The Bass Industry

[IkaruShizzlemah]

I think bamboo looks promising also.

Yamaha introduced an acoustic guitar made from bamboo a few years back.

I never played one, but I read that it had a bright tone. It is now discontinued.

Jeez, why don't you just shoot the guy..............this IS a discussion thread about the bass industry, isn't it????????????? I know, you own the board and the company, so you can be as sarcastic as you want...... very classy.

Hey, hey, HEY... I'm the sarcastic one around here buddy (can I call you buddy?), and I deserve recognition for it. After all it's not easy being cheesy.

If you have to have classy, let me work on it and I'll get back to you.

Thank you.

No, thank you.

Ikaru

 

[WillPlay4Food]

Nice... That has a much better ring to it than Stingboo or Sterboo. How about that sunflower seed idea? I guess I'd try a Bongflower bass.

Henry Ford used bongflowers (hemp) to make plastic for the body of one of his cars in 1934. I'd say bongflowers are sustainable and renewable. Heck it grows faster than trees.

 

[adouglas]

Well, I WAS going to buy another EBMM but since I saw this Stick advertisement on this forum I'll give them my money instead. oooo are those block inlays? jk

Wait...you mean this isn't a MarkBass advertising forum? Geez...I guess I got it wrong, then....

Pics were only posted to show what the stuff looks like. Apologies if anyone thinks I'm trying to promote the Stick...that was not the intention.

Sticks are nifty, though.

I'd like to get a first-hand look at this material sometime...kind of looks like those butcherblock cutting boards to me.

BP, it's very cool that you're continuing to look at all kinds of materials. Engineered wood products have the great advantage of being consistent and renewable, but I'd imagine that the resonance properties of many of them are pretty poor...perhaps because the fibers aren't continuous? There's also the weight issue. Resin is heavy and it's a key component of any composite.

That resin is the Catch-22 about renewability/sustainability of engineered wood products. With an engineered wood product you can use wood that isn't suitable for traditional construction (for example, you can use a ten-year-old tree instead of a 50-year-old tree and/or lower-grade wood so the renewability/sustainability is better) but you need adhesives that are probably based at least in part on petrochemicals. Then there's the whole toxicity issue.

So you're making better use of the forests, but you're using nonrenewable resource to do it. And there's potential pollution involved.

 

[Big Poppa]

There are many materials out there that dont use resin as a binding agent. None of them sound worth a damn though. With our tone block concept we are trying to find out just how much wood you need though. Bamboo is very strond but once bound is heavy and not very resonant.

My quest is to make a instrument that from one to another sounds like the primo one that we all search for. I may never make it but it keeps me interested.

 

[Big Poppa]

adouglas
regarding the Mark Bass shot.....you are too smart of a guy to defend yourself attacking something un related.

As many of you know I am a big supporter of Marco at Mark bass for the vbery reasons that this thread exists. He is driven to produce clean powerful amps that dont break your bank or back. I have given him all of my support. I have had to read over and over the Ampeg praises and the GK praises...its good to see another amp. ALso Marco voices his stuff for music man the best. I have put my money where my mouth is. Having set up their usa distribution I was entitled to a percentage on each amp sold. I refused any compensation because I wanted to make sure that a guy going out on a limb had all of the resources available to make a go of it..

 

[Kirby]

I refused any compensation because I wanted to make sure that a guy going out on a limb had all of the resources available to make a go of it..[/QUOTE]

BP, thanks for the above. It is nice to be reminded some manufacturers do things for the simple reason that it is the right thing to do rather than always looking for the quick buck.

 

[58super]

It must be cold up there... because you are Canadian I will try to give you something you didnt afford me...the benefit of the doubt. 58 super I was not upset or being condesending just letting everyone know that I know where plastic comes from. Let me take afew steps back because this thread is borderline crazy. I dont think I have a problem with 58super and I dont think he has one with me and if he does I apologize.

I took no offense from you and I meant no offence.

BP,I have always admired your willingness to share information on this forum about history, technology and business in general and I have learned from it.

The one thing I have always respected is a willingness to speak the truth directly and you most certainly do that.

 

[Jim_F]

Fascinating thread and some v interesting and well-thought out replies ...

I think that the last 20 years or so HAVE seen some major changes in bass technology, for instruments, amps and effects - and all important ACCESS to quality at an affordable price. And CHOICE for the consumer (us knuckleheads!).

One of my basses for example is a Hohner headless Steinberger jobbie - again a major step forward in bass design by the v clever Ned Steinberger. Very Lightweight, portable, with a decent sound and easy to play. (and a breeze to change the strings )
And its good to know that designers and manufacters such as BP are not resting on their laurels (which would be the easy option) and continuing to experiment with materials and electronics.

I like the trend (such as MarkBass amps) for lighter amps without sacrificing the all important quality of tone.

And effects - again (might be just me) - but I've definitely seen improvements in the quality and sound of some of the effect pedals I have picked up in the last couple of years, such as my Akai Deep Impact and Unibass pedals.

But top of the list for me is the fact that the new generation of bass players can now get hold of entry level instruments and amps that offer fantastic value for money regarding build quality and sound quality. Such as OLP range.
Its a pity that EB MusicMan are discontinuing the SUBs, another great example of this ...
but plenty of other manufacters (Yamaha., Peavey etc,) are selling decent starter basses and guitars at prices that are amazing when you consider what I paid for my first guitar (an Ibanez - in 1980). And when you compare the nasty cheap guitars of my youth to what is available today ...

 

[Kirby]

I could not agree more with Jim above. I have been blown away with the quality of some of the "starter basses" of today. I have a student who spent $350 for a bass and it shocked me when I saw and played it. With the use of CNC technology and better tools the cheaper basses of today make that old T-40 I started on seem like firewood.

I remember scraping for 9 months doing every odd job I could get to afford my first nice bass. I still have that bass, mostly just for memories now. I am still blown away by the necks that come out today from the factories. I would never order a bass sight unseen in the early 80's due to the necks and what I could potentially be stuck with. Today, I have no problem ordering one from EB. I have two on order now and have no doubt that with a small tweak of the truss I will be set out of the box.

 

[bovinehost]

Marco voices his stuff for music man the best. I have put my money where my mouth is. Having set up their usa distribution I was entitled to a percentage on each amp sold. I refused any compensation because I wanted to make sure that a guy going out on a limb had all of the resources available to make a go of it..

You never cease to surprise me.

 

[adouglas]

adouglas
regarding the Mark Bass shot...

Hey, sorry. Didn't mean anything by it... It was just a nudge and a wink.

So what do you use as a binding agent if not resin? (I include "glue" in the "resin" category...at least epoxies....). Just curious.

 

[Big Poppa]

cheese is an excellent binding agent.....

Jackie I didnt post my refusal of compensation to brag or to try big time it...I told the truth. I really admire Marco coming from left field (italy) and knocking the socks out of the bass market. He has something coming that I really am not going to believe until I see it at Anaheim. I remember when my Dad started...so many people told him he was wrong crazy and a few people believed in him and this is just an attempt at good karma.

 

[bovinehost]

I know you weren't bragging or big-timing it, boss. I was just sitting here reading it and thinking about what a great thing it is you're doing for Marco, who by the way certainly deserves success.

The Markbass stuff is definitely making an impact. A lot of manufacturers have been playing with the light, compact head design and I've had the opportunity to try a few of them, including the Eden and Genz Benz.

The Eden has good tone but is light on power. The Genz is decent but I wasn't excited by the tone. The Markbass LM II has it all. Marco and his crew knocked it outta the park, and the internet buzz is growing. There are all kinds of threads over on the amp forum at TB, for instance, and the vast majority of people who have tried or bought the LM II are blown away.

I can't wait to see what's coming.

Your karma ought to be in damned fine shape, sir.

I'd be one of the people who would know.

Jackie

 

[maddog]

Please allow fools such as I the room to experiment to try to move the bass somehow someway forward. It costs you satisified guys nothing. It may bring something missing for some who are searching for something different. To pass judgement and forbid evolution is not fair to the rest of us. It is a win win for all.

Amen!

 

[slucas]

cheese is an excellent binding agent.....

Cheese is good, I especially like Velveeta

 

[Kirby]

The Eden has good tone but is light on power. The Genz is decent but I wasn't excited by the tone.

My thoughts exactly Jack. That has been my complaint with Eden all along besides the fact they switched speaker manufacturing processes somewhere along the line.

I am in the process of getting a LM II myself now, kind of makes me mad that I purchassed a GK 2x10 combo last year to try and save my back at smaller gigs.

 

[cybersnyder]

ALso Marco voices his stuff for music man the best.

Maybe that's why the SR4 HH through the Markbass sounds magical to my ears.

 

[Dargin]

Cool thread...Here is a little more on the wood aspect. Most tonewoods come from old growth trees. This means they take over 75-100 to grow. Some in the logging/milling/distribution area will tell you we are gonna decimate our reserves, and other will tell you they practice sustainabilty.

Mahogany is close to becoming an endangered species, which means it is scarce, so that means more expensive. If I remember correctly, we (USA) decimated our mahogany growth during either WWI or WW2...

 

[Sayed]

One beauty of wood is how the tone seems to "come together" with age. The tone of a pre-war Martin is a perfect example. I don't think any acoustic guitar made today can come close to the tone of one of those. Besides, wood is beautiful to the eye, plywood, well........

 

[PzoLover]

IcePick

It must be cold up there... because you are Canadian I will try to give you something you didnt afford me...the benefit of the doubt. ...
...
For those of you who are happy with what is available God bless you. Please allow fools such as I the room to experiment to try to move the bass somehow someway forward. It costs you satisified guys nothing. It may bring something missing for some who are searching for something different. To pass judgement and forbid evolution is not fair to the rest of us. It is a win win for all. ...
...
Now to clarify the bongo ...
...
Bobalu I will try to be classier for you. ...

Tnx for cuttin' a bit of slack for us Canucks BP; overall, we're not a bad bunch;
some of us really dig MM basses and all you go through to make them what they are, and that's why we sell our brides to foreign investors and spend our last metric dollars to smuggle them across the line;
and if your plane ever gets shot down over the Great White North, I got friends who can drop some good beer at your campsite; and don't worry, it'll be cold

Cheers