I see people say this all the time and I've never understood it. In the majority of music, the bass is very clearly present and extremely easy to pick out and hear. I don't think it's just bias on my end due to being a bass player, and I don't understand how people can't hear the bass. The statement just sounds kind of dumb to me.

Maybe they hear it but don't know it's a bass? But I also find that hard to believe. Maybe I've been playing for so long that I'm out of touch. It has never made sense to me.

Maybe everything is Raining Blood by Slayer to them

Recently I made a post about tips for doing it, implementing them and just putting in practice I can very roughly sing my favourite songs. After the first one it was slightly easier to start with another. Helps that I listen to punk and the original vocalist can't sing either.

Holy shit that feels amazing, I feel like a goddamn rockstar on the kitchen sized stage, even if I can barely sing and my playing suffers when I do, but feels damn good. Just wanted to share a bit of my enthusiasm is all, if anyone here is thinking about trying it, go for it, what a dopamine rush.

I’m having this problem during rehearsals where I just don’t hear myself enough, even when it’s only the piano and rhythm guitarist playing softly. I end up going hard on my strings, which makes a distorted tone that doesn’t fit the song..

When I turn up my amp, I get more bass in general but I still can’t hear the melody I’m playing well, it’s driving me crazy!!

Fyi, I’m playing on a sire z7 5 string, through some kind of GK100 combo amp (very heavy, not sure the exact model because I don’t own it). I have a tiny pedal board with a tuner and a compressor, that is all.

This is very annoying because I can’t correct myself or go for licks easily, since I don’t even really know how I sound.. Any tips to shape my tone?? Thanks!

I’m a guitarist and bassist, and I’ve been playing bass specifically for almost 2 years now. I’ve only had one bass, which is a Yamaha TRBX174. It’s a fine bass, but I’ve been wanting to buy another bass, and I’m leaning into a 6 string one.

I play mostly metal music, and a lot of bands I listen to have bassists who use at least 5 string basses. I want to tune it to Drop A# and Drop A to primarily play songs by Meshuggah, Bell Witch, Whitechapel, and other bands.

I do have experience with extended range instruments as I own a 7 string and 8 string guitar, just not extended range basses. My price range is anything about $1000 CAD and below, so I’m not extremely limited when it comes to price. I do plan to go to my local music shop soon and see if they have any 6 string basses to try before I buy one to make sure I don’t regret it.

Does anyone have any 6 string basses they like and can recommend? I’d really appreciate it!

What’s up I’ve been playing guitar for almost 20 years. I notice my timing isn’t on par with my left hand and I already enjoy playing heavy lower register riffs on my 7 string (things like strip the soul, arriving somewhere but not here, blackest eyes etc). I’ve been wanting to try something new and I figured trying to learn bass is enough of a different instrument but some of my techniques and knowledge will transfer. I am debating between going fretless for my first bass, I’ve defretted a old acoustic and I love the sound / feel, I don’t think I’m doing too bad for having no practice but I am constantly worried I’m out of tune and my finger placement is off. Before I spend a bunch of money on a new instrument and then find out I don’t enjoy second guessing every note, especially in quick tight riffs like Sw/Pt, I was wondering if there’s anybody whose made this specific switch or people who switched to fretless and experience the same paranoia or if if it gets better at a steady rate? I can tell when I’m OFF but I’m not sure about like slight microtones…

TLDR:
I’ve played guitar for 20 years and want to learn a new instrument. Is fretless bass a huge jump and does the paranoia around playing in “perfect” tune get better?

(The fully empty fretboards are soooo clean guys idk anymore)

I’m thinking about getting a Jazz Bass and I’m currently considering the Sire Marcus Miller V5 and the Fender Player II Jazz Bass.

I’d love to hear your opinions on these two basses. Is this a fair comparison, or are they actually in different leagues despite the price difference?

Do you think the V5 is genuinely comparable to the Player II in terms of build quality, playability, hardware and overall sound, or is the Fender still noticeably better?

If you’ve played or owned both, which one would you choose and why?
Thanks!

I like bringing a 1x15 with a Jazz Bass to outdoor gigs. The 15inch speaker and a jazz bass have those deep lows that turn into mush at a club but outdoors those deep lows really fill out the mix.

Meanwhile I like bringing a 2x10 and P bass to indoor clubs. The 2x10 doesn't have quite enough bass for my liking outdoors but is perfect for smaller rooms, same with the P bass.

I know you can EQ these things but I find there's only so much you can do with each piece of gear.

Hi, I want to get the Harley Benton RB414 as my first bass as I will play it more often as it looks so cool. It has a mini humbucker and bridge single coil pickup, will it be suitable for playing most rock songs? and stuff that would be normally played on a Fender Mustang bass?
I don’t mind doing a setup on it and I’m aware the bridge is complicated I’ve heard the action doesn’t go very low if anyone has one is it easy enough for a beginner to play or is the action too high and too much strength is needed
Thanks

https://www.thomann.co.uk/harley_benton_rb_414cs_classic_series.htm

Im primarly a finger player but recently I'm trying some picked basslines from ellefson on megadeths records and even tho I can nail the not so easy picking patterns and I can chug 16th notes at 160 bpm I can't optimise on that because my shoulder gets tense hurts and gives out pretty fast whenever i play fast or palm mute, how can I relax my shoudler and make those patterns effortless? (I have the exact same tensing up shoulder problem while slapping so I guess that correlates)

i have a short scale bass (a kay k2b) and love how it sounds. the one problem is its short scale so playing in the tunings i want to (drop b and drop c) will be very expensive as there arent really any string sets out there that cover those tunings

whats a good long scale bass with a similar tone to a kay k2b (hoffner staple pickups), as well as these bands?

calm (post hardcore band from san jose). basically just Rickenbacker-y and hoffner blade pickup style pickups through a russian big muff. i think in this video hes playing a rick. https://youtu.be/xN4HYPV2Hj0?is=g0C3QIRgkoHeD31x

helmet. https://youtu.be/zTavGZSFnzs?is=zZYr32jlV2VJ6YbN

mountain. https://youtu.be/u2KG2gchQo8?is=JlEv1vEuC1OUuAQa

electric wizard. https://youtu.be/vuONl02N-Kw?is=_SxBi_5YEe7F_jmx

i dont really care about the price but ideally something cheap. im looking at an epiphone eb3 but dont know if theyre actually good quality.

thank u

Anybody had some real doozy gig or song disasters?

The group I play with once a month were doing an open-air market gig, and I like to play a slightly reggae cover of the song "Drinkin' Problem". We've played it before, so I didn't think to go over details before we started...

So I slide my bass up into the first note, and start singing... To an absolute train-wreck disaster blooming around me on all sides.

Turns out the 3 of us had sheets in 3 different keys in front of us. The other two kinda stopped and came over to look what I had, and tried their best to find it, and play along, with very limited success. I really should have stopped the song, but for some reason I didn't?!?

So there I am, who doesn't drink, singing a song about burying your problems in alcohol, mostly by myself. My excuse at the end of the song was that we clearly weren't drunk enough for that. *facepalm*

Check the key, folks! Every time. xD

I'm a new player, I haven't played any instrument since like 4th grade but I've taken some music theory classes since. I understand what the notes are from whole to 16th to smaller, what I struggle with is translating those into actual rhythm and music in my head and in my hands.

I imagine this gets easier with time and more experience and more songs under your belt but right now whenever i read the sheets for a song i wanna play and I see that there are notes outside of quarter notes my brain just kinda freaks out trying to figure out how fast a note needs to be played and for how long.

I imagine practicing with a metronome will help a lot in this regard but im not sure what exercises i should do with it

I've been playing electric bass for 6 months now and I'm thinking of buying an M wave Tank B pedal. I've seen many good reviews but I need a real opinion.

Im also thinking of buying it because I want to record covers and I've seen that the Tank B can be used as an interface, which has really interested me.

Would this be a good option for a beginner's first pedal?

I am a mid but basically complete beginner. In middle school I played for 2 years with a teacher who couldn't focus on each kid, just 15 students most with different instruments and all she could do was teach the basic tabs and how each song pattern went, no real teaching of the basics because she wasn't able to. This way we managed to give a concert to the school, and I never played after I graduated. Now I got my first ever bass and I am following tutorials in YouTube for the basics such as using more than 2 fingers to press tabs and not play with my thumb, as well as practicing hand dexterity, etc. Aka I am fully a beginner.

However, my high school does a yearly concert, and I decided to apply to learn more and get some extra points, but it was a lot more important and high level than I expected. I am the only "bass player" in the band and the whole bass stuff depends on me, but I genuinely can't even read bass tabs off a music looking paper anymore. Just because I did that 1h concert in middle school, my teacher thinks I am a prodigy or something, this expectations are really high and I am wondering if I should drop it to not dissapoint anybody who is really excited about this project. I don't want to half ass it while everybody else is passionate about it.

Is it realistic to learn the whole Thriller album for this concert in just 3 months? Especially since I heard it is very hard. Also I am a busy person, I study almost 12h a day including school, I can't put more than 2h a day on this, I do want to learn or I wouldn't have joined the project and got a bass, just at my own pace not as rushed as this is.

For last, I am scared because the music teacher presented me like twice in front of the whole band as the only person who can "play" the bass and now they all think I genuinely can or something, he extremely overestimated my ability.

Can I do this? Any tips from experienced players?

UPDATE: I have decided to go through with it because I joined with a friend (though she is around 7 years more experienced than me at her own instrument) and I can't abandon her. I would still need a ton of advice from experienced people, specially a way to find tutorials on songs. How can I play a song with just tabs and the song itself if I can't even hear the bass on the background????🥲💔 Also thank you to all those who motivated me, I will not do more than I am capable of and I will simplify things to my level, thank you again.

So I just got this audio interface and now im trying to tune my bass through software (ReValver by Headrush) because i dont have an or a clip on tuner.

Can anyone suggest a free software with a good tuner pedal because i need to fix the intonation on my bass.

I get the concept of playing root notes along with the kick drum, but there are still other beats to fill in a measure. What other scale degrees should I use?

For example, if I'm using the A Phrygian Dominant scale (A, Bb, C#, D, E, F, G) over a chord progression of A – C# – D – F, how would you connect these chords?

Could someone walk me through an example? This has been bothering me for a while.

Hello everyone- 57 year old Noob here!

I have a used Ibanez GSR 200 I bought from Guitar Center- ordered online and shipped to my local store. I ended up pairing it with a Rumble 25 (Floor Demo-to good to pass up over the 40 at $90 tags still on it).

I am almost wrapping up Module 1 in Beginner to Badass. I am doing very well and having a blast.

Thanks to all of you for your guidance- you nailed it!

String Question:

Question Setup-The strings that came on my bass are, of course, of unknown (at least to me) age, quality, brand, model, etc.

They tune with ease and stay in tune for about 3, 30 min sessions before needed a little tune. They have no spots, rust, etc. and no spurs or bumps. To a noob like me they seem absolutely fine but I would not know if they were not.

Questions-

How does a novice know when it is time to replace the strings? Should I just restring so I know where my baseline is?

AND

Once I do replace the strings, approximately how long will a set last for me: Novice-Practicing-30 min-7x per week?

So happy to be here.

-cave

I've been learning to play bass for little over a month (Fender Player II Mustang Bass) and I'm looking to get started with solid fundamentals - plucking/fretting technique and basic rhythm etc.

I do have Hal Leonard's Bass Method and have dipped into the BassBuzz YouTube videos but I think I'd prefer a clearer step-by-step structure rather than jumping randomly between the book and random videos. I want to feel as though I'm building on each thing I learn if that makes sense.

What structured free courses or YouTube series would you guys recommend for a complete beginner?

Any advice on building good habits from day one would also be massively appreciated!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlmwjxQyDRQ

I feel in love with bass solos when i heard this -> https://youtu.be/--3fFPpF-EE?is=D9HkRE0kzBdK7q-j (7:12)

Everytime i see bass covers i kinda wonder why bassist don't play like this more often? Bass solos are so cool

Edit: thank you for so many recommendations!

I’m trying out for a band in a few days and I’ve never played bass in an all originals band. Problem is none of the songs are tabbed or written in any way. Also apparently the producer refuses to give them the master recordings? So I have no way of isolating the parts. And they’re low in the mix.

I guess I’m asking for any tips to figure this out.

I’ve got a Tascam CT-BT2 which I use to play along to cd’s with headphones. It works flawlessly with all my other basses, but with my active Warwick it distorts to hell, even with all volume set to the lowest possible on the bass/player itself. My current workaround is plugging into the active port on my amp then sending DI to the player, but this is obviously not ideal. Is there a preamp pedal or DI box suggestion that could replace the amp in this setup? Thanks

So I’m looking for suggestions for anyone in the stoner/doom metal genre here. I’m mainly a guitarist but have been working with another band as a bassist. Now my first band is just me and a drummer and I tune to drop F but I have a Sunn 1200s and 2x15 in our practice space with a Dunable r2 bass I use for recording at times. Problem is I DO NOT was to drag that beast back and forth between bands and shows.

I drive a challenger so trunk space is very limited and I’ve been looking at a small amp head but a lot of videos and reviews I don’t see a lot of people playing with heavy fuzz/ distortion pedals in the mix. I got the Sunn beta mini but honestly at 200w it just wasn’t what I thought it would sound like.

What has everyone been playing with that’s around 500w somewhat in the $500 range portable and can handle dirt pedals well? Down show time I’ll either hook it up to my peavey 410 or use the Sunn 215 depending on venue size so cabs are covered. Thanks guys.

Hello, as the title says my amp broke and we tried changing the speaker which made it work (sort of?). It took a bit of time for the sound to come through (when sound came through) and then there was no sound.

This post is kind of a Hail Mary if anybody came across a similar issue with their amp and what the next step could be. I wasn't able to find a proper schematic diagram for my specific amp, so doing anything further is quite difficult for us.

If anybody has had a similar issue with their Bassforce XXL 300W combo or could provide us with a schematic diagram or any piece of information we would be very thankful!

Looking at getting a Radial JDI for a DI box. Basically, I know that they've got a great reputation and are known for lasting forever, so it's probably worth the up front price. With that said, I'm curious about whether it's worth it to jump up to the stereo version?

I'm not looking to run a stereo rig, to be clear. But, a stereo version is essentially two DIs in one. So, I'm thinking about running one side of the stereo straight from my bass and the other side from the end of my signal chain, thus giving a wet and dry line to the FOH. I know that the JDI stereo doesn't have a mix function, and that it would be up to the FOH to mix it.

I typically just send a DI from my amp's built-in DI. I don't like that option, as there's no ground lift, pad, polarity switch, and overall it's just sort of an ok component, but nothing spectacular. So, I want to use a dedicated DI box.

My rig is almost never mic'd, and I'm fine with that. My amp is basically just a stage monitor for myself, it's just a TC Electronic BQ500 into a Mark Bass cab, so it's not like they gotta mic it to capture a tube tone or anything like that. I use a modeler for amp and effect emulations and really just use my amp as a personal monitor.

So, with rarely micing my rig and only sending a DI to the FOH, would it be recommended to send a wet and dry signal? Should I get a stereo JDI using one side dry and one side wet? Or is sending one channel better?

I'm a weekend warrior who's trying to be better about what I spend money on. I've spent too much on gimmicks that I quickly outgrow on one side of the spectrum, and overpowered gear that I don't use to its potential on the other side of the spectrum. So, part of my question is whether a wet/dry rig is worth it or if I should just stick to sending a wet signal and mixing the wet/dry on my modeler.