bass_dinger

7 minutes ago, Oopsdabassist said:

He then ranted at all of us for losing him his job

But... he asked you to use that email address!

Is anyone attending the Big Church Festival this bank holiday weekend, down at Wiston House near Steyning?

I am there (or at least, will be) for the duration. 

It would be good to bump into fellow Playing in Church basschatters near the discount CD sellers, or the acoustic tent.  

I turned up to a local gig with my folder full of bank statements, rather than my chord charts. 

Three spare basses. I tried to go for an obscure make and model, to make it difficult to find spares and duplicates, but I still have 4 Washburn Bantam basses.  Dual humbuckers, Dual single coils, dual Bartolinis.  Fretless Dual bartolinis.  Green.  Natural.  Zebra. Wacky blue-turquoise burst. Actually, they are a good thing to have  - fun to play, easy to use.  But I should have got rid of some of them earlier. 

A chorus pedal.  I  wonder what it sounds like - I must try it one day.

A thick plectrum.  I wonder what it sounds like - I must try it one day etc etc 

People who wear their basses low, and thus, have to bend the wrists on their fretting hands at a sharp angle.

My prejudice is that they therefore cannot play well  - and certainly not with dexterity and finesse. 

Yet I see such players on videos, in huge bands, and they seem to be managing OK. Maybe my prejudice is irrational...

Also, I don't understand how mathematicians calculate Pi and assume that it is all smoke and mirrors.  I have an irrational prejudice about an irrational number....

2 hours ago, GoodShowSir said:

Curious question for you all. Do any of you use a bass synth in church?

When I played, I did so without effects (and indeed, without effectiveness).  

It felt unnecessarily complicated to add layers of effects to so short a setlist. Indeed, I never even touched the pickup selector or tone controls. 

Any variation that I wanted, I could achieve with different finger-placement on the plucking hand.  

On 23/01/2016 at 13:26, Grangur said:

Mainland Europe

marcoelwray - Belgium  - Marco  does most things on basses

Edited January 14, 2020 by Grangur

Is this list still up to date, I wonder? 

I wanted to share the list with someone based in Belgium, but @marcoelwray can't be found. Pilot error on my part? Or has this member left the forum?

10 hours ago, lvrossem said:

I have tried both at a local store, and I was surprised by just how big and heavy the Squier was (I'm on the skinny side). THe Ibanez felt way better in hand bc of its lower weight and thinner neck, and tbh, I enjoy the look with 2 knobs on each side of the head.

I had the same issue when I first started on bass. 

The Fender model felt huge and unwieldy, but the Washburn was much more nimble.  The neck was wider, and I liked the 3+2 tuners on the headstock (3 above, two below).

I chose the bass that I most enjoyed playing, and which felt right in my hands.

On 09/01/2025 at 12:26, dave_bass5 said:

Do you have an audio interface? Some of those have MIDI ports. If not, and you are thinking of getting one, just get one with midi on the back. 

So, I have decided to upgrade to an audio interface with midi ports - the Behringer https://www.thomann.co.uk/behringer_umc1820.htm which appears to have 8 instrument-input channels.  It will replace a Yamaha AG03 (3 channels), chained to a Behringer Xenyx 802 (4 instrument-input channels).

I need to use midi cables to join up the three midi devices, that have the following ports:

~ Kurzweil SP76 (midi In, midi Out)

~ E-MU Classic Keys (midi In, midi Out, midi Thru')

~ UMC 1820 (midi In, midi Out)

I assume that it will be

1. Kurzweil SP76, midi Out > 

2. midi In of the E-MU Classic Keys / midi Out of the E-MU Classic Keys>

3. midi In of the UMC 1820. 

And if I want the PC to play the keyboard, I take the advice of @BigRedX : 

On 09/01/2025 at 13:25, BigRedX said:

If you do want to have the computer controlling the piano you'll need to look for the "local off" setting on your keyboard and connect both the MIDI In and Out.

4. That is, midi Out of the UMC 1820 > midi in of the Kurzweil SP76.

So, I will need three midi cables? 

_Behringer UMC1820 – Thomann UK.html

1 hour ago, tegs07 said:

I honestly don’t see the point of buying knock off chinese instruments for £200+ plus. There are loads of used instruments on Basschat marketplace that will be loads better for the same price and will still be worth what you pay for them 10 years later. The Ali express knock offs will most likely be firewood.

Good point, well made.

No Ali Express for me, especially when the real thing is available - and I can try before I buy.  

On 24/07/2025 at 21:28, jery978 said:

Thanks for information!

Hi @jery978.  Welcome to basschat.co.uk 

Do have a look at https://www.basschat.co.uk/forum/3-introductions/ and tell us a little about yourself. 

I do like a Gibson J200 - I was a big fan of the Reverend Gary Davis who used them for his fingerpicked blues.  However, I could never afford the real thing.

So, off to Ali Express I go.  Strictly browsing....

On 21/07/2025 at 12:49, Steve Browning said:

Cannon. I mean, that bloke in the 1812. What was he thinking?

He was aiming at the harmonica player, who got up and started playing during the premiere of the 1812. Tchaikovsky was so grateful to that audience member for his timely intervention, that he wrote the part into all subsequent performances.

True story.

On 13/07/2025 at 20:19, Rosie C said:

As the Deer Pants for Water

"Deer pants" has a nice descending bass line - I always used to play the octave line from Bach's Air on a G string underneath it.

On 16/07/2025 at 17:20, Itamar said:

Here's my baby

 

Congratulations on your first bass...

19 hours ago, TrevorR said:

Could it have been an amp setting thing or just not being used to hearing bass outside of a mix?

@TrevorRis right  - if one has only ever heard a bass guitar on a recording, through headphones or a laptop speaker, or even a hifi, then the sound of a real bass is shockingly powerful. 

One can mute the notes, play them shorter, not let the open strings ring out. One can even set the amp controls to 'flat' (no cut, no boost).  All those techniques will tame the bass sound. 

However, ultimately, the bass is a powerful instrument. 

I would worry less about the specifications and the numbers, and more about what instrument feels best in your hands. 

On 10/07/2025 at 20:48, neepheid said:

 

That reminds me, I must buy myself an ice lolly...

8 minutes ago, Chadu25 said:

. Let me know if it’s viewable.

 

Indeed yes 

Robert @bass_dinger

I have bought a new car, and more basses, and retired from work, all to make my attendance more possible.  It was a sacrifice that I was willing to make....

Is there a table for people selling their bass gear? Or will that be a separate thread?

Specialist musical instrument insurers would understand a musician's need for specialist instruments that are rare, and expensive. Think of what an orchestra would play - everything is likely to be custom made by specialist makers, or old and irreplaceable. 

In my case* I have a 30-year-old bass that only rarely comes up on the secondhand market and for which I needed to have a neck made in the USA.  Realistically the replacement value is about £1,400 but the resale value is maybe £600 if I can find someone who is interested in it. 

So I insured it for the higher amount. 

For yourself, like @Downunderwondersaid, you will need to have your bass remade - find yourself a lightweight body, sandblasting, refinish, rebuild. That will cost more to do than a standard bass, and the premiums would reflect that.

My view is that you should cost up the actual price of a replacement bass, get quotes for the work, and use that as the basis of the insured value.

*a Hiscox, so, I need to insure that too, for what another manufacturer would charge for such a moulded case.

There goes my plan to buy, store and then sell Hiscox cases, to fund my future musical instrument purchases.

Unless  ...  "For Sale.  Pre-RUF Hiscox Case, for your pre-CBS Fender. "  Yes, I think that I am on to something. 

More seriously,  RUF sounds like a great fit for the Hiscox legacy, and I am pleased to hear that their product will continue to be available.  Thank you for sharing that good news @matrycy.

On 15/03/2025 at 16:59, Burns-bass said:

I’m unfashionable and cheap.

 

 

And there's only one of you, so you're rare too!

If you can fit into a Hiscox case, I can store you in my airing cupboard for the next 30 years.

23 hours ago, Piers_Williamson said:

Is that a song you have to 'learn'?  It comes from the "Hi Ho Silver Lining' school of bass playing.

There is a single surprise minor chord in there, toward the end.  Fall asleep during verse 3, and you'll miss it.

And the right rhythm is important  - get it wrong and you'll sound like the Sunday Strummers Ukulele Club.

Ask me how I know...

On 01/07/2025 at 14:52, snorkie635 said:

Seems familiar to me. How 'bout you?

Not me.

I have sold a comic collection, and other instruments. I also put aside a piffling £12.50 per month to save regularly for instruments. Christmas and birthday presents, even money found when clearing out my parent's house. 

It doesn't always work out  - right now, I owe the joint bank account £550 for a spray job and body rebuild. However, last week, I found £500 worth of shares which I can now sell.

The above process has funded three Hiscox cases (1 mandolin, two bass), electric piano, two Washburn XB925s, an EMU synth module, a strap.

So, no, I do not have that problem.

On 29/06/2025 at 11:28, Marky L said:

Does anybody else have a dodgy temp fix that has become  semi-permanent? 

 

The earth pin somehow snapped off my pedal board power cube PSU whilst in its case. An IKEA pencil in the bottom of my gig bag pocket and a quick reshape with the multitool and voila! It's now fixed to the PSU with a hair tie and after six months is proving is efficacy 😃

 

 

 

 

One could instead use an earth pin repair kit.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/315722101136?_skw=replacement+plug+pin&var=614139214463&itmmeta=01JZ3AWDX0KBZVACP3MC8BXV3T&hash=item498280f190:g:0HcAAOSwxiBm1tjf&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA8FkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1eTrMiAGCJNorG0l7hwVVWPKgUQq0m0Wsden2GMNXeci9%2B%2Fdt8F7Yz6zHc0mcLCZwslevuhVCQayf1i1c5PTrfq4nBAXPsmRCsLlhy9nMVT2WsfbI2crLzT2y2Mq%2FMtkMg6MYvmprscq5FlM%2Fo5sc4AyailVWLNHN%2BR8J2lfk6WpJM6DhbDudxDgsXgHua%2FWExvC2yhsJmIjWu4624OriFaFuCeCYgDyDnsFhC8CBj9N%2B9ijt2mzZpelclfsqne56GkDhnXZbGCwkqpF85%2F7pKtmqR%2Bp3FB5wpwdqP2l3jV%2Bw%3D%3D|tkp%3ABFBM3t7x6vhl

Its purchase preserves both the pencil and @Marky L, for future and alternative use in the band.

I have one in my kit case, should the previous superglue-and-dowel repair to my own adapter fail.