Michele I would never stir. What a devious mind you possess! No...I give in. I adore bass players. Anyone who can look ultra cool hitting 1 string with 1 finger is OK with me.And Tony, hopefully you've been doing the tongue-in-cheek Aussie stirrer thing to a large extent. But, I'm sure it's not the length of your strings, but what you do with them that counts mate.
Poll: Calling all bass players: How hard is it for someone that plays the guitar to play the bass?
michelew wrote:
wiley wrote:
Chunk of change eh? I must check my lotto ticket.
Thanks again. Did you notice the poll?
M.
Thanks for the info Wiley. I plan to do some research before I jump in. I've also started scanning EBay. An electric bass would be very cool. But, then I need to learn about amps and such and there's the cost. Still ... who knows. One day I would like to try an electric guitar. Life is just to short to waste so much time working, especially when there's so much fun to be had.Shel,
Go to it!
Long time ago I decided to try Bass, and you know, life gets..............
A couple things I do remember.
One, the right hand is totally different. Not harder or complicated, just different. Using a pick is 'rock-n-rollish' yet done, most is single, index - ring finger stuff. You'll use your hand and other fingers mostly to 'mute' the surrounding strings. You'll quickly learn to snap back (or up) with your index finger and let it lie on the string above it to mute it. Then you have 'slapping' and such....
Two, the strings themselves are a LOT bigger. Not just somewhat, but huge as compared to what you normally play. Acoustics use, of course, larger (usually) strings than electric and of course, the set-up is set higher. So, a cheap electric bass may be what you want to 'try' it out. You can get an Ampeg 'practice/studio' quality amp for $100us and a 'decent' axe for $150us or so, add a good lead and tax, you're out $300us, about the same for a cheaper line acoustic/electric (no amp or lead) will cost.
The neck is longer, of course, so the upper (closest to the headstock) frets are spaced further apart, the hint I picked up was to start out using the lower - midllish (or higher - closer to the body) frets for scales and such or just to practice. There are also some 'short scale' axes out there, never tried one, maybe worth looking into though?
Who knows, I just 'ran into' a chunk of change (ran into a couple "ATMs" at a local poker room) and bought an electric, may just check out a Bass before that chunk goes for another Mic or some silly thing like another mixer/AI thingy.
Chunk of change eh? I must check my lotto ticket.
Thanks again. Did you notice the poll?
M.
daryl wrote:
I keep forgetting to get back to you on this. Thanks for the Audacity suggestion. You've guitar does sound cool as a bass.
But, I think I need to experience the full bass dealio, including the fat strings and the long neck and the weight and all the challenges that come with playing or trying to play a bass. I may find it's too hard and not for me. But, hey I'll know then and can start thinking about another instrument like..... the drums ... yeh that's got to be easy right... sure ... (NOT!).
thanks
M.
Daryl,As a bass player wannabe, I find it relatively easy to do the basic stuff once you know your 6-strings. It's kinda like picking up a ukulele (right Suzi?). Once you understand the 6-strings, going to 4-strings is a snap (at least for the basics again). Like guitar playing, playing bass is an art unto its self. But to just "fill out the bottom" and make your guitar playing sound more complete it's easy. Go for it. And with Audacity or Reaper or some other audio editor you can use your 6-string initially as your bass guitar for an example:
I keep forgetting to get back to you on this. Thanks for the Audacity suggestion. You've guitar does sound cool as a bass.
But, I think I need to experience the full bass dealio, including the fat strings and the long neck and the weight and all the challenges that come with playing or trying to play a bass. I may find it's too hard and not for me. But, hey I'll know then and can start thinking about another instrument like..... the drums ... yeh that's got to be easy right... sure ... (NOT!).
thanks
M.
-
Hydroman52
- Posts: 0
- Joined: Sat Apr 11, 2009 7:52 am
- Status: Offline
Hi Michelle,
I'm the one who voted "Not enough time" in your poll. I was just able to squeeze enough time to add my thoughts, now.
I do own an acoustic bass, but haven’t played it for a while, because I am too busy with the regular guitar work. Here are some of my thoughts and observations looking back in hindsight:
If you are going with an acoustic bass guitar, I would seriously consider getting one with on-board electronics (built-in pick-up), because when you start to play with others, they just don’t seem to have the volume needed to mix well with the other instruments. Especially in large environments. I have never tried to use a mic on one, but my guess is that they probably don’t mic up well. Bassman Jerry has a Breedlove acoustic/electric bass (bought used), and we usually amplify it when playing together. When he practices on it alone, he doesn’t always amplify. He just bought a small (rather inexpensive) Berringer bass amp to use when playing in an acoustic environment where power is available. It’s much easier to haul around than his big electric bass amp and speaker cabinet and gives adequate volume for a small to medium acoustic environment. I think I saw Vanessa playing an acoustic bass in a collaboration video of the “Dutchies”, so she may be able to comment more on this.
Electric bass will probably be easier to fret and have longer sustain than acoustic. It’s a different sound as you well know.
Go with a fretted bass. I have a fretless one. I like the sound a bit better (can make it sound like a large upright bass), but the learning curve is slightly steeper.
Get a good cheap used one without any fancy bling (at least for your first one). Mine has some inlay on the fretboard that came loose and I had to repair it to get it back to playability.
Until you get your bass, practice on your guitar. Any knowledge gained doing this is applicable to both instruments . . . . no wasted time if you decide to leave the bass in a corner to gather dust. Just play a drum track with a good groove and cut loose on the lower four strings. You will see the patterns and get used to improvising on what notes to play. It’s a lot of fun, and this is why I bought my bass in the first place.
Jerry really likes his Fender Jazz bass and plays it most of the time. Much more than the acoustic.
Hope this helps,
Hydroman52
I'm the one who voted "Not enough time" in your poll. I was just able to squeeze enough time to add my thoughts, now.
I do own an acoustic bass, but haven’t played it for a while, because I am too busy with the regular guitar work. Here are some of my thoughts and observations looking back in hindsight:
If you are going with an acoustic bass guitar, I would seriously consider getting one with on-board electronics (built-in pick-up), because when you start to play with others, they just don’t seem to have the volume needed to mix well with the other instruments. Especially in large environments. I have never tried to use a mic on one, but my guess is that they probably don’t mic up well. Bassman Jerry has a Breedlove acoustic/electric bass (bought used), and we usually amplify it when playing together. When he practices on it alone, he doesn’t always amplify. He just bought a small (rather inexpensive) Berringer bass amp to use when playing in an acoustic environment where power is available. It’s much easier to haul around than his big electric bass amp and speaker cabinet and gives adequate volume for a small to medium acoustic environment. I think I saw Vanessa playing an acoustic bass in a collaboration video of the “Dutchies”, so she may be able to comment more on this.
Electric bass will probably be easier to fret and have longer sustain than acoustic. It’s a different sound as you well know.
Go with a fretted bass. I have a fretless one. I like the sound a bit better (can make it sound like a large upright bass), but the learning curve is slightly steeper.
Get a good cheap used one without any fancy bling (at least for your first one). Mine has some inlay on the fretboard that came loose and I had to repair it to get it back to playability.
Until you get your bass, practice on your guitar. Any knowledge gained doing this is applicable to both instruments . . . . no wasted time if you decide to leave the bass in a corner to gather dust. Just play a drum track with a good groove and cut loose on the lower four strings. You will see the patterns and get used to improvising on what notes to play. It’s a lot of fun, and this is why I bought my bass in the first place.
Jerry really likes his Fender Jazz bass and plays it most of the time. Much more than the acoustic.
Hope this helps,
Hydroman52
Scott, yeh the intended audience for your video was pretty obvious, but I enjoyed it too.And WOW!
Hydro, thanks for all the info, that's useful advice and it's consistent with what others have suggested. Well an electric bass would be even cooler to play...hmmm..
Thanks again.
Michele
Hydro, thanks for all the info, that's useful advice and it's consistent with what others have suggested. Well an electric bass would be even cooler to play...hmmm..
Thanks again.
Michele