Tips for Buying a Bass Guitar
With all the choices and selection out there, how do you go about
buying the right kind of bass guitar to suit your needs? Well, don’t get
sidetracked for one! There are certain basic requirements you should
follow when shopping and even if you absolutely fall in love with that
‘perfect’ bass, it may well turn out that it doesn’t suit your needs at
all. Here are some things to think about and decide when shopping
around.
- Body Style. Most bass guitars these days are solid body
electrics. If you want a more acoustic sound then look around for a
semi hollow bodied one like this one.
- Guitar Neck. The neck size should be based on the size of your
hand and whether or not it is a four, five or six string bass.
Obviously a four string bass neck will be narrower than a six string
bass. Bass necks also come in various styles of shape. You should
experiment with these different styles until you find one that you
really feel comfortable with.
- Type of Wood. The weight and tone of a bass are definitely
affected by what kind of wood is used to make it. Because the bass
is a bulky instrument to start with, a lighter weight wood is
advantageous for performing while standing up. Common lightweight
woods are alder and swamp ash. Alder produces a cleaner sound than
the ash, but it is going to really depend on what you like in the
end.
- Length of Scale. Scale length affects the tension of pitch and
tonal qualities of the bass and is very important in determining the
overall tone. If you are shopping for a four string bass, which is
better for smaller hands, then a shorter neck scale will work out
much better and the G will really pop out. If you are looking for
more than four strings then you are going to be dealing with longer
necks and need to take your time in finding one that fits both your
hands and the tonal qualities your are looking for.
- Pickups. Pickups are more important than any other factor in
determining the sound of your bass; more so than the wood it is made
of or the strings you are using. There is also the choice of active
and passive pickups to consider. Know that with active pickups you
will have to remain vigilant when it comes to the replacement of
batteries. To make the pickup choice even more complicated, know
that just changing the strings will affect the sound of the pickup
as well.
- Fingerboard. Uncoated or coated? You decide. Uncoated
fingerboards are more natural sounding and give out a warmer sound.
Coated fingerboards wear much longer and produce a “fretless sound”.
Again, it is your personal preference that will decide this.
- Frets. This is another matter of personal preference. Most
playing occurs in the lower positions, but a bass can have up to 24
frets.
- Neck-through and Bolt Ons? If you want a punchier sound, go with
a bolted on neck but be aware that they are more likely to have
‘dead spots’ than a neck-through. Neck-throughs are stronger and
will have longer note resolution than a bolt-on. Again, we are back
to your own personal preference.
- Tuning Machines. Don’t skip any corners here. Commit to getting
the best tuning machine for your instrument! The tuning instrument
allows finer tuning and the ability to hold pitch which is crucial.
Enclosed or open tuning machine? Well, the enclosed one will not
need as much maintenance as an open one and can resist a lot more as
far as rust and elements go and they will not need to be replaced as
much.
- The Finish. You really don’t need to worry about the finish on
an electric instrument as you do with an acoustic and it isn’t
really a factor when choosing which electric bass to buy. So, when
it comes to the finish, it is again, your own personal preference
that will determine what you like.
There are a lot of factors to consider when making your purchase.
Rushing right out there and dumping some cash on a counter is not going
to ensure a high quality instrument. Take the above advice, be patient
and really be willing to shop around. You will find the perfect
instrument for you if you do and you certainly won’t regret it.
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