Is this a thing?

[asingardenof]

Having a strange conversation with someone on Friendface on a post regarding a good bass to learn on. The relevant comments are below:

 

Him: Jazz bass knobs are a little too close in my opinion and my hand tends to adjust them accidentally

Me: Just... how? Are you playing with a pick? If so how hard are you striking the strings?

Him: the knobs are close to the strings. Just like a strat. My pinky fingers get too close

 

In 27 years of playing bass I've neither experienced this or heard of anyone else experiencing it. I'm well aware of the known quirk of the Strat design that means one can accidentally turn down the volume owing to the proximity of the strings and the knob, but never on a Jazz bass. Is this something I'm just oblivious about, or does this guy need to sort his technique out?

[Woodwind]

Absolutely some idiosyncratic technique going on.

 

Having had a jazz style bass as my first learner bass 25 years ago my hand never got accidentally close the to the knobs ever. I don't really even understand how this could happen.

 

 

It's not something I'd even thought about until reading your post.

[PaulThePlug]

I think the Strat proximity was for swells...

Knob, Jazz, Technique... all in one sentence?... Maybe one of those up and coming strange Maths-Jazz-Infusion enthusiastsm

[chriswareham]

In my case it's not knobs, but the pickup selector switch on a Rickenbacker 4003 or reasonably accurate copy. How many times have I inadvertently flicked that fecker down so that I'm only on the bridge pickup? Too many times, that's how many.

[NancyJohnson]

It's not a thing, no.  Well, it might be if you have some kind of affliction where your hands are the size of a red crab, but no, it's not a thing.

[SurroundedByManatees]

Maybe he plays it upside down 🤷

[No lust in Jazz]

11 hours ago, asingardenof said:

 <edit> Is this something I'm just oblivious about, or does this guy need to sort his technique out?

Although I wouldn't consider it a problem. In my experience,  when playing  a standard Jazz Bass with a pick, I often find that I inadvertently tweak the front PU volume - Admittedly we're not talking technique learned at Berklee or Juilliard, but yeah - for me its a thing, just not a particularly big thing.

Edited November 7, 2023 by No lust in Jazz

[hiram.k.hackenbacker]

I’ve just tried to ‘accidentally’ hit a knob whilst playing my J.

I’m genuinely confused as to how this can happen.

[Reggaebass]

Been playing jazzes and precision’s most of my life and never done this myself 

[iconic]

A sinister type playing right hook bass? 

[ambient]

Does he play with his feet?