<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bass guitar</span>

Bass guitar

<p>The <b>bass guitar</b>, <b>electric bass</b> or simply <b>bass</b> (<span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt"><a href="/en/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English" class="wl">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span>b</span><span>eɪ</span><span>s</span></span>/</a></span></span>), is the lowest-pitched member of the <a href="/en/Guitar" title="Guitar" class="wl">guitar</a> family. It is a <a href="/en/Plucked_string_instrument" title="Plucked string instrument" class="wl">plucked string instrument</a> similar in appearance and construction to an <a href="/en/Electric_guitar" title="Electric guitar" class="wl">electric</a> or <a href="/en/Acoustic_guitar" title="Acoustic guitar" class="wl">acoustic guitar</a>, but with a longer <a href="/en/Neck_(music)" title="Neck (music)" class="wl">neck</a> and <a href="/en/Scale_length_(string_instruments)" title="Scale length (string instruments)" class="wl">scale length</a>, and typically four to six <a href="/en/String_(music)" title="String (music)" class="wl">strings</a> or <a href="/en/Course_(music)" title="Course (music)" class="wl">courses</a>. Since the mid-1950s, the bass guitar has largely replaced the <a href="/en/Double_bass" title="Double bass" class="wl">double bass</a> in <a href="/en/Popular_music" title="Popular music" class="wl">popular music</a>.</p>

<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt1">Electric plucked string instrument</div>
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<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles mw:Transclusion">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-header,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-subheader,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-above,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-title,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-image,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-below{text-align:center}</style><div class='mobile-collapse'><header class="mobile-collapse-header mobile-collapse-btn"><b>Quick facts: String instrument, Other names, Classificatio...</b> <span class='arrow'>▼</span></header> <table class="infobox mobile-collapse-element"><caption class="infobox-title">Bass guitar</caption><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><span><a href="/en/File:70's_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:70's_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/70%27s_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png/80px-70%27s_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png" decoding="async" data-file-width="313" data-file-height="980" data-file-type="bitmap" height="250" width="80" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/70%27s_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png/119px-70%27s_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/70%27s_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png/159px-70%27s_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png 2x" alt="70%27s_Fender_Jazz_Bass.png"></a></span><div class="infobox-caption"><a href="/en/Fender_Jazz_Bass" title="Fender Jazz Bass" class="wl">Fender Jazz Bass</a></div></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:#b0c4de"><a href="/en/String_instrument" title="String instrument" class="wl">String instrument</a></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Other names</th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left">Bass guitar, electric bass, bass</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Musical_instrument_classification" title="Musical instrument classification" class="wl">Classification</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left">
<a href="/en/String_instrument" title="String instrument" class="wl">String instrument</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Hornbostel–Sachs" title="Hornbostel–Sachs" class="wl">Hornbostel–Sachs classification</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left">321.322<br>(Composite <a href="/en/Chordophone" title="Chordophone" class="mw-redirect wl">chordophone</a>)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Inventor(s)</th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left"><a href="/en/Paul_Tutmarc" title="Paul Tutmarc" class="wl">Paul Tutmarc</a>, <a href="/en/Leo_Fender" title="Leo Fender" class="wl">Leo Fender</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Developed</th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align: left">1930s</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:#b0c4de"><a href="/en/Range_(music)" title="Range (music)" class="wl">Playing range</a></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data" style="text-align: left">
<figure class="mw-halign-center wiki-thumb"><a href="/en/File:Range_bass_guitar.png" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Range_bass_guitar.png"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Range_bass_guitar.png/200px-Range_bass_guitar.png" decoding="async" data-file-width="1756" data-file-height="832" data-file-type="bitmap" height="95" width="200" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Range_bass_guitar.png/300px-Range_bass_guitar.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Range_bass_guitar.png/400px-Range_bass_guitar.png 2x" alt="Range_bass_guitar.png"></a><figcaption></figcaption></figure><div class="center">Range of a standard tuned 4-string bass guitar (brackets: 5-string)</div></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:#b0c4de"><a href="/en/Musical_instrument" title="Musical instrument" class="wl">Related instruments</a></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data" style="text-align: left">
<ul><li><a href="/en/Electric_guitar" title="Electric guitar" class="wl">Electric guitar</a></li>
<li><a href="/en/Double_bass" title="Double bass" class="wl">Double bass</a></li>
<li><a href="/en/Acoustic_bass_guitar" title="Acoustic bass guitar" class="wl">Acoustic bass guitar</a></li>
<li><a href="/en/Ukulele_bass" title="Ukulele bass" class="mw-redirect wl">Ukulele bass</a></li>
<li><a href="/en/Fretless_bass" title="Fretless bass" class="wl">Fretless bass</a></li></ul>
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<p>The four-string bass guitar is usually tuned the same as the double bass, which corresponds to pitches one <a href="/en/Octave" title="Octave" class="wl">octave</a> lower than the four lowest-pitched strings of a guitar (typically E, A, D, and G). It is played primarily with the fingers or thumb, or with a <a href="/en/Plectrum" title="Plectrum" class="wl">pick</a>. To be heard at normal performance volumes, electric bass guitars require <a href="/en/Bass_amplifier" title="Bass amplifier" class="wl">external amplification</a>.</p>



The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass , is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and scale length, and typically four to six strings or courses. Since the mid-1950s, the bass guitar has largely replaced the double bass in popular music. The four-string bass guitar is usually tuned the same as the double bass, which corresponds to pitches one octave lower than the four lowest-pitched strings of a guitar . It is played primarily with the fingers or thumb, or with a pick. To be heard at normal performance volumes, electric bass guitars require external amplification. 