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tiny bass for open stage events

#61
iuserneim said:
the problem is, that i have to rely on what amp they have. often times, it could be just the pa. and this makes a precision, or lets say a "regular fretted bass" sound way too percussive and out of line, when there is an acoustic guitar and a cajon playing.


it's not about volume. it's about tone. at these events, the tone often times ends up too thin, like you'd play through a guitar amp.


true, but i'm a bass player
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I've done many acoustic jams with a humbucker (DiMarzio Ultra J) equipped standard jazz bass and an old SWR 60W combo cube with a 10 in it, and got plenty of compliments on how it sounded. Some of those occasions the guitars were miked, sometimes they ran through the PA, and sometimes vocals were all that got amplified.
I also used the same combination as the only amplified instrument in a hillbilly string band, and had more than a few bluegrass purists told me it was the first time they heard an electric bass "sound right".
Maybe look into a small combo amp and a bass equipped with humbuckers?
 
#63
iuserneim said:
Hi everyone. I've found a jazz or precision to sound way out of line when I jam with a singer/songwriter with their acoustic guitar at an open stage event. Now I was thinking to get something like an Ashbory or ukulele bass or something. Not only would the tone be nice, but also the small form factor. What would you recommend and why?
Click to expand...

so I've found very few acoustic basses to sound good, and even if they do, the voicing seems to disappear versus an acoustic guitar, and not in a "fits the mix" kind of way. It's like they are too similar, but acoustic basses Often just don't have the strength of tone to pair well with acoustic guitar. A lot of the time it's as if the bass just shouldn't have bothered… Perhaps a super excellent acoustic bass helps, but for the most part I only find acoustic bass works With a super well arranged group, where the acoustic guitarist is a great and tasteful arrangement-focused player or someone who underplays .. Most singer/songwriter types Tend to be way more likely just to spank strum Full voice chords, and rhymitcally cover every square inch of the bar

I've had more luck with nice plummy semi hollow/hollow basses. The tone is different enough to actually add something, the note decays quickly after a gooey root, so you don't have muddy problems.. It just feels way more like somethint is being added that elevates the performance, complimenting the guitar and voice without getting in the way.

The other advantage is that a decent semi hollow bass or whatever Allows you to fully play the instrument, so going up high for melodic moves, or a tasty bass chord still work, Where as I wouldn't bother at all with acoustic bass.

I think uke basses and similar May offer more in terms of and usable sound, but I don't know that I've ever encountered any version of that that was loud enough.


There are a lot of semi/hollow options, but I've personally had luck with the Ibanez artcore instruments, and people REALLY seem to compliment the looks a lot.. I also have one I build that works well, but you can't have it
 
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#64
iuserneim said:
What would you recommend and why?
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I'd recommend trying an EQ pedal first. Why? Not sure exactly what tone you're going for, but it seems like eq shaping is one way to form the sound into something more appropriate to your ears. Of course, that doesn't help with the physical form factor.

That said, if you're thinking to get an Ashbury or Uke bass, get one! Just because.
 
#65
I have gigged both an Ashbory and a cheap uke bass ($80 Kmise).
Sold the Ashbury because the 18" scale and fretless is VERY difficult, and the original silicone strings never stop stretching. The g-string in particular will split when just resting in the gig bag. Road Toad or Aquila strings still sound good and improve tuning stability.

If you're going to get something new, a fretted uke bass is easy to adjust to.

I have gigged an electric bass with acoustic music a fair amount with flats and a chunk of foam under-string at the bridge; that can give a warm mellow tone. A little amp helps supplement the PA. I sometimes use a GK backline 110.

I suspect this is more a technique or PA operator issue than a gear issue. When playing an acoustic gig electric, I almost always play fingerstyle, plucking at the neck to get a round sound, staying as far away from the bridge as I can. There really is no good reason you cannot get a usable sound out of a J or P.
 
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#68
iuserneim said:
Hi everyone. I've found a jazz or precision to sound way out of line when I jam with a singer/songwriter with their acoustic guitar at an open stage event. Now I was thinking to get something like an Ashbory or ukulele bass or something. Not only would the tone be nice, but also the small form factor. What would you recommend and why?
Click to expand...
Keep the bass you have, but experiment with plucking it over the fingerboard. That gives a very upright bass tone.

John
 
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#77
iuserneim said:
Hi everyone. I've found a jazz or precision to sound way out of line when I jam with a singer/songwriter with their acoustic guitar at an open stage event. Now I was thinking to get something like an Ashbory or ukulele bass or something. Not only would the tone be nice, but also the small form factor. What would you recommend and why?
Click to expand...
I played a Uke bass once and hated it. The strings were so rubbery and awful. The sound is ok though.
 
#79
newfuture said:
I have gigged both an Ashbory and a cheap uke bass ($80 Kmise).
Sold the Ashbury because the 18" scale and fretless is VERY difficult, and the original silicone strings never stop stretching. The g-string in particular will split when just resting in the gig bag. Road Toad or Aquila strings still sound good and improve tuning stability.

If you're going to get something new, a fretted uke bass is easy to adjust to.

I have gigged an electric bass with acoustic music a fair amount with flats and a chunk of foam under-string at the bridge; that can give a warm mellow tone. A little amp helps supplement the PA. I sometimes use a GK backline 110.

I suspect this is more a technique or PA operator issue than a gear issue. When playing an acoustic gig electric, I almost always play fingerstyle, plucking at the neck to get a round sound, staying as far away from the bridge as I can. There really is no good reason you cannot get a usable sound out of a J or P.
Click to expand...
this sounds good. make up my mind now. thinking about going the route of mustang bass with flats
 

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