he knew as a guitar player, was very curious about bass, strongly recommended the Jazz. So, I got a Jazz. And it was great to play, but I always felt the sound wasn’t the sound in my head. Finally sent me reading (early-ish internet days) and then shopping. Got up the courage to ask to try a Precision in a shop, plugged it in and I was like, oh man… That’s it. (for me. I know lots of people have different sounds in their heads, and actually many of my favorite players play Jazzes, including that friend). Still have that same P bass almost 25 years later

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Hey guys,

simple question: do you remember when you first hit the sound that you were hearing in your head?

I'm asking because it just happened to me. I recently bought a new guitar, an Am Pro II Stratocaster. Yesterday, I used it the first time for recording. I plugged it in, loaded the Morgan Amp sim and suddenly there it was! The sound that I had always had in my head. That was incredible! Until then, I was close, but never quite there. I have been playing for over twenty years, but yesterday was an absolute revelation. And the weird thing was that it wasn't even a real amp or a great stage with excellent tech, fancy equipment or whatever. I was sitting at home, in my sweat pants in front of my computer, headphones on. Surreal.

So, do you remember that time? Or have you not (yet) experienced it? What did it for you: a bass? An amp? Pedal maybe?

Let's hear some

It happens years ago, back in the late 70’s early eighties at a catered birthday bash, shortly after eating 4 brownies……

 

[Buck_BassMan94]

I’ve had this on two occasions.

1.) The first time I played an American made MM stingray. Wasn’t through a fancy amp, just a Fender Rumble. But I instantly knew I’d found my favorite tone, the punch of the MM just got me excited.

2.) The first time I played a P-Bass. It was exactly what I thought of when I think of what a bass should sound like in my head. Immediately sought to buy an American version.

Coincidentally, these are now my only two basses. I sold all my old beginning gear (an Epiphone Thunderbird and a Sterling SUB). I saved up and went all in on the MM and P. I know my experience and high praise of these two is largely due to what an upgrade they are over my first instruments. But, they represent my first moments of awe in terms of tonality.

 

[TOOL460002]

I had a killer bass teacher (thank you Glenn Letsch!) that got my style/interests. He is why I have been playing Stingrays since junior year HS and then went with an Eden rack/4x10, so I was sounding pretty solid maybe 4-5yrs into playing. The Stingrays haven't changed. I've just added effects and gone a bit lighter/more hifi with Schroeder cabs and solid state. If I turn on my amp and can't get a sound that makes me smile something is wrong.

 

[MrAB4003]

Hey guys,

simple question: do you remember when you first hit the sound that you were hearing in your head?

I'm asking because it just happened to me. I recently bought a new guitar, an Am Pro II Stratocaster. Yesterday, I used it the first time for recording. I plugged it in, loaded the Morgan Amp sim and suddenly there it was! The sound that I had always had in my head. That was incredible! Until then, I was close, but never quite there. I have been playing for over twenty years, but yesterday was an absolute revelation. And the weird thing was that it wasn't even a real amp or a great stage with excellent tech, fancy equipment or whatever. I was sitting at home, in my sweat pants in front of my computer, headphones on. Surreal.

So, do you remember that time? Or have you not (yet) experienced it? What did it for you: a bass? An amp? Pedal maybe?

Let's hear some stories!

Bass:
It was the summer of 2012. I was GAS-ing for a Rickenbacker really hard. A lot of my teenage bass heroes played them and they sounded different to my original Squier Jazz Bass that was my main bass at the time. That summer, I played a 4003 for the first time in Sam Ash (RIP 1924 - 2024) and I knew that was the bass I wanted! I was sold with the sound and feel of that bass and I wanted to get my hands on one ASAP.

Thankfully, I've been a Ric owner, lover, and player for my entire adult life. I ended up finding a vintage 4001 on Craigslist that summer and I spent the first $800 that I ever made on that bass. The previous owner had it sitting under his bed for 30 years and he wanted to let it go because he needed money. I sent him an email and we met up. I have since traded that bass for a vintage Fender Jazz Bass, which was later traded for my Satin Autumnglo 4003.

I fell in love with my Rics even more when I first really heard Motorhead, Sleep, and Cliff Burton era Metallica during the pandemic.

Piccolo Bass:
In 2022, I decided to experiment and put piccolo bass strings on my Squier Jazz Bass because I wasn't playing it. Prior to that, I was playing tenor guitar and I even tried 6 string guitar. The results did not go well. Thankfully, the experiment worked! I was able to get guitar like sounds with one of my basses. It was even more convincing once I got my Aguilar Agro distortion pedal while making my second album. That's when I got the heavier, more aggressive sound that I imagined in my head.

 

[kaba7a]

Pre cbs p bass with flats -> ashdown geezer -> sunn 2x15


Ohhhh yes

Would definitely love to know more about the Geezer's HOD ! Might snag a second hand one

 

[Michedelic]

Yeah, when I finally got Rotosound roundwounds, put them on my ‘66 P, and played through my Sunn 200s. When, decades later I encountered provided backline SVT’s, I was not that impressed.

 

[Geepers]

For me I know that sound is Rickenbacker. I also know I’ll never own one. I accept therefore that I’ll just live out my remaining days in the gray, dreary world of “second best”

 

[Aric Bjorn]

My most recent time experiencing that was when I plugged in my new JHS Punchline preamp/DI.

Heaven.

That's why I had to have one before they sold out. Having compared with other options, when I heard the Punchline I said to myself "That's the one you want!" and so far I've been quite happy with it. It's my only pedal so far, and I'm pretty new at actually playing bass guitar, but I know what sounds good to me, and this has "that sound", without breaking the bank.