The 'secret' of a great bass sound?

[Skol303]

Great quote from producer/songwriter Ethan Johns in the current issue of Sound On Sound magazine:

"The only way, in my opinion, to get a great bass sound is to have a great-sounding bass player... People hear Danny Thompson's bass sound and they go, 'Can you get me that sound?' And the answer is, 'No, I can't.' It's the way he plays it..."

So, more time practicing and less time spent GASsing for me

[Dave Vader]

Yep. All my basses sound pretty much the same really.

[Lozz196]

Very true that. My fave player is Bruce Foxton, and I can nail his tone quite easily by altering the way I play, but it`s not my natural way of playing, so my usual style sounds nothing like him, even though I`m using Fender Precisions strung with Rotosounds played with a pick. It really is down to the player.

Have to say though, as much as I like Bruces tones, they wouldn`t fit for much of the music I play anyway, so although I`m glad I can sound like him, I`m more pleased that I have my own bass-identity.

[Gust0o]

Back to the funk being in the fingers?

[Geek99]

its like the john taylor thing - its in the fingers and thats as unique (at one level at least) as a voice.

[chris_b]

I played the first gig with my new P bass and I was happy that my tone had moved on and improved. I asked the guitarist (a very good player) what he thought. He just said; "It sounds great, but it sounds like you."

I appreciated the compliment but I was also disappointed. I'd just spent a fortune to sound better than that!

[steve-bbb]

Fingers!!!

Or pick if you must

[JapanAxe]

When ambient came to buy my P-bass, it sounded completely different when he played it through my rig. Not better or worse, just different - i.e. like him not me!

[SteveK]

The man speaks sense.
Got GAS? Forget about acquiring the bass/rig of your heroes - If you're serious about your instrument and have money burning a hole in your pocket, invest in some quality lessons - You'll be amazed at how your sound improves.

[chris_b]

[quote name='SteveK' timestamp='1371120484' post='2110003']
....invest in some quality lessons - You'll be amazed at how your sound improves....
[/quote]

+1

[Jacqueslemac]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1371119637' post='2109986']I asked the guitarist (a very good player) what he thought. He just said; "It sounds great, but it sounds like you."[/quote]

Would have been nicer if he'd said "...and it sounds like you."!

[Conan]

What amazes me is that people would be surprised by this!

[The Dark Lord]

I don't subscribe to that point of view really. If you get a good bass, amp, speaker cab and the right pedals - you can make a great tone right there.

Then, you can play very simple songs which don't require too much twiddling and you will have a great bass tone. Simples. You don't have to be a great bass player to do that - in my opinion that is.

Not sure I'd be that interested in watching someone do that for a whole gig though. For that, they would need to show a bit of variety and flair and maybe a style of their own. But I think someone's bass sound is shaped more by their equipment than their playing technique.

Edited June 13, 2013 by The Dark Lord

[WalMan]

[quote name='steve-bbb' timestamp='1371119896' post='2109991']
Pick!!!

Or fingers if you must
[/quote] Fixed it for you


Though actually, of course, it's whatever best suits to job at hand

[KevB]

Better technique obviously produces a better 'sound' in relation to those things that technique can influence. Give a quality pro player a really cheap nasty horrible set up and he'll get a better 'sound' from it than someone of my ability playing through the same gear. But would he prefer to play through this cheap as chips rig or his own costing thousands? would he chuff.

[Conan]

[quote name='iceonaboy' timestamp='1371126434' post='2110111']
I still think its a load of bollocks that you can change your sound drastically by playing" differently"
[/quote]

Really?

When other people play my bass (without changing any settings on the guitar or amp) they don't sound like me. The only variable is the "way" they play - so it must be affecting the tone/sound that comes out!

[SteveK]

[quote name='iceonaboy' timestamp='1371126434' post='2110111']
I cant see how the way you play makes much difference. I mean, the only real change you can make is to attack. Same with a pick. You cant change a sound by plucking the string a different way. There only is one way to pluck a string. The only difference is how hard you pluck it. Possibly, a finger nail being slightly longer might make a slight difference, but I still think its a load of bollocks that you can change your sound drastically by playing" differently"
[/quote]
With respect, you are wrong!
There are many, many ways to pluck a string - and in any case, your fretting fingers are just as much a part of what defines the sound that you produce.

[peteb]

To state the obvious - the sound you get coming out of the speakers is shaped by everything on your chain: fingers, pickup, bass, lead, amp, EQ, speakers, etc. Some parts of the chain have more effect than others (the lead does not have much influence for example).

The first and most important factor is your fingers / how you strike and the string (and your left hand as Steve says above) as that is unique to you and influences everything further down the chain...

Edited June 13, 2013 by peteb

[Dave Vader]

[quote name='iceonaboy' timestamp='1371130902' post='2110199']
Thats what I said though...the attack, I mean how can you pluck a string any other way than harder or softer?
[/quote]

near the bridge, near the neck, inbetween, plus the left hand effect, different bits of finger, pick, drumstick (I was bored ok) and a billion other variables.
Which I accept mostly equate to harder or softer in the simplest terms possible. But in the same way as a multiband eq equates to treblier and bassier.

[SteveK]

[quote name='iceonaboy' timestamp='1371130902' post='2110199']
Thats what I said though...the attack, I mean how can you pluck a string any other way than harder or softer?
[/quote]
Take a look at this clip from Rockschool posted here a couple of days ago, particularly from the 13:30 mark
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eKTM__dabo&feature=player_embedded#![/media]

Edited June 13, 2013 by SteveK

[steve-bbb]

[quote name='iceonaboy' timestamp='1371126434' post='2110111']
I cant see how the way you play makes much difference. I mean, the only real change you can make is to attack. Same with a pick. You cant change a sound by plucking the string a different way. There only is one way to pluck a string. The only difference is how hard you pluck it. Possibly, a finger nail being slightly longer might make a slight difference, but I still think its a load of bollocks that you can change your sound drastically by playing" differently"
[/quote]

sorry but totally disagree - its not just the attack

finger postion, angle of attack (if using fingers)
contact time of finger on string and the way you push through the note while your finger is in contact with string
how you release
whether you attack parallel to fretboard of perpendicular will vary the amount of travel towards the fretboard and the amount of buzz or slap you induce against the frets

these things are admittedly very subtle but do make a difference

[Conan]

[quote name='SteveK' timestamp='1371131781' post='2110215']
Take a look at this clip from Rockschool posted here a couple of days ago, particularly from the 13:30 mark
[/quote]

The section from 11.20 is even more relavant to this discussion!

Some very cool comments from some real legends in there too, and I'd forgotten what a great player Henry Thomas was/is! Great closing theme tune.

Edited June 13, 2013 by Conan

[xgsjx]

If you're gonna sound any good, you need to start by having some good quality skin on yer fingers!

[xilddx]

[quote name='iceonaboy' timestamp='1371126434' post='2110111']
I cant see how the way you play makes much difference. I mean, the only real change you can make is to attack. Same with a pick. You cant change a sound by plucking the string a different way. There only is one way to pluck a string. The only difference is how hard you pluck it. Possibly, a finger nail being slightly longer might make a slight difference, but I still think its a load of bollocks that you can change your sound drastically by playing" differently"
[/quote]

I agree with you in some ways, in that the effect of hitting strings in different ways on an electric bass does not have the level of variance that it would on say a classical guitar, and that some people do talk a lot of bollocks on this subject.

BUT, players do have very different sounds when they play the same instrument. When people say fingers, they really mean BRAIN. The way each note is attacked, the way the right and left hands interact, the left hand techniques used, the minute decisions people make while they phrase a musical passage, these all combine to make very significant differences that add up to a personal style of operating the instrument. That's what I think people mean by 'fingers'.

[leroydiamond]

Together with issues relating to the technique of the player making a difference, there is also the level of emotion the bassist puts into his playing. Tone may not be just skin deep.