thebrig

[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1476487235' post='3154821'] I use a pair of Yamaha HS7s which are nice. I think the thing to do, is just get to know whatever you buy. When you mix something, listen back to it on a few other set-ups. That way you'll start to know how your monitors are biased. [/quote]Just by chance, I was mooching through the garage a couple of days ago and I came across a pair of Sennheiser HD595 headphones I purchased a few years ago,, I'd forgotten I had them, but I do remember not liking them for normal use because they sounded a bit too thin and did nothing for my favourite music, but having found them again, I did some reading up on them and it turns out that they were highly praised for being transparent with great clarity, so I thought that they might be useful for mixing my recordings, I've read that headphones aren't ideal for mixing, but sometimes its a case of having to. Anyway, I "mixed" (inverted commas because I'm still pretty clueless) a couple of songs I recorded with my band's guitarist using them, and the final result sounded quite good, but what pleased me more was when I played the songs on a cheap music system and then my hi-fi, and then some cheaper earphones and they all sounded pretty good, they were quite dynamic and loud enough without being muddy (sorry I don't know the terminology yet). I think they cost me about £150 the best part of seven or eight years ago, so they certainly aren't budget cans, but they will do a job for now, especially when I want to do some mixing late at night, or the missus is watching a soap or drama.

[quote name='SubsonicSimpleton' timestamp='1476486522' post='3154814'] Here is a link to the thread that TenLetters referenced, but in PDF format with random chat removed [url="http://stash.reaper.fm/oldsb/333146/Why%20do%20my%20recordings%20sound%20like%20ASS.pdf"]http://stash.reaper....0like%20ASS.pdf[/url] [/quote]Thanks Subsonic, there's a lot to read there but I will try and give it a read later today.

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1476472136' post='3154705'] What's your remaining question regarding the Pre and PreX..? These are not the most common interfaces to be found in domestic settings, so there's less folks with 'hands on' experience with 'em. We use Motus (Traveller and another I've forgotten the name of...); I can't imagine that interfaces in these ranges are really, really bad. I thought it had come down to 'get stuck in first, then see what you need/want after a while'; is that not the situation..? [/quote]It is, but I love looking and getting a few ideas, having said that, the guitarist from my band came round today and we recorded some tracks, and to be honest, my Zoom R16 worked perfectly, no latency or noise, and the tracks sounded exactly how we put them in, so I might stick with it for a while yet. Trouble with me is I have it in the back of my mind that I might have to pack up gigging soon, or at least cut right back on gigging, so I'm already thinking about clearing a lot of my basses and other gear out which should fetch around £5,000, so I'm now getting gas for things other than basses.

[quote name='TenLetters' timestamp='1476456886' post='3154523'] Your best bet is to not sweat it too much over the differing brands at this level, or any level really, from what I can tell. Get some monitors (not hi-fi speakers!) set them up in your room and treat it with some level of acoustic treatment and learn how the speakers sound. This will have a far bigger impact on how well your monitor set up works than the brand you have chosen. If you are just getting started I would Google 'Reaper - why do you recordings sound like ass' and read that thread a couple of times (and the associated acoustic thread for how to treat monitoring room on the cheap) before hitting up any other recording forums etc which will likely tell you to buy x brand of gear or the latest Waves plugin to get good recordings. Then start recording and learn stuff. Hope this doesn't come across as patronising at all, all intended to help [/quote]Not patronising at all TenLetters, it's advice I want and I'm very grateful for it, I will take your views on board, Cheers. Unfortunately, I've noticed that this forum doesn't get many visitors and you have to wait a long time for an answer, I check in here four or five times a day, and quite often I'm the only one here. I actually have another query regarding a Focusrite Clarett 8 Pre which I posted last week, but I'm still waiting for someone more knowledgable than I to come along to advise me about interfaces. I'm sure someone will be along soon.

[quote name='MoJo' timestamp='1476341401' post='3153395'] I have severe P-bass GAS at the moment after hearing someone playing an MIM Precision on Tuesday and thinking to myself, "That's it, that's the tone I'm after". The thing is, I've owned countless P-basses in the past, US, MIM, CIJ, Squiers, Vintage, Westfield, the list goes on and every one has been sold or traded, so I'm clearly not happy with something about P-basses. I'm trying to ride it out until the GAS passes but I'm weakening. Does anyone else convince themselves that they need something after having heard someone else using one or am I unique? [/quote]I've always loved the sound/tone of a P bass and had two when I first started about ten years ago, but I sold them on because I just couldn't get on with the necks, I then played Jazzes and Ibanez SR's because of the slim necks, and they were fine in the function band I was in at the time, but when I left to start a rock band something was missing soundwise, so I then went out and got myself an American Standard Precision, and at the next rehearsal, it was there, that tone! But, I still struggled with the neck, but I wanted that P tone so what could I do? then suddenly it hit me, I love the feel of the Jazz neck but not the tone, so I took a chance and purchased a Mighty Mite Jazz neck on eBay, put in on my P and hey! I was there, for me, I had the perfect bass. I know a lot of players love the P neck, but a lot of people don't, so maybe its the neck that's the problem, I've had the neck on my bass for at least seven years now, and it is one of the best necks I've played, and if I do come to sell the bass, all I have to do is put the original neck back on which should help with the sale, because it is a completely unplayed neck with no wear whatsoever, and I can always include the Jazz neck as well.

[quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1476272365' post='3152860'] yeah, some may imply that but... that's not what the OP or the vast majority here said [/quote]Exactly! I was a bedroom warrior for [u]forty[/u] years before I started gigging, I've gigged for the last nine or ten years, from the age of 56, and it now looks like there is a very good chance that I might have to go back to being a bedroom warrior again due to health issues, so why would I look down on people for doing exactly what I've been doing myself for most of my life? Like I've said more than once now, I am just interested to know what others do as an alternative to gigging because I could do with some ideas, at the moment, I'm seriously thinking of going into home recording, but I'm also looking for other possibilities as well.

[quote name='Geek99' timestamp='1476259509' post='3152690'] I was having a very tough week, and I still am, however I also thank you for the understanding and empathy; I do appreciate it Are we heading towards a situation where its all fluffy bunnies and no one can raise a protest of any kind? Some disparaging comments about bedroom warriors do surface from time to time, and I don't like the condescension. Some of us have fewer choices. I deleted my post, so now you don't need to keep coming back to it. #thereyougo @TheBrig, I understand your position a little better now btw [/quote]Geek, I do understand your position and certainly didn't set out to upset anyone, it really was just one of those situations where I was reading through BC threads on Sunday afternoon, and I just happened to notice that quite a few people mentioned that they don't gig, or only gig occasionally, so I thought I would just put it out there to see what those people do instead of gigging, because I could be in a situation myself very soon when I wont be able to gig anymore, it really was just an innocent question. I have to say that when I saw your comment, I was so upset about it that I can honestly say that I was thinking about terminating my membership to BC for fear of upsetting others.

[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1476220167' post='3152521'] But it isn't, it's awful. [/quote]It's a great song to a lot of people, but I don't like it, if I had said it's awful like you did, lots of people are going to have a right old go at me! Oh alright then, it's bloody AWFUL!!! There, I've said it now!

I've watching Empire Of The Sun on Jools as I write this, and I have to say that the set was very impressive and very unusual for LWJ, but the song did nothing for me I'm afraid.

[quote name='Woodinblack' timestamp='1476204990' post='3152320'] A lot of the music I play I would never listed to, and a couple of them I just winged as I really didn't want to listen to them. However, a lot of them are good fun to play, and I like playing live. Moondance, as you say, isn't a great song, but I generaly explore different scales when playing it to see what works, sometimes they do, sometimes they don't, noone ever really notices. Pretty sure I have never played it the same twice. There are a few songs that are just dull to play, but enough to make the overall experience good. [/quote]I didn't say that Moondance isn't a great song, I just said I just didn't like it, but I have to agree with you that some songs you don't like, can be fun to play, and the first time we played Moondance, I did actually enjoyed it, even if it took me a fair bit of work to nail it, although once is enough.

As someone who is just starting off in the recording game, I'm in need of a pair of studio monitors, I started reading various independent reviews online, and magazine reviews such as Sound On Sound, which I do realise could be a bit biased depending on various factors, but I thought I might go for the KRK Rokit RP5's, but having just read through this thread, I'm back to square one. I started off thinking that dedicated studio monitors would be neutral sounding and with a clarity that doesn't add colour to the sound, but there are so many different opinions with people are saying that certain monitors colour the sound, if this is the case, could I not just use my hi-fi's Tannoys powered by my Yamaha amp which is a minimalist amp with no controls other than volume? The reason I plumped for the Rokits was because being front ported, I thought they would be ideal as they need to be placed against a wall, they also fall into my price range. Edited to say that after further research, the [b]PreSonis Eris E5[/b] seems to be a better option, apparently it is one of the most transparent and most accurate monitor in its price range, and its also front ported which is a bonus.

[quote name='Painy' timestamp='1476173904' post='3151885'] Really interesting thread that puts a lot into perspective. I've been feeling a bit concerned recently that I think I may have the start of arthritis in my hands but to hear what some of you guys deal with and still keep going.... My band just had it's 21st anniversary of our first gig this summer. Stopped counting at 1000 gigs about 5 years ago although that number is increasing at a slower rate these days with family commitments so down to around 20-30 gigs a year these days with 153 being our busiest year about 15 years ago. Right now we've got a few weeks off. Our last gig was 10th September and our next is 22nd October and it's driving me absolutely freaking nuts. I honestly found quitting smoking easier than this! [/quote]Regarding the possibility of having arthritis in your hands, if it is, try to keep playing if you can, I have arthritis in both my hands and my left hand which is my fretting hand, is far better than my right hand, and I put this down to the fact that it is usually very active moving around the neck regularly, if I have a break from playing, even for just a few days, my left hand seizes up and hurts like mad, even worse than my right.

I get the impression that Jools/producers dictate what the artists can play, for instance, the two songs Blackberry Smoke played were to me, bland and nondescript, I'm not a great Blackberry Smoke fan, but they have much better, and "rockier" songs than the ones they played in their locker.

Just log in to BassChat, there is always something interesting to read on here.

[quote name='Painy' timestamp='1476173904' post='3151885'] Really interesting thread that puts a lot into perspective. I've been feeling a bit concerned recently that I think I may have the start of arthritis in my hands but to hear what some of you guys deal with and still keep going.... My band just had it's 21st anniversary of our first gig this summer. Stopped counting at 1000 gigs about 5 years ago although that number is increasing at a slower rate these days with family commitments so down to around 20-30 gigs a year these days with 153 being our busiest year about 15 years ago. Right now we've got a few weeks off. Our last gig was 10th September and our next is 22nd October and it's driving me absolutely freaking nuts. I honestly found quitting smoking easier than this! [/quote]Thats a great achievement Painy, have you been together all that time with the same lineup, or have you had a few changes along the way? Either way, its still great that a bunch of guys can stay together playing music for so long.

I understand why Blue is happy to play music he might not like, because for him, apart from his love of music and gigging, it is also his only source of income, and fair play to Blue for being able to make a living from gigging, even if he admits himself that it can be extremely hard work at times. For me personally, I find it very hard to play music I don't enjoy, and as Barking Spiders said, it's hard to play with "feel", especially when you are just going through the motions when playing the song. When I first started out about ten years ago, I was playing in a function band with a bunch of guys who loved "cheese" by the bucketful, I was totally out of place being in that band, not because they weren't good guys, because they were actually good friends as well as bandmates, it was because I preferred more rockier stuff, and was continually being outvoted on any material that I suggested, even though occasionally we would try some and it went down well, but by the next gig that song would be left out. We played material like Moondance, Mr Bojangles, Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me, Gravity, etc, now to all you people who love these songs, please don't think I'm suggesting these are rubbish songs, because they are not, its just that I don't like them and found them extremely boring to play, so in the end I made the decision to leave and form a band playing material that I'm more into, obviously you still get the odd song that you play that you are not too keen on, but if I like 95% of the set, then I'm happy.

[quote name='TrevorR' timestamp='1476165354' post='3151818'] How's a bout these... Foderawal... Seiwal [/quote]Mmm, very nice, I would love to hear how they sound.

I've had two Corvettes, both had MEC's and they both had that Warwick growl, but one was bubinga and one was swamp ash, they were both passive with bolt on-necks. I've heard bolt-on Thumbs live, and they also have that distinctive "Thumb" sound just like the NT, so I'm not sure if there is any real difference between bolt-on or NT. This only my thoughts of course, but it would seem that the MEC's contribute to a certain extent, but because the Warwick bodies can be made from various woods, I would say that its possibly the neck wood that contributes the most to the Warwick growl. The reason I'm asking these questions is because I would love to be able to put the same pups they use in a Thumb into a Jazz, and then hey presto! I've goy myself a bass that feels and plays like a Jazz, but has that distinctive Warwick Thumb growl, but I have a feeling that it just wont!

Just thinking, I absolutely love the growl and tone of a Warwick Thumb bass, but I don't want one because it will be far too heavy, probably suffer with neck dive, and with my short arms, I would never be able to reach the lower frets, but I am wondering what it is that gives it that distinctive sound. I had a Corvette a few years ago, and although it didn't growl as much as a Thumb, it still growled none the less, but it was passive, so it couldn't have been the eq that gives it the Warwick sound. And it really can't be the neck or body wood, because a lot of people will insist that the wood hardly contributes to the sound/tone of a bass. So is the pups, and if so, what makes them so different? If I put a pair of pups from a Thumb into a Jazz bass, would it sound like a Thumb? it should if the wood doesn't have much say in the sound/tone, but if it doesn't, does that mean the wood does make a difference. Sorry, I don't really want to bring up the old wood/tone debate again, but just wondering...

[quote name='Fisheth' timestamp='1476112424' post='3151407'] You guys seen this yet? [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gxj1QwZoZgI"]https://www.youtube....h?v=Gxj1QwZoZgI[/url] Lovely. [/quote]That is beautiful!!! At the moment I'm really fancying some surf colours, but I absolutely love natural wood and that looks great, I would love that with just a P pickup and no guard, and I love the look of that neck.

You guys have far more serious health problems than me, and I sympathise greatly, and I really hope you can continue to play music for a good many years to come. The health issues that I have is concerning my back, the vertebrae is very arthritic and has various abnormalities, they are not sure whether they can operate on it successfully, so at the moment they are just giving me a massive amount of painkillers, and morphine every four hours to mask the pain, its helps to take the edge off the pain if I'm just sitting/lying around on a soft sofa, which is what I'm doing now, but I can't walk more than 50 yards without severe pain kicking in and I have to stop, and I can't drive anywhere because its too painful, but more importantly, the drugs are affecting me a lot and I'm away with the fairies most of the time, so driving really is out of the question. Luckily for me, I have a very understanding and sympathetic wife and she is going to drive to our rehearsal studio tonight, she's going to wait for me until we've finished, and then take me home again (its about a 80 minute round trip), and she has also been driving me to gigs, but quite honestly, I'm getting to the stage where I'm not sure whether I can carry on, the pain is so severe, and I'm all drugged up when I'm playing, I really feel that it is affecting my playing, I'm making silly mistakes that I've not made in the past, the guys in the band are great about it, and to be honest, I don't think they even notice, but I do, and it really bugs me. The other thing that is really worrying me is the fact that I now have to sit on a stool to play a gig, the guys make a bit of a joke to the audience about me being the old git in the band, blah! blah! blah!, and admittedly, it does give the audience a laugh, and sometimes the banter can carry on all night which I honestly don't mind, I always enjoy a bit of banter, but sitting down! its just not rock & roll is it? And to make matters worse, we are an old school R&B band, and about 80% of our set is made up of energetic Dr Feelgood material, so I should be walking about all over the stage whilst playing!

[quote name='Earbrass' timestamp='1476105185' post='3151298'] My last bass gig was about 5 years ago. Since then I've played an average of 20-30 gigs per year, but none on bass. I've had to cut back recently due to health issues (ME/CFS), but hope that won't stop me for too long. These days the bass sits in the corner and is only used for my (sadly occasional) home recording efforts. I wouldn't be without it, though. [/quote]Sorry that your health issues has meant you cutting back on gigging, I hope that can find a way to get back out there again soon.

[quote name='SubsonicSimpleton' timestamp='1476054967' post='3150941'] If the tracks you are recording with the zoom sound good, then they are good. Enjoy the process of recording and spend time experimenting with the stuff you have and figuring out what it is capable of - recording equipment can get very expensive very quickly, so before deciding to upgrade your audio chain, you really need to be sure about what is going to bring the best improvement. If you are concerned about recording 8 tracks at once, what circumstances are you going to do this in as an overdub where latency might be an issue? Go do it, and see whether it really is a problem - if there isn't a problem then great, if there is a problem, you need to ask how often you will need to record like that and what your options are (for something like full drumkit overdubs it may be economical to rent some studio time and take advantage of their mics and acoustic treatment and pro level kit if you are not going to be doing it on a regular basis) - do you need more kit, or can you change your approach to making the recording so the problem disappears. [/quote]Thanks for the advice, I will give it some serious thought, after all, its very early days in my recording hobby.

[quote name='Jow Bass' timestamp='1476102953' post='3151249'] I can do all of your mods, let me know if you are interested? [/quote]Hi Jow, I've PM'd you.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1476100684' post='3151216'] I never wrote a diary, but I have a book that lists all my gigs for the first 10 years or so. [/quote]Its a pity you stopped after ten years, it would have made interesting reading to look back on almost a lifetime of gigging, and I'm sure there is a story or two to be told amongst that little lot. Anyway, well done, fifty years really is an achievement!