The ol' "active v passive" debate

[Funky Dunky]

I apologise if this has been done to death, I did use the search function but I ultimately decided that I wanted the opinions of experienced (and hopefully fussy) bass players, rather than just a straight "Here's the difference between active and passive basses".

On paper, it seems really straightforward - you have more tone-shaping options with an active bass. But of the active basses I've tried out to date, the tones have lacked the immediate warmth I hear from a passive bass (except - and don't laugh - the Squier Troy Sanders Jag bass, which had some really nice tones).
Bear in mind I'm a bass virgin and operating at the budget end of the gear spectrum, and so I undoubtedly won't have tried the better actives basses.

What I want is to hear YOUR opinion on why you prefer either one over the other. As many pros and cons as I can obtain, before I splash my decidedly meagre amount of cash. It ultimately comes down to what I like best I guess, but I would like as much info as possible on the active v passive argument.

Thank y'all!

[Pinball]

I like and use both!
Passive is what I prefer to listen too but I find that active is [i]eas[b]i[/b][/i][b][i]er[/i][/b] to dial in ad cuts through the mix better when playing loudly and competing with rock drummers or guitarists.
That is my general feeling but it isn't that simple as both active and passive tones range from beautiful to horrible depending on the bass and electronics so its also a case of using your ear of personal preference.
Simple as that, end of

Edited September 18, 2013 by Pinball

[BassBus]

The old down to personal taste answer. [size=4] [/size]

[size=4]But seriously..[/size]

[size=4]I play actives. I play in a jazz band and like a tone with the mids rolled off completely when I'm just playing a backing bass part. When it comes time to take a solo that tone just does not cut through the rest of the band so I like to wind the mids up to flat or boost. I don't want to go back and forth to the amp to do that so it is useful for me to have actives on the bass.[/size]

[spongebob]

Passive for me.

I tried my luck some years back with a Fender Jaguar bass....perhaps not the best example of 'active', but I spent more time fiddling with the sound as the options were multiple!

Didn't really get having to have a battery in it, either.

Maybe I'm a bit of a Luddite - but for me a good passive bass does it all.

[Ou7shined]

I play both but have more love for passive as it reflects the personality if the bass itself. Go putting an active pre in there and it takes on the characteristic of the active circuit and is often quite hard to get back the bass' natural tone. The big exception is the Stingray which sounds rubbish with anything other than what "god" intended.

[White Cloud]

Having played actives for many years I had a epiphany when I was using an Alembic bass and realised that sometimes less is more. There is a lot to be said for passive basses that you can just plug in and play. P basses seem to just sit in a band situation and work despite their basic nature.

Horses for courses of course. Try everything you can get a hold of - Its all part of the experience of being a bassist and finding your thing.

[JTUK]

The trick with actives is to use them very sparingly, IMO... so you just want to accent a passive sound as mostly the P.A's we use aren't THAT capable.
Any active over-used will screw your sound out of sight and this is a major failing on the likes of Stingrays.
But any bass with boost of +db is going to sound toneless if used without care and attention.

P's and J's are THE workhorses at the top level as 1) the people using them know what they are doing ( or can pay someone else who knows)
and 2) the EQ available and the soundmen available means passive is all you need.
IMO...

Actives are shortcuts tweaks

[51m0n]

I play active, I prefer the sound, but I dont make much if any use of the onboard tone circuit, and thats not what I want active for, its the more stable tone regardless of cable length and so on that got me into active. That and the signal to noise ratio sometimes being far better on a good active circuit than a passive one through a long lead.

If I roll all the way to the bridge pickup I may add a touch of low mid or bass from the onboard eq in a live situation, but I'd always prefer to use the amp, or an even better eq if necessary if I'm recording.

I dig passive tones too though, in fact one of my basses has a passive treble rolloff and active pickups, which is a lovely solution IMO.

[leroydiamond]

An option worth considering is to purchase a a good budget passive bass ( eg. Squire, Fender (Mexican) and add an outboard/onboard preamp at a latter date, thus having the option of a choice of passive or active. If your at the budget end of things, getting a bass with proper onboard electronics is difficult IMO. Also keep an eye on the used market. Here on the Basschat for sale section is a good place to start.

Edited September 18, 2013 by leroydiamond

[Kiwi]

The only difference to me is the amount of control you have to compensate if the bass doesn't deliver what you are looking for.

[Fat Rich]

I have old passive Fenders and 18v semi parametric flippy switchy fancy Status basses, you chose your weapon to suit the situation.

After 20 years of mucking about with different basses I've come to the conclusion the classic Fender sounds are best done with simple passive Fender type basses, and active basses will take care of most other types of sound.

There is also a danger you'll spend ages twiddling all your active controls trying to find your sound and never quite get what you want. Sometimes plugging in a passive bass with few controls and learning where to pick, how hard, what angle, note choices, dynamics etc. gives you a more distinctive sound than all the controls in the world.

[risingson]

I've largely been a passive bass guy but I do like both. Onboard preamps can be really hit or miss for me, which means I have to be careful going about picking active instruments. I hate sterile sounding preamps (pickups too) and like to be able to hear a bit of the tonal character as well as the actives working, kind of like a subtle mix. In short actives for me have to be musical. I also find an onboard mid control dialled in at the right frequency range to be really handy when I need it.

[thisnameistaken]

It's nice to have some EQ onboard especially if you use a few different sounds, but passives are fine most of the time, certainly fine for gigging.

I can't see myself ever getting all political about it to be honest, basses are basses.

[KiOgon]

I like to hear [b][u]THE[/u][/b] bass for all that it is, passive for me every time. There isn't an active circuit made IMHO that doesn't sound 'artificially enhanced' (a bit like boobs really ) however you set it.

Like a quality HiFi turntable/arm/cartridge, you get the sound from the source as it's intended, with passive.

Edited September 18, 2013 by KiOgon

[Lozz196]

Passive is my choice. Both as a player and as a listener. That said if I were in a serious functions type band where I needed versatility I`d get myself a Fender Deluxe Jazz - or check out the Deluxe Precision. Had the Jazz before and the versatility was amazing. So tools for the job really, but my preference on sound is a trusty passive Precision.

[RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE]

Guess I prefer passive. All bands I used to be in also did

[LukeFRC]

It really depends on what you're wanting to do doesn't it?

My main bass has a very fancy (and daftly expensive) preamp in it - but it is filter based and can do things my amp can't and sounds great (but not passive) my other basses are passive, I like that sound too. On their own the passive sounds better - in the mix I can shape where I am in the mix easier with an active preamp. BUT I have done sound/pa for years so can hear what I'm trying to get in terms of FOH sound and the overall band mix.

Otherwise you can change tone with an active bass.... but you can do that almost as effectivly with moving your plucking hand...

if I were buying a new bass at the cheap end I personally wouldn't bother with active.

[stingrayPete1977]

How many people on here bang on about passive basses only to put it straight into a modern amp with an active EQ? What they are saying is they prefer a pickup with a really long lead

[LukeFRC]

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1379532762' post='2213900']
How many people on here bang on about passive basses only to put it straight into a modern amp with an active EQ? What they are saying is they prefer a pickup with a really long lead
[/quote] The difference is that the amp EQ isn't being forced to run on a 9v battery....
Mind you some classic bass sounds require a certain Eq - the ray, and the slightly nasel sound of a Warwick eq spring to mind

[neepheid]

I have both, and I like both. Sorry for the boring, non-committal response.

[Gust0o]

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1379534886' post='2213962']
I have both, and I like both. Sorry for the boring, non-committal response.
[/quote]

True, though

[cocco]

Passive for me,

I like the simplicity of use on stage, the natural sound of the bass and the lack of a battery.

I've tried actives and owned many, Warwick streamer s1 5er, musicman bongo and stingray, trace T-bass, Shuker single cut headless 4 and possibly more. I found them mostly lacking personality, with the exception of the ray. They were too clean and clinical sounding. I like things a little rough 'round the edges.

People talk about the output of active basses, and yes it's higher than most passives, but there are plenty of people who'll make you a high output passive pickup.

That said I am currently inexplicably also drawn to the troy sanders bass.

[Gust0o]

[quote name='cocco' timestamp='1379535594' post='2213980']
That said I am currently inexplicably also drawn to the troy sanders bass.
[/quote]

The Jag?

[cocco]

[quote name='Gust0o' timestamp='1379535732' post='2213985']


The Jag?
[/quote]

Yeah, beautiful isn't it?

[Dingus]

Some basses are designed to be active , some are better passive , some work fine either way . I used to favour active basses , probably because when I started playing in the very early 1980's active basses were de rigueur and received widsdom was that they were superior and more useful than passive basses . Fashion is , however , always cyclical and nowadays " retro" basses that you couldn't give away in those days sell for silly money . In truth , though , the whole active-passive debate is a bit of a red herring in so much as all active basses are not alike , and not all passive basses are equal either , so you would have to subdivide each category . The original high-powered , low-impedance active systems developed by Alembic are incredibly dynamic with a very wide bandwidth and create a sound which is unique to those particular kind of active basses . As active caught on as a marketing byword , the simplified circuits that most manufacturers adopted were a poor relation in sonic terms to the the original active concept pioneered by Alembic with such spectacular results . The naked truth is that a great many active basses have very average-sounding electronics in them , and some manage to squeeze much better results out of them than others . The Music Man Stingray , for example , has a crude but effective and very musically satisfying preamp . What people have come to realise in recent years is that in the final analysis ( i.e what comes out of the speakers when you play them ) the sound of passive basses can be just as pleasing as that from their supposedly more sophisticated active counterparts . Passive basses can give the impression ( be it real or imagined) of a more immidiate and less processed tone that seems more directly linked to the player and the way he ( or she!) is attacking the strings . In terms of high-end basses , there is an interesting trend towards what you could term " super-passive" pickups that are specially designed to have the high output and wide frequency response of active basses but are in fact purely passive with all the perceived benefits of that more simple approach . Some of the custom -wound Aero and Seymour Duncan pickups that Fodera are using on their upmarket signature basses are examples of this approach , or the awesome -sounding pickups on the Yamaha BB2024/25 basses , and also the Lakland Chi Sonic's and Hammond Dark Star ( currently not in production ) pickups . Myself personally , I will play any bass , active or passive, and accept or reject it on its' own merits .

Edited September 18, 2013 by Dingus