Members DeepEnd Posted December 3, 2015 Members Share Posted December 3, 2015 I was browsing the local (St. Louis) CraigsList when I saw a late 80's Carvin LB-90 bass that was described as having a "Wilkinson tremolo". The Fender Bass VI has a trem but I've always thought of it as an aberration. I'm primarily a rhythm guitarist who noodles around on bass so educate me. Is there much point in having a trem on a bass? I don't like a trem on a guitar so I'm guessing I wouldn't care for one on a bass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WRGKMC Posted December 4, 2015 Members Share Posted December 4, 2015 Ever try and bend bass strings? I'm able to do it but its not that easy to do. Having a Trem will let you create a fretless bass sound with a little practice. Maybe get some Stanley Clarke styles happening, Everything would have to be heavy duty though. Springs especially would need to be very stiff to handle the high tension levels.The Bass VI uses some light weight strings in comparison to most bases and isn't that much worse then many guitars with heavy gauged strings. Haven't seen the Carvin but I have seen others. Kahler makes some really good trems. You can see dozens of different types here. https://www.google.com/search?q=Bass...HW53BLYQsAQIOA This video shows some of the effects. This guy has a a typical salesman motor mouth. He should do a little more playing so you can hear what it does vs talking about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mr.Grumpy Posted December 4, 2015 Members Share Posted December 4, 2015 I played a bass once that had a Kahler trem. The trem (vibrato, actually) worked smoothly and didn't make the bass go out of tune. But yes, very weird on bass. I can't imagine wanting/needing one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators isaac42 Posted December 5, 2015 Moderators Share Posted December 5, 2015 I've been playing bass for over forty years. I've never felt a need or even a desire for a trem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted December 6, 2015 Author Members Share Posted December 6, 2015 Ever try and bend bass strings? . . . Nope. Never wanted to either. The vid is cool but, to me, it just seems like a gimmick. Anyway, this one is no longer listed so it must have sold quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators isaac42 Posted December 8, 2015 Moderators Share Posted December 8, 2015 Here's me bending bass strings: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted December 8, 2015 Author Members Share Posted December 8, 2015 ^ That was cool. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 I've got a Bass VI, and the vibrato on it is the same basic unit that's used on Jaguars and Jazzmasters, but it's not nearly as effective on a Bass VI. It works, and it generally stays in tune if it's set up correctly but it doesn't have a lot of pitch variation range, especially compared to the same trem design used on a guitar. Bass frequencies are harder for the human ear to hear and harder to pitch-differentiate, which means adding vibrato to the lowest ranges of the instrument will not do a whole heck of a lot of good. It generally works better on the mid and upper parts of the instrument's range IMHO. Outside of the previously mentioned Kahlers and a few other oddballs, it's never been all that popular or available. on bass. That's probably due to the reasons already mentioned - there's not much pitch bend range with them, and there's not a whole lot of call for them from players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted December 8, 2015 Author Members Share Posted December 8, 2015 Yeah, I doubt I'd ever use the trem. My attention was drawn to this one because 1: It was cheap, only $125 2: It was different and I like different sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators isaac42 Posted December 9, 2015 Moderators Share Posted December 9, 2015 You're welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators isaac42 Posted December 9, 2015 Moderators Share Posted December 9, 2015 Different can be fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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