THE COOLEST BASS GADGET... EVER?
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 มี.ค. 2018
- ►You can find out more about the 'The BassMute' here: www.bassmute.com/
Well, it’s a VERY rainy Friday here in Leeds… so me and the family are all holed up inside our house and I’ve convinced the wife that we should have a “Goonies day"… #WIN!
… yep, I’m a massive 80’s film fan.
But seriously, if you’re living somewhere in the world right now that’s blazing with glorious sunshine… send some over to us - we could do with it! ;)
Anyway, along with The Goonies… luckily I’ve got a brand new toy I’ve just retro-fitted to my bass that you need to check out - it’s seriously cool!…
Actually, it might be the only “gadget” for bass players that I’ve ever really been desperate to try out.
... and it didn't disappoint!
You’re going to see exactly what it is, how to fit it to your bass, each of the different settings you can use (including why you’d use it in the first place!).
Then I’m going to show you how you can get a similar effect by using stuff that you’ll most likely already have in your kitchen…
Intrigued? I hope so. ;)
Oh, and for total disclosure… I’m not affiliated with the guy who makes these at all. (He doesn’t even know that I’ve made this video about it).
I get pitched every single day about new bass gear that peeps want to get featured on the SBL TH-cam channel… in fact, saying every single day is an understatement.
... So why make this video?
Well, simply because I love what this guy has made. It suits my style of playing. And, it’s a heap of fun and adds a serious amount of AWESOMENESS to my sound.
You ready?
As always, see you in the shed...
Scott :)
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For $135, the old sponge looks good to me
Amen brother!
eh. You get what you pay for. Good luck getting the band to wait and sit and watch you stuff foam under your strings between songs during the gig, cause I never could.
@@jdjk7 just get another bass, which you should have if youre gigging, and have that one with more or less depending on your needs? Personally I own 3 basses and I dont even gig, so I could easily cover it. Also then you dont have a $135 tool for one bass and you have another bass to play anyways.
@@Nothing2Interesting You'd rather haul a whole ass instrument specifically for the purpose of foam muted strings than stick a gadget (which i hope costs less than your spare bass!) that you can flick on or off whenever you want? Alright, sure, whatever.
@@Nothing2Interesting I own 4 basses, but I don't buy a bass unless it has some inherent quality or feature that I necessarily cannot get with the ones I have. I have a P bass. I don't need to spend $500+ on a second one that I will then lug around with its twin for the purpose of switching out when I need a mute. That prospect makes the $100 gadget sound much more enticing.
A snadge is exactly half a smidgen.
I said "smidjin". HA I won't say what we use a smidjin of. HAHA
Little known fact: It's also 8 "pinches" or 16 "dashes"
@@Inkawgneegrow or, if you're me, 16 dashes or 4 pinches.
Which is half of a scootch
A little more than a c hair
"let me take my t-shirt off"
*proceeds to remove jumper*
Jimmy Neutron jumper? Lol, the hoodie? We’re all weirdos
Darn
Jumper.... Lol we call them Hoodies or sweatshirt.... Interesting stuff.
H o o d i e
Jumper ? Well good luck with that in US high school :-)
RE: Why did early Fenders come with foam mutes glued under the bridge cover/ashtray? The Precision Bass was meant to be a replacement for the upright bass, with better "precision" in intonation afforded by having frets. However, the longer sustain of the plucked strings was a bit of a problem, since upright bass strings (particularly gut strings) decay quickly, which gives the bass line a driving, percussive quality. Upright: Bum-bum-bum-bum...; Electric: DoooDoooDoooDooo...
Without the quick decay of the upright's strings, the electric bass was not a good match for the sound of the upright bass in combos or big bands. The simple addition of foam mutes made a huge difference. I'm not sure when Fender started putting foam under the bridge cover of the P-Bass, but listen to Monk Montgomery with the Mastersounds in the late 50s - he nails the upright sound with his stock P-Bass. If you get a stock early-60s Jazz Bass, you may notice holes from the original adjustable felt mutes, which work in a remarkably similar way to the lever gizmo in Scott's video.
Of course, in the 60s, many bassists started looking for a brighter, more aggressive sound to fit with their 6-string bandmates, so off came the mutes!
Today, I use a thin strip of felt that I slide under the strings of my early 70s Gibson Triumph bass. It takes just enough sustain off to give me a nice thump for big-band gigs and classic-rock jams.
I've also seen felt strips "woven" through the strings.
Interesting. To be fair if you’ve got an early 60s p bass, you’re rich as fuck or don’t know what you have. Ha.
I di use the sponge as well as the felt and also the package foam ... and jsut moving them along the space between the bridge and the bridge-pickup, I obtained different degrees of dumping.
Ha! No joke I was just the other day fitting a sponge under my strings and thought "how cool would it be if I had a thing that would just let me switch my muting on and off." Are you guys spying on me?
😂
Foam was put under the strings / the "ashrtay" - cover to mimic the "thud" of a doublebass. Remember, Electric Bass was invented to help the bass sitting better in the mix, volume wise. So people wanted the sound of double bass, but much more volume - and easier playability. Plus "more precise" intonating, why they put frets on a bass. And the thing was called "Precision Bass".
Kong and Basses
wise words.....
Also the old doublebass had to travel in a canvas bag outside the car in the elements or wedged in a car. A P bass traveled better!
I have a 1975 Jazz bass in A1 condition which still has the original foam damper under the ashtray...
you missed the opportunity to add a drum roll just before "Precision Bass"
So you say to put it *Under the bridge* ?
Yes. Between the tuning system and the bridge. It's a headless
Are you serious?
Jeremy Clarkson Sorry, between the last pickup at the back and the tuning system
Lol nice b8
I can't tell if asshole or red hot chili peppers fan
My sponge has a resonant frequency of 432Hz so is objectively the best type to use.
The universe is in tune with that sponge.
Beware of other companies that cut corners on their sponges and leave you with an unergonomic octagon to deal with
When 0 degrees longitude was on the point of the great pyramid at Gizeh Egypt, A was 432. The Brits moved it to Greenwich, as if they owned it, .A settled in at the 440 we use today, but some orchs are up to 447! yikes , a lot of snadges.
most folks i know play on 420 :D
Fibonacci foam
So do different foams have different tones ? haha please don't start a tonesponge debate
They absolutely do. Just like tapping a sheet of glass sounds different from tapping a sheet of (say) steel.
Another poster here has specifically recommended sorbothane. Quite expensive stuff but no doubt highly durable. www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?&field-keywords=sorbothane+film
I don't think there's any real controversy here. It actually touches the strings, so of course the foam has a direct effect on the tone.
I'm certain of this, different pressures against the strings as well. Too soft will allow for longer sustain, too hard might almost act as a secondary bridge (much like our fingers do when playing harmonics).
Yellow sponge is more "creamy" than green sponge.
i prefer bath sponge for nice clean sound
7:39 LOVE THAT CHICKEN FROM POPEYESSSS
Nice catch. Haha.
They don’t have Popeye’s over there do they?
Greatest comment ever
ummm this cost $114.60 if I want the gold version and then they charge US$ 19.50 for shipping. I'll stick with the sponge!
Ouch. Yep, looks like the old tricks may just be the best tricks.
Holy shit, really?
Name of this bass gadget?
Or see the nordymute, not as expensive
I've been using Ellio's bass mutes for a couple of years now. I love them. Try it with a pick and fully on. You get a great old school "tic tac' bass type of sound with a short clickey top end attack. Also, when you're setting it up, be sure to check your intonation, as too much pressure on the strings (Bass mute or foam) will pull them sharp.
"Snadge" - A unit of measurement slightly larger than a smidge but no bigger than a touch.
Don't want Touch Too Much.
In Scotland we'd say "a bawhair", which is an official measurement here ;-)
Bob Babbitt had the first one. He loved it! I remember the day he came to the house to show it off. Very cool. Fender considered a Babbitt signature bass, featuring that mute. Unfortunately, they dropped the idea. I miss Bob. He was a good friend.
Many basses used to come with sponge available dampeners as Scott describes. This was not only to provide tone 'tightening'. It also served as an analog 'noise gate'. These techniques helped the bass 'sit in the mix' at a time where reel to reel music recording s in it's early phases.
"That's interesting" I think "probably wouldn't use it but I it'd be fun to add to my P-bass. I wonder how much they... No. I will not be getting one of these"
Good one Scott. I've recently been using materials from a towel, but only for the B and E strings on my 5 Strings Headless Status Graphite S2 Classic. The tone is amazing. Gonna try out foam right away!
Thinking about trying this also on my 5 strings.
7:40 - love that chicken from Pop-eye's ;-)
th-cam.com/video/L7p6JIwYjCw/w-d-xo.html
I’m late, but awesome ear 😂
Thanks for covering this and the subject of tape vs round vs flat wound strings. HUGE questions I've had for a long time.
This is basically what a "lute stop" is on a harpsichord. Tip : if you change the shape of the pad to be a pointed triangular shape, with the tip the muting part, you will get a beautiful combination of mute that preserves sustain.
“If I can do it, you can do it”, says the ex-luthier xD
You’re playing without your glove!
WOW!!!!!
Why does he even play with gloves?
to anybody looking to experiment: industrial high density 10mm wool felt is where it's at! (get the white kind, the other stuff is too coarse and soft and non-dense)
it's closer to MDF or thick leather than cloth, and needs a sanding and a bit of working it, to soften up. but a pretty firm felt dampener with light pressure gives it a vocal, swelling sound, between fretless mwah and a sita, with more overtones coming out as the base note muffles out.
PS: those sponges are still really good, and much easier to find.
Rickenbacker bass bridges come with an built-in mute bar.
ceilingtracer,
I’ve been told they don’t function that well.
ARVID Rickenbackers or sponges?
Paul Needs,
Actually a bass tech told me that the Rickenbacker mute was poorly engineered.
ARVID - that wouldn’t surprise me. Like the ‘ashtrays’ on Fender basses, they’ve become something of an anachronism. Neither really worked as intended, and as Scott pointed out, a few pennies for a sponge to cut as appropriate does the job, should one wish to get that peculiar (in a modern sense) sound.
I’ve not owned a Ricky bass, somewhat oddly given the numerous brands I have owned over the many years since I moved to bass at around 19yo, but have owned a 12 string 360 which would not hold tune for more than one short song, so that - perhaps unfairly - put me off the brand somewhat. But never say never, eh? ;)
Paul Needs,
One problem with the sponge underneath is that if the sponge is thick enough to do a large decay, is that in moves the saddle points forward and buggers the intonation on the higher frets!
Carol Kay tapes a thin strip of felt on top of the strings, not for a Jameson mute but just a slight mute, that cuts out ringing and resonance, that greatly improves articulation to cut with the mix!
Though others state the opposite, this mute system stays on top of the strings and won’t alter the intonation.
There are two brands of mutes that simply clamp into the strings and claim to vary the muting.
Nordymute by Nordstrom pickups and a mute called bassmute clamp, not to be confused with bassmute in this video.
I’m interested in mute systems to improve my own articulation, but to further confuse things, if increasing decay makes for clarity, why would anyone buy then mute round wounds or exposed core strings?
Just try unmuted flat or tape wounds.
And then what’s the point of compression!
I’m pulling out what’s left of my hair!
Gives it an Upright sound.
Xactly
The man reason I think these dampeners were first invented in the 60's was for pickers - didn't have to worry about dampening with the palm. The 60's Gretsch Countrygentleman long scale & Tennessean (Peter Tork) short scale basses had a built in dampener with a switch for raising the sponge against the strings - and had an adjustable range as well. Gretsch had that device essentially built into its early 60's hollow body basses.
man, watching your videos is like trippin and fallin flat on your face into a mine full of diamonds and gold and silver and bass gadgets and hints and tips and any other kind of helpful whatever else there is. EPIC.
My bass isn't sponge worthy. ;-)
😂
Now that's something proper & presentable infront of people.
When tracking "Don't Give Up" for Peter Gabriel, Tony Levin used a disposable nappy for the same effect.... :)
Rolled up bar napkins work if you're really in a bind, but at that point you may as well just run it wide open and not look insane to your audience.
I use to have a Gibson EB-0 that had a slider that put this foam pad that muted all four strings. I didn't use it that much because my palm gave me the option to mute dynamically. Looks very cool! Thanks Scott! Brad
cool video, thanks. yep think that the original use of string dampeners were likely originally employed in the studio by bass players to cut down on any noise coming from any accidental clumsy bangs of strings during any fast passages, but also i can see your idea of using the dampeners to get a more consistent sound, so the bass then sits better in the mix. In modern days we of course now use compressors, which also allows the engineer to control the sound with more precision. the only thing that using any device is that you may restrict the types of sound you get as the dampeners do apppear to affect the bass's frequency range to some extent. btw cool bass playing, reminds me of Jaco, and victor wooten etc.
cool.
I've the BassMute on a Jazz for years now, and it works brilliantly... although it IS a major pain to get it mounted just so.
it's a very cool design though, especially with the nylon tape wounds, it's a great combo.
1) Cut string "slots" in the foam, to approximately half the thickneess of a sponge. Much better dumping, plus sponge stays in place.
2) Gadget would make more sense upside down, so finger pluck will actually push string into it.
3) If I lose or "break" a sponge on a gig or rehearsal I have an extra in my bag. Could not say this for gadget.
You can't keep a sponge in your bag while this is on your bass?
god i love how much fun you have just playing. "It's just so much fun, I'm sorry!" don't apologize for doing what you LOVE hun!!!! highly enjoyed this video! ♥ i am planning on getting a bass soon (have already played before, musician prior, and it's something I'd love) and I'll remember this!!
I used to put the ashtray over my p-bass bridge and stuff foam on top of the strings. It was a little easier to control the mute depending on how far you push the foam in. It sounded great with flatwounds and gives your palm a nice place to rest too.
7:39-
Was that the Popeye's Chicken jingle? That was uber cool!
Been using this mute with my vintage P bass I play on tour with The Miracles, so obviously I need the Jamerson tone given it used to be his chair back in the day. Mine has 3 positions as opposed to the older 2 position model and is perfect for a live performance where I need to switch back and forth quite quickly, as I can’t switch a sponge in and out during our fast paced show. I’m
quite pleased with the product and highly recommend it for anyone who plays live and needs to go from muted to non muted quickly. I’ve also recorded with it and can virtually replicate the Jamerson tone with my Acme direct box. I’ll put a demo to some actual Motown tunes up on my TH-cam page when I get some downtime.
I made a mute from amp carpet covering. 3 1/2" X 5". Spread white glue on it and roll from the narrow end to the wide end. Secure tightly with rubber bands and leave overnight.
The reason for rolling it from narrow to wide is that the G string requires less material to mute.
You can adjust it by pressing down on it to reduce the effect (flattening it).
Once you have it the way you want it, it's easy to install and remove. Just remember to put the end with less material in first ( the G end of the mute). Easy to make and use, and very effective!
It looks a nice piece of kit. However, when I restring I tend to apply some pressure to the lower strings at the saddle to create an angle for the intonation. Installing this on the bass would appear to prevent that possibility. I learned this from erm, some geezer called Scott.
"Let me take my t-shirt off"
*takes off hoodie*😂
I personally prefer it with foam. In all the sessions I’ve been a part of, the Bass always fits better in the mix with foam on. It sounds super cool, allows better control of overtime and delivers a more precise tone. I run a customized Jazz Bass (roundwounds) and it sounds great. Even sounds great with my P Bass (flatwounds).
I've just recently started experimenting with mutes; I use a piece of cotton cloth rolled up tight and stuck into the bridge. it gives some adjustablility by being able to change how many rolls and how tight it's rolled.
I tried putting electrical wire ties through the strings by weaving it in near the bridge. Heavier ones mute more. Trim them about an inch past the outer strings. That foam stuff from Lowe's may work too for air drafts around windows. That has a sticky back to stay put. Also it comes in a large roll, so you can make many of them. Or try 2 at different spacings.
The main question is: Would Carol Kaye approve of this mute with it's switch on switch off adjustable system?
Joseph Drach Why wouldn't she
Rickenbackers used to have something like that built into the bridge.
Older Musicman Stingrays did too.
SG's also
The coolest bass gadget is UAD-2, especially the Ampeg plugin series. The bass sounds you record will fit into tracks like a slippery, subtle glove and put a throb onto everyone producing in the studio.
Dude! So great! I've been totally obsessed with The Marc 4 and the Wrecking Crew lately and never appreciated how much the tone of a mute kicks ass! Your giddy-ness over that super sweet mute is contagious! Don't know if that is just a prototype or you can buy those, but I'll definitely look it up. Great video!
Ooops! just saw the link on a comment below.
I love your videos and I'm not playing bass at all :D
Built by the Dutch Ellio Martina:
www.bassmute.com/bassmute/bm_mainframe.html
Thats pretty nifty! Looks way cleaner and nicer than a sponge :D
Being able to “turn it off” is kinda cool, for when you gotta switch during a song or in a medley...
I’ll give those a try
Cool! I've been developing my palm mute / thumb technique for years to do what these mutes do but I can still only sustain maybe 8 to ten 16th notes in a row before I give out. I may grab one of these for my old beater P-bass. That said, you really can't beat the dynamic control of a palm mute, each note can be very unique.
A Snadge is a term used by bus drivers when a cop, sheriff or authority of sorts flys by the Stop SIGN used when dropping off kids. A mix between the word Sneak and Badge. We are told to always report a Snadge.
Coolest Bass Gadget = Hipshot Bass Xtender
Or Jazz bass with brand new rounds...
The whole reason that Fender put those different bits of foam was to make it sound more like an upright bass and they thought muting the strings did that. I bought a 1965 Jazz Bass in 1966 and it had the foam stuck in place on the inside of the large ashtray cover that went over the bridge pickup and bridge. I removed the cover from above the neck pickup but left the big one in place. I remember thinking this should have more sustain than it does, so I took the foam off of the Ashtray cover where it was over the bridge and voila' had more sustain because it was no longer muting the strings. If I recall correctly it was a strip of yellow open-cell foam.
This is awesome! FYI, the Sean Hurley Signature bass has this mute, or at least very similar, that comes stock to the model. No modding necessary.
I love the idea, but the price is too prohibitive. I'll keep my eye out for this to hit retail/online marketplaces. Thanks!
Wait for the special on QVC
Rickenbacker basses have a mute built in. Can't adjust it quickly, but it's faster than reaching off stage for a piece of foam/sponge.
I keep my sponge rubber banded to my left underarm for quick access
Great use of a bicycle wheel quick release over centre bolt . All old Rickenbacker owners now put your dampers back . Thin felt or leather under the strings on the saddles works well too .
I have the original chrome bridge cover with that came with my 65 P-Bass, but I have been using a fump groove gear bass mute. I also have been known to using a high grade EVA foam to do the same thing. They all achieve the same awesome muted tone.
Eyed the BassMute up for a long time, but the lever seems to be a bit of a design flaw, especially having the on positions pointing right up at your arm. A rotary switch would be much better. Sounds great though.
Eddie G : I agree, I was wondering why the designer hadn't put the lever on the G string side.
can it be turned around so the lever faces down
Mark B : possibly, but you'd also have to be able to reverse all the mute pads, as you want them touching the strings as close to the bridge saddles as possible.
thanks Scott I like this device
Pretty cool! Nice to see it in action. I'll probably stick with cheaper methods, however. lol WAY cheaper.
I agree £90+ well overpriced. Another company will probably do sumit similar for a much more reasonable price at some point.
That'd be pretty nice. As of this point, playing the bass is just a good hobby, and not REALLY giving income.
Until then, and until there is a slightly more budget friendly gadget, I'll stick with sponges or foam. :)
Reminds me very much of the old pre-EB Music Man basses which had thumbscrew adjustable mutes built into the bridge.
I have a Larrivee acoustic bass guitar and use a piece of foam weatherstripping (maybe 1 cm thick) under the strings at the nut to keep the open strings from howling when not being played. I'll have to try the foam at the bridge end now! I also have a 1980 Ric 4001 with its build-in dampers at the bridge but have never used them (and at this point I doubt if they work).
Yes- great choice. Foam weatherstripping comes in various sizes, qualities and densities. A bit of trial and error and you have the same effect that Scott mentioned that is found inside the Fender Precision factory bridge cover. The Fender method is...fixed. This has three position choices. How nice.
Seems like getting it OFF the bass might be a 'damaging'proposition.....
That's a cool little gadget but I am not sure if I would want to put that on my bass cause of the adhesive that could screw up the finish - just in case you want to remove it. Will try the foam! :)
SirWeasel
Was thinking the same thing. That Moolan of his is nitro also, I think the adhesive would ruin it
The foam on the inside of the bridge cap on the old P-Basses was intended to make them sound more like an upright bass, which is what the P-Bass was attempting to replace.
Always great Scott. I guess that'd be "Great Scott"! Thanx for another one
personally, I prefer a bit of sponge sound.
I won't be rude, Scott, but only for you.
6:54 love that little run. pretty smooth.
Have Had the Ellio Martina Bass Mute in my 3 basses for about 6 years. Can;t live without them
Use to use foam back in the early 70s This is the next level.
Wait a minute, is Paul's Rickenbaker on Sgt Peppers are equiped with this? I mean, the bass on the album it's very plucky.
Yes. Rickenbacker 4001 and 4003 basses have a built in adjustable mute.
Yup. All Beatles and Motown tracks had muted basses.
You not only look like Matt Easton, you wear the same "Superdry" stuff.
Maybe you're both the same person? Swords and bass is a cool combo.
I think he looks a lot more like James McAvoy
In that case it'll be a triple threat: bass, swords and telepathy.
@Bruce Sailer Agreed
Neato. Lots of old Gretsch guitars had mutes that you could engage/disengage on the fly tool.
It’s all in the hands))))Though I do like the buzz of a thin strip of paper woven through the strings to get a certain kind of thing happening)))))
Dont forget to wet the sponge or the electricity wont go straight to the brain.
Hahahahhahahahhahaha
What the heck? 😂
5:18 Playing without gloves! :-o
Lord Isern why does he play with gloves anyway??
@@danielarifin7805 he has a condition that cause his fingers to shake about. The glove acts like the sponge in this video. Lmao.
I started doing this 30 years ago. There are some other thing one can do to get a similar sound. If you listen to Sly Stone's "Fresh" album, you can here a similar sound on "Frisky" or "If You Want Me To Stay", or you can even listen to the bass playing or Verdine White on EW&F's Gratitude album.
Phantastic! Wanna have it! Thx for this Video
Forgive me but hasn’t Rickenbacker been doing this for years? 🤔🤔🤔
Just follow Carol Kaye tips about muting strings and you save a lot of money.
Jakub Baranowski
Exactly...
This is obviously for all us one-handed bassists! j/k
I used to have an Epiphone Rivoli bass, which had a felt damper built in. It was very adjustable with a slide that controlled the amount of damping. It worked incredibly well. It was medium scale so was already a bit on the mellow side, depending on how you played it. Wish I had it now, or a Rivolli 2 .
I have a Bassnute for 6 String. Yes, you cn get ot for 4,5, &6 String Basses. I Think it makes even more sense on a Bass with roundwound strings, It is a great thing to have and works with any spacing!
...No link to where one can get the device??????
bassmute.com/bassmute/
Thank you sir!
Just a note - the original 60's period Gibson EB3 basses utilized an EXCELLENT integrated felt mute.
THANKS !
sdushdiu Don't they have pedals for this sort of sound?
Sponge seems better soundwise. Product needs to be redesigned to emulate the sponge solution better.
The sponge sounds better because it's not just a small piece of foam lightly pressing against each string.
sponge emulates sponge the best
I think that Jazz bass just naturally sounds better than the P style he put the device on. I don't think it has much, if anything, to do with the foam vs the device.
I use a very dense 1/4 inch foam layer that comes as a packing material with handload bullets. Folded over it fits perfectly under the LaBella Flatwound strings, sungs up good, and stays tight to the four saddles on my PBass. It sounds so much like Motown, when I play the opening lick to "Ain't No Mountain...", I can hear Marvin & Tammy wailing it out in "The Snake Pit" at "Hitsville U.S.A." It's as if it was just being recorded! Channeling some Jamerson here; may they all rest in peace. 👑🎸🎵
I love the explanations of the low-tech portion, yet, it sounded highly technical. I mean the low-tech part was highly technical. After that I was lost.
$100 US for the convenience of saving a couple seconds when putting in a sponge? Oh, and with the added inconvenience of having a lever that pokes your arm when the unit is engaged, and adhesive that mars the finish on your bass. No thanks. The sponge is superior in every way.
i do find it hilarious that the company uses this video as an ad on their website. Sponge manufacturers may find it more profitable than they will, however!
This is great! I've been looking for a way to make my expensive bass sound like I found it in a dumpster.
Nice contraption... but a bit pricey, no?
Going with the lo-tech solution.
Thanks, Scott.
I really like the effect. I found a simple way to get the right pressure on the strings using the sponge technique was to cut a slice off a yoga mat, the one I found was about 3mm thick. (I found four thicknesses worked well) Just roll it till you get the right thickness and slide it under, works brilliantly. Vary the rolls to the desired sound required.
But have you tried memory foam? 🤔
Not my cup of tea. I love clear and crisp bass sounds. I don't even play flatwounds. My fretless wears a set of halfwounds, but that's already muddy enough for me... :D
Yaaaaaawn 😉
I used to put sponge under the strings of a semi acoustic bodied bass back in the day, just to stop it feeding back! Otherwise it was not really usable at any kind of stage volume......
It sounds great and looks nice. Much nicer looking than the sponge or using masking tape over the bridge.
I've cut some of the leftover acoustic foam from my studio to size for both my Epiphone Viola and my Yamaha BB300... works like a charm, but this looks very cool. It would be nice (especially on the Yammie) to be able to turn it on and off at will. I envision being able to, for instance, snap it on for a verse and off for a chorus or middle 8!
Maybe 20 years ago I worked in a music store that had a really pretty vintage bass that had one of these built in. It was original from the 1960's. It was just a fuzzy cloth thing but it had a switch so you could turn it off.
Oh cool, did not know this was a thing, I'll try it now. A note on cutting the sponge: it might make sense to cut the sponge narrower at the g string end compared to the low e end as there is less energy to be absorbed at the g string end and also because the action of the G is probably lower. just to keep strings balanced
Neoprene is a good material. I sliced the end off one of those old computer keyboard wrist rests. Does not come apart like foam rubber. And a thick piece of felt is really good. be sure to re-tune.
Love that chicken at Popeyes