I am about to attempt to make the leap from guitar to bass, after many years on guitar. Thinking about BassBuzz to learn. Quick question, I am going to buy the BOSS GT-1B modeler, because I have been a very big fan of guitar modelers for years.
Obviously I can listen through headphones while I learn to play the bass, but my question is whether I should also plan to have a practice amp to run that into while I practice in order to not only hear it, but feel it. Seems like with bass, feeling it is more important then it is with guitar per say. But even with guitar I know I play better and enjoy it a lot more when its playing through a amp with Celestions in it.
At this stage its too early for me to know what I would eventually use when I get good enough to start playing in some bands, for on stage monitoring…maybe some kind of 500 watt combo amp…but for now…what do you guys think, headphones with the BOSS enough, or should I get a bass amp in order to feel the rumble while learning?
Welcome @Dewdman42, glad you are here on the low end!
BassBuzz is the best way to learn bass, but, if you are a guitarist, you might find some parts a bit too simple for you, depending on your skill level. Even that said, you may find lots of value in it. I think there are some other guitarists here, so they might be better to chime in.
As far as headphones and a multi-effects, some do that, some use amps, personal preference and tolerance of nearby people are the factors at play, haha.
I am very knowledgable about theory and yea I am a little concerned this course might be too simple from that aspect, but I’m also thinking it will bring a very solid basic foundation that I should not skip…I can move on to more complicated theory later.
Mainly my question is whether people find it critical to feel the bass in the room as opposed to just hearing it through headphones, while learning and practicing.
No, you’ve got plenty of time to figure out what you really want for an amp. A lot of people around here play with headphones for all different reasons.
As long as you enjoy what you’re hearing, that’s all that matters. If the headphones work for you then they work for you.
Also, the further out from COVID we get, the better selection you will be able to try out, in person, when you decide you’re ready to get an amp.
Is there a particular reason you’re looking at the GT-1B?
Regarding the GT-1B I just like the idea of having a modeler. With my guitar I can get a very wide range of tones out of one speaker system. I could care less about a lot of FX…but being able to model different basses, pickups, amps and cabs and apply very exact EQ…and frankly I don’t like being in the came of trying to assemble the right collection of normal pedals…I much prefer using a floor modeler with presets. I expect the same from Bass…if I change my mind later…then fine.
Oh, I wasn’t questioning the use of a modeler/multi-fx. I see a lot of people use the Zoom B1-Four. I was just curious if you felt the GT-1B offered something the others didn’t or if maybe it was familiarity with the Boss multi-fx products from playing guitar?
Nope, I haven’t looked that closely, there aren’t that many modelers. The zoom seems to be the main other contender, but so far I have appreciated the reviews on the GT-1B a little more, but later on I could switch if I decide…its just something to get started with and play into and hear bass with sustain without over-plucking the strings too much and things like that
@Dewdman42 - Just my input, but I too (like many here) have moved from guitar to bass and I can only speak from my perspective….
I’ve played guitar since the late 50’s and just recently (two years ago) taken up bass since I now suffer from old age arthritis - but hell, that’s nothing other than the fact that I just can’t move as fast and furious as I use to….
When I took up bass, I was so set on my guitar gear that I too had no idea as to what would work best for me…. So here’s what I did….
I purchased a good practice amp…. Because being an old school guitar player, playing through an open amp allowed me to feel and “experience” the tones and attack that made sense to me like it did when I played guitar. However,…. I also used (and many time still do) use a good set of headphones when I play. Actually, I kinda use both and move between the two because I hear things different when I use a headset compared to an open air amp…. The open air amp actually reveals more “mistakes” that I make then playing with headphones does…. I believe that this is because when you’re wearing “cans”, you hear and play to more of the music and your bass line is more hidden in the mix…
Bottom line for me…. Use both… learn with headsets, get really good with an open amp. Recording and playing gigs are completely different but if you are good at both, the sky’s the limit…. Hell, ever wonder why bassist’s like James Jamerson never played on stage??? Yet, he was one of Motowns top bassists…… His gig was studio recording ….
Oh, another thing I learned (just me and my opinion)…. As guitarist’s, we used a ton of pedals…… not the case with playing bass…. Use your fingers to control sound, tone, sustain, mood, etc…… Bottom line,…. Playing bass totally sets the stage for any song being played…. At a gig, the girls may be ogling and googling over the lead guitar player and lead singer, but their ass’s are most certainly groovin’ to that bass riff!!
Oh he did, and he was hell to travel with, so he didn’t for long. Was easier to keep track of him at Motown vs. chasing him down in bars in other cities. Plus he obnoxiously annoyed all of the other bandmates so much on the road they were glad to ground him in the studio!
I was in the same boat as you at the beginning of 2021.
And here are some of my experiences to date:
1 - Regarding whether the Beginner to Badass course course is too simple with your existing knowledge of music.
I signed up and two weeks later decided that it was not advanced enough for me. I could get what I wanted from from Josh’s, and other, free YouTube videos. I contacted @JoshFossgreen and my money was instantly refunded. There is a 100% money back guarantee so there is no risk to trying it out.
2 - I use the Zoom B1X Four multi effects pedal and chose it over the Boss GT-1B because it was 1/3 the price and includes effects, looper, drum machine and tuner and is highly recommended here.
3 - Regarding amps. I would say yes to get an amp to feel the Bass but I also jam a lot every week, or did prior to Covid hitting. Initially I purchsed a Rumble 40 which has a 10" speaker, but discovered a better sound with the Rumble 100 with a 12" speaker. Also the 100 watts should be enough for the jam sessions whereas the 40 watts may or may not been able to cut it. Whatever you do I would not recommend playing into your guitar amp as it is not designed to handle the Bass frequencies and can be damaged if you crank it up too much.
I also have a lot of guitar experience but it amazes me how much I have learned, and am still learning, by taking up the Bass. For example I quickly discovered my guitar headstock tuner did not work very well at the lower frequencies - hence the purchase of the Zoom B1X Four which includes a tuner.
Also on Bass, - you can also jam along just playing the root note or root+fifth of the appropriate chord - how great is that compared to some guitar chord fingerings.
I also found it easier to learn the Bass than guitar, although to be fair, I did play guitar for 50+ years, and still practice it from tome to time, and am sure that has some bearing on it
Last of all I would like to say that whatever you do stay in touch with this forum because I have never met a more knowledgeable and friendlier group of people when it comes to Bass related matters.
Totally this. However the forum is a real mine of information and the missis is interested in running through the course one day so… The course is pretty good for getting to grips with the basic mechanics of playing a bass if you’ve never played one before.
If you are tired of wearing headphones I would personally go for some tiny or small modelling amp which you can easily carry around. When you are getting more into gigs or jamming with friends I would start looking at 100+ watt and bigger cabinets.
Makes sense. I don’t tend to jam out with friends much, hope to gig eventually. If and when I get to the point of actually gigging I will usually use IEM’s even if the rest of the band is not, I have a little setup to manage my own IEM’s if I have to. For guitar that ended up creating a situation where my guitar cab was superfluous. Some bands do a poor job of dialing in monitoring and sound checking, etc… this way I always have my IEM’s no matter what those jokers think is ok…but they usually wanted me to have my guitar cab turned up a little bit so that THEY could hear it…since they didn’t want to mess with proper stage monitoring.
In the case if Bass I would definitely still use IEM’s, but I could easily see situations where the band or house would need to hear a cab…even if its superfluous for me since I will have IEM’s. Though being able to actually FEEL the bass on stage might make a difference, not sure about that right now. Might be better not to feel it, I’m not really sure at the moment.
Well anyway it sounds like I could get some headway in learning bass pretty significantly with just headphones or even running modeler through whatever FRFR speaker I have handy to hear myself play…I can think about a combo amp later maybe. I don’t see much point in buying a small practice amp…I’d probably get at least 200 watts if and when I get one so that it can get through any typical low budge poorly monitored gig situation that might come up.
Sound like a solid plan and using IEM’s for bass is just the same as guitars imo. Yes, it is nice to actually feel the low-end from your cab but it won’t effect your playing. I practice most of the time with headphones on (preamp) pedals or VST plugins.
Sometimes I do play at home on one of my stacks, but it is so insane loud that the neighbours started to complain.
