Patster1969

Sorry to hijack your thread question Matt but I have a similar issue. I have recently joined a band with 2 guitarists & a (loud) drummer, playing classic rock. For rehearsals, I have been using a Line 6 Lowdown Studio 110, which has 75 watts and has been absolutely fine for rehearsals (it has actually surprised the other band members with the amount of noise you get out of it!). However, we may possibly have some small gigs soon, so am trying to work out what the best to do is. This is the only amp I've had, as have only been playing about 2 & 1/2 years, & haven't played in a band before where I've had to supply my backline. Like you, I was under the impression that watts equal sound volume, so am not sure what the best option would be. Someone did tell me that the bass amp should have twice the 'wattage' of the guitarist's amp but is that not the case? Also, as Matt said, are there a few golden rules/unique points that I need to take into account (watts to ohms, etc)? Any help/guidance would be heavily appreciated. I'll be honest & say that I would be apprehensive in lashing out a huge amount of money as I don't know how far this band might progress. Cheers all Pat

Some v helpful info, much appreciated. Fretting hand position has been picked up from lessons tbh Mog, but I always stand when playing at home & at lessons, so would have guitar at same high level pretty much all of the time. Have tried a few different strap lengths - too low & I felt that I was overstretching, and too high & felt that I was cramping my entire upper body up, so have settled for a happy medium. As you said, teachers don't know everything & my teacher is not a specific bass teacher, so I think he sees more guitar players than bass players - he's still sooooo much better than me though From reading some of the other forum queries, I have purposely tilted the neck higher than before as I did notice that I had my fretting wrist at a more acute angle than was comfy, although from doing this, have noticed a bit more neckdive on the Jazz - more experimentation required I reckon! I have also tried to not grip the neck quite as much with my thumb, which has also helped to some extent. Also tried Essexbasscat's theory using my mobile & glasses case (which is about twice the width of the phone) & did notice that my thumb was almost level with my index finger with the glasses case, but with the mobile was almost level with my middle finger & had a more pronounced angle on the joint where the thumb meets the hand - might be why my thumb joint is more painful? Might try your suggestion Charic and pop into the Andertons near me to try a number of different neck sizes against the Jazz. As I said to you on Saturday, did try a few different basses when I bought the Jazz but might not have experimented enough with neck sizes - think I looked at thinner necked basses thinking that they would be easier to play. As you said above, it is more of a dull ache than pain but it definitely slows your fretting down. BTW, defo sounds dodgy that we may have compared hand sizes

Hi all Had a chat with Charic about this at the Bash at the weekend & wondered if anyone else has had a similar issue. Have a CV Jazz & after playing for a bit, often have pain in my thumb joint & cramp-like symptoms in my wrist/forearm. Charic advised me that he had had a problem like this but had pretty much eliminated it by swapping his thinner width necked bass for a Fender P with a wider neck. Had a go on his P at the bash (thanks for that mate, much appreciated) & it did feel more comfortable, and the neck did seem to fit my hand size better. However, spoke to my teacher about this & he didn't feel it would make a huge difference if I changed my bass to something with the wider neck as he hadn't heard this from any of his other pupils, and the problems would probably lessen over time with practice and increased stamina in my fretting hand/arm (as I have been playing for less than 2 years). What I don't want to do is buy something else and after a few weeks find that it's made no difference to the issues I've had, so do I try it or perserver with the Jazz neck? Any help given is much appreciated. Pat

Hoping to be there as well? Will be good to meet everyone & try to pick their brains/learn something that I can take away to add to my limited experience - it can only help!

Hadn't thought of that, thanks for the heads-up Mike. Used to work in Guildford and there's bloody hundreds of 'em!

Thanks guys, may well have a look around in the new year to see if there's anybody looking for musicians to play with. There's a good music shop in Guildford that has a bulletin board of sorts - I'm sure I've seen lots of 'musicians wanted' type adverts there.

It may seem like a ridiculous question chaps, but having never been to a Bass Bash before and having limited experience of all things bass, the venue is not far from me but:- 1) will there be things going on there for all levels of competence/experience, 2) can I only come for part of the day (as would have to disappear early afternoon), 3) would I get nothing out of it if only there for part of the day, & 4) would I need to bring my bass with me to get anything out of it? Sorry for the questions, which probably seem ridiculous for you seasoned bass bashers. Pat

Thanks for that icastle, you are right in that I don't feel such an idiot if I get it wrong at home. Have been tempted to find some people to play with but worry that my lack of talent will be discovered all too quickly! My wife & teacher are always telling me that I need to give myself some slack, as can't expect to be brilliant straight off, but it's easier said than done. Don't worry that you've only been on here for a few days, appreciate the time to reply & kind words. Pat

Hi all Discovered this site by chance, so have been reading some of the threads but thought I would finally plunge myself in. Have only been playing for just over 18 months & came in at a standing start, having no musical background to speak of at all. Sad to say that I was encouraged to take up an instrument as I had enjoyed 'playing' on a musical X-Box game but couldn't see the point of devoting hours of my time playing that when I could be playing for real. Also by the wife (who was a grade 8 piano & violin student in her teens & still plays a bit now - although not as much as she should) & my brother (who has played guitar & bass for about 20 years). Plumped for the bass as had always enjoyed listening to John Taylor's basslines as a kid (yep, I am that old ). Still appreciate his lines but am more than likely to play rock or metal at home. Am finding it all a bit hard going at the moment but have been having lessons since I started, which is helping. Thought I would ask for your opinion - is it worth me continuing to learn songs at home by playing along with cds or by finding people to play with, as am trying to find a way to accelerate my playing/learning and making it more interesting? My weapon of choice is a Squire CV Jazz. Also have an Ibanez passive bass that I bought when I started, which is also not too bad either (no idea of the model but it is probably a 180 or something like that). Playing through a Line 6 Studio 110, which was a 40th birthday pressie from my brother & sis. That's about it really from me. If you are still reading, any help/feedback would be greatly appreciated. KR's Pat