stereo bass...how do they work?

[iconic]

E and A out of one output and D and G out the other?

[matski]

There is no such thing.

[lozbass]

Stereo Alembics tend to pan left and right for neck and bridge pickups (it's possible to switch allocation). Some people suggest this is simply double mono and alternative approaches to stereo bass output exist. I haven't used a Ric (the other commonly seen stereo bass) so can't comment.

[Michael J]

Mine looks to have a stereo jack socket fitted to it, tip and sleeve terminals connected as output, ring terminal not connected. I suppose it could be rewired balanced for jack to XLR.

[Green Alsatian]

Roy Wood's Jazz bass was modified so - a single coil covering the E&A strings and a single coil covering the D&G strings, each with separate outputs. You can hear it on The Move's 'Message From The Country' album - sounds a bit weird, but works.

Here's a pic of said bass - you can see Rick Price playing it in the video to Wizzard's 'I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday'.

[chris_b]

Stereo bass is an idea that might look good on paper but in practise is a gimmick, a solution without a problem.

Edited January 20, 2014 by chris_b

[Cosmo Valdemar]

Stereo generally refers to basses that allow you to take a feed from each pickup, Rickenbackers and the high-end Alembics for example. It's a bit of a misnomer as the separate feeds usually combine to make the complete sound as opposed to being sent out from different sides of the stage (for example).
I don't think it's a gimmick at all - nothing sounds like a Series II Alembic - or indeed the classic Rick sound.
Of course there are some more eccentric interpretations - the Roy Wood bass in a previous post being a good example!

[LeftyJ]

Should be fairly easily accomplished. You'd say a P-bass would be the perfect basis, with its splitcoil pickup. It shouldn't be too much of a hassle to separate the two coils and send them to separate outputs. A Wal pickup will also accommodate this, as each pole has its own coil - but who would be willing to cut up his fairly rare Wal electronics and mod the heck out of it?

Manfred Mann and bass player Mark Griffiths have actually patented a similar concept, but I don't think it ever made it into production instruments:
http://www.sidasante.com/markcv/stereo.htm
http://www.platform-end.co.uk/html/downtoearth.html

[chriswareham]

I think the Shetgold I played for a while had the E and A strings split from the D and G strings when using the "stereo" socket. I certainly remember sticking one half of the output straight into an amp and the other into a chorus prior to going into another amp. Makes sense as I used to do a lot of Peter Hook style stuff with chorused melodies and double stops on the higher strings over a drone on a lower string.

[RhysP]

[quote name='LeftyJ' timestamp='1390226399' post='2342787']
Manfred Mann and bass player Mark Griffiths have actually patented a similar concept, but I don't think it ever made it into production instruments:
[url="http://www.sidasante.com/markcv/stereo.htm"]http://www.sidasante...rkcv/stereo.htm[/url]
[url="http://www.platform-end.co.uk/html/downtoearth.html"]http://www.platform-...owntoearth.html[/url]
[/quote]

This sounds very similar to Steve Ripleys stereo guitar system that Kramer used in the mid 80s:

http://www.vintagekramer.com/ripley.htm

[fretmeister]

Genuine stereo with different strings going different directions is sh*t.

Unless you are Michael Manring or Victor Wooten, both of whom have done it.


Then there are 2 output basses like Ricky's, some alembics and the Yamaha Attitude. These are not stereo basses - these are for splitting the signal to apply FX to different parts. So on the Attitude (as I'm familiar with them) the big chunky neck pickup gets EQ'd for super deep sounds and into 1 amp.... and the Precision pickup gets a more middy and trebly sound and all the distortion you want into a separate amp. Both signals are run at the same time, so no matter what FX you load onto the mids and highs the lows always stay super deep and clear.

That signal splitting routine is done an awful lot even if a bass only has 1 output. It can be done on a pedal board / in a rack as well (but with no individual control of pickup volume without adding vol pedals etc). This is in no way a gimmick and sounds absolutely massive to the point where every band I've been in with a rig like that has decided against the continuing employment of the rhythm guitarist!

[Back to Bassics]

[quote name='matski' timestamp='1390211810' post='2342539']
There is no such thing.
[/quote]

Really?

What the OP describes is just how my Shergold works. Not stereo though.

My Rics* may be Ric-O-Phonic, but certainly not stereo.

But true stereo basses have existed at least since the '70s.

IIRC, they were all pretty sh*te.

Two pickups close to each other. One angled very close to the E and far from the G, the other angled very close to the G and far from the E. Plug 'em into two amps, et voila!

I do remember there were things with pickups for each string, panned across the "stereo soundstage", if you will.

Too tired to Google. I'm sure you can do that ...


(Edit: *Er, 4001s, that is, not sensible Rics :-)

Edited April 6, 2014 by Back to Bassics