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which do you prefer


chilievans
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[quote name='Ou7shined' post='1082180' date='Jan 8 2011, 03:04 PM']I play both given the circumstances. I also have basses with both options.[/quote]

Me too.
And I have an active bass which allows the pick-ups (active) to remain "active" while the EQ is bypassed!

This is why it's necessary (IMV) to have a bit of a collection going, so as to cover all the basses (sic).
To wit; Active, passive, single coil, Humbucker, 1,2,3 or more pick-ups, piezo etc. And that's ignoring construction, material choices and obvious stuff like frets/fretless/half fretted and number of strings / tuning

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[quote name='Lfalex v1.1' post='1084808' date='Jan 10 2011, 08:39 PM']....This is why it's necessary (IMV) to have a bit of a collection going, so as to cover all the basses (sic).
To wit; Active, passive, single coil, Humbucker, 1,2,3 or more pick-ups, piezo etc. And that's ignoring construction, material choices and obvious stuff like frets/fretless/half fretted and number of strings / tuning[/quote]
Yep that's what I tell the Mrs. too. :)

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Active - gives you additional sounds/punch that a passive just doesn't have - and where's the problem having a spare battery? If you know the one that's in the bass has been in there a while it only takes two minutes to check!!

Having said that I don't actually own a passive bass - all of mine are active and I rarely use them without the preamp on..

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I like both, and both options have their advantages.

A passive Fender type bass sounds amazing, lets face it, but sometimes the output can be a little 'soft'. It depends on your setup.

An active bass (mine are all EBMM) just have HUGE punch, and massive tone even with the lightest touch. This might not apply to all active basses, but you know what I mean.

Playing style and strings help to change both. Eg, stick flats on a Ray and play with your fingers / cut the treble = instant old school tones....nothing like the usual snarl and bite.

My recent EBMM Big Al experience was fantastic, and the passive/active option with a passive tone control is the icing on the cake.

Therefore, I cannot vote haha.

Edited by Musicman20
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[quote name='Lozz196' post='1082520' date='Jan 8 2011, 08:07 PM']I`ve owned many basses, with only one out of the lot being active (and that was over 20 years ago).

I think active basses sound great on their own, but for me, a passive sounds better with a band.

Hence me being a Precision man - can`t get more basic than a passive Precision.[/quote]

+1

I agree, I love playing a around with an active bass, but when it comes to live, I tend to push towards passive.

I started on the active route the changed to a passive and I was sold. The warmth you get from a passive just seem to sound better for me in a band setting, active bass seem to want to make a name for themselves in the music and that's not my thing.

If I'm playing something funky that is modern, the active seem to be great for that, but my ears still lean towards a vintage warm sound that you don't get from actives in general.

I had a T-bass for a while and I loved the active passive switch, best of both.. but to contradict myself a little, I love the old MM's..

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Dunno what to tell you.

Epiphone LP (not so) Standard - active only
Gibson G-3 - passive only
G&L Tribute L-2000 - basically passive with an active line boost which I never use
Danelectro Hodad - passive only
Gibson Victory Artist - fully active/passive

So in my house it's passive by a nose :) Truth is that I'm coming to the conclusion that all the fancy pants EQ options in the world won't make a bit of difference to Johnny Punter in the audience. These days I'm buying basses purely on the basis that they intrigue me in either the way they look or the way they operate, rather than the actual tone they produce.

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