Entwistle 's played his bass as a lead instrument At the time of his death he had a collection of over 200 instruments that reflected the different brands he used over his career : Fender , Rickenbacker , Alembic , Warwick were the brands he used most . Entwistle 's lead instrument approach used pentatonic lead lines , and a then-unusual trebly sound ( `` full treble , full volume '' ) created by roundwound RotoSound steel bass strings . He had a collection of over 200 instruments by the time of his death , reflecting the different brands he used over his career : Fender and Rickenbacker basses in the 1960s , Gibson and Alembic basses in the 1970s , Warwick in the 1980s , and Status all-Carbon fiber basses in the 1990s .