which parts make the most (and least) difference to sound quality?

[jon999]

ive recently started making basses and i was just wandering which parts people thought made the most difference to the sound/tone of the bass or no difference at all. i want to know wat parts are worth spending more on and which parts you can just buy the absolute cheapest and not reduce the quality of the bass.
for example is there realy any point in spending £30-40 on tuners when ones that cost £8 from ebay arent any different.

jon

[crez5150]

Strings!!

[Lfalex v1.1]

Good Thread!

[thinks]...[/thinks]

I'd agree that tuners are tuners as long as they hold the string at the desired pitch without slipping. The only other attribute one might wish for is light weight to counteract neck dive.

Wiring (internal) seems much of a muchness. There's not that much of it that it would make much difference anyway.

Important bits;

[b]Strings!!![/b] These are the bits with which we interact most. Consider the way in which string gauge and type influences tone, and that confirms why they're on this list...
[b]Pick-ups[/b] Generate the (small) signals the amp gets to make louder versions of. Their type, construction and positioning all contribute to the instrument's sound.
[b]EQ/Electrics (as applicable)[/b] Rubbish Electrics will sound dull and possibly be noise-prone. Poor EQs will sound lifeless and boost/cut the wrong frequencies. They should be emphasizing the positive aspects of the bass, not trying to create what isn't there.
[b]Bridge[/b] Naff bridge, poor sustain, poor stability of tuning and potentially causing intonation issues. Its mass and how well it's coupled to the bass affect the way the strings and body interact.
[b]Nut[/b] Certainly affects the sound of open strings if nothing else. Brass, Tusq, Bone, Nylon or Graphlon are common choices.
[b]Neck/Fretboard[/b] The rigidity of neck and fretboard will help to shape the sound of the bass, and this is, in part governed by the choice of materials used- hence all those Graphite necks available for Precisions, Jazzes and 'Rays to name but a few.

I suppose a good rule of thumb is this;
[i]If someone makes an item as a retro fit add-on or upgrade to a bass, it probably makes some sort of difference to the tone[/i]

[chris_b]

This isn't an answer to your question, but if you're making basses, listen to Roger Sadowsky talking about doing just that.

[url="http://www.behindthenotes.com/index.php/Featured-Video/Features/Bass/Roger-Sadowsky/menu-id-17.html"]http://www.behindthenotes.com/index.php/Fe...menu-id-17.html[/url]

[stingrayfan]

Pickups seem to make a massive difference to sound. As do active electronics. Active basses always seem to cut through a live mix.

As for more organic things, it's in the ear of the beholder. Does Ash sound better than Basswood? Probably. Ask me to A/B it blind though and I might struggle to tell them apart.

There's another point to consider. If you're making basses, people remember the quality after they forget the price. If the tuners look and feel cheap and the bridge is thin, people will judge your bass on that. But if the £8 Ebay tuners as no different to the branded ones, go for it!

Edited June 9, 2008 by stingrayfan

[BigRedX]

Are you serious?

A bass, like any other instrument is just about the sound. It's also about playability, ergonomics and looks. The trick is to balance all these factors against cost and come out with something worth playing, that is good value for money.

Cheap tuners are a poor choice, because they'll probably be unnecessarily heavy which may mean your bass doesn't balance properly and therefore is uncomfortable to play. Also there will be too much play in the gearing which means that tuning the strings accurately becomes difficult and a bass you can't tune properly is worthless. In this instance you can't beat one of the quality brands like Schaller, Hipshot or Gotoh.

On the other hand spending a lot of money on some parts doesn't always guarantee a good result. After all Fender still put a bridge where the main component is a nasty piece of bent metal on many of their basses and people seem to like the result. Also I've notice a trend recently with bridges where there's a lot of complex engineering to produce what looks like an impressive and highly adjustable unit... until you come to actually make some adjustments when you find that actually changing anything is so complicated you might as well have the primitive Fender version!

The only way you are going to find what works and what doesn't and what sounds good and what costs lots but makes little difference to the sound or playability of a bass, is to start building a try stuff out.

[MythSte]

I remeber a wise man once telling me "your hi-fi is only as good as your worst component"

Although its not 100% applicable if your going to be making them completely from hand people will want the best!

[Mr. Foxen]

The 'love' you put into making it is the most important factor in generating 'mojo'.

Heavy vs light tuners, hmm, the fat finger exists for a reason, so maybe lighter isn't always better.

Definitely fingers, then strings, then pickups. In fact, prettymuch track the sound from the source and that gives you the best guide. Oh, neck joint is pretty important and easily overlooked..

[chris_b]

[quote name='ste_m3' post='215844' date='Jun 9 2008, 11:52 PM']I remeber a wise man once telling me "your hi-fi is only as good as your worst component"
Although its not 100% applicable if your going to be making them completely from hand people will want the best![/quote]
Another wise man said, "You get what you pay for"! Cut corners and your product will suffer.

[johnnylager]

Just to play devil's advocaat (hic)

[quote name='Lfalex v1.1' post='215831' date='Jun 9 2008, 11:31 PM']Good Thread!
I'd agree that tuners are tuners as long as they hold the string at the desired pitch without slipping. The only other attribute one might wish for is light weight to counteract neck dive.[/quote]
Or heavy to give more mass to the neck - think Geddy Lee Jazz

[quote name='Lfalex v1.1' post='215831' date='Jun 9 2008, 11:31 PM'][i]If someone makes an item as a retro fit add-on or upgrade to a bass, it probably makes some sort of difference to the tone[/i][/quote]
Or they think it does - can't think of one without offending someone though

Edited June 10, 2008 by johnnylager

[jon999]

kl thx for the replies!
i jus thought i would point out that i dont make them to sell (or at least not yet anyway lol).
the main reason for setting this up was so i (and others) could avoid wasting money on things that wernt entierly neccesary as im on a tight budget not just to cut back on quality.
but thx for the relplies keep them coming!

[Machines]

For me it's pickups, EQ and then strings.

[MythSte]

[quote name='Machines' post='215926' date='Jun 10 2008, 09:23 AM']For me it's pickups, EQ and then strings.[/quote]

I'd have those in reverse presonally! Strings, EQ then pickups

[The Burpster]

From my "pimp my axe" perspective, it depends on what the bass is in the first place.

If it made of good wood and the neck body join is good, then you can spend whatever you like on the other components. Some come with all good components, some with some good stuff and some cost cutting parts. some come equipped with a load of shonky crap and you can make the other resultant parts into a pretty damn good guitar.

Having just binned all the parts on a Highway One P bass (very nice US body and neck) and replaced them with top quality parts, I can state that it can make a huge difference to the resultant instrument in both handling and sound.

My first bass (a Yamaha) was fitted out with some right shonky parts, to keep its cost down. The neck was great and the body although of basswood was nicely made. With some proper components on it, it transformed it completely.

So which parts are the most important?

I'd say the body and neck, as all lthe other parts are easily upgradeable.

[tauzero]

[quote name='Lfalex v1.1' post='215831' date='Jun 9 2008, 11:31 PM']I suppose a good rule of thumb is this;
[i]If someone makes an item as a retro fit add-on or upgrade to a bass, it probably makes some sort of difference to the tone[/i][/quote]
So if I get some of those Fender Precision decals, I can make my Thumb produce that special dull thud? Excellent!

Seems a good list to me. Also, as Burpster said, a good neck/body join (or a neck-through), otherwise you'll lose sustain.

I would also suggest consistency - don't spend a disproportionate amount (either high or low) on any part.

[Bilbo]

Surely its all of it?

If you think of a bass as a cooking recipe. If you add more salt or less, it changes the taste. But if the meat is lamb not beef, or chicken not pork or fish not game then that is fundamentally different. Add a tomato sauce or a cream based one and its different again. Throw in some herbs and its French, some spices and its Indian or Thai.

Whilst I can see that different machine heads will make some sort of difference, surely all of it does - thats why a Wal isn't an Alembic isn't a Sadowsky isn't a Fodera. Its the overall mix not the details. Bit like if your tone is too bassy you can add more top or take some bass off. It taste and experience interacting.

PS I wouldn't even DREAM of trying to build a bass so what do I know!

[Kiwi]

In my experience:

The fundamental character of the instrument comes from the neck and body materials and the type of neck joint construction.

The fingerboard heavily influences the treble, attack and sustain.

The bridge and hardware can detract from the highs and lows if not rigid enough

The pickups can detract from the highs if they have too much resistance, detract from the lows if the pickups are very low impedance, the pickups can add midrange if they are overwound. That recipe can be mixed and matched a bit but it won't add character (eg. more growl). The position of the pickups also influences how the tonal character of the instrument is emphasised.

The preamp can offer the most significant source of tone tweaking if you preshape the degree of boost and the frequency centres. Spector's 'tone pump' has a substantial amount of preset bass boost to compensate for the bright character of the maple wood that the NS5XL/NS5CR or NS2 is made from. You'll very rarely find a warm sounding all maple bass with a passive bypass. However the danger with tweaking the preamp is that if any of the boosted frequency centres coincide with notes on the neck it will make those particular notes jump out more.

lower action = more growl and midrange (and mwah on a fretless)
higher action = rounder tone with more bass