Why piezo on electric bass is so underrated?

[Honkey tonk]

Because a Pie-s-oo has is its own sound and the electric bass does its own thing.
Guessing, not many players playing a DB try to make the upright sound like a Presicion

 

[mongo2]

I had an NS CR4 with both piezo and magnetic pickups and felt the piezo lacked the warmth, punch and character of the magnetic pickups so I avoided using the piezo. However I like the piezo on my Kala Ubass and my classical guitar.

 

[mambo4]

Piezo require a pre amp to yield a useful signal. That's why they are less common.

 

[KJMO]

For one thing, they are rarely done well when implemented, so most of them quack like the ovation acoustic sound you used to (and probably still) hear. But even when done well, there aren't a lot of popular songs that feature that sound, so I think the bulk of players struggle to find a use for it. I had one on my NS and tried mixing it in, etc. etc. but really found no good use for it. My last hope was worship setting, and it didn't work there either. I've heard the sound used effectively and it can be beautiful, but most players probably aren't lucky enough to be able to use it in their musical situation, so it's a niche sound.

 

[A9X]

…because all of a sudden, the "tone wood" discussion in regards to solid body Basses becomes relevant.

No it doesn't.

 

[ETJ]

I think this thread has kinda nailed it:
"I'll take a peezo… peyayzo…pie-so….peyote… … never mind just gimme a regular magnetic pickup"

 

[BassHappy]

What are the last two?
Gorgeous
Especially 2nd from last.

I designed these basses and built the bodies at a local wood shop, they are my own "RockHill" basses.

I built a batch of five altogether, two are solid bodies. Had substantial help with the necks and the assembly from luthier extraordinaire Keith Horne in California, and the finish is by my friend Pat Wilkins.

If you are interested, there is a build thread on them here:

Five Prototypes - the minor miracle

Finishing up an all-consuming album project, and if all goes well, I hope to do a new batch of 5 or 6 this winter.

 

[shade_1313]

I had a few basses with Piezo. Carvin had an option for those.

on fretless basses it was amazing but on fretted it was more of a spices.

only piezo on a fretted bass sounded a little hollow to me, it needed a totally different EQ to sound nice. Again to me

One of my great regrets is never having gotten a fretless twin of this bass, while they were still making them:

Carvin XB76WP

 

[BarfanyShart]

I agree, I like piezo, especially when blended with magnetic. It's weird, because people are always looking for more grit, brightness, punch, string attenuation, color, character, etc. - but then they don't like how that stuff sounds with a piezo. My Supro Huntington uses a passive piezo like a tone knob, and that's a pretty good idea, but I feel like there are lots of good ideas with piezos that haven't been explored yet.

 

[Giraffe]

They are not so useful on fretted basses, as they accentuate a lot of the clank, finger noise, and treble that don't work well in most settings.

The systems using transducers in a typical metal bridge seem especially prone to causing more problems with technique.

The Rob Allen-Turner Renaissance style of using an undersaddle transducer in an acoustic style wooden bridge on a fretless are where the magic lies. Very versatile (except for slappers!) and useful in a lot of acoustic, jazz, pop music. Useable in roots and rock as well. Deep, rich, full of beautiful detail, and easy to use and make sound good!

Most bass players won't even try out out the Allen-Turner style instruments, figuring "they are not for me" based largely on their appearance. So not popular in the mainstream.

They just don't know!

 

[ardgedee]

I love the sound of piezo with or without magnetic pickups, but I also love picking as close to the bridge as possible, and most piezo-equipped bridges really complain when I do that.

 

[Hambone70]

I picked up a Rick Turner Renaissance to use in an acoustic setting, and I was amazed at just how solid-body magnetic-pickup it sounded, especially with round-wounds. I'm changing out the strings to flats to mellow it out a bit.

 

[OptimalOptimus]

One of my great regrets is never having gotten a fretless twin of this bass, while they were still making them:

View attachment 4417980

Carvin XB76WP

I remember those ! Beautiful bass.

 

[Pings Bass]

Full disclosure: I've been frustrated by piezos and their characteristic honk since I one installed on my first acoustic guitar ca. 1982 and since none of them I've tried on upright bass sound anything like my bass unamplified. Good for stage monitoring, but I always prefer mics for recording and FOH whenever possible.

That said, i just got my first bass guitar with a piezo (Ibby srf706), and I am starting to understand the allure of it blended with the magnetic pups. It can give a give a nice edge to the rounder magnetic sound. I still can't abide it solo, but it can bring something.

(I think they only made a BG sound like an upright to the extent that we associate the piezo sound with uprights.)

 

[Deleted member 165050]

My Turner Renaissance fretless only has a pie-eat-so pickup, with nylon-core strings that won't work with magnetics. Totally different sound to a normal EBG.

 

[bholder]

They are not so useful on fretted basses, as they accentuate a lot of the clank, finger noise, and treble that don't work well in most settings.

The systems using transducers in a typical metal bridge seem especially prone to causing more problems with technique.

The Rob Allen-Turner Renaissance style of using an undersaddle transducer in an acoustic style wooden bridge on a fretless are where the magic lies. Very versatile (except for slappers!) and useful in a lot of acoustic, jazz, pop music. Useable in roots and rock as well. Deep, rich, full of beautiful detail, and easy to use and make sound good!

Most bass players won't even try out out the Allen-Turner style instruments, figuring "they are not for me" based largely on their appearance. So not popular in the mainstream.

They just don't know!

View attachment 4417990

Yeah, the range they emphasize is just where you want it on fretless (to capture the fretless characteristic mwah and board sounds) but it's just where you don't want it on fretted (all clank and buzz and squeak). EQ to the rescue, though. Cleaned up and properly EQed, piezo on a fretted sounds not unlike a fretted ABG. Still an add to the mags, but less interesting piezo only. IMHO. YMMV. Substantial Penalties may apply, &etc.

 

[Jefenator]

My Ovation ABG has frets and bright phosphor bronze strings. It can get pretty clanky if you're not careful but the underlying musicality of it has worked its way into a surprising number of settings. I credit Ovation with doing their homework.
I would love to try a Turner Electroline sometime; it might succeed where my Yamaha failed. A well-implemented mag/piezo blend can yield some very exquisite and useful sounds that almost no one else has.

 

[CryingBass]

I have pie hole pups on a number of form factors.

When it works, it is excellent. More often it does not. Your Pie Might Vary...

 

[CryingBass]

My Ovation ABG has frets and bright phosphor bronze strings. It can get pretty clanky if you're not careful but the underlying musicality of it has worked its way into a surprising number of settings. I credit Ovation with doing their homework.
I would love to try a Turner Electroline sometime; it might succeed where my Yamaha failed. A well-implemented mag/piezo blend can yield some very exquisite and useful sounds that almost no one else has.

Burn the phosphor bombs, try some other strings. It might sound better and save you a finger replacement.

 

[Giraffe]

Full disclosure: I've been frustrated by piezos and their characteristic honk since I one installed on my first acoustic guitar ca. 1982 and since none of them I've tried on upright bass sound anything like my bass unamplified. Good for stage monitoring, but I always prefer mics for recording and FOH whenever possible.

That said, i just got my first bass guitar with a piezo (Ibby srf706), and I am starting to understand the allure of it blended with the magnetic pups. It can give a give a nice edge to the rounder magnetic sound. I still can't abide it solo, but it can bring something.

(I think they only made a BG sound like an upright to the extent that we associate the piezo sound with uprights.)

I struggled with the "piezo quack" for a long time, trying to tame it with EQ.

Somebody suggested a compressor up front and the road got a lot more smooth. Quick attack and moderate ratio dialed out a lot of that piezo quack, and made it much more useful for me.

 

[drTSTingray]

I've got an MM Bongo 5 with a piezo - and it's a fretted one.

I don't recognise any of the descriptions in other posts of the 'issues' with piezos in fretted basses (accentuating clank; quacking (are you sure you hadn't got an envelope filter on at the same time).

Anyway it's very useful - both mixed in (blended) with the magnetic pick ups but it's also good soloed - especially down low on the 5 string. The fact the Bongo is a very well designed bass with a powerful EQ may assist in this. Pic added below.