Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

G

gregggyf

New member
Good Afternoon,

I would like to know what factors in a bass would qualify for it to be a very good slap and pop sound.

I have an assumption that a semi-hollow Hofner bass would not be an epitome of a slap and pop machine.

I would think that proper set up would be an important factor.

Any other thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Greg
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

I think your intuition is right on. The best basses I have experienced for the sort of snap you want from slap/pop have a very solid feel to them. Hofners are anything but.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

2 pickups on a bass helps a LOT, or at least a bridge pickup. It's easier to get a slappy and poppy sound out of a J bass or a PJ or a MM with a bridge humbucker than just a P, though it can be done. That pickup by the bridge adds extra snap to the notes and tucks a little honky midrange away when mixed with a neck/middle pickup. The placement of them also helps a lot, like even though an SG bass or hofner can have 2 pickups, they are very dark sounding and are far apart from each other. Plus the mahogany body and neck with a shorter scale isn't helping either, so brighter woods and longer scales work, but again, it can always be done.

Stuff like active/passive switching and parallel/series/split switching can also help fine tune a good slap tone including using active eq to tweak the treble just right. Strings and set up matter a LOT. So keep in mind the freshness and type of the strings while you're trying the instruments out. A lot of slap players use bright and flexible round wound strings to add snap to the tone, and they usually play with lower action.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

gregggyf said:
I have an assumption that a semi-hollow Hofner bass would not be an epitome of a slap and pop machine.
Click to expand...

Assume nothing.

Photographs exist of Les Claypool sporting an EKO hollow body "violin" bass. The instrument definitely appears on the 1994 side project release, Sausage - Riddles Are Abound Tonight.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Funkfingers said:
Assume nothing.
Click to expand...

This. I've slapped on a Hofner and it sounds fine, albeit a bit dark (it's sporting some well-loved flats at current).

The easy things to suggest are bright/new sounding strings and really low action, so you get that characteristic sound without trying too hard. Having an EQ available to allow you to scoop the mids is another characteristic trait, whether you're using the onboard controls or my favorite, the Funkulator from Creation Audio (which is just a mid scoop in a pedal, making it easy to switch between fingerstyle and slap).

Otherwise, solid right hand technique is going to get you the best slap sound.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

To the OP: Here's my take on it.

I agree with One Bad Monkey: you need to develop hand strength and dexterity. Some of the best bassists I've seen could crack a bowling ball like a walnut.

The slap technique, as developed for electric bass, has been used mostly on solid body instruments (usually variations on the Leo Fender designs for Fender, Music Man and G&L).
For many people (myself included), the Jazz bass was the standard. Larry Graham was an early advocate of slap, and the Jazz was his choice.
It has advantages over the Precision, mostly the neck profile and the more detailed sound of the single-coil pickups.
Leo Fender branched off at that point for Music Man and G&L, creating active electronics and dual-coil double pickup variations on the Jazz design, which still maintained the same basic J sound.

A bit of mid-frequency "scoop" (which has the effect of boosting the lows and highs) emphasizes the percussive element, and reinforces the fundamental tone.
On a big stage, though, it tends to overpower other instruments, so I use that EQ profile sparingly.

Hofner tries to emulate a more 'acoustic' sound for its' signature, IMO. I haven't seen it used as a funk machine.
However, there are various techniques for slapping acoustic bass, which give an equally percussive sound.
Of course, a lot of energy is expended getting the sound to project on an acoustic instrument... quite the aerobic workout.
Here's an example...


Yes, set-up makes a difference. I've found my best results come from having the action in a sweet spot, neither too low (causes excessive buzz) nor too high (too difficult to fret).
A lot of slap bassists also alternate slap with a hammer-on technique to get more complex rhythms -- guys like Marcus Miller and Victor Wooten -- so having a quicker action helps there.

Strings? Most slap players will go for the brighter-sounding round windings (steel), to get real ringing, piano-like overtones.

Experiment, practice, and try different things. Being different leads to being distinctive.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Technique
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Guys, he's asking for factors in an instrument that complement the style. Obviously anyone can slap on anything they want, let alone Les frickin Claypool. "Technique" is not really that good of an answer as it's a given and it gives off the impression that you think the dude asking for advice isn't playing his instrument right. To be fair, he might not be, but we shouldn't just assume that either.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Fair enough. Solid swamp ash body for a nice responsive body, maple neck. Active electronics are great for slap IMO but passive will do but as mentioned the bridge position is very important.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

I'll be the one to say it:

Seymour Duncan Basslines pickups :D
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

I would like to thank everyone very much for your informative replies. I have learned some very good ideas.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

ginormous said:
For many people (myself included), the Jazz bass was the standard.
Click to expand...

SnakeAces said:
Solid swamp ash body, maple neck.
Click to expand...

ginormous said:
Most slap players will go for the brighter-sounding round windings (steel).
Click to expand...

SnakeAces said:
Active electronics are great for slap IMO but passive will do but as mentioned the bridge position [pickup] is very important.
Click to expand...

For decades, the definitive slap bass guitar sound on Roland ROMpler synthesizers has been drawn from the Spectrasonics Bass Legends sample library. Marcus Miller. Ash/maple Jazz Bass, Sadowsky active EQ. https://www.spectrasonics.net/products/legacy/basslegends.php
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Balanced to bright tonewoods (My G&L USA bass is made from swamp ash which is very heavy but is worth it for how amazing it sounds), good slap and pop technique on fresh strings (I recommend rotosound, DR Hi-beams, Richard Coccos and Ernie Balls will do the trick in a pinch) with good bass pickups which can cleanly recreate the long waveforms from the bass strings with good articulation for the percussive elements of the sound. Active electronics while not a necessity definitely help as you can tailor percussive treble and the low end before it goes to the amp and having a flexible bass amp with lots of headroom with some character and drive in the front end, put that altogether and you can't go wrong.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Falloffthebonetone said:
Guys, he's asking for factors in an instrument that complement the style. Obviously anyone can slap on anything they want, let alone Les frickin Claypool. "Technique" is not really that good of an answer as it's a given and it gives off the impression that you think the dude asking for advice isn't playing his instrument right. To be fair, he might not be, but we shouldn't just assume that either.
Click to expand...

The issue is though (and you'll note, I did give some answers from the equipment side of it) is that slap bass is primarily a right-hand percussive skill. Larry Graham didn't think "What does this bass have that would make this sound good?" when slap bass was born, he was thinking "Crap, how do I replicate a snare and kick drum?" The instrument at the time wasn't even a consideration, and only until slap bass really caught on would people start to say, "Hey, ______ is a pretty good bass for slap" which is more attributed to who played that bass over the bass itself.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

One Bad Monkey said:
The issue is though (and you'll note, I did give some answers from the equipment side of it) is that slap bass is primarily a right-hand percussive skill. Larry Graham didn't think "What does this bass have that would make this sound good?" when slap bass was born, he was thinking "Crap, how do I replicate a snare and kick drum?" The instrument at the time wasn't even a consideration, and only until slap bass really caught on would people start to say, "Hey, ______ is a pretty good bass for slap" which is more attributed to who played that bass over the bass itself.
Click to expand...

My post wasn't really addressed to you or ginormus because while you guys did touch on technique, you did answer his question rather throroughly too.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Falloffthebonetone said:
My post wasn't really addressed to you or ginormous
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In that case, to whom were your remarks directed? :scratchch
 
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Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Funkfingers said:
In that case, to whom were your remarks directed? :scratchch
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I'm the only one left it appears.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

It's all about technique and setup.
 
Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

Re: Determining factors that cause a bass to have a good "slap and pop" sound.

SnakeAces said:
I'm the only one left it appears.
Click to expand...

No, also Funkfingers., at least at first. And now Itsabass I guess.
 
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