The bass guitar, also called the electric bass, is the lowest-pitched instrument in the guitar family. It looks and is built similarly to an electric guitar but has a longer neck and scale length. The electric bass guitar most often has four strings, though some models have five, six, or seven strings. Since the mid-1950s, the electric bass guitar has frequently replaced the double bass in popular music because it is lighter, smaller, and easier to carry. Most models include frets, which help with tuning, and electromagnetic pickups, which allow the sound to be amplified.
The electric bass guitar is usually tuned the same way as the double bass. Its tuning matches the pitches one octave lower than the four lowest strings of a regular guitar, typically E, A, D, and G. Five-string models usually add a low B, and six-string models usually add a high C. The instrument is played using fingers, the thumb, or a pick.
Because the electric bass guitar does not produce much sound on its own, it requires external amplification. This is typically done using electromagnetic or piezo-electric pickups. It can also be connected to devices such as direct input boxes, audio interfaces, mixing consoles, computers, or bass-effects processors that have headphone jacks.
Terminology
The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians describes this instrument as an "Electric bass guitar, usually with four heavy strings tuned E1′–A1′–D2–G2." It also defines "bass" as a shortened form of "Double bass" or "Electric bass guitar." Mottola's Cyclopedic Dictionary of Lutherie Terms begins its definition by stating, "A bass guitar that produces sound primarily with the aid of electronic devices." Some authors argue that the correct term is "electric bass." Common names for the instrument include "bass guitar," "electric bass guitar," "electric bass," and simply "bass." Some authors claim these names are historically accurate. A bass guitar without frets on its neck is called a "fretless bass."
The scale of a bass is the length of the vibrating strings between the nut (the top part of the neck) and the bridge saddles (the part where the strings attach to the body). On a modern 4-string electric bass guitar, a scale length of 30 inches (76 cm) or shorter is considered short scale, 32 inches (81 cm) is medium scale, 34 inches (86 cm) is standard scale, and 35 inches (89 cm) is long scale. Long scale is more common on 5-string basses and above because it helps produce better sound for the low B string.
The double bass is described as "acoustically imperfect," similar to the viola. For a double bass to be acoustically perfect, its body would need to be twice as large as a cello, which would make it too large to play. To solve this, the double bass is made smaller. The pickups in an electric bass guitar help overcome the limitations of the double bass by electronically amplifying the low notes.
Pickups are attached to the body of the guitar beneath the strings. They convert the vibrations of the strings into changes in a magnetic field, which are then turned into electrical signals that are sent to an instrument amplifier.
Bass guitar strings are made of a core and winding. The core is a wire in the center of the string, made of steel, nickel, or an alloy. The winding is a smaller wire wrapped around the core. The materials and shapes of the winding vary depending on the type of string.
Common string types include roundwound, flatwound, halfwound (groundwound), coated, tapewound, and taperwound. Roundwound and flatwound strings have windings with circular and rounded-square shapes, respectively. Halfwound strings are a mix of the two. Coated strings have a synthetic layer covering them. Tapewound strings have a metal core with a plastic winding. Taperwound strings have a tapered end where the core is exposed on the bridge saddle without windings. The type of winding affects the sound of the instrument, and certain styles are often preferred for specific music genres.
History
In the 1930s, musician and inventor Paul Tutmarc from Seattle, Washington, created the first electric bass guitar in its modern form. This instrument had four strings and was designed to be played horizontally, like a standard guitar. A 1935 sales catalog from Tutmarc’s company, Audiovox, showed the "Model 736 Bass Fiddle," a solid-body electric bass with four strings, a scale length of 30 + 1⁄2 inches (775 millimeters), and one pickup. About 100 of these were made. Audiovox also sold the "Model 236" bass amplifier.
In the 1950s, Leo Fender and George Fullerton developed the first mass-produced electric bass guitar. The Fender Electric Instrument Manufacturing Company began making the Precision Bass, or P-Bass, in October 1951. This design had a flat, simple body with no curved edges and a single coil pickup, similar to a Telecaster. By 1957, the Precision Bass had curved edges for comfort and a pickup with a split coil design.
The Fender Bass was a major improvement for working musicians. Compared to the upright bass, the bass guitar was easier to carry. When amplified, it was less likely to cause audio feedback than acoustic basses. The addition of frets helped bassists play in tune more easily than on upright basses, and it made it simpler for guitarists to learn the instrument.
In 1953, Monk Montgomery became the first bassist to tour with the Fender bass in Lionel Hampton’s big band. He may also have been the first to record with the electric bass in a session on July 2, 1953, with the Art Farmer Septet. Other early Fender bass pioneers included Roy Johnson (with Lionel Hampton) and Shifty Henry (with Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five). Bill Black, who played with Elvis Presley, and James Jamerson switched from upright bass to the Fender Precision Bass around 1957. The bass guitar was designed to appeal to both guitarists and upright bass players. Many early pioneers, such as Joe Osborn and Paul McCartney, were originally guitarists.
In 1953, Gibson released the first short-scale, violin-shaped electric bass, the EB-1, with an extendable end pin that allowed it to be played upright or horizontally. In 1958, Gibson introduced the maple arched-top EB-2, described as a "hollow-body electric bass with a Bass/Baritone pushbutton for two different sounds." In 1959, Gibson released the EB-0, which looked similar to a Gibson SG (though early models had a slab-sided body like the Les Paul Special). Both Fender and Gibson basses used bolt-on or set necks.
Other companies also started making bass guitars in the 1950s. Kay Musical Instrument Company produced the K162 in 1952. At the 1956 German trade fair "Musikmesse Frankfurt," the Höfner 500/1, a viola-shaped bass made with violin techniques, was introduced. It became known as the "Beatle bass" because Paul McCartney used it. In 1957, Rickenbacker released the model 4000, the first bass with a neck-through-body design. In 1958, Burns London introduced the Supersound.
As rock music became popular in the 1960s, more companies made electric basses, including Yamaha, Teisco, and Guyatone. In 1960, Fender introduced the Jazz Bass, originally called the "Deluxe Bass," with an offset waist body design for comfort. The Jazz Bass had two single-coil pickups.
Fender also made the Mustang Bass, a 30-inch (762 mm) scale-length instrument, shorter than the 34-inch (864 mm) Jazz and Precision models. The Fender VI, a six-string bass tuned one octave lower than a standard guitar, was released in 1961 and briefly used by Jack Bruce of Cream.
Gibson introduced its short-scale 30.5-inch (775 mm) EB-3 in 1961, also used by Bruce. The EB-3 had a "mini-humbucker" pickup. Gibson basses often had shorter 30.5-inch scales than Fender’s Precision. Gibson did not make a 34-inch-scale bass until 1963 with the Thunderbird.
In 1966, Ampeg released the first commercial fretless bass guitar, the AUB-1. In the late 1960s, eight-string basses with four octave-paired courses (like a 12-string guitar) were introduced, such as the Hagström H8.
In 1972, Alembic created "boutique" or "high-end" electric bass guitars. These custom-made instruments, used by musicians like Phil Lesh, Jack Casady, and Stanley Clarke, had unique designs, premium wood, and advanced construction techniques like multi-laminate necks and graphite necks. Alembic also added onboard electronics for pre-amplification and equalization.
Active electronics increase the instrument’s output and allow more control over sound. In 1976, the UK company Wal began making active basses. In 1974, Music Man Instruments, founded by Tom Walker, Forrest White, and Leo Fender, introduced the StingRay, the first widely produced bass with built-in active electronics. These basses often include a preamplifier and knobs to adjust low and high frequencies.
In the mid-1970s, five-string basses with a very low "B" string were introduced. In 1975, bassist Anthony Jackson asked luthier Carl Thompson to build a six-string bass tuned (low to high) B0, E1, A1, D2, G2, C3, adding a low B string and a high C string.