Kiwi

Well it might just be that you prefer the sound of jazz basses. It goes without saying that a Smith won't give you a jazz bass sound but it can sometimes fit other musical situations a little better. For example, where you need a solid and fat low end in RnB, reggae or hip hop. Doesn't mean to say a jazz bass won't fill the chair but the Smith might sit in the mix better because its less aggressive sounding. As ever, horses for courses.

[quote name='SpinalTap' post='552299' date='Jul 27 2009, 08:10 AM']I can't remember that, but I'm not up to date on what is going on at Basschat.[/quote] Outrageous! Why isn't Basschat the centre of your life?!!

My 0.2c FWIW Ken Smith designs his necks deliberately to have a little bit of give. It helps with getting the growl. I could never get super low action on any of mine because they weren't designed like that. However if you use exposed core strings like La Bella Super Steps, you can still have low-ish action without needing to tweak the saddles much. Otherwise use lighter gauge or titanium strings to reduce the string tension and you won't need to fight against the action so much. Most wooden necked basses, unless they have super rigid necks like Alembic or Pedulla, will struggle to match a graphite neck for low action. [u]Well constructed[/u] graphite necks are far more rigid and don't flex as much under string tension or when being fret dressed. If you don't like the sound of graphite necks then consider modifying your backline to compensate. For example, if you think a status kb is too cold then consider using a Mark Bass combo to add growl and to shave off some of that high end sizzle. Alternatively, do what I did and invest in a studio quality parametric eq. Graphite necks give you all the frequencies and wood tends to act like a selective dampener. The reason why Rob Green fills the Status Stealth basses with epoxy foam is because the foam also acts like a selective dampener and sweetens the tone up. So its up to you to find a bass that at least gives you what you're looking for in terms of growl and depth and remove those components you don't like hearing with your backline like sizzle or brittleness. Alternatively if you know what you want in a bass, and you know that what you want will give you the sound you want then go custom. I think you'll find it easier to solve your issues if you look at the bigger picture, your bass is one ingredient in a recipe that includes strings, preamp/power amp, speakers, stage acoustics, effects etc. modify each to get the flavour you are after. Personally I've found you can make the tone of a bass become more rounder with higher action but I've never liked that sound myself. Not growly enough. I tend to look for basses that are warm and growly and use my backline to modify the mids and highs to taste.

[quote name='chris_b' post='561950' date='Aug 6 2009, 12:32 PM']The dark haired drummer behind TH is Paul Robinson. He also played with Nina Simone for 20 years.... and me, on and off, for about 2! He's a very fine drummer to play with.[/quote] Some really gutsy and sharp playing. I was having a chat with one of our deps who did some work with Trevor Horn at one point and in a day of studio time for one song, he apparently rehearsed everyone to death by recording them and then picking up on the smallest details of timing and phrasing in each note. They'd have to rehearse the song over and over again to the point of exhaustion. Then he'd take them off for lunch and when they came back he'd start recording takes. Invariably what happened is that the first take was the best combination of precision timing and feel. Subsequent takes lost a bit of energy, so it seems like Mr Horn has an interesting insight into how to get the best out of musicians. Was that bass an Avella BTW? I know he's played Lakland 5502's in the past.

anywhere between £1000-1800 depending on the source.

[quote name='Thunderthumbs' post='561846' date='Aug 6 2009, 11:42 AM']Enjoyed the track. I always did like Art of Noise considering they were predominantly an "keyboard/samples" type of band. That performance was hardly the most exhilarating though. Lacklustre at best.[/quote] I think it was typically bombastic - a Trevor Horn hallmark, but he's a studio bod more than an entertainer. I thought the drummers did an awesome job though - really great way to get that double tracked sound live.

same principle is what causes the rotor blades in these shots of helicopters to be frozen. Engineers now actively use this principle to study the way stresses change on the rotor blades as the helicopter performs various manouvers.

Accept them as player grade instruments, ie. tools for tone and you can get really good value for money.

[quote name='GreeneKing' post='559586' date='Aug 3 2009, 08:05 PM']EBS Microbass II is a perfect tool for this.[/quote] +1 Just some thoughts Pete: Do you need to use two basses or will one do? Do you need to use two basses that sound so different?

Its been recorded in a studio environment so you'll have to work hard to reproduce the same tone. But as a starting point, I'd suggest a Stingray 5 (or an Aria SB1000 if you can get it sounding fat enough) into Trace Elliots dual band compressor into whatever rig you're using at the moment. Alternatively if you want to go the whole hog, a really, really good quality valve preamp like the Avalon U5 into a clean power amp like one of the 1u Class D jobbies I have and then maybe into a Berg 4x10 or 2x12 speaker cab. The bergs I've tried have generally sounded pretty fat and clean.

[url="http://www.musicanddesign.com/Isobaric.html"]http://www.musicanddesign.com/Isobaric.html[/url]

[quote name='Delberthot' post='558238' date='Aug 2 2009, 03:08 AM']I really enjoy having my Shuttle 6 / Schroeder 1212L combination but being perfectly honest, I would prefer to have my GK 700RB II back.[/quote] I don't think my Shuttle + EBS rig is deficient tonally in any way, but I did like the GK RB700 combo I had and if they made them in some kind of super light format then I'd have one in a heartbeat. However, given its taken GK about 18 years since the SWR SM400 to release a hybrid head onto the market, I'm not going to be holding my breath.

I don't think it can be taught. Feel is mostly about attitude, so you either get it or you don't. But I think it can be learned.

[quote name='silverfoxnik' post='558204' date='Aug 1 2009, 11:59 PM']It's going to be a bit strange without you there CK, must admit.. I suggested to Ped that we have a live satellite link-up for you. what do you think? You could do a speech and everything..Play a trans-continental bass solo [/quote] LOL, I have a webcam somewhere with a mic on it but after hearing me, you might want to rethink that solo thing...

Hypothetically speaking, which of the following applicants would you offer the job to if someone perfect wasn't available? [b]Applicant 1[/b] Looks: 7/10 Playing: 3/10 Dedicated: 9/10 [b]Applicant 2[/b] Looks: 9/10 Playing: 5/10 Dedicated: 3/10 [b]Applicant 3[/b] Looks: 3/10 Playing: 9/10 Dedicated: 7/10 [b]Applicant 4[/b] Looks: 6/10 Playing: 6/10 Dedicated: 6/10 And: What's the nature of your relationship with the artist? Are you sure about the market demographic?

Wish I was going to be there, thanks for setting this up Nik.

Hey Mark, I've been enjoying the turntable you sold me and I've got good memories of our evening together. I hope you won't be out in the cold too long but I understand the need to take a step back and put things in perspective. Hope we'll see you back here soon matey.

[quote name='john_the_bass' post='555420' date='Jul 29 2009, 06:38 PM']The Spectrums aren't as good as the Thunder series (which are very good indeed). It's worth watching ebay as you'll get a much better Thunder for less that the price of that Spectrum[/quote] As an ex-owner of a Spectrum II, I couldn't wait to get rid of mine. The Westone Super Headless basses are the best instruments they've ever made and they pop up on Ebay occasionally. I think the Bass Gallery had one in a while back.

you're a driven man, Mr Claber.

Nice bass Tony, whats the serial on the back of the headstock?