Annoying Twit Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 Hi all. Could someone please explain two bass terms I don't quite understand. What exactly does it mean when a bass sounds like "mud"? I quite like turning down the tone and getting a sound that lacks definition. I like the full tone more defined sound too. But is the former sound "mud"? Also, what are these "dead spots" on bass necks. I'd presume that they are notes that don't ring properly. Is this true? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexclaber Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 Mud is usually a derogatory term for a tone lacking upper midrange and treble but it's all about context - a tone that can work great in one situation could be considered horribly muddy in another. A dead spot is a note that doesn't speak properly because the movement of the neck at that specific fret is significantly out of phase with the movement of the string, which cancels out a large portion of the sound. Often happens around the 5th fret on the G-string on a Fender. If you increase the neck stiffness or reduce the neck mass (particularly the headstock mass) then these deadspots will move higher in frequency and/or up the neck - my headless bass had a deadspot around the 14th fret on the G-string. My '87 Warwick and RIM Custom 5 have no detectable deadspots because the necks are so stiff. One way to solve this problem on a Fender is to add mass to the headstock so the potential deadspot position moves down the neck and past the nut. Alex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annoying Twit Posted October 9, 2008 Author Share Posted October 9, 2008 Thanks. When I get home I'll search for dead spots on my bass's neck. I'd agree that there are musical contexts where a bass sound with little midrange or higher frequencies sounds good. After all, in dance music isn't it fairly common to use a pure sine wave for the bass? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 Honky... Woody.... Metallic..... Roaring........ Spungy......... Not sure what they mean in the real world... Garry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Funk Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 [quote name='lowdown' post='302893' date='Oct 9 2008, 12:15 PM']Honky...[/quote] A white person Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 [quote name='The Funk' post='302903' date='Oct 9 2008, 12:25 PM']A white person[/quote] You said it not me dude ... Back of to watch Shaft... Garry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 [quote name='lowdown' post='302893' date='Oct 9 2008, 12:15 PM']Woody....[/quote]Could be either a} a character in Cheers b} a cartoon woodpecker c} a toy cowboy d} a film director who thinks he's a lot funnier than he actually is e} one of these Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrenochrome Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 I think Woody, Honky and Metallic are fairly good terms to represent sounds...eg a Les Paul can sound honky, which I really don't like. As a bassist I fear mud and I'd be scared to play a bass without a bridge pup or at least a mid position pup with a fair bit of bite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Funk Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 [quote name='lowdown' post='302893' date='Oct 9 2008, 12:15 PM']Woody....[/quote] Something I get when I think of Megan Fox. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Funk Posted October 9, 2008 Share Posted October 9, 2008 [quote name='lowdown' post='302909' date='Oct 9 2008, 12:31 PM']You said it not me dude ... Back of to watch Shaft...[/quote] Hah, to quote Richard Rountree, [i]"is that black enough fo' ya?"[/i] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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