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What’s The Better Thumper..?

Ace Of Bass

Ace Of Bass

A Rooster Illusion
Jun 27, 2006
2,407
1,679
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#1
Yo:

My next move will possibly be for a pure thumper...I’m trying to gather as much info on two old Basses I have narrowed it down to...a Fender Telecaster Bass (early 70’s) or a ‘60’s Gibson EB-0...the neck position Humbuckers really interest me and I’m thinking about using tapewounds on whichever one I decide on not looking for a slapped at all with this one...I’m going to use it for funk, R&B and jazz ( it would be cool to use it as the bass I would choose to get closest to an upright tone (I know it’s not near it, just trying to get as close as possible)...anybody with serious experience on on or both..? What did and didn’t you like..? Anything to watch out for..? I have no real experience with either.. Thanks in advance...
 
#4
Bass4ThePublic said:
I’d say the Fender because it’s more durable than a gibson. However, the mudbucker combined with the shorter scale of the Gibson should be very thumpy, not to discredit the Fender ofc. Any bass with a mudbucker will thump.
Click to expand...
This is the pickup in a 70s Tele. I had one, and it is all thump
82F0BAFF-7FA8-4B41-8DCD-48D9398956B0.jpeg
 
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#7
I've owned both in the past and still have a couple of '60s Gibbys.

The biggest difference is in the feel. If you like a baseball bat neck with a vintage radius, Tele is your friend. Having said that, I'm not keen on Fender's rendition of 3-bolt or their QC at the time that these were produced.

Pre-73 Gibsons - with the pickup located right at the bottom of the neck - are a completely different animal and I know quite a few people who could never get along with their 12" radius and often narrow string spacing. There are numerous subtle and less subtle variations from year to year that one may want to take into consideration. With the mute engaged and the pickup volume at 6 or so, you may get into somewhat of an upright territory, especially with tapewounds.

Both the Tele and the EB-0 will give you the thumpy, dark, wooly sound without too much definition unless you take some serious time to learn how to EQ them to your liking. You might find yourself getting bored with it at some point and wish that there was another pickup on the given bass, like thousands of bass players before you had.

If I were interested in a bass to serve similar purposes to your intended ones, I'd be looking at an EB-3 (or a modded EB-0) or an already modded Tele Bass. However, a "slothead" EB-3L (1970-72) with a 34" scale would likely offer the best of both worlds, being more sonically defined than a short-scale Gibby while still being able to bark as needed, while being way more versatile than an un-modded second-generation Tele. The downside of these basses is that they only have 19 frets and a very pronounced neck dive. If these two aspects don't bother you that would be my first recommendation.

If you're willing to look outside of the initial Fender/Gibson variety, Ovation Magnum would be another instrument that could fit the bill very well IMO.

My experiences only...
 
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