Do certain basses have Mojo?

[led4thehed2]

When I think of "mojo" I think of it as a special something that makes a bass sound better than average, and makes me WANT to play!

I tried a 70s P-bass in Guitar Center and was blown away. It had "mojo". Tried a Steve Harris P-bass- amazing! Mojo. Bought it.

 

[Clef_de_fa]

Mojo is the name of the purple dragon.

You can chase it all you want, you'll never catch it.

 

[Jborg]

I’ll put myself the “yes” to mojo camp. I think I’d feel differently about an instrument that had a history & that’d probably make me play a bit differently.

 

[funkinbottom]

Short answer.... no

 

[Not yet]

Hell yes

Pick up one it does nothing, another says take me home. Played handful of Alleva's and one converted me. Went in to by a Sadowsky and just couldn't connect

Had a perfect 78 Stingray just did nothing for me and stayed in the closet for 30 years. Have a Squier Classic Vibe sees plenty of daylight

No rational explanation why some connect

 

[SactoBass]

Based on what I have observed, "mojo" is what a seller says his banged up bass has, in an effort to justify a higher selling price for a banged up bass. I'm not saying I am correct in this assessment. I'm just saying this is what I have observed over the years.

From my perspective, "mojo" is about as real as luck from a rabbit's foot or 4-leaf clover, or figuring out what's going to happen to you next month by looking at the way the stars are aligned or by reading the lines in your palm.

 

[JakobT]

Mojo? No such thing.
Unless you think otherwise, in which case it exists - for you.

 

[J-Bassomatic]

Mojo is a meaningless buzz word. If you think something has it than it does. Same for frrunkis or kershplanktididoo.

This for sure, there is no mystery. Take an object as simple as a pencil, for instance, there are some people who can make that pencil 'sing' and there are others who can barely win at tic tac toe. (Me, for instance)

 

[WardEarth]

Yes. What about wood crystallization? Good construction, pickup and wood selection, etc. Some basses just have the magic.
The dirt and dings do not add to the mojo. Although some people may it mojo, that is not the mojo.
I'd be willing to bet that Jamerson played many different basses before he chose his main players.

 

[Member8675309]

Yes, a bass can have mojo. It can also have bad juju. I had a bad juju bass once. Sold it. Bad juju gone.

 

[ctmullins]

Wire and wood. The concept of “mojo” was invented by vintage instrument $peculator$ and perpetuated by the gullible.

 

[felis]

Yes, a bass can have mojo. It can also have bad juju. I had a bad juju bass once. Sold it. Bad juju gone.

I know this to be true.

 

[WhenTheDrumsStops]

James Jameson’s backup bass was sold at auction last year, not the funk machine, and it made me wonder. “Does that bass have mojo?” Or is it just wire and wood and the bass player provides the Mojo. Discuss

It's not the bass, it's the player... most of it anyway. The bass determines the general sound dynamics, the player has to do the rest.

 

[buldog5151bass]

You could have given Jamerson any bass, and it would have mojo. Imagine if he played a properly set up instrument...

How many instruments did Entwistle play? How about Geddy... the three Beatles? And so on.

 

[lowphatbass]

Some instruments just “speak” to the player, they may not be great but they are great for the player. They seem to do exactly what you want when you want and they sound like what you hear in your head. Sometimes this is built up over time.

Mojo can also be confidence/experience in the case of vintage instruments. Sometimes when you pick up an old, worn bass you know it’s seen some things....spills, thrills, falls, countless gig situations....maybe it was a one owner bass that played the same songs in the same room with the same band for 20 years...but that’s still more of a lead into “your story” with the bass than the inside of a cardboard box, a couple of warehouses and a brown truck. There’s a sense of “built in reliability” with an old bass. A bass doesn’t necessarily wear out in the same way a car or washing machine does.

Some people are totally into this, some are turned-off by it. Since it’s intangible, I think it can’t be proven or disproven....some people get inspired and excited by old and worn instruments and judging by the prices I don’t believe that it’s 100% due to the sound.

That’s my take on Mojo.

 

[mongo2]

Yes. What about wood crystallization? Good construction, pickup and wood selection, etc. Some basses just have the magic.

Not magic, just a combination of particular components that some think sound good...others can just as easily think that same combination of components sounds bad.

 

[mongo2]

Based on what I have observed, "mojo" is what a seller says his banged up bass has, in an effort to justify a higher selling price for a banged up bass. I'm not saying I am correct in this assessment. I'm just saying this is what I have observed over the years.

From my perspective, "mojo" is about as real as luck from a rabbit's foot or 4-leaf clover, or figuring out what's going to happen to you next month by looking at the way the stars are aligned or by reading the lines in your palm.

But the Magic 8 Ball is real, right?

 

[SactoBass]

But the Magic 8 Ball is real, right?

Ask again later!

 

[mongo2]

Ask again later!

I knew you were going to say that.

 

[SactoBass]

I knew you were going to say that.

I couldn't help it!