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Tone. Really that important?

#141
Fuzzbass said:
I can think of several, including:

  • Entertaining the audience
  • Creating groovy music with your bandmates
  • Earning money

All of these factors are more important to me than wonderful tone.
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I won't make a sandwich with spoiled bologna, I won't play with bad tone. In my opinion it's like asking if tuning is important. Here's a little test to see if tone matters to you. Dime all the tone controls on your amp and tell me you'd actually play a gig like that.
 
#143
Vic Winters said:
I won't make a sandwich with spoiled bologna, I won't play with bad tone. In my opinion it's like asking if tuning is important. Here's a little test to see if tone matters to you. Dime all the tone controls on your amp and tell me you'd actually play a gig like that.
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Why would someone even ask if tone matters? That's like asking if it's OK to do a poor job when someone is paying you to do a good job. Of course it matters, and that's not an opinion...that's a fact.
 
#144
I think he was trying to say that its not worth going crazy over tone like we do on talk bass.

I think there is a thin line between a good tone and an amazing tone. But i know if im at a local show and i look at the guys playing and its through crap combos im not watching them for long. But if they roll in with a full rack setup/tube amps/good cabs, im sure to watch to see what they got to offer. So thats another thing to think about when you play through a 100 watt fender combo.

I don't think its necessary to obsess over tone. Even though it is hard to not do. But i think a good tone is necessary.
 
#145
playibanez said:
I think he was trying to say that its not worth going crazy over tone like we do on talk bass.

I think there is a thin line between a good tone and an amazing tone. But i know if im at a local show and i look at the guys playing and its through crap combos im not watching them for long. But if they roll in with a full rack setup/tube amps/good cabs, im sure to watch to see what they got to offer. So thats another thing to think about when you play through a 100 watt fender combo.
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Audiences couldn't care less, though. You care because you're a bassist. The vast majority of people in the audience don't care at all what you use. So if you can get the job done with a 100w Fender combo, rock on. I can get the job done with a 25w Ampeg combo.

Tone isn't something you have to obsess over for it to be good, nor does it have to be expensive. I have played arenas with $90 basses and cheapo rented GK/Hartke rigs, and nobody's ever accused me of having bad tone. But whatever you use, your tone has to be good, and I think everyone agrees with that. We obsess about it on Talkbass because we're giant nerds.
 
#146
JimmyM said:
Audiences couldn't care less, though...
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Exactly. I for one can't hear any wide variation in bass tone when I go to a gig. I probably would if every one else in the band stopped playing though.

I certainly wouldn't lose sleep over a bad tone*, but as others have said, it's in your fingers more than anything. So I always make a bass sound much the same, and as the tone has developed slowly with me, I have never been aware of how good or bad others might find it.

*slightly OT, I've been trying to find an example of a player whose nailed the sound I want. And none has. But several have made me want to pick up the damned thing and play it despite that.
 
#147
I don't believe in "the tone", but I do think it's important to be happy with your sound. I bought a Stingray because I like how it played and how it sounded. I still like how it sounds. Same with my rig. There are other basses that I like the sound of - I'm gassing for a jazz right now - but I don't think there is ever one ultimate sound that I'm searching for... just lots of things I like! Audiences probably don't care all that much, but I do, and so do the musicians I play with.

I think that it comes down to this: If I'm happy with the way I sound, I'll play better and perform better. If I'm playing better and performing better, the audience and my band-mates will enjoy the show more.
 
#149
Long time player..but now Im starting to think.

Saw two named bands recently live and the bass tone was well.....equally as dull, mushy and flat at both concerts, I bet you the crowd couldnt have cared less about the "bass tone", they were there to see the show.

In my mind bass works if it is seen and not heard, ie you can see the musician on stage putting on the visual but you cant really tell what hes doin, you only know that there is something deep and rumbly underneath the top end cackle....
 
#150
IMO tone is important.

If I nail my tone then my fingers find it easier to do the what is needed, It seems I am not fighting my bass all night and because of this my playing improves. I am more relaxed and have more time to think on the spot.

Unfortunately the better gear I have bought has always been worth it.
Why unfortunate, because like many sometimes I do not have the money to get the better gear. [better gear = american std, mm stingray, you know where I am coming from]

The crowd, The crowd may not recognise good tone, true BUT. well sought of. If you have a crap tone the audience will find you a touch irritating after awhile yet you ask them why and they will not be able to tell you. A good tone is easy on the ears, bad tone, NO.
Think a good guitar tube amp and a transistor one.

Of coarse this is less applicable to bass than it is to guitar but it does make some difference. [ I could be a little wrong on this :p]

If you are lucky enough to do arenas or large gigs then the FOH is mostly controlled buy the board, and to some extent what can be delivered back to the foldbacks.

At the end the day what the audience hear does matter.

Yeah, I am for the best tone you can achieve with what dollars you have.
 
#151
I think the money= good tone formula is not true all the time. Take the new reissue danelectros for example, they sound great and get rave reviews and are only £245.

On the other hand low quality basses do tend to get lost in the mix more, so if you are getting a new bass get one that is of good quality regardless of price.
 
#152
It only matters to a musicians, BLAH - IT ONLY MATTERS TO THE BASSISTS!

Sometimes my band dont even know when I accidently turn off my sansamp ( I use it as main preamp, in my amp i have EQ flat )
And they werent so hype when I bought Sansamp which blasts ME away.

The tone is important only to YOU ( and other bassist in the audience ) That's my opinion. 90% of audience are some noobs, they cant hear difference between Fodera and GSR 200 Ibanez
 
#153
My 2¢:

Most live gigs, the FOH soundguy is going to tweak the tones of everything to achieve the best mix possible, keep various sources from competing for the same bandwidth, and compensate for the room. At least, that's what he should be doing. (Recording isn't all that different, actually; a lot of the same principles hold true.)

So, sitting alone in your room spending hours tweaking your tone is wasted effort if you don't take into account how your tone fits in with everything else, which is, frankly, next to impossible to do: You'd come close, but almost always have to recalibrate it in the context of the whole band, and even then, the FOH guy is going to hear more of the room than you will, and tweak it further to get a good mix.

Having said that, you still need to be happy with the tone you hear, but I've never found it worth obsessing over. I fiddle with my tone occasionally, but almost always during a pause in rehearsal, when I can then judge how the changes affect the overall sound of the band. Recording, I lay it all down direct, with no colouration, and worry about getting the tone when I mix.
 
#154
Funny thing, at a job a couple of weeks ago a fellow musician who was in the audience (he sat in with us on a couple of tunes and has on other jobs as well) commented on how good he thought the bass sounded and it was the best he's ever heard it.

Only thing was I didn't think it sounded all that good, workable considering the room, but not great. But I never let the tone effect my playing.
 
#155
Tone matters for all instruments. When I hear a SS Crate guitar amp on a stage I can't help but cringe. And this is from a guy who owns a GFX1200H. If you're telling me someone wouldn't be able to tell the difference between that and a JCM 2000 or B52 AT-100, you're out of your mind.
 
#156
To those gigging bassists who said that tone "doesn't matter" for the audience... excuse me? They paid their hard-earned dollars to come out and hear you play and you think it doesn't matter whether you sound good? You'se guys oughtta be ashamed of yourselves! Even if your average Joe Rocker can't hear the difference between a Fender and a double bass, everyone can hear the difference between good and bad. Even if they can't put their fingers on it, even if it's just a subtle nuance in the overall sound of the band, the band and audience will appreciate the music so much more if the bass sounds good. Playing any instrument and not caring about the tone is like cooking dinner and not caring about the taste.

Somebody remarked that his or her bandmates can't tell when the SansAmp is on. Well, I can't always tell when a sax player's using a new mouthpiece or the drummer is using a different brand of sticks, but I can certainly appreciate the result of the change, which is usually better tone. And better tone means better music.
 
#159
appler said:
To those gigging bassists who said that tone "doesn't matter" for the audience... excuse me? They paid their hard-earned dollars to come out and hear you play and you think it doesn't matter whether you sound good?
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If it's a loud gig then chances are it will sound like a messy blob of sounds. It isn't that often to get a competent sound guy or play in good acoustically place. Therefore pursuing best possible tone may be kind of excessive thing.

Some people come to gigs just to vent off. May not care much about things like a precise bass tone at all.
(not talking a good tone is bad thing at all of course)

appler said:
You'se guys oughtta be ashamed of yourselves! Even if your average Joe Rocker can't hear the difference between a Fender and a double bass, everyone can hear the difference between good and bad. Even if they can't put their fingers on it, even if it's just a subtle nuance in the overall sound of the band, the band and audience will appreciate the music so much more if the bass sounds good. Playing any instrument and not caring about the tone is like cooking dinner and not caring about the taste.
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You are right but then explain popularity of fast foods, eh? It takes someone who cares to distinguish such things. For majority it sufficient to be loud and barely recognizable even.

appler said:
Somebody remarked that his or her bandmates can't tell when the SansAmp is on. Well, I can't always tell when a sax player's using a new mouthpiece or the drummer is using a different brand of sticks, but I can certainly appreciate the result of the change, which is usually better tone. And better tone means better music.
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I like to have a good tone because I'm feeling much more confident then. But what is going to be heard by audience is an another matter. Why use best possible (and expensive gear with all risks involved) when it will get messed up anyway by uncontrollable factors?
 

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