Great explanation of how a Bass VI differs from a bass. I'd think that compression and EQ likely would compensate for most of any sonic differences. There's also the issue of muscle memory ad dexterity - perhaps an instrument closer in feel to a guitar would greatly benefit guitar players playing bass parts on a VI. If that trem could be tamed to have tuning stability, that would be an entirely additional dimension.
I recently picked up a VI, and used it on a gig for bass. I didnt try to make it sound like a P or Jazz, but really enjoyed it for its own tone indeed. Looking forward to more exploration with it..
String gauge, flat/round, pickups, bridges and nuts all change the sound of a Baas VI and a PBass obviously. Try looking into modding for your own sound. My Fender is less bass tonally on purpose. My Vintage Squire goes down to 0.105. My bass I sometimes strung up with a low B 0.125. Every instrument is a tool and isn’t like a sample playback keyboard with infinite sound libraries.
I used the Squire version tried many set ups and gave up..Id buy the FENDER version next time I feel like one...traded mine with upgrades for another RC600 scew that PIA
an interesting highly relevant story ..robert smith of the cure who pretty much single handedly rekindled interest in the fender vi in the early 80s so much wanted to use the fender vi on the recording of their hit single primary ..however due to certain sonic tonal failings he had to revert to a pair of p basses instead to pull this thing off ..so while the vi is a great songwriting tool there are circumstances where a good old long scale bass is the only way to go.
I’ve been obsessed with the bass vi since the 90’s, yet have never managed to get my hands on one. I’ve been on the look out for a 90’s Japanese one for a while. Somehow I’ve only just discovered your videos on the bass vi but they were both great. Really well done. In terms of your last comment about a band with just drums, keys and bass vi, The Crawl by Placebo is a song that’s based mostly on the bass vi, with drums and some keys. Their whole second album is littered with bass vi. That and Disintegration by The Cure are the two albums that introduced me to the bass vi sound.
@@jackglabere6653you might consider ordering none from Sweetwater. They have a great return policy if it isn’t your thing. I’d be happy to connect you to my customer rep there, Ryan. He can tell you all about it.
@@jackglabere6653You’ll want a set that is made for the Bass VI. Just Google for it. Fender, LaBella and Stringjoy are popular, although I’ve always used the Fender ones. To be honest, a set will last a looooong time.
I use a Fender VI as a bass for recording. I write quite melodic bass lines not just playing the root all the time and I want them to be heard. I find it has a crisper more defined sound but with bass sounding characteristics.
Those original pickups are actually not 498/490. Those were short lived Bill Lawrence HB-L and HB-R, "circuit board" pickups, which were yes, very less than desirable.
Wow! You are right. Thank you so much for the correction. I now have a lot of reading to do on the history of these pickups. Somehow I had failed to come across this important information in my research on the late-80's Studio pickups. This is great to know, because I have been wondering why Gibson would have continued to offer the 498/490's to this day, when they sounded so lousy in mine. So I have to retract my comments about the 498/490 and I'm now intrigued to go find a guitar with them and give them a fair shake. Thanks again!
Standard bass is better suited for slower tracks that require more bottom fill. In mid to high tempo music, I would say it doesn't matter how deep you fill the low end, because it will all be lost in the mix. At the same time, bass 6 is always well readable, it is not lost in any situation. Bottom line, I would say that the Bass 6 is suitable for almost any music, it is completely versatile. And if you have a compact home studio, then this is just perfect for you because you can use it as both a bass and a guitar. Why do you need many guitars? Take this one guitar and cover all your needs
That's a really great perspective. Great point about a standard bass having more low end...it does for sure. But also, as you say, a lot of that low end you wind up needing to take away or at least "tame" in the mix. And so, you wind up having to do some extra work in compression or eq to account for that. I never thought of it that way. In my next recording project, I will try using the Bass VI in place of the P-Bass and see to what degree it simplifies things in the mix. Although, as I think about it, I suppose another approach could be to dial in a brighter tone with less low end on the P-Bass either on the tone control or the amp before recording the part. Lots to think about here.
Hi Nuno. I am using the Fender Super 250'S Bass VI Strings. Just the stock Fender stuff. www.fender.com/en-US/accessories/strings/super-250s-bass-vi-strings/0730250413.html For the amp and effects, I use a Fractal AXE-FX III. For the compressor, I'm using the "JFET Sustainer": wiki.fractalaudio.com/wiki/index.php?title=Compressor_block For the delay, I'm using the "Stereo Tape": wiki.fractalaudio.com/wiki/index.php?title=Delay_block
Thanks for this vid! The exact comparison I was looking for. I’ve played guitar for years and sometimes just want to throw down quick bass on a track before I lose inspiration/my thought. Sometimes my little Martin and short scale guitars get the most play around my house because they’re the easiest to pick up, move from room to room and play right away. I think the real allure of the VI bass is some of the experimental thinking/exploration/sonic layering/drop tuning that one might do with it where they wouldn’t a bass. Even more so if it’s a guitarist who’s more comfortable on 6 strings. Appreciate your insight on how the VI might need some EQ/compression changes to compare to a regular P-bass. Cheers from Chicago
Hey, thanks Mike! I think you really nailed it. The Bass VI is such a unique animal that it inspires or perhaps requires one to approach it differently, which makes it a real catalyst for creativity. Even for a guitar player like me, yes, it has six strings, but the longer scale and the heavier gauge strings mean that my fingers don't fall into the same patterns as they do on a guitar.
I don't think anyone really wants to use the Bass VI as an actual bass--most use it as a baritone guitar. Modern metal players especially like it tuned down to E1 standard for djenty sounding distorted guitar tones, as some find it more familiar and comfortable than 7, 8, or 9-string guitars.
This is definitely a great encapsulation of what’s been done with the Bass Six. Thanks for not only emphasizing its usage by The Cure but also how it was harnessed by the Beatles and The Beach Boys. I got the Squier Vintage Modified version (preowned) in January 2019. In my case, I’ve resisted playing it like a baritone guitar and have pointedly aimed at trying to play it as a bass, despite conspicuously lacking that traditional low end (I’ve imagined looking for stacked humbuckers) to succeed the Jaguar pickups). It appeals to me for its sound-shaping possibilities and for how the rock musician I am who also thinks like a fusion musician likes how the 2 extra strings give the player a dose of Victor Wooten possibilities. I tried to bear that out in this video where I plugged mine into my Peavey bass stack and tore into an original song. (All 3 pickups are engaged but not the strangle switch.) ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-slezdUB7yiI.htmlsi=4kMPbHh1GIpD3S0U
You can fake a typical bass in a mix with an EQ pedal, muting the strings, playing with the thumb, using a bass amp and (ideally) using flatwound strings. You never get the same experience as a player though, but something different. It's also worth mentioning that having a thin sounding bass which the VI does well gives a lot of sonic space to the kick drum in a mix.
Thanks! I use a Fractal AxeFX-III, so I was using the Delay block in the Fractal. I do not recall which delay model I was using, but it was probably one based on the Memory Man (Fractal calls it 'Deluxe Memory Guy'): wiki.fractalaudio.com/wiki/index.php?title=Delay_block#Deluxe_Memory_Guy
Appreciate the response. It's a great sounding delay. Could you consider doing a video tutorial on how to set two delays? Think thinking quarter note and dotted eight using delays that are non tap tempo. That's be cool.
Hi Jon. The 4 lower strings on a Bass VI are in the same octave and deliver the same notes as a conventional 4-string bass (i.e. they are in the same octave). What differs is the way those notes sound. The 4-string bass has a lot more resonance and sustain at low frequencies (and not very much at the upper-mid and high frequencies) whereas the Bass VI tends to be focused more on the mid-range frequencies (and it tends to not sustain notes for nearly as long). A standard guitar is tuned one octave higher compared to either a Bass VI or a 4-string bass.
Is not a bass considered (tone?) Hi impedance and as a clef scale instrument, where the guitar is considered a treble and low impedance string instrument. Of all orchestrated string instruments, " what instrument of string does match in tones and scales to the FenderVI - instrument?
Is not a bass considered (tone?) Hi impedance and as a clef scale instrument, where the guitar is considered a treble and low impedance string instrument. Of all orchestrated string instruments, " what instrument of string does match in tones and scales to the FenderVI - instrument?
Fender Bass-6 seems similar to a long neck guitar also maybe known as a baritone guitar. 6 strings, longer neck, and three pickups: so what level on the scale is it? With the different pedals today. Is it possible that this instrument can be used as a guitar and as a bass at the same time?
Fender Bass-6 seems similar to a long neck guitar also maybe known as a baritone guitar. 6 strings, longer neck, and three pickups: so what level on the scale is it? With the different pedals today. Is it possible that this instrument can be used as a guitar and as a bass at the same time?
The Bass Six is definitely not meant for any form of “traditional” bass parts. During the 2010s when the Squier Vintage Modified Bass Six hit the Market, I tried it out a couple of retailers and figured out that it isn’t supposed to be played like just a bass or a guitar. Although I did record the record under my real name about the history of the Brooklyn Bridge and included my Vintage Modified Bass Six for most of the bass parts, I purchased it with the mentality that it could be used in a fusion-type context the way Victor Wooten has played tenor bass on Flecktones tracks. On many occasions when I have played it, I have allowed myself to divide between traditional basslines and a kind of harmonic extension from the two extra strings. More people should think of approaching it that way.
Back in the USSR by the Beatles is a good example of a Bass VI in action. Also checkout Maneskin. Vic DeAngelis rocks a short scale in that band and there's no lank of punch. You simply need the right setup. Also I agree the Bass VI can't do what a P or Jazz can do, but then again a P or Jazz can't do what a Bass VI does. It's its own thing, which I hope to have soon
I have a Harley Benton Guitarbass, and I'm coming to it more as a bassist. Heck, I even got a custom string set specifically so I could tune it all in fourths, E to F, like a Bajo Sexto. I plan on learning some more chordal techniques beyond basic power chords so I can pull some guitar moves on it, but otherwise, I think it's sufficient enough as an extended range bass. I was even thinking about trying a low B string on there, but with the short scale I'm not too confident about it.
Years ago I had the pawn shop bass vi as my main instrument in a ambient band I was the bassist. I used it with a fender bassman 250 combo (2x10) and a deluxe reverb. I would make the bass amp very big sounding and the guitar amp very bright. The end result was pretty good had to use a amp selector to mute the guitar amp from time to time. It was fun. But went back to play a 4 string after a while. The idea was cool not the load in with all that gear tho.
Stephen Stills proved that a Bass VI could be used artistically with his breathtaking solo in the latter half of CSNY’s Deja Vu. It starts out up in guitar territory, seamlessly descending down into the bass register. But even Stills used a P Bass for his more conventional bass lines. Easier to play, easier to EQ.
If you want to know how this instrument sounds in the context of a band, listen to Placebo's Without You I'm Nothing album. Songs like Burger Queen are good examples of how this instrument should be used, and it's especially convenient when there's only one guitar in the band.
There is a band called 'The Church', they have an album called 'Priest=Aura'. As far as I know, the Fender VI bass was used on every track on that particular album.
I saw the Church many years before that... Kilby was playing his Fender VI and it took me a quick minute to figure out who the hell was playing bass because it looked like everybody on stage had a guitar. Plugged into an SVT and playing the low strings you would have thought he was on a P-bass, I think he had flatwounds but maybe he just rolled the tone control down. Absolutely beautiful bass sound with super punchy low end and no string rattle at all. Either going with flats or putting a heavier low E string ((like a 100 rather than the stock 84) if you stay with rounds is essential to getting the VI to sound like a regular bass of that's what you are going for with it. Just like any 30" bass put heavy enough strings to make up for the looseness of the short scale and it will be pretty difficult to tell it from a 34" bass. You still have to deal with the tight string spacing of the VI but as long as you are good with that it can absolutely play the role of a "normal" bass.
My friend Lee Sklar uses mandolin frets on many of his basses. I just use short scales, and mostly with a pick. That said I don’t get much fret rattle. I have two vi basses, one a Squier and the other is a Gretsch. I’m 70 now and have used a Gibson EB2C since 1970, I also have a Hofner club and a few others. I also use flats and not bright sounding round wounds. I don’t feel my choice of scale length is as limiting as your video makes it out to be. Currently I do mostly recording and garage playing. My performance years are a decade past.
From someone whos been playing a VI for years, its the pickups that makes it go wobbly The string pull of those alnico poles is gigantic, if you low the neck pickup at max, or even ditch it, theres no more wobble nor muddy low e In the end i got tired and changed all 3 for rail pickups, and no more problems Also 30” scale, is the same tension and distance as tuning a 34” 1 full tone lower, and putting a capo on 2nd fret 👀
