Gareth Hughes

Yep, my bass is well loud - or so others say, and this leads to an interesting point: Given the physics of sounds waves, bass waves being longer and all that, I found that there were times when I could barely hear myself above a strongly strummer acoustic guitar, only to find out they were playing loudly to get over my volume. One thing that helps this (acoustically) is using a Rabbath style bent endpin, which tilts the body, pointing the f-holes upwards and generally making it easier to hear what you're playing. Playing with an amp - I'm a strong advocate of getting your speaker as close to your head as possible. Feedback reasons aside, I just find it easier to hear an amp if it isn't pointing at my knees. Go figure I do like the Rabbath pin, and it's a relatively cheap way to help hear yourself. Also a bonus for getting around the neck more comfortably, but that's another issue. Another thing to consider tho is that one man's 4/4 is another's 7/8, and a 3/4 can also be a large 5/8. Kinda like buying two pairs of 34" jeans from different makers only to find that one makes you feel good and the other makes you feel like 'Who ate all the pies?' So, just like with jeans - try before you buy.

Liking that a lot - both vids. Thanks for posting Clarky.

Hey All - here's the response I gave to attackbass for any who are interested. My disclaimer is that I may well be wrong about everything, but it works for me [color=#232323] Hey Will - [/color] [color=#232323] Good to hear from you. I've had a few inquiries about the Thomann basses and I'm happy to help. Old Horse Murphy was asking the very same thing a few weeks ago, so here is most of my reply to him. Hope you don't mind the cut&paste approach.[/color] [color=#232323] I love these basses, and I don't say that lightly. Mine is the Thomann 22 model, which is really a bass made by the Hora company in Reghin, Romania and then relabelled by Thomann. Nothing dodgy there, it's a normal practice in the orchestral world - much like Lakland or Fender, etc having an Asian factory make Lakland or Fender instruments. The Thomann 22 has a carved top with laminated sides and back.[/color] [color=#232323] The bass my one replaced was a £3500, fully carved model made for Ken Smith (of the electric bass fame - he's an uber-upright geek). He had several models made to his specs, so I took a punt on one. Great bass to play and had a gorgeous tone, but it was a bugger to amplify. Feedback city. The Thomann bass has about 90% of the Ken Smith in terms of tone but is SO much easier to gig with in terms of feedback. One of their models with a laminated top might be even better without too much sacrifice in tone. Given that I gig more than I record, this was a big issue for me so I split the difference and went with the hybrid.[/color] [color=#232323] A few big plus's with the Thomann's - mine shipped with the soundpost still in place. I don't know if it's glued or pegged in or if it was just pressure and the box hadn't taken a knock, but either way, it meant that when it arrived all I had to do was string her up and I was good to go. I was literally out gigging with it within days. [/color] [color=#232323] Dealing with Thomann is great. You place the order online but then if you want you can call up someone directly in the relevant department who are great to deal with. And usually with flawless English too.[/color] [color=#232323] I didn't have to spend any extras money once the bass arrived because the other big plus is that you can specify what height you want the strings set at - you can be specific with measurements or tell them it's for jazz/orchestra/bluegrass, etc. That's saving you the expense and time of going to a luthier. So since I've had mine it hasn't once been to a luthier and I've used it on countless gigs and recorded a few albums with it.[/color] [color=#232323] You will have to spend extra on pickups if you plan on using it live - and a good case is worth investing in.[/color] [color=#232323] A good all rounder pickup is the K&K Bass Max - sold by Bob Gollihur: http://www.gollihurmusic.com/product/1265-KANDK_SOUND_BASS_MAX_UPRIGHT_BASS_PICKUP_TRANSDUCER.html[/color] [color=#232323] Bob's site is also a great wealth of information about uprights and amplifying them. One thing to note tho - Bob recommends using a preamp with most pickups, which is a good idea BUT if you have any BOSS pedals, like a tuner, they have a good input impedance for most pickups. (This is another issue so I'll leave that for now. Ask me if you want more details - don't want to bog you down with too much geekness!!!)[/color] [color=#232323] It might seem expensive but a good case can pay for itself by protecting the bass properly and saving you from needing repeat repairs. The bridge on an upright can be knocked out of place easily, so a good case with leather padded 'bumpers' on the outside can save the day. Probably worth buying it at the same time from Thomann as you'll save on the shipping charges. The bass will ship just fine without it tho. Here's what I'd recommend: http://www.thomann.de/gb/concord_pv502_kontrabasstasche_3_4.htm[/color] [color=#232323] Whatever one you go for make sure it's a 3/4 size one - Thomann offers cases for all sizes, from 1/8 to 4/4 but they use the same stock photo so it can be misleading. Oh, and you might be tempted to go for a black case but there's a good logic in getting a brightly coloured one - most folks are seemingly blind when it comes to the upright and just walk right into it as you're trying to load into a gig - and they also seem to think that it's made of steel and can take any bangs that come it's way. I've a light tanned coloured case that sticks out a mile away - which is exactly what I want to help clear a path to the stage!![/color] [color=#232323] Another thing - you might already know this anyway, but don't be confused or put of by the term '3/4 size' for upright basses - it's the standard size. 99.9% of all upright basses in the world are 3/4 sizes, and even if you've hands like Stanley Clarke, you'll still want a 3/4 (which is what he plays too!!)[/color] [color=#232323] One thing I did change from stock was the strings. I don't know what it ships with but they're not bad strings - just a bit too high tension for me. Still, they were fine to get out gigging with. I changed to a set of Velvet Blues and they seem to work really well. Maybe it's because it's a new bass, but I felt that the synthetic gut strings helped soften the 'new' sound better than steel strings.[/color] [color=#232323] Another thing to note is that it can take several weeks for an upright to be shipped by Thomann. Even if it's in stock, it'll go into a queue for their string workshop, which can either be quick or slow depending on what else is going through there at the time, and then it seems that the courier service on large items is a lot slower than on smaller ones. Not a huge deal, but just to be aware that if you order on a Monday you won't be getting it on a Friday from them.[/color]

£20 collapsible hand cart from B&Q or Maplins - park in the next street if you have and roll the cab back. Well worth the peace of mind that the cab won't get damaged by the cold/damp or getting nicked.

Yup - paired mine with an Ashdown BP1510 (2x10 + 1x15 in the same cab) for years with a pretty loud rock band. We liked it a lot Only changed because I wanted more tonal flexibility than the AI onboard EQ offered. Great gear - and good people too. Dr Rick rocks!!! (see what I did there? )

[quote name='JakeBrownBass' timestamp='1321907357' post='1444365'] I used to run IEM when i played with my double. I'd only have the bass going through & only use the left ear, as if i was listening to the bass acoustically. Leaving my other ear free to listen to the band. [/quote] +1 to that. It's not ideal in that it involves bringing extra gear and you're all tied up with extra wires, etc - kinda ruins the whole feng shui thing that an upright has (for me anyway) but I've found that at the volumes other folks - ie: non bass players - think and expect a double bass to be played at alongside loud drums, guitars, vocals with way too much low end in them, etc - it's the only solution. Would that we were all playing in venues like Ronnie Scott's on The Blue Note with great acoustics and attentive, quiet audiences every night, but alas on those nights that we're not...

Another one here. Not logical at all - in that when I'd play snooker it was with my left hand but when I tried golf it was with my right. Most other things are evenly split. Sometimes get confused with knives and forks.

Been in this situation before - albeit for different reasons (band didn't like it when I sat down at rehearsals or to record). To me there are a few different sides to this but ultimately it boils down to: 1: If you're paying for my services I'll take your advice/follow your order, but I'll also be a little pissed that you're second guessing my experience of playing this instrument. 2: If I'm playing in this band for fun, then the moment someone starts telling me what to do and insists I set aside my way of doing things and follow theirs then it ceases to be fun for me. In the scenarios I mentioned above, the sitting down at rehearsals/recording, I was asked to stand up because it fit 'THE VIBE'. Well, the relevant bit here is that it's about THEIR vibe and not about yours. The other members put their vibe before mine which resulted in them all being happy if I stood up and me being more than pissed off that we wasted time and effort arguing over something trivial. Another way to look at it is this: great story from the LSO: Conductor says to the percussionist "I don't like that sound, try using the other mallets". Percussionist replies: "You tell me what sound you want and I'll tell you what mallets I'll use."

Diggin that a lot. Somehow all of that seemed to slip by unnoiticed by me, so thanks for bringing it to my attention.

Hey Folks - It's been a while since I've last been on your shores so it is with great pleasure that I'll be doing a few gigs in England and Wales with Simon McBride from November 28-December 3. If any of you make it along to the gigs do indeed say hello. Here's some of Mr.McBride's stylings: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSBYdYtd0pw&hd=1[/media] and one with the wonderfully supple Carl Harvey on bass: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPBz3rWt940&feature=related&hd=1[/media] Here's the where's and when's: 28/11/11 - The Duchess - YORK, UK 29/11/11 - The Musician - LEICESTER, UK 30/11/11 - The Met - BURY, UK 01/12/11 - HRH V, PRESTATYN, WALES 02/12/11 - Camden Barfly, LONDON UK 03/12/11 - Bootleggers, KENDAL, UK

Until we get our hands on his memoirs, check this book out: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Everybody-Dance-Chic-Politics-Disco/dp/1900924560 Opens your eyes up to what your ears already knew - that there was a lot going on with Chic than just disco. Not to put disco down (I am a self confessed disco slut) but they were unfairly tarred with that brush, so when disco's popularity waned, so did theirs. Anyway, check it out - totally worth the price of admission.

My spare is either a direct copy - as in identical in function - or else it's a variation, as in my main bass will be a 4 string with roundwounds and the spare will have flats, or be fretless, or a 5. Unless I know a gig requires specific variations then I'll just bring whatever tickles my fancy that night.

I haven't touched the action since I got it about ten years ago. It's pretty low, with 45-100 (or maybe 40-95, can't remember) medium scale Rotosound flats on it. Easy to get around on, but also easy to be unintentionally heavy handed with it too. For me, it works best with a pick and some compression - but I think the compressor is mostly needed for the nearly 50 year old pickup being a little weak.

Nice one. I have one too - damn nice basses. Laughably light and infectiously groovy, especially to record with.

Yep, caught that one - really a great insight into that time period of making music and how intertwined it was with the social changes going on in the US. And some damn fine playing from Mr.Osborn. I mean, how cool is it to turn on the tv and see Joe Osborn?!?!?!

Nice one Doddy. Hope it's a good one. And be as kind NOT to post about lovely the weather is in all your exotic locations. I'll personally start a petition to get you banned Take care.

Amen to all that. Whilst I don't use mine all too often, when the time is right they are a damn useful tool. One glitch tho is that for blending a pedal with your dry signal, the effect needs to be in the right phase or else you'll lose some low end. Not a big deal, as 99% of the pedals you'll come across will be fine - just watch out for those inconsistent madmen at Electro Harmonix. We love them because they're crazy.

Don't know much about them, but a mate has one here in Belfast that he brought back from LA in the mid-80's. Swears by it for a classic P-Bass and pick tone.

From what I've heard from folks I know who have played on the show, it's simply a case of they either like you or they don't. There is no buying on to the show.

[quote name='Bigwan' timestamp='1320236793' post='1424059'] A second hand Lakland JO and either an on-board preamp (Sadowsky or Aguilar) or floor based pre. [/quote] I've played that Bigwan's Lakland JO and it is one sweeeeeeeeeeeeet bass. And if it was in Olympic White....well, lordy knows we all have limits to our restraint