My Fender P Bass vs Kala U Bass - silly video comparison

I wondered that once the bass was mixed into the track, how much difference would the choice of instrument make? I used the same settings in my HX Stomp, chose a nice groove from the talented bassist / produced Fred Falke and compared two very different basses to see.

Which (if any) do you prefer?

Geeky HX Stomp details:
Preamp (Mic Requisite Y7 mic preamp)
Amp - Ampeg® B-15NF Portaflex®
Cab - 1x15" Ampeg® B-15
Compressor - Deluxe Comp (Line 6® Original)

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Great comparison @Barney…. The tones are very close on both and it’s really but…. The “P” bass has a more fuller/deeper resonance due to the length of the strings. Certainly somewhat identical to most ears, but I can hear a distinction with the harmonics in the comparison. Then again, it could be just me….

Anyway, thanks for sharing!!:+1::+1:. I love hearing and seeing differences in different bass’s, strings, etc.

Keep on Thumpin’!
Lanny

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I am with the P too, but I think the style of the groove has something to do with it as well.
The P growl works well here, while the Kala is a bit muddy.
They might however just need to be mixed differently or different tone/amp/cab etc applied to get the best tone out of each.

Cool experiment!

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Out of those two, the P, but actually for that tune I would have said neither, frankly - I’d have wanted a warmer, more mids-focused sound. Some EQ on the P would have worked fine too, most likely. Or maybe even the tone rolled on more? The punch of the P definitely worked.

Kala was definitely muddier, mostly due to the scale most likely. I love the sound of those things amped but in this case I think a longer scale bass works better.

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Yeah I agree about the muddiness, it was more of an experiment to see how much difference there was between instruments. All things being equal. One is the classic P Bass sound while the uses piezo pickups and looks like a toy.
I set everything pretty flat just for fun. In the end I was pretty impressed that the little Kala U Bass didn’t sound terrible. I mean, not great, but pretty good for what it is.

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I think they sound fantastic in context. A little EQ and that little thing is a monster.

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@howard I realize that asking a question about describing sound using words is almost futile, but here goes anyway. I have some hearing loss so I’m aware that the way i perceive sound may not be the same as others.
So when you talk about a ‘warmer’ sound what do you mean by that? Can I EQ it to ‘warm’ it or is there an effect within Helix such as modulation to change the sound to warm it? Thanks

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Pretty cool, I’m surprised how well the little guy sounds, but P wins by a short margin… in a blind test I doubt one would guess that a UBass was being played

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Two main things that can make a sound warmer, at least how I would describe it. First would be to increase the mids, specifically low mids, via EQ.

Another would be very light overdrive or even really light fuzz.

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That’s a cool comparison video. I think the P bass definitely has more full sound to it. Plus, U Basses always make me think of midget wrestling: close, but not close enough lol

Sounds great. I have a Kala Uke Bass and love it. I like your strap set-up! Can you share the details on that?
Thx!
Jack

@Jack667 no problem. I used a set of Dunlop Strap locks. I drilled a hole in the heel of the neck on the G string side near the cutaway. In the heel portion of the neck making sure I wasn’t drilling near to the truss rod / fretboard side. Then replaced the existing strap button on the bottom with a Dunlop.
That’s it and just used an old strap I had.



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