LePond only using 4-stringed basses?

[Guitardeth]

Hello guys!

Just a little curious. I have never seen him using something else then his 4-strings, which is more or less rare theese days when it comes to progressive metal bands. Has he ever made any comments why? Not saying that I think he should switch, 4-strings is ten times cooler then 5 or 6-strings..

 

[Metropolis Part 2]

Its really strange, you have to ask Jax, he might know more about Lepond's gear.

 

[Yngvai X]

Its really strange, you have to ask Jax, he might know more about Lepond's gear.

I don't think its necessarily strange, considering Romeo doesn't go below a D...I guess as long as Lepond can get 1 octave below every note Romeo can play its good enough

and Jax is a chick not a guy...

 

[Metropolis Part 2]

Opps, did I do what I think I did. (i FUCKING hate typos)

 

[MorphineChild205]

Yes, Lepond has only played 4 string basses (at least with Symphony X). However, Thomas Miller did use 5 string basses on a few Symphony X songs. The Eyes of Medusa comes to mind.

If you play a 4 string for so many years, it's hard to make the switch to a 5 or a 6. I myself started on a 5 and will soon upgrade to a 6, but that's just because I'm a huge Myung fan.

 

[Progbass]

I played 4-string pretty long then switched to 6-string, it was a little hard at first but now when I have completely got used to it, I wouldn't switch back to 4-string. Why lepond is using 4-string? It might be that a it's "not so wide" neck makes playing some hard parts or tapping easier, not sure tho.

 

[coolsnow7]

What I'm more interested in, why does he use a Musicman? That's like a slap bass. If you play in a band like Symphony X, you are guaranteed never to need to slap. Wouldn't something that takes less energy to play finger-style make more sense?

 

[Yngvai X]

What I'm more interested in, why does he use a Musicman? That's like a slap bass. If you play in a band like Symphony X, you are guaranteed never to need to slap. Wouldn't something that takes less energy to play finger-style make more sense?

Im not quite getting your point, but what specifically makes a musicman a "slap bass"? I'm pretty sure you can slap on just about any electric bass...

 

[MC Pee pants]

it's kind of a bass player thing, but the music man is pretty hefty, it's hard to explain, but if you pick one up you just want to slap it. I can't tell you exactly why it's good for slapping because I don't do it much, but I have a friend that has one, and I like my Ibanez more for finger style. He slaps it all day long, he once said alright, i'm not going to do slap now, I'm gonna play with my fingers, and twenty seconds later he was just slapping it again.

 

[Progbass]

Musicman isn't really the cheapest bass you could get so I guess it can't be really a bad bass. And you can't call some specific bass model "a slap bass". The musicman's pickups look like they would be pretty sensitive so they are good for slapping...but also good for tapping finger playing and for everything, lol.

 

[Guitardeth]

Okey, thanks for the answers..

 

[MorphineChild205]

The musicman's pickups look like they would be pretty sensitive so they are good for slapping

I'd imagine they'd have to be to pick up all those tapping things he plays (in songs like King of Terrors, Sea of Lies, Fallen, etc.) My basses don't have very good pickups, so I have to hit a boost switch to even hear any tapping leads.

 

[coolsnow7]

Musicman isn't really the cheapest bass you could get so I guess it can't be really a bad bass. And you can't call some specific bass model "a slap bass". The musicman's pickups look like they would be pretty sensitive so they are good for slapping...but also good for tapping finger playing and for everything, lol.

Like the other guy said, when you pick it up you just want to slap it. It's quite far from a bad bass - a friend of mine has it and it really is great. But it's also pretty heavy, and you have to have fingers of steel to tap on it like that. And he could use some EMG-HZ's and be fine as far as picking up the tapping.

 

[Progbass]

I'd imagine they'd have to be to pick up all those tapping things he plays (in songs like King of Terrors, Sea of Lies, Fallen, etc.) My basses don't have very good pickups, so I have to hit a boost switch to even hear any tapping leads.

Yea, you're right. But there's a lot more things to get tapping nailed than sensitive pickups, like: your string height shouldn't be very high, use compressor and just find the right technique.

 

[MorphineChild205]

Yea, you're right. But there's a lot more things to get tapping nailed than sensitive pickups, like: your string height shouldn't be very high, use compressor and just find the right technique.

Hmmm...interesting. Well, I'm off to lower my strings! Thanks!

 

[coolsnow7]

Hey, unless you have strings thicker than your finger and you can place said finger comfortably between the strings and your fretboard, you will NOT get the perfect tone. And as everyone knows, the perfect tone is the goal of ALL bassists.