fender bass guitars

Fender Precision is the Bass Guitar For Beginners

By Or Keinan

For instance, one of the very best bass guitars for beginners might be the Fender Precision.

If you have selected the Fender Precision as the bass guitar for beginner to play on, then you will want to find out all you can about that bass. The reason for this is simply the bass tone that the Fender bass is able to produce. It is the most recorded bass tone. All other basses judge their bass tone by the Fender Precision bass guitar, and if you are playing this bass guitar for beginner then you are setting the margin for other bass players.

With the Fender Precision bass guitar, even the older ones seem to go up in value.

fender basses

Bass Evolution

By: Luciano Figallo

This is a musical instrument of the string family. At the same time, it belongs to the guitar family, with a larger body and longer neck allowing longer musical distance or scale length. It's fingered or picked to vibrate its strings and therefore produce sound. This instrument is usually used with 4 strings, tuned one octave lower than the guitar

The bass guitar has been used by the music world for centuries. The 15th century “Viola da Gamba” was among the earliest known bass instrument. It was over 8 feet tall, with 6 to 7 strings, tuned similar to the present day double bass. With a fretted neck, a bow was used to play it. This overall look of “Viola de Gamba” has not changed in the next centuries. The size, shape, tone, parts, and woods were much the same although there were several variations in the number of strings.

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THE EVOLUTION

The succeeding centuries would use strings ranging from 3 to 7. Throughout Europe, 3 and 4 string basses were used for 300 years. Germany and Austria used 4 to 5 strings until the 19th century while Italy, France and England used mainly the 3-string configuration until the 1870's. The next decades saw the dominance of the 4-string bass.

Starting from the 19th century, drastic changes were introduced initiated by Paul Tutmarc in the 1930's. He designed a bass that was very similar to a guitar, hand-held and carried and can be played horizontally. This concept was followed in the 1950s and 1960s by Leo Fender. The Leo Fender bass became the master model for the mass produced bass guitar. In 1971, the boutique or high end electric bass was introduced. In the 1979 new products were born such as the headless bass-the tuning machines are in the bridge. In the 1980's other innovations using new materials such as graphite were marketed. In 1987, the Ashbory bass was launched-ultra small body, 100% portable/light weight, nylon strings with an unexpected big bottomed sound.

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MATERIALS & CONSTRUCTION

The usual material used for basses is wood (most common is alder for the body, or exotic woods such as bubinga, wenge, ovangkol, ebony or goncalo alves; maple or ash for the neck or graphite and carbon fiber for lightweight necks; and rosewood for the fretboard). Apart from aesthetic reasons, careful selection of material must be done because the material used has a significant effect on the timbre of the bass guitar. For the final finish, lacquer, wax and oil is used. With the advent of artificial materials such as luthite, unique production methods such as die-casting can be employed to allow manufacture of complex body shapes that would in turn allow convenience in holding the instrument.

Most bass guitars have solid bodies but can also have hollow chambers for increased resonance or to lessen the weight of the instrument. But caution must be noted as hollow bodies change the tone and resonance of the bass guitar. For the strings, all-metal (roundwound or flatwound) with coverings of either tapewound or plastic coatings, and non-metal strings made of nylon are used.

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BASSES & GUITARS

Though from the family of guitars, a bass guitar has striking differences from the guitar. The simplest and basic difference is the pitch range of the instruments. Bass guitar plays notes an octave lower than a guitar.

Another unique difference is in the quality of sound produced by a bass. A bass guitar has a unique way of producing sound if played with the fingers or plucked. If played with the fingers using 2, 3 or 4 fingers, the bass guitar can create different rhythms and produce tonal differences that wouldn’t be possible if the instrument is played with a pick.

Another difference is the role the instrument plays in a musical group. Although the bass is very critical in the band, it normally would play a secondary role. Though the bass guitar could have solo acts and could play much like that of a guitar, traditionally (what is usually expected by people), a guitar is more visible or is more in the frontline or spotlight.

Though normally playing secondary roles, these roles played by the bass guitar varies depending on the type of music. The degree of prominence may also differ depending on the genre. The bass guitar is normally used to provide the low-pitched bass lines in pop music and jazz. It is used as a solo instrument in jazz, fusion, Latin, and funk styles. Rock and Roll, heavy metal, punk, reggae, and soul also use bass guitar as a solo instrument.

The bass guitar plays varied roles for orchestral settings. Traditionally, orchestral settings employ the double bass guitar but 20th century composers have started to use the electric bass

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FAMOUS BASSISTS

Some of the famous bassists are Jimmy Blanton and Charles Mingus. Jimmy Blanton was a virtuoso bassist playing the bass like a horn producing melodic lines. He is regarded as the first true master of the jazz bass. Charles Mingus was an American jazz credited with hot and soul feel jazz music. Other well-known bass players are Stefan Lessard, Victor Wooten, Flea and James Jamerson. Stefan Kahil Lessard is the bassist for the Dave Matthews Band. Victor Wooten is regarded as the most influential bassist and is a member of the Bela Fleck & the Flectones, a Grammy-awarded group

Flea or Michael Perter Balzary was born in Melbourne Australia, migrated to the U.S. and is a member of the famous L.A. band, Red Hot Chili Peppers. James Jamerson is an influential bassist from the band, Motown

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ABOUT THE TECHNIQUES

Various methods are used in playing the bass. The “slap and pop” method popularized in the 1960s till 1970s by Larry Graham of the Sly and Family Stone is produced by thumping a string with the thumb and snapping the strings with the index or middle fingers. Such technique produces percussive sounds. This technique was further improved by Stanley Clarke and Louis Johnson and is used by other bassist in other genres such as rock bassists Flea, JJ Burnel and Les Claypool; jazz-fusion bassist Victor Wooten. Later on Wooten developed other methods. He popularized the "double thump" method wherein the string is slapped twice, on the upstroke and a downstroke

fender bass

Play Bass With Pick

What sounds do we get and is it rite to play bass with a pick or plectrum?

Learn pick and finger style, to be a great bass player you should play both! My article is focusing on the pick player, the pick style of bass playing! I myself am a pick style bass player, I love playing with a pick, love the sounds I can make and the great part of making people dance and enjoy the music! Carol developed the flat wrist pick technique and the deep sound with the click. For me this was the start of pick playing, there are other players who played with the pick, on big hit records and also helped to shape this style of playing.

Work and experiment playing in various parts around the bass's pick ups to get different sounds.

Picks are for punks and heavy metal players with wristbands! Not really you can apply a pick to any style of music, any groove, play any song you desire if played and practiced well.

Working with the pick. Like alternate fingering with fingers it's important to play down - up picking.

DOWN the pick goes to the floor, UP the pick comes up to you. Holding the pick is important! Stick with the same type of pick!

bass guitar

Start Learning Bass Guitar

What is it about this particular guitar form that has whetted your appetite to start learning bass guitar? Maybe it isn't, but learning bass guitar does set you apart. If you are going to start learning bass guitar you had better get yourself kitted out! Look up a specialist guitar retailer because that is where you will get to view the biggest selection of guitars and get the best advice in buying the right guitar for you.

Choosing your new bass guitar is the beginning of your dream. Every electric guitar has to be played using an amplifier. There are still things you need to buy though before you can start learning bass guitar. You will need a guitar lead to connect the guitar to the amp. Your understanding of timing will be quite an important part of learning bass guitar.

Can I suggest that you take a look at the Learn & Master Guitar course?

bass guitars

 How to Tune a bass guitar Source: Mantius Cazaubon Platinum Quality Author

Well since I don't know exactly how many strings are on your bass guitar I shall present you with different options, namely, 4-string, 5 string, 6 string, and 7 string basses.

The standard tuning of a four string bass guitar from highest (thinnest string) to lowest (fattest string) is G-D-A-E.

On a six string bass guitar, a thinner (higher pitched) string is added, and is tuned to C. On a 7-string bass a high F-string is added. Tuning your bass is all about matching the pitch of your instrument to that of a bass guitar tuner, pitch pipe, tuning fork or a correctly tuned piano or keyboard. Loosen the string and tune up to the correct note. Tuning your bass is not hard.

bass guitar - Get Started With 6 Jammin' Lessons
Source: Benny Metlar

What is a bass guitar?

Bass guitars are either acoustic guitars or electric guitars. The amplifier used for bass guitars is different from those used on other types of guitars. The acoustic guitar does not use electric power. There are four strings on the bass guitar all of which are of varying thickness. The thick strings produce low frequency sounds while the thinner strings produce higher frequency sounds. Always play the guitar with your back straight. You can play the guitar while standing or when seated.

Fretting, Plucking, and Picking

Performing techniques incorporate fretting, plucking and picking. Firstly, always press the string down firmly when playing a note. Playing Notes

The top most string produces the E note while the corresponding strings produce notes A, D, and G respectively. The major scales incorporate seven notes while the minor scales use five notes.