Guitar vs. Bass Guitar: Understanding the Differences
At a glance, a guitar and a bass guitar look like two versions of the same thing. They're closely related and plenty of people play both, but they do different jobs in a band and they feel different under your hands. Here's how they compare, and how to choose between them.
Strings and tuning
A standard guitar has six strings, tuned E, A, D, G, B and E from lowest to highest. A standard bass has four, tuned E, A, D and G. Those are the same notes as the guitar's four lowest strings, but a full octave lower.
To produce those low notes, a bass needs much thicker strings and a longer neck. A typical electric guitar measures about 25 inches from nut to bridge; a typical bass measures 34. The frets are further apart and the instrument is heavier. Short-scale basses, at around 30 inches, are a good choice for children and for adults with smaller hands.
Their roles in a band
The guitar provides chords, riffs and solos. It carries much of the harmony and often the part of a song you'd hum.
The bass sits between the drums and everything else. It usually plays the root of each chord, so it tells the listener what the harmony is, and it locks in with the kick drum to create the groove. A band without a guitarist sounds different. A band without a bass player sounds as if something is missing.
Sound
A guitar is brighter and higher, and a bass is deeper and rounder. You often feel a bass as much as you hear it, particularly live. The difference comes from the length and thickness of the strings, and from amplifiers built for each instrument. A bass needs a bass amp, because a small guitar amp isn't designed to handle notes that low.
Playing technique
Guitarists spend much of their time playing several strings at once: strumming chords, picking patterns across the strings, or playing melodies and solos. Most use a pick, their fingers, or both.
Bass players usually play one note at a time. Most pluck with the index and middle fingers of the picking hand, some use a pick, and funk players use the thumb to "slap" the strings for a percussive sound. Slap is one style among several, and not something a beginner needs. The real skills of bass playing are timing and consistency: the right note, in exactly the right place, every time.
Which is easier to start on?
Both are friendly to beginners, in different ways.
- Bass is often quicker at first. With one note at a time and no chord shapes to learn, most people can play along with a real song in the first lesson or two. It's more physical, though. The strings are heavy and the stretches are wide.
- Guitar asks more of you in the early weeks, because chords need several fingers to land together. But a guitar is a complete instrument on its own. You can sit in your room and play a whole song.
Neither is the easy option further on. Playing bass really well is every bit as demanding as playing guitar really well.
Which should you choose?
Listen to the music you love and notice what your ear follows. If it's the riffs, the chords or the solos, choose guitar. If you find yourself nodding along to the low end, or you like the idea of being the person who holds the band together, choose bass. Bands are always looking for a good bass player, too.
It isn't a permanent decision. The notes on a bass are laid out exactly like the guitar's lowest four strings, so what you learn on one transfers easily to the other, and many musicians end up playing both.
Learning either in Bristol
Tempo Tuition's tutors teach acoustic guitar, electric guitar and bass. See our guitar lessons page for details, or read our guitar lessons FAQ for answers to common questions. If you're shopping for a first electric, our Fender Stratocaster review is a good place to start.