Electro-acoustic Guitars. Fender is of course a huge company in the world of bass guitar just like it is in the world of lead guitar.The Fender Jazz Bass is probably what most bassists would consider the staple bass, sort of like the bass equivalent of the Stratocaster, a cardinal of bass playing. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and scale length, and typically four to six strings or courses. It’s the violin-shaped bass Paul McCartney often plays. First introduced in 1960, Leo Fender’s second electric bass model was the Fender Jazz Bass.These bass guitars have an offset-waist body that’s similar to a Jazzmaster guitar, and closer to the nut, their strings are narrowly spaced… resulting in a neck that many … Some fretless bass guitars have "fret line" markers inlaid in the fingerboard as a guide, while others only use guide marks on the side of the neck. Also in 1953, Gibson released the first short-scale violin-shaped electric bass, the EB-1, with an extendable end pin so a bassist could play it upright or horizontally. Pickups essentially transform the vibration of your strings into an electric signal that you can send through an amplifier. Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman is sometimes identified as the first to make a fretless bass. Since the introduction of the 500/1 Violin Bass in 1956 Höfner has produced a wide range of bass models. A typical bass guitar has 4 strings; a guitar has 6. There are many combinations of types of guitar necks that can be on the same body as such. Sometimes the holes are called ‘f-holes’ when they are shaped like an F. Then there are acoustic-electrics (or, electric-acoustics) which are acoustic bass guitars that can be plugged into bass amps so they can be heard well in larger venues. Another type of bass is the semi-acoustic bass. 1956 saw the appearance at the German trade fair "Musikmesse Frankfurt" of the distinctive Höfner 500/1 violin-shaped bass, made using violin construction techniques by Walter Höfner, a second-generation violin luthier. [23] Kay Musical Instrument Company began production of the K-162 in 1952, Danelectro released the Longhorn in 1956, and Burns London/Supersound in 1958.[17]. There … There is the Jazz Bass guitar and the Precision Bass guitar. The 8-, 10-, and 12-string models are typically tuned in courses of two strings, like a mandolin. According to the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, an "Electric bass guitar [is] a Guitar, usually with four heavy strings tuned E1'–A1'–D2–G2. [10], In the 1950s, Leo Fender and George Fullerton developed the first mass-produced electric bass guitar. Many don’t realize that there are multiple types of bass guitars. Since the mid-1950s, the bass guitar has largely replaced the double bass in popular music. Next: Choosing between 4-, 5-, or 6-String Bass, © 2003 - 2021 Leading Tone Media, LLC - all rights reserved, This website requires the use of cookies. Several other companies also began manufacturing bass guitars during the 1950s. This is a … Differences between a bass and a guitar. For many centuries, the double bass was a fixture in concert halls throughout the world. In addition to traditional flatwound strings, choices now include various windings and materials. In the context of guitars, bass guitars, and other string instruments, scale length refers to the distance between the bridge and the nut, not the length of the neck. The most common type of bass guitar is an electric bass guitar. These versions also are outfitted with golpeadores, or tapping plates, which players hit … The better sounding ones have very big bodies. When amplified, the bass guitar was also less prone than acoustic basses to unwanted audio feedback. With the explosion in popularity of rock music in the 1960s, many more manufacturers began making electric basses, including Yamaha, Teisco and Guyatone. Home Forums > Bass Guitar > General Forums [BG] > General Instruction [BG] > Please take 30 seconds to register your free account to remove most ads , post topics , make … Learn how and when to remove these template messages, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Fender Electric Instrument Manufacturing Company, "Audiovox #736: The World's First Electric Bass Guitar! [18] In 1958, Gibson released the maple arched-top EB-2 described in the Gibson catalog as a "hollow-body electric bass that features a Bass/Baritone pushbutton for two different tonal characteristics". In the mid-1970s, Alembic and other high-end manufacturers, such as Tobias, began offering five-string basses, with a very low "B" string. [5] As the electric alternative to a double bass (which is not a guitar), many manufacturers such as Fender list the instrument in the electric bass category rather than the guitar category. The amplifier then sends out the audible sound through a vib… A string bass is the big bass you often see in orchestras and jazz groups. According to some authors the proper term is "electric bass". You should hear a difference. The Fender and Gibson versions used bolt-on and glued-on necks. Part of the explanation for its popularity is perhaps its versatility. What we call “long-scale” basses have become more or less the standard scale length for basses, thanks to Leo Fender and the Precision Bass he introduced in 1951. Pickup shapes on electric basses are often referred to as "P" or "J" pickups in reference to the visual and electrical differences between the Precision Bass and Jazz Bass pickups. Today it has reached a status of one of the most played instruments of our time. Straight from the 50s. There’s a lot of air in the body of the double bass. A modelling bass can digitally emulate the tone and sound of many famous basses, ranging from a vintage Fender Precision to a Rickenbacker. If you can imagine it, chances are it's already a reality – and quite possibly on this list of the best bass guitars …