BassBus

...and I remember that lovely interview she did with Ken Bruce. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLPaqEeogCA"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLPaqEeogCA[/url]

Fantastic! Love that kind of stuff. Great rhythm.

I am quite happy to have been born when I was. I was a teenager in the 70s so I was able to see my fave bands at the height of their powers and great they were too. Never saw Pink Floyd though, sad to say. Even now that I've morphed into a jazzer and living in austere times I wouldn't change anything. We have all sorts of fun toys to play with which hadn't even been thought of in the 70s. I may not listen to much 'young persons' music but there is still plenty out there worth listening to. I get more fun out of playing in bands now than I did then. With all of us being older now there aren't the same ego problems around. I wouldn't change a thing. Now, who sang that?

I get bored playing the same bass all the time. As a result I have quite a collection which means when I do get bored with one I move onto another for a couple of months, then another and so on. And I am well aware of how lucky I am to be in that position. When I stop buying basses that's the day I give up.

Not that I would ever advise working a way round something official like a Portable Appliance Test but have a look [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_trksid=p3984.m570.l1311.R2.TR10.TRC0&_nkw=pat+test+labels&_sacat=0&_from=R40"]here[/url]. [size=4] [/size]

The answer is more practice. Predictable as that might be you will have very little progress if you don't put the hours in. A teacher would benefit anyone who wants to move on. A teacher would maybe help you focus on specific parts of your playing and certainly help you move away from certain bad habits. But then again it is sometimes those bad habits that contribute to an individual style of playing. I'm a big fan of Steve Hackett's playing but if you look at the way he uses his left hand fingers on the fretboard it's not exactly tidy. What might be useful for you is to get hold of [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Band--RealBand-Music-Software-Windows/dp/B002FOQS2I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368868323&sr=8-1&keywords=band+in+a+box+2013"]Band in a Box[/url] software. You type chords into it, select a style, press play and you have a full backing arrangement you can play over. If you want to play the bass part simply mix out the bass. You can type in the notes as well so it plays the tune for you. Very flexible and endless fun for practice.

Mighty fine playing that is! [size=4] [/size] [size=4]I've just had the same experience. I had a tone in my head I wanted to achieve from a bass. None of my expensive basses could quite catch it. Came across and ESP B-204 fretless on Ebay and that has nailed it for £159. These days I don't think you need to spend thousands to get a good bass. Is that going to stop me doing just that...[/size]

Strange. There's no apostrophes either. [size=4] [/size] [size=4]Coat in hand.[/size]

[quote name='bassace' timestamp='1368521899' post='2077884'] [color=#000000][size=4]Yogi: I can't, but I will. 90% of all Jazz is half improvisation. The other half is the part people play while others are playing something they never played with anyone who played that part. So if you play the wrong part, its right. If you play the right part, it might be right if you play it wrong enough. But if you play it too right, it's wrong.[/size][/color] [/quote] I think that just about sums jazz up in a nutshell. [size=4] [/size]

Flats will work fine. As will nylon wound strings.

Don't forget, Gary Willis uses a lined fretless neck and he is insanely talented.

Also have a look across the front of the instrument from the side. The front should be flat when strung and tuned to pitch. If there is a rise of any sort that might indicate a problem. That's a big job to sort. As Junkyard Rocket said, check the relief of the neck. Hold down the E string at the first fret (capo it if you want). Then fret that string at the fret where the neck joins the body. Look at how far you have to press the string down to fret it while holding these two points. If it's more than about 1mm then tighten the truss rod a bit. Tightening the truss rod, if it needs it, will also lower the action a bit.

What voxpop says. Just jump in. You might sound a bit out to begin with but your ear will tell you when you are wrong. I don't know if you do any soloing with the fretless. I play in a jazz band so soloing is part of it. I use lined and unlined basses but I like the lined to give a bit more accuracy up the dusty end of the neck. On unlined you have the position markers at 3, 5, 7, etc. which gives you a guide.

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1368186378' post='2074186'] I was aiming for the positive aspects of "having a go" rather than dwelling on the (often necessary) negative aspects of the learning process [/quote] Ah. My mistake. I try to do as much of my own setting up as I can. When it comes to nuts though I have no experience so it's off to a luthier. I don't have the files either and for the number of times I needed a nut altered (once) it seems easier to take it to Chris McIntyre.

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1368184476' post='2074145'] But how did the luthier/tech learn how to do it? [/quote] By making mistakes and that's why Graham should take it to a luthier if he doesn't know how to do it. [size=4] [/size]

Is this the model? [url="http://www.behringer.com/EN/Products/BXL450.aspx"]http://www.behringer...cts/BXL450.aspx[/url] If it is, then at 45 watts you're going to be struggling in a band context. As Ray says probably better with 250-300 watts. The clicking might be distortion of the speaker. Lower powered amps can do this when you crank them up. Best keep the volume down and just use it for home practice. Get hold of a bigger amp for band work. Have a look through the amps for sale in 'The Marketplace' here on Basschat. Usually some good bargains and you can usually depend on the guys selling here.

I'll put myself in the ten percent. Not everyone is going to love a 'strong' leader but that's what produces the goods sometimes, and they produced some goods in their time. Never liked the acoustic version of Hotel California though.

Is this the one? [url="http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/ashdown-300-watts-bass-amplifier-for-sale/1015988801"]http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/ashdown-300-watts-bass-amplifier-for-sale/1015988801[/url]

Does this help? [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96UF0TwIUmM&NR=1&feature=endscreen"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96UF0TwIUmM&NR=1&feature=endscreen[/url]

And that's a good example. Played around simple chord structures. Sometimes the hardest to make sound good and not boring and repetitive.

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1367580210' post='2067142'] I seem to manage to find the suckers, though [/quote] You never said it was free jazz you played. [size=4] [/size]

Bet the audience don't even notice your mistakes, Bilbo. You will because you care and want to do it right. I have heard it said before, that there aren't many notes that are wrong in jazz. If you are now doing 120 gigs a year you must be doing something right.

dontthey teech gramor and punk tuashon well in skool thees dais. [size=4] [/size]

[quote name='bassatnight' timestamp='1367314070' post='2063949'] Players of note: Mark Egan, Mick Karn, Tony Franklin, Pino Palladino (Gary Numan/Paul Young), Jaco Pastorius [/quote] [quote name='Panamonte' timestamp='1367314637' post='2063953'] and John Giblin [/quote] ...and Gary Willis...

[size=4][quote name='GarethFlatlands' timestamp='1367264447' post='2063460'][/size] Do a massive slide into or out of every single note. Best get a chorus pedal too. [/quote] And then try slapping it. And that's when you'll wish you hadn't. [size=4] [/size] [quote name='chilievans' timestamp='1367264963' post='2063475'] I've been playing Bach on it and it doesn't sound quite right in places. I'm thinking its my intonation? [/quote] It might not be just your intonation. Take it to a good luthier for a setup. Not all guitar shop techs know how to setup a fretless properly.