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Old 02-18-2009, 11:05 AM
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Ken Smith Ken Smith is offline
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Join Date: 01-18-2007
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Arnold Schnitzer View Post
Many bassists who play amplified prefer a laminated bass because the tone is simpler, and thus easier to amplify. The simple tone also tends to cut through a rhythm section.
Yes they are 'deader' sounding basses with less ring to them but in my experiences I never had a problem cutting thru with the basses I have used and many had extreme complex tones.

So many of the carved basses used in jazz were by comparison made a cheap imports and/or school instruments made in Czech and German factories. These basses often have many wolf tones and poor tone execution for the size instrument they are unless they are taken apart and re-built. many of them have been re-made so to speak over the years along with the necessary repairs so they have been improved out of need.

Now, in the case of better made instruments in both fully carved and Plywood/laminated as well as Hybrid, good is good. These for the most part will have better internal construction. This will help in the optimization of tone.

I have played both new and old plywood/laminated Basses that were made from one end of the scale to the other as well as older ones that have been improved. In the amplification process theory just think 'Fender' and why this type of bass guitar came to be. because the Double bass was both too big to manage and too difficult to amplify. Both the amplifiers and bass speakers have improved immensely over the years as well as the pickups used on the double bass.

My working bass 'for everything' (and I did do just about everything!) for about 15 years working in NYC was an 18th century Italian bass. I went thru a few different pickups before I found the one that worked and the best way to mount it as the fundamental of the bass was just too deep for the pickups on the market then so I inlaid a pickup into the bridge and it worked almost like an Electric bass with every note clear as a bell, live or recorded.

The other factor here is cost which has not yet been mentioned in this Thread. The cost for a bass like the ones I have used cost more than a dozen of the best laminated/plywood basses so it would be in this case better to use a good plywood bass for amplified jazz than a poor carved bass. Less problems to deal with overall.

The important factors to look at being a first time DB buyer is first off to learn as much as possible before pulling out your money. Second, stay out of guitar stores and off ebay as the best place is a DB speciality shop that can set-up the bass for you and help you avoid getting a bass that costs more to fix than it is worth. In the lower priced basses, plywood or otherwise, there are many many basses out there that in my opinion would cost more to meet professional set-up standards than they are worth or more than the purchase plus repairs combined. Some sellers/dealers will not tell you this and it will become lesson for you to learn the hard way.
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