Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Does anyone still use them to get that double bass sound?

You can use the mute pad to get that clicky 60s Carol Kaye-type sounds, which are awesome by the way and I hope one day will be trendy again, but as an upright player I never understood why people associate a muted electric bass with upright tone. It sounds nothing like it to me.

Rics are tricky because it's a lot of trouble raising the mute, not a switch/lever like on Gretsch, Gibson, or Fender VI, and you can't palm-mute because of that rib-cage. I don't know many players who want to play with the mute without the option to disengage it quickly mid-song.

I find the palm muting technique much more flexible. Seems to me a clever person would be able to come up with a way to throw off the mute.

The reason I believe people think a muted bass sounds like an upright is all about the sustain.
Throw flats on it and roll back the tone and you're getting very close to upright territory, oh yeah fretless of course really helps with the illusion.

Dirk

Dirk wrote:roll back the tone and you're getting very close to upright territory

That's what I don't get. Listen to a solo'ed upright, tons of high end, not even vaguely similar to a muted bass guitar with the tone rolled off. This is Christian McBride, killer tone, unamplified.

Some kind of preset dampening with a little cam leaver engagement would be cool. I do recall seeing pictures from the 60s with folks sliding rags or bits of foam rubber between the string and body on all makes of basses. Personally, I find left AND right hand damping works for me (I play with a pick mostly) even with the HS hardware. I am in agreement with Dirk about the upright mimicry as well.

The Rickenbacker mute is useful if you're playing vintage salsa music and trying to achieve a sound similar to an Ampeg Baby Bass. It's also good for getting that Willie Dixon thing playing R&B and blues. Nice and thumpy if you dig in, soft and pillowy with a lighter touch. Obviously you're not going to be flipping back and forth between sounds. It seems to be more useful on the fretted Ricks than fretless.

For pick playing, an over-string mute sounds better for some reason. I learned this from Carol Kaye. So either a fixed Fender style mute (a foam strip under the bridge cover), or palm-muting. For fingerstyle under-string mute works equally well.

I wonder if that’s because of the pressure of the mute forcing the string into the bridge rather than away from it?

ilan wrote:A Fender style mute (a foam strip under the bridge cover), or palm-muting. For fingerstyle under-string mute works equally well.

+1 on that

Using a pick I've always rested the heel of my palm on the rear cover (I always leave them on) and to mute I just move forward slightly muting and pivoting off the strings themselves

If you look at the wear pattern on Chris Squire's rear horseshoe you see a very predominant wear pattern from similar use.

https://www.facebook.com/brindleysmusic ... =3&theater

Sincere apologies for the Facebook link, the shots are from Brindley's Bass in Arizona, that used the Facebook link, and no, I've not joined Facebook

thx1955 wrote:

ilan wrote:A Fender style mute (a foam strip under the bridge cover), or palm-muting. For fingerstyle under-string mute works equally well.

+1 on that

Using a pick I've always rested the heel of my palm on the rear cover (I always leave them on) and to mute I just move forward slightly muting and pivoting off the strings themselves

If you look at the wear pattern on Chris Squire's rear horseshoe you see a very predominant wear pattern from similar use.

https://www.facebook.com/brindleysmusic ... =3&theater

Sincere apologies for the Facebook link, the shots are from Brindley's Bass in Arizona, that used the Facebook link, and no, I've not joined Facebook

Thanks Jeffrey ... picture is worth a thousand characters