The P doesn't cut through anymore

[D.M.N.]

It has taken me 30 years of playing to realize hat "cutting through" is what Geddy Lee does - which I love. But, for most of us bar band bassists, the role is to be IN the mix not cutting through it. We are responsible for the low frequencies, the bump on the groove, the tones you feel, not necessarily hear.

My old guitarist put it best:
"When the guitarist makes a mistake, the crowd hears it. When you make a mistake (the bass), everyone FEELS it."

I don't see why it needs to be one or the other. I want to both cut through the mix and punch the audience in the solar plexus. It can be achieved, Entwistle, Chris Squire, Geddy, Dale Peters, Glenn Hughes, all had a sound that cut through a mix and kicked you in the chest. And they all used, with the exception of Squire, a precision (I'm talking Geddy on the first album and Fifth Order of Angels). Here's a great P-bass cutting through the mix:

The Move - Feel Too Good

Now granted, that's studio, but still, it really cuts, and on a good stereo system, you can feel that punch. However, this is not to say you must have your treble cranked and the tone wide open. Certainly Greg Ridley comes through loud and clear on Rockin' The Fillmore. But I'd still say his mids are very present. Anyways, what I'm getting at is I don't see why this debate comes up often and is presented as either "cut through" or "be felt". They're not mutually exclusive.

As for how to get a P-bass to cut through, my solution is as follows:
P-bass w/ Swing 66 nickels-->wide open tone knob-->Sunn 2000s/1200s with the treble and contour dimed, bass at 2, volume set to taste-->JBL loaded cabinet.

 

[mrufino1]

Arrangement. People learning to play together. People adjusting their sounds so they work together. Guitarists realizing they are in a band, and need to complement each other. Arrangement. Cutting with eq first, not just boosting. Cutting means you're taking out what doesn't need to be there, rather than muddying everything up then pushing more of what you do want through that mud. Clearing out the mud is much cleaner, then if you decide to get loud it's very clear and loud, and punches you in wherever you prefer to be punched.

Did I mention arrangement? ;-)

2 guitarists playing barre chords with rock star rigs will mean a bad mix almost every time. Bassists worrying about how they sound solo and trying to "cut through" will mean the same. Work as a band to have everyone find their spot with each other. That's what rehearsal is for. If it's just to have fun and jam a little to relieve day job stress, then just do that and don't worry about buying a new bass.

The right notes in the right spot in a good arrangement will sit exactly where they need to sit.

 

[grrg63]

Here's a great P-bass cutting through the mix:

The Move - Feel Too Good

My favorite Move song DMN, killer groove.

 

[D.M.N.]

My favorite Move song DMN, killer groove.

Possibly also one of the oldest examples that comes to mind of drop D tuning on bass.The bass riff is a lot of fun.

 

[petrus61]

Possibly also one of the oldest examples that comes to mind of drop D tuning on bass.The bass riff is a lot of fun.

Not sure how old this album is, but Pink Floyd's "Another Brick.." and "Angry Eyes" by Loggins and Messina are two other early examples I can think of at the moment.

 

[D.M.N.]

Not sure how old this album is, but Pink Floyd's "Another Brick.." and "Angry Eyes" by Loggins and Messina are two other early examples I can think of at the moment.

Looking On (the album Feel Too Good is on) came out in 1970, so it predates those tracks by a few years, but I'm actually now interested in when the first Drop-D bass track was recorded, anyone know of an earlier recording?