# Electric Guitar VS. Bass Guitar...which is easier to play???



## kdubvdub

I recently bought and tried to play guitar...not very well. I bought a Fender Starter Kit, and too be honest...I'm not very good at it. I find it hard to reach the top strings on the neck with my left hand. Is a bass guitar easier to play...i.e is the neck smaller or not as thick so that my hand fits better around it???

Thanks, Walter

The kit that I bought...opinions???
http://www.sherwoodmusic.com/guitars/fender_affinity_strat_pack


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## bw66

Bass is no easier than guitar. I would suggest getting some lessons for a couple of months - my guess is that a bit of technique would help you reach the strings. Most methods start at the first string and work their way over to the sixth string so you're not trying to do everything at once. Patience is the key to learning guitar properly - I've never met anyone who couldn't be taught to play if they put the effort in.

I've had a few students who had very good results with the Fender Starter kit.


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## jeremy_green

All due respect bw66 bass is easier in one regard - there is seldom chords played on it. But a bass neck is much larger so t can be a challenge spreading your fingers and getting the pressure up to fret notes accurately. BUT you are complaining about the guitar neck being too big - Bass is bigger. At the highest levels bass is just as hard ... but to play most rock songs it doesn't get much simpler than bass. 

Having said that I am not advocating giving up and making the switch. In my experience MOST people who "can't play" (in their words) expected it to be easier than it is and give up far too early. Just keep at it and do not give up. As bw66 said lessons can be a huge help at this stage.


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## bw66

The notion of bass being simpler is misleading. Yes, in most pop/rock songs there is less going on musically, but you need to be very precise in your timing which is very difficult for most people - especially beginners - guitar is much more forgiving. Also, the right (or dominant) hand technique is much more challenging; on top of which, playing bass is just more physically demanding. So, for the raw beginner, I maintain that bass is just as difficult.


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## bw66

I also noticed in another thread that you are a singer. Personally, I find it far easier to sing while playing guitar than bass - but, admittedly, I am much more experienced at playing guitar.


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## hollowbody

A real guitar ain't no rock-band toy 

It's not easy to play guitar. I'm constantly amazed at how easy I find doing some things that 10 years ago would have had me throwing fits. It's a LONG journey with lots of stretches where you learn tons in a small period of time and you actively feel like you're getting better. On the other hand, there are a lot of plateaus where you feel like you've stagnated and will never improve. The secret is constant and dedicated practice.

It's not that hard to improve to the point where you can bang out some chords and accompany yourself while singing, you can probably get to that point in a 6 months to a year. Beyond that, you'll need lots more practice. It all depends what you want to get out of it and what you're willing to put in!


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## kdubvdub

Thanks for the advice guys. One of the songs that we were playing, he showed me on my guitar..Rise Above This by Seether. The notes were to be played on the top 2 strings; which I couldn't press hard enough because I have small thick fingers. I was thinking that maybe a bass would be smaller...apparently I'm wrong..no biggie..Gotta find some lessons and maybe try stuff on the lower 3-4 strings. THANKS


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## ixoye777

Bass is significantly easier to play then guitar especially for a beginner.


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## ixoye777

kdubvdub said:


> I was thinking that maybe a bass would be smaller...apparently I'm wrong


Bass is smaller. The fretboard is longer but also not nearly as wide. You said you were having problems reaching the A and low E strings. That would not be as much of an issue on a bass as the fretboard is only 3/4 as wide as the average guitar. Head over to your local music store and pluck around on a few basses and see if it fits your hand better, I bet it does.


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## Jim DaddyO

A guitar has 6 strings while a bass has 4.....the bass has 2/3 the amount of strings, so, it is either 33% easier, or, going the other way, you have to be 50% better on each string....lol


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## 4345567

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## jimsz

Our bass player told us a joke to put it into perspective, it goes something like this...

A father sends his son to take bass guitar lessons, and after the first lesson he asks his son what he learned...

"We learned the E string today," he replied.

The next week, dad asked the same question...

"We learned the A string today"

The next week... 

"We learned the D string"

And the fourth week...

"We learned the G string"

On the fifth week, dad was getting ready to take his son to his lessons, however the son interjected and told his dad he had no time to take lessons anymore because he had a bunch of gigs lined up with a band.


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## greco

jimsz said:


> Our bass player told us a joke to put it into perspective, it goes something like this...
> 
> A father sends his son to take bass guitar lessons, and after the first lesson he asks his son what he learned...
> 
> "We learned the E string today," he replied.
> 
> The next week, dad asked the same question...
> 
> "We learned the A string today"
> 
> The next week...
> 
> "We learned the D string"
> 
> And the fourth week...
> 
> "We learned the G string"
> 
> On the fifth week, dad was getting ready to take his son to his lessons, however the son interjected and told his dad he had no time to take lessons anymore because he had a bunch of gigs lined up with a band.


I think the guitar equivalent to this might be "I only know three chords...but I can play 'em real good" sort of thing.

Cheers

Dave


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## Merlin

Which is easier? Check out 4:49 in the video:

[video=youtube;UXCwgHyAgAw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXCwgHyAgAw[/video]


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## zontar

jimsz said:


> Our bass player told us a joke to put it into perspective, it goes something like this...
> 
> A father sends his son to take bass guitar lessons, and after the first lesson he asks his son what he learned...
> 
> "We learned the E string today," he replied.
> 
> The next week, dad asked the same question...
> 
> "We learned the A string today"
> 
> The next week...
> 
> "We learned the D string"
> 
> And the fourth week...
> 
> "We learned the G string"
> 
> On the fifth week, dad was getting ready to take his son to his lessons, however the son interjected and told his dad he had no time to take lessons anymore because he had a bunch of gigs lined up with a band.


The version I heard of this is the kid learns the first five frets on the E & A strings--never learns the D or G strings, and then misses his lesson because he has a gig.

Which I can relate to, I mostly play those 10 frets.

But overall--which one is easier will vary from person to person--and depending on what you're playing on them.
Most of the time I find it easier to play bass, but then that's sticking mostly to root notes, simple riffs, and an occasional octave or fifth not thrown in.
But there are songs where guitar is easier.

Bass strings are bigger and harder to hold down.
The frets are further apart.

So which one depends on you and what you're playing on it.


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## jeremy_green

I have 3 kids under 12, all 3 are in bands, there are several jam sessions a week in my house. I have had many 'guests' to these jams sessions (because of children's extra-curricular activities - aka Hockey) When these special guests arrive to jam I always stick them on a bass - on a bass they can play and jam within minutes with my direction. Sure not perfect by any means - but jamming no less. Mainly because i know what songs will fly (insert AC/DC here). Good luck trying the same thing with a guitar. It takes a LONG time before most people can execute chords of any kind, at least enough to jam.

The bass IS unquestionably easier in it's early stages. Of course to near mastery it is as hard as any instrument and I have the utmost respect for the 4 stringed brethren. But getting up and going - bass is the king of simple.

I am surprised this is any kind of debate.


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## hollowbody

nkjanssen said:


> That's easy enough to do. More importantly, though, what do you _want_ to play? What will keep you motivated? I know guys with very small hands that play guitar. I know guys with very small hands that play bass. I've seen guys with _no_ hands play guitar. It's really more a question of determination and practice than finding the instrument that fits your physiology.


Another important point is that even though there's less strings, them suckers are pretty thick! Especially for a beginner who hasn't developed the finger strength yet, you might find it quite difficult to properly fret the bass.

My partner has small hands (she's about 5'3") and she plays bass and guitar, so yeah, it's certainly possible for someone with small hands to play either, you just need to learn how. When she plays bass she does a lot of what she calls "hopping" from one fret to another. She's actually quite good at it and can play the basslines from Interstate Love Song and Brown Sugar pretty much note for note, which considering her size and the relative difficulty of those songs on bass, is pretty impressive.

Sure, it helps to have longer fingers, but like nkjanssen said, it's a matter of desire. If you WANT to play it, you will. So go play guitar if that's what you want. If you want to play bass, play that! Hell, there's no reason why you can't play both. Many of us do. Just don't expect to be great at either any time soon. As long as you approach it with a modicum of patience and the expectation that, like anything in life, you need to put in time and effort to get proficient at it, you should be fine.


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## Hamstrung

If you are new to bass I find the short scale models make it a bit easier to stretch across frets for the noob. 
Try an Epiphone EB0 or similar scale. 

Like some have implied here bass can be easy to play when supporting simpler rhythms but difficult to master. I'm primarily a guitar player but have dabbled in bass for a couple years. I can hold the low end in a typical rock song OK but when I hear a "real" bass player I'm reminded how much I don't yet know.


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## jeremy_green

No disrespect intended whatsoever. There is NOTHING as cool or important as a real bass player. 
He/she is the foundation the house sits on.


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## bw66

jeremy_green said:


> I have 3 kids under 12, all 3 are in bands, there are several jam sessions a week in my house. I have had many 'guests' to these jams sessions (because of children's extra-curricular activities - aka Hockey) When these special guests arrive to jam I always stick them on a bass - on a bass they can play and jam within minutes with my direction. Sure not perfect by any means - but jamming no less. Mainly because i know what songs will fly (insert AC/DC here). Good luck trying the same thing with a guitar. It takes a LONG time before most people can execute chords of any kind, at least enough to jam.
> 
> The bass IS unquestionably easier in it's early stages. Of course to near mastery it is as hard as any instrument and I have the utmost respect for the 4 stringed brethren. But getting up and going - bass is the king of simple.
> 
> I am surprised this is any kind of debate.


Yes, for kids who want to make noise, bass is easier. Our original poster is an adult, who, judging by other posts on the forum, wants to play and sing in a band. As far as performance goes, I'm far more comfortable putting someone who knows 4 chords on the guitar on stage than putting someone who can hack out a root-five bassline on stage. If the bassists sucks, the band sucks.


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## jimsz

jeremy_green said:


> No disrespect intended whatsoever. There is NOTHING as cool or important as a real bass player.
> He/she is the foundation the house sits on.


I would agree, aren't bass players considered the "Conductor" of the band?


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## discomalaria

Interesting discussion so far. As a long time bass player I would have to agree with those that say bass is easier. At least to a point. If all you are doing is playing basic bass guitar (the kind that 95% of pop and rock music espouses) then you'll find that you can get up and running relatively quickly. Trying to play that other 5% of music, well that's another thing entirely. But you gotta start somewhere.


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## 4345567

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## bw66

nkjanssen said:


> But, really, you should still just play whatever you would most like to play.


And that's the truth!


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## kdubvdub

Great discussion people....I wasn't expecting this at all when I started it. I was just wondering if it would be easier to play a bass or not, not knowing which neck would be smaller/slimmer, and easier to reach the top strings. Thanks for all the input, I think I'm going to go to Sherwood Music here in town and try a bass to see if my hand fits that better. As for choice, it doesn't matter what instrument I'd play...I just want to be a part of a rock band.


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## hollowbody

nkjanssen said:


> Then play bass. And live in a house with a basement where the band can rehearse.
> 
> You do those two things, and you'll have no shortage of offers in no time flat.
> 
> Tenfold, if you also happen to be a good looking girl.


hahaha, that is so true! drummers with a basement space are highly desirable as well!


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## bw66

nkjanssen said:


> Then play bass. And live in a house with a basement where the band can rehearse.
> 
> You do those two things, and you'll have no shortage of offers in no time flat.
> 
> Tenfold, if you also happen to be a good looking girl.


Never hurts to buy a van either!


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## 4345567

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## 4345567

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## kdubvdub

Sorry guys, I'm not a hot chick...a big old former trucker...lmao. I don't have a van, but I do have an F150 pickup, does that count??? LOL!!!!


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