PhilMan99 Posted December 29, 2005 Share Posted December 29, 2005 Is it possible to get a good ol' fashioned "thump" from round-wounds, without all that finger-noise and other high-end stuff? I've been using TI Jazz Flats, but I'm wondering if maybe I just wasn't EQing (or plucking) the strings right to get a good thump from round-wounds. I don't like the native "piano" sound from rounds, but something seems to be missing from my sound with the TI flats. I know TIs are not "real" flats (unlike LaBella), but I'm wondering if I just don't "understand" modern rounds. My recent experience with rounds is:* Elixir* DR Low-beams* DR Fat-beams With the rounds, I just couldn't get rid of that piano sound, but that was a couple of years ago. The "sound" I'm looking for is what you normally hear on modern-day country (please stop rolling your eyes...) and old-time motown. I'm not interested in any of the high-end stuff you'd hear with slap (although I like a good StingRay slap by folks more skilled than I). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g. Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 Do what my buddy Joey S-p-a-m-p-i-n-a-t-o does and palm mute real close to the bridge. Since he's using flats and you aren't also use some smart EQ contouring to have a little click but mostly body. http://www.nrbq.com/photos/sweden/JoeySweden03-01.jpg . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g. Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 And don't forget that thumb. http://www.nrbq.com/photos/sweden/JoeySweden032-01.jpg . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 Joey is the coolest bass player on this and several other planets. Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g. Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 He is indeed. So are his travelin' pals. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Father Gino Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 Originally posted by greenboy: He is indeed. So are his travelin' pals. Who are you refering to? The Q seem down for the count. I'd just recently re-discovered them and now they're seemingly kaput, I agree whole heartedly that Joey is THE man. It surprises me (in a good way) that you're a fan. Joey seems to be a walking advertisement for low tech. I guess I just really don't know you I did read somewhere that he plays a "modified" Dano. I don't know what that means or even if it's true. Meanwhile, back on topic a bit. Joey is absolutely the master of sounding like an old timey rock & roll upright with an electric bass guitar. Check him out in "Hail, Hail Rock & Roll". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g. Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 You guys just don't seem to be able to encompass that tech is not my aim, just a set of tools. I'm for music, and the guy has it. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenLoy Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 NRBQ is the sh*t! Everyone should seek them out...especially for their "unique" cover of "People". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g. Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 I admire the fact that he sings rather like an earthier, ballsier McCartney from the bayou while handling some real subtle feels in a very strong fashion, that they hung together writing and playing their own way through scads of fashions; that a Dano or Clav was no cause to hand-wring obsessively about what trendy crap so many others could never get enough of. Whether with the tools or their music, him and Terry and the others have shown backbone in a world with so many insecure peer followers and schemers, yep. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Father Gino Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 Originally posted by greenboy: I'm for music, and the guy has it. Hear, hear! I dunno Greenster, maybe you have to point this thought out more often. Perhaps it's because I (and perhaps many others) cannot translate specs into musicallity. Joey is the poster child for the "you don't need a booteek bass to sound good". Joey & that cheap cardboard Dano are one. Nostalgia. I saw the Q in Northampton for their 35th anniversary concert. They had everyone (that was still alive) that had ever been in the band playing that night. Al Anderson & Steve Ferguson, Tom Staley & a 6 piece horn section. What a great show! Rumor has it that negotiations concerning the DVD of this very concert caused the band to not see its 36th year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g. Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 I like NRBQ for some of the same reasons I liked The Band. Rural sensibilities, a way of making basic materials into something crazy-colorful and spun with deeper textures of storytelling. There was another bass player among all the interesting musicians in that band who did some nice things while singing too, and both groups truly functioned as bands. Main diff seems to be how long it took to break up ; } . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred TBP Posted December 30, 2005 Share Posted December 30, 2005 Originally posted by PhilMan99: Is it possible to get a good ol' fashioned "thump" from round-wounds, without all that finger-noise and other high-end stuff? PM, FWIW I don't think so. I can get "that sound" with semi-hollows and flats and I'm not scared of EQs, but the closest I've come to eliminating the string noise is by using nylon tapewounds or my beloved "Chromes". Originally posted by PhilMan99: I don't like the native "piano" sound from rounds, but something seems to be missing from my sound with the TI flats. This is where I get confused. You seem to be saying you want a brighter sound than flats but not as bright as "piano" rounds. Have you tried D'Addario Half-Rounds Series II? Also recommend one of the GHS ground-flat sets, but the model escapes me at the moment. Been meaning to get a set of DR coated black strings for my AEB but never seem to get around to doing that, but I'm told those will reduce string noise as well. Sounds like you're in for some experimenting here. The only other idea that comes to mind is discovering a spray-on polymer coating to turn standard RWs into "Elixer" style strings. That could just be a SciFi concept or a product waiting for a demand to develop. Hope the suggestions help a little. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMan99 Posted December 30, 2005 Author Share Posted December 30, 2005 Originally posted by Fred the bass player: ...cut... You seem to be saying you want a brighter sound than flats but not as bright as "piano" rounds. Have you tried D'Addario Half-Rounds Series II? Also recommend one of the GHS ground-flat sets, but the model escapes me at the moment. ...cut... I've tried half-wounds in the past, but not recently. I get plenty of "high-end" in my TI flats, but the native sound of the bass is just "bleah"; that same sound came-through with Elixirs. While I'm no pro, I've got enough right-hand technique to feel confident that it's not just my fingers. While I'll be doing some "test-driving" at the store for a while, it is frustrating that virtually *all* the basses have round-wounds. When I compare basses at the store, I'm not listening to what I'm used to; everything sounds like a piano to me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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