cloudburst Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 NOT - What's the best bass guitar for rock, funk, jazz, pop, disco etc etc. Everyone has their own opinion on that. Instead, it would be helpful (at least for an idiot like me) to get a handle on what are the various specific capabilities that each of the genres really requires from a bass guitar? Apologies if this has been asked before. CB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AttitudeCastle Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Anything. There are archetype and sterotype sounds. But you can sound and play however you want to, regardless of context. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truckstop Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 /endthread Truckstop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudburst Posted June 14, 2012 Author Share Posted June 14, 2012 [quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1339712782' post='1693351'] /endthread Truckstop [/quote] Have I missed some forum etiquette? Do we have to pass questions through you for approval? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wylie Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Seems to me that lots of rock players use Myxolydian mode, a good deal of Latin jazz employs firsts and fifths -- and I guess those are stereotypes. But I think that while modal scales sound better in a jazz tune, they don't work as well with other kinds of music. tg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truckstop Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Ha ha, no sorry I was just being a lazy git. I was agreeing with what Attitude Castle said is all! Truckstop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted June 14, 2012 Share Posted June 14, 2012 Metal generally requires fast, tight playing, and an aggressive sound. Noodly fret masturbation is optional! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost_Bass Posted June 15, 2012 Share Posted June 15, 2012 [quote name='cloudburst' timestamp='1339712405' post='1693343'] NOT - What's the best bass guitar for rock, funk, jazz, pop, disco etc etc. Everyone has their own opinion on that. Instead, it would be helpful (at least for an idiot like me) to get a handle on what are the various specific capabilities that each of the genres really requires from a bass guitar? Apologies if this has been asked before. CB [/quote] Rock - Precision, played with pick. Funk - Musicman, slapped like a motherf... Jazz - Jazz fretless, Jaco's sound... Pop - Rickenbacker, sound doesn't mather, only looking good on stage... Disco - Anything weird looking or headless, kubicki, steinberger, ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conan Posted June 15, 2012 Share Posted June 15, 2012 There is probably some deep and Zen quote referring to "exceptions that prove rules" here.... but essentially there ARE no rules! Every so often a player comes along to does things differently to the accepted norms of any particular genre. All power to them!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudburst Posted June 15, 2012 Author Share Posted June 15, 2012 (edited) @Truckshop - no worries mate. I did actually have a good reason for starting this thread. Perhaps I should explain: I've played my Fender Jazz since getting it new when I was 9 (I'm now 47). I liked the Jazz really because 1) I have quite small hands and 2) because I'd happened to walk past an open-air evangelism theatre and latched onto the warm booming bass which was a 70s Jazz and that's what I had to have. Although I've owned other instruments (Jazz Bass Special, StingRay etc.), I've really not sat down and appreciated their specific strengths and tonal variations. The only 'tones' I've really latched on to through the years has been Pino's StingRay Fretless with OC2 and Paul McCartney's Rickenbacker ringing like a bell (and not like a Ric I think) in stuff like Penny Lane. But those sounds have been quite extreme. It's really only recently, through starting to listen to Shalamar, that I've started latching on to some of the more subtle tonal differences between instruments and I have to admit, it's really only this year that I've started really respecting Precisions. I've recently bought a 51RI. And I went in to a shop on Denmark St a couple of weeks back to pick up a 75 Precision (White/Rosewood), but it seemed something was suspect about the truss rod so I let it slide. I've also been talking to a chap about buying a P/J but he made a comment about it being more suited to Rock than Funk. Soooo, that got me to thinking - what is it about certain basses that makes them good for one type of music but not another? And I'd prefer to focus on the capabilities rather than the brand and model - as the latter will just result in conflicting opinions. What I'm trying to understand is sort of like the following - forgive me if I get it wrong: GENRE: Funk WHAT'S REQD: Low action, bridge pickup, brightness, fast neck GENRE: Disco WHAT'S REQD: Mid pickup, short sustain, fast neck GENRE: Jazz WHAT'S REQD: Versatile tones, long sustain That's probably not correct, but I hope you can see what I'm trying to understand? CB Edited June 15, 2012 by cloudburst Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lfalex v1.1 Posted June 15, 2012 Share Posted June 15, 2012 Technique in any genre > choice of instrument. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjones Posted June 15, 2012 Share Posted June 15, 2012 [quote name='Lfalex v1.1' timestamp='1339796796' post='1694735'] Technique in any genre > choice of instrument. [/quote] Yes, buy a versatile bass then the rest is down to technique. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Yep, find the instrument that works best for you, and take it from there, if it needs change of pickup/extra pickups/pre-amps etc, then get the mods done, but for me, the comfortability of the neck is the main thing. It`s why I don`t get on with Jazzes - necks are too thin, even though I think they sound great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waynepunkdude Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Best bass for YYZ is a Geddy Lee. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coilte Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 I dont think there are any hard and fast rules about what type of bass is "suitable" to any particular type of music. Strings and pick ups play as important a part, as does technique, in the over all tone. Having said that, one of the most versatile sounding basses is the G&L L2000. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LawrenceH Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 I think it's about pickup position/tonal balance and where that sits in the mix, along with whether you want instruments to blend together or stand apart. It's why a P is stereotypically so good for rock, really thick low mids and good fundamental that help it blend into the guitars to create a solid sound without eating into the higher frequencies, where the guitars are really biting and the vocal sits. Funk and disco on the other hand, often uses a thinner, more tonally restricted guitar sound leaving more room for a bass to work as a distinct voice in rhythmic counterpoint (though like rock still blending with the kick drum), works well with the upper-mid bite of a jazz or 'ray. But plenty of great funk with the clankier 70-type Precision sound (Paul Jackson springs to mind). I'm not sure about long sustain for jazz, depends what you're playing but the thud and relatively rapid decay of a double bass is often what's required for walking. Obviously Jaco's bridge pup sound is a very prominent voicing, lots going on around 500-1.5k ie lower vocal range where our ears are nicely sensitive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OliverBlackman Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 [quote name='AttitudeCastle' timestamp='1339712667' post='1693348'] Anything. There are archetype and sterotype sounds. But you can sound and play however you want to, regardless of context. [/quote] yhp, use your ears. Fender style basses can be very versatile if you adapt your technique or use other techniques to achieve different tones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudburst Posted June 16, 2012 Author Share Posted June 16, 2012 [quote name='LawrenceH' timestamp='1339844182' post='1695241'] I think it's about pickup position/tonal balance and where that sits in the mix, along with whether you want instruments to blend together or stand apart. It's why a P is stereotypically so good for rock, really thick low mids and good fundamental that help it blend into the guitars to create a solid sound without eating into the higher frequencies, where the guitars are really biting and the vocal sits. Funk and disco on the other hand, often uses a thinner, more tonally restricted guitar sound leaving more room for a bass to work as a distinct voice in rhythmic counterpoint (though like rock still blending with the kick drum), works well with the upper-mid bite of a jazz or 'ray. But plenty of great funk with the clankier 70-type Precision sound (Paul Jackson springs to mind). I'm not sure about long sustain for jazz, depends what you're playing but the thud and relatively rapid decay of a double bass is often what's required for walking. Obviously Jaco's bridge pup sound is a very prominent voicing, lots going on around 500-1.5k ie lower vocal range where our ears are nicely sensitive. [/quote] Thanks for taking the time LawrenceH. This is exactly the kind of info I'm looking for. CB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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