Pristine bass? Boutique amp and cabs?

[Oscar South]

This thread is a counterpoint to some other threads/opinions I've read recently so its polarised in opinion purposefully.


I see a lot of opinion on here leaning towards perfectly rounded flawless bass tones with precisely calculated acoustics. That's all well and good but I don't think sounding like a studio mastered track from a Steely Dan record or a bass expo demo is the best way live; give me a dirty sassy tone that bites back.

Now granted I don't play the cheapest bass or have the cheapest amp in the world, I play a low end beat up Status with with the action as low as physically possible (you can see it not too far back in the pics thread) and a HartkeVX 4x10 with a HA3500 head (forget these tiny/loud bass amps, I want to move some volume of air even when I'm turned down). The formula is the same every time: LOADS of mids, use low pass/high pass ifs the room's trebly or bassy, volume reasonable so that I don't need to play hard to make enough sound. I've got a ton of effects pedals but the only one that ever leaves my room is a bass balls that has about a 10% chance of being touched at a gig. No need for effects, you can get the emotive response from dynamic headroom and how you modify your touch.

With this gear though I play in every possible genre (that I can think of anyway) with no modification required, here are some live and recorded samples from a wide variety of contexts using different techniques and ranging from whisper quiet jazz/blues to ear bleeding wall of sound jam band and acoustic band. Exactly the same settings for each, this is my 'perfect' tone'.

[url="http://soundcloud.com/lokimusic"]http://soundcloud.com/lokimusic[/url]
[url="http://soundcloud.com/lespechesmusic"]http://soundcloud.com/lespechesmusic[/url]

Forget thousands of pounds of boutique gear and experience, my amp/cab, korg pitchblack tuner and Status cost less than £800 combined, just get something with some edge and tailor the sounds with your dynamics. Flawless is imperfect.

Edited April 20, 2010 by Oscar South

[Dubs]

[quote name='Oscar South' post='812295' date='Apr 20 2010, 10:19 AM']Flawless is imperfect.[/quote]

Oxymoron of the day

I get what you're saying though. I don't like a Hi-Fi bass sound but I like nice basses and amps. I'll post a link to a song that we recorded on Saturday when it's mixed - my sound is very edgy and kind of high gain aggressive, but the combined cost of the bass and amp that I used to record it is edging on for the wrong side of £3k. It's not really about the money at all, it's about the results that you get when using them.

I could probably get a similar result from gear that cost 1/4 of the price, but I knows what I likes

[OldGit]

Nope you don't [b]need[/b] boutique basses and amps.
It's nice though

[chris_b]

[quote name='Oscar South' post='812295' date='Apr 20 2010, 10:19 AM']....I don't think sounding like a studio mastered track from a Steely Dan record .... is the best way live....[/quote]
....unless you're Steely Dan, of course.

[quote name='Oscar South' post='812295' date='Apr 20 2010, 10:19 AM'].... give me a dirty sassy tone that bites back....[/quote]
Been there, done that, now doing it the other way.

[Toasted]

I'm all about the cleans.

[BigRedX]

Completely depends on the kind of music you are doing. The good bassist picks the appropriate gear that will give the right sound and looks.

[thisnameistaken]

[quote name='Oscar South' post='812295' date='Apr 20 2010, 10:19 AM']I see a lot of opinion on here leaning towards perfectly rounded flawless bass tones with precisely calculated acoustics. That's all well and good but I don't think sounding like a studio mastered track from a Steely Dan record or a bass expo demo is the best way live; give me a dirty sassy tone that bites back.[/quote]

TBH I've got bass and treble knobs on my bass and a three-band tone stack on my amp. That's it. Definitely no precise calculations going on at my end, but I suppose the boffins who made my gear may have put some thought into it. And I'm grateful to them because it seems to work very well.

If I'm using effects it gets a lot more complicated of course.

Edited April 20, 2010 by thisnameistaken

[davidmpires]

+1 to the above, because i don't want to use mega super hyper difficult calculations I buy gear that works for me, that being boutique or not. I'm not sure I understand the purpose of your thread.

[throwoff]

Does it really matter how you do it?

Of course its interesting to see how other people's set ups work and what they use (hence the gear porn section!)
But really there is no right and wrong.

There is only one thing that matters and one of my favourite bassists put it far better than I could

'If you've got a guitar and a lot of soul just bang something out and mean it. You're the superstar. Plugged in the tones and rhythms that are uniquely and universally human: music. Heck... use your guitar as a drum, just catch the groove and let it flow out of your heart.'

[Conan]

I think that the "quest for the perfect tone" is the Holy Grail of bass playing. I'm not sure I've ever achieved it. There is always something not-quite-right...

But if the band sounds good and the audience are responsive in a positive way - what the hell difference does it make?

I use a range of tones for a range of different applications. Some I like better than others, but I'm not sure that I have one, overall favourite sound that I strive for.

I like it simple - just bass and amp. Occasionally a bit of chorus or delay but that's about it.

I'm not sure what I'm saying here, and whether I'm agreeing or disagreeing with the OP.... but just my thoughts on the matter! The end justifies the means.

Edited April 20, 2010 by Conan

[BigRedX]

There is no "perfect tone" that will work with every song in every genre. Anyone who thinks there is needs to have their musical horizons widened.

The closest you can get to to have an appropriate tone to complement the song and the other instruments.

[thumperbob 2002]

[quote name='BigRedX' post='812572' date='Apr 20 2010, 02:10 PM']There is no "perfect tone" that will work with every song in every genre. Anyone who thinks there is needs to have their musical horizons widened.

The closest you can get to to have an appropriate tone to complement the song and the other instruments.[/quote]

I would agree with this though with my gear- suppose 3K+? I just look for two sounds- back off the front pickup a little for fingerstyle and use both full on for slap or more classic bass.

Really I think you can get too hung up on "tone" ( which will be different for every gig anyway )

Can make my Warwick sound like my Fender sound like my Low End- all about the right style of playing for the song. Think this is more important and now spend more time playing than looking at different "tones" which can be a lifetime struggle.

Bob