Double Bass What would happen if I covered my laminate bass in vynil stickers?

[SteIIa]

I had a wacky idea, but don't want to act on it. Now, hear me out, because your immediate knee jerk reaction will be: "What? No."

I have an old laminate bass that's pretty beat up and crappy. I'm gonna put a magnetic pickup on it, most likely (still deciding), and use it to play funk/motown type stuff.

How would the sound be affected if I covered the body of the bass in vynil stickers? The standard type of stuff you'd get at a tech convention or something. Would it still be fine for doing that kind of gig (keeping in mind that I am getting a separate bass for my jazz needs), or is this an idea I should abandon?

 

[Jazz Ad]

If the goal is to use a magnetic mic with it it won't change much to the tone.
Acoustically you will lose projection and sustain but I don't think it matters for such a project.

 

[rickwolff]

It will make a beat up crappy looking bass look like it has been further abused.

Beat up and crappy are battle scars it can wear proudly. Not so with the stickers.

 

[two fingers]

I would need to see the stickers before offering an opinion.

 

[charlie monroe]

The rest of the DB community would ostracize you - with the possible exception of some psycho-billy players.

 

[Don Hergert]

@SteIIa, just to be clear, what do you want to accomplish with the stickers?

If you just want to cover the "beat up and crappy look", stickers will probably accomplish that, but you and people you care about may be more troubled by the "sticker look" than by the "beat up and crappy" look. Also, keep in mind that the current finish on the bass, whatever the condition it is in, will probably at least partially come off with the stickers if you ever try to remove them.

If you're trying to modify (read: Mute) the acoustic tone, stickers will do that, but how much depends on your bass and on the stickers. The human ear is said to be unable to recognize less than a 10% difference in tone and/or volume, plus the human ear and brain are very subjective. So you may not notice a difference.

If you're trying to modify the pickup related sound, that will probably happen too, but you can make up for almost any difference with your amplification hardware.

I've seen and played some basses with stickers on them; aesthetically it isn't my favorite look, I do personally prefer the "beat up and crappy look", but either way, basses have their own charm and if you really enjoy playing them, how they look doesn't have to matter a whole lot.

 

[KUNGfuSHERIFF]

What would happen is you’d look like a NASCAR driver.

 

[jsf729]

If it's a decent bass and you want the rock a billy vibe, paint it with a sparkle finish

 

[bolophonic]

It depends on the stickers. If you cover the bass with cool stickers that document the bass’ travels, that could be cool. If you slap on a Bud Lite logo next to a peace sign from the mall and some Batman junk, you will look tasteless and foolish. Maybe start with the back first?

 

[ERIC A]

The outcome would be you have one crazy looking Bass....this is the only sticker i ever had on my bass....

 

[unbrokenchain]

The last sticker thread was here a few weeks ago.. Put stickers on a Bass??????

My favorite response was @DirtDog's... "if you have to ask about stickers, you aren't ready for stickers."