bluesman Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 been listening to early jamiroquai....how does he get that fantastic tone??? so deep, defined yet responsive.....anyone know what basses, amps, effects he uses? ive been listening to a lot of 60s/70s r&b, funk....modeling my sound....ie string muting, wooly sounding ect....i play squier cv jazz bass thro peavey combo.....dont earn much so limeted funds.....but could i emulate mr zender or am i living on cloud nine??....any help advice would be greatly appreciated....cheers bob. i know i will never be that good as long as ive got a hole in my arse....but how can i improve tone?? Quote
Wil Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 He used to play a Warwick Streamer Stage 1, with Trace Elliott V Type amps I think. Lots of compression too. Quote
cetera Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 From what I've read - the BOSS ME8B was a MAJOR part of his early tone.... Quote
Sibob Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 And the fact that he's Stuart Zender! Figure your own sound and style out, thats the real fun Si Quote
Kev Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 (edited) His Too Young To Die tone is one of my fave tones. As already said, an old streamer stage 1, trace elliot amps and 6000 metric arseloads of compression might help you on the way, but the tone is all in his fingers. Edited March 16, 2011 by Kev Quote
grosa Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 I vaguely recall reading an interview where he says he never ever set his basses up properly back then, always buzzing and just badly set up really. Maybe that's the key? Buy a fortress and leave it by the radiator for a bit. Quote
Chunks Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 in the studio alot of it was just one os his warwicks DI'd with heaps of compression. i know this is definitley the case with virtual insanity Quote
bubinga5 Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 [quote name='Sibob' post='1164761' date='Mar 16 2011, 06:38 PM']And the fact that he's Stuart Zender! Figure your own sound and style out, thats the real fun Si[/quote]Couldnt agree more.. its great when you hear a tone you like but its much better to forge your own personality... Quote
LawrenceH Posted March 16, 2011 Posted March 16, 2011 [quote name='bubinga5' post='1164812' date='Mar 16 2011, 07:08 PM']Couldnt agree more.. its great when you hear a tone you like but its much better to forge your own personality...[/quote] But what if one finds other people's personalities are a lot more interesting than one's own? Quote
OliverBlackman Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 your own personality on bass will come from experimenting with others. Stuart Zender said his style was from Jaco, Benard Edwards and James Jamerson although i think Benard Edwards had more infuence. Im sure Andrew Levy who recorded some early songs with Jamiroquai had a big influence too. Regarding stuart Zenders tone, gear has very little to do with it. He digs in really hard and uses warm mids. Thats all you need regardless of bass. You caould play his exact set up and sound nothing like him. Quote
Doddy Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 [quote name='LawrenceH' post='1164877' date='Mar 16 2011, 07:54 PM']But what if one finds other people's personalities are a lot more interesting than one's own?[/quote] You start off by trying to sound like your favourite players,but the idea is to move past it. Sure,you will always acknowledge your influences,but your own style and personality should also come through. Otherwise you just become a poor copy of the original,because no matter how much you copy someone, you simply aren't them. Quote
lettsguitars Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 [quote name='Sibob' post='1164761' date='Mar 16 2011, 06:38 PM']And the fact that he's Stuart Zender! Figure your own sound and style out, thats the real fun Si[/quote] this is the way. tone is down to the player. Quote
fiatcoupe432 Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 I love that picture of les don't miss primus live in poland heiniken festival 4 days only 88 £ by the way you should watch black cat white cat ,that is the idea of that pictures comes from Quote
EBS_freak Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 [quote name='lettsguitars' post='1165263' date='Mar 17 2011, 01:01 AM']this is the way. tone is down to the player.[/quote] Ever played a midi bass ? Quote
mart Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 [quote name='LawrenceH' post='1164877' date='Mar 16 2011, 07:54 PM']But what if one finds other people's personalities are a lot more interesting than one's own?[/quote] I get the impression that even some of the greatest bass players found other players more interesting. Read an interview with almost any bassist and you'll find them raving about Jamerson or Pastorius or whoever, as if they find those players much more interesting than themselves. I also think that even if you try hard to play like Zender (or any other particular favourite) you'll still end up sounding a lot like yourself. Which is no bad thing Quote
Johnzy Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 Active jazzy style bass, light gauge strings and dig in over the front pickup! Compression will tighten it up, but it will only be a approximation of Zender. Tone IS in the fingers, so dont hurt you wallet trying to be like him. Quote
Lozz196 Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 (edited) [quote name='blackmn90' post='1165222' date='Mar 17 2011, 12:31 AM']Regarding stuart Zenders tone, gear has very little to do with it. He digs in really hard and uses warm mids. Thats all you need regardless of bass. You caould play his exact set up and sound nothing like him.[/quote] +1 I remember reading an article from someone in the U2 camp, and they had a chance to play The Edges guitar set-up. He said he took hold of the guitar, hit it, and it went "blurk". At that point, he realised most of the sound comes from The Edge himself. Same with most musicians, I generally sound like my ham-fisted, hard-hitting self, irrespective of what bass I play. It`s still nice/interesting to know how a musician sets their gear up however. Edited March 17, 2011 by Lozz196 Quote
bluesman Posted March 17, 2011 Author Posted March 17, 2011 thanx again guys for comments....i spent all my time developng a style of my fave bassists ie jemmott, jamerson, cogbill, weeks ect.....i think its just the modern day production.....the sound of bass is so much more defined nowadays.....im still a old school fan....stick with me 60s/70s r&b.....but that sound of zender did blow me away.....once again many thanks. Quote
Mr. Foxen Posted March 17, 2011 Posted March 17, 2011 [quote name='Lozz196' post='1165636' date='Mar 17 2011, 12:27 PM']+1 I remember reading an article from someone in the U2 camp, and they had a chance to play The Edges guitar set-up. He said he took hold of the guitar, hit it, and it went "blurk". At that point, he realised most of the sound comes from The Edge himself.[/quote] "blurk""blurk""blurk""blurk""blurk""blurk""blurk""blurk""blurk""blurk" surely Quote
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