Kiwi

[quote name='waynepunkdude' post='220223' date='Jun 16 2008, 09:26 PM']First up there was a band call Secret Love Society they were hilarious, had huge egos and a bad attitude they got kicked off stage for throwing the house mike around they were warned twice but they had too much ego to stop so they got kicked off[/quote] They sound like Black Sabbath in an Alice Cooper style.

For me, it certainly limits my technique to the demands of the songs for better or for worse. I don't really practice bass for its own sake any more because of the Grumpy Old Bugger living next door. Strangely enough he never seems to complain about the neighbours shagging though. However I've found some songs are demanding in terms of split second timing (like Ain't Nobody), and I can push other songs out a little. For example, the bass line to I Feel Love is pretty simple but if I add triplets up an octave it starts getting a bit more interesting. There are potentially a number of different ways I could play those triplets depending on the technique I choose. My creative impulses were fairly stifled last year primarily by a lack of chordal knowledge and so I ended up buying a guitar to help me learn the different voicings that were possible. Now I'm picking up some cool things for guitar in its own right as well.

I'm both, in varying amounts depending on context. If I'm jamming with the guys in the band on stuff I've just made up, I'm an artist and the emphasis is on finding inspiration and exploring creativity. If I'm performing covers on stage in our usual function band routine, then I'm trying to craft the music and the emphasis is on quality product. I don't see a distinct line drawn between the two, its more a point between polar opposites. I've faced with this dilemna every day at work with clients expecting artistic levels of inspiration for craftsmans fees.

I used to have a Boss CE2B and I sold it to Rich. The thing that made it appeal to some bass players was that the chorus effect applied only to the upper frequencies. To my ears it lacked richness so I ended up getting a Yamaha E1005 rack analogue delay instead which sounded great. Having said that its pretty coloured in having fairly prominent upper mids so I just tend to use the chorus on my MPXG2 if I need it. I've had the analogueman, Carl Martin and TC Electronic chorus pedals recommended to me but I've never tried them.

[quote name='jakesbass' post='220569' date='Jun 17 2008, 01:32 PM']My signature electonics are very good for live. I have very variable control with the Q switches and I can get just what I want at high volumes with the lightest of touch, which makes what I am able to play easier and therfore more dextrous. Something I have only had on 1 other bass (still got it too)[/quote] I think a Signature bass offers all the wood choice advantages of the Series basses but without the fiddly and excessive electronics. If I was in the market for an Alembic, I wouldn't bother to look beyond a signature bass. (Bear in mind that I already own an old Series 1). I've played an all maple Mark King which had a lot of nice growl and still stayed full sounding because of the low impedance pickups and electronics.

[quote name='Wil' post='220487' date='Jun 17 2008, 11:45 AM']Wood fingerboards perhaps?[/quote] Eventually? Absolutely! But for the steinberger necks we can probably get away with it. The necks have a core filled with a very fine grained grey hardened foam which seems to do a great job of dampening off the clatter. Replacing the fingerboard would add an extra cost that isn't really needed. I'm anticipating a very firm sounding instrument with a crisp high end and deep lows. I will have to wait and see how much midrange comes out but with the chambered alder body core, it should hopefully sound nice and firm.

Personally, I think the Series II is pretty much overkill for live situations. Most live sound engineers I know would baulk at the idea of running a bass in stereo on stage, however the Series II is in a league of its own in the studio. I've found the Series basses seem to have more upper midrange and punch than other Alembic models too. The bass seem to combine a delicacy and attention to detail with tremendous robustness in my eyes. They're definitely idiosyncractic instruments however.

Im still waiting for my guitar to be delivered.

[quote name='lowhand_mike' post='219726' date='Jun 16 2008, 11:24 AM']if tribute and cover band are indeed tired and culturally redundant then they would have no place in the music scene. yes it is a more local and convenient way of hearing live music were the original bands would never play and allows a more simplistic way of getting into playing live music.[/quote] I agree that many covers bands are culturally redundant in the context of pushing musical boundaries. As I've mentioned already, I think function bands help set the mood at an event, they're not culturally [i]irrelevant [/i]at all.

[quote name='Marshy' post='219452' date='Jun 15 2008, 09:15 PM']To be fair, Barry was very apologetic, didn't dodge the issue, and within short order I had the agreed sale price for my Yamaha bass in cash (plus a couple of sets of strings).[/quote] The most important thing was you got your money. Nice one.

[quote name='spog' post='219346' date='Jun 15 2008, 06:42 PM']Wrote a lengthy post last night only to find it has now vanished. Anyone else had this happen? Bloody annoying, frankly![/quote] There's nothing in the trash can, so you only have yourself to blame. Next time drop a PM to a moderator first maybe?

with all due respect, thats probably a fair price for a bass that looks like its had a stingray control plate added. The economy of description may mean the seller is glossing over something though.

heheh, resistance is useless...

SIR! REMOVE YOUR HANDS FROM THE KEYBOARD AND STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER!!

[quote name='danfergie123' post='218557' date='Jun 13 2008, 08:54 PM']Dude, that is probably the best [i]and[/i] worst joke I've ever heard [/quote] thankyou... ...I think.

Isn't Jack Cables a mate of Allen Keys?

London SC is closed for the forseeable apparently.

you'll be well and truly screwed if you ever play that on a hollow stage too.

In my experience: The fundamental character of the instrument comes from the neck and body materials and the type of neck joint construction. The fingerboard heavily influences the treble, attack and sustain. The bridge and hardware can detract from the highs and lows if not rigid enough The pickups can detract from the highs if they have too much resistance, detract from the lows if the pickups are very low impedance, the pickups can add midrange if they are overwound. That recipe can be mixed and matched a bit but it won't add character (eg. more growl). The position of the pickups also influences how the tonal character of the instrument is emphasised. The preamp can offer the most significant source of tone tweaking if you preshape the degree of boost and the frequency centres. Spector's 'tone pump' has a substantial amount of preset bass boost to compensate for the bright character of the maple wood that the NS5XL/NS5CR or NS2 is made from. You'll very rarely find a warm sounding all maple bass with a passive bypass. However the danger with tweaking the preamp is that if any of the boosted frequency centres coincide with notes on the neck it will make those particular notes jump out more. lower action = more growl and midrange (and mwah on a fretless) higher action = rounder tone with more bass

[quote name='bass_ferret' post='217532' date='Jun 12 2008, 12:31 PM']Not really picking on Mike and yes the editor should have spotted it but he did write both the offending reviews [/quote] and quite right too, the impacts are bound to be deep and far reaching. He's single handedly shaping the minds of tomorrow's musicians with shoddy writing like that and it just means more work for you, doesn't it ferret?

[quote name='EBS_freak' post='217491' date='Jun 12 2008, 11:07 AM']Aw man, it seems a shame to single out Mike... remember, it's up to the editor to spot such things also![/quote] I agree, I'll be surprised if Mike responds to be honest. Its not really fair for him to take sh*t on behalf of the editor.

I've just come back from Zavvi Oxford Street and the basement is barricaded off with a notice saying Sound Control no longer trades from these premises. The basement itself has some display stands but looks basically gutted.

[quote name='bass_ferret' post='217346' date='Jun 12 2008, 07:58 AM']There is a lot of variety in the current BGM - signature rigs from Lemmy and Jonas Hellborg. Talk about opposites. There I was reading the Lemmy review when Mike Brooks says the 4x15 cab "...is capable of delivering 800 watts at 8 ohms". ARGH! Cabinets dont deliver watts they deliver decibels Then when reviewing the Peavey VB-2 amp Mike is "...surprised by the excellent power handling of the amp..." Its no wonder newbies struggle to understand all about watts and decibels when the writers for The UK's Number One Bass Guitar Magazine (sounds so much better than The UK's Only Bass Guitar Magazine) get it wrong. Perhaps they should have a feature on how amps work [/quote] I've forwarded this post to Mike, because he's a member of the forum.