You're maybe not gonna like this...

[skygzr]

Dude has a bunch of really good videos. He’s a terrific player.

And these instruments would OBVOUSLY sound better if they had TORT. TORT I TELL YOU!

:<]

 

[bholder]

There's a tune called "Popcorn" that I came across in a book of mine, The Ultimate Fake Book, by Hal Leonard. If not for the obvious TOS violation, I'd post the sheet here...

I used to do a fair rendition of "Popcorn" on my right cheek with a fresh #2 pencil, eraser end.

 

[bholder]

And yeah, Davie can make any bass sound good, so I don't find the conclusions on price differential shocking. Put those same basses in the hands of a mediocre bassist (like many of us), and you'll hear more of a difference, I bet.

 

[AlexanderB]

Numbers on a price tag, the difference in ADSR really makes or breaks the case on stage.
Like others have mentioned, many low end basses have indistinct attack, fast decay, limited sustain and sub par release.
It is not mainly in electronics or pickups, it is the stiffness, resonanse and losses in the wood. Period.

I use good, really powerful amplification, and have still found it hard to "carve out" a solid foothold in the mix, when using low quality instruments. Just swapping to my main axe just solved the issue, right away.
Same jazz bass, same passive pickup config, same strings, and set up by myself to my liking. Same story with Precision vs Precision. Been there, done that.

The player is very good, no doubt about that!
So, let's hear the basses in some slow blues, whole notes across a bar or two at 80 bpm. Then let us appreciate the "vocality", complexity, richness and sustain from a proper instrument, be it $100 or $5000!

 

[BluelEyedlDevil]

All them basses sound like cat poo, why do so many bass videos have people playing with the treble control full on...cat poo...

What does cat poo sound like exactly?

 

[jd56hawk]

I can't even bring myself to watch it.
Did I miss anything?

 

[blue4]

It's easy to discount videos like this, as they could be fake, different amps, etc. However in every blind side by side test I've ever seen, including many done by people on this website, listeners have consistently failed to not only identify the price tag of a bass, but the type or brand as well. Bass snobs fail to pick out the cheap bass, people can't identify the SS Mustang from the LS Pbass, and so on. So while this video proves nothing, it also doesn't surprise me in the slightest.
Blindfolded people can't identify the Stradivarius, can't pick out the craft beer from the corporate, it's been shown a million times in all kinds of tests on various things. People listen (or taste, etc) with their eyes and their previously held beliefs.

 

[10cc]

The P and old strings always sounds better.

 

[lfmn16]

You don’t learn anything listening via computer speakers to someone else play a bass in a controlled environment, alone, at low volume.

I had ‘75 Precision that sounded terrible alone, but one of my best ever in the mix on a gig.

There are two many variables and I don’t trust someone with an agenda.

 

[4dog]

Wow...so what would be this guys agenda..does he sell 20$ basses to the masses with his name on them??
Its just a comparison vid nothing more nothing less,,he proved one thing...a crappy bass against a quality bass sounds good when the player is good..tone really is in the hands.

 

[jaysbass2002]

What make was the $620 bass?? Looks MM. Maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention.

 

[Jonithen]

His agenda is to get clicks and attention / possibly monetization from the video.

If the difference between an expensive bass and a cheap bass doesn't matter to you, enjoy your money. There's a ton of factors that mean different things to different people. How's it sound, how's the playability? The weight or balance. Construction method. Who put it together, some guys getting paid a fair wage in a factory that has to answer to some standards like OSHA or a place where anything goes just get it done...

 

[Mechayoshi]

People fail to realize that above a certain price point, you're not just paying for better sound...

You can drop some Seymour Duncans into the cheapest POS bass you can find, and it will sound great.

Yes. Electronics can only be so much better before you can hear a difference, and that’s before upgrades. The fit and finish on the either hand....

 

[groooooove]

that dudes videos are so click bait-y

each bass sounds about right. fun arrangement.

 

[lfmn16]

he proved one thing...a crappy bass against a quality bass sounds good when the player is good..tone really is in the hands.

On computer speakers, at living room volume, played alone. We have no idea how they compare played on stage, which is where it matters to most of us.

 

[Antisyzygy]

...or what it suggests:

This guy is an outlier. He can play just about anything with strings. Even without, he has a video of a drum track he made beating on a stringless bass in different ways. Creative and good player.

 

[JRA]

a good bass player can make almost any bass sound good? That’s not surprising.

Dude can probably play better than most people here, and there are still people trying to justify the $5k price tag. Keep dreaming guys, or at least start practicing. Hanging out on TB ain't gonna get you there.

Dude has a bunch of really good videos. He’s a terrific player.

 

[SJan3]

Bass is only going to sound as good as the person playing it. Assuming the bass is actually playable, a skilled musician can/will make it sound great, and at the same time give a horrible player a Fodera and it's still going to sound like crap.

That's called, "the touch of the master's hand".

 

[Runnerman]

Dude has a bunch of really good videos. He’s a terrific player.

He has achieved his goal.

 

[el murdoque]

I thought that the principle of diminishing returns in bass buying was common knowledge?
I estimate that you will find a bass for any application in the $400-$999 (new) bracket that will be perfectly fine.

This will include:
* A good sound in the mix
* Solid, reliable and hum-free electronics
* A straight neck with a decent, well playable setup
* General reliability (tuners will keep the bass in tune for the entire gig, no parts will randomly fail or fall off etc.)
* A well made, well balanced instrument with a decent finish.

Things that don't impact on the sound as hard as some of us wish, that will most likely not be found in the three figure range include
* Fancy top woods
* Handmade in the US/Europe
* Any kind of 'woodporn' where multiple layers create something that is beautiful to look at
* A super high quality finish on everything from the output jack to the tuning pegs, ESPECIALLY on those bits that do not really matter

With a player with a neutral attitude and a decent amp setup, It will be hard to distinguish a well picked bass from the $400-999 bracket from a $5000+ bass in a blind test.