• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Tone or Technique : most important for you?

Tone or technique ?

  • Tone

    Votes: 136 50.4%

  • Technique

    Votes: 134 49.6%
  • Total voters
    270
#81
If your audience is other musicians or people who will buy your recording, then both tone and technique
If your audience is in a loud bar with an average sound system, then technique
If your audience is there to listen in a small club, or you're hired to be background music, then tone
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Clemouze
#83
Joebone said:
Boycott polls offering false dichotomies!
Click to expand...

Pretty much this.
My job is to show up and play the songs right.

The idea that most of us have control over our tone is an illusion.

We sound different depending on what part of the room the listener is in, and different in every room. When I record something the engineer has a lot more control over the tone than I do. Same for what the sound person does to my signal in the PA at a gig.

As long as I can hear myself clearly, that's all that matters.
 
  • Like
Reactions: hintz and lfmn16
#86
Clemouze said:
Salut all

Another silly poll, we all like them

Most important factor for you, bass players : a GREAT TONE or an IMPRESSIVE TECHNIQUE ?

We speak about what can make you like another bass player, or what you work the most, etc

I know the tone is linked to technique and technique linked to tone , but be serious!

Myself I appreciate better a player with super tone, than super technique.
I am also more proud of my tone than my technique and put more effort into it.
As an example :
I prefer spending time and effort crafting a tone through pedals and researchs and way of playing than spending time learning how to noodle as super fast slapitislapito pop or horse run at 180 bpm


And you ?

EDIT :
YES we all know that someone who plays super great in terms of skills can achieve a great tone.
But I can tell you that a lot of people that plays with a good level can sound like s*** and can have a random tone that no one cares.


For me , the tone option means : working your tone, choosing your gear ( pickups preamp pedals strings amp etc ) , searching for a specific tone, working on that and not just some random " plug and play"
For me the technique option means : working on your skill, knowing super secret ninja fingers tricks, be quick to play, having a super groove , showing your death playing


So the question is more :
What interests you more between both ?
What makes you say "wow"
What are you the most proud of?

Do you prefer a basic player who KNOWS how to play but has an identifiable killer tone or a show-off player that kills everything but sounds like everybody random tone ?


C'mon guys not just the basic answer " One leads to the other " because it is not the point and also it is not always true

EDIT 2 :

Well I prefer being a B+ player with a great tone, worked with love and pain to find the perfect alchemy between hands, gear, personality, than being a A+ player ( who can play things considered as harder to play ) with a random OK tone
Click to expand...

Only needed to read the posting tittle to reply. for a great tone great technique is needed! So I vote both!
 
#90
lz4005 said:
Pretty much this.
My job is to show up and play the songs right.

The idea that most of us have control over our tone is an illusion.

We sound different depending on what part of the room the listener is in, and different in every room. When I record something the engineer has a lot more control over the tone than I do. Same for what the sound person does to my signal in the PA at a gig.

As long as I can hear myself clearly, that's all that matters.
Click to expand...

Ouch ! Hard to hear
I am lucky to have big control of the tone of my bass in recording because, Well, we ( my band) do everything by oursleve
 
#91
Clemouze said:
Ouch ! Hard to hear
I am lucky to have big control of the tone of my bass in recording because, Well, we ( my band) do everything by oursleve
Click to expand...

You have no control over the speakers your music is played back on by the listener. How does your bass sound on laptop speakers? Or a car stereo? High end headphones? Wireless earbuds? If you put it online most platforms add a ton of compression.

Control is an illusion.
 
  • Like
Reactions: hintz
#95
lz4005 said:
You have no control over the speakers your music is played back on by the listener. How does your bass sound on laptop speakers? Or a car stereo? High end headphones? Wireless earbuds? If you put it online most platforms add a ton of compression.

Control is an illusion.
Click to expand...

Yes OK but you can at least define the most important part of your tone.
Personnally we listen our mix on a lot of different support when mixing
 
#97
Technique all the way.

But by technique I don't mean playing super fast licks.

Impecable technique means, for me, great timing hiting the notes, left-right hand coordination, being able to change the tone with the right hand, hitting those mute/ghost notes without secondary noise, no fret noise because of bad left hand and, absolutely mandatory for a bass player, muting the strings with both hands, so that you can have a clean bass line.
 
  • Like
Reactions: hintz, SteveCS, lz4005 and 1 other person
#98
J_Bass said:
Technique all the way.

But by technique I don't mean playing super fast licks.

Impecable technique means, for me, great timing hiting the notes, left-right hand coordination, being able to change the tone with the right hand, hitting those mute/ghost notes without secondary noise, no fret noise because of bad left hand and, absolutely mandatory for a bass player, muting the strings with both hands, so that you can have a clean bass line.
Click to expand...

Yes when creating the thread I was assuming that those basics "technical" tips were mained by everyone
So even a pro-focus-tone do that
At least in my mind

No point of talking about the tone is the guy can't even play right
 
#99
There's a sorts of metrics when I comes to deciding who's better and academics, jazzbos, and shredders don't understand that.
J_Bass said:
Technique all the way.

But by technique I don't mean playing super fast licks.

Impecable technique means, for me, great timing hiting the notes, left-right hand coordination, being able to change the tone with the right hand, hitting those mute/ghost notes without secondary noise, no fret noise because of bad left hand and, absolutely mandatory for a bass player, muting the strings with both hands, so that you can have a clean bass line.
Click to expand...
 
#100
LZ4005 is thinking like I do ( . . . . God help him !). I know what I think I sound like standing right in front of it, but I KNOW that on the other side of the stage, out front, wherever, it's completely different. Even standing in front of it, I could take a few steps one way or the other, and hear it change. I never conquered this (you can't), and was a big reason I quit gigging ultimately. IIRC, the late Joe Osborne once spoke about preferring recording a lot more than live work as he could never properly hear himself. I know the feeling. So I was always torn between setting the amp like I liked, or should I try and trim it out for what I think will carry the room?

Then I got to worry about technique . . . . . . .
 
  • Like
Reactions: hintz, Clemouze and lz4005

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back