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Low action to get that clanky punch tone?


badboy1984
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What i mean by clanky punch tone is the flea bass tone. I'm trying to get that tone on my jazz by boosting mids and treble and striking the bass with force but still no clank or that punch i'm looking for.

I got to admit my bass is not low action. Will low action and abit of fret buzz will give me that funky punch tone?

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I've messed about with the action to try and get the clanky tone of JJ Burnel, never had much luck,
I've still have a lowish action which rattles a bit when I hit the strings hard with my pick, but any clankyness gets totally lost in the band situation mix

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[quote name='badboy1984' timestamp='1366902663' post='2058809']
What i mean by clanky punch tone is the flea bass tone. I'm trying to get that tone on my jazz by boosting mids and treble and striking the bass with force but still no clank or that punch i'm looking for.

I got to admit my bass is not low action. Will low action and abit of fret buzz will give me that funky punch tone?
[/quote]
Active pickups are good for the flea tone. Status basses are also a must ( graphite necks as already mentioned); what amp are you using?

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[quote name='badboy1984' timestamp='1366910384' post='2058989']
I use TC BH500 and BC212 matching cabs x2. I use a fender jazz with dimarzio dp123 and j-retro.
[/quote]

Okay, I've heard of TC amps but not actually heard them to my knowledge . Are your pickups active on the Fender?
Regarding amps ; from personal experience I found Trace Elliot to be boomy , muddy , but not very clear. Eden nemesis combo fantastic and much brighter than the Trace. Maybe you may need a sans amp or similar. Also, regarding the action of the Fender, I would not adjust the action for sound. It's how comfortable you play.
That's all I know, now back to the other Basschatters to help ;)

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[quote name='Ziphoblat' timestamp='1366903419' post='2058829']
Yes, in my experience low action is a big part of that tone. Low action, [u]the correct technique[/u], fresh roundwound strings, and a maple (or lacquered) fretboard helps too.
[/quote]

As above, with the main part being underlined. I can get this sound with my bass, just by altering technique, but my natural way of playing means deep & bassy, not much treble. Play around with different pick gauges and find the one that gives the best attack.

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[quote name='Horizontalste' timestamp='1366921416' post='2059149']
Does Flea not have more of a scooped sound?
[/quote]

Slightly scooped I'd say. I certainly wouldn't be boosting any mids to get it that's for sure. Plenty of treble there, but of course not too much !

Back to the OP's question, yes having a sufficiently low action to get some clank and buzz, but not to choke off the note is needed. And when you hit a string hard it is easy to choke the note if the action is too low.
Also, experiement with striking the strings nearer the bridge or the neck. Experiment.

Also, are we not talking about a fingerstyle tone here ? I suspect that Flea uses his fingers to get it, although I'm not hugely familiar with him or his technique. It's just that some people are talking about picks and pick gauges. You'll get a load more clank and punch with a hard fingerstyle technique, which also involves plucking the string at an angle 45 degrees in towards the body of the bass, not at right angles to it.

With your Jazz bass I'd be using both pickups combined. Good luck !

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If we're talking about the same "clank", the action and your right hand technique are a big part of it, but a big EQ boost around 2KHz really brings it out too. The classic (Fender, Alembic et.al) mid-scoop EQ has the scoop centred about 500Hz, so if used judiciously, it can indeed help you to hear the upper mid clanky region more clearly.

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Lower tension strings can help, so can the right pedal/pre/amp - the strings on my basses are all pretty old but put when through a VT Bass or new version SFT, it brings the clank. Also technique - strike the strings downward so they clank the frets, almost semi-slap bass!

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yeah we talking about finger style (not pick), flea uses finger style and he pick hard. Look like i'm doing it wrong starting from EQ, i'm boosting mid instead of scoop and boost treble =.= then my right hand technique is also wrong, i need to give this a try tomorrow. Planning to lower the action but not too low as well.

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[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1366923332' post='2059185']
If we're talking about the same "clank", the action and your right hand technique are a big part of it, but a big EQ boost around 2KHz really brings it out too. The classic (Fender, Alembic et.al) mid-scoop EQ has the scoop centred about 500Hz, so if used judiciously, it can indeed help you to hear the upper mid clanky region more clearly.
[/quote]

Definitely agreed with this. 2k is a great frequency for the clanky tone. You don't want a full blown mid scoop, more of a low/mid mid scoop, but those high mids are quite an important part. I always boost around about 2k on my Ashdown Hyperdrive when going for this sort of tone (which is quite often). Although ultimately, if the clank isn't there to begin within, you aren't going to make it magically appear with correct EQ, this is simply an EQ that will complement the sound coming out of your bass. No amount of digging in and hitting the strings in the correct way can [i]really [/i]get a bass clanking if you can drive a bus under the strings though. I'd make sure that the sound is there when you're playing the bass unplugged before you mess with anything else, the rest is the icing on the cake.

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The clank IS my sound :D You need a low action, and roundwound strings. Stainless steel ones bring it out more as well, as does using a slight mid scoop and some overdrive like a Sansamp. Fret buzz is kind of a side effect, and not an integral part of the sound. You may or may not like a bit of buzz to go with it (if you notice it at all that is!)

You'll also find that the lower your action, the less force you will need to use to get that sound. That was really a big deal for me, as playing softer allows me to be a bit more accurate.

If you find one of my bass cover threads in the Recording forum you'll be able to hear my technique using all of the above...with a bit more overdrive than is necessary :P

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t depends on whether you want the clank all the time or just when you need it. I set up my basses so that when playing normally there is no fret rattle but when you dig in, that's when you get the clank - comes from years in wedding/function bands where clank isn't going to sound too good if you're playing Moon River or other stuff where you need a smooth tone.

I use roto flats as on all my basses which shows that you don't need rounds on it and I don't recall Flea using Status basses to any great degree, if at all.

In fact if you can still find it, there's an earlyYoutube video of Flea using a Black Precision bass live and still getting his sound

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maybe worth posting a vid of the sound you mean...one mans 'clank' is another mans Rick' tone?

...'clanky' for me is when I pluck near the neck with a low action, the strings seem to bang and clatter around on the upper fretboard, some would call this poor technique :unsure:

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