Where do I look for that dark, deep tone?

[static0verdrive]

I'd try a passive jazz with nickel strings, and the bridge pickup turned down just a little. IME the jazz neck pickup can get a little lower / darker than a P-bass can. Precisions have great thump and don't get as bright as a jazz without the bridge pickup, but the P pickup placement means a little less bass overall too. P-basses dominate the mids

 

[Nev375]

I hear a Gibson EB-0 with flats calling your name.

 

[Immigrant]

Ha! This is an interesting selection of advice! Interesting because it's contradictive, but that's just the nature of things, isn't it?

So here is what I understand so far:

1. I should look at the Thunderbird.

2. I should check out tapewound strings

3. I should play with my Cort more, because I may have missed a setting or a playing method that may get me what I am looking for.

4. I cannot completely separate the guitar from the amp when looking for that special sound.

5. I should stop looking for that special sound.

6. U-Bass is awesome, but the fretted ones have intonation problems. Thank god - I thought there was something wrong with mine. I have a fretted acoustic Ubass and it works fine but I don't take it to gigs because of the above.

7. I don't need a different guitar.

8. I need to dump my guitar and get a different one.

9. P bass should solve the problem.

10. J bass should solve the problem.

Haha, well, thank you all, I appreciate it. My next step is to get tapewounds for my Cort, and go look for thunderbirds.

Or you can skip all that and head straight to a five string, which is the dark, deep tone you are really looking for.

 

[groovaholic]

The Bartolini MK-1 pickups in the Cort A4 are VERY bright sounding pickups -- they are 180-degrees in the WRONG direction for the tone you're after.

You say that you love the ergonomics and build quality of your bass.

So scrap the pickups and the preamp, install a deep, dark set of new pickups (Nordstrand DCs, Bartolini P2s, etc) run passive, and you'll have a bass that plays AND sounds the way you want it to.

"Don't throw out the baby with the bath water".

 

[static0verdrive]

I hear a Gibson EB-0 with flats calling your name.

Yeah passive humbucking pickups would definitely give a sound closer to what OP is asking about, good call...

 

[Not yet]

Last nite I was shedding a couple tunes at very low volume using just one 12"

Switched the Deep button on the Mesa Subway and innards started shaking. Go check out a Mesa D800.

Great amp and not ridiculously priced

 

[Joybass]

Just get a Yamaha BB1024 or BB1025. All the deep & dark tones you need are there.

 

[Joybass]

Or you can skip all that and head straight to a five string, which is the dark, deep tone you are really looking for.

Right! An open E sounds like an open E. Play an E on the B string and the ceiling comes down.

 

[Garun]

The dark tones don't come from amp. It comes from wood (and pickups). You should search for bass with darker woods. Wenge for example. I played some cort, 500$ price, has wenge neck with rosewood fingerboard, it had the darkest tone I've ever heard, deep to. But I like my tone clear and round.
Google it up, dark woods = darker tone. Why do you think maple fingerboard is making clearer sound than rosewood? You need more dark woods to get more darker tone. I know that warwick makes basses with wenge neck and wenge fingerboard, or something like that. Look that up.
And again, amp had NOTHING to do with the tone. It is just (as the name says) an amplifier. It amplifies sounds.
I'm fan of flat eq and even eq bypass, and I can hear my tone on almost any amp. Whether i play without or with amp, I get same tone. So the biggest factor is wood, after that pickups and strings, I know that bartolini has some darker bassier pickups,look that up too. And I don't like them just because of that good luck

 

[Wallace320]

The Bartolini MK-1 pickups in the Cort A4 are VERY bright sounding pickups -- they are 180-degrees in the WRONG direction for the tone you're after.

You say that you love the ergonomics and build quality of your bass.

So scrap the pickups and the preamp, install a deep, dark set of new pickups (Nordstrand DCs, Bartolini P2s, etc) run passive, and you'll have a bass that plays AND sounds the way you want it to.

"Don't throw out the baby with the bath water".

ehm, everythin' alright, but Bartolini mk1 part

electronics on cort artisan are way bright (I had many many Cort, from Artisan - A and B series - to GB series, to T series, then 4, 5, 6 strings and standard and/or custom electronic) Bartolini consistently tend to the dark side of passive soapbar/dualcoil spectrum (I also customized few Fender Jazz basses with'em)

Even if my very first post was obviously suggestin' basses with either front humbucker or thick midrange, I'm honestly also on the "keep your Artisan A4" side, boostin' lows, keepin' flat mids and cuttin' trebles.

Cheers,
Wallace

 

[engedi1]

The dark tones don't come from amp. It comes from wood (and pickups). You should search for bass with darker woods. Wenge for example. I played some cort, 500$ price, has wenge neck with rosewood fingerboard, it had the darkest tone I've ever heard, deep to. But I like my tone clear and round.
Google it up, dark woods = darker tone. Why do you think maple fingerboard is making clearer sound than rosewood? You need more dark woods to get more darker tone. I know that warwick makes basses with wenge neck and wenge fingerboard, or something like that. Look that up.
And again, amp had NOTHING to do with the tone. It is just (as the name says) an amplifier. It amplifies sounds.
I'm fan of flat eq and even eq bypass, and I can hear my tone on almost any amp. Whether i play without or with amp, I get same tone. So the biggest factor is wood, after that pickups and strings, I know that bartolini has some darker bassier pickups,look that up too. And I don't like them just because of that good luck

Are you being facetious? Dark colored woods equals dark tone? I guess no one told that to Familyman.

Tone is pretty much 100% in the pickups, and then the amp and the Cab you are using. The latter being the most important. OP, when you say deep dark tone, give a solid example? Do you mean like Aston Barret with Marley? Also, what kind of band do you play with? Name a couple of influences and maybe we can help you cop their tone.

 

[engedi1]

And tapewound strings are probably NOT the answer. They never have been for me.

 

[engedi1]

Here is the tone you are looking for. [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[Kukulkan61]

Get you a Fender or Squier Classic Vibe P Bass put some flats on it play with the EQ and play it through an amp with a 15 inch speaker.. it ain't rocket science..✌

 

[bherman]

Passive P Bass= Fender Standard Precision. Can't go wrong. Mid range price. That's the bass you want if you want a P Bass.

Totally agree with this one. I have both a Jazz bass and a P and a P with flats or tapewounds has a much deeper fundamental tone than my J. J is stronger on mids but the P shakes the floor.

Easy to find good ones. But when you try new ones in a store, they'll all be set up with cheap roundwound strings so you won't get the full experience. Main thing to look for is if you can live with the wider neck (at the nut) than J basses and others (not sure of Cort's nut width).

If cost is an issue, go used (my local Craigslist often has a P bass) or look at Squier Vintage series.

 

[nerkoids]

AFA dark, pure tones on passives are concerned, Ps have more thunk, Js have more mooozh. I find Jazzes to be easier to play gently on.

 

[static0verdrive]

shakes the floor

IME this has more to do with pickup height and string selection (and amp volume!) than J vs P... Both my J's shakes the place, and so does one of my two P's, but the other doesn't (the one with flats actually). I probably can if I raise that pickup a little but the tone is where I like it and I'm reluctant to change anything

 

[Mvilmany]

Get a good P Bass, whether it's fender or another company.

Ha! This is an interesting selection of advice! Interesting because it's contradictive, but that's just the nature of things, isn't it?

So here is what I understand so far:

1. I should look at the Thunderbird.

2. I should check out tapewound strings

3. I should play with my Cort more, because I may have missed a setting or a playing method that may get me what I am looking for.

4. I cannot completely separate the guitar from the amp when looking for that special sound.

5. I should stop looking for that special sound.

6. U-Bass is awesome, but the fretted ones have intonation problems. Thank god - I thought there was something wrong with mine. I have a fretted acoustic Ubass and it works fine but I don't take it to gigs because of the above.

7. I don't need a different guitar.

8. I need to dump my guitar and get a different one.

9. P bass should solve the problem.

10. J bass should solve the problem.

Haha, well, thank you all, I appreciate it. My next step is to get tapewounds for my Cort, and go look for thunderbirds.

You left out:

11. Tort Pickguaurd

 

[groovaholic]

ehm, everythin' alright, but Bartolini mk1 part

Bartolini consistently tend to the dark side of passive soapbar/dualcoil spectrum

The MK-1s don't align with the typical Bartolini tone profile.

Check out the Cort B4, Ibanez SR500, and Lakland 44-01; they all have the Bartolinis and the trebly-tone.

Find one of them that allows you to bypass the preamp and you'll hear a VERY bright baseline tone profile.

Lots of people like that brightness, but not the OP.

 

[static0verdrive]

OP be aware your preferred "bedroom tone" (when playing solo) doesn't always work when playing with others. Dark tone can get lost in the mix pretty quick, no matter how much you like it when by yourself. It took me a while to learn to appreciate my band tone when the band wasn't around...