Jazzman Posted May 4, 2003 Share Posted May 4, 2003 Hi folks, bass is my second love over drums. Keys comes in third. I play by ear and can't read music or at least havn't done so in the last 20 years. I have a very good friend that has 10 bass guitars, and two uprights. He has a couple of bass guitars that are active. Real hard to control in the studio for gain. He was actually going through an ADA bass unit then to my 32/8 Mackie console. What is the real reason in having an active bass guitar. I have a Gibson 4 string bass that sounds real good that is passive. His guitar also sounds great, but what is the purpose? Better pick up sound at the string to capture his every touch? Never really asked him about this. Jazzman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dustybass6 Posted May 4, 2003 Share Posted May 4, 2003 I learned how to play on a passive bass. Real simple tone controls, you get the same sound every time even when tinkering with bass/treble knobs. An active pickup has a larger range of EQ to play with. I currently play an Ibanez Soundgear bass that is active. I can boost or cut bass, treble, and mids to fit whatever mood I'm trying to play. Or even give me a boost when soloing. There are so many differences in so many basses it's really what sounds good to you. If you like tinkering with sound, go active. If you like a general range of sound that's easy to find go passive. "...it might be a quarter-life crisis" John Mayer, Why Georgia? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted May 4, 2003 Share Posted May 4, 2003 An active bass can be nice because you can actually change the sound at your bass rather than at your amp. I've played a lot of shows where there was rented equipment or no bass amp at all and it certainly was nice to be able to get the sound I wanted. But most of the time I'm perfectly happy with a passive bass. My current bass lets you switch out the active circuitry if you want. Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
... Posted May 4, 2003 Share Posted May 4, 2003 Originally posted by jeremyc: My current bass lets you switch out the active circuitry if you want.When I originally got my bass from Lull, I didn't think I'd ever use that feature. How wrong I was. Truely one of the most brilliant features on Lull's basses.. if you choose to get that option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timothy Lyons Posted May 4, 2003 Share Posted May 4, 2003 Originally posted by Bumpcity: Originally posted by jeremyc: My current bass lets you switch out the active circuitry if you want.When I originally got my bass from Lull, I didn't think I'd ever use that feature. How wrong I was. Truely one of the most brilliant features on Lull's basses.. if you choose to get that option. Looking to get that done to my Stingray...great feature, passive sound is great, but sometimes you just need that extra kick in the arse \m/ Timothy Lyons Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davich Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 Yeah, I second on opinion that we will have more tone control option in nearest place (bass) rather than going to amp all the time, with active circuitry. More thing to consider is that we need to have a better than average preamp in our active electronics bass, so that it will not be useless later. I mean to say, if you go for active, don't by it cheap, you can go passive as a better option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ibescotty Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 Here's an old topic relating to this. There's some good information here. active vs passive Double Posting since March 2002 Random Post Generator #26797 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Robert Rennix Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 What is the real reason in having an active bass guitar. I have a Gibson 4 string bass that sounds real good that is passive. His guitar also sounds great, but what is the purpose? IMHO, I think the popularity of active electronics is directly related to the popularity of 5- and 6-string basses. Active electronics are a nice option on a 4-string, but it's also not difficult to get good sounds out of a passive 4-string. On the other hand, I have never been able to coax good sounds out of a 5- or 6-string without active electronics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockwoodB Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 I have a passive Curbow (not Cort) bass and it sounds great without passive. I have been thinking of getting it customized somewhat to be able to have active and passive with it. It currently has two bart J-pickups. Does anyone know how easy it is to have this done without doing major work on the body? I ask this because the entire bass is rockwood, which is very hard, not to mention the body is extremely thin, so the less work the better in my eyes.. "Let your life be a counter friction to stop the machine." --Henry David Thoreau Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted May 5, 2003 Share Posted May 5, 2003 The active/passive switch on my bass is actually a pot which can be pushed in or pulled out to switch the circuitry on or off. Using a pot like this will not cause you to have to drill any holes. You probably could contact Mike Lull and ask him to sell you a pot like this. Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jazzman Posted May 6, 2003 Author Share Posted May 6, 2003 Thanks for the responses...........I'm beginning to see the differences now. Sounds like it helps players to adjust the bass without going to the amp. The other thing I'm picking up.......pun intended, is that on the 5 and 6 string basses active helps to amplify the sound on the higher frequency strings getting the vibration to come out louder and or match the sound pressure levels of the lower strings so to speak. The physics of it makes sense to me. All I know is that I have a hard time getting the gain to be right, when the bass player wants to get the sound he is looking for. I can adjust, but the multiple amplification is a killer. jazzman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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