AndyBass

If you went down the Bassmax route, there's a lot to be said for the preamp from the K&K "Rockabilly" system too. It may lack some of the versatility of the Plat Pro, but you can get your hands on them for a lot less, they're tiny and clip neatly onto your bass and I've always managed to get a sound I liked from it, whether playing slap, pizz or arco.

Having been on a similar search myself not too long ago, I'm afraid I think you're going to struggle. The GK MB112 is one of your best bets for around the £200 mark. At the top end seems to be the Markbass mini, which a lot of "pro" players I've met use. But that's about 4 x your budget. I held off, saved and went for somewhere in the middle and bought a Genz Benz shuttle 3.0 10T. Tiny and powerful enough for pub gigs on its own. But again you'd need to double your budget and then a little more. For the money, I'd go for an MB112 ii. Others will almost inevitably know better though!

Cheers Rabbie. I think you're right, I play a lot better when I'm loose, but when I'm trying to get these techniques I tense up no end to try and get the speed or because on the second quad slap technique, its the only way I can get enough force to get the 3rd click out of my Innovations. And also a bit out of frustration as I've drilled them so many times with no improvement. Ah well, I'll keep plugging away! Anyone near Yorkshire who can do any of them and wouldn't mind letting me see and asking a few questions one day, give me a shout!

Cheers. Id say that's pretty sound advice and obviously practice is 90% of it. And that's got me to a point where I'm totally happy with drag triplets and that kinda stuff. I definitely think with the fast slap I want there's something to be said for going back to playing really slow, trying to correct bad habits and get the snap without getting fingertips near the fingerboard. But I really like the quad stuff in those clips, particularly the "rapid fire" one Willie Dixon, Milt Hinton et al would drop in occasionally. And I guess its the same kinda rapid fire slap I want to nail for just fast psychobilly style playing. Not cos I like that stuff, but because I don't like not being able to do it! And that's where I'm thinking there must be an element of technique I need more insight into before I can then practice it faster...

Doh! This should be the other link.. http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=K3vIRxn2yCI&feature=relmfu

So I'm trying to get various quad slap techniques down using YouTube, particularly Mr Dubouchet's clips. The two I'm looking at are: http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=3sbHVfKFLlY&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D3sbHVfKFLlY http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=3sbHVfKFLlY&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D3sbHVfKFLlY So I get the idea, but I just don't seem to be able to get them going with any speed. Practice goes without saying, but does anyone who can do these techniques have any pointers - which strings should be hit with which fingers, string height, voodoo charms, whatever. Also trying to get the speed of my normal slap playing faster. Again, practice goes without saying but when I play fast I tend to hit the fingerboard more with my fingertips. Any tips? Again, I know practice is the main thing here, but Im after any suggestions that might help break through a plateau. Cheers!

Ah yeah, I remember thinking I might try those when I re-watched that Lee Rocker video a bit back. Cool, will keep an eye on the classifieds for a set to test out. Thanks for looking into it! Hopefully catch you guys live again soon

I'm thinking of trying to find some flexier steels on my Strunal anyway because we might be busking outdoors a bit if the sun ever appears and I just don't get the volume from my Innovations, but would still want to slap it a bit. Don't suppose you've come across anything that fits the bill, Dave? The "second bass" idea is a bit of a thought for the future really, I'd need to get the money up and I'm just wrangling with whether or not its a worthwhile aim, given the difficulty retailers seem to have selling left handed stock let alone selling it on used. Maybe switch strings first and see... Good to know there are other lefties about as well! I hear you on the space limitations, if anything besides economic sense stops me expanding to more basses, it'll probably be that. But where there's a will...

I'm currently the very happy owner of a lefty Strunal 50/4 (this fella here [url="http://www.doublebasschat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13516"]http://www.doublebasschat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13516[/url]) which I have set up with 50/50 Golden slaps and Rockabillys. Increasingly I'm struggling to get all the characteristics of sounds I want for the various styles I play with one set up, so I'm considering getting another bass. (Did that sound plausible? I've rehearsed that a lot to convince others and myself that I don't just want another because two basses would be twice as badass) Plan would be to re-string the 50/4 with steels of some kind for arco and "boomier" bluegrass playing, and get myself another set up for amped-up slap. Got my eye on one of Thomas' Duke basses as they did a run of lefties a bit back. My concern is the apparent madness of buying not one quite individually-styled left-handed bass, but two, and therefore having a fair chunk of cash tied up in an asset that realistically would be a nightmare to sell. Essentially I'm thinking it would be like buying a house you were perfectly happy to live in for now, but knowing you could never, ever sell it! So, am I crazy wanting two, should I just get a different string setup? Or should I play it safe and get the cheapest Thomann/Gedo lefty with steels and minimise the investment? Anyone ever heard of someone successfully selling a second hand lefty bass? Perspectives from you learned folk are much appreciated! As dilemmas go, its not the worst...

...and my experience to date is you might as well try and get your hands on unicorn gut strings as Cordes Lamberts these days. I've certainly had no joy. Let me know if you do!

Score some second hand guts off here, Talkbass or DBC. You can try them put for less cash and you're not directly supporting an animal product-based industry. That's your best solution to defensibly ethically source guts, I'd say. Or just tell him they're Cordes Lamberts anyway if you're feeling devious.

I used to work in Notts and when I first tried double bass, I got a kind of intro lesson from a guy in Mapperley. I found that really useful. If you don't find a willing BCer, I'd suggest that. For me it was twenty quid well spent. I'd offer but I'm in Sheffield and left handed.

I've got the same bag (the Hidersine one from DJM). It really is good for the money, plenty of padding (the number of ominous "thuds" I've heard when hefting my bass around only to check it over at the other end and all is fine) and I've had it probably a year so far with no problems.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions! Really grateful to get some genuine advice and ideas in response to what was probably a bit of a frustrated whinge! I'm not sure what the right answer is for me at the minute - though I think we're all agreed scale exercises are the place to start. I'll definitely look into all recommendations and see what works. Thanks!

I've been playing grown up bass for a couple of years and over the last year I've tried to learn a bit more about music, having spent many years playing in bands relying on a good ear and drunken luck. Until recently I had occasional lessons and they improved my intonantion and got me started with the bow but I think I needed more structure to them, and recently my bands have become busier so I've sunk into root-fifth and 12 bar slapping rather than trying to improve. One struggle is translating notation to the fingerboard - I can read the music in a fairly clunky way but then finding the notes is slow going too as Ive always played more by "patterns" and ear than notes. Another is understanding composition. I've learned various basslines which just make no sense to me based on the theory I know, ie they broadly conform to a scale/key but then throw in notes that don't belong. And if you can just stick any old note in, what's the point of a key, etc? Surely it just becomes a free for all driven by ear..? I absolutely love bass and play every day, but I'm just playing the same old stuff at the minute and not pushing myself. Ultimately I want to take grades in bass as I need that structure and indication of progress. So..I have a number of knowledge gaps I need to fill. Any recommendations of exercises, books or teachers in the Sheffield area that could help are most welcome! Cheers.

Glad it turned out well in the end!

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm kicking myself about the Genz Benz as there were three for sale on here or Gumtree early last week and now none! I'd thought about the Ibanez Promethean but didn't really know Ibanez even made amps so was a bit wary.

I'm afraid I can't help with a loan as mine's left handed and my only bass but thought I'd say hi as another Sheffield double bassist. Is the luthier Geoff, by any chance? He's the only guy I know round here, and he's done decent work for me in the past, although pretty basic stuff

I've recently sold on my amp as it was too big for what I needed and am now looking for something compact (once my bass is in the car, theres not room for much else) but powerful enough for pub blues & bluegrass gigs, and that could maybe function as a bit of a monitor when I'm running through the pa on bigger afairs. Any recommendations or thoughts on what wattage would suffice? I play slap, arco and pizz so need something that gives a good sound across the range. Haha, did I mention the cheaper the better? Which puts Markbass and possibly Genz Benz out of my league (though I am quite keen on the 3.0 10t). Thanks for any suggestions!

I'm still on one bass, but saving up for a second. Trouble is, as a left-hander, any bass I buy is pretty much going to be staying with me forever so gotta be sure I can really justify it! And the imminent arrival of Jr and my tiny house don't fill my wife with confidence that a second bass is a wise investment. Some people just don't understand... At least being a lefty keeps me from getting sucked into the world of vintage basses...much as I'd love it!

Just as an addition to the above recommendations, though I expect you're probably past the point where DVDs will offer you much now you've been at it for a little while - I probably got most out of Slap Bass: The Ungentle Art (Kevin Smith and Mark Rubin). Again, it can be quite expensive for a DVD, but worth it IMO. If you still use DVDs, still don't want to order outside the UK and you want to borrow it, I'll send you mine if you send it back after a month or something. Its a world better than the Lee Rocker one and breaks things down with different views and such. I like the Didi Beck book as well, hope you find it useful. And I'd be another vote for standing by the stage staring intently at what a good bass player's doing, then collaring them after if you get chance. I've picked up some useful stuff that way, especially about setup, and met some cool guys (I even got a drink out of "Slick" Joe Fick!).