SebCarr

My main amp lives in my living room, as it's beautiful and I built it!

In my experience it doesn't get in the way of picking, but does dig into your hand a little. But picking that far back brightens up and already bright sounding guitar anyway, so it doesn't bother me as I usually pick further forward. Compared to the most obvious comparator, they're probably no less comfortable to play than a Strat , just uncomfortable in a different way (but better in other ways - I find the strat volume control is in the way a lot). They are very odd guitars though. It's very clear that the Strat evolved from the Tele. Try one and see what you think - it may be a case of "original and best" or "inferior and underevolved" compared to many other electrics.

I was impressed with my Cort, but I didn't love it and hence sold it. It was my only bass. Since looking for a replacement I have begun to understand how people can fall for budget basses. Judging by the array of Fenders I've played of late (about a dozen Precisions from £179 to £1200) I can understand people trading down in cash value and getting something they prefer.

I like that a lot. Great sound and real musicians who can actually play!

That's true - but a pop shield or different head basket can make a very big difference to the sound of a microphone. But rather than buy an SM57, you can just remove the SM58 pop filter and see how it sounds to you. OP - tried an SM7b? Some people love em. Apparently good for high SPL.

Already played a RW, but only had a US standard to compare it to. I really like it, but I'm not sure I £940 liked it.

So, this really doesn't get any easier! Today I played a Squier Affinity, a Squier CV 50s, a MIM Standard, a MIM 50s, a Tokai Hardpuncher, and a Highway 1, initially in that order. The biggest surprise was the Affinity (black, rosewood). What a bass for £180! Light, nice neck, sounded, looked and played like a P. Looks a little cheap and wimpy pups but really impressive. But I don't [i]want[/i] one. If that was the only thing on offer it'd be fine, but it's not! The CV (blonde, maple) felt like a whole lotta bass. Loads of character. I really liked this. Roll off the tone and it sounded lovely, too. Not a very 50s finish (looked and felt like it'd been dipped in a large vat of extra thick and glossy varnish), and the pup was a bit of a wimp too. The 3 piece body looked fine, but I know that'd start to bug me in time (as my guitars hang on the wall). MIM Standard (sunburst, rosewood) Meh. Just Meh. Looked fine, played fine, sounded fine, but so lacking in character. Maybe it just needs a better pup to bring it to life? But it wasn't inspiring like the CV. MIM 50s (fiesta red, maple). I couldn't tell you where the extra £200 goes, but you can tell it's somewhere. Just [i]better[/i] in some way than the Standard and I don't know how or why. But I'd pick it over a standard, for sure. Tokai: disappointing. Thick finish. Very wide, flat fingerboard. All of the others felt like P basses. This looked the part, but didn't quite sound or feel like a P bass to me. Very different in character to the others - so I can see why they have a loyal following - but it's not for me. Highway 1 (honey, rosewood) - Hmm... love the nitro. Very woody tone. Nice to play, but something was lacking. BUT I just get the impression that this is probably old stock, with old strings. It sounded very dull unplugged. Nice to play, but felt a very different beast from a 50s (as it should, to be fair). All I know so far is an Affinity is too cheap and cheerful, a Tokai isn't for me and a MIM Standard doesn't get my pulse racing. Beyond that, I'm still lost - but making progress!

That was already in my watch list (and I was actually thinking that I'd want to put a white plate on it!)

Slipperman does know his stuff BUT it's definitely geared for those who can dime a 4x12 in a studio. For home recording it's really not practical (having been there, done that, and upset the neighbours! ). But great sounds can be had at lower volumes. I remember reading that some of the ultra-crunchy tones on Weezer's blue album (nothing like Rammstein, but great tones nonetheless) were recorded at bedroom volumes. They tried playing louder but couldn't get the tone! This was one of the early Mesa combos from memory, possibly a Mk1 but don't quote me on that!

In very simple terms a compressor is a dynamic volume control. When your signal goes above a certain level (the threshold) the compressor reduces the gain according to the ratio (higher ratio means more gain reduction). The attack control determines how quickly the compressor turns the signal down, and the release control determines how quickly it turns it back up again once the signal has dropped below the threshold. Compressors usually have a meter that shows how much gain reduction you're getting. People always seem to have their stock settings for attack, release, ratio, how many dB of compression they aim for. By all means, use google and find some for a starting point - but use your ears too, and go with what sounds good to you. Parallel compression is a technique where you have two tracks of the same thing: one is left uncompressed, or with very little compression; the other is compressed heavily. The starting point is to have the compressed track very low in the mix, and bring it up slowly - listening to what it does to your sound. When it sounds good, it is good. Phase: If you take two identical signals, and flip one 180 degrees out of phase, they will sum to complete silence. When you're blending two microphones on the same source, the sound from the speaker will reach them at different times. You need to experiment with positioning; a good way is to setup a close mic, and send the sound live to your headphones. Have someone else play some guitar for you. Walk around with a second mic, also being sent to your headphones. At some points in the room the mix in your 'phones will sound BAD. At some points it'll sound good. Just experiment.

Oh, and if I buy a cheap one now the girlfriend will veto an upgrade - "The one you have is good enough" etc...

[indent=1]It's the "shop with large stock" bit that's stumping me. I mean, in my dreams I'll wonder into a shop on a whim and find selection of Squier Affinity, VM, and CV, a Mex standard, Mex 50s, Road Worn, USA Highway 1, USA Special, USA Standard and a Custom Shop all lined up, with more than one of each in a bunch of colours, plus a used selection including US stuff from the 70s, 80s and 90s, various Japanese, an SQ, a JV and a Silver Series. All there, all at decent prices, with a friendly salesman, loads of time and an iso booth so I don't have to subject the rest of the shop to my noodling. Then I could play away, comparing two at a time and picking which I prefer until I get my answer.[/indent] [indent=1]But that's not going to happen. It's hard to find anywhere with even half of those new options in stock, let alone the used selection. So whether I spot a bargain on eBay or buy from a shop I'm going to be taking a bit of a punt.[/indent] [indent=1]I don't really need to play [i]everything,[/i] but I need to play enough stuff to feel like I made an informed decision, and that my P is a GOOD P. We've all heard about Fender's sliping standards and the 70s dogs, and how the JV really shook Fender up - yet every 70s and 80s P I've seen on sale has said something along the lines of "But don't worry, this is one of the GOOD ones" and I need to be in a position to say "yup, it sure is" or walk away with my cash still in my pocket![/indent]

Right, what software are you recording into? Let's take this from start to finish in the signal chain. First, the guitar: I've fold that old strings suck for any kind of DI recording. It just sounds like mud. I've also had a lot more success using a strat for heavy sounds over my Les Pauls. Counterintuitive, but works for me. My point is to experiment here and see what sounds good. Next, the DI. Does your Line6 have speaker simulation as an option? If it does, play with that. If not, you have two options: Get a clean signal into the computer, and use and amp sim in there, or get a distorted signal into the computer and add speaker simulation. I'll come back to that. If you go the clean signal + amp sim route, there are a lot of options. There are a lot of amp sim VSTs out there. Some people swear by some that others hate. You should download some demos and give them a shot, such as: Logic/Garagband's built in sims Digidesign Eleven (for ProTools) Metal Amp Room Studio Devil Amplitube Peavey ReValver NI Guitar Rig There are SO many now, so you'll have to see what works for you. I've often had much more luck by blending two sims to get the tone I want, either by duplicating the track, or by doubletracking. But the thing you'll soon figure out is that, while in the real world you can plug and old guitar into a big amp and get big tone with no fuss, in the virtual world you have to tweak and tweak and tweak some more to get something really nice. Play with the presets to get in the ball park, but expect them to be just a starting point to build upon. Now, for speaker simulation, the amp sims usually have resonable options included. But you can also use an impulse response from a guitar amp/speaker/microphone to replicate the effect of a speaker cabinet. In Logic the convolution reverb plugin, Space Designer, is perfect for loading these impulses. Sometimes I use an amp sim's speaker simulation, sometimes I use an impulse, sometimes I use both. Finally - filters. A lot of the sims (and a lot of guitar amps) put out a lot of really brash, fizzy overtones in the high frequency spectrum. This isn't nice. Try a low pass filter at the end of the signal chain to clean this up, and a corresponding high pass at ~80Hz (but use your ears!) to clear up the mud the heavy guitars put out. That space is for the bass (and kick) to live in! Oh, and if you've DI'd the signal will be very dry. A little room verb (and I mean a little) may bring it back to life and help it all gel. But most importantly - experiment, try stuff out, double and triple and quad track, and use your ears. You may not get exactly the tone you wanted, but you may get something awesome and original.

Oh man, is this ever a big and tricky subject. What's your current setup? Guitat/interface/software/plug-ins/settings? And what kind of tones are you looking for?

No way, Jazz necks feel puny! Being a guitarist first and foremost, when I played a Jazz I thought "where's the rest of the neck gone?". WAY too skinny!

hah, funny!

I didn't get to play any cheapies today, but I did play a US standard and a Road Worn in Wunjo (who were very friendly and helpful). I liked them both better than the Mex standard I tried at the weekend. The US model was a bit brighter, but the strings felt fresher so that may account for that. It had a bit more punch as you'd expect from a more modem pickup style. The Road Worn was lighter and just as nice to play, and had that lovely comfortable worn in feel. I'd rather have this, but with the hotter punch of the US pup I think! Hmm, Road Worn plus Wizard... Getting pricey! No wiggle room on price, either.

[quote name='Randy_Marsh' timestamp='1323823985' post='1467588'] I'm a sucker for block and bound necks and you don't see that on many P basses, just thought the OP shouldn't limit the search to Fender alone. [/quote] While I think precisions, and Fenders in general are best when they're left plain and simple.

Yeah, defo some nice things to be had if you know what you want or are willing to take a punt!

Fender vs. Others? Of course I'll try some others as I see them, and if I love something that's not a Fender than so be it. But for ease of resale, Fenders are pretty good (should I ever need to sell it - but the point of buying something I love is so I don't ever sell!) I tried setting a budget. The problem is I always think, say "Okay, £400 budget" and then spot something that's just a bit nicer at £450, and rationalise that, then spot something even nicer at £500, and so on. When I was in my teens my budget was "every penny I can scrape together". Thankfully that's not the case anymore - but that also makes it harder in a way. Sure I [i]could[/i] stretch my budget and buy a Custom Shop P, but that's probably a bit(!) over the top for the amount I play and the standard I play at (which is more a reflection on a busy life, and also playing guitar and piano, than it is on how much I enjoy playing). Re: American Special price - well, that also sums up how I feel about the MIM Classic series. £150 more for what? And then the Road Worn on top of that - another £300 again, for nitro paint and some distressing (on paper, at least). Although the two things that have stuck in my head from Sunday's shopping are the Highway One and the Road Worn (didn't play this, though). Something about the nitro just feels right.

I'll keep an eye out for a Lakland. Any thoughts on the American Special range? The blurb reads like it's a Highway One, without the nitro finish on the body (which I liked) or the badass bridge (which I'd like more if it didn't have Badass written on it...) and with a choice of fingerboards (which I appreciate, as I tend to prefer maple boards in looks, feel and tone).

This is part of Apple's plan to move away from boxed software, and towards an AppStore model for all apps, be they iPhone or Mac, consumer or professional. Great price, although I did like the stack of manuals that came with my boxed version of Logic 8 (about 8" thick!). And I even read some of it...

Thanks all. I guess there is a pinch of salt to be taken when people sometimes talk about how great some cheap stuff is. I mean, I've seen plenty of people say their VM is great, and [i]all[/i] they've done is replace the pots and socket with better ones, added an expensive pickup, a badass bridge, new strings, a new neck and a decent setup... I know the hardware feeling. I had an Epiphone Les Paul, and have a Gibson Les Paul. The Epi sounded good, and played well. It was a decent guitar, and very good VFM. The Gibson was basically the same thing. But the paint was that bit nicer, the neck that bit better dressed, the pickups that bit clearer, the paint that bit neater, the tuners that bit smoother, the switch that bit more solid, the pots that bit smoother... If I hadn't been given the Gibson, the Epi would've done me fine - but the Gibson was just that bit nicer in every way (and, to be honest, before I got the Gibson I was looking for something else. I haven't looked since I got it. It's not my perfect guitar, but it's good enough in a way that the Epi wasn't quite). Guildford's ten minutes on the train for me, so I'll have to check out Andertons.

Yes, I played two near identical Mexican Standards in the same shop. One had a horrible neck, one was okay. The Highway 1 neck in the same shop was much nicer than those two. It was a different style, but the main difference was that it was much more nicely dressed. Any recommendations for a shop in London or Surrey with a good stock of Ps?