paul_5

US made Ampeg SVP PRO blackface. lovely piece of kit. Also MXR M80.

Nobody touches my bass. It is my bass. There are many like it, but THIS ONE is MINE. I'm not that fussed really, as long as I got it back then I'd be happy. Back to the OP, I'd like LEs Claypool to have a stab at 'Tommy the Cat' on my bass, as I'm not sure my bass knows this tune, and if anyone could coax it out, then Les can.

Some nice grooves there. That RH seems to give juuuuust enough dirt to the proceedings too. More power to your thumb, sir.

Currently GASSing for nothing right now, waiting for a 24v EHX Bass Micro Synth and an active looper pedal to arrive in the post which will complete the board (well, not quite...), but honestly, since I bought my Blade B15 I've never thought of selling it, not even once. 3 years with the same bass and I still love it. Ordered some flats this week too so should be even better when they arrive. Both my amps are US made Ampegs that sound great, so more than happy on that front. For the first time in years I'm content, nay happy, with my sound and setup. It feels a bit weird TBH.

I'm a huge fan of ProTools, it's dead easy to get great results when recording. I also write a lot in Sibelius, which is nowhere near the cheapest software, but it mans that when I've finished writing a guitar line I can TAB it (I Know!) for the guitarists in the band, and print it out, so that they can lose it. It'll also convert scores to MIDI files, which means that they can be imported into your DAW of choice (with all the tempo, time signature and key(s)) to form a fairly detailed guide track for recording later on. Not really bass specific though...

[quote name='EskimoBassist' post='1214014' date='Apr 28 2011, 05:57 PM']MXR M-80. Cheaper, but with a seperately switchable distortion channel and a 3 band EQ which actually gives you control over your mids, unlike the Sansamp. Not as cheap as the Behringer though, so if you like the stock Sansamp sound, but don't want the price tag, go for that.[/quote] +1, these are brill. I picked one up used with the original box for £80. Built like a tank, plus it can be powered by phantom power from a desk. They occasionally pop up in the 'for sale' section on here.

I reckon your singer has a good voice for more jazzy stuff, she can hold a tune and does move a little bit to try to entertain folks, so full marks for trying, but on first listening it seems like the entire set has been transposed to suit the singer's range, which in this instance doesn't really work for me. Also you as a bass player and your guitarist could try to move a bit more; if punters just wanted to listen to music then they'd be drinking kestrel super strength in their front gardens on discarded sofas, punters need to be entertained, and it's everyone's responsibility to ensure that that happens. I know it sounds like I'm being really picky, but I've had similar problems in the past with shoe-gazing musicians who were excellent players but not entertainers. That's a real bug-bear of mine, as if only one of you makes the effort to move around a bit you risk looking like that drummer at the wrong gig (you've probably seen it on here before now...). Bottom line is to find some songs that your singer can do in the original key, or find a singer who is more versatile. Oh, and move a bit more, even if you have to consciously choreograph everything at first, it'll make a difference in the long run. Cheers, Paul

Rule 1: don't use a cab (or cabs) with a 'smaller' impedance number than the one on the back of the amp i.e. don't use a 4ohm cab with an 8ohm head, unless you like shopping for new amps and have money to burn - that's literally what you'll be doing. After that it gets a tiny bit more complicated, but not by much. Rule 2: Using 2 x cabs of the same impedance will halve the 'impedance number' e.g. 2 8ohm cabs will give you a total impedance of 4ohms. Using 2 4ohm cabs will give you a total impedance of 2 ohms. Thankfully, nobody really makes bass cabs that aren't 4 or 8 ohms, so there's a whole bunch of stuff we don't need to bother about. Rule 3: Don't mix impedances. Using a 4ohm cab [b]and[/b] an 8ohm cab will give you a total impedance of (memory fails at this point, but it's less than 4, probably 2.7 or something) not enough for an 8 or 4 ohm amp, so [b]don't do it[/b].

[quote name='Huwberry' post='1211276' date='Apr 25 2011, 10:30 PM']After reading that sales pitch does anyone else immediately want one, or am I too impressionable?[/quote] No, I'm GASsing for that shirt...

How many more times? Spinal tap THEN puppet show!

Yup, I'd do it. Chances are you'd spend very little time with him outside of rehearsals. He's off doing signings and interviews and [s]airbrush[/s] photo sessions, and you get to hang out with great musicians. That said, he may well be a likeable chap. Plus, you'd get more GAS tokens on payday...

Hi All, I sold Dan a pedal and his payment was sent almost immediately. He's a nice guy to do business with and responds promptly to questions and messages, which makes things go just that little bit smoother for all parties. Top BC'er

The two times I have done this I've used chisels. Really carefully. Not on expensive basses either; Brian Eastwood would be my first port of call for stuff like that on an expensive bass.

I got a Kinsman thingy for about £25. Admittedly I have to rotate my pedals depending on the gig, but I think that's down to an excess of pedals rather than a small board.

For what it's worth I've got a Hydrive 410 cab and it's really crisp and clean. It also seems to handle anything I can throw at it (synth bass, distortion, octave etc...). Fairly bombproof and lightweight too.

+1 for checking the biasing of power amp tubes. Preamp stuff is just 'take one out, pop another one in' but Power amp tubes are a bit more tricky and I'd recommend getting an experienced tube-head take a look before you power it up. Preamp tubes make a world of difference though, so I'd start with that if you're looking for less gain / warmer sound etc...

I used to run an MXR DI+ before the amp and boost the mids that way. Swapped my LH for an Ampeg head and never looked back. Not that the LH amps aren't good, there's just not much flexibility as regards pre/post DI switching and the tone stack isn't to everyone's taste. LOADS of power for the money, and the Hydrive cabs are superb.

I once learnt 'Teentown' and 'Portrait of Tracy' and they were pretty tough nuts to crack. Not done them in a while, I reckon I'll have to dig them out again fairly soon.

I struggled to get past the almost unreadable font. Cowboys through and through.

Thanks for that, I really enjoyed it. Not just a 'technique round up', but some beautiful music that just happens to be played on a bass guitar. I'm not normally a fan of this sort of stuff, but this really floated my boat.