Does it really matter what gear you have??

[Muzz]

20 minutes ago, Low End Bee said:

Top quality gear. Exquisite technique. Songs that move the very soul.

Then the person on the desk makes you sound like an elastic band on a shoe box.

Having listened to John Deacon's isolated bass tone in another thread, this can also work in the opposite direction, too...

[Lozz196]

5 hours ago, discreet said:

Yes, there is certainly something in that. Bass guitars that feel good to play are therefore easier to play, and these tend not to be entry-level instruments. Having said that, entry-level instruments are orders of magnitude better now than the entry-level instruments that were available in the 70s when I started playing bass. Kay, anyone? Taxi from the strings to the fretboard, anyone..?

 

My first bass was a Kay EB-O copy, and yes, taxi from the strings to the fretboard is a pretty accurate description. It cost me £45 in 1980 which was well over the cost of a 100 pints of beer back then. My current cheapy backup, a Vintage V4 Tony Butler is around £300 new (I lucked out and got it for £120), which is less than a 100 pints nowadays, yet the difference in quality is amazing. 

[discreet]

13 minutes ago, bassbiscuits said:

I started off with just one bass when I was 12. A couple of my friends were doing it, and I thought I could enjoy bass in moderation. 

But over the years it spiralled into gigging, recording blah blah and costing me thousands etc etc....

Yes... when I'm supposed to be down the pub getting hammered, all I can think about is playing bass and how soon I can reasonably leave without suspicion to get home for a few hours of unfettered playing - in secret, of course. I need help.

[lownote]

1 hour ago, jezzaboy said:

To be honest, I`m not really looking for "a sound" when I buy a bass. I usually just go "ooohhh shiny thing!" and it`s done usually. 

 

bahaha.  this

[discreet]

8 minutes ago, Lozz196 said:

My current backup, a Vintage V4 Tony Butler is around £300 new. I lucked out and got it for £120.

Er... it may not even be worth that now, mate. 

[Cato]

One thing I've learnt from home recording is that you can't always predict how different sounds, effects and textures on different instruments are going to interact with each other when you put them together.

The other day I recorded what I thought was quite an overdriven guitar part, but after I listened back to it in the context of the rest of the track it sounded much cleaner than the sound I was going for. I've had similar experiences with what I thought was a great bass tone not really coming through when combined with the rest of the track.

So in a way, (imo of course) , the search for 'that' perfect sound is a bit of a wild goose chase in as far as there is no sound that's going to fit perfectly in every context.

Having said that there's absolutely no harm or shame in having the nicest gear you can afford. An instrument which you genuinely enjoy playing is inspirational in it's own right, almost regardless of the noises coming out of it.

Edited November 8, 2018 by Cato

[josie]

1 hour ago, Cato said:

An instrument which you genuinely enjoy playing is inspirational in it's own right, almost regardless of the noises coming out of it.

This. I would have given up learning to play if I hadn't been so in love with my first bass. (I still am.) (In love, that is. And learning.) And I wouldn't practice as much as I do. 

Strings, as noted above by @lownote12 and @discreet. And number of strings - I'm finding the high C on my new 6 makes it easy to throw in bright little grace-notes or whole verses of a song maybe two octaves above the main line, which would be too busy with a good lead guitar player, but works well with a rhythm guitar. (Imho, ymmv... fun to play anyway and well received on its one outing so far.) 

 

[lowdowner]

I think there's a kind of 'platonic' bass sound - a kind of supernatural perfection of tone that all of our attempts are just shadows of. 

[FinnDave]

31 minutes ago, lowdowner said:

I think there's a kind of 'platonic' bass sound - a kind of supernatural perfection of tone that all of our attempts are just shadows of. 

Perhaps we all hear that, and interpret it in different ways.

[josie]

But is it good for metal? 🙂 

[Lozz196]

3 hours ago, discreet said:

Er... it may not even be worth that now, mate. 

Uh-oh

[discreet]

27 minutes ago, Lozz196 said:

Uh-oh

Don't worry, just joshing.

[Maude]

I seem to be the opposite to everyone else here. As long as I can get the sound out of it that I want I don't really care what it is. I've never wanted flash or expensive gear for fear of looking like 'all the gear, but no idea'. I use a Variax bass into a Line6 X3 Live, then straight to the desk, no amp. We nearly always use our own PA and monitors which are good so no need to be lugging extra gear I don't need. I don't even have my monitor very bassy, a nice middy sound for clarity and it won't mess with FOH, I get enough bottom end back from the subs. I can get more different sounds from my Variax and X3, (guitar, amp, cab, and effects modelling) than I'll ever need and from a lot of feedback they do sound good enough so I can just concentrate on my performance. 

In my other band I play doublebass and will take an amp as it's imperative that I can hear myself. For this I used to use an Ashdown Perfect Ten minirig but picked up a second hand PJB Suitcase and extention cab for very little so use that.

If we're not using our own PA with electric bass then I'll take the Suitcase only, in case their monitors aren't good and it's quicker for me to get the volume I want. 

I have lots of basses at home for my own entertainment but live it'll always be Variax and X3 in one band and cheap Gedo doublebass and PJB in the other. None of this is high end at all and I don't need or want anything else. 

Edited November 8, 2018 by Maude

[peteb]

12 hours ago, discreet said:

I expressed the following sentiment in a thread about my Trace combo and thought it may be fun to start a new topic on the subject...

"...All these decades spent chasing a 'sound' when in fact it's all in your head - how you sound live is largely down to how everyone else in your band sounds and how good they are at what they do. You can get chronic GAS, spend thousands on gear and attempt to get the 'best' bass tone in the world, but it's all for nothing if your drummer can't play in time, your singer's falling-down drunk, or your guitarist routinely deafens everyone in the room.

If your drummer is really on it and they and the other members of the band know how to play quietly and tastefully and listen to each other, you've got half a chance - and what's more, it won't matter if you're playing a Harley Benton Jazz through a Behringer combo, you will sound great..."

So what do you think? Is the fact that you (and your band) can actually play more important than your choice of bass and amp? Have you (like me) been largely wasting your time and a huge sum of cash on searching for 'that' bass sound, when the whole enterprise is really a fool's errand and a wild goose chase? Should you have been concentrating on your playing instead of trawling the internet for bass guitar porn and spending time on BassChat pontificating about strings and what's good for metal..? 

Yes & no!

If you can’t play, or if you are in a band who are poor musicians or sound awful then it doesn’t matter what gear you use. If you get to play in a band that sounds great then they will expect you to sound just as good as them. As a rule, good gear will sound better – but diminishing returns sets in at a certain point. If you don’t know how to eq an amp then it doesn’t matter too much what you use. My advice has always been to get the best gear you can reasonably afford, then learn how to use it and not chop and change too often. Good players will always sound better than bad players, but good players with good gear sound better than good players with crap gear!

Funnily enough, I have just been talking to my guitar playing mate about this down the pub. He is starting to lose patience with his bass player, who always seems to be chasing a sound in his head and keeps changing his pretty decent gear for stuff that is no better than what he had before. He is talking about getting a rig that just isn’t going to work in 80% of the gigs that they do and will cause problems for the soundman (i.e. my mate). Always better to get gear that works with the way you play and the type of music you do – then stick with it…

[uk_lefty]

In the days before child arrived my basses sat out on stands. Some were beautiful flame maple tops, others a jazz with the ashtrays on, a cricket bat Hohner... It was part of my personality in the house. When I split with my ex and my flat became a bachelor pad the TV was moved aside for my basses and amp. Having nice basses was decorative, and part of how I wanted people to see me. I hadn't been in bands for a while. Now I'm in a busy gigging band, happily married and have a small child I've got four basses in cases under the spare bed. My latest acquisition was a Sire to test out a few config things for if I eventually get a custom build... That's a pipe dream though. I don't need an expensive custom build, I can't buy a vintage investment bass because I'd be scared to gig it, and when you see your MIJ precision face down in a pool of cider at a function you know a Sire or similar is what you should have taken instead.

I reckon there's a weird relationship between whether I'm in a band that's doing something and whether I lust after aesthetically brilliant gear, or whether I just want something that I can accept will get bashed about but achieves what it needs to.

[uk_lefty]

Forgot to add... A proper set up can change everything. First time I had a proper set up done I never looked back, I had never played with neck or saddle adjustments so didn't see what the fuss or expense was about. It's like having your car serviced and you hear a little less engine noise, brakes and accelerator are a little more responsive and you notice that immediate difference. It can increase the fluidity of your playing, make the neck and strings feel totally different, it's well worth it!

[phil.c60]

21 hours ago, discreet said:

.....an American wife who insists on buying expensive shoes and clothes, even though they make her look like a badger wrapped in a curtain. 

But she's still your Honey.....

I'll get my coat.

But seriously - I've done all this too. And every time I keep coming back to my '99 Hot Rod P as it's light, reliable, looks good (to me) and plays well. I may buy/try other things (I'v currently got a USA G&L L2000 and an 80's P too) but I'll never sell it. Having said that, I've just bought an inexpensive Warwick Star bass and I love the sound of that with TI flats. It's great for semi-acoustic gigs we do but for all electric the P wins every time.  A second hand LM3 and a second hand Gen 2 Barefaced compact and that's me done.  For now. Or would a tube 500 be better? And a 2x10? Here we go......

[leschirons]

My choice of gear these days seems to be based on other factors.

Can I lift it?  Can I have it round my neck for 2 hours?  Are we playing on the ground floor?

The actual sound I like on stage probably bears no relation to what I'd hear out front and tbh, I can probably get that sound(ish) with any gear be it £2000 or £200 as I'm not really that anal or fussy.

As long as the bass is comfy to play and everyone can hear what I play,  then I can enjoy making some music with a great bunch of people. My gear is chosen to make the experience easier.

[Japhet]

I've never tried to copy or create a particular sound from a bass, amp, cab, pedalboard or whatever. There are a myriad of sounds that I like and dislike in equal measure and a whole load of stuff in the middle that is my playground. I've played a load of different styles of music in different bands from funk to swing to rock to soul and I hope I've managed to come up with a sound that fits each particular bill, but if I didn't, nobody ever complained. I like my Stingray, my Precision (Tokai) and Lakland in equal measure and the same goes for the 4 completely different amps that I own. I'm also fully aware that lots of people adore sounds that I would never choose to listen to, and if those people watch me play they undoubtedly think my sound is awful. I'm happy in my 'playground' where I can noodle about and try stuff out at my leisure, safe in the knowledge that the vast majority of punters don't know or care what the bass does as long as the music sounds good.

[Gluca]

Is much easier to buy gear then find band mates who "listen each other".

[HengistPod]

The thing with better gear is that it tends to highlight and magnify all the rubbish parts of a fellow's playing style, bad habits, etc.

Which, in itself, forces you to get a little bit better (or dissolve into a depressed heap of snot as you realise you're not nearly as competent as you thought you were for all those years  ).

All that diminishing returns stuff is spot on, though.

[HengistPod]

18 minutes ago, Gluca said:

Is much easier to buy gear then find band mates who "listen each other".

Our drummer often asks me if the fill he's thought up and just played during a run-through works. I always reply "no idea, mate - I don't listen to the drums."

Which, though intended to wind him up, I suppose is true to an extent. You tend to play unconsciously, and it's only if aforesaid fill (and what you play alongside it) is obviously out of place that you actually notice.

Edited November 9, 2018 by HengistPod

[PaulWarning]

24 minutes ago, HengistPod said:

Our drummer often asks me if the fill he's thought up and just played during a run-through works. I always reply "no idea, mate - I don't listen to the drums."

Which, though intended to wind him up, I suppose is true to an extent. You tend to play unconsciously, and it's only if aforesaid fill (and what you play alongside it) is obviously out of place that you actually notice.

yeah I've noticed this, or not noticed it, our drummers fills only stand out when they're in the wrong place or badly played, on the other hand if he doesn't play one where he normally does I start to wonder if I'm in the wrong place

[discreet]

I listen closely to what our drummer does. It's no hardship, as he's excellent. I know from bitter experience how hard it is to find a good drummer who isn't already busy or is in five different bands, so I'm feeling lucky. Less-than-stellar drummers are bloody hard work and bad for the soul!

[lownote]

1 hour ago, HengistPod said:

Our drummer often asks me if the fill he's thought up and just played during a run-through works. I always reply "no idea, mate - I don't listen to the drums."

Which, though intended to wind him up, I suppose is true to an extent. You tend to play unconsciously, and it's only if aforesaid fill (and what you play alongside it) is obviously out of place that you actually notice.

After 3 months in my first proper band I timidly asked the drummer if he was all right with my playing.  "Fine m8.... never listen to you so I can't exactly say." was the answer.  Which I now realise may have been bandta. Not slow or naive or anything.