bovinehost
Administrator
Yes, it's his actual name.
Let's go very lightly with the implied insults.
The Moderator
Let's go very lightly with the implied insults.
The Moderator
- Thread starter spencer
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koogie2k
Well-known member
Thanks for sharing that Big Poppa...love to hear the stories of how things come about.
syciprider
Well-known member
Do you really think we can't make flying cars yet? I think the only thing stopping developers are price and the lack of infrastructure (or in this case, air space) to justify making these things.
AFA the development of the elec bass, I look back to the race to build the Bomb back in WW2. The Allies and the Axis were developing them independently. There was no one physicist who knew it all. It just so happened that Oppenheimer and his team got there first (they had more money and were not being bombed day and night). The development of aircraft had the same history. Orville and Wilbur were not the only folks trying to fly. They succeeded first.
There is no shortage of genius on earth. These are many OOTB thinkers out there. So even if Leo never built the first practical elec bass, it was only a matter of time before someone with the same foresight and creativity would've done it.
Colin
Well-known member
I hope that doesn't happen to soon, my wife is just starting to get the hang of driving the conventional way
Are you talking about Warwick here?
Aussie Mark
Well-known member
Haven't we already done so? Planes have wheels and can taxi on the ground, so the basic concept is there
I think the difference there is that everybody wanted nuclear weaponry at that time. Nobody was interested in a solid-body electric bass guitar at all. Leo wasn't racing with anybody, and it's imprudent to speculate on what someone else may or may not have done had Leo Fender not thought the electric bass a worthy idea. The fact is, he did it. Perhaps it's obvious to you because the electric bass is something that has been commonplace for 50 years.
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Caca de Kick
Well-known member
I'm a huge fan of Leo's creations and what he had done for us. Leo created the first 'viable' electric bass guitar, and the standards as we know it today.
But some of you may not know, Leo didn't invent the electric bass guitar. It was invented in 1936 by Paul Tutmarc and his Seattle based company Audiovox. Their bass was not commercially succesful, and not many made, also there were no products to support such a bass. The only known remaining Audiovox #736 bass guitar is displayed here in Seattle at Experience Music Project. And man, you should hear the sweet cound clips of that baby!
But some of you may not know, Leo didn't invent the electric bass guitar. It was invented in 1936 by Paul Tutmarc and his Seattle based company Audiovox. Their bass was not commercially succesful, and not many made, also there were no products to support such a bass. The only known remaining Audiovox #736 bass guitar is displayed here in Seattle at Experience Music Project. And man, you should hear the sweet cound clips of that baby!
delberthot
Well-known member
I have to admit, i don't particularly like the sound of Fender basses but Leo hit the nail on the head when he came up with the original P bass.
The string spacing, scale, body size, frets as opposed to fretless were all well thought out.
he must have had all kinds of resistance from musicians who were used to the big upright. After all, the upright had been the main bass source for the past couple of hundred years (excluding the bass saxophone etc). It was big, generally had really high action, longer scale length, no frets and nothing like what he came up with other than it produced bass.
the Stingray was a huge leap in bass design as far as I am concerned - If the precision was black and white TV, the Stingray was glorious technicolour. the first production bass to be offered only with active electronics.
I also have to say that it would be easy to rest on your laurels - 'we have a fantastic bass so why change it?'
The SR5 is, in my opinion, the definitive 5 string bass - excellent string tension across all 5 strings, wide variety of sounds available, the MM growl, the best selection of colours available etc.
from this, we got the Sterling, named after the man himself, for people looking for the SR5 sound in a 4 string bass with a narrower than Stingray neck and downsized body.
From out of nowhere, we got the Bongo. I have to admit that, like some others, I found the design er .... ugly. But, its like Rickenbackers, they grow on you after so long and now I really like the shape, especially the headstock . This is an 18v Stingray on steroids to give you that growl, funk attack snap (phrase stolen from Larry Graham) and even more tonal variation.
when it comes down to it, there are a few people who can claim credit for a number of major innovations - Leo Fender for giving us the bass as we know it with bolt on, interchangable neck. Seth Lover for the humbucker. Mr Hall et al for neck through design. Leo again for the first production active bass, Ernie B for the best 5 string ever and its 4 string counterpart.
Incidentally, Leo didn't come up with the Strat design himself either. If you check out the Bigsby "Merle Travis" guitar from the 1930s ( I think ), it is mighty similar from a distance.
Anyway, its getting late and I am full of beer warmth. If anything I have said is incorrect or you just feel like calling me a drunken bum then feel free to correct me.
The string spacing, scale, body size, frets as opposed to fretless were all well thought out.
he must have had all kinds of resistance from musicians who were used to the big upright. After all, the upright had been the main bass source for the past couple of hundred years (excluding the bass saxophone etc). It was big, generally had really high action, longer scale length, no frets and nothing like what he came up with other than it produced bass.
the Stingray was a huge leap in bass design as far as I am concerned - If the precision was black and white TV, the Stingray was glorious technicolour. the first production bass to be offered only with active electronics.
I also have to say that it would be easy to rest on your laurels - 'we have a fantastic bass so why change it?'
The SR5 is, in my opinion, the definitive 5 string bass - excellent string tension across all 5 strings, wide variety of sounds available, the MM growl, the best selection of colours available etc.
from this, we got the Sterling, named after the man himself, for people looking for the SR5 sound in a 4 string bass with a narrower than Stingray neck and downsized body.
From out of nowhere, we got the Bongo. I have to admit that, like some others, I found the design er .... ugly. But, its like Rickenbackers, they grow on you after so long and now I really like the shape, especially the headstock . This is an 18v Stingray on steroids to give you that growl, funk attack snap (phrase stolen from Larry Graham) and even more tonal variation.
when it comes down to it, there are a few people who can claim credit for a number of major innovations - Leo Fender for giving us the bass as we know it with bolt on, interchangable neck. Seth Lover for the humbucker. Mr Hall et al for neck through design. Leo again for the first production active bass, Ernie B for the best 5 string ever and its 4 string counterpart.
Incidentally, Leo didn't come up with the Strat design himself either. If you check out the Bigsby "Merle Travis" guitar from the 1930s ( I think ), it is mighty similar from a distance.
Anyway, its getting late and I am full of beer warmth. If anything I have said is incorrect or you just feel like calling me a drunken bum then feel free to correct me.
delberthot
Well-known member
How nice it is to return to a mature forum where I haven't been ripped to threads as so often happened on others.
I really don't mind if some of the things I said were innacurate and someone corrects me.
Tonight its wine radiance that eminates from my very existance - hey, I worked all through Christmas and new year. This is my new year. hic.
I really don't mind if some of the things I said were innacurate and someone corrects me.
Tonight its wine radiance that eminates from my very existance - hey, I worked all through Christmas and new year. This is my new year. hic.
PocketGroove82
Well-known member
I just want to add that I find it so amusing that THE Ernie Ball was a bass drummer in a military band.
It's interesting because a bass drummer "marches" everyone and sets the pace for others to follow.
This requires conviction, fortitude, the ability to watch, and damn good timing.
Kinda symbolic, if you ask me.
(I only know cause I play bass drum in a military band
(Yeah, it's how we bassists serve "Uncle Sam" when we have to.)
and now I think I understand my spiritual connection to Ernie Ball Basses)
It's interesting because a bass drummer "marches" everyone and sets the pace for others to follow.
This requires conviction, fortitude, the ability to watch, and damn good timing.
Kinda symbolic, if you ask me.
(I only know cause I play bass drum in a military band
(Yeah, it's how we bassists serve "Uncle Sam" when we have to.)
and now I think I understand my spiritual connection to Ernie Ball Basses)
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