Sunrise, FL (October 19, 2016) -- IK Multimedia, the pioneer in analog effects modeling, is pleased to announce MODO BASS, a breakthrough physical modeling technology that brings a completely new level of realism and playability to the world of virtual bass instruments. MODO BASS is a completely customizable physically modeled virtual bass that recreates the electric bass and how it's played - from the physical instrument and everything that makes it sound the way it does, to the human technique of how the instrument is played and its sonic performance, to the entire sound signal chain - no detail is left out.
This pioneering approach to virtual instrument technology recreates the dynamic interaction between the player, the bass, effects chain and amplifier that until now has never been realized nor recreated with traditional virtual instruments. This intense evaluation and modeling process gives players and producers access to a limitless universe of bass sound, an unmatched level of playability and the most realistic, lifelike sounding dynamic performance. No other bass virtual instrument can even come close to offering what MODO Bass provides.
Eight years in the making and developed in collaboration with one of Europe's oldest universities, MODO Bass utilizes a breakthrough technology to breathe life into bass tracks. Unlike traditional sample-based virtual instruments, MODO Bass utilizes modal synthesis technology and an ultra-optimized sound engine to model each string as a nonlinear resonator where the string's acoustic behavior is determined by its physical parameters as well as by the interaction of the string with fretboard, body and pick-ups of the instrument. The action of the player is then modeled as a nonlinear physical interaction with certain areas on the string surface. Then using IK's cutting edge analog modeling expertise, the amp and effects rig of the electric bass is added to the sound chain.
All of this gives MODO Bass the ability to create sound in real time based on the construction and components of the bass combined with the player technique, finesse and the ever-changing dynamic interactions between the two. In short, MODO Bass brings - for the first time - ever-changing, hyper-realistic, living-breathing bass sound and performance to the world of virtual instruments. And since it doesn't use samples, MODO Bass has an extremely small memory footprint.
Virtually every electric bass sound
The foundation of MODO Bass is a collection of 12 physically modeled iconic electric basses that span the history of bass sound in recorded music - more bass models than available in most other virtual instruments. Bass models include "60s P-Bass" based on an Alder body '60s era Fender Precision Bass, "70s P-Bass" based on an Ash body Fender Precision Bass, "70s J-Bass" based on an Alder body Fender Jazz Bass, "Modern J-Bass" based on an Ash body Fender Jazz Bass, "Devil Bass" based on Gibson EB-0, "Bass Man 5" based on Music Man StingRay 5-string, "Rick n' Bass" based on Rickenbacker 4003, "Studio Bass" based on Yamaha RB5, "Violin Bass" based on a Hofner Violin Bass, "Thunder Bass" based on a Gibson Thunderbird, "Japan Bass" based on an Ibanez Soundgear, and "Flame Bass" based on Warwick Streamer.
Every detail of each bass has been meticulously analyzed and modeled to capture the true sonic character of the original basses - the shape and type, the wood used for the body and neck construction, the hardware components like bridge and tuners, the original onboard electronics and controls - every aspect and detail has been modeled and recreated to provide the highest degree of sonic authenticity of the original. But the sounds available with MODO Bass extend far beyond the 12 modeled basses; with the available customization features, users can craft virtually every electric bass sound imaginable.
Customized, ever-changing sound
MODO BASS is able to produce an unlimited palette of bass sounds because everything can be customized. Unlike other bass instruments, users are able to adjust and personalize each aspect of the instrument that contributes to its tone profile - playing style, strings, pickups, pickup placement, electronics, tone settings, action, stomp box effects and amp settings. The combination of these customization options opens up a limitless universe of bass sound covering every imaginable and desirable tone. And just like a real bass player, every expression and interaction with the instrument will be unique.
Pluck, Slap or Pick - modeled playing styles
Once the bass instrument has been selected, players choose from 3 playing styles - pluck, slap or pick - and control how each playing style influences the tone of the instrument; the force applied to the strings, the position of the hand, the direction of the stroke, the fingers used to play the instrument and how the strings are approached, the impact of the thumb slap and the finger pull on the string and even the thickness of the pick and style of its attack. Every aspect of playing style has been studied and modeled to provide its unique impact on tone.
String Customization
The strings are one of the most important contributors to tone, so IK painstakingly studied and recreated all of the factors that affect it. Players can choose the number of strings to define the tonal range of the bass, the construction type and material of the strings (round or flat wound), the gauge and age of the strings, plus the physical action height of the strings above the fretboard. Each of these options contributes its own character to the output of the bass and introduces realism never before heard in a virtual instrument.
Custom pickup configuration
Players can also completely customize the onboard electronics of the bass. There are 20 iconic bass pickups from which to choose that can be freely interchanged and added to the instrument - up to 2 pickups per bass. Users can change the type of pickups used, neck or bridge single coil or humbuckers, and their physical location under the strings can be moved freely for unlimited playing and tonal variations - a feature virtually impossible in the physical world. Each pickup has its own volume control and is also controlled by a global tone control. MODO BASS also gives players the ability to mix in the sound of an under-bridge piezo pickup for added resonance and top end. Switching from Passive to Active electronics option also enables a 3-band parametric EQ to fine-tune the pickup output tone.
FX and Amplifier choices
With MODO Bass, players have full control over the signal path and get 7 bass stomp boxes and two classic bass amplifiers derived from IK's AmpliTube flagship software. Stomp box effects include an Octaver, Distortion, Chorus, Compressor, Delay, Envelope Filter or Graphic EQ. Each stomp box gives players full control over the effect applied to the signal, parameter adjustment and overall output volume into the next effect.T
Players can also choose from a classic all-tube amplifier and 1x15 cab, or a powerhouse solid-state model with a 4x10 cab. Each amp provides full control over gain structure, EQ (with mid-frequency adjustment on the tube amp), and additional fine-tuning options with a graphic EQ. There is also a global bypass feature that allows for bass signal routing from MODO Bass into another amp effects modeling suite like IK's AmpliTube Custom Shop, opening up a whole new world of sonic options for bass tone shaping and effects.
Totally controllable in real time
MODO Bass also provides MIDI control of critical parameters that can be automated in real time. With the MIDI Control section, players control and adjust the application of vibrato, the playing style, the application of Mute technique and the amount of slide technique applied while playing. The frequency of the vibrato, the amount of the bend, plus the amount of slide and detach noise while playing can all be controlled in real time on the fly.
Keyswitching in MODO Bass allows players to switch on the fly between chord mode and note mode, the type of stroke used for playing, the fingers used and the method of playing, which provides the ability to completely customize the sound in real time.
Pricing and availability
MODO Bass will be available in November, 2016 for $/€299.99 and $199.99 crossgrade price. MODO BASS for Mac/PC is available now for pre-order from the IK Online store at a special introductory price of only $/€149.99.
Watch the company's video demo:
For more information:
IK Multimedia
Gibson originally launched the EB-6 model with the intention of serving consumers looking for a “tic-tac” bass sound.
The Gibson EB-6 was announced in 1959 and came into the world in 1960, not with a dual-horn body but with that of an elegant ES-335. They looked stately, with a thin, semi-hollow body, f-holes, and a sunburst finish. Our pick for this Vintage Vault column is one such first-year model, in about as original condition as you’re able to find today. “Why?” you may be asking. Well, read on....
When the EB-6 was introduced, the Bass VI was still a glimmer in Leo Fender’s eye. The real competition were the Danelectro 6-string basses that seemed to have popped up out of nowhere and were suddenly being used on lots of hit records by the likes of Elvis, Patsy Cline, and other household names. Danos like the UB-2 (introduced in ’56), the Longhorn 4623 (’58), and the Shorthorn 3612 (’58) were the earliest attempts any company made at a 6-string bass in this style: not quite a standard electric bass, not quite a guitar, nor, for that matter, quite like a baritone guitar.
The only change this vintage EB-6 features is a replacement set of Kluson tuners.
Photo by Ken Lapworth
Gibson, Fender, and others during this era would in fact call these basses “baritone guitars,” to add to our confusion today. But these vintage “baritones” were all tuned one octave below a standard guitar, with scale lengths around 30", while most modern baritones are tuned B-to-B or A-to-A and have scale lengths between 26" and 30".)
At the time, those Danelectros were instrumental to what was called the “tic-tac” bass sound of Nashville records produced by Chet Atkins, or the “click-bass” tones made out west by producer Lee Hazlewood. Gibson wanted something for this market, and the EB-6 was born.
“When the EB-6 was introduced, the Bass VI was still a glimmer in Leo Fender’s eye.”
The 30.5" scale 1960 EB-6 has a single humbucking pickup, a volume knob, a tone knob, and a small, push-button “Tone Selector Switch” that engages a treble circuit for an instant tic-tac sound. (Without engaging that switch, you get a bass-heavy tone so deep that cowboy chords will sound like a muddy mess.)
The EB-6, for better or for worse, did not unseat the Danelectros, and a November 1959 price list from Gibson hints at why: The EB-6 retailed for $340, compared to Dano price tags that ranged from $85 to $150. Only a few dozen EB-6 basses were shipped in 1960, and only 67 total are known to have been built before Gibson changed the shape to the SG style in 1962.
Most players who come across an EB-6 today think it was a response to the Fender Bass VI, but the former actually beat the latter to the market by a full year.
Photo by Ken Lapworth
It’s sad that so few were built. Sure, it was a high-end model made to achieve the novelty tic-tac sound of cheaper instruments, but in its full-voiced glory, the EB-6 has a huge potential of tones. It would sound great in our contemporary guitar era where more players are exploring baritone ranges, and where so many people got back into the Bass VI after seeing the Beatles play one in the 2021 documentary, Get Back.
It’s sadder, still, how many original-era EB-6s have been parted out in the decades since. Remember earlier when I wrote that our Vintage Vaultpick was about as original as you could find? That’s because the model’s single humbucker is a PAF, its Kluson tuners are double-line, and its knobs are identical to those on Les Paul ’Bursts. So as people repaired broken ’Bursts, converted other LPs to ’Bursts, or otherwise sought to give other Gibsons a “Golden Era” sound and look ... they often stripped these forgotten EB-6 basses for parts.
This original EB-6 is up for sale now from Reverb seller Emerald City Guitars for a $16,950 asking price at the time of writing. The only thing that isn’t original about it is a replacement set of Kluson tuners, not because its originals were stolen but just to help preserve them. (They will be included in the case.)
With so few surviving 335-style EB-6 basses, Reverb doesn’t have a ton of sales data to compare prices to. Ten years ago, a lucky buyer found a nearly original 1960 EB-6 for about $7,000. But Emerald City’s $16,950 asking price is closer to more recent examples and asking prices.
Sources: Prices on Gibson Instruments, November 1, 1959, Tony Bacon’s “Danelectro’s UB-2 and the Early Days of 6-String Basses” Reverb News article, Gruhn’s Guide to Vintage Guitars, Tom Wheeler’s American Guitars: An Illustrated History, Reverb listings and Price Guide sales data.
Billy Gibbons is an undisputable guitar force whose feel, tone, and all-around vibe make him the highest level of hero. But that’s not to say he hasn’t made some odd choices in his career, like when ZZ Top re-recorded parts of their classic albums for CD release. And fans will argue which era of the band’s career is best. Some of us love drum machines and synths and others don’t, but we all love Billy.
This episode is sponsored by Magnatone
Originally released in the 1980s, the Victory has long been a cult favorite among guitarists for its distinctive double cutaway design and excellent upper-fret access. These new models feature flexible electronics, enhanced body contours, improved weight and balance, and an Explorer headstock shape.
A Cult Classic Made Modern
The new Victory features refined body contours, improved weight and balance, and an updated headstock shape based on the popular Gibson Explorer.
Effortless Playing
With a fast-playing SlimTaper neck profile and ebony fretboard with a compound radius, the Victory delivers low action without fret buzz everywhere on the fretboard.
Flexible Electronics
The two 80s Tribute humbucker pickups are wired to push/pull master volume and tone controls for coil splitting and inner/outer coil selection when the coils are split.
For more information, please visit gibson.com.
Gibson Victory Figured Top Electric Guitar - Iguana Burst
