Bass Bridge Test (Fender, Badass II, Babicz, Gotoh 201)

[@drew-shourd]

Great video, thanx for all your work. Newbie player here, also a retired professional drummer of 40+ years, my ears dug the Gotoh…❤❤❤

[@tamaspeter6252]

Glad you like it!

[@jamesreynolds4487]

I agree

[@batuksri]

I agree. I bought a Fender Himass. Similar design to the Gotoh but was offered at a lower price by a seller in France.

[@briandowling8372]

The Gotoh seems the most balanced out of all in my opinion. I went from having BA II on a few basses to none. The change was due to the demand for them at the time (I got a good price used) and also it didn't take a B string very easily for BEAD tuning. My two Fender basses have a stock bridge and Hipshot B-style.

[@tamaspeter6252]

At the end of the day it’s really a personal preference. It’s great we have so many to choose from. :)

[@jamesreynolds4487]

@@tamaspeter6252 I like the gotoh “in my opinion” they make the best stuff

[@tamaspeter6252]

@@jamesreynolds4487 I like their machine heads. They are the best.

[@jamesreynolds4487]

@@tamaspeter6252 you’re not like I just bought the GBR 528’s they are rarely used in American basses but they are badass!!!

[@acolwe]

Very helpful video. The Babicz is the best sounding, most focused.

[@jkf9167]

I found that the sonic difference between different bridges was negligible, but I like the more responsive and controlled feel of the heavier bridges. I have an Omega Badass-style bridge on my #1 bass. It's purely a matter of taste, though, and single-note comparisons could have ended up in sequence on a bass track and no one would notice.

[@OspreyD40]

With the stock bridge there is a lot of vibrational color to the strings, a nice zingy tone, though the G does sound thin. I'd be making pickup adjustments and tone control adjustments to give a little more beef to the G and D. The 3 more massive bridges suck all that vibrational zing away, leaving a smooth core tone that is unsatisfying to me. So much for my previous notion that a more massive bridge will necessarily improve a bass. I thought all the more massive bridges dampened out the harmonic colors.

[@TenFalconsMusic]

. The other 3 are massive improvements over the stock bridge. Me personally: The Babicz has the most clarity & the Badass has the best low end. That being said, a good preamp/DI will add low end to the Babicz & clarity to the Badass. The best thing about the Babicz is that the settings lock in. Once they're set, they don't move. The best thing about the Badass is that it costs half as much as the Babicz.

[@tamaspeter6252]

Yes. The Babicz is rock solid. Also lighter than the Badass. For me the Babicz and the stock bridge is the winner. :)

[@ileutur6863]

I can't say I care much for the tonal difference, but the string stability and security that comes from a heavy, well constricted bridge is worth the money

[@TenFalconsMusic]

@@ileutur6863 I've had a Babicz on my Fender Aerodyne Jazz for 2 years (playing at least an hour per day) and it's still perfectly intonated. No more pole height screws loosening themselves & popping out. What's more, once you tighten down the settings, it's like a solid piece of metal.

[@brbadge]

Snake oil.To me , the difference is not all that big a deal. I trashed my badass cause I hated the look.Went back to the original bride.

[@ewoe21]

I’m going with the Babicz. It sounds great, and it has by far the most sustain. Listen how they have to end the note or turn it down during the comparisons.

[@1thess523]

I like the extra little brightness on the BA II

[@carlton1390]

I noticed that sustain on the open E string was shorter with the heavier bridges- changing the mass of bridges or tuners shifts the resonant frequency (different for different basses). I hear more mid range with the lighter bridges, and more bottom end with the heavier ones, I'm not sure if sustain is affected generally though. Thanks for doing this!

[@binheiss]

I prefer the stock bridge on my 4 p-basses!

[@ramencurry6672]

Good point. I have a cheap stock bridge on my Squire. It seems to work well and fulfill the sound I’m looking for. Of course, it’s all matter of taste for the individual. Maybe even psychological for some players

[@chrisosti]

To my ears, the Babicz had some awesome overtones a half second into the tone...this bridge sounded more "musical" than the others...I'm just having trouble with the $$$... I would have loved to hear you do a length of sustain test...very important info...

[@JessieThorne886]

Yeah, it has gotten crazy expensive over the years. Looks cool too, but I'm worried that it might be more of a hassle to adjust and intonate?

[@thesinwagin]

Came for the babicz. Left thinking i liked the gotoh the best. Surprising..

[@kevmac1230]

The Babicz and Gotoh do it for me though none sound bad.For the money you can't beat the Gotoh.

[@ITigerbaum]

Listening from an iphone, 😉 the Hipshot is louder. The Gotoh seemed to ring out longer. They all sound good. The Babicz sounded smooth and even, and it's fun to say. Schaller bass bridges look cool, but they appear to be 3-hole. Thanks for making this!

[@keith1r]

Stock bridge has the most low end. Badass is brightest. Babciz and Gotah are equal

[@Deatg-ek8rf]

The gotoh is he best sounding, its also better build and imho looks the best.

[@jamesreynolds4487]

Gotoh makes the best shit

[@Kulah-SS]

0:01. 0:26. 0:55. 1:19. 1:46. 1:58. 2:09. 2:24. 2:36 Babicz is best

[@mnardo2112]

Babicz and Gotoh both sounded the best, but Gotoh is much less cost. Not sure it is worth the upgrade from the stock bridge to make enough difference. Thanks for the video.

[@shawnhuff3920]

You need to get a K.S.M bridge from K.S.M music in Logan Utah world wide bridge they make for big names in the music industry I have two of them on my bass guitars

[@troycharbonneau8643]

Listening from a phone here, the Babicz stands out as having the most sustain and clarity. But in doing this, it lost the crosstalk and other imperfections that give the stock bridge its character. So scientifically better, yes. Musically better, is a matter of opinion, depending on what type of music is being played.

[@detramulia]

My ears : 1. Fender 2. Gotoh 3. Badass II 4. Babicz

[@jamesreynolds4487]

Gotoh goes to #1 spot for me

[@hushpuppykl]

In a live environment you won’t be able to hear a difference. It can easily be compensated with EQ

[@cromag31]

original! sad but true! its bigger sounding!

[@attilakovacs6366]

It’s not sad. Open the box and GO! this is the BEST thing that could happen. I ❤ Fender! Leo is brilliant.

[@ramencurry6672]

Many great recordings have been made on the cheap stock bridge so I would keep it. The newer bridges might be better for aggressive players for slightly better stability though

[@BoomstickFTW]

Weird that the fender has basically no sustain

[@johnterpack3940]

Not weird at all, basic physics. There's nothing anchoring the saddles, so they vibrate a bit side-to-side. That drains energy from the strings, which is the opposite of sustain.

[@AllAboutBasses]

They all sound bass

[@Bassman1999]

The Gotoh 203 is a better bridge than all of these for the following reasons. Looks aesthetically good, like an old Fender bridge. It is great for adjustability, very robust, great sound and it is very cheap.

[@cacadordorio]

I like how the badass improve the clanky fret noise of the strings

[@firmanpahalasinaga]

Babicz

[@thomasstahley7795]

I like my Bad Ass

[@marcelloserra5747]

Sarei curioso di leggere i commenti dopo un blind test .... 😅

[@joekao192]

Ppl said bah bah bah….I prefer….., come on, there is no difference between those bridges…, we don’t need to change the bridge for the sounds, maybe for the look!

[@TheGreatWhite99]

You sound just like the people who say that the run-in period of a brand new car is just a hoax. Please shut down your PC/phone/anything you're using right now, unplug your router and disappear forever from this platform. Thanks a lot and happy holidays.

[@jcricket226]

You must be listening on your phone...

[@JessieThorne886]

I am listening through good headphones, and I hear a noticeable difference. Although it's probably not something you'd notice in a full band mix, or that an equalizer couldn't take care of in a sec. For me, ease of adjustment is the most important part.

[@johnterpack3940]

@@TheGreatWhite99 The run-in period is a hoax. It's a way for dealerships to weasel out of minor problems. There's nothing magical about driving X distance or Y hours that causes a car to optimize itself.

[@Bradipop1]

In spite of its more modern technology and the much vaunted and publicized greater contact points and greater surface area to transmit the vibrations of the strings to the body, the Babicz, to my ears, is the one that sounds worst of all and the most anonymous in sound! !!

[@johnterpack3940]

I guarantee if they played the clips in random order and you weren't watching the screen you wouldn't be able to tell them apart. And you've never heard a song on the radio and thought, "that bass player is using the wrong bridge." These videos are all psychological tests. If there's no frequency response graph showing an empirical difference, it isn't science.

[@Bradipop1]

@@johnterpack3940 Old chap, I know very well that it's not science and I also know very well that in a concert no human being (and probably even a computer) would be able to understand the difference between one bridge and another, or between one type of wood and another. but in HEADPHONES my ears are quite good and without any previous prejudice, I have listened, always in headphones, to dozens of comparisons between one bridge and another and on different types of basses and for MY ears, the Babicz is almost always the one that "sounds" weakest and most anonymous of all and it's a real shame (for me) because the first time I saw it and saw its innovative design, I was thrilled and wanted to buy it immediately. Then I listened to it (listened WELL, on headphones) and to my ears it sounds like I wrote, an opinion shared by many others.

[@johnterpack3940]

@@Bradipop1 But even if you genuinely detect something that I don't hear via the tower speakers on my 5.1 surround system, it doesn't mean it has anything to do with the bridge. Each clip is an entirely different playthrough with unknown differences in the setup of the instrument. So until someone shows me hard data that proves different bridges produce consistently identifiable frequency fingerprints, I will stand by my assertion that all of this is nothing but a bunch of emperors bragging about their new clothes. For the record, I don't think people are lying about hearing things. But there are a host of psychological factors at play. Optical illusions aren't the only way our brains mess with us.

[@MrGrsrrt]

Badass sound dull, the Babicz has a lot more harmonics than all the others

[@haha-px5xp]

cool