CHRISDABASS Posted July 7, 2008 Share Posted July 7, 2008 hey tonight (and for the last i dont know how many years) ive been playin around with the action on a few of my basses! at first i thought i would raise it a bit and see how that sounds...................... ............hmmmmm i didnt really like the results it seemed to lose some top end "Zing" so i put the action back where it was! i understand that there must be a fine line between zing/growl and just plain old excessive fret buzz but i think part of my sound relies on this element! does anybody else think the same as me? any thoughts?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OutToPlayJazz Posted July 7, 2008 Share Posted July 7, 2008 Firstly, Zing+Growl=Status! Rob Green was telling me that as you raise the strings away from the pickups, the frequency loss is much bigger than you think. Were you setting up your Sadowsky, Chris? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHRISDABASS Posted July 7, 2008 Author Share Posted July 7, 2008 [quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='234581' date='Jul 7 2008, 10:54 PM']Firstly, Zing+Growl=Status! Rob Green was telling me that as you raise the strings away from the pickups, the frequency loss is much bigger than you think. Were you setting up your Sadowsky, Chris?[/quote] ahhhh i didnt know that! ive been setting up all my basses! just tweaking them here and there! but yeah the sadowsky is my main focus right now! i think im pretty much settled with the setup on it now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machines Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 Raising the action on a Stingray is a bit like castrating it. It loses it's top end and all the balls that make it sound so good in the first place. A bit of string buzz is all part of the fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHRISDABASS Posted July 8, 2008 Author Share Posted July 8, 2008 [quote name='Machines' post='234710' date='Jul 8 2008, 08:37 AM']Raising the action on a Stingray is a bit like castrating it. It loses it's top end and all the balls that make it sound so good in the first place. A bit of string buzz is all part of the fun.[/quote] yeah i found that with both my rays! i think my problem is that i play bass at home without an amp most of the time! (bloody neighbours) through an amp i bit of buzz sounds good to my ears but when not using an amp i always feel like i should raise the action! lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul h Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 A bit of controlled buzz is a big part of how I play. I like that almost distorted tone you get when you really dig in. P. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 [quote name='OutToPlayJazz' post='234581' date='Jul 7 2008, 10:54 PM']Firstly, Zing+Growl=Status! Rob Green was telling me that as you raise the strings away from the pickups, the frequency loss is much bigger than you think. Were you setting up your Sadowsky, Chris?[/quote] +1!! I thought the action on my Thumb was low, my King-Bass is ridiculously low, yet everything is still audible and the buzz is almost comforting, both plugged and un-plugged. The bad thing is I know I'll never get that kind of action on another bass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markytbass Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 [quote]Raising the action on a Stingray is a bit like castrating it. It loses it's top end and all the balls that make it sound so good in the first place. A bit of string buzz is all part of the fun.[/quote] +1 It's all part of the Stingray tone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHRISDABASS Posted September 4, 2010 Author Share Posted September 4, 2010 (edited) Thought i'd dig this back up from the dead been setting up the new UV70 with that lovely growly aggressive sound! i love it! in a way i think getting an even slight buzz/grind out of every fret is a sign of great fret work! ive had a few basses in the past that i simply couldn't get that on at all without an almighty BUZZZZZZZZ on a few frets!! nasty!! The UV70 has passed the test Edited September 4, 2010 by CHRISDABASS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grand Wazoo Posted September 4, 2010 Share Posted September 4, 2010 If you raise the action you must compensate by raising the pickups too. First you should measure the gap before you raise the action and then adjust them accordingly to match. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted September 4, 2010 Share Posted September 4, 2010 [quote name='Machines' post='234710' date='Jul 8 2008, 08:37 AM']... A bit of string buzz is all part of the fun.[/quote] Hell yaaarrr!! [quote name='paul h' post='235002' date='Jul 8 2008, 02:44 PM']A bit of controlled buzz is a big part of how I play. I like that almost distorted tone you get when you really dig in. P.[/quote] make that Hell Yarrrr 2! As for pickup height, I use EMG actives. Part of their design is to use sensitive electronics but lowere strength magnets. They actually tell you to have the pickups as high as possible so they are as close to the string without fouling it's vibration. - Which works a treat for me, as I like to use the pickups to rest my fingers on - as an extention to my cstom 'ramps'. I'm not sure if it applies to Bass pickups - but if you have an electric guitar, such as a Stratocaster type and you set the pickups too high it can actually cause problems. One such problem is known as 'wolfing' which is a form of 'beat frequency oscillation' (something i remember from my electronic days!!) - a really basic explaination: If you play two notes and bend one string up and away from the orginal harmony a third dissonant 'wolf' note can sometimes be heard. You'd fix this problem by moving the pickups away from the strings. I've heard it with high gain settings on strats maself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lfalex v1.1 Posted September 5, 2010 Share Posted September 5, 2010 IIRC the "wolf tone" syndrome is caused by an interaction between magnets and strings. So, the stronger the magnets/ closer the strings, the more likely it is to happen. Also, the magnets can damp the vibration of the strings, potentially shortening/changing the character of the sustain. If you have open-poled pick-ups, beware of hitting the pole-pieces with strings! That said, closer pick-ups = more output = (generally) better signal/noise ratio. As with all things, there's an optimum balance that suits each individual player. The good part is that it's easy (almost to the point of being fun!) to do. You can readily tell if you've gone too far, and simply reset the height to its original position if necessary as long as you take measurements before you start!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted September 5, 2010 Share Posted September 5, 2010 (edited) Zing..? to me, that is when my bass really pings out a tight pull-off note. It would cut through anything although not as brash, to my ears, as say, a MM. That does not ping or zing, it almost crashes through...very unsubtle. I think there is a fine line bewteen zing which is acceptable and a grind which might not be. I have one bass which underpins the band quite sedately and workmanklike in the mix but really turns heads when you slap it. It is like.. wow, where did that sound come from...!! I love this Q-car type thing.. My other working bass is a lot more cultured sounding but possibly weaker...so the mix is a tad more crucial as are the strings and how old they are. In the right setting, I LOVE this bass and its sound, it has a bit more of a vintage thing going on. I think a bit of grind is nice as it gives the bass character solo'd. Too much and EQ'ing and actually playing can be a nightmare as it is not always the most forgiving sound on technique. If I can make sense of a part which I have a grinding sound on it, then my technique must be standing up to it ok, IMO, Apart from warm-ups, I can't see much point of playing unamplified, though...in an ideal world, admittedly. Edited September 5, 2010 by JTUK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocco Posted September 6, 2010 Share Posted September 6, 2010 Yeah I'd agree. I need that slight buzz to penetrate the mix properly. I wonder if this is true of all genres or just rock and it's sub genres? Any Motown/jazz/soul players think on similar lines? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocco Posted September 6, 2010 Share Posted September 6, 2010 [quote name='paul h' post='235002' date='Jul 8 2008, 02:44 PM']A bit of controlled buzz is a big part of how I play. I like that almost distorted tone you get when you really dig in. P.[/quote] I agree. I use my sansamp with a lightish distorted sound constantly. Then when I want more filth I simply dig in deeper. If I think it's too much I just roll the tone pot or the bridge pickup volume off slightly. Simples. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LawrenceH Posted September 7, 2010 Share Posted September 7, 2010 [quote name='cocco' post='947271' date='Sep 6 2010, 03:02 PM']Yeah I'd agree. I need that slight buzz to penetrate the mix properly. I wonder if this is true of all genres or just rock and it's sub genres? Any Motown/jazz/soul players think on similar lines?[/quote] Bass-driven funk is all about the growl IMO. Check out Electrocuties by Funkadelic! One of my favourite tracks for lovely 70s jazz bass low-action zing is the mutant disco classic Que Pasa (Me No Pop I). I want that sound. Having said that I don't like the mixing/playing on modern rock tracks where the growl is monotonously there every single note without variation, loses the point of it for me which should be articulation of a phrase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Low End Bee Posted September 7, 2010 Share Posted September 7, 2010 I like a bit of precision boom with a bit of growl. "Bowel" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wil Posted September 7, 2010 Share Posted September 7, 2010 I've actually raised my action a fair bit recently. I dig in a lot, so with a low action I get a lot of fret clatter. I can still get growl, but my tone is now more "thud". I like it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Rabble Posted September 7, 2010 Share Posted September 7, 2010 IMHO zing and growl are different things Zing = top end brightness, with some fret buzz Growl = midrange presence. Many kind of differenty growl: J-bass single coil growl, P-bass with a pick growl, Warwick low-mid growl..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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