Silvia Bluejay

Algmusic - maybe. Width of neck another possible reason. And yes, drop D on a 4 sounds different from low D on a 5, but the latter is waay better IMO! Different taste (and makes of bass) I guess. EssentialTension, I would miss my G-string if I did that (seriously, also - it's handier for high notes than running up the neck).

Hm, are you comparing like with like? Same make of bass guitar, same pickups, internal electronics, string type/quality, etc.? My impression is that, all other things being equal, a 5-stringer might sound marginally less bright because its pickups need to be better suited to detecting lower frequencies than those on a 4-stringer, but that's just about it. If you use any effects, they should make light work of correcting that problem.

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1321280849' post='1437248'] Things is though, what does like/dislike or pos/neg actually mean? If it's a behavioural sort of thing related to abusive and rude posts then I can see it might have some value, but if it's an agreement/disagreement type thing then surely it's rather pointless. Suppose someone posted something saying that Fender make the best bass guitars and 1,000 people posted negative feedback because they disagreed? So the OP picks up a huge negative reputation because of a perfectly reasonable opinion, which they are highly unlikely to change. OTOH, another poster might be rude and abusive and also pick up 1,000 negative posts. which might, perhaps, make them consider their behaviour (unless they consider it a badge of honour and simply encourage them to achieve a record score for 'trolling'). But the thing that makes a simple neg/pos thing of little value is that we can never know the reasoning behind the rating, unless the voter describes their reasons in a post, in which case the like/dislike vote is superfluous anyway. [/quote] Flyfisher makes perfect sense. I hereby choose to state my approval of and support for his post in written form and without using the positive button. (Not being sarcastic here, just lighthearted!)

[quote name='Ou7shined' timestamp='1321277593' post='1437185'] Nope you are right enough. It has happened before, however I'm not sure if the detection system was automatic or if it needed the crafty intervention of the forum elves. That was on the old forum's software, maybe this new software can do it.. I don't know. [/quote] Being a mod is a thankless task and a very difficult job. Ideally, there should always be at least one mod reading all the posts on the sections assigned to his/her supervision. That may not be feasible, especially if all the mods live in the same country and time zone. Obviously, the trusted veterans of a forum can help by emailing or PMing the mods in case of trouble, and they are the most reliable defence system! Also, I may be wrong, but i thought it is possible to compile a list of words that the software will flag automatically if posted - not just swearwords, but also non-sweary insults in phrase form, for instance. That would probably help a little in the detection and eviction of double identities and trolls.

[quote name='Ou7shined' timestamp='1321276611' post='1437169'] I think he has a point though as it could eliminate multiple screen identities being created in order to fuel a neg campaign on some poor schmuck. Admittedly it's only ever likely to happen once or twice. I liked you earlier post btw. [/quote] Shouldn't it be possible for the mods/admins to detect multiple identities almost automatically, through their (common) IP address? (not an expert here, so I may be wrong). Thank you for liking my post! If the system becomes permanent in its present format, I think I may end up liking other people's posts out of politeness as well as agreement, and then I'd become the official forum luvvie, mwah mwah dahlings Edited for grammar and typos. Sigh.

[quote name='charic' timestamp='1321275964' post='1437151'] Actually another interesting thought, should new people be allowed to + or - until they have posted a certain amount of posts? [/quote] Hm, why have a two-tier membership? I suppose you're entitled to have and express an opinion whether you've been a member for a month or several years, and if you're a dickhead, it probably doesn't make any difference to your behaviour how long you've been posting on the forum.

I've been following this thread with interest and curiosity, as a newbie. My tuppence is that I don't mind the presence of a Like button (got used to the ubiquitous one on Facebook, and it does save saying 'me too' or 'hear hear' too many times). However, I find the dislike/neg voting system a bit dodgy and would happily do without it, for the reasons stated by previous posters on this thread and because, honestly, it's more than a little childish in my view.

Ha! OK, thanks, at least I know it's not just me. But in my case the site is not just slow - it doesn't function at all. Anyway, I'll make sure to check it at other times and not in the middle of the night.

Might be the same problem, but you get an explanation for the blackout, and I don't.

Same here, it's easier to mute unwanted vibrations that way. But open strings are good when the note is long.

When I try to access this forum in the early hours of the morning, say around 2am, it seems to be offline every single time. It has happened at least three times so far, when I wanted to check the topics I posted on before going to bed. It happened last night when I tried to log on after a night out. The page just remains blank and displays Firefox's "moving circle" (hourglass) as if it was taking a long time to load, but it never does load. The forum works perfectly at all other times, and I'm using the same PC. Is it just me? I'm on Firefox 3.6.24 and Windows 7 Starter.

"I'd rather go BEAD if really necessary." Whaaat-everrrr...

Not a huge fan of the guy, but yes, you *can* play disco on 4 strings. Whether you should, or want to, given the existence of 5-string basses, is another matter

LOL yes, the decade By the same token I guess when I get round to having a heavy metal party, I'll have to specify that invitees are not required to wear steel or lead garments Edit - dontcha hate typos. Grr.

You will NOT be invited to my 70s naked disco party then

I play A LOT of disco and had to get a 5-stringer pronto as soon as my beginner's fretting hand became able to tackle one! Disco relies on octaves - at its most basic, you will have the same note repeated several times, but the first time it will be, for instance, a low D, immediately followed by two high Ds, then another low D, before changing chord and moving on. You simply can't do that properly on anything other than a 5-stringer. Quite apart from disco, there are rock and pop songs which rely on octaves; the reason why I'm hoping one day to buy an upright 5-stringer is that transposing for the normal upright often ruins the effect completely.

ROFL - Love it! Thank you

My amp is just a small practice one, so, erm, no, it's already hard enough to hear the damn B string properly in the regular tuning. Maybe one day, if I start playing in a band...

Very true! I tune down half a step when i play Metallica - that's what they do themselves. An entire step would not be kind to the B (or A in this case!) string, though - it would vibrate at an uncomfortably low frequency.

Hiram, I agree, and am total crap at transposing a song when i've learned it in its original key. I think the band's singer may be to blame in this case, perhaps? Some vocalists are more comfortable if the band tune down half a step, or have their own favourite keys to sing in.

We'll definitely organise a meetup when the time comes!

Remember that the most high profile performer was Mark King this year - to me, The Man Who Single-Handedly Killed Slapping. Forever. (I hate slap bass, and my hatred started with him and Level 42 all those years ago!) I guess that, as a consequence, many of the guests were expected to be, unlike me, fans of slap bass. There was a huuuge queue for the auditorium where he played. The demonstrators probably thought it was a good idea to show off that skill to attract custom. Hoping for a non-repeat of that this year!

I agree with you. If the Saturday is good, I might buy a ticket for the Sunday too, on the door, unless they're sold out.

Thank you! Still mostly lurking and reading but loving it nonetheless.

Do get one, if you're even remotely curious! It's the second best thing that's ever happened to me, after the "normal" bass guitar