L3F1 MUSIC

Bass Pickup

Is The Rogue Lx405 Pro A Good Bass Guitar?

Is the Rogue LX405 Pro a good bass guitar? In fact, are ANY Rogue basses good? As always, that is a matter of opinion, but I will try to present all the facts and let you decide for yourself.

First of all, Rogue basses often are perceived as cheap junky basses. In the olden days they weren't the best quality, and people didn't like them. That reputation stuck, and even today many people don't like Rogue basses just because they ARE Rogue basses. Unfortunately, most of these people haven't even played the newer models.

For less than $200 (and less than $100 for some Rogues), you can't expect them to be awesome basses that will outperform a $2000 boutique bass. However, for the price they are actually pretty reliable basses to learn on or jam on when you aren't doing a big show.

The Rogue LX405 Pro has a basswood body with a maple veneer, so it is very lightweight. But the two way truss rod and reinforcement of the neck make it a very sturdy bass. The hardware and finish are nice, but again, you can't compare this to an expensive bass.

One main benefit is the pickups. Most beginner basses ($400 or less) don't have Active Pickups. But the Rogue has active/passive pickups with EQ. It is easy to switch back and forth from active and passive mode, and for a bass this cheap it sounds pretty good.

You will find mixed reviews of this bass. On one hand there are the people that will say it is junk simply because it is a Rogue bass. But there are people who have played it and realize that it is actually a pretty solid bass.

Overall, the Rogue LX405 Pro is a pretty good bass for the price.

If you have more money to spend, you can obviously buy better basses. But for only $200, it will be hard to find a bass that will play this good and have these features.

If you want to learn to play bass, or try out a 5 string, or just want a backup bass to keep lying around for practice, this is one of the better choices that you can get without having to spend much money.

For pictures, videos, and more information on this bass you can visit http://www.yourguitarreviews.com/

About the Author

M. J. Mason is a writer and a guitar enthusiast.  You can read guitar reviews, get music news, and watch videos of gear and guitars on his blog http://www.yourguitarreviews.com/

Whats the best pickup for a bass guitar?

What's the best quality sound pickup for my bass (Fender Squire Jazz Bass)

It depends what kind of music you want to play. But yeah, I agree with the other answer, EMG's are good for a lot of things.

If you put better pickups in a Squire, it will sound better than a Fender model with stock pickups, but I don't really like the feel of Squire basses. They just feel cheaply made when you compare it to a real Fender. It's really up to you if you want to get a whole new bass or just upgrade your Squire now. If you ever do get a Fender model, you can just swap the pickups anyway.

Bass Pickup
Searcy String Works #4 Fender Geddy Lee Jazz Bass Pickup

Roland GK3B Divided Pickup for Bass $219 Bass players looking to expand their tone palette won't want to miss Roland's new GK-3B pickup, designed for driving synth-bass rigs such as the popular Roland V-Bass and GR-20 guitar synthesizer. Much smaller and thinner than its GK-2B predecessor, the GK-3B is similar to its guitar counterpart, the GK-3, but catered for bass players.

Boss GK-3B Divided Pickup (Bass) $199.99 Boss GK-3B Divided Pickup (Bass) Equip Your Bass for Deep Space The popularity of Roland's V-Bass and GR-20 guitar synthesizer continues to spread, and the new improved GK-3B is the perfect pickup for driving these and other MIDI bass rigs. Much smaller and thinner than its GK-2B predecessor, the GK-3B is similar to its guitar counterpart, the GK-3, but catered for bass players. Features: Thinner controller unit (compared to GK-2B) Large and smooth GK Knob for controlling volume Select Switch for selecting normal bass tone, synth sounds, or a mixture of the two Attachment holder and double-sided tape included for easy installation Compatible with V-BASS and GI-20. In October 2004, an updater will be available for download to make it compatible with GR-20. Specifications: Controls GK Volume, Down/S1 Switch, Up/S2 Switch, Select Switch Connectors GK Connector, Normal Pickup Input jack Accessories Normal Guitar Cable, Owner's Manual Options GK Cables: GKC-3, GKC-5, GKC-10, GK Parallel Box: GKP-4, Unit Selector: US-20 Size and Weight ( Controller ) Width 87 mm 3-7/16 inches Depth 74 mm 2-15/16 inches Height 23 mm 0-15/16 inches Weight 0.7 kg 1 lbs. 9 oz. Get Your Boss GK-3B Divided Pickup (Bass) Today!

Roland GK-3B Divided Pickup (Bass) $249 Roland GK-3B Divided Pickup (Bass) Bass players looking to expand their tone palette won't want to miss Roland's new GK-3B pickup, designed for driving synth-bass rigs such as the popular Roland V-Bass and GR-20 guitar synthesizer. Much smaller and thinner than its GK-2B predecessor, the GK-3B is similar to its guitar counterpart, the GK-3, but catered for bass players. Equip Your Bass for Deep Space The popularity of Roland's V-Bass and GR-20 guitar synthesizer continues to spread, and the new improved GK-3B is the perfect pickup for driving these and other MIDI bass rigs. Much smaller and thinner than its GK-2B predecessor, the GK-3B is similar to its guitar counterpart, the GK-3, but catered for bass players. Attachment holder and double-sided tape included for easy installation Features: Enables connection to synthesizers, such as Roland's V-Bass and GR-20 v.2 Ultra-thin design Large, smooth-action volume knob Select switch for normal bass tone, synth sound, or mixture of both Easy installation Specifications: Controls GK Volume, Down/S1 Switch, Up/S2 Switch, Select Switch Connectors GK Connector, Normal Pickup Input jack Accessories Normal Guitar Cable, Owner's Manual Options GK Cables: GKC-3, GKC-5, GKC-10, GK Parallel Box: GKP-4, Unit Selector: US-20 Size and Weight ( Controller ) Width 87 mm 3-7/16 inches Depth 74 mm 2-15/16 inches Height 23 mm 0-15/16 inches Weight 0.7 kg 1 lbs. 9 oz. The specifications are subject to change without notice. Get Your Roland GK-3B Divided Pickup (Bass) Today

Seymour Duncan APB-1 Pro-Active Bass Pickup - Black $109.99 Create a modern tone with sharp attack and enhanced bass response with this bass pickup that is compatible with P-Bass pickup-equipped bass guitars, including guitars with warmer toned ash, alder or basswood bodies.

Lace Music Group Alumitone Bass Bar 35 Pickup - Black $89.99 This bass bar 3.5 pickup is compatible with most bass guitars for wide-ranging use and features a lightweight design for easy playability.

Good Advise for Buying Your First Bass Guitar

When you play the bass guitar professionally for many years, you learn some pretty amazing things that no one ever knew enough to tell you about at the time when you first needed to know them.  It's unfortunate but, most of us learn by making mistakes and then learning to correct them as we continue on through life.  Here are a few ideas you might want to consider before you purchase your first bass guitar and amplification system that (had I known about them) would have saved me a lot of time and money and enabled me to sound more like a professional bass player a lot sooner that I did.

First, you will want to purchase a bass guitar with two pickups on it.  You will get a much better variety of tone from two pickups.  One pickup will be positioned close to the bridge (where the strings attach on the body of the guitar) and the other will be positioned closer to the middle of the body or where the neck connects to the body of the bass guitar.  The bridge pickup delivers a tone that sounds a bit harsher with a greater treble sound to it and the middle or neck pickup will deliver a more mellow sound.  So, you can see that it is important to have both pickups for a variety of tone.  As far as price is concerned, purchase whatever you can afford but, understand that the more expensive bass guitars will have better sounding pickups and better hardware on them and they will also be easier to sell if you decide you don't like playing the bass.  In addition to sounding a little better, the more expensive basses are also a little easier to play and will stay in tune longer.  Don't forget you will also need to budget for an amplification system so you will be able to hear yourself playing while you practice.

If you want the ultimate bottom end sound from your bass, you will want to purchase a 5-string rather that the standard 4-string bass.  The bottom end delivered from a 5-string sounds so much more awesome especially when you drop tune the 5th string (normally a B note) to a low A.  It's also easier to sell a used 5-string bass than a 4-string.  Why? Because experienced players who already play a 4-string are more likely to consider a used 5-string but, when trading up from a 4-string to a better 4-string you're not looking at used bass guitars.  You want a new one in that case.

Since the bass amplifier, speakers and effects processors are the more expensive part of playing the bass, let me suggest that you may not want buy a bass amplifier right away.  Why? You don't need one yet.  You're still learning to play.  Instead, buy a good pair of studio quality headphones (20 Hz to 20 kHz response) and instead of a bass amplifier, purchase a really good bass multieffects processor.  If you do that, you can play your bass through the bass effects processor and listen to it with some great sounding headphones and with awesome sounding bass effects too.  You will also not be disturbing anyone in the house or your neighbors (if you live in an apartment) while you are learning to play.  That also translates into longer more quality practice time.

If you should decide you don't like playing the bass, you can very easily sell the headphones and the bass effects processor and get most of your money back.  If you have purchased one of the better base guitars (not the best but certainly not the worst) you will easily be able to sell that also.  Most beginning bass players pay good money for a cheap bass amplifier that does not sound very good and nobody who plays the bass wants a cheap used bass amplifier.  That, in my opinion, is just throwing your money away on something you will only use for a little while anyway as you learn how to play.  A bass effects processor sounds better than any bass amplifier (even the expensive ones) and you will continue to use it even after you are playing well and decide to form or join a band.

The amplifier, speakers, and bass effects processor are way more important than the bass itself in terms of sound quality.  So, when you get ready to play with a band, you will want to invest in a quality amplification system at that time.  Never play a bass through a guitar amplifier (you can actually damage the amp or the speakers).  You will eventually want to purchase a bass amplifier that has an AUX or SUB output so that you can configure a powered subwoofer with your bass amplifier.  Why is that important? It's important because most bass amplifiers contain woofers (a type of full range speaker) which typically provides a low frequency response down to around 50 Hz (cycles per second).  The low E-string on a 4-string bass vibrates at approximately 41.2 Hz.  Therefore, most bass amplifiers will sound a little muddy in the low range when you're playing that E-string.  That can also make it difficult to tell whether or not your E-string is in tune.  A good subwoofer should provide a frequency response as low as to 20 or 25 Hz (some as low as 15 Hz) which will more than adequately provide for a 5-string bass that is drop tuned to a low A (27.5 Hz).

When you are ready to play with a band, you will then need at least a 150 watt (or higher) bass amplifier.  It just takes more wattage to drive those low tones and to be able to compete adequately (in terms of volume) with a 100 watt guitar amplifier.  Before you start playing live for an audience, you will want to add a good low end subwoofer to your amplifier.  Make sure that whatever amplifier you purchase, has an AUX or SUB output port to allow you to connect a powered subwoofer to your amplifier.  With that subwoofer, you will no longer just hear the bass; you will feel the bass as well.

So, with a relatively inexpensive bass guitar (still your starter guitar), and a really good bass effects processor (your original practice amp) and a 150 watt (or higher wattage) amplifier and a powered subwoofer, you are going to sound much more professional than your average bass player.  Many of them will come up to you on a gig and ask about your bass sound and what kind of amplifier you are using.  I know.  It happens to me all the time.  Good luck to you!  You're going to love playing the bass, it's one of the worlds highest paying part-time jobs and one of the highest paying full time professions in the world, if you become really good at it.  Thanks for reading; your comments are always welcome!

About the Author

The author, David M LaBuda is a professional songwriter, singer and musician who writes and records music daily in his home recording studio located in Albuquerque, NM.  If you have any questions or wish to communicate with Dave, he can be reached through MySpace, Facebook, or Yahoo Answers.   To hear samples of some of his work, we invite you to come to http://soundcloud.com/ultralife_music_studios

Swoon $7.95 The follow-up to the critically acclaimed "Carnavas."...

Pickup Groove $0.99 ...

Wallmonkeys Peel and Stick Wall Decals - Große Schwarze Lautsprecher - Removable Graphic WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won't damage your paint or l...

Wallmonkeys Peel and Stick Wall Decals - Schwarze Lautsprecher - Removable Graphic WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won't damage your paint or l...

Wallmonkeys Peel and Stick Wall Decals - Schwarzer Lautsprecher - Removable Graphic WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won't damage your paint or l...

Bass Pickup