bass_dinger

Best? A set of Dunlop round wouxnd strings. They turned a dull thuddy uninspiring unplayed Washburn XB500 into a lively, tactile and melodic instrument - my main bass. Worse purchase? A chorus pedal. I bought it for my acoustic guitar, but it thumps when I switch it on. The fault is with the guitar but I had intended to use it with the bass. However, it made the bass sound uninspiring and wobbly... Happily, my list of good purchases is longer than the list of purchases that were not right for me at this moment in time. Good stuff includes a Yamaha AG03 mixer - bass, YouTube on the PC and a set of headphones and I can practice in silence. A single case for all my kit. Two ring binders so I can separate out the ukulele chord stuff from the proper transcriptions of music from great YouTube artists like Infusion26. Most of my bass purchases are not basses....

How a ukulele sounds very much depends on the people playing it. 30 people in a village hall, all strumming the same chords on an Argos instrument, and all singing, will sound less musical than (say) George Harrison and Paul McCartney performing Ain't She Sweet. Some songs lend themselves to the ukulele; others don't. Nile Rodgers' strumming on the 5th fret of a guitar works well; the original guitar solo from Make Me Smile doesn't, as the ukulele does not have the necessary range. Fewer strings, and less sustain, compels the player to devise new ways of playing. Sometimes, that means 30 people playing badly. But it can also result in great musicianship.

The singer? A Shure SM58, a crackly lead, and a packet of throat lozenges and they are done.

I would have applied myself to learning music theory (rather than learn it by osmosis); and make the effort to learn a new tune every week (rather than simply noodle through what I already know) Wait..... I still can!! It was not all a disaster though - I think that I got my instrument upgrade route right, buying a much better one each time, so that upgrades were exponential rather than simply a change of instrument. Two electric basses, two acoustic basses, two acoustic guitars, four amps. In 40 years...

A tambourine is like perfume. A little bit in the right place is very effective. But too much, sprayed all around, is not good. Foot tambourines are very effective in an acoustic setting - a guy in the uke band has one. All tambourines seem to be able to cut through a mix, and the one foot version that I have heard has a nice tight sound - a short delay that really defines the beat. Cheaper tambourines can sound like a drawer full of cutlery being dropped down the stairs - lots of overtones and uncontrolled sustain. As for a foot tambourine in Hey Jude, I have to say Nah. Nah. Nah nanna na na, nanna na na, hey Jude.....

I have been lurking for a while, so, it's time to introduce myself. I play bass in both a ukulele themed covers band, and church. I enjoy trying to learn great bass lines from YouTube; I have one too many bass guitars; I wish I played better; I am pleased to see that my ear training is improving. Thanks to everyone who contributes to this great forum.

A 12 went on ebay for a piffling £110 (or a little less). Again, collection only (this time from Derby). A second one in (oddly again in Derby, but this time a 15) did not reach its reserve, but was bid up to £105. It's on again, and this time has reached £106. New 15s are for sale here, for £700 < [url="http://www.thebassgallery.com/swr.html"]http://www.thebassgallery.com/swr.html[/url] > From what I have heard about these, they really ought to be a lot more desirable (and thus, costly). But perhaps their combination of rarity and high-end pedigree means that many buyers have not come across them before, and so do not know what they are. But I do .... which is why I am looking for one. Robert